You may still be sideways, but not necessarily hallucinating the missing drive train.

Same thing has happened to two friends VW type 1 & 2s; in broad daylight no less... but then they're easier to get out. They resorted to padlocks afterwards.

Here somewhere was a guy whose 122 was stolen and subsequently recovered several months later. The culprit had an entirely 'hot' Vintage Volvo collection in LA.

I once raced a guy I went to high school with, my totally stock '73 mark IV and his hopped-up El Camino. I beat him going uphill in a shameful display; trouble was he interned at the shop I frequented; he came to the car while I was at work once and filed grooves into the return spring of the carb's throttle, and slyly hammered the power steering pulley out of true. It all came apart on the freeway.

I suppose if I was going to steal a diff I'd want the wheels to roll it on. but judging from my '70s axle swap I'd still be doing it 3 months later.

I always find evidence of parties and picnicks on my cars.
Someone used the hood of the lincoln for a dance floor.
A friend's honda was found after being reported stolen: stripped to the bone but still idling. Can't read russian so I don't know why.
The roof of a 544 used for a slide.
beer bottles and pizza in my Citroen DS (nothing worse thank god).
A cat lived 3 days in the other Citroen before someone found it.
Fast food all over my 122 on multiple occasions. Also someone climbed on the roof.
Streaks of vomit on the fender of one of the 142s and a passed-out party girl in the gutter underneath.
2 35lb bags of pond rocks, plastic flowers in a pile of dirt on the driver's seat, a poem, and a sealed medical valise of urine appeared one night in my then girlfriend's bug.

Couldn't hurt to try to cheer you up, but you might be self-medicating by now...

-SRC
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1966 122s, 1970 142s, 1974 142e... Blue is beautiful