The One Way Ride : 09 29 2022

 

    Some days it's quarter day, sometimes it's lug-nut day, today it was socket day, and there was a 14mm, a 7/16" and a 7/32" to add to the group.  I don't think any of them are Craftsman though so I won't be able to swap them for a new one.   This route hasn't been the best bestow-er of coinage judging from my previous runs, but I always know there will at least be one penny out there for me.  And of course there was, thank you Creator of all things for that little symbol of Your infinite abundance. I have been finding cards here and there on my runs but the 'Frozen' card is a first.  There was another plant or tool or whatzit hook in the street and they're pretty handy.  I use these a lot to hang stuff in the garage but I may have to see about re-anchoring some of the shelves they're hooked to lest the whole shelf and everything hooked to it ends up on the garage floor.  There was an end to an air hose out there today and it's probably the 2nd or third of these.  I passed by at least 3 or 4 edger blades along the side of the road today and I see these things everywhere.  I have to wonder how is it that the bolts that hold  them on, the bolts that are usually snugged down really well to hold sharp metal blades that are spinning really really fast, how those bolts came off and the edger blades crawled off and ran out in the road.  Come on Zippety Do Da, stop throwing your crap just anywhere you please.  Mommy isn't going to follow you to pick them up and we don't want them either.  Grow up.  Excuse me a sec....."hey ya dadblame kids.....get off the lawn!"  Sorry about that.  That thing on the bottom left is the side of somebody's phone, another phone that no doubt got set (just for a sec I'm sure) on top of the car and then ended up going for a ride.  The one way ride that never ends up well.  Just sayin.  Anyway, once again, thank you Creator for that one little shiny symbol of your infinite abundance

Thank You Big Guy! : 09 28 2022

 

    I know I'm risking the internationally famous eye-roll here, but in a weak moment I nabbed one more wheel cover. According to 'Da Googles' this one's from a 2008 Corolla.  Amazing isn't it, the access to info we have at our finger tips anymore. Ok then, some days it's a Ninja-Flex kinda day, some days Maxi-Grip, some days it's more Gorilla-Grip. Today it was just Hy-flex.  There was another open end wrench, a 5/16" this time.  And, a Snap On Tools Dr Impact Swivel 10mm flex socket. Would you believe a used one is $50 on Ebay?  And I would have missed it if traffic hadn't been clear.  There were 3 quarters, 2 dimes and a penny out there today, and I included a penny and a lug-nut that found me while I was working on a fiber job yesterday. There were a few other odds and ends too.  No surprise there. Lastly, a shout out to The Big Guy for all these little symbols of His infinite abundance!

TWEEZE EASE : 09 27 2022

 

     I ran an old route today, the one I would do after getting cranky tendons and muscles worked on last year.  Another shout out to Dylan Hoover at Therapy Partners who helped get all the moving parts working so well.  A year ago I was wondering what kind of shape I was going to be in to run the traditional Thanksgiving Day 10K Turkey Trot.  Another blessing to be thankful for!  So, moving on, it looks like it was 'Nut In The Road' day, 10 of them counting the lug-nut. Which reminds me, I still need to pick up a plaque for the "Lug-Nut Award" I keep talking about.  Like my honey always tells me, I'm putting it in my calendar on my phone.  Yes, a phone similar to the ones I keep finding in the road.  And writing about.  I guess I really need to expand my readership if I'm going to make a dent in that.  Working on it.  Thank you to the nice people at Walgreens that contributed today's pen.  I may have to work up a picture of all the different kinds of pens I've found, just because I'm curious.  I could do that for ball caps too, I probably find as many of those as I do pens.

     I had been thinking lately that it's just not as easy to tweeze as it used to be, and wouldn't it be great to find something to help that.  And what do I find...right there where a driveway hit the street?  Yup. Tweezers.  I am saved.  That long wood screw was probably too long to have done any damage to anybody's tire,  but I got it out of the road anyway.  I figure it's good Karma.  There was another house key, and what looked like padlock keys strewn along the curb line.  Hopefully somebody didn't put those on top of their car too.  There was another nut-driver attachment for a drill today.  Like the Allen wrenches, I guess I need to start putting together sets of those.  I needed a quarter to 'hit for the cycle' today and finally found it after waiting for traffic to clear at a pretty busy intersection.  It had been driven over a lot but hadn't been bent up yet so if I get strapped for cash I could always take it (with all it's cousins) to a Coin Star.  I've never thought about taking all this change there really.  I started out just wondering how long it would to take to fill up the container I was using.  And then CONTAINERS.  16 luncheon-meat containers full now.   I just recently started separating the coins out so I see how they're adding up.  Obviously more shiny pennies than anything else and the penny container did fill up pretty quick.  I'll need to count the other three as it may look like more quarters than dimes but the quarters take up more space. Just sayin.  I found the socket at the Davis & No.Tarrant intersection, another wait for traffic to clear moment.  And with that I 'hit for the extended cycle.'  It always makes me laugh how all this stuff is out there, and has probably been out there all along.  Wonder why I didn't see it until now?  Or better yet, why it waited this long to find me?  Anyway, thank you Creator of all things for the sunny day, the cool breeze, the wherewithal to get out there and get at it, and for all these other little symbols of Your infinite abundance.  Yeayuh!!

About Those 100s : 09 26 2022

 

            How do you lose your car keys in the road and keep driving?  A question for the ages.  There were other keys out there too but I just picked up the one for the picture (lest I risk the dreaded internationally famous eye-roll).  The antenna I may or may not have a use for but since I've found three or four others I guess I can add this one and sell them all as one lot at the next garage sale.  Or better yet, I can add it to the selection of 'fine' electronic whatzits in the 'Rundover' Store.  There was some pig-iron in the road, the usual machine screws, washers, and NutsInTheRoad (ok, just think it) that I'm assuming fell off somebody's vehicle.  Don't you wonder how people's cars (or trucks, or whatever) stay in one piece?  I've gotten much better about not picking up the rusty-beat up-I can't think of a use for stuff, but there's probably twice as much of that out there.  Job security for somebody.  3 quarters, 3 nickels, 4 dimes and 14 pennies, on a route that I probably ran twice in the last week.  Go figure?!  And the lug-nut I found early on, so when that 15mm socket showed up toward the end of the run I had once again 'hit for the extended cycle'  Go figure again!

     I've published 215 of these blogs so far and I refer back to earlier ones a lot so for anyone that looks at these, scratches their head, and wonders what the **** he's talking about, I offer my apologies.  Don't feel bad, most of the time I wonder the exact same thing.  Anyway, thank you to everyone for taking a minute to look.  It seemed logical since I was going to be running every day anyway, and taking a picture of all this silly stuff in the road, and sending some of it to friends and family, to take it a step further and do the blog.  I am open to comments and suggestions.  I never know what I'm going to be writing about on a given day as I never know what I'm going to find-or rather what's going to find me, but I do wonder sometimes if what what I'm focusing on doesn't influence what I find.  I could focus on finding 20 dollar bills, heck or Benjamins even, but to be honest I enjoy finding every shiny penny. That little symbol of the Creator's infinite abundance which reminds me every day how incredibly blessed I am.  Now....about those 100s......... 

SNUZZLE?? : 09 25 2022

     It must be obvious why I always look forward to the Sunday runs, I mean look at this collection.  As many times as I've run this route, I'm still finding something new, like the stable of tiny "My Little Pony" figures.  I found them on the ground in a do-nut shop parking lot in a 'The Great City of Miami' zipper bag.  According to 'Da Googles' they're a Hasbro toy that came out in 1981, people like Target and Mickey D's have their own collection of them, there's a movie about them (of course there is...) and they have names like Pinky Pie, Twilight Sparkle, and Snuzzle.  Whuhuoy!!!  I guess I've got to start getting out more, I had no idea.  But I have to give a shout out to creator and fellow Syracuse alum Bonnie Zacherle.  Even though it's commercialism at it's finest, it's a nonviolent alternative to slaying Orcs.  Thirteen My Little Ponies and one My Little Llama, hope they'll play nice with the 27 rubber duckies I've already found.
        There was another ball cap out there getting run over, I wondered if maybe it was from Georgia Tech but no, I forgot they're the Yellowjackets, and 'Da Googles' had no idea either.  To the left of the Pony herd is part of a Pokemon Match Battle card game that came from Mickey D's.  I'm starting to see how this works, you go to Mickey D's for a kid's game and they throw a little food in with it too.  To the left of that is a Vatican museum paper ticket.  I'm thinking that for the less adventurous, it might be better to just buy the used ticket for $5 than to spend $70 for the whole tour not to mention plane fare, hotels, etc.  I found another new looking iPhone today, it was in a turn lane near 377 and Katy Rd.  It had been pretty beat up with the screen and the back coming apart and the battery bent over.  But you have to hand it to Apple, I pressed the on button and it fired up!  I haven't really looked at it yet, but hopefully there'll be a way of finding out who lost it and getting it back to them.  There was another star-point Allen wrench- thank you Allen. I found an odd fuse in the street, it's a 60 amp so it's handling some major current.  There was a really really small socket, 4mm or less, which was tough to spot considering it's so small and was in a dirt filled driveway-to-road crack.  There was a large nut (yes InTheRoad) which I'm going to count as a lug-nut.  So, with 5 quarters, 2 nickels, 10 dimes and 37 pennies I definitely 'hit for the extended cycle.'  Woo and Hoo!!  I knew it was going to be a good day for change having found all four different coins in about 7 minutes.  Last but not least, thank you Creator of all things for the cool morning air, the breeze, the wherewithal to get out there and run for an hour or two, and for all these little symbols of Your infinite abundance.  Oh yeah, and for remembering the Access workout powder today (see 9/24).

WHAT, NO ACCESS POWDER?? : 09 24 2022

 

     I always, always, always have an Access workout bar or Access Powder before EVERY run. Sometimes two.  Because I like accessing more muscle fiber and I don't like getting sore muscles because of lactic acid build up.  So......who mixed up a batch and then left it on the kitchen counter???  Yup, guilty.  Hopefully I won't paying for that tomorrow morning, Sunday's the long run of the week.  (I know, wah!)  So, it seems the Frost people had a few extra pens to spare today, thank you. There was a sparkly little football helmet in the road, I figure since I was close to Birdville HS that it escaped from somebody's Homecoming mum.  There was another drill adapter bit, this one has a star end and might be worth a buck or two.  That machine screw with multiple sized threads at the upper right I took because I was curious and thought I'd look it up later, but 'Da Googles' didn't know what it was either.  There was another socket, a 15mm this time as opposed to the 10s and 13s I've been seeing more often than not.  There was a single chain link, just one, so I guess that would be the smallest size chain you'll find.  There was a large lug-nut too and since I had already found the socket and a number of coins, I was pretty sure that I'd be 'hitting for the extended cycle' (penny,nickel,dime,quarter,socket,lug nut).  But somehow I missed seeing the nickel along the way.  But with so many blessings today, not the least of which was this really nice cool morning, with a little bit of breeze, I have much to be thankful for.  So Thank you Creator of all for all these little symbols of Your infinite abundance. 

A NANOBEBE ? : 09 23 2023

 

     Some mornings go according to plan, and then there's today.  I always take a couple of bottles, one of Sustain Sports drink and the other an Amino Boost that I wear on my waist.  Well, I guess not always.  Ditto on the running belt with room for all the extra 'treasures', the overflow if you will.  Not today.  At least I remembered the important stuff, like shoes.  Starting off, the big thing on the left is a 4-pocket holder of stuff, didn't know what kind of stuff though.  But 'Da Googles' did.  Looks like it's the changing-matt part of a Nanobebe Diaper Backpack.  Ha!  You can't make this stuff up.  So, how'd it get in the road?  Somebody put it on top of the car maybe?  Just don't be putting the baby up there! Sheesh!   A few 'Nuts In The Road' today, ok, ok, on three ....picked up by One More Nut In The Road, yeah yeah, you're wearing that tee-shirt out you know.  

     I always wonder where that first penny is going to find me.  Today it was in a bank parking area off Rufe Snow, just a shining in the sun.  A dime and then a quarter showed up leaving just a nickel to 'hit for the cycle.'  And on the way back, out in the street, right at the curb line where you may or may not see it, was the nickel.  And although I always ask, "how do He do that?", it's just rhetorical, because I do get it.  And thank you Creator for all these little symbols of your infinite abundance.  Yeayuh!  

And For The Breeze Too! : 09 22 2022

     I have wondered about how a quarter (or any coin) can get bent up by cars driving over it.  You'd think that would flatten it, but here's proof that's not always the case.  It was kind of a light day for treasures in the road, I didn't even see the obligatory 'Nut In The Road' today.  I did spot that black elastic thingy that looks like a hair scrunchie but is open at both ends.  'Da Googles' wasn't sure what that was either, but it made the picture.  As did a few other coins that had been massaged by traffic.  No dime today so I didn't 'hit for the cycle' but I'm figuring that it was there and I somehow missed it.  Regardless, thank you Creator of all for these little symbols of Your infinite abundance. And for the shiny penny of a day, sunshine, blues skies, and a nice breeze!

The Engineer "Got It" : 09 21 2022

 

     Another cell phone in the road and it's  mostly intact.  This one is an Android and it was with some debris on NE Pkwy.   I thought it might power up after I plugged in a charger cord but it's DOA, although there might be some parts that are salvageable.  There's no questioning what the green thing at the lower right is, the sales tag is still on it.  Yup, it's a 3" Round Grate.  I'm glad they helped me with that round part, that wasn't self explanatory or anything.  And, we have a new item for the 'Rundover' Store, today only, we have a "Lemon Yellow Croc Keychain." It's listed on Ebay for $8, and they describe it as 'adorable' and that it wipes clean easily.  Well ok, that alone ought to be worth $8. Yup.  As always operators are sitting by.  I found five pennies, a dime, and a nickel!  Wu and Hu!  As many times as I've run this route I have to laugh as I keep finding something in the exact same places I've passed over and over again.  And thank you Creator of all things for these symbols of Your infinite abundance.  Yeayuh!  Lastly, I passed a train crossing that I normally don't get to see, and as it worked out I got to "assist" the train crossing.  Not sure if anybody "got it" today.   It has to be obvious that I'm being absurd by stopping the already stopped traffic, motioning the train thru the crossing that's coming anyway, and then allowing the cars to move on.  At least I got a wave from the engineer--at least he "got it."

REACT AHEAD : 09 20 2022

 

          Another day, another debit card.  Seriously people.......I keep hearing about protecting your identity and not letting your personal info get out and then I find these, all over, all the time.  I'm thinking that maybe if they were to punch a hole in one end and attach a tether and staple it to a body part, I might not see as many.  I could be wrong.  It was a 10pm run yesterday and a 7am run today which means not a lot of rest between so thank you Creator for that little shiny penny.  Not to mention the sunshine, blue skies, and a nice breeze--yeayuh!  It's definitely a different look doing this in the morning although it's a trade off.  At night it's going to be cooler with very little traffic but it's hard to see a lot of the 'fun' stuff along the road.  And during the daytime, you have keep your eyes moving not only for the 'treasures' out there but to be aware of what the traffic is doing and 'react ahead'.  I did 'hit for the cycle' again (again, again, ...) today but I did have to work for the last coin, the quarter this time.  You just never know though what you're going to find, and the when, and where, but I always believe that it will find me.  And it always does!   It definitely keeps things interesting.

WHAT SCHLOCK! : 09 19 2022

 

    Yes, it is possible to find stuff in the dark, or rather for the pennies to find you.   It would have been a very late start this morning as it was already 91 outside, so I decided to punt and run after the sun went down. Turns out it was after 10p before I finally got out the door, but I had a lighted belt and a ball cap headlamp so I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be sneaking up on anything.  It was cooler yes, but still humid, yeah I know---Wah!!  Ok, so first, I stumbled across a light-up tube, it says Everbrite on it and has pictures of lots of little bugs .  Haven't got a clue on this one which is why I pick up some of this stuff---to check later because I'm curious.   'Da Googles' said that it's a "Fashion LED Flashlight Torch Party Flashing Glow Stick Portable Penlight Pocket Light Stick.  Seriously???  What schlock!!!  It's from French website, which makes me kinda glad I've forgotten all 3 years of high School French.  Whuhuoy!!!  I did see another hotel room card, this time it was from Woodspring Suites, seems it's a place to live if you can't afford an apartment.   A shiny lug-nut and a washer near a street light were no-brainers, but as much as it amazes me when the shiny pennies find me in the daylight, how it happens in the dark of night really makes me smile.  And a nickel to boot!  Thank you Creator of all once again!

Pretty Amazing Sunday Run : 09 18 2022

 

    Every run is is different, every day is different, and what's out there waiting along the road and environs is different, but Sunday runs are longer and always offer more little 'surprises.' Today---Four quarters, twenty one dimes, three nickels, and 30 pennies which is an average Sunday and about $185/year. Weekdays could be anywhere from a penny to a dollar/day so if you figure 50 cents/day that's another $156/year, which makes $341/year.  Not nearly enough to be on the IRS's radar, but if someone wanted to go in that direction, as a 'business' it isn't making a profit.  When you consider that every day there's at least one Access workout bar (the fat burner), two 10 oz bottles of Sustain sports drink I carry with me (electrolytes), and Amino Boost (branch chain amino acids), it's not even close to making money.  Which isn't the purpose, we're here to get some exercise, enjoy the day, explore, and see what kind of crazy/silly/interesting/unusual stuff is going to find me.  And judging from today's haul, that's an understatement.  It was a nice enough day, not pouring down rain or 109 degrees, and I was again given the wherewithal to get out there and poke around.  And I got to look in some places I don't get to see much anymore, and looking at the picture, is that crazy or what?  The Peanuts Halloween Special DVD was pretty beat up so it's just for the picture.  There was an Ace Hardware gift/reward card that looked like it hadn't been activated yet.  It's not unusual to find playing cards along the way but this is the first Uno Minecraft one.  I had to check with 'Da Googles' on Minecraft but it looks a lot like the games on my old Commodore 64 PC.  Moving on.  Two sockets, a 7/16 and a 5/8", and some kind of an extension I guess.  And another silcock key!  These shutoff keys are compatible with valve stems to open and close stopcocks, sillcocks, and other valves that don't have a handle.  That's a handy little guy!  Next, there was some kind of LED light, and I found it's part of a car LED headlight bulb assembly.  I've replaced mine so now I know why it was looking familiar.  There was a Minion key along the curb line, it looks like a car key to me.  Not sure I want to see those little guys driving though.  There were 15 nuts in the road and as always picked up by 'One More Nut In The Road'.  I'm kind of required to at least pick those up you know.  There was another crescent wrench today, another useful tool, along with another nut driver drill bit.  On the nut driver bit, I probably need to start putting together sets of them as there have been so many of them found (and now I'm curious).  And......another Rubber Duckie!!  Ha!!  He was just off of a traffic circle near I35 & Heritage Trace, and with his addition the flock has grown to 26.  There were sockets and a lug-nut today which means that with all that change that was found we 'hit for the extended cycle' again.  So many little blessings!  And lastly, thank you Creator of all, for all these little symbols of Your infinite abundance.   

Attention Cell Phone Owners : 09 17 2022

 

     There is almost always something useful that I find on these runs and today I have the trio of an Allen wrench (thank you Allen), a 1/4" nut driver, and  a 3/16' nut driver.  The little nut driver I found near Cannon and Precinct Line and I can't tell you how many nut drivers or screwdriver attachments for a drill I've found there.  Maybe that's where they go on their days off, but I can't find a good reason for them to congregate there.  That long skinny thing at the bottom on the picture is from the side of a cell phone, the last piece of it it appears.  People!  Stop putting your cell phone on top of the car, even if it's only long enough to put the kids in the car or load the groceries.   I've probably found 50 cell phones out there and that's just where I happen to be running, not to mention the other 29% of the globe that's not water (and don't be putting them anywhere on top of the boat either!).

    There's a section of Precinct Line where I can usually expect to find a tennis ball (because of the 5 or 6 I've already found there) but no tennis ball today.  But there was at least a 2" blue sparkly rubber ball in that same area, I guess it's just a way of keeping things interesting. Another bank pen, nice that it wasn't driven over because if you've been reading these blogs, you know how short on writing tools I am.  Moving on before the eye-roll comes.  Lastly, there was a quarter and six shiny pennies scattered along the road and granted it's not a fortune.  But as a symbol of the Creator's infinite abundance, I am very appreciative.

The Great Penny Pitcher : 09 16 2022

 

 

    Another pretty day, 75, blue skies, breeze, another blessing!   I've been finding more of these ratchet box wrenches and this one is another 10 mm---huge surprise.  10 or 13 seems to be the norm.  I found another roll of tape and if I hadn't picked up that roll of electrical tape yesterday I might have left the masking tape today.  Well, it's something to keep the other one company I guess.  I have found a number of those orange hooks out there and at the moment they're all out in the garage holding up some kind of tool, this one must be the 4th or 5th now.  There were pennies pretty much spread out over the whole run, with some of them out away from the curb where you have to wait for traffic to clear.  Which is a chance to suck down some Sustain Sport or aminos, ya gotta stay hydrated after all.  Anyway, two dimes and eight pennies are well appreciated, and not for what they can buy but for what they symbolize.  I see it as shiny pennies from that Great Penny Pitcher In The Sky.

RACOONING : 09 15 2022

 

     Today's 'Racooning' (thanks brother Dave!) shows a pretty diverse collection of cra..... I mean stuff.  If you read the blog with any regularity then you've seen the pictures, you know.   It's all vying for attention, "pick me, hey, pick me!"   Shiny helps to get picked up, like that shiny cylinder shaped thing at the top left.  I am constantly amazed at how 'Da Googles' is able to figure out what stuff is.  Who knew it was a GG Lug Nut Cover 33mm yada-yada-yada-yada and $17.13 will get you 5 of these babies.  Now we know.  That said,  the baby Swiss Army knife was not shiny, and it looks like it pretty much lost the war.  The hotel room key above the Swiss Army guy looks like the smallest room card ever--boasting 'tomorrow you triumph'.  Triumph is good. There was a very stout coax cable sitting next to two 3-way power adapters, one which was named Smith. Didn't know they had names.  The roll of electrical tape is not a new find, it's the 5th or 6th one I can remember.  The air hose end I found could have been handy if I hadn't sold my old air compressor, so one more thing for the garage sale.  More socket paraphernalia today, an extension, and a 10mm socket with a 1/4"-3/8" adapter.  Kinda handy.  

     Lots of change today, which was a little different from yesterday's single shiny penny.  And when you add the lug-nut and sockets in, I 'hit for the extended cycle' as well (penny,nickel, dime,quarter, socket,lug-nut) which ALWAYS makes me smile. One quarter, 5 dimes, 5 nickels and 23 pennies which would get you about 1/3 gal of gas.  Lastly, thank you Creator of all things for all these little symbols of Your infinite abundance.

JOB SECURITY : 09 14 2022

 

     One very shiny penny!!  Some days that's all it takes to make it a successful run.  Which is a good thing because unlike some days when there's 4 or 5 dollars worth of change scattered about, the single penny is all that found me today.  Thank you Creator of all things for that symbol of your infinite abundance!   Ok then, with the title of the blog being what it is, I'm kind of compelled to pick up pretty much all of the 'nuts in the road' and this one and the wingnut at the top were the sole representatives today.  I've been asked where all this pig-iron is going to end up and one idea is to get lots of small luncheon meat sized containers and fill each with bolts or washers or 'nuts in the road' and sell them at the next Garage Sale.  At buck apiece, I figure we're clearing litter off our streets, not adding to the landfill, and I get a little moola.  See honey, they really are going to live someplace other than our garage.  Whuhuoy!  Again with the eye-roll.  You know your eyes are going to stick like that!

     Another candidate for the next Garage Sale (and the Andy Rooney in me is compelled to say that I'm not selling the garage) would be the Bungee cord.  I know, I know, I have way too many now but just you wait until the next time you need to secure your Bungee....you'll thank me.  I've found any number of 1" PVC corners in the road and usually they're a little flat, but this little guy was unscathed.  That huge nail I had to pick up because, well, it's a HUGE nail.  How much wood could you expect to hold together with that monster?  Probably way more than you could hold (or would want to!)  The rest of this cra... I mean stuff, is just representative of what's on every street I run on.  Most of it you'd expect would be from something on 4 wheels and with as much of this pig-iron as there is, there's always going to be a need for a mechanic because stuff is falling apart in front of our eyes.  Which means all kinds of job security for all those guys in the shop.  Go figure.

God Save The Queen : 09 13 2022

 

     Payback time!  When it's 68 degrees, blue skies, nice breeze,  it's Mother Earth apologizing for previously sending either 95 degrees at 9am, or 9 inches of rain at 10. Let me say for all interested parties....THANK YOU!   Ok, starting out today I found parts of a PokeMon Match Battle trading card game, who knew there was such a thing?  I've found a few cards here and there but I see there's still PokeMon fans out there.  I even found the PokeBall token so you can, as they say, "catch'em all."  Go figure.  Lots of little Dumbo feathers here and there, not sure why this one got picked and the others not.  There was another live round in the street, this time it's a 9mm slug for a Luger.  It wasn't near a rifle range or an ammo store, so explain to me..... how does somebody lose one of these in the road??  Moving on.  The hook at the top right, according to 'Da Googles' is a ProSource Mintcraft 4 15/16" Ceiling Hook.  They must be made out of platinum because it showed that even at Wally-World they are $29.95 for a two pack????  Seriously??  They include 'free' shipping though, so that makes me feel SO much better.  And if we can take an "Andy Rooney" moment, free shipping is not free shipping.  UPS is not going to deliver anything for $0, so just say that shipping is part of the price.  Sheesh!  (excuse me a sec...."hey ya dadblame kids....get off the lawn!)

     There was the usual coinage scattered about and I did find 2 quarters together passing a car wash.  I decided to stash one for another day, basically for the next time I just need a quarter to 'hit for the cycle'.  Further along on Rufe Snow I thought I found a 3rd quarter but taking a closer look later I see it's a Canadian quarter with the image of a very young Queen Elizabeth II on it--'God save the queen'.  Seems like she has always been on the throne, good luck to King Charles filling those shoes.  Lastly though, thank you Creator for all these little symbols of Your infinite abundance.  Yeayuh!

Thank You All The Same : 09 12 2022

 

     Got to 'direct' traffic again, I had just started out when at the 1st RR crossing the arms came down. Allowing me of course to step into the street, stop the cars that were already stopped, direct the train thru the crossing which it was going to do anyway, and then wave the traffic onward which it will do with or without me. I got a wave from the engineer, and from the couple in the 1st car at the crossing--Ha!  I love it when people get it-- we've all got to wait, might as well have a little fun while we're doing it.    So, we learned something new today thanks to 'Da Googles', the thing at the top in the middle is a Roof Rack Cross Bar Bolt for a Ford Expedition.  That wouldn't have even been my eighth guess...whuhuoy!!  I find lots of gift cards in the road but this is the 1st one of the 151 Coffee variety.  Next to that is another Bungee cord net hook, I've been seeing more of those lately.  I found a 16mm solid steel ball today and when I looked it up I see I can get them at Wally-World for $6.54 each.  Seems a little pricey until you figure that, according to the description, "they're great for physical collision experiments."  And here I had forgotten all about doing my physical collision experiments, but hey, if it's not on my calendar, I'll forget.  Something else that looked familiar was the bolt at the top left.  It's a lug bolt for something foreign made, maybe VW or Mercades.  Something to go with the zillion and a half lug-nuts I've found......uh oh.....there it is again.  The 'internationally famous eye-roll', sorry honey, I promise I'll start finding a home for those.  Somewhere else.  Lastly, there was a quarter, dime, and 9 pennies and again, it really is comical how I find all these little symbols of the Creator's infinite abundance along the same routes I've run hundreds of times.  I don't know how He does it but thank you all the same!

     

THE FLOCK GROWS : 09 11 2022

 

     It has definitely been hat week and today's addition is a pink John Deere ball cap.  Or would that be a Jane Deere cap?  There's a couple of football cards today, so I guess all the non baseball sports have them now.  Who knew?  I found the business end of a 9-iron first thing today.  I decided to stash it and pick it up on the way back unlike the metal yardstick I also stashed but forgot about.  The two drill bits were right about where I found two last Sunday, and you know if I had seem them then, I would have grabbed them.  

     There was a selection of 'pig-iron' out there today including a red MTD lawnmower wingnut (thanks to 'Da Googles').  I found a very shiny lug-nut and a 9mm socket, and with all the change that found me, I again 'hit for the extended cycle' (penny nickel, dime,quarter,socket,lug-nut).  And of course, thank you Creator for all the little treasures.  Only 16 coins, a little leaner than most Sunday runs but all are appreciated.  Another micro-fiber towel today and I never noticed it before but they have Car Wash World's name and phone on the tag.  That's smart.  AND..... another rubber duckie!!! That makes 25 now.  Ha! And it was really obvious, out in a lane of traffic on 1709 but I had passed by it.  Must be that the Great Duckie in the Sky nudged me because for some reason I turned to scan the other three lanes, and the rest is history.  The flock grows!

Thanks Kipp Brothers : 09 10 2022

 

    I just noticed that today's post is number 200?!  Go figure!  I still have another 20 or so from May and June that I have started so that number could jump.   So, about today....Football season is definitely upon us so it seemed appropriate to find a small squishy football in the road today.  According to 'Da Googles' it's a Kipp Brothers Foam Football with 12 in a bag.  Made especially for large families with small hands.  Another pen, I know, I know....moving on (before we get the you know which eye-roll).  There's 4 machine screws that are alike and there were more at that spot in the road but traffic was coming and I stopped at 4.  I've been running this route every Saturday for a while now and last Sat I found several screwdriver bits for a drill.  Well, going by that same spot I found one I missed to add to my current set of, what, two hundred lebenty eight now?  That'll have to go to the 'Rundover' Store's fine if not slightly rusty collection of tools.  Step right up.  I did find a package of Windex Wipes on Precinct Line this morning but I left them in the road. I use Clear Power to do windows, it works better  and I don't have to be breathing ammonia which is corrosive and needs to be used in a well ventilated area.  Probably would have been better to have thrown them away, but I didn't want to be around them.  Next, not a lot of change out there today but three pennies and a shiny dime's more than I had when I started.  Still makes me laugh that day after day, week after week, it's still out there waiting to find me.  So thank you Creator for 4 more symbols. 

BETTER NOT TO ASK : 09 09 2022

 

 

     Haven't been in a Bass Pro Shop in a very long time but found a hat from there today so I guess I'm covered now.  Found a 'Get Back Jack' J-in-the-B gift card today. Does anyone besides me think ping pong ball head guy with the pointy hat is kinda creepy? Moving on. A few nuts in the road today also (ok, just think it to yourself please).  And that black puzzle piece, the one with nothing on it.....well, that's from a puzzle picture taken at long range, at night time, outside with no moon, of one of those super secret ninja spies.  Working at night.  Doing secret spy stuff.  Best not to ask any questions.  Above that is a common find, it's a Hillman Hitch Pin Clip and they go for a buck apiece at Homer Depot.  There was a springy kind of door stop out there as well.  Not the first one I've 'stopped' for, pun intended. There were the usual Nuts In The Road (plus one) with a pretty big lug-nut.  Note to self---I've got to put the Lut-Nut award (see previous posts) on the short list.  There's always the pennies, six today and a quarter and dime to boot.  The dime was hard to miss but out in a lane of traffic where I had to wait for the traffic to clear.  I think not getting 'runned over' is a good thing.  And as always, thank you Creator of all things for all these little symbols of Your infinite abundance.

Icing On The Cake : 09 08 2022

 

     The run is the main thing, the stuff is secondary.  The stuff though, is what helps to get through those runs when either it's very hot, cold, wet, dark, or maybe you're just tired and don't have very much wanna.  I remember in the pre-stuff era, on some of those "wahh" days I'd be thinking about maybe packing it in a little early.  Now, especially if I'm short just one coin from 'hitting for the cycle', the thinking is always, "well, maybe an extra 10 or 15 minutes", which could be an extra mile or two.  Just need the right incentive sometimes.  Ok, stuff.  That is one gigantic socket!  It's as big as the one I found on 8/14 and twice as long.  I'd put it with the 'Rundover' Store's collection of quality hardware but I believe that one's going in my tool box.  There were the obligatory 'nuts in the road' today.  Alright, alright say it, I always do when I pick'em up,"picked up by one more nut in the road."  There were two drill attachments, one for a slotted head screw and one that I thought was a 1/4" hex shank drill adapter but I can see it used to have a small drill bit on one end.  The 1/4" end is still good for something though.  No tools today with zippity names like Biffcrank drivers or Nordspit sockets.  Normal is good.  

     There was a Dumbo Feather sitting on the sidewalk and I did hold it for the last mile, although I never even came close to flying.  It was worth a shot.  I did 'hit for the cycle', and most days, if I'm patient it almost always happens.  Counting that gigundo socket, I'd just need a lug-nut to make that the 'extended cycle (penny,nickel,dime,quarter, socket,lug-nut)'.  Now, I found a Wheel Lug Nut Cap for a GM or Chevy truck and I think that's close enough so I'm counting it.  They sell those online for about 83 cents each so I figure the one or two I find a month will allow me to become independently wealthy at some point after we all have Jetson's cars that fly without wheels (or lug-nut caps).  And the change in the road today, 2 quarters, two dimes, two nickels, and a dozen pennies, that's just icing on the cake as they say.  Thank you Creator for all these little blessings. 

YOU JUST NEVER KNOW : 09 07 2022

 

     Ok, 7 lug nuts?  Granted I haven't run this route in a very long time, but people, do yourself a favor.  Find someone that can put a little umph on them.  We're not talking about any major kind of bulk-a-tude.  Just makes sense that the tires will wear better if they stay on the vehicle.  That said, there was a lot of pig-iron out there today, and I guess it was machine screw day.  Well, and washer day, the score there was 9 to 9.  There was a small piece of copper tubing, surprisingly heavy, and solid copper.  I would think it's worth something to recycle, add another 50 of them and it might pay for a small coffee at 7-11.  There's something to look forward to, oh yeah.  I found my 2nd red bungee cord, just sitting out there in the road looking all forlorn.  Not sure the significance of using red but I guess they're easier to find in the garage?

     Yes, that is a grape, there were a number of them one after another in the road along the curb.  I've found real cherry tomatoes, apples, oranges, lemons, plastic strawberries, and the like but now we can add grapes to the list.  There was something today that I haven't seen since my SW Bell repairman days.  That thing inside the coil of CAT5 wire at the top left went in the phone box outside people's houses.  It was was connected to a ground source and was lightning protection, so if lightning hit the phone lines, it would kick the voltage to ground.  And keep stuff from exploding, catching fire, you know, bad stuff.  That CAT5 coil is still useful, it's used with your network connections at a modem, router, etc.  So now I lebenty six plus one of them.  That key was pretty close to a lock I saw in the road and I did try the two together, but they weren't related.  

     Which brings us to the money part.  I did 'hit for the cycle' today, yes, again, I know I know.  A quarter, two dimes, two nickels and 9 pennies and one of the pennies was along a curb line that was just painted (that would be the yellow one).  And, keeping the yellow guy company, about 2 minutes from being finished was my quarter.  So it goes to show, you just never know where or when.  But of course, thank you Creator for all these symbols of your infinite abundance.  Eay-yay uh-yay. 

7 AT A WACK : 09 06 2022

     An Allen wrench holder and 7 wrenches at the intersection of Davis & MidCities today.  No telling how it's been there waiting for me, it's been a week since I ran that route I'm thinking.  I've had other days like that when there's multiple items, pennies, sockets, lug nuts, wrenches, drill attachment bits and the like, but today it was Allen's turn.  Thank you Allen for seven at a wack!  I'm serving notice, tomorrow I'm expecting it to be hundred dollah bill day.  Just sayin.  It was an OAK'D hat on Sunday, today it's an STB Cap, which 'Da Googles' says is made in old Mexico and sold at the Outlet Mall in Mexico City.  Another tourist??  At the bottom left there's a little baby bungee cord I found, those little guys are so cute at that age.  The thing to the right of said bungee, is a bungee cord hook to use with the ever favorite Bungee Cord Net which I may have seen but didn't know what it was.  

     There was a cell phone case/screen protector and I did look all around but fortunately didn't see a phone anywhere.  With so much of somebody's life on their cell phone anymore you hate so see the phone get 'rundover'.  There was another 13mm socket, I don't know what it is about 10 and 13mm sockets, seems like I usually find one or the other.  (today it was the other) There was another titanium drill bit to go with the two I found on Sunday.  There were a lot of those glass beads you see inside a vase along Davis Blvd and it's the 3rd or 4th time I've seen those en mass.  Odd.  There was a single penny, nickel, and dime today but no 'extended cycle' (see previous posts) as I somehow missed seeing the quarter.  Usually when I'm down to just one thing left I'll poke around a little more giving it a chance to 'show up', which of course turns a 6 mile into a 7 mile run.  It'll be there tomorrow.  And lastly......thank you Creator for all these little symbols of Your infinite abundance. 
 

OAK'D? : 09 04 2022

      How can a run where you find your 24th rubber duckie not be a good run?  Nice to have a little company this morning!  I found another hat today, and I figured out OAK'D is a BBQ place-no thanks to 'Da Googles' I might add.  There's just one location and that's on Greenville Ave in Dallas so maybe somebody over there realized that we've got some pretty decent BBQ over here too.  Those exact same playing cards I first saw a month ago and the box was even here today.  Obviously a new deck because with all the rain we've had in the last week or ten days, those cards would be far away by now, maybe all the way to Greenville Ave?.  I grabbed a few but it looked like the whole deck was out there in the middle of the road all over the median.  Not exactly the best place for your high stakes poker party.   There was a Timber Creek wrist band out there, fell off some TC Eagle's wrist it seems.  The Kroger Plus shopping card was surprisingly, out in front of Kroger--go figure.

     And, there's a new addition (as opposed to an old addition?) to the 'Rundover' Store's collection of fine accessories, today we have a little Minnie Mouse that goes on a chain.  Don't you just wish you had one of those?  Oh, well, moving on, just down the street from the car wash were two more Micro-fiber towels.   There's always several out there blowing around in the grass by the road every time I go by and I know, I know,  I've got to stop picking these up for a while or risk the dreaded Internationally Famous Eye-Roll. (yes honey, you're famous).  I picked up two of the drill bits I saw at the curb, and there were 2 more that surprisingly, since they were pretty stout, the ends were broken.   We 'hit for the cycle' obviously (penny,nickel,dime,quarter) and that's pretty normal for the longer Sunday run especially since there's a lot more places to look. 4 quarters, seven dimes, three nickels, and twenty five pennies, how it can find me every single day just astounds me.  But that's not to say that all the little shiny pennies aren't appreciated.  Thank you Creator of all things for these little signs of Your infinite abundance.  Yeahuh!

CHICK-A-MINIS?? : 09 03 2022

      We've gotten to one of the two times of the year when it's kind of payback for all of the either really hot, steamy, summer weather, or the cold, wind blowing, wearing 5 layers to run weather that will be here before you know it.  Nice cool morning, blue skies, nice breeze, life is good!!  Hope it continues for a while.  I did 'hit for the extended cycle' (penny,nickel,dime,quarter,socket,lug nut) again today, seems it's been happening when I least expect it.  That socket I found is a pretty big one, 19mm and it was commiserating in the street with that long handled wrench, kinda looked like 'Mutt & Jeff'.  That large lug-nut was the first thing I ran across (literally) and all three were kinda beat up, especially the one with the 'lug' still attached. Makes you wonder what it takes to shear one of those off?! I'm starting to recognize where some of the 'pig-iron' comes from now, like the machine screw top right next to the wrench.  It's used to snug down a wheel cover, the kind that covers the lug-nuts at the very center of some tires and I figured that out by finding some wheel covers that were missing a few of those.  There was another gas cap I found just up the street from our friends at "Murphy's".  Let me say thank you for  the warning on the cap that says "fuel spray may cause injury."  Who knew?  Next thing you're going to tell me I shouldn't be driving around with really hot coffee in my lap.  Wuhuoy!! ( "Moron...party of one...your order is ready")

     Chick-A Fil left a small invitation to be their guest with some breakfast biscuits, or Chick-a-Minis.  Chick-a Minis???  I wonder what genius came up with that name?  Well, it's best not to look a gift Chick-a-Mini in the mouth.  The change was well driven over today and one of the quarters even got bent in half.  Still, I have to wonder about all the things that had to come together for me to find all these little 'blessings'.  They 1st had to escape, get to the road, and not have too much dirt covering them.  Next I had would have needed to have run that way, would need to have been looking in that direction when I went running by, and have recognized it. With all the coins that I've found returning over the same route it's obvious that I don't always see things the first time passing. Keeps things interesting I guess. But lastly, thank you Creator of all for all these little symbols of your infinite abundance. Yeayuh!

!@#$%& PUTSKY! : 09 02 2022

 

     I'm running what used to be my every Tuesday morning route but since it's been a while, I was expecting lots of little road treasures to have accumulated.  And there were surprises, although the rain wasn't a big surprise.  Like it did yesterday, it waited until I started running to start raining and it rained for the whole run, stopping when I stopped. I think Mother Nature's messin with me!  It was cool with a nice breeze at least so that's a shiny penny.  2 sockets and 3 lug nuts today, I guess that's a full house.  I have found a lot of those chain link connectors you see at the very center and once again, checking with 'Da Googles' it's a "Small Solid Brass Quick Link Chandelier Chain Connector".  I've used them for a lot of things, guess I'll add that to the list.  There was the blade part of a nut driver or for something that uses those 6 point drill bit adapter things.  No handle but I may have already found one.  I hit for the extended cycle today (penny,nickel,dime,quarter,socket,lug nut) which does make me laugh.  Fifty cents in change too, and at that rate I could probably retire.  I think I could probably maybe retire.  I think I could maybe, I think...... maybe I'll just set it aside for a rainy day.  Like maybe tomorrow at the rate we've been going.  Oh yeah, BTW, thank you for all the little blessings in the street today!

     Oh yeah, I almost forgot a shout out to the very nice lady that, while I was circling the median waiting for the traffic to clear to cross, slowed, rolled down her window (in the rain) and asked if I was OK/needed a ride.  Awwww....that's very thoughtful!  I'm sure that as wet as I was at that point in the run I probably looked like a drowned rat.  I didn't realize just how much rain had been getting channeled away and where it must have been going away until near one of the intersections I stepped just off the sidewalk onto the grass close to the curb and stepped into an 18" deep depression where all the dirt under the grass had washed away.  That was a very graceful face-plant I'm sure.  The scores are just now coming in..... 9.1, 8.9, 8.5, 9.0, and a 4.9 from the Russian judge.  !@#$%& Putsky!

A Whole Mess O' Change : 09 01 2022

     No rain when I got up but it must have been waiting for me as it was raining by the time I got out the door.  Changed my route and decided to stay closer to home and boy am I glad I did!  Let's start with the beach ball, I deflated it for the picture but it was by the side of the road when I found it and on a day like today I'd say it fits right in.  Lots of tools out there, a combo screwdriver, a socket extension, a universal joint socket, a small drill bit, and two crescent wrenches.  And since I've been looking up tool names like Phillips head and Allen wrench recently, let's look at Crescent wrenches shall we.  According to 'Da Googles' they got their name from the Crescent Tool Company in the early 1900s.  Make a note of that too as it will be on the mid-term.  

     It rained pretty much the whole time I was running, finally stopping with maybe a half mile left.  You just never know sometimes.  So, there was a little green heart earring on the ground today, just the one and also a black plastic bracelet which might be a hair holder, my 'sources' wasn't certain.  Whatever.  I found another Visa Debit card in the 180 degree turn lane of Loop 820, not sure how somebody loses one there.  But then you could also ask how do any of them get out in the road?  Who knows.  I found a Mexican 2002 1 Peso coin today, I see them once in a while actually.  'Da Googles' says it's worth about $1.50, so how many liters of gas do you think I'd get for it?  Also, there was A WHOLE MESS O' CHANGE today, I mean I found more than I usually find on one of the longer Sunday runs.  9 quarters, 19 dimes, 7 nickels, and 48 pennies??!!  Seriously?  Thank you!!!  Lots of little blessings here, but you know though, it's not the money really, it's what it represents. A representation of the Creator's infinite abundance.  I still have to ask sometimes.....how do he do that???  Oh yeah, one more thing, I guess I 'hit for the cycle' what, 7 times today?? Ha!

YOUR TABLE'S READY : 08 31 2022

 

     This is for the most part a representation of the kinds of 'stuff' I see on a daily basis, but there are plenty of other things that either aren't interesting enough, or that have that "eeuww" factor that always gets me the internationally famous eye-roll.  Or both.  Today I passed a woman's sandal and also a woman's lacy 'top' that didn't pass muster.  Just so you know.  I did pick up a new package of steel wool or as it's affectionately called, 'The Flexible Abrasive.'  Right.  Actually this will be handy because even though I have some already, it's normally in a very safe place and rather than look for 30 minutes for it, I'll use the one, tired, sad looking piece that I can find.  I pass by little packages of 'secret sauce' all the time, usually as I'm passing a fast food place but this was in a lane of traffic so I's guessing that Zippy accidentally pitched it out the window with his empty soda cup, paper stuff, and uneaten fries.  Yo....Moron.... party of one.....your table is ready.  

     I found a TX Toll tag today, I guess somebody forgot that these go on the inside of the car.  There was another 1/8" drill bit, a pretty sturdy little guy that might just become available in The 'Rundover' Store's fine collection of slightly rusty, slightly rundover, but always useful collection of tools.  I spotted the socket out in a lane of traffic and according to 'Da Googles' it's a "Tool W38168 Chrome Spark Plug Socket, 3/8" drive 18mm, 6 Point, deep with 22mm Hex Bolster.  Well heck, everybody knows that.  (something else that's sold by the word)  Moving on, I 'hit for the cycle' today (penny,nickel,dime,quarter) and although I'd be happy with just a single shiny penny, it make me laugh when I find them all.  I guess it's what they all represent, small tokens of the Creator's infinite abundance.  Thank ya kindly.