Day 121 - 06/21/2007

I was going to ride in to work, but decided against it as I was planning on riding Friday and didn't want to push it (my knee is still tender a bit from Sunday's triathlon). Instead, I went out for a run. I did what has become my standard route (walk 0.4 miles to warm up, run 3.1 miles, walk 0.4 miles to cool down). However, I was feeling good, so I upped the total to 3.5 and only walked about 0.2 miles as my cool down.

But this post isn't about my run, it's about roadkill.

On the way out, I came across a bowl on the side of the trail.

Hmmmm...that's an odd place to find a bowl, I thought to myself. (Of course, all thoughts are to one's self, so why do writers add this piece of info? Just a thought.)

A few yards up the trail, I came across some more dishes. It turns out the bowl was part of a china place setting that appeared to be meant for a wedding present (based on the wrapping paper and Bed, Bath & Beyond Bridal Registry sticker).

I continued my run, mulling over why a couple of place settings would be left in the middle of the trail.

After passing by them on my way back home, it hit me: They were probably stolen from a wedding held at Cabell's Mill over the weekend. Well, that could be the reason, but why would they still be here 3-4 days after the wedding? Maybe a neighborhood kid stole them and stashed them in the woods and only now was able to get to them. Another option would be they were stolen from a car in a nearby neighborhood and were left there once the thieves found them to be useless (although they're currently going for $35 per place setting on e-Bay!).

After my run, I went back on my bike and brought them back home in hopes that I'd be able to return them to the bride and groom.

Later this afternoon I called Cabell's Mill and asked the ranger to have whomever had their wedding held there to give me a call. If they can identify the pattern, I'd make sure they got them back. If I don't hear from anyone by next week or so, I'll post a message on a neighborhood newsgroup to see if they were taken from someone's car or home. If that doesn't pan out, who knows, maybe we'll keep them (or sell them on e-Bay!).

On a completely unrelated note, tonight I started reading a new book to the kids. It's a story about love and devotion, with princesses, pirates, giants and a rapscallion from Sicily. It also contains a Spaniard seeking to avenge the murder of his father. But, in the end, it's about love.

Oh, the book? It's The Princess Bride. (After the suffering I went through watching the Narnia films, I had to pick something where the post-book movie would be enjoyable to the reader.)