Every now and then you make a mistake and then find yourself entirely dependent on the actions of others to get it fixed. As much as you might want to make things right yourself, you’re forced to sit back and hope for the best from someone else. Such was the case this past Labor Day, when my wife was so eager to deplane from our return flight home that she left her iPhone in the seat pocket in front of her. When you realize the magnitude of this kind of mistake – and it hits you after you’re long gone from the airport – it kind of takes your breath away.
Let’s be fair. Leaving things on planes is not my wife’s specialty; it’s mine. I’ve left everything from reading glasses to a Kindle e-Reader to a really nice pair of Bose headphones behind, a sort of “Merry Christmas” to those who clean the planes. So my wife would be forgiven for her audible gasp when she realized her out-of-character mistake. And my mind promptly went to the consequences of her actions: a) A trip to the Apple Store more than an hour from our house, b) The purchase price of a new iPhone, and c) The likelihood my wife hadn’t backed up her left-behind phone (and all those precious granddaughter photos).
As it almost always does, the problem-solver in me shifted into high gear. I realized my wife had shared her (iPhone) location with me, which meant my phone could see if her phone was still on the plane. So I had her check my phone (since I’m a responsible driver) and guess what? Not only was her phone not on the plane anymore, it was moving. Down the airport concourse, away from the plane, boldly in the direction of the free world beyond.
At this point two more thoughts entered my mind. One (sadly, the first one), whomever cleans the plane pocketed the phone and was casually on their way out the door, with hopes of breaking through the passcode and wreaking havoc. Or two, an employee of the airline was carefully shepherding the phone to the front counter, where maybe-just-maybe they’d make an effort to contact my wife.
Why wait for either scenario to play out? I told my wife, “Call your phone”. Which she did, and guess who answered? Honest Jane. Okay, Honest Jane wasn’t her real name, but after the conversation that followed it really could’ve been. “HJ” was walking down the concourse towards the front counter, phone in hand, where she intended to check the flight record for contact information for my wife. Pretty sure this long stroll from airplane to counter wasn’t part of Jane’s regular job description. But she made it sound like a walk in the park – happy to do so. Were we still at the airport (and with my wife’s approval), I would’ve kissed HJ on the cheek.
Instead, more options. Do we turn the car around and go back to the airport, rescuing the phone but adding another three hours to our drive home? Or do we ask HJ for a more convenient solution? I chose Door #2. HJ thought for a minute as she continued her walk and then said, “Well, you could set up a personal FedEx account, create a shipping label addressed to yourself, overnight the label to here, and then you’d get your phone back in a day or two.” Well bless your heart HJ, you’re a problem-solver too!
As of this post I’m happy to report my wife’s phone has been reunited with its owner. All means of texting, social media, and exchanging of granddaughter photos has resumed. But a question remains: What to do about HJ… or more to the point, how to thank Jane for her Honesty? Trust me (and trust HJ while you’re at it), I’ll come up with something. After all, Honest Jane’s a rare breed. She deserves an attagirl.
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LEGO Neuschwanstein Castle – Update #6 (read about the start of this project in Fit for a (Fairy Tale) King)
Normally I’d update you on my latest efforts of castle construction, followed by a brief commentary on the movie soundtrack I chose for my background music. Today I must cover both topics together. For the second Indiana-based movie in as many weeks (alongside Rudy), we have Breaking Away (1979). This “little” movie and its heartwarming story will always be one of my favorites. Now if only I could say the same about its score.
Bags 11 and 12 (of 23 bags of pieces) started out innocently enough, with the creation of one of Neuschwanstein’s spectacular towers. But like Breaking Away‘s soundtrack, things went quickly south. After finishing the tower I realized I’d left off an entire level, which meant deconstructing almost back to the bricks at the base to get it right. At the same time I realized several windows from prior construction were out of alignment, which meant even more deconstruction.
Normally I’d take these missteps in stride but the Breaking Away soundtrack was really, really getting on my nerves. I forgot one giant detail about the music – it’s all opera, and it’s all in Italian. Words of advice: don’t try linking foreign language operatic soloes to particular moments you remember in movies – it doesn’t go well. Well, except for M’appari tutt’amor from Act III of the comic opera Martha. It’s the film’s signature solo and the song the lead character chooses as a serenade to a college girl he can never have. This captivating scene, and so many more like it, is what makes Breaking Away an unforgettable film. Just don’t bother with the soundtrack afterwards.
Running build time: 6:33
Total leftover pieces: 43
Well that was good news for your wife, reunited with her phone and its valuable contents. Thank goodness for the honest people in the world. My boss was returning home from a business trip late on a Sunday night and he went to pay for parking and realized he had no wallet. He called the airline to report it missing and the next business day, he and I split up the credit card companies to cancel – we finished all that and the airline called to say the airplane’s cleaners found his wallet embedded in the seat and they’d Fed Ex it to him at our office. We already had an account, so, like with your wife, he had it in hand a few days later, money and cards intact.
Looking good on the LEGO build – I have not heard that soundtrack, as is often the case with me. 🙂
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Your experience reminded me of a similar post I’d written awhile back about dropping my wallet outside of a professional baseball stadium. Whomever found it contacted me and promptly mailed it back, contents intact. Like your boss I took the immediate action to cancel all of my cards. It’s a sad statement to say I got “lucky” with both of these instances. Honest Johns and Janes are out there – just wish they were in bigger numbers.
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Yes, it is nice there are honest people out there Dave. My boss stewed and fretted over all his different personal ID cards needing to be replaced as that would be time-consuming. At least the credit card cancellations were easier in that regard. I would turn in a wallet, purse, or a phone if I found it I personally stopped using a purse a long time ago and put everything in a fanny pack now to make it easier and since no one has my house or car keys, I always carry an extra set at all times.
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There’s nothing worse than that sinking feeling you get when you realized you have lost something. But It’s nice to hear there are still honest people in the world. I left my purse in the shopping card at the grocery store outside when I put the cart back in the carousel. Something I have never done in my entire life, as I tend to be a bit OCD about purses and keys, but I was distracted and worried as my mother’s nursing home had called me while I was in the store about her latest fall, and my mind was somewhere else.) When I got home 5 minutes later I realized I didn’t have my purse, which contained my cell phone, my credit cards and all my Id. When I went back to the store it was not there, and the head cashier let me look through the CCTV coverage in her office to see if anyone had picked it up, but the carts were too far away from the camera. I left the store, feeling really depressed and was almost at my car, when she came running out after me and someone had just turned it in. I spoke to the man – he was older, with a long grey Santa Claus beard, and kind of shabbily dressed. I thanked him and he said, he was tempted to keep it, but thought about how his wife or daughter would feel if they had lost their purse. He refused to take any money, although he looked like he could have used it. Never saw him there before or since. I was just so grateful. I wouldn’t even have cared if he took the money in it, I just wanted my phone and ID back. I’ve gone back to being OCD now, and use a cross-over purse/bag so I don’t accidentally set it down and forget it!
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Ah what a great story Joni, especially about this man’s internal debate to return the purse or not. I think we all have a little of that struggle inside of us, but some (hopefully most?) come to the right conclusion in a hurry. My conscience could not handle hanging onto something that is not rightfully mine. Also, your story had me thinking about – just yesterday – how I left the prescription of pills I picked up for my wife in my car. Thank goodness I found them! What if I’d left them somewhere else, like an aisle in the adjacent supermarket? I’m sure the pharmacy wouldn’t go, “Oh, no problem Dave, we’ll just refill it”. My account would probably be flagged for attempting to get a second fill!
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It wouldn’t be a dilemma for me – I wouldn’t even think of keeping it. Too much Catholic guilt! If someone loses a Rx we could refill it with a code for lost meds or early vacation refill or something to over-ride it. Except if it was a controlled substance then we would have to fax the doctor – and I have heard some wild stories! I so have a story about a lady who left her Rx in the car. We have a scanner at the till which scans a code on the bag so we can tell right down to the date and time when a Rx was picked up. Most patients aren’t aware of that built into the system, and some would try and say they never got it. Well this older lady swore up and down that she didn’t get her epilepsy med, and I told her when it had been scanned out. I asked if someone else might have picked it up for her, as sometimes happens. No, she lived alone and no one else would have. So we refilled it as it was something she couldn’t do without. Well a couple of months later she calls me and told me she found her Rx. She had tucked the bag under the driver’s seat for safe keeping, and then forgot about it. When she sold the car, the garage called her and said they had found a Rx bag with her name on it under the driver’s seat when they were getting the car ready for resale! She thought I should know. We laughed about it – but at least she admitted it! I think it was bothering her, as she did not normally forget or lose things, but it’s easy enough to do, if you are stressed or distracted.
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Wow, that was a close call with the phone (sorry! 😛). Glad for the happy ending.
Breaking Away is indeed a great movie. My first thought: Breaking Away had a soundtrack?
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In fact, Spotify does not offer the “Breaking Away” soundtrack. I don’t even know if there’s an official one out there for purchase. Instead, industrious subscribers put together the music from the movie (none of which is original) and call it the soundtrack. I can usually tell when it’s different versions of the music you hear while watching the film. Regardless, opera is opera and it just didn’t work as a standalone score. Better as background music while watching the movie itself.
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Nice to hear about all the good people who do the right thing!
Years ago, my husband had his wallet stolen from the gym locker. It was just days before we were going to Germany for a month. Fortunately he was able to get a temporary drivers license and was able to get all the necessary cards cancelled. Also fortunately I had bank and credit cards that were not tied to his accounts!
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Happy to hear things worked out for your wife. Unfortunately, the Apple watch I left in a rental car never met up with an Honest Jane!
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Your story reminded me of a time I left a case of 20+ audio cassette tapes in a rental car, and they were nowhere to be found when I followed up. In hindsight it doesn’t seem like much of a loss, but when you’re in your twenties a theft is a big deal!
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