Sunday, March 25, 2007

Several Fine Cotton Lace Doilies, Runners, etc.


I had been married to a very abusive man. In desperation to get away from his abuse, I accepted a job miles away, whereupon I began to realize he was terribly abusive. I decided to divorce him, and though I'd trusted him with my belongings, I returned to NY, shocked to find he'd carelessly tossed everything I owned into two outdoor storage sheds. Most of it was damaged beyond repair.

Amongst the devastation of losing so many irreplaceable things, such as knitting patterns which are now long out of print, no matter how hard I searched, I never found my doilies and runners. These doilies and runners had been gifts from my Grandma to me. She'd crocheted them long before I was born, and when I'd complimented her gorgeous work, she took them right off of her furniture and gave them to me. Just like that. I'm not a doily/runner person, but I cherished this beautiful, fine work, wrought by my loving Grandma's patient hands, and planned to someday display these pieces in my home.

I never got the chance. To this day, I have no idea where they went. My wonderful Grandma is no longer with us, so I can't ask her to make anything else for me. And I can't buy something from a garage sale - no other doilies or runners would be the same, anyway.

Last seen in Peekskill, NY, 1992

Melanie, Illinois

Saturday, March 24, 2007

Giant Pencil Drawing of Me


In my late teens, I lived with a man in his thirties who was very abusive toward me. He had his charming and romantic moments, however, and in one of these he drew a portrait of me on some kind of artboard that was about two feet by three feet.

When we split up, I put the portrait in the trash because I felt so much anger against him. But as the years went by and no one else ever drew a portrait of me (or wrote a poem or composed a song) I came to realize how rare an expression that portrait was and I have always wished I kept it, despite never wanting to see the artist again.

Especially now that I am forty, I realize that no one else will ever admire the beauty of my youth so much that they make a work of art based on it. There are many lost objects in my past - including an entire storage locker full of childhood memories - but I have thought of that portrait most often and in most poignant terms through the years.

Last seen in Louisville, Kentucky in 1987.

Sparrow, Kentucky

Friday, March 23, 2007

Black Kid Fur-Lined Gloves


My father took a tracing of my hands with him to Hungary and came back with these beautiful gloves for me. They kept my hands toasty through 2 1/2 nasty Canadian winters, but one day, as I rode the train from school to meet the man who would eventually become my husband, they were lost. Equivalent exchange, perhaps?

I kept checking with the lost and found, but wasn't overly shocked that they were never turned in. I hope they were picked up and loved by someone who really needed them.

Last seen January 8, 2003, at the Bay subway station.

ja'ne, Toronto, Canada

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Evil Eye Earring


Sadly, the earrings that were supposed to watch over and protect me from evil - disappeared unexpectedly, just one...I wear the other one - but feel that it's not full force.

Last seen on my ear, Spring/Summer 2005.

Jennifer Schmidt, Brooklyn, NY

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Froggy Keychain



I've had this froggy keychain for about 10+ years. I named him Harrold and he was the guardian of my keys. People associated me with him, so if I ever misplaced my keys, Harrold was recognized and returned to me. In college I sewed a belly-button on him. Then one night while shopping at Trader Joe's he disappeared*. I was actually pretty upset. Who will take care of my keys now?

*Thankfully he left me with my keys.

Last seen February 15, 2007, at Trader Joe's.

Laura T., Arlington, MA.

AC Moore Bag filled with 7 T-Shirts


6 white t-shirts (1 small, 1 medium, 2 large, 2 x-large) and one tie-dyed t-shirt.

I remember bringing the bag to school and running a couple of errands at school with the bag in my hand. I went to Student Affairs with it. Then, I went to visit Aimee in the print shop. Lastly, going to an appointment in the Artist Resource Center (ARC), I thought that I might have put the bag in my locker in the screenprinting room, since I was going to screenprint on them, but they weren't there.

Last seen February 1, 2007, in the Artist Resource Center at SMFA.

Tony Carneiro, Boston, MA

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Sumo-Wrestler-Shaped Squeaky Bicycle Horn


Riding home on a cold night, I hit a deep pothole with my bike's front tire and the horn that had been attached to my handlebars flew off into the darkness. It was below 15°F.

Last seen late 2005 along Huntington Avenue, Boston.

Dee, Boston, MA

Gold Bracelet with "Tiger's Eye" Beads



I was flying from Pittsburgh to Detroit and I noticed, about five minutes after exiting the aircraft, that my bracelet was missing. I retraced my steps, but never found it. The bracelet belonged to my Great Aunt. She bought it a number of years ago in Italy.

Last seen March, 2006, in the Detroit International Airport.

Janine Biunno, Boston, MA

Black/Red Sweatshirt


I have no idea how it was lost. I can't remember when I realized it was gone either. It was a crew neck sweatshirt with straight sleeves and an unelasticized waist. The inside was red and the outside looked black from a distance, but when you got closer it was actually black with very, very fine red lines in the weave of the shirt. I never wore it that much and it was probably a year or so before I realized it was gone, but I'd sure like to know where it is now.

Last seen in Bellingham, WA, in 2001.

Matthew Meta, Boston, MA

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

set of his + hers wedding rings



My Grandmother (Father's side) had just passed away from cancer. My Grandfather and Dad were beside themselves, so my Mother, sister, and I took over duties of cleaning out Grandma Faye's belongings. Among the items in her jewelry box were two wedding bands, which had belonged to her mother and father. Because they were such a precious part of family history, we gave them to my Father to place in our safety deposit box. In his grief, he misplaced them and no one ever saw them again.

Last seen June 1995 in Birmingham, AL

Alexis, Boston, MA

Monday, March 12, 2007

Messenger Bag


Bailey Works XL Camouflage Messenger Bag + Check Book

Upon inviting several friends over to have a drinking session a person or persons who came over after I had one too many drinks decided it should be their's. That bag was my first messenger bag and something I had worked very hard to purchase.

Last seen in my apartment.

Daniel Tobias (a.k.a. Toby), Boston/New York

Sunday, March 11, 2007

White T-Shirt




An extremely dirty white t-shirt with my band's logo on it. Somewhere between washing, drying, and bringing my clothes back with me, I lost my favorite shirt.

Last seen at the laundromat.

Bill, Wilton, CT

Saturday, March 10, 2007

Black & White Beaded Choker



...that I made. There was a girl going through people's bags and stealing jewelry. She stole my inhaler, too.

Last seen at the bottom of my gym bag in high school.

Rachel, Boston, MA

Friday, March 9, 2007

Jean Jacket



I had a jean jacket that I loved and I lent it to a friend of mine. I asked for it back after about a month or so, and he said he didn't have it anymore. I asked him why he didn't have it, and he said he gave it to his girlfriend, and then she broke up with him, but she kept the jacket. I told him to ask her to give it back, but he wouldn't. I told him I would call her but he wouldn't give me her number.

That was 8 years ago.

Thursday, March 8, 2007

Bodum Traveler's Mug


Beautiful Bodum traveler's mug; clear plastic with French press and rubber grip. Lovely to see tea leaves floating.

I gave it to my boyfriend to keep while I went on a school field trip. He left it somewhere. It is ironic because he gave it to me as a present for starting freshman year and keeping warm; he who giveth loseth also. I quickly forgave him. It will take lots more than losing a mug to lose me.

Last seen 2007, MIT campus, Cambridge, MA

Wednesday, March 7, 2007

Metal Napkin Dispenser









Somebody ran off with the dispenser and scattered the napkins in the parking lot.

Last seen at the shelf by the door.

Whole Foods Market, Central Square, Cambridge, MA

Tuesday, March 6, 2007

Yellow Sheaffer Pen


When I was nine years old, my family presented me with a yellow thick-nibbed Sheaffer pen on my birthday. For me, the pen symbolized several rites of passage. It was the first 'adult' present I ever received. It was the first present to codify my decision that yellow, not red, was my favorite color. The pen came at the perfect time, as I was transitioning from using pencils to ink in school and was the only kid in class to have a "real" pen, not the disposable Dollar ink pens handed to most young Pakistani students (for that reason, I credit the pen for instilling some long-standing intellectual pretensions and predelictions in me). I developed my signature as it currently is using that pen. I wrote my first 'A' grade essay using that pen. I signed off on my first Valentine's Day card using that pen. I literally wrote myself into existence using that pen. And then, in 1993, just before leaving for a summer vacation, I stowed the pen away safely, somewhere, perhaps in a drawer, or a shoe box, or my father's filing cabinet, or a carton, or perhaps even an empty tin of Quality Street chocolates. I never saw my yellow Sheaffer again.

Last seen in Karachi, Pakistan, 1993.

Huma, Cambridge, MA

Saturday, March 3, 2007

Ruby Flower Ring


There was a reckless time after I finished college that I was partying more than I should have been. I went to visit a friend from high school who was living in Manhattan and wound up very drunk. The next morning I woke up in a strange apartment with a friend of hers. I left in such a hurry I forgot the beautiful antique ruby ring my mother had just given me. I never saw it again...or my friend for that matter.

Last seen December, 1998, 34th Street, New York

Anita, Somerville, MA

Friday, March 2, 2007

Stuffed Bulldog



I've had a life long obsession with bulldogs. When I joined the Peace Corps my sister sent me a care package with a stuffed bulldog to help alleviate homesickness. Due to political strife, my fellow volunteers and I were taken from our sites. We only had an hour to pack our belongings. I left many things behind, but I made sure I packed my bulldog. We were consolidated at the Sheraton Hotel in Harrare where we awaited a decision regarding the fate of our program. I left Zimbabwe in May of 2000. Only when I returned to the states did I realize it was missing. I think I left it in the hotel room. I like to imagine a hotel maid gifted it to one of her children.

Last seen May, 2000, in Harrare, Zimbabwe, AFRICA

Melinda Go, Boston

Thursday, March 1, 2007

Haunted Mansion Merchandise


My childhood experiences with Disney World started when I was really young, I was two when I first went. I don't remember that visit at all. Then I went again when I was six, and when I was six it culminated with this very exciting thing which was: We were on our last ticket of the night (this is back in the days when they had ticket books to get into Disney), and we decided to use it to go the Haunted Mansion. It was the end of the park's day, so it was largely empty, and it was dark out. The cast member who let us in was so good - she was really into it, she really hammed it up, you know: "Master Gracie requests more bodies" - and let us in, and we went through that ride and it was such a perfect cap to such a perfect trip, and I never forgot about it.

I took all the spending money I had, and I blew it on the souvenirs from the Haunted Mansion. And we got in our rental car, and we started driving back to our Grandparents' place, and I fell asleep in the backseat. And the car broke down. And they called AAA, and they sent out another rental car, and we transferred into the new car. I was carried, sleeping (I had the ability to sleep through just about anything). Woke up the next morning, went to find all that lovely schwag, and found out that we'd left it in the first rental car. And it was gone, and I never saw it again. It's like my Rosebud. In my mind those souvenirs were the coolest merchandise ever made for any theme park in the history of the world bar none.

Last seen in Orlando, Florida, 1977

Cory, Los Angeles