Things I've Found on Gas Meters

Simply for my own amusement, I'm going to create and update a list of things I've found on top of gas meters while doing my leak survey job. This is a list of everything I've seen left resting on gas meters and have remembered enough to record.

Things I've found on gas meters:

• Lawn Sprinklers (~1) - The top three things I find the most aren't surprising, as they deal with the grooming of one's yard, but I have to wonder, is there really no better place to store these things?
• Garden Hose Heads ( ~4) - Usually unaccompanied, these hose heads are left on meters either out of convenience, or for lack of a better storage place, hard to say.
• Garden Hose (~8) - I suppose it's cheaper to wrap your garden hose around the gas meter than to actually go out and buy something to make your yard less cluttered, but who am I to judge...
• A Brick? (~3) - This one's got me stumped. Once is random. Twice is coincidental. But I'm almost positive I've seen at least three bricks left on top of gas meters, and I can't understand how that would happen. Is it to weigh the meter down a bit, because I'm pretty sure those things aren't defying gravity. How does one end up with one lone brick and decide "Hey, I'm gonna put this on my meter because it has no other purpose to fulfill". I just don't get this one, but that's why I like it.
• A Piece of Wood (1) - Just like those random bricks, I don't understand how people just leave random stuff all over the place.
  
• Extension Cord (~3) - Similar to the garden hose, people just wrap up their extension cords and leave them on the meter.
  
• Hockey Tape (1) - I can see how this ends up left outside, and put in the most convenient place at the time, but why can't you bring these kinds of things inside?!
• Pair of Shoes (1) - This one's pretty good. Who leaves a pair of shoes outside? They looked fine to wear, but what happens if it rains? Why not bring them inside? So weird...
• Pair of Sandals (1) -
• Beer Bottle (1) - These two are just bad. I can understand using the meter as a table, but why not actually clean up after yourself and gather the empties, geez...
• Soft Drink Cup (1) - This one's a bit worse too, it's not even a matter of gathering empties for the refund, it's just not cleaning up garbage, c'mon...
• Hand Towel (1) - Just a towel to dry your hands, like it was a bathroom.
• Bags for Folding Chairs (1) - These made me laugh. There was a pair of bags for those fold up lawn chairs hanging on the Supply Line like it was a towel rack, haha.
• A Magnet (1) -
• Plastic Bags used as garbage bags (2) -
• BBQ Grill Brush (1) -
• Tongs (1) -
  
• A Baseball Glove (1) -
• Zip Ties with attached Tarp (1) -
• Bike Lock and Chain (1) -
• Football (1) - Foam
• Plastic Toy Wolf (1) -

Hmm...

If I ever get a tattoo, it will be of my name, in case I ever get amnesia.

That's called a contingency plan...

Another Post

Well it looks like I gave in and made another post. It seems pretty relevant given the current time. It's weird going back and reading things I wrote in the past and seeing how little I've changed, hehe.

Alone (08/20/06)

Okay, let’s start by saying the obvious. It sounds like a very anti-social, self-pitying title. But I’m simply talking about the things I like about just being alone. Don’t get me wrong, I still like to hang out with my friends, catch a movie, go partying or whatever, but when I’m alone, it doesn’t necessarily mean I need company. I also realize that I’ll be saying a lot of things that make me sound self-conscious, but who isn’t? I’m just discussing more of my random thoughts.

I’m a shy, independent person, and I can sometimes find socializing quite stressful and enduring. Assuming it’s with people I like, I do enjoy talking to them, but if I do it for too long, or with too many people at once, I feel worn out. At this point, I don’t want to talk to anyone, just because it’s more peaceful. I don’t have to try to be interesting, or funny, or nice (I actually do enjoy being all of those, but sometimes to reinforce it gets tiring). I can just sit back, relax in any position, no matter how awkward it looks, and know that no one will judge me or bother me. Even though I’m technically by myself, I don’t feel alone as long as I have music. I have a lot of music, so I always have something I like to suit my mood. It’s so peaceful to just sit in the quiet, or listen to your favourite music. You feel more engaged and immersed in the music, and you seem to have a new appreciation for every note they play.

If I do have a craving for some human interaction, there’s always someone at home, or I can just talk to people on MSN Messenger. However, I’d much rather prefer just to sit alone. Alone with my music. Alone with my thoughts. I feel like my mind is an open field, but also like a labyrinth. I could just sit or lie down and explore different thoughts. In fact I’m doing it right now, and I have been for these last two thoughts. I can just let one idea simmer. Take different perspectives on it, explore the possibilities or alternate realities involving said idea. Or I can just rapidly think of random things that have little or no relation. Sometimes I get stuck in a hypothetical personal dilemma, usually emotional where I’m not sure what I should do. That’s when my mind is like a labyrinth. I try to figure out the best set of actions that have the best outcome for both me, and anyone else involved. It’s strange though. Sometimes I can think of the problem from every possible angle, and have a seemingly foolproof approach to solving it, but in the end the human mind’s incredibly unpredictable way of working would overcome all my plans and throw everything out of order. I think it’s pretty funny that I was writing about how I like being alone mostly because it let me think about things, any things actually, and that I constantly used my mind to think about important things to me, and then I ended up writing about things I was thinking about, haha. Well I guess that’s all I really have to say about why I like being alone. It’s seems like I haven’t said much, but it’s only because the reason I like being alone is so vague, and somewhat mysterious. I hope I’ve said enough to give some insight into what I do when I’m alone and just thinking.

My First Post

So this cousin of mine started a blog for some undetermined reason and convinced me to start one too. I still don't know how I feel about the whole thing, but if she's interested then I'll at least give it a try. In the past I decided that in the event of me reaching old age I wanted to preserve the essence of my youth, so I started writing some of my random thoughts down. Some are more personal than others, so I'll started my blog with one of my random thoughts that seems sort of relevant:

Literature! (08/22/06)

Writing all these thoughts and opinions about society, have made me come to realize the eternal value of literature. What are we but souls temporarily visiting Earth only to return to our true homes after death? If we leave nothing behind and do not interact with anyone, then after our departure, in future’s time, there will be no memory of us. However, if we leave something behind, we can give insight and comfort for those who come after us, just as those in past did for us. But this is not restricted to literature, it’s just one example. It also refers to art, architecture, or any other expression of human life, and living. In some cases, it can even be seen in ideas, philosophies, or changes to society. In very rare cases, a person can make such a difference in the world that they become legendary, and will never be forgotten.

But leaving the world something isn’t so people will remember you. It’s to preserve your thoughts, your ideas and your emotions. It is to teach, and to help future generations expand their minds. On an egotistic level, it is to be remembered. For me, I hope to leave my very ideas, just so that there’s a possibility that just one person, hopefully someone close to me, can read about what goes through my mind on a daily basis. I like to think that some of things I write have some merit to them and that I can bring about new ideas for someone to think about in order to learn about themselves. Because one of the most important parts about living is learning about whom you are. It’s not something anyone can tell you, or force you to be. They may only help guide you. I seemed to be straying off topic, so I’d like to close by saying I thoroughly encourage leaving something that someone might find useful, whether it be a piece of art, a book, or just a random assortment of ideas and thoughts (hehe).