Lost, Found, and Returned

On Friday, 9/26/2025, I was over at the local liquor store buying a bottle of gin. 

This liquor store is close to me and my go-to joint for casual purchasing. That said, I never shop at that store without my pistol in my pocket. This is due to the various free-lance enterprises I've seen going on in and around the parking lot. Panhandling, various street vendors (cologne, perfume, etc.), semi tractors parked with the engine off, the occasional roach coach, and sometimes a lot lizard - it's a lively place after dark.

As I got out of my car I checked the parking lot for obstructions, foreign objects, and secure footing, because you don't want to step on anything, and I found a lost wallet. No money, but an ID and a cash Visa card.

I bought my gin and decided that none of the clerical workers at the liquor store looked reliable enough to put the wallet in their lost and found box, so I determined to call the owner and ask him to come and get it. But - no phone number on the ID. He did have a name and address on the ID, and my recently charged and updated Garmin works quite nicely, so - ten minutes later I was disturbing the peace of a lady about my own age who accepted the wallet and thanked me profusely. She assured me that this wasn't the first time.

The neighborhood was a little sketchy, so I was glad I was packing heat. The owner would be pleased to get his wallet back, at least that was my hope. And no, I didn't give my name or contact information to the nice lady, because there's always the chance of someone showing an empty wallet to the local constabulary and wondering if there was any way they could help him recover the four hundred and change he was carrying.