I Am The Reason

Last year, I helped a friend of mine place some caches as part of a service project. I offered to help her maintain them because they’re out of town but in places I frequently pass through. Unfortunately, I do not monitor them directly. Yesterday, I learned that two of them had been archived, and one has been missing for a while and probably needs to be replaced.

I am the reason we can’t have nice things. And by “things,” I mean caches. I am so behind on maintenance. I missed out on her caches and need to care for another before it meets the same fate. I also have three caches of my own around Austin that need some tender loving care. One, the simplest, was recently found. But the finder has few enough finds that I’m not entirely sure how much I believe them, so I feel the need to go check. My longtime Letterbox Hybrid definitely went missing, and I’ve made a new container, but I just haven’t gone downtown to put it back in action. Most importantly, I have to replace one of my more recent, pretty involved hides. I’ve got the pipe and all the film canisters, but I’ve been too lazy to pull out the drill and tie off all the paracord. Consequently, it’s been out of action long enough for my local reviewer to give me a finger wag about it.

As much as I complain about people needing to maintain their caches so people can get good experiences, I don’t judge. It’s not always a simple thing to take care of a cache. Some days you don’t have the time. Others, you don’t have the energy. Still others, you don’t have the parts or equipment. And then, of course, some of us have lives and responsibilities that we have to tend to, of which cache maintenance is lower on the list. I get it. I’m guilty of all those things. My Letterbox hasn’t been replaced because it’s gotten cold, and I am less motivated to be out late to do it. The pipe hasn’t been finished because I’ve been busy with other things (like writing a book). The simple one is the worst reason: I’ve been too lazy to drive the mile to go check it, despite the fact that I frequently drive to neighboring counties for a daily find.

Yes, the reasons are myriad. But it has to be done. Every time we place a cache, we make a promise. And even though I’ve been lacking lately, it’s a promise I intend to keep. Besides, how can I expect others to keep up their caches for me if I don’t also keep up my end of the bargain?