Cowtown Volunteers! : 02 28 2022

     Today was another reinforcement of 'it's a small world.'  I was passing through the Sonic lot on Davis and a woman rolled her window down and asked if I ran the Cowtown marathon this year.  She said she recognized me and the Cowtown shirts she's seen me wearing over on Rufe Snow, and MidCities.  Turns out she's the head of food services at the Cowtown, and let me tell you those people are GREAT!  You finish the Half, Full, and Ultra Marathon races and they have just what you need to power back up.  They have ice cream bars, bananas, fruit cups, granola, hot chicken noodle soup, water, yogurt, and on and on and on.  And, for those that are so inclined there's even a beer line too!   I've never gotten the beer because usually I'm not wanting to throw up after the race and I don't think beer's going to help me with that.  But here's a shout out to my new friend and all her volunteers at the end of the races.  You're the best!!

     I got the run in today but there wasn't much weight lifting going on, as you can see there's not a lot of pig-iron in the picture.  The lug-nut found me first and of course there was an S-hook for the bungee cord I'll find tomorrow.  (But we won't tell my honey about either of them, ok?)  Looking at the lower right you'll see what looks like a drill bit but after getting back and cleaning it up, I'm pretty sure it's a bit for a dremmel.  That's another first.  Not a lot of shiny coins out there today but I am thankful for the penny and quarter that found me, little symbols of You-Know-Who's infinite abundance. Lastly, I passed the RR tracks on Davis and heard the bells that go off before the train gets there, but didn't see a train (to help through the crossing) anywhere in sight.  It did actually zip through a minute later so,it's my loss, I missed a chance to "direct traffic."  Or so I thought.  I got to the much smaller crossing at Holiday Lane just as the crossing arms came down which gave me time to take my spot in the middle of the street.  I stopped the already stopped cars, I keep them already stopped and I wave the train through the crossing (which it's going to do anyway).  Lastly, as the RR crossing arms go back up, I direct the cars to continue on their way, which they will be doing anyway and probably running my butt over if I don't get my tookus going as well.  It's meant to be off-the-wall humor, it's meant to be silly, but I'm thinking that either this morning group waiting at the tracks didn't have a sense of humor, or they had their face buried in their phones oblivious to the world around them.  Which doesn't bother me, I at least had fun doing it, and maybe there was a smile out there that I just didn't see.  I'll figure there was.  

Someone Else's Dime : 02 27 2023

 

     Sorry there were no blogs the last two days. It's a long story for Saturday, and on Sunday I ran the Cowtown Half Marathon, so no interesting stuff in the road to report on there. Except for.......close to the end of the race, in a crack in the road in the middle of an intersection, there was a big ol' shiny 17mm-ish socket.  And for the briefest of seconds I thought about going back for it.  But no way I'd give up those seconds because it's you vs the clock.  So, today, on  the left is an Alcatel Volta cell phone back cover and case, and I did check the rest of the curb-line and didn't see the rest of it.  I suspect it became one with the street's 'black hole' aka storm drain.  Next, to the right, is a rubber tip to a cane, or maybe a walker.  I found it where a driveway hit the street and I suppose if you were trying to hotfoot it across  Rufe Snow Dr it would be easy to leave something behind in your wake.  There was a little bit of pig-iron today in the form of the usual washers, bolts, and NutsInTheRoad.  I do happen to pick up a lot of nails and pitch them out of harm's way, but the 16d nail in the center wouldn't be a threat to anyone's tire, I just thought I might find a use for it.  As for the 16d, 'Da Googles' says the number and 'd' suffix were called the penny system.  An 8d nail used to cost 8 pennies for 100, hence the name 8 penny nail.  Now they'd more likely be called 38D as in $38 dollars for 100.  A sign of the times I guess.  Next, at the top right is what initially looked like an LED light & lighter combo.  When I looked that up, seems it's a 2-In-1 Sabre Stun Gun and Flashlight-- with, I might add, a nifty belt holster.  I see why that ended up on the sidewalk, the belt loop on the 'nifty' holster broke and off it went.  The holster/case is in the picture below the taser thingamabob and you can see how the stitching on one side came away.  Something else made in China?  Lastly, there was a nickel and 6 pennies that found me today, thank you Creator for those little blessings!   There was a dime as well but I allowed it to find someone else, so to speak. I was passing a car wash and I saw the dime on the ground near someone that was working on their car and I let them know it was there.  And you know, they picked it up and I got the nicest smile of appreciation, even though it was just 10 cents.  I think they saw it as a small blessing too! 

Un-Eye-Roll : 02 24 2023

 

     Two days until the Ft. Worth Cowtown and today was the last regular workout until the race.  Tomorrow I'll warm up, stretch, and maybe do an easy couple of miles.  I was a sprinter in high school and college and always thought these longer races were for crazy people.  I'm starting to think they may have been right about that.  I've done the 13.1 mile half marathon every year since 2012 and I started doing them because I was running 10-12 miles every Sunday anyway, so what's an extra mile I thought?  Ha!!  A 'looking for treasures pace' is very different from a race pace and you have to stay focused on keeping up your rhythm and not slowing down.  So, the race gets better.....more actually it gets less bad once you get past climbing the Main St bridge at miles 9-10.  There's a downhill on the Lancaster bridge somewhere around mile 12, and then you just have to grit it out. They adjusted the course last year so that the last mile or so is uphill which is kind of sucky, but they do give you a flat straightaway for the last 100 yards or so.  (yeah, I know....wah!)

     As for today, it was brisk morning, unlike the 90 degrees we had Monday (but then this is Texas).  So, what treasures were there awaiting this morning?  There was a little squishy football complements of the BioLife folks which I figure the grandkids will think is fun.  There was more pig-iron than what's in the picture but for the most part, if it wasn't OneMoreNutInTheRoad (picked up by yeah, yeah, yeah, we know) I let it go.  Wait just a sec.......  Yes honey.  You heard me correctly, 'I let it go.'  Was that an un-eye-roll?  Is that even possible?  That's my baby, she's amazing!!  There was what I thought was another faux coin today, and it was, but it's at least made from steel so I guess I can add it to the tire weight stuff to recycle for the really big bucks.  Yeah.   There were though, two real nickels and 7 shiny pennies along the way, which always makes me laugh.  And some of them I would have missed if traffic had been different.  In staying out of the way of traffic, quite often I'll adjust the route so I have a clear path across the street on my side or all the way across to the other side.  And wouldn't you know, in some of those new places I found treasures today, which just goes to show, you never know where this stuff will show up.  So, thank you Creator of all things for my having to go out of my way, for all the little treasures, and for a shiny penny of a day. 

RECYCLING : 02 23 2023

 

     With the Cowtown Half Marathon coming up on Sunday I figured I'd scale things back a little so I made it a shorter run, but there was no shortage of things to find along the route.  I found a ShoulderDolly moving strap, and I remember seeing ads for them before. It seems like a interesting idea, two people have a strap between them on which you try to lift something really heavy.  I guess this way, when you torque your back or knee, there's someone else that probably did too and you can commiserate.  There was also a hat for what looked like Deni or Denu Commander and I figured 'Da Googles' would know.  Seems DENT Commander is a hail and repair place with lots of TX locations, the nearest being in Haslet.  We've had a lot of wind lately so I figure the hat blew down here.  Another socket today and of course it's a 13mm like its brother I found in the road on Tuesday.  Lots of steel tire weights along the curb and since steel is recyclable, I was wondering what it would take to make a little money.  If steel is worth around 5 cents a lb, I would only need 181,818 small tire weights to make a ton which would be $100.  Talk about pumping iron, I'm going to need WAY bigger pockets in my running shorts. Wait..... honey....... honey........HONEY!  I was just kidding.  You know,  joke, ha ha?  I'd do an eye-roll back but I'm WAY out of my league here.  And I don't get near the practice. Wait, did I think that last part or did I actually say that out loud?  Moving on quickly, I'll wrap it up by saying there wasn't a lot of change today but three shiny pennies is still three small blessings for which I am grateful.  

She Made Me Take It : 02 22 2023

 

     Some mornings it's rubber duckies and fun stuff, other days........it's not, so you just take what you get and be thankful at least for the ability to go get at it.  No credit cards or hotel room key-cards today but someone lost a medical insurance card.  Since it's about to expire I'm not going to worry about calling it in.  Even with the rain this morning it still felt a lot nicer than the sub-freezing wind-chills we've had recently which is a shiny penny in itself.  Speaking of pennies, there were 6 of those today along with 3 dimes which are very much appreciated.  You can't 'hit for the cycle' every day I guess--but I still expect it though.  Not a lot of pig-iron today and even that long concrete bolt on the right was something I forgot about from yesterday morning's run.  I ran past a Chase bank as I was finishing up and as I passed the teller window I saw that shiny blue pen at the bottom. I usually just wave at the teller as I go by but I saw the pen and she said to take it so I have another to add to the huge stack of......just a sec........yes honey.  No, I wasn't going to take it, but she made me.  Yes that's right, not my fault.  And there it is folks, the internationally famous eye-roll, thank you very much.  She'll be appearing in the lounge thru Thursday, and please tip your wait staff.

Stealth Ninja Money : 2 21 2023

 

     You can tell spring is getting near, I'm starting to see fruit again.  It looks like the Farmers Market produce truck hit a bump in the road and two cutie oranges and a lime escaped. So, counting my honey, now I've got 3 cuties!   Yeayuh!  There were more tools in the road today and I do like finding those small drill bits with the wide bases.  I've snapped a lot of small bits in half pushing the drill just a little too hard and the fat base makes a difference.  I almost missed another Phillips head driver-bit if not for the quarter out in a lane of traffic I had just stopped to pick up.  In the picture, what you see just to the left of the lime & below the key-ring is a Stealth Quarter.  Most people have never seen one of these, President Washington's head has been smoothed off, the notches around the edge are surgically removed, and they take the eagle off from the back too, probably with lasers they got from alien technology.  It's Stealth Ninja money, we've already talked about Stealth Ninjas so don't even ask, you don't want to know.  (Now doesn't that sound much cooler than saying it's just a metal slug in the road that I thought was going to be a quarter?)  The last of the tools today is another socket and it's usually a 10 or a 13mm--yup, 13. (what a surprise!)  Next, I can't tell you how many lug-nuts I've found but occasionally there's a lug-bolt like today.  According to 'Da Googles', "The Europeans believe that using these wheel bolts is safer, as they can withstand higher impact forces, like say slamming into a curb or something like that. However, if you do something serious enough to shear wheel bolts, a sheared wheel bolt is probably not going to be your biggest problem."  That's telling it like it is.  Lastly, we 'hit for the extended cycle' today!! (penny,nickel,dime,quarter,socket,lug-bolt).  Hoo and woo!!  It seems like everywhere I looked today there was a little gift waiting.  And of course when they're out in a lane of traffic it would be me waiting on a little gift waiting.  On me waiting, on....well, you know.  Anyway, I'm thankful for 4 quarters, 13 shiny pennies, a dime, a nickel, a really pretty day out, and for the wherewithal to go beat the streets.  Yeayuh!

No Olympic Hammer Run : 02 20 2023

 

          Trains, sinkholes, 3lb hammers, and drill driver-bit sets on a day I thought was going to be a sleeper.  I should know better than to wonder if there will be anything interesting to write about.  Starting with the sinkhole, it's not the 1st one I've found.  That would be at N Tarr & Precinct Ln, I found that one by stepping into it and was fortunate to have only skinned an ankle (after the face plant).  The one today was on Davis Blvd where there wasn't a sidewalk, and in a spot where most people would be walking, or in my case running, at about 2' behind the curb.  It was about 2-ish feet across and six feet deep and wasn't there when I ran this route a week ago.  Definitely a public hazard and one I avoided this time.  When I got back to the house I called the city and they were there in a hurry, even on a holiday!  Your tax dollars at work!  That 3lb hammer wasn't too terribly far from the sinkhole and I decided that stashing it to pick up later was the smarter move.  Everyone's heard of the Olympic hammer-throw event but I don't believe there's such a thing as a hammer-run event and I saw no reason to invent it today. (And speaking of hammer, I'm probably one of the few people alive that still has 'Hammer" Pants from 1982--long story)  I know, the hammer was only three lbs. but it messes up your running motion and stride, not to mention a number of muscle groups that I'd like to keep happy.  So, I picked that up later, as well as a new tennis ball that I found at the beginning of Saturday's run, that I also stashed for later, and then forgot about because I was trying to focus on an elusive nickel that day.  OK, about the train.  The train crossing on Davis Blvd is close to the station so for the trains coming from Ft Worth there's a several minute delay to load and unload.  Which then gives me a chance to get to the crossing if I'm reasonably close by.  Once there and with the crossing arms down, it's a simple matter of stepping into the road, stopping the already stopped cars, keeping them already stopped while I signal and wave the train through the crossing, and then signal the already stopped cars that it's safe to proceed again, while at the same time getting my tookus out of the road so I'm not runned over.  There was a VW grill badge today, possibly for a 2022 VW Polo GTI, thank you to 'Da Googles' for that info.  There were a lot of tire weights along the road and one still had the pookie on it that they used to stick it to the rim.  Which I'm sure can't be very good because there's so many not still attached..  I'm wondering why they changed from the lead weights they've used for years and years to the steel ones I see littering the road now.  Is it cost or environmental?  I give up.  The drill driver-bit set of 10 was missing the 2 flat blade bits but I've found skads of the singles so it's easy to complete the set.  Two shiny dimes and two pennies found me today, always where you least expect it.  Thank you Creator of all things for these little blessings.     Apparently, the Song Burst mini record thing at the bottom is a game piece from the game of the same name, where players attempt to complete lyrics to popular songs.  I may have to get that game, I'm good at remembering song lyrics.  I can't remember 3 years of HS French but can't forget lyrics to music from the last forty......thirt.......I mean a long time ago.  Go figure.

Under CoverGirl : 02 19 2023

      That may look to you like an innocent CoverGirl compact at the upper left, but that's what they want you to think.  It was in a lane of traffic on Hwy 1709 face down with the powder and pad missing, but of course that's the space where the Under CoverGirl super secret ninja spy stuff went.  The kind of stuff that always self-destructs when it's lost or stolen (and the State Dept disavowed all knowledge.... etc.)  It's probably best if we move on and never speak of this again.  There were some multiples of two today; two lug-nuts, two pens (from our credit union buddies), two drill bits, 2 x 2 machine screws, and 2 x 2 NutsInTheRoad (picked up by yes, we all know, by OneMoreNutInTheRoad).  Not sure if that's supposed to be symbolic.  That large 18mm socket is for a 1/2" handle and since I don't find very many of the big ones, I'm hoping it will fill a gap in the latest 1/2" set -----which will be available soon in the 'Rundover' Store's tool aisle.  There was a tiny eyeglass screwdriver today which is handy for taking cell phones and other small gadgets apart.  The drill driver-bit, wire cap, house key and tire weight are run 'o the mill items, stuff I pretty much see every day.  Lots of change spread around out there today, 24 pennies even.  Lots of dimes too, 9 of them and 2 nickels, and when the quarter showed up I once again 'hit for the cycle'!  That's a whole buck forty-four which is about the daily cost of eating healthy vs the unhealthy diet according to the Harvard School of Public Health. At least back in 2013 it was.  With inflation that number is closer to $1.93 so it looks like I'm only going to be able to eat healthy every other day.  (ha!)  But thank you Creator of all things for that blessing at least!

Nothing To Sneeze At : 2 18 2023

 

     I was thinking when I started this route today that the last rubber duckie I found was in this same area and wouldn't you know it, here comes duckie #32!  I found this tiny little guy on the same road, just on the other side of the street from last time.  And I was picking something else up or I might not have even seen him.   Well, lucky for him he's got a lot of bigger siblings to help show him the ropes. Next there were five drill-bit attachments in the road this morning spread out from start to finish. Phillips head, nut-driver, star-bit, something for everyone. Now, I'm not sure if they've been there all along and I'm just haven't been noticing them but there were a lot of tire weights today and the 28 gm was new. They've been in multiples of 7 for some reason (7, 14, 28 gm), something else I'll have to ask them about.  At the lower left is a cap from a fluid reservoir but it's in some strange language. I'm thinking oil, or power steering fluid maybe? Really tough to say. (ha!) There was another 1/2" socket I can add to the collection and also another TX lotto scratch-ticket. It's not the same 2nd chance drawing one I saw last week and that disappeared out of my pocket.  No, this is a new set of entries in the Super Triple-Throw-Down Big Bonanza Cash Blitz. We're all going to be jillion-aires. Yup. Lastly, there was lots of change scattered around and everything  but that dime with a bite out of it was pretty obvious to see. No nickel though, so no 'hitting for the cycle' today but 3 quarters, 2 dimes, and 6 pennies is nothing to sneeze at. Or spit at or snot at or......well you get my drift here. Thanks for all the little blessings today!

She Fainted! : 02 17 2023

 

     Another 7 layer running day but no whining because I've got friends up north where it's really cold.  I'll take a wind-chilled 20 degrees over a minus 14 any day.  Starting off, I've found lots of pencils in the road but I was fooled by this one, it's a mechanical pencil with some kind of funky colored lead.   Go figure.  I've also found any number of usable box knifes in the road and this one was unhurt so there's another addition to the 'Rundover' Store's lineup of fine quality gently damaged tools.  The Kroger shopping card was still in the plastic so it may not even have been used yet.  There was a time when every store had one of these, but phone apps have replaced a lot of them.  There were lots of tire balancing weights out there, but I only took the two in the picture.  I keep finding 7 and a 14 gm ones for some reason.  It was cold with a lot of wind today and I'm sure I missed a lot of 'finds' with my eyes watering like they were.  I did see, and pass up, a wheel cover, a contractor knee pad, and numerous work-gloves with uninteresting names.  Just a sec......yes honey.  Passed up.  As in left where it was.  Didn't take. It's still there.   Hey look out! ......  It was a good thing I was standing close by to catch her, I think she fainted.  And I didn't even get the internationally famous eye-roll either.  Sheesh!  Moving on, I did spend a minute running around rechecking that spot where somebody lost all those keys in the road a few weeks ago and it was clean.  Clean and neat just like that spot over at Rufe Snow and 820 where all those drill driver-bits were strewn in the intersection.  We do our part to keep America Beautiful.  And of course there were lots of well driven over coins to be found today.  I missed finding a quarter to have 'hit for the cycle' today but I appreciate the 11 pennies, 2 nickels, and 2 dimes.  Thank you Creator of all for all the little treasures!

GOOD KARMA : 02 16 23

 

     75 yesterday, really nice short sleeve shirt weather to run. Today, 29 with the wind chill and 7 layers of clothes.  Whuhuoy!  Welcome to Texas!  Starting off, there was another TX Lotto 2nd chance scratch ticket with a chance at the Big Bad Bold Triple-Throwdown iHeartRadio Mega-Dollar Cash Blitz. (Wow, say that fast 6 times.)  There actually was a lot of pig-iron along the curb today including 7 NutsInTheRoad including a lug-nut.  It was interesting trying to pick up anything today though having two thick pair of gloves on.  I spotted that little square 7gm wheel balancing weight and remember thinking that there's 4 tires on a vehicle, shouldn't there be three more? And so there was.  Still don't know the how-why of those yet. I was also able to spot two shiny pennies out there even though the wind was making my eyes water to 'beat the band.'  And make the nose run too, neither of which was very attractive.  But thank you Creator for two little blessings.  And I did my good for the day today. I passed a woman at a gas station air pump (which didn't work) who was sitting on the ground trying to feed a can of flat-fix into her tire. And bless her heart it only let the rest of the air out of the tire.  I let her know I'd return with my car and an air compressor to air it up. Which I did and I did. So, Good Karma all around!

Little Blind Squirrel : 02 15 2023

 

     Hadn't see any sports cards in a while when both a Myles Jack and a Justin Herbert card were in the grass along the side of the road.  Now a run-of-the-mill Justin Herbert Score-Card will get you $2 but I'm not sure what a "rundover-in-the-road" condition one might fetch.  You may have to pay someone to take it.  I should tell you, I consider anything that's in the road, along the curb, in the grass next to the curb, on the sidewalk, or within eyesight of the sidewalk as fair game.  And I suppose if you were to start dropping coins in the car while driving by I might even consider chasing you.  Ha!  So that's where I'm looking for things to write about every day.  Now, so that I have different places to run, I also have been driving and parking in different places and then hitting the streets from there.  You might even remember last fall when I wrote about parking early one morning near Rufe Snow and MidCities and two mental midgets were trying to saw my car's catalytic converter off.  Hopefully Karma has already kicked their butts.  Anyway, I've found safer places to park now and as it happened this morning I was in a grocery store lot where I parked, ran for an hour, and returned.  I'm getting back in the car when I see on the ground at my feet, where I had to have already stepped to get out of the car, a dime and a penny!  How do He do that??!!  OK, that's just rhetorical, I know where it comes from.  But I have to laugh though, there's a dozen routes I could have picked for today's run.  And then on this one there were hundreds of parking spots I could have picked.  So how is it that I'm out running looking for shiny pennies in the road and I just happen to pick the one parking spot with a dime and a shiny penny right at my feet?  I guess it's OK to be a little blind squirrel, that acorn is still going to find me.  

     A couple of more things to mention, first I found something I can add to the 'Rundover' Store's educational offerings, we have little cards to help the toddlers learn their shapes.  I noticed that the circle's missing, I guess they figured that's a given.  There was another Allen wrench, thank you Allen.  There were a couple of more tire balancing weights, a 7 and an 8oz.  I gotta ask them about those the next time I'm at the tire shop.  There was a very shiny lug-nut, you couldn't hardly miss that just a sparkling out in the middle of the road.  There was also a very long, thin, threaded bolt in the street and I've passed that at least once before but I was curious today. If it had three nuts attached to it and it still couldn't stay connected to whatever,  how many nuts do it take?  A question for someone much more smarterer than I is.  Lastly, there was a quarter, a dime, and 5 2/3 pennies that found me today and just like the penny and dime I already mentioned, it always makes me smile how they show up in all kinds of places.  You just have to be open to finding them.  Just like a lot of good things in life, you just have to be open and receptive.  And more important than that, appreciative!

The Subtle Eye-Roll : 02 14 2023

 

     Treasures come when you least expect it.  And if I wasn't so hard headed I might have missed these  treasures today because I didn't feel so hot and debated going out.  Alright then, it could just be that they've been there all along and I just haven't been noticing them, but there were more of those tire balancing weights in the street today.  Just a sec....Honey.....I stopped at three honey, see, I'm cutting back!  Well now, that was a pretty subtle eye-roll babe, good one!  Moving on, it was more or less useful stuff today, a drill driver-bit, an 11/32" socket and an S-hook for a bungee cord (which I saw earlier but didn't pick up--my loss).  All that change was surprising though, that would have been a pretty decent Sunday run collection.  And there was also a 1940 wheat penny which was in really good shape considering it's 83 years old and has been lying on the ground being abused.  That said, adding in the socket and lug-nut, I 'hit for the extended cycle' today! (penny,nickel,dime,quarter,socket,lug-nut).  Woo and hoo!! It may only be $1.95 but they're all little symbols of the Creator's infinite abundance.  Yeayuh!!

GREEN CRACK : 02 13 2023

 

     Used to be I would only see cigarettes, empty packs, or the butts in the road but now I see all kinds of vaping crapola which I usually kick farther out in the road.  In fact, one of last year's blog postings even had an e-cigarette I ran across in the picture, which I accidentally dropped a hammer on 5 or 6 times.  Oops.  Now, today I found something in a parking lot that I figured was more vaping crap, but expensive vaping crap because the $19.99 price tag was still attached.  Turns out to be a very potent psychoactive cannabinoid of all things.  Well *(&^%$#@!  I realize I must live under a rock sometimes but that really was the last thing I might have expected.  I figured that another hammer might accidentally fall on whatever that turned out to be as well, but instead I'll be putting it in a plastic bag while I figure out how to dispose of it.  I have to laugh, having Marihoochiwanna in a baggie 50 years ago would have given you a chance to make some new friends in law enforcement.  Quickly moving on!   There were a few familiar finds, like that USB phone charger cord and the tow hitch pin.  Who'd have guessed, another blue microfiber shop towel?  Same towel, different car wash. That black Polaroid thing in the center is a small lens cap, probably fits a specialty lens for a 35mm camera.  There were 2 switch-plates along the curb labeled 'unbreakable' and seeing where I found them, it appears they were right.  There were two more 1/4 oz rectangular steel weights on the ground and for whatever reason, I'm seeing them daily now.  There were a couple more tools for the 'Rundover' Store's hardware section, a drill driver-bit extension and a small drill bit.  And there was a shot at 'hitting for the cycle' today, there was a quarter, dime, and 2 1/2 pennies, but never saw a nickel.    Four nickels yesterday and none today, regardless though, I'm appreciative of all the little blessings.  

It's A Clevis Pin : 02 12 2023

      It's always a good sign when there's more coins than there is pig-iron.  42 coins and 17 of everything else today but then it is a longer Sunday run and there's usually more places for 'treasures' to accumulate.  First off, I found a climbing carabiner, which is a specialized shackle to quickly and reversibly connect components in safety critical systems.  I have seen them before at cell towers where they're working above and taking equip up and down.  Kinda cool I think.  I found a pretty decent drill bit today, the size was stamped on it but not such that human eyes could read it.  It matches up with a 7/32" bit I already have so mystery solved.  There was another microfiber towel, that car wash on Keller Pkwy that has them blowing everywhere, must be partial to dark blue. Next, 'Da Googles' let me know that the metal pin to the left of the shop towel was a Clevis Pin.  Named for that guy from Gunsmoke you ask?  No, that was Festus, a Clevis Pin goes to a (spoiler alert!) Clevis that connects loads to construction machinery or to an aircraft.  A very large "who knew?"  Lately I've been finding a lot of small rectangular steel weights along the road and the two today differ a little is size but are the same weight, 1/4 oz.  I looked them up and they're wheel balancing weights, which considering how many wheel weights I find, makes sense.  Lastly, there were 6 quarters, 8 dimes, 4 nickels, and 21 1/2 pennies that found me today, not bad for a Sunday.  There also was a 1996 British 2 pence coin, and when I checked the exchange rate, converted to our money that's worth two and a half cents.  So, what do our friends the Britts do with that 2.5 cents?  'Da Googles' says cash payments, fun and games with coins, for baking, flower arranging, and charity donations.  I'd like to see someone tell their favorite charity not to spend the whole 2 pense in one place.  Anyway, it was a nice morning, no rain, no ice, no sweat!  Well, that's just figuratively, there was lots of the wet kind. 

No Pudding For Big M Tonight : 02 11 2023

 

     Interesting mix of stuff today but there's a missing TX lotto 2nd chance scratch ticket. It was 10 more chances at the iHeartsRadio big, bad, bargain, bonanza, super triple throwdown, 10 zillion dollar drawing and somehow it escaped my pocket in the last mile or two.  Something to look forward to next Saturday I guess.  Alright, another work glove. Yes honey, I know.  There wasn't even a mate with it, I know. But it was orange. Like Syracuse Orange, honey. So it wasn't my fault you know and, whuhuoy, such an eye-roll. Thanks honey.  Next, I bet Manuj is going to get one of those when he has to tell his honey that he lost his BB&T debit card, which I found.  No pudding for big M tonight.  There was another plumbing PVC three-way, maybe for a sprinkler system because one end is threaded.   That is one huge brass NutInTheRoad next to Manuj's card.  I found that one on the sidewalk and brother Dave calls nabbing those 'racooning' -- Ha!  He's just jealous. Two more sockets to add to the collection today as well, I didn't look but probably a 10 & 13mm.  I also managed to 'hit for the cycle-- hoo & woo!!! The last coin needed, a dime this time, was in an unlikely place but like finding several other coins today, it was in a spot I happened to be in because that's what traffic allowed.  Go figure. Well, thank you Creator for all the little treasures and the chance to poke around. 

FULLY SMALL : 02 10 2023

 

     Back on Jan 28th when I last ran this route there were keys strewn all along a section of hwy 377. In that same section today there were 25 or 30 more and I probably didn't get all that were there.  I still don't get how you lose that many keys at a spot in the road where the closest thing is a big open field.  I don't suppose driving over all those little pointy things is very healthy for anybody's tires either.  Hopefully we're done with keys.  There were three lug-nuts to go with a locking wheel nut key which I would expect on a busy road like that.  There was a ginormous NutInTheRoad today and although I have been getting a little more selective of late, I almost have to pick up NutsInTheRoad, I mean after all it is the name of the blog.  That yellow squeezy ball at the lower left I figured to be just a toy, but no.....you are wrong guacamole breath!  According to 'Da Googles' it's a "Fully Small Yellow Squeeze Ball for Kids and Adults Stress Relief and Playing."  Say that fast six times.  And fully small?   Is there a partially small?  I'm thinking it's made overseas where somebody in marketing doesn't know quite as much English as they think they do.  Moving on, there were two more TX Lotto scratch tickets with a chance in the iHeartRadio Big Cash Bargain Bonanza Big Game Zippity Blitz to win $100 or maybe tickets to the IheartRadio Music Awards.  Who do I have to pay to not win the tickets?  Let me know.  Lastly, there was a dime and seven pennies that found me today.  Thank you Creator of all for eight little symbols of Your infinite abundance.  Yeayuh!

Winch The Night Away : 02 09 2023

 

 

          I was curious about that thing at the top that looks like 'Mickey Mouse Ears' so I had to pick it up to check later. It was something else that I had no idea of what it was, but 'Da Googles' knew!  Believe it or not, this little rubber thingy is a $24 Ford OE Armrest Cup-Holder Insert.  No siree, no sissy paper inserts, this is the gen-u-ine, Original Equipment, real deal.  We can only hope it was made in America.  Next, at the bottom center we got us a winch hook and not too far away I found the winch pin that secures the cable to it.  All you need now is a cotter pin and you'll be ready to winch the night away.  There was another wrench in a lane of traffic on Rufe Snow, and instead of the usual 8 or 10mm it's a 5/8" this time.  I'm going to need another wall in the 'Rundover' Store to house all the wrenches and pliers and sockets that have been turning up.  Now I really don't need any more work gloves, I've got them coming out of both ears already.  But, this was no Firm Grip, it wasn't a Super Grip, it wasn't even a Maxi-Grip.  It was another GORILLA-GRIP!  And how do you not take one of those?  I can just see me now, no Gorilla-Grip gloves to wear, trying to work, and the tools are just falling out of my hands?  All for the lack of a Gorilla-Grip?  That's the saddest thing I ever heard. (well, in the last 5 minutes anyway)  That phone case was in the grass along side the road and I'm not sure how you lose the case but not the phone that was in it.  But, here you see the case, and no phone was in sight.  On the bottom of the picture to the right of the wrench there was a really tiny socket, a 4mm which is the smallest one that this person has ever run across (literally and figuratively.)  There were only quarters, dimes and pennies so I didn't 'hit for the cycle', but that's $1.11 that I didn't have when I started out today.  And of course thank you Creator of all things for those little treasures as well as for the pretty day.

CLAW MARKS : 02 08 2023

 

     Raining again (again) today but at least it wasn't my fault for getting wet, it's been coming down buckets since yesterday.  Sadly, I didn't expect I'd see any rubber duckies (I'm up to 31 now) along the curb today as they would have all floated along and into the storm drain.  Hmmm, I wonder where all that storm water ultimately ends up?  Anyway, despite the rain, there were a few odds and ends out there, like that green candy cane ball.  'Da Googles' called it a "Christmas Pet Ball Toy For Dog And Cat."  I get the dog part, it's even got a little squeaker to make noise.  But what self respecting cat is going to chase a green candy cane ball?  Or fetch it and bring it back to you?  I can only imaging the look you'd get, not like the well intentioned internationally famous eye-roll I often get.  No, it's much more sinister with claw marks on the back of the sofa.  Whuhuoy!! That's kind of a cool blue gel-pen I found on the sidewalk today, it's about 2 bucks new and it looks like I've got about a buck 75 left.  That copper pipe-end at the upper right I took just because it's copper and you'd think copper would be worth something to recycle.  I would hope I wouldn't be needing to cap a copper water pipe in the near future at least.  And what about the change in the road?  OK now, it's pouring down rain and I'm watching for puddles, and traffic, and level non-muddy ground to run on, and I'm trying to hurry because I have a conference call I have to jump on when I finish my run.  So I may or may not see whatever coinage is out there.  But somehow I 'hit for the cycle'!  A penny, nickel, two dimes, and a quarter found me.  It does make me laugh!  And thank you Creator for these little treasures, for out and back safely, and for no big trucks splashing the **** out of me!

Le Hosier Pour Le Water Hotsey Totsey : 02 07 2023

 

     A wheat penny today, 1957D, and looking pretty good for 66 years old and run over in the road.  You don't see many wheat pennies in change even not to mention in the street.  He had 10 brothers with him today, and a few cousins, 4 dimes, 2 nickels and a quarter.  I didn't intend to be slogging around in the rain today but I waited a little too long to hit the streets and well, ooops.  I found the wheel cover close to the end of the run so I didn't have long to carry it or I might have passed on it.  Something else for the 'Rundover Store's fine selection of vintage slightly rundover wheel accessories.  Yeayuh!  To the right of that is a what looks like a ground stake for a underground cable locator and 'Da Googles' concurs calling it an Earth Stake.  It figures 'DG' would give it a schmancier name.  The same 'DG' whose cousin, Google Maps, always wants to put me on the toll road.  At the bottom right is an unhurt water heater hose clamp which I'll stash with my auto repair stuff.  I suppose 'Da Googles' would call that "Le Hosier Pour Le Water Hotsey Totsey."  No doubt.  There were a couple of ratchet-down-strap ring hooks today, and I need to find a use for them pretty soon or they're going to that big scrapyard in the sky.  Same with the lug-nuts, two more today and outside of the few that are supposed to go with the 'Lug-Nut Award' I keep talking about, we'll need to figure out a home for them or they'll be joining their ring hook buddies.  A shout out to Mark, my UPS buddy who I frequently see when he drops of my weekly 'Wellness Box' with Energy Shots, or Access Bars, or Amino Boost, or Elevate Protein, or and on and on and on.  I appreciate you being out there no matter the Texas sun, or rain, or sleet, or snow, or ice (except last week), or gloom of night....well, you get the picture.  And he finds the same kind of crazy stuff I do even, go figure!  I think he shook his head though when he saw the wheel cover in my hand.   He asked me what I was going to do with that and I said, Garage Sale!  With the other 25 I've found.  Yeayuh!  Lastly, thank you Creator of all things for all the little treasures, for the unexpected bath (and it's not even Saturday night!), for out and back safely, and for friends.

Rene Gade : 02 06 2023

 

    Who is Rene?  That's what this inquiring mind wanted to know and of course 'Da Googles' had a guess.  It probably refers to Rene Gade, who is a really big off-road vehicle fan (ha).  Looking to the right, there were more of those springy things today and I still don't know what they go to.  They go to the recycle bin, that's what they go to.  It was a good 40 degrees warmer this morning than the 25 degrees it was 5 days ago, and as usual, it didn't take long for the seasons to change here in Texas (and change back too!).  There was another set of keys today and there have been a lot of them in the last week or so.  It's a small set on plastic instead of a metal ring that can get jagged and eat a hole in someone's pocket, which we're not going to whine about anymore.   Even without the hole in a pocket I still had several things disappear today, one which was a small 25 gram weight.  Or maybe it was one of those super secret Ninja spy weights, it's there but you just can't see it.  Ok then, moving on there is a wheel lock socket tool at the upper right, I see those a lot.  The almost teardrop shaped thing below that is another unknown, 'Da Googles' figured some kind of jewelry but didn't know either.  Passed another car-wash, found another shop towel, seems that's the norm.  Small amount of change today, three nickels, two pennies and a dime which I could now see along the curb as opposed to 4 or 5 days ago when they would have been buried in the ice in the road.  The ice melting, pretty day, and finding a few small treasures are all very much appreciated blessings and I am grateful!

COOL TOOL : 02 05 2023

 

     Seems everywhere I turned, there was another shiny penny today, 30 in all, which always keeps things interesting.  Oh, and a reminder, what's in the daily picture is just representative of what's out there.  Keep in mind there's limits on what I can pick up depending upon how much I an carry, what condition it's in, how clean something is, or how interesting it might be.   There's a lot more that gets passed by every day and.........yes honey, that's right........really.........I do leave some for the city workers.  I am not trying to put them out of  job, and besides, they're allergic to duckies, and coins, lug-nuts and sockets, life vests, tools, and assorted pig-iron so I'm actually doing them a favor.  Heck, the 'Rundover' Store doesn't even charge the city for trash removal, I mean treasure recovery.  Whuhuoy, such an eye-roll honey, no wonder they can see that all the way over in Australia!  Ok, let's see, looking at the bottom right I found an automotive trim clip remover and what 'Da Googles' identified as a Rooha Car Trim Clip Upholstery Removal Tool.  So what's a Rooha he asks?  Again, 'Da Googles' knew, saying, 'Rooha is a Muslim Girl name that means “Life”. It is one of the finest Muslim names that parents love to give as a lifetime identity to their girl.  A user from Canada says the name Rooha means "Pure Life". A submission from Nigeria says the name Rooha means "My precious, Uniquness, A rare gem".'  Holyoke Massachusetts Batman, who knew?!!  That is definitely one Cool Tool!  I've found the next item several times before but never all in one piece, it's an Alcott retractable dog leash, and it's in Pepto Bismal Pink even.  Maybe it's for a girl dog.  Moving to the left is what I thought was a bicycle sprocket but is in fact the front sprocket for a Sherco 125 dirt bike, another 'who knew?' moment.  The Fed-Ex guy lost his pad of 'Sorry We Missed You' tags and he's probably very sorry he did.  There's a few more familiar finds, two pens, a tire air gauge, a ratchet-down strap ring hook, and a bicycle tire reflector.  I did 'hit for the extended cycle' today (penny,nickel,dime,quarter,socket,lug-nut), woo and hoo!!  That really small socket was the last part to show up and I almost missed seeing it at a street crossing half covered in dirt.  The quarter was in an odd spot, out in a turn lane on Keller Pkwy, but I seem to get better all the time at spotting money in the road.  30 pennies, a quarter, 3 dimes and a nickel, 'small potatoes', I know but I recognize the symbol.  Thanks Creator of all for all the little symbols of Your infinite abundance.  Yeayuh!

You've Been Ducked : 2 04 2023

 

   

     Today I forgot the running belt that I almost always wear.  It's great for some of the larger stuff I find or for when the pockets on my shorts get full.  It's also good when you get something that might put a hole in your pocket like all those stupid keys I picked up.  Put a HUGE hole in my pocket and I'm not sure what all I lost, probably more stupid keys.  Arrrgggg!  The reason I took the keys is because last Saturday I found 50 of them over on Denton Hwy and I thought maybe that's my new Saturday thing.  I did find a lot of them today and in 5 different places so, it appears that a number of different folks went a little brain dead with their keys.  Note to self--nothing sharp or with an edge goes in the pockets!  Only the running belt!! And maybe not even there!  Sheesh!  Another credit card ended up in the street today, not sure how this one escaped as it wasn't near any place somebody would be using it.  Also another handicapped parking placard in the road but that seems plausible.  You get a day with a strong howling North wind, when half of Oklahoma is blowing by, and if both front car doors are open, it makes sense it could go sailing out.  We'll drop it off at Public Safety 1st chance.  Next, I don't think it will make any difference if they leave the light on or not because Zippy lost his Motel 6 room key-card.  There was an Atlas wheel cap which 'Da Googles' didn't really have an opinion on and I've never heard of so, meh.  I found the last coin I needed, a dime, so I could  'hit for the cycle', in a turn lane on Hwy 26 while I was waiting for traffic to clear to kick up a ring of keys. Stupid pocket eating key-ring! Anyway,  thank you Creator of all things for the 12 pennies and the other 'treasures'. And lastly.........drum roll........I found rubber duckie #31! Ya hoo!  It truly amazes me where they turn up.  This latest little rescuee was face down in the dirt along the curb, had been driven over,  and just needed a good home. Well, somebody else's loss is our gain. Thank you to 'you've been ducked!'

Being Selective : 02 03 2023

 

     After several days where you couldn't see what's on the ground for all the ice, it was finally clear today.  That's a shiny penny!  There was just enough moisture along the curb to freeze stuff to the ground but it was easily rescued. Not a lot of pig-iron fell off vehicles but probably because there weren't many people out driving around on the ice. I know I wasn't.  That D-ring at the top I've passed by before but I figured since it was probably going to be light again today, I'd nab it.   'Da Googles' tells me that our friends at Strap Works have these for 79 cents, and you add in the govenator's share and that's 85 centavos I could have missed out on.  See honey, I'm being selective like you suggested and only picking up the really valuable stuff!  That didn't take long-- thank you honey for the internationally famous eye-roll🙄.  That 4" bolt next to the D-ring came up as a Bearmach Brand bolt for a Range Rover P38, yours for only $5.66.  I wonder how many of those I've picked up?  I've probably got a fortune sitting out in my garage and I don't even know it.  That 10mm 1/4" socket and the 3/8" adapter I didn't recognize until I kicked it down the curb and then took a closer look.  I'm finding these every other day it seems and I'm slowly building another socket set. (another another).  Didn't 'hit for the cycle' today, I missed the quarter, but I'm still appreciative of these three small blessings.  I feel like I'm a lot better at spotting coins now than I was a few years ago, and I think a lot of it is subconscious.  I'll pass something and the light bulb pops on and I'm wondering, "what did I just pass?"  I'll finish by saying that for the first time in ages I missed a run yesterday morning.  There were too many places where it got really slick and you couldn't tell until you were on it. I almost went out last night after dark and had even eaten my Access Running Bar and was pulling out 7 layers of clothes.  But it's hard enough seeing the slick spots during the daylight without doing it in the dark after things have had a chance to refreeze so I thought better of it--I guess my guardian angels won out this time.    And I'll make up for missing a day, I have hundreds of running photos that I haven't used yet to pull from.  

NEVER EVER! : 02 01 2023

 

     

     'Treasure' hunting went pretty well considering there was a layer of ice over everything.  Sleet yesterday, which froze overnight causing slick ice today, but it was manageable. There were some really slippery spots but anywhere there was grass it was safe and lots of sanded places that gave you pretty decent gription too. It was just starting to rain as I was finishing up so that was decent timing as well. I always have the intention that I'll find something interesting and did so today despite the ice.  That blue bungee cord was in the very middle of 7 lanes on Rufe Snow and with no traffic around was simple to nab.  And it's another addition to the stylish collection of red, yellow, pink, black and now blue bungee cords in the 'Rundover' Store.  We're here to help you bungee in style!  The small wooden 'sign' on the left was kind of a mystery, but 'Da Googles' suggested it was a clip frame where the hole at the top had a clip attached at one point.  I'll buy that.  The blue card at center is there to let us know that we will NEVER overpay for our prescriptions never ever ever ever never ever again.  Ever.  Gee thanks Sam's!  I'm sure I'll sleep well tonight with that news.  There were two quarters that I spotted passing a car wash that were really easy to spot as they were on top of the snow/ice and really stuck out.  Thanks Creator for that small blessing.  Lastly, here's a shout out to Officer Chris with the North Richland Hills PD who was out in the squad car braving the cold.  He's a runner too and shared some info on some gear that helps when it's slick out like it was today.  Thank you sir, and stay safe!!