Pay it Forward

Monday, December 14th, 2020 – Safeway

The new week started with mild temperatures and a mist, no money and no roadkill.

We periodically find wildlife scat. Today it was cougar.

Ok, it was only a WSU Cougar and looked like a mask. But it could be considered scat.

We found another socket for our tool collection.

We still need a socket wrench. We have found a couple, but none that work. They’ve all been runover.

Someone left us a hamburger.

Partially-eaten and the “meat” was gone. Thank you, but no thank you.

But wait, they left us a full pack of McDonald’s fries.

McDonald’s fries are very good when they are fresh and warm. When Chuck was young, he would get McDonald’s fries and a vanilla milkshake. Sheer ecstasy. Now it would be a guaranteed heart attack. Also cold McDonalds fries are nonbiodegradable. We tossed them into the bushes for the birds and other critters. Turns out, they don’t want a heart attack either and the fries remain untouched and undegraded for weeks.

We came upon a spring.

Not the idyllic water feature kind of spring like Niagara Falls, a major spring like Iguazu Waterfalls.

We are talking a major, heavy spring. We researched the (metal) spring and nearest we can tell, it costs about $40. We’ll probably recycle it which seems a shame. Perhaps we should spring into action and offer it on eBay.

We found a very anemic ball.

No home nearby and almost a shell of its former self. We did reluctantly give it a place in our ball orphanage. Who knows, it may become a prodigy of some sort like on “The Queen’s Gambit,” but we don’t see it. We’ll probably end up supporting it for the rest of its life.

We also found a shoe in the gutter.

Unfortunately there was only one. They say if the shoe fits, wear it. It didn’t so we didn’t. We ended up giving it the boot.

Now here is something we can use, duct tape.

The grandkids are spending a few nights with us, so this will come in handy.

Tuesday, December 15th, 2020 – Park-and-Ride

At the Park-and-Ride today, another party.

This time it was the Bud Light guys. No food. At least the Coors Light guys normally bring along a Slim Jim sausage.

We didn’t take a picture of it, but soon after the start of our walk, we found a baseball across the street from a school yard. It looked to be in good shape and it got tossed back. Later we found another baseball that, unlike the first ball grew up on the wrong side of the track.

It looked like it had spent a lifetime living on the streets. In fact, we found it in the gutter on Simonds Road. It was coming apart at the seams. Literally. Yes, we carried it home and placed it in our ball orphanage. We are starting a GoFundMe page to help us with the expenses. Remember, a ball is a terrible thing to waste. We’ll keep you informed, and remember, be generous.

We found another lost mask. Evidence shows that wearing masks help prevent the spread of the virus but does not stop it.

The Lord’s Prayer. We believe this increases the odds.

Wednesday, December 16th, 2020 – Safeway

Today was warmer and dry and made for a pleasant walk.

We found more food.

A squash, we think.

And turkey, we think. At least it tasted like turkey. We know you expected it to taste like chicken. But the squash tasted like chicken.

We found a small piece of chain.

These may be the long sought-after missing links. We’ll contact the Smithsonian Museum, but we’ve contacted them in the past and they’ve ignored us.

Yet another child’s hat.

We found two kid’s hats last week and another today. Probably the parents are desperate to get the toddlers out of the house. We understand.

We found an aluminum object with something inside.

When we got it home, we pulled out a clamp with a small piece of plastic. It had a brand name, Coghlan’s on it. After more research than it deserved, we tracked it down to a water-proof container.

We didn’t find the cap. Five dollars on Amazon.

One of the example uses is for keeping your five-dollar bill dry.

But wait. It costs five dollars. You are going to spend five dollars to protect five dollars?

As we were walking down Juanita-Woodinville Way past Safeway, we spotted something in the middle of the street. It was a plastic Ziploc bag with a piece of paper in it. When we collected it, we found this written on the outside.

Ok, our hackles were up at this point. Should we open it? It could be a trap of some sort. We had gloves on, so we proceeded.

Here is what we found.

“Merry Christmas! I don’t know you, in fact you are a total stranger, but I truly hope you have a wonderful day. Remember, life is short and you are loved. It will be all right. Now go get yourself a cup of coffee, you beautiful human.”

Not much we can say after that. And we did have a wonderful day. We can’t count this as found money because someone planted it. We will place it somewhere for someone else to find. Face down, of course.

Thursday, December 17th, 2020 – 160th to 24th Street

We had a 7am appointment this morning, so did not walk. Yes, we could have awakened at 3:00 am to walk but that wasn’t going to happen.

Friday, December 18th, 2020 – 100th Ave NE Route

No money and no roadkill. It’s close to the end of the week and we haven’t found any money.

Yet another baseball that escaped from the practice field on 112th Ave NE. It got tossed back over the fence.

We have probably tossed back about thirty of these over the years and they cost about ten dollars for three. So that’s about One hundred dollars worth of balls. A ten percent finder’s fee seems reasonable to us, so we should be due ten dollars. We’ll send them an invoice and see what happens. Next, let’s talk about the soccer balls.

Along Juanita-Woodinville Way, another drug needle.

Standard King County issue syringe. Exposed needle with no cap. We’re sure glad these folks are staying safe.

We found another bungee cord.

It will go into our bungee cord collection, but it was run over and the end hooks need some work. But it can be reformed. Reformed as in change the shape, not as in stop falling off vehicles.

We picked up a tool!

This was one of those specialized caulking guns that fit in very narrow spaces, like 3/4 of an inch. It did not end up in our tool collection.

More unopened food.

Chicken Noodle Soup. This is the classic fever solution. Have they tried it on COVID-19? Of course not, no scientific evidence. Only about 400 years of experience.

We found an NFL Houston Texans hat.

Not our team, but it fit.

A few days ago, we found a bunch of discarded fluorescent light bulbs on the hill and reported it to the city.

These were removed, but today two more of the eight-foot tubes appeared.

They were probably out of sight and someone pulled them out. We were within a mile from home so decided to haul them with us.

Someone lost a large umbrella.

So, we picked that up too. It was in very good shape. Well not now, but when it was opened.

As we rounded the corner toward home, another hubcap.

Well, more of a hub ring.

As we approached home, we noticed that the traffic on the hill, normally friendly, was aloof or ignoring us. Then we realized, we were carrying eight-foot fluorescent tubes, a hubcap, an oversized umbrella and wearing a Houston Texans cap. It must have been that damned cap!

Saturday, December 19th, 2020 – Riverside Drive

It rained last night and more rain is predicted this afternoon, but it was dry during our walk. We removed a mole or shrew from the roadway. It’s hard to tell the difference and it wasn’t talking.

We did find money, though.

Only a penny, but at least we didn’t get shut out this week.

We found a credit card and a coffee gift card.

The credit card had a unique name and we were able to track the owner down and return it to her. She didn’t even know she had lost them.

We found three tools today.

A putty knife, a screwdriver and a rake. Ok, make that two tools.

Also four car parts.

They were in good condition so we hauled all home except for the mat. We didn’t want to get caught with Superman’s floor mat. You know, x-ray vision and all that. Let him figure out which dumpster it’s in.

At the park-and-ride party corner, more beer cans.

We are going to start hanging out here. Who knows, they might be a fun group. But Bud Light and Coors Light? Nah.

At a different location at the P&R, a bunch of short straws.

We’ve found short straws before, typically with burnt tin foil used for cooking dope. Perhaps someone held a straw vote? Or maybe they put too many straws on the camel? We really don’t know, we’re just grasping at straws here.

This was on the freeway offramp.