Left Behind

[Captain Trips]

I understand that Yo Yo Ma once left his cello in a cab on his way to a performance. Fortunately the cabbie realized it and got it back to him before showtime. But if Yo Yo Ma can forget his cello....

[SixFortyK]

One day someone left behind a live parrot in a paper bag.

What?? What did you folks do with the poor thing?
Gah! Animal abuse and abandonment bothers me to no end.
Poor lil' parrot!

It was in a paper bag sitting in a shopping cart just outside. Clerk opened it expecting to find trash or forgotten groceries. Out came this parrot. Unfortunately, it flew off. Too bad, I have relatives into exotic birds. Could have found a good home for it quite easily. Really stinks what some people will do.

[Argabarga]

Entire vehicles are routinely left behind unclaimed, and sometimes, even when we send certified mail to the last known address or try the contact info we got directly from them, we still can't locate an owner.

Now, for some of these vehicles, it's easy to see why, they're in such lousy shape, a parking ticket would total the car, let alone a tow/impound/storage fee trifecta.

Occasionally we do find an owner and get a good story as to how you can lose your car for 4 to 8 months, best ones so far, the guy who got popped and went to jail and the guy who's jilted ex took his car and parked it three towns over knowing it'd get towed eventually and by the time it was traced back to him, it'd cost more than it was worth to redeem (and it indeed had)

Our current record holder is the 30 year old Yamaha motorcycle with Ontario plates, can't find an owner, and our DMV can't reissue a clear title on a vehicle last tagged in another country until the previous owner is found.

We've had it for 4 years now and counting, it'll rust away before we find a legal means to get rid of it, so it just sits in a far corner, slowly getting eaten by plants.

[DGoddessChardonnay]

It's happened a few times at the library that someone has left a stroller behind - not sure how the customer could have forgotten that. (as far as I know, nobody ever called or came in looking for the said stroller(s), not sure what staff did)

We've had the occasion to have a infant carrier left behind last summer. Now how in heck do you lose that???

Even stranger, nobody called to ask if we had one. I think we had it in the back for a few weeks before it went to Fred (our dumpster.)

[Tama]

You named your dumpster? :-)

That's neat.

[gerund]

You named your dumpster? :-)

I had a clam called "Sir Stafford" and a pet fish called "Eric" He is an halibut.

[Seanette]

You named your dumpster? :-)

That's neat.

The shredder in the admin office where I work is named "Chewie". He's a messy eater, too.

[AccountingDrone]

In 97 we bought a 84 Dodge Caravan at a police auction, it had been towed and abandoned. Thing was in excellent condition, we drove it for another 7 years before some dumb idiot forced Rob off the road and totalled it. We ran it down to base and had them run the drug dog through it before getting it stickered for driving on base. I think we ended up paying $250 for the van, $300is for the year of insurance and not sure what the registration, inspection and title cost us but it really was not that expensive for the number of years of good driving we got out of it.

[An Haddock]

I had a clam called "Sir Stafford" and a pet fish called "Eric" He is an halibut.

Did you choose him out of thousands?

[BPFH]

Did you choose him out of thousands?

More importantly, do you have a licence for him from the Ministry of 'Ousinge? (It was spelt like that on the van.)

[taxguykarl]

The shredder in the admin office where I work is named "Chewie". He's a messy eater, too.

In my food service days, we nicknamed our disposal Oscar.

I can't wrap my head around this. Leaving behind the birth certificate is one thing...If it is a very important document -- which it is -- shouldn't you make sure you still have it?

At the tax office we almost always have DL and state ID's left behind, as well as hats and jackets. One year we had so many ID's that we 'celebrated' St. Pat's with a telemarketing campaign to return them.

[bhskittykatt]

You named your dumpster? :-)

At the motel, I named the pool pump "Bertha". Commonly referred to her as "Bitch Bertha", because she was an uncooperative bitch.

[An Haddock]

More importantly, do you have a licence for him from the Ministry of 'Ousinge? (It was spelt like that on the van.)

That's a dog license with the word "dog" crossed out and "cat" written in crayon.

[AnaKhouri]

The worst I remember was long ago when I worked at TJ Maxx as a teenager. Behind the store, someone left a kitten. In a cage. With a bowl of antifreeze inside.

One of the managers took it to the vet but I don't believe it survived. Fuckers.

[downforit2008]

There was something many customer forgot to take with them, leaving them in their shopping carts for me to deal with.
The dirty diapers of their kids that they were too stupid to throw away.
Left in carts which people actually put their FOOD in, and 75 percent of these carts were always leaning against a damn garbage can that the customer was too stupid to put the diaper into, located only inches away.
Still feel like using a shopping cart longer than necessary? You never know what it's previous user before you has done with it. Wiping their snot on it or wiping off the poop from their brat because they have zero maternal parenting skills. Next time you get a cart, keep that in mind!!!