Lost and Found

About a week ago my favorite holiday shirt went missing. It is a long-sleeved tee shirt by the makers of "Life is Good." There is a picture of Jake wearing a Santa hat. He and Rocket are on a snow board, traveling up and over a snow hill. The caption reads: Road Trip.

I love this shirt. I found it on eBay right at Thanksgiving, while doing my weekly search for the best Jake and Rocket tee shirt of all - the one with Jake and
Rocket hiking up the trail. Can you believe they don't make that one anymore? Unbelievable! The caption reads: Life is Good.

I have worn this shirt a LOT to school and around town this past month. Since it is holiday-themed, this was the week to really take advantage! But I cannot find it
anywhere. Nobody in this house has seen it and Second Son went so far as to MAKE FUN OF IT. This would normally make me suspicious, but he made sure to emphasize that the shirt was not to his liking.

The same thing has happened before. Most recently, it was a tee shirt I got in June Lake. There is a picture of a drunk cowboy, slumped over in the saddle. His dog is
holding the reins, taking him home to safety. The caption reads: Designated Driver.

Before that, it was my trusty navy blue cords, all worn it at just the right places, size 8.

Anyway... I recently wanted to wear THAT shirt but do you think I could find it anywhere? NO! It wasn't in a drawer or any of the usual places shirts in my house hang out.

Before that, it was my hiking socks. Not just a pair - SEVERAL PAIRS of my thick and pricey hiking socks came up missing, including a brand new pair of blue Thorlos.

Since I had hiked with my sister and we tend to buy the same socks for each other for Christmas, I called her and nonchalantly brought up the missing socks. She played completely innocent. So then I had to get more aggressive. I ACCUSED HER, via eMail, of taking my socks and not returning them. She got a little testy with me and swore to God on a stack of holy Bibles that she didn't have them and asked how in HECK one manages to LOSE ALL OF one's hiking socks anyway.

She DID get me a pair last Christmas. Guilty conscience, I was thinking. To shut her up, is what SHE was thinking. (I know this because I know her very, very, well.)

So today, I am cleaning out my closet. Behind some long "teacher" dresses that my colleagues at school would pay me money to get rid of, I found my very old wicker
laundry basket, the one with a missing handle. I have had that basket a LONG time. It came as a set. Only this one remains. The others went missing a long time ago.

On the top of the basket were some khaki pants given to me by a teacher who outgrew them and heard me say that I needed some size 12s and didn't want to go buy them. Well, she came through. There were about 14 pairs of khaki pants without. I got a large bag and started the process of pants-culling. Since I don't wear 12s anymore, I thought I may as well bag them up.

After awhile, I started to reach bottom and was AMAZED to find my Drunken Cowboy with the Dog tee shirt, AND 3 pairs of hiking socks! (Except the blue Thorlos.)

But, no Jake and Rocket holiday tee shirt - anywhere. My grief is escalating.

Bet I get a pair of blue Thorlos this Christmas. The card will read: TOLD you I didn't have them.

:-)K