Lost & Found

[Mythopoeika]

At an SF convention back in the 80s, I watched a film (a Dennis Wheatley dramatisation) that had also faded to magenta like that. It was weird.

 

[escargot]

I recently lost my bank card. Ransacked my house, car, every coat and bag I own to no avail. Eventually admitted defeat and had to order a new one.

However, I found it this morning down the side of the sofa when looking for something else, along with a lottery ticket from a few weeks ago.

So if you don't hear from me I'm out on my new yacht.

 

[CarlosTheDJ]

I recently lost my bank card. Ransacked my house, car, every coat and bag I own to no avail. Eventually admitted defeat and had to order a new one.

However, I found it this morning down the side of the sofa when looking for something else, along with a lottery ticket from a few weeks ago.

So if you don't hear from me I'm out on my new yacht.

I'm sure I've mentioned this before - MrsCarlos lost her bank card on a night out once, we had panicky drunken phone calls to the bank to cancel it and get a new one ordered etc.

It was in her bra.

 

[escargot]

I'm sure I've mentioned this before - MrsCarlos lost her bank card on a night out once, we had panicky drunken phone calls to the bank to cancel it and get a new one ordered etc.

It was in her bra.

That was a GOOD night out!

 

[hunck]

Secret Passageway In Palace Of Westminster Reveals 169 Year Old Graffiti

There was a hidden room behind.

The route into Westminster Hall was built especially for the procession to the coronation banquet of Charles II in the 17th century and was used afterwards to access parliament by political luminaries such as the first prime minister of Great Britain, Robert Walpole, and William Pitt the younger.

It was bricked up and the entrance was later hidden and forgotten about, and sometime after the second world war covered by wooden panelling.
During the ongoing restoration work of the Houses of Parliament the passage was rediscovered, as was a memento left by one of the men who helped block it with bricks.

In pencil, he had written: “This room was enclosed by Tom Porter who was very fond of Ould Ale.”

Mark Collins, Parliament’s estates historian, said he and his colleagues had been on a high ever since the discovery.

“To say we were surprised is an understatement – we really thought it had been walled-up forever after the war,” he said.

“We would love to hear from any descendants of Tom Porter or his colleagues and invite them to see where their relatives once worked.”

There was another surprise for the team when they entered the passageway – they were able to light the room. A switch, probably installed in the 1950s following restoration work after the second world war, not only worked but illuminated a large Osram manufactured bulb marked “HM Government Property”.

The room.

 

[EnolaGaia]

It seems that hard hats travel farther faster than most messages in bottles ...

Hard hat dropped into Mississippi River found 5 years later in Ireland

A hard hat that fell into the Mississippi River in 2015 is being mailed back to its owner after being found 4,300 miles away on a beach in Ireland.

Liam McNamara, a member of the Burren Shores Beachcombing & More Facebook group, said he found the hat on a beach in Fanore, County Clare, and sought help from social media in tracking down the original owner of the head wear.

The hat's custom paint job, in the purple and gold colors of Louisiana State University, and an intact sticker bearing the name of the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 25, helped McNamara get into contact with Matthew Bonnette.

Bonnette said he had been working in 2015 in Belle Chasee, La., near New Orleans, when his hat fell into the Mississippi River.

McNamara said he is mailing the hat back to Bonnette in Louisiana.

SOURCE: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2020/0...found-5-years-later-in-Ireland/2811584373149/

 

[Frideswide]

It seems that hard hats travel farther faster than most messages in bottles ...

also a nice touch that the hat came from Bonnette

 

[GNC]

What's far less amusing is that the hard hat illustrates how far reaching plastic pollution can be, and how it's in no way a local problem.

 

[Iris]

As I was walking to the door I noticed a key on the floor.
It was a garage door one, looking quite old.
I checked my keys and mine was still attached.
We haven't had a spare one for years and I can't work out where it's been as I do vacuum under things.

 

[EnolaGaia]

Another mysteriously well-traveled class ring incident ...

Utah man reunited with class ring lost in Germany after 38 years

A Utah man who lost his high school class ring in Germany in 1982 was reunited with the ring thanks to a man who found it on a beach in the United States.

Scott Sanders said he accidentally left his ring on top of a paper towel dispenser in Bitburg, Germany, in 1982, and he never expected to see the ring again.

Dan Thomander said he found the ring in the sand at a park in New Jersey or New York nearly 30 years ago. He said his father-in-law kept the ring in a safe for decades before giving it back to him and inspiring him to attempt to find its original owner.

Thomander said his online research revealed Sanders' high school had put all of their old yearbooks online, making it easy for him to determine the identity of the ring's owner. He searched for Sanders' current location and discovered he lives in Utah -- only 5 miles from where Thomander's son lives. ...

SOURCE: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2020/0...lost-in-Germany-after-38-years/4661588879151/

 

[escargot]

This is a cracking thread!

Anyway...

For various complicated reasons I put a new sewing machine bulb in a small sweet jar full of money (notes and loose change) and then did that 'Best put this safe!' thing and lost the lot.

Not only that, I forgot where I'd put the bulb so spent some time looking for that.

No problem though, if I need cash I can pop to the machine...
Only I can't because after losing my card the replacement came with a new and easy to remember number which I didn't use in lockdown and soon forgot.

So, no bulb, no cash, no way of getting any.

Rang the bank and ordered a new PIN in seconds.
Thinking about cash jogged my memory about putting the bulb in the jar, which I then found in minutes.

I swear I'm getting the Alzies.

 

[IbisNibs]

It's just the lack of your usual socializing--being isolated isn't healthy for brain cells. Virtual visits don't provide quite the cognitive workout, even when you have to figure out new technology.

 

[EnolaGaia]

Here's another lost class ring reunited with its owner ... That must have been one heck of a party ...

Man reunited with lost class ring after 22 years

A Kentucky man was reunited with his class ring after more than 20 years as demolition began on the building where it was last seen.

Stephen Turner of Owensboro said he lost his Apollo High School class ring at a party at Gabe's Tower in Owensboro in 1998, and he didn't see the item again until a Facebook post was brought to his attention. ...

Becki Burton, an employee at Apollo High School, had posted photos of the ring on Facebook, writing that it had been mailed to the school by an unknown person. Classmates tagged Turner in the post, believing it to be his ring.

Burton said the origin of the package containing the ring was unknown. Turner theorized the ring might have been found during preparations for the demolition and mailed back to the school.

"The fact that they were tearing down the tower, I instantly thought maybe they were tearing out some things at the tower and they found it wedged behind one of the dressers. It's pretty crazy," Turner told WEHT/WTVW.

Demolition of Gabe's Tower, a landmark building that opened as a hotel in 1963, began Monday.

SOURCE: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2020/0...lost-class-ring-after-22-years/9831591726338/

 

[EnolaGaia]

This may well represent the record length of time between loss and rediscovery of a class ring - 97 years.

Metal detector hobbiest finds 97-year-old class ring in Illinois park

An Illinois man walking with his metal detector in a public park found a class ring dating back 97 years underneath the soil.

Steve Aimone of Godfrey said he was using his metal detector at Rock Springs Park in Alton when he found the 10-karat gold ring at the top of a steep hill.

He said he does not think the ring was intentionally buried.

"It was only about 3 inches below ground," he told The Telegraph newspaper.

The ring, a 1923 class ring from Western Military Academy in Alton, was engraved with the name of its owner, Mervin E. Volle.

Aimone said his research indicated Volle served in World War II and moved to California, where he later died. He said he was able to contact a distant family member who said Volle had a child before he died.

The metal detector hobbiest said he is now hoping to identify and contact Volle's child so he can give them their father's ring. ...

C.B. Jackson, a Western Military Academy historian, expressed interest in adding the ring to his collection in Volle's family can't be found.

SOURCE: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2020/0...ld-class-ring-in-Illinois-park/1161591988400/

 

[hunck]

A lot of these lost & found rings are 'class rings'. If you get your name engraved of course it makes it possible to trace the owner. It's not a tradition in the UK - are they common/usual in the US?

 

[EnolaGaia]

A lot of these lost & found rings are 'class rings'. If you get your name engraved of course it makes it possible to trace the owner. It's not a tradition in the UK - are they common/usual in the US?

Yes. See this January 2020 post:

https://forums.forteana.org/index.php?threads/lost-found.15028/post-1926792

 

[Tempest63]

I once gave my wife a mix tape when we were seeing each other but not engaged or married. She thought that the songs were a romantic subtle message until she got to the last song. "Waving My Dick In The Wind" by Ween. Thankfully she burst out laughing on the bus.

I gave my first wife a complete mix of songs when we first met at 17. I can’t remember how many years later she realised that the words to special brew by Bad Manners were about beer!
I love you, yes i do
'cause i know that you love me too
I love you, yes i do
gona spend all my money on you

 

[escargot]

I gave my first wife a complete mix of songs when we first met at 17. I can’t remember how many years later she realised that the words to special brew by Bad Manners were about beer!
I love you, yes i do
'cause i know that you love me too
I love you, yes i do
gona spend all my money on you

I've seen them perform that. Was not disappointed.

 

[EnolaGaia]

Here's a lost and found story involving a remarkable coincidence ...

Man spots his long-lost ice skate hanging from signpost

A Quebec man preparing to finally throw out his orphaned left hockey skate seven years after losing its twin discovered the long-lost ice skate hanging from a sign.

Jeff Meldrum, 47, said he was recently going through the sporting equipment in the basement of his Chelsea, Quebec, home as part of his family's preparations for an upcoming move in July when he came across his single size 10D Reebok ice skate.

Meldrum said the last time he saw the right skate was about seven years ago, when he has to leave an ice rink in a hurry when his son, Owen, then 4, fell and injured his chin. ...

Meldrum said he and Owen, now 11, were driving on a local road June 22 -- the same day he had decided to discard the remaining skate -- and spotted a familiar-looking skate hanging from a signpost at the end of a driveway.

"I said to [Owen] jokingly, 'Hey we should turn around -- maybe that's my skate,'" Meldrum recalled.

He did end up turning around, and to his surprise, it was indeed his long-lost skate.

The driveway led up to the home of Elyse Piquette, who had found the skate at the side of the road while walking seven years earlier. Piquette said she suspected someone might be missing the skate, so she took it home and posted an ad in the classified section of a local paper hoping the owner of the lost item might see it.

Piquette said she also posted an ad online, but when there were no responses, the skate ended up forgotten in her garage. She said she put numerous items from the garage at the end of her driveway after a recent cleaning, and the skate was the only object that wasn't quickly taken by passers-by. ...

SOURCE: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2020/0...ce-skate-hanging-from-signpost/6991593453920/

 

[EnolaGaia]

Here's another long-lost class ring story. This one is more remarkable for the manner in which its possible (and, as it turns out, actual ... ) owner was suggested ...

Long-lost class ring returned to woman after 45 years

A North Dakota woman who lost her high school class ring 45 years ago had it returned to her, thanks to a chance conversation between two firefighters.

Betty Thompson said she graduated from Flasher High School in 1973 and lost her class ring two years later after moving to Mandan.

"My mom saved her money from selling eggs and cream to buy my class ring for me. I never told my mother because I felt so bad she wasted all her money on me," Thompson told KFYR-TV.

Mike Hanson of Mandan said he was remodeling the basement of his home when he found a Flasher High School ring.

"Then we kind of forgot about it. That was 25 years ago," he said.

Hanson, a part-time firefighter with the Mandan Fire Department, said the ring resurfaced in his home recently. He and his wife were researching the ring's potential origins when he got called to a fire.

Hanson said he put the ring on his finger for safe-keeping, and while on the way back to the station, it caught the eye of fellow firefighter Dan Miller.

"He said it had the initials 'BF' on it. I said, 'You know, wife's aunt's name is Betty.' And her last name was Fleck before she got married. It could be her ring," Miller said.

Miller sent photos of the ring to Thompson, who was shocked to see her long-lost ring.

"I just said, 'It can't be!, And I screamed," Thompson said. ...

SOURCE: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2020/0...turned-to-woman-after-45-years/8401593705356/

 

[escargot]

These class rings are always going missing and turning up again.

 

[escargot]

A former large chemist shop was converted into a kickboxing centre. When the owners dug around upstairs they found boxes full of unclaimed photos from the 1980s.

Treasure trove of unclaimed memories uncovered in former town centre chemist

"Whilst running new wiring through the lofts we discovered a few boxes, and at first we thought they were just empty unused envelopes from the building's former life as a chemist that processed film from old 35mm cameras.

"When we looked inside, we found that the packages were full of developed photos that were never collected by customers. They depicted everything from family holidays, birthday parties, and even royal visits."

When Michelle realised what she had discovered she set up a Facebook group so she could share this time capsule with local residents and maybe even reunite the images with the owners or families.

One must wonder, why weren't the photos collected? Back then you had to pay a small deposit and cough up the rest on collection. It wasn't exactly cheap and the photos were often dire so perhaps some customers just thought better of it.

Other reasons occur to me. I bet there'll be a few blushes when certain photos go up.

 

[Trevp666]

Some signs have appeared on some trees and lamp-posts around my local park asking people to be on the lookout for their escaped tortoise.
Man, that must've been a particularly slow escape.
And it can't have gotten all that far.
I mean, I know that tortoises can actually move quicker than most people would expect, but Linford Christie they aint.

 

[JamesWhitehead]

tortoises can actually move quicker than most people would expect,

They can indeed. Ours was mainly content in the large back garden but from time to time he would have an attack of wanderlust and go stalking down the drive or visit neighbouring gardens. When we discovered that Grannie, who lived next-door, was utterly terrified of him, his visits to her became mysteriously frequent. There was even a nefarious plan to hide him in her bed.

 

[JamesWhitehead]

Rediscovery of a Surreal, Erotic Gramophone!

I had never heard of it, oddly. The article has only a historic photograph and it is said that the rediscovered piece needed significant restoration - such as the addition of legs, hand and bum, one conjectures, meanly!

 

[Bad Bungle]

I mean, I know that tortoises can actually move quicker than most people would expect, but Linford Christie they aint.

They are the most aerodynamic land animal, evolved to chase fleet lettuce.

 

[Bad Bungle]

One must wonder, why weren't the photos collected?

I have a vague memory of a news story where the Leader of an expedition sponsored by the Royal Geographical Society (I think) took all the official photos to either Boots or Happy Snaps for developing and they 'mislaid' them all. RGS wasn't impressed with him.

 

[escargot]

I have a vague memory of a news story where the Leader of an expedition sponsored by the Royal Geographical Society (I think) took all the official photos to either Boots or Happy Snaps for developing and they 'mislaid' them all. RGS wasn't impressed with him.

There was a belief that photos would be scrutinised by the staff and any unsuitable ones would be confiscated and disposed of.

 

[CarlosTheDJ]

There was a belief that photos would be scrutinised by the staff and any unsuitable ones would be confiscated and disposed of.

I worked in Dixons at weekends when I was a teenager, we had a developing service.

There was often the odd racy 'topless wife by the pool' shot in a set of holiday snaps but one guy proudly dropped in a roll of film starring his girlfriend in a different outfit/lack of outfit every Saturday.

When he realised we weren't censoring anything, and he got every picture back in glorious technicolor, they started pushing the boundaries and the only word I can use to describe some of the pics is 'gynaecological'.

She came in to collect the photos herself one week and asked the manager if we had any requests.

 

[JamesWhitehead]

There was a belief that photos would be scrutinised by the staff

I recall there was a case when the staff alerted the authorities to a set of bathtime pics by parents, on the grounds that they were potential abusers or providing fuel for perverts. It seemed to mark the onset of a new attitude to depictions of children*.

*Fewer the better, in my view!