On Thursday morning when I was walking the dogs, I found some keys in the trash can around the corner. They weren't on top of the trash, but somehow hooked inside and were dangling above the trash. I wondered if someone had found the keys on the street and hung them up there in the hope that whoever dropped them would eventually work their way over to the can and see them dangling there. Better than leaving them in the street, I thought, but I was certain I could do better because the keys had next to them a Bikeshare fob and the Bikeshare fob had a member number and I hoped that if I contacted the good folks at Bikeshare, they could then contact the owner of the missing keys and long story short, there'd probably be a parade in my honor and they'd probably name some downtown square after me because of my epic heroism. Self-aggrandizement aside, I assumed that the keys likely belonged to one of my nearby neighbors and it seemed like a neighborly thing to do and at low cost to my time and effort.
The plan proceeded apace and I contacted Bikeshare and they contacted the owner and gave the owner my info and the owner contacted me and we set up a time to meet so I could give the keys back. We did that and the keys were reunited, mostly thanks to Bikeshare helping out. So, among the other amazing things that Bikeshare does is reunite people with their lost stuff, so if you've lost anything recently just call Bikeshare and they'll probably find it for you. Guaranteed. What was sort of strange about the whole key thing, though, is that the owner is the keys 1) lost them about 10 days ago and 2) when asked where I found them, didn't even know where the street was, didn't live anywhere nearby, doesn't work anywhere nearby, doesn't commute anywhere nearby, and hadn't been through the area recently, if at all. The owner likewise didn't mentioned getting robbed or thieved or pickpocketed recently, so it's still something of a mystery of how the keys were lost and how the keys found their way to being found by me on the other side of town from where the owner lives and works. Were they stolen and then thrown out after the thief tried to open a few random doors not exactly knowing how keys work? Were they planted by Bikeshare just so they could show off their key re-uniting prowess? I don't know. Could be anything, really. Except the Bikeshare stealing thing because that sounds pretty implausible and also Bikeshare is about sharing and not stealing. So far.
Another thing that happened to me on Thursday afternoon, on my way to reuniting the keys with their owner, was that a guy behind me, also on a bike, twice (TWICE!) bumped his front wheel into my rear one after the rider in front of me didn't immediately get going at the green light. I don't think it was on purpose or anything, but he didn't even apologize! Come on, guy. Not cool.
Friday I went into work around midday and I remember very little of that ride, nor the ride that took me home at the end of the workday around 5. If you saw me then and remember anything about how it was or how I acted, please leave that information in the comments.
Gear Prudence is about cycling while phoning (generally, don't) and the ethics of patronizing businesses that aren't bike friendly. There's a woman on my commute who almost everyday uses this time to make a phone call (she uses headphones) and it seems fine and all, except whenever she pulls up behind me, I always think she's taking to me and then I turn around like 'excuse me?' and then I realize she's talking on the phone and I'm like 'oh.' So, that's another reason why maybe you shouldn't talk on the phone: so some narcissistic bike weirdo doesn't turn around and accost you under the mistaken belief that you're talking to him. A small, but consequential, benefit, I'm sure.
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