This Looks Like A Job For…

I went to get my cache for the day at a higher education campus in Round Rock. Having a site that serves as a satellite campus for three different colleges is a clever idea, but that’s beside the point. I parked by a pond and sauntered over to a water pump built by the family that originally owned the land. There was a nano on the iron frame somewhere, and I meant to find it, especially since the previous finder from the day before had a fraction of my finds. All I knew was that I needed to look up or possibly jump. I walked around and visually searched the supports to no avail. After a while, I finally spotted it well out of reach on a crossbar in the middle. I could have climbed up on the framework and gotten it, but (a) it didn’t seem stable enough for my weight, (b) there were prominently posted signs saying NO Climbing, and (c) I’m too old for that crap. But then, in the midst of my preparations for seppuku, I remembered my new TOTT! I walked over to the car, pulled out my new waldo (or grabber, if you’re not puppetry inclined), and plucked down that nano with a minimum of muss or fuss. After putting my initials on the log (very disrespectfully, I might add), I returned to the waldo and put the nano back as easily as I pulled it down.

Where has this thing been all my life! I know you’re probably looking at me funny when I say that, considering how simple and universal waldos are in the caching community. Yes, I keep a ladder and a 14-foot pole in my trunk, but until recently, I didn’t have a waldo. I still wouldn’t have one if I hadn’t visited a friend of mine recovering from surgery. He had a couple of them to aid him with tasks. Seeing his reminded me that I’ve been wanting one for a while, so I went ahead and got one. I rarely use my TOTTs, but I have been joyful to have them when I needed them, even the more exotic ones. (I don’t know what’s more amazing: that I have a UV flashlight or how little I’ve actually needed it.) It’s nice to have a new one in my arsenal, but how am I only getting to this one (one of the less expensive ones to acquire) this far into my caching career? This seems like first-year newbie stuff! And now, how do I sort by caches that are just out of my arm’s reach?