Day 325 - Lost and Found

 LOST AND FOUND

Prompt - Lost and Found : Write about a lost object

Is there an alternative universe for missing socks, leaving their partners for better times?  They seem to be the items of mine that go missing most often.  But the most frustrating one of recent months, and an ongoing mystery and nagging nuisance, was one very simple piece of equipment, that is old fashioned and not always considered very useful nowadays.  But given my preference for wearing walking boots in the colder seasons, and for ankle boots that don't always make themselves easy to get into, it is a small piece of hardware I find extremely useful.

A shoe horn.  Ubiquitous in shoe shops, less so in homes nowadays.  But so helpful in getting into boots that are otherwise a struggle to get into.  

A good quality one, slightly longer than the average, came with a pair of boots I bought a couple of years ago.  It was about seven inches in length, made of a good quality plastic made to look a bit like bone.  I put into the box that sits under the small velour couch just inside from the front door.  The spot that's essential to people of our age for making it much easier to get footwear on and off, sited on the entrance carpet which is that hard wearing ribbed fabric you find in many shop and hotel entrances.  It got a lot of use, helping me into my walking boots, and the electric blue suede pair that lace up quite high and require a lot of fiddling about to get on.  

Until the day it wasn't there.  So I looked for it.  And looked and looked.  Inside the box, and its companion alongside.  Under and around the sofa.  Under the sofa cushion.  In the cupboard where several pairs of boots reside.  In coat and jacket pockets, and in backpacks, in case the object I sought had accidentally been picked up with some other item.  I looked for several days.  And found nothing.  Not a sign, not a clue.  I was out of ideas.  

I ordered some replacements from eBay.  they arrived.  Just as functional, but smaller, cheaper, less pleasant to hold.  I miss their predecessor.  Writing this has made me want to start searching again...