Crime is a serious matter, but sometimes it’s less serious. Oddities, suspicions and inexplicable behavior found their way into the Mercury News police blotter throughout 2012.

At one time, Atherton was the undisputed champion of the eyebrow-raising police call (“A duck is following me,” and other classics); this year it has been surpassed by other Peninsula cities. Below are some of the more unusual reports from local law enforcement agencies.

Vandalism, miscellaneous property crimes

Belmont: A day after selling a table on Craigslist, a woman found 200 plastic forks and knives stuck in her front lawn. (Nov. 24)

Redwood City: A resident called at 1 a.m. to report that his patio furniture was on top of his car. (April 27)

Burlingame: A man complained that someone was leaving bags of marijuana in his dumpster. (Sept. 22)

San Mateo: A resident suspected a neighbor of breaking a kitchen window with a watermelon. (April 24)

Burlingame: A rental vehicle that spent time in Oakland was returned with a bullet hole. (March 30)

Los Altos: Paint, or possibly sherbet, was thrown at a car. (Sept. 26)

Theft

Redwood City: Bunny ears were stolen. (April 13)

Belmont: Two large boulders were stolen. (Aug. 8)

Burlingame: A person reported the loss of items within the past 12 years. (June 11)

Assaults

Redwood City: A person reported being kicked by a man wearing a cowboy hat and calling himself “sheriff.” (March 23)

Campbell: A person was hit in the face with a bag of hot dogs on Thanksgiving. (Nov. 27)

Noises

Burlingame: After residents reported strange noises in their home, police found an intoxicated former service worker in the closet. (Sept. 28)

Palo Alto: After a resident reported noises, a stranger in a suit and tie was found on the roof of her home. (Feb. 23)

San Mateo: A woman reported an intruder in her closet. Police found no one there, and she was arrested on drug charges. (Feb. 29)

Burlingame: Apartment dwellers whose ‘playful romance’ sounded like cursing and yelling were advised to keep it down. (May 9)

Burlingame: Police responding to a report of a fight in an apartment found a family playing Wii Bowling. (May 17)

Animals

Belmont: A young deer prevented a resident from leaving his garage. (May 22)

Burlingame: A family and their pets were ‘held hostage’ by a raccoon that entered the house through the doggie door. (July 10)

Burlingame: A woman reported having raccoons in her tree. Or maybe it was a bear, she suggested later. (Oct. 19)

Burlingame: A wolf was reported walking in the street outside Peninsula Temple Sholom. (Nov. 21)

Redwood City: A woman feeding seagulls on Middlefield Road attracted so many birds that they caused a traffic jam. (Dec. 5)

Foster City: White powder was reported on the floor of the restroom at the dog park. Firefighters responded and determined it was flea powder. (Nov. 13)

Foster City: An elderly man with a small dog was reported to be causing a disturbance by yelling animal noises. (Oct. 16)

Redwood City: A dog tied to a pole was reported to be ‘showing its teeth’ to passersby. (April 14)

States of undress

Fremont: A man removed his clothes in Thrift Town and refused to leave. (Nov. 10)

Foster City: An ‘offensive’ older man was reported to be sunbathing in spandex underwear in Leo J. Ryan Park. (Oct. 5)

San Mateo: A person told police about a driver who makes a habit of stopping at a bus stop, dropping his pants and then driving away. (Feb. 7)

Burlingame: A woman not wearing pants was reported. Police responded and determined that a dress shirt covered her sufficiently. (Feb. 9)

Burlingame: A man who was having trouble keeping his pants up told police he was trying out suspenders for the first time. (Nov. 28)

Marital issues

Burlingame: A woman upset with her husband for failing to replace broken window panes broke a few more. (Jan. 3)

Foster City: A man who returned home to find new sod in his yard called police before learning his wife was responsible. (March 20)

Belmont: Man, 97, asked police to tell wife, 94, that she needs to get inside the house. (June 2)

Other interpersonal situations

Burlingame: A woman sought police advice on excessive text messages from her nephew — 74 in the previous two hours. (Aug. 11)

Belmont: A concerned person called to report a situation involving her mother: A cable company employee made a sales call at the mother’s house, then returned the next day and has been living with her since. (April 3).

San Mateo: An intoxicated person who entered a stranger’s house by mistake ended up in the closet. (May 2)

Burlingame: A man unhappy with a free shoe shine was advised to request that the shine be removed. The shiner complied. (March 7)

Foster City: A woman who was picking up a friend complained that the friend’s mother refused to get off the hood of the car. (June 21)

Welfare checks

Burlingame: An employer asked police to check on a man who had missed several days of work. The employee told police he was fine and just didn’t feel like going to work. (April 28)

Burlingame: A woman whose absence had worried her employer told police she quit her job without telling anyone. (Sept. 13)

Foster City: A heavy sleeper who missed a doctor’s appointment was awakened by emergency responders who entered from the balcony. (April 13)

Suspicions

Belmont: A passerby reported a ‘suspicious’ car: It was dirty, had towels over the window and set the man’s dog to barking. (Aug. 18)

Belmont: A ‘suspicious’ vehicle cruising up and down the block on a Sunday afternoon turned out to be piloted by a teenager getting a driving lesson. (June 27)

Belmont: A driver parked a gray van, got out and walked up the hill. The reporting party found this suspicious. (May 11)

Redwood City: A ‘suspicious’ man at a park was inviting people to meet his dog, a yellow Labrador retriever. (Dec. 7)

Burlingame: A ‘suspicious’ man reported to be loitering near Franklin Elementary turned out to be the crossing guard. (June 5)

Redwood City: A woman reported three coffee cans with lids at a bus stop. They hadn’t been there the previous day. (May 8)

Woodside: A woman hanging laundry on a clothesline found a pink bra in her backyard and called police. (April 19)

Belmont: A man received an envelope he was not expecting. (Jan. 20)

Belmont: A woman said her apartment building smelled funny and she wanted an officer to investigate. (April 25)

Foster City: A resident reported feeling the presence of something outside the window. (Sept. 11)

Miscellaneous odd behavior

Redwood City: A man carrying a butcher knife was walking toward the library at 8 on a Saturday morning. (Aug. 2)

Burlingame: A person who reported seeing a man gyrating while holding a book was reluctant to say anything further. (April 7)

Best of the Atherton police blotter

Best of the police blotter, 2015

Best of the police blotter, 2014

Best of the police blotter, 2013