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October 18, 2006
Shit I Couldn't Make Up If I Tried
Really? There's no other possible title for this.
Do you remember the post I made on Labor Day weekend about the $40 B. and I found outside a restaurant? There was a gas station receipt between the two $20 bills that had a name, presumably the name of the person who lost the cash. We went back to the restaurant, had her paged, and did everything short of going to the hotel next door and knocking on doors in search of her. In a last-ditch effort to find this woman, I wrote a blog entry peppered with her name in hopes that she'd Google her name and find it.
And it only took six weeks for that to happen!
You read that correctly: Janice Andrukaitis Googled her name yesterday, found the entry I posted and sent me a message on MySpace. Well, actually, she was able to answer one question: she had eaten dinner at Cracker Barrel. She couldn't remember the answer to question #2 - where had she purchased gas that day, but that's fine because I couldn't remember, either. Apparently I didn't have much faith in my Google plan, as I didn't bother to write down where the gas receipt had come from.
Ain't the universe a funny, funny place?
At first I thought the message was spam, since her user name is different from her given name. But I kept reading, and by the time I got halfway through the message, I got a clue, skipped to the bottom and saw her signature. And then I completely lost my shit, partially stunned that 1) she found the post, and 2) that it only took six weeks. Despite being stunned, what was I yelling? "I knew it! I knew she'd find it!"
I can't even begin to describe what a kick I got out of this, especially since I've had a rather crappy week. I'm constantly amazed at the ways people come and go from each others' lives. I don't even have anything particularly profound or insightful to offer. I'm just amazed.
I'm also amazed that she doesn't want her money back. I think that's rather telling, don't you?
The night we found the money, B. and I speculated on this person. There was a Shriners convention in the area; maybe she was a part of that. Or someone just traveling along I-70 for the holiday weekend. Okay, so we weren't very creative with our speculating, what with being completely drunk on pumpkin spice lattes and the joys of found money. But we speculated. I speculated on how the loss of the cash might be affecting her, hoping that it didn't happen to be the last $40 she had to her name, hoping she got where she was going without the hassels caused by lost money.
She moved from North Carolina to Nebraska last year, and was making the trip to pick up the last of her stuff. Her traveling companion? An aging Norwegian Elkhound named Bear. She got her meal to-go and ate in her truck while Bear got some outside time. Obviously, all this transpired while B. and I lingered over dinner because I know I would have noticed a Norwegian Elkhound picnicking on barbeque outside the St. Charles Cracker Barrel. That's not a sight that's easily missed.
I like knowing the rest of this story, and Janice said that she's glad to know what happened to the money. You know how those things can make you nuts, trying to figure out what, exactly, you did with money. I'm still trying to figure out what happened to that full box of blank checks I lost in 1996. I have a feeling that whoever found them won't be plastering my name all over the internet. Which is fine. There wasn't any money in that account, anyway.
Posted by Robin at October 18, 2006 09:56 PM
Comments
This is so cool :)
Hi Janice!
Posted by: Exena at October 18, 2006 10:51 PM
LOVE this! The power of the internet....I hoped she'd turn up too - and how lovely that she didn't want the money back. A truly fabulous ending.
Sal x
Posted by: sally at October 19, 2006 07:43 AM
i hope janice does something good for somenoe else in return - kinda like pay it forward
Posted by: RamblingMan at October 19, 2006 08:02 AM
There is definitely some cosmic magic in them thar Interweb tubes. Great resolution to a great story.
Best of luck in Nebraska, Janice and Bear.
Posted by: michelle/weaker vessel at October 19, 2006 09:42 AM
that's AWESOME!!! are you singing with me? "it's a small, small world..."
Posted by: kara joy at October 19, 2006 10:49 AM
Wow! Small world indeed! "Hi Janice!" :)
Posted by: Debbie at October 19, 2006 01:24 PM
I think this is wonderful. And I'm glad she could appreciate the effort you went to to try to return her money. So many people just wouldn't bother.
Posted by: Dixie at October 19, 2006 02:39 PM
I love the internet. What a great story.
Posted by: barbara at October 19, 2006 03:23 PM
Janice rocks! Nothing good comes up when I Google my name :(
Posted by: allison at October 19, 2006 05:40 PM
That is a totally cool story! Wow!
Posted by: Lucinda at October 20, 2006 03:32 PM
Unrelated to Janet, but just feeling an irresistible urge to SQUEEEE! about the concert tonight in your stead. Hope y'all are having fun!
Posted by: michelle/weaker vessel at October 20, 2006 06:24 PM
*JanICE, derrrr
Posted by: michelle/weaker vessel at October 20, 2006 06:25 PM
