Unexpected Disappointment

I would normally say that any day you find a cache is a good day. But today was a slightly odd one. I ditched work a little early today so I could grab a cache a little farther out of the area than I would normally go. Early sunsets in winter mean I don’t have a ton of time. While I’ve gotten many caches after dark, I try to avoid it these days, mostly because most of the low-hanging fruit has been long ago logged and the last thig I want to do is look for a cache in trees or something high difficulty in the dark. And, of course, the farther out I go, the more likely I am to find something quick and simple for a cache of the day. Luckily, I thought, there’s always a cemetery. I headed for part of the Texas Spirit Quest that I thought would be an easy park-and-grab near a cemetery. Unfortunately, the cache was located quite a distance from the cemetery for logistic reasons, but I got to ground zero and began my search. I’ve found tons of Texas Spirit Quest caches, but this one eluded me. I tried every upright tree and the brick wall and began thinking about getting into the non-upright trees when a muggle came out to move a branch from his porch to the edge of his yard. In reality, I think he was curious about the dude poking around the edge of his cul-de-sac. He seemed to get as close as he could without going into the street, finding busywork to keep him there in that optimal spot. I don’t know for sure if he was watching me, but I guarantee I was keeping a close eye on him. After a few minutes of searching under his scrutiny, I decided to let it go (I wasn’t finding the cache anyway) and preempt his curiosity by asking him where the cemetery was. He was kind enough to point out where it was down the street (I had unknowingly passed it on the way there), so I headed back toward it. And there, in the middle of some other dude’s yard, was a small gathering of gravestones—perhaps half a dozen—with a couple of muggles hanging out in the street chatting right next to them. So much for taking a look at them. I kept going. Luckily, I thought, there was another cache on the way to the main road, so I headed for that one. It had been found a couple of days ago, so it should be good, right?

Wrong. Everything within twenty-five feet of GZ had been torn down or plowed up. I rechecked the logs to see how it could have been found a couple of days ago and noticed that it had been found a year and a couple of days ago—2022! What a difference a digit makes.

I took one more shot at a cache, this time just off a trail in a subdivision. I went for a short walk and came to a rough path into the abutting woods. In a clearing, I found a tree stump, and the cache lay within! I reached in and pulled out a glass bottle with the Geocaching logo taped to it. I grimaced because, as we all know, glass containers are a terrible idea. I unscrewed the top and found two probably related things: (1) a whole bunch of cobwebs (how a spider got in or out, I have no idea) and (2) a log that had turned to mush. It was so messed up that it wasn’t even worth trying to put ink on. I had some spares in the car, but not with me, and I didn’t feel like coming all the way back here just for that. So, I noted the mushy state when I logged it. And muggles appeared again as I came out of the clearing almost on top of a mother walking her two preschoolers. I made a little noise so I didn’t spook them while coming out of the trees. 

I had one last task to fulfill before I could go home. One of my caches had been found the day before, but the finder noted that he was with his kids and that there was “something in the baggie,” so they didn’t sign it. Since the cache was on the way home, I swung by to take a look at it. Sure enough, someone had left a few buds of weed in it! I’ve got nothing against that sort of thing. I don’t smoke myself because it does nothing for me, but more power to those who do. But why leave it in a cache? You might be exposing kids to it, drugs are expressly forbidden in caches, and it’s just a waste of weed! We all saw the warnings in high school that drugs would destroy your life and to watch out for people giving it away for free. And then I went out into the real world and learned from the Army, law firms, and bars that nobody gives away drugs for free! Well, for the first time in my life, as I emptied the buds onto the ground, I realized I might be incorrect. But it was a clean cache again, and that’s what mattered.

I went home, feeling mildly disappointed that this would be what the waning days of 2023 would be like. But as I nestled snugly in my bed and the warm covers, I decided I could live with that.