The first phone was an iPhone in December. I first saw the magenta rubber case, then the phone itself. (A length of purple nylon tulle netting in the vicinity caught my eye.) I charged it up using my iTouch cable, and found the owner via the Facebook app. The young mother was grateful to get the phone back, and I was happy to help.
Today, about 100 feet south of the first phone, I found a Samsung T-Mobile flip phone whose owner was obviously Spanish-speaking. I called one of the most frequently called numbers, which turned out to the be owner's wife. The three recent semesters of non-credit Spanish came in useful when we made the exchange at a fast food restaurant close to my office. She and her husband both worked at IHOP. Apparently he had left the phone on the roof of his car when he drove to work.
Following is a short list of items I've fond while cycling over the years:
- combination adjustable wrench/pliers
- Leatherman tool
- wood-handled screw driver
- Stanley tape measure
- wire stripper
- lots of towels
- wallet empty of money but with ID (after a diligent search, unable to find owner)
- two driver licenses (both returned to owners)
- briefcase and contents strewn over bushes (returned to owner)
Update 22 September 2011. Found a third cell phone, a Samsung flip phone, which the owner had no interest in retrieving, in a honky-tonk parking lot and about 100 feet from cell phone number 2. This phone belonged to an undergraduate student majoring in business. I texted one of his correspondents that his phone had been found, but instead of picking it up, he cancelled his phone service. If he had brought the AC adapter, I could donate it to the women's shelter.
