I once was lost...

I hate losing things.  I know that this is not uncommon.

I categorize lost items into two types:  things lost in the mire of my house, AKA eventually findable things, and things lost on the outside, AKA things that are most likely gone.

It seems like there has been a rash of lost items in my life lately:

1.  The toothbrush that I was sure I packed and took to St. Croix

2.  A pair of black pants I wear to work

3.  The metal rulers I use constantly for crafts

4.  Craig’s name badge with the really good magnet from St. Croix

5.  My house key

The first three items fall into category one - lost in the house.  The last is in the latter category.  The fourth is in the murky in-between area.

1.  When I travel, I always pack my toothbrush last thing in the morning.  I know I pulled out the toothbrush holder the night before, and then the morning we left for St. Croix, put the toothbrush in another holder and packed it.  Maybe.  But when we got to St. Croix, I had no toothbrush, and had to buy another one.  But I’m still convinced that if I comb through my bedroom one more time, and check in that suitcase again, I will find it!  I know it!

2.  My black pants were hiding.  I wash them at home, so they weren’t at the dry cleaners.  They weren’t in the closet, the hamper, or hanging up in the laundry room.  They were gone.  Until I remembered that I took them to DC in January in case I needed pants that weren’t jeans, and finally looked under the dress in that bag of clothes on the closet door.  FOUND!

3.  As a result of last month’s craft room cleaning and partial re-organization (more on that, and the January Cure anon), my 12” metal rulers have gone astray.  They have to be in there somewhere, but when it came time to make my valentines, and I finally remembered where all of the rulers ended up, they were not to be seen.  Still looking.  So frustrating.  I know they are in there!!!!!

4.  In St. Croix we were given the usual pin-on badges, along with very powerful, rectangular magnets.  These were fantastic.  We could avoid putting holes in our clothes, but the shape of the magnet kept the badges on, and not spinning around on an axis point like the small circular magnets do.  We wore them daily, and on the last day, I packed mine in a carry-on bag.  I have a memory of pointing out to Craig at some point that he could stop wearing his button, and he took it off and either handed it to me, or stuck in in one of our luggage pieces.  We can’t remember which one.  And now it is gone.  Just gone.  We’ve searched everywhere.  Even though I think this one is in the category of lost in the house, and will be found at some point, I suppose there is a small chance that it was in our checked luggage and removed by airport authorities because of its strong magnetic powers.  Unlikely, maybe, but possible…

5.  Last Friday, as is my usual habit, I left myself just enough time to get to my morning train into work.  I’m always trying to do one more thing before leaving the house.  Usually that one more thing is finishing my breakfast.  Last Friday the one more thing was add a couple more items to the recycling on my way to the train.  I remember picking up my bag, finding my house key and grabbing the empty cereal box to toss into the can as I passed it.  Sometime between that moment and when I arrived at the office, my key went missing.

I am an optimist about the Category 2 missing items.  I almost always think I will magically find things.  And I have!  Earrings have turned up on sidewalks.  My dropped wallet was mailed back to me.  My MAC card left on the supermarket check-out counter was waiting for me when I went back to claim it.  Thin Mints and a water bottle that I left at a dance were still there months later!!!!  I felt sure that my key would resurface.

I turned out every bag and pocket I could think of, kept looking in the train station, asked at the place where I get my coffee.  No key.  I was slowly coming to the conclusion that I most likely dropped the key into the recycling can with the cereal box, and both were hauled away.  But I still kept looking.

It snowed last Friday.  Yesterday morning (Wednesday), as I hurried to the train (now leaving 3 minutes earlier, yet still arriving at the same time, i.e., late, go Septa), on the ground next to sidewalk leading up to the train platform was my key!  Hurrah!  Once the snow melted, it was revealed, probably right where I dropped it...