Lost your keys? Phone?

[Zeke]

Happens to me at least 2wice a month. The phone isn't real easy to find because it's never set to ring. But it's not small, just black. Keys, well not that small as there are a few on each ring. Just stops life right there however.

I opened a shed that has one of the many padlocks and set those keys down somewhere. They open all my tool cabinets. No work until they are found.

Half hour of looking and haven't even had in inkling where they are even though I can trace my steps and then some. Might as well post on Pelican wasting time until an inspiration occurs.

My normal routine is to give up and they show up when they show up. A good lesson why I should have duplicates like car keys. I have some, but not to the tools. Maybe time to cut all them off and get new with duplicate keys. Nope, the grinder is locked up.

[dad911]

If you use Apple, you can ping your phone with 'Find my...'

Same with keys if you put an airtag on them.

Is your drill locked up? 1/4 inch drill bit through the keyslot is less messy than the grinder.

I have to call my wife's phone for her to find it at least twice a week. Once I found it on a shelf in the fridge.

[Zeke]

Yeah, living with my wife's Alzheimer's has sharpened my hunting skills. Before that I was the helpless husband whose wife found things. But not in the shop. AirTag might be next.

No, I can get to a drill if it comes to that. I'm more curious as to where I will find them this time. And you know I will as soon as I destroy the locks. Come to think of it, I might have a spare for the tool cabinets. But there are other keys that when I bought the cabinets I got only one. The lock is in the handle so that will be expensive.

(edit) Ah, the fruits of misfortune, I have found some spares that I knew were for something, but they weren't marked. Not something I'd do anyway. I'm only locked out of one cabinet now plus the shed where this all started. Well, I did unlock the shed, so I just won't lock until I know where the keys are. And yes, I have spent a good amount of time in and around the shed looking. That would seem to be the logical place.

[GH85Carrera]

I carry three keys only. One each for my cars, and the house door lock key. Everything else, has a place on the wall to hang the key.

In my entire life, I have never had to go look for my keys as they are in the ignition, or in my pocket. On our two week trip to Alaska my keys were 100% useless as they would not fit anything for well over a 1,000 miles. When I stand up, I always pay my pockets and kinds freak if I don't feel the lump for the keys.



Never once needed to replace a battery!

I have set my phone down in the car and gone inside or left it on the garage workbench. Never left it behind, or forgot where it is. It is indeed my second brain. I lived most of my life with no cell phone, but I can't imagine life without it now.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

I carry three keys only. One each for my cars, and the house door lock key. Everything else, has a place on the wall to hang the key.

In my entire life, I have never had to go look for my keys as they are in the ignition, or in my pocket. On our two week trip to Alaska my keys were 100% useless as they would not fit anything for well over a 1,000 miles. When I stand up, I always pay my pockets and kinds freak if I don't feel the lump for the keys.

I have set my phone down in the car and gone inside or left it on the garage workbench. Never left it behind, or forgot where it is. It is indeed my second brain. I lived most of my life with no cell phone, but I can't imagine life without it now.

We all know that you're hyper-fastidious. I'd consider myself (in some ways) moderately fastidious. My office is often a bit of a mess (but I always know where/what all of the stuff is), and I almost never misplace my keys, wallet, pocket knife, etc... because I always put them and certain other things in the same place.

My wife NEVER seems to put anything in the same place twice, and invariably I get "I can't find my _____, can you help" and it usually only takes a min. She always thinks, I'd never put them there, but that's where they are. Or they are just someplace random. I'm just thankful that our place is small.

We still do often have the cases where I can't find stuff and she goes right to it, sometimes even after she's said "they are on the ____", and I respond, "I looked there already."

[Zeke]

^^^Hah ha, BTDT many times. I think this episode is going to be a long one. Usually by now I have come across the missing item. I mean I've been at it for over 2 hours now.

[LWJ]

I have three cards that go into a slot on the back of my phone case. A car key. Reading glasses.

Done. No house key. No cash. No biz cards. Nothing.

It greatly simplifies my life. Reading glasses are everywhere in my house. Car keys go into a cup in the closet. Phone is all I need to chase down. It is on the kitchen table currently. Easy to remember when it is ONE item.

[Alan A]

My wife leaves or loses stuff a lot.
Less so now there’s AirTags on her wallet and all her keys.

Need something for her glasses and we’d be all set…

[Bill Douglas]

I have heard that if you lose something like your keys (or phone) you go to sleep that night thinking about the lost item and events leading up to when you last saw them.

Your mind does some background processing overnight and you wake up in the morning thinking "That's right, I put my painting clothes on to do that small job and they are probably in the pocket."

Didn't work for me, but good luck to the next person.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Alan A

My wife leaves or loses stuff a lot.
Less so now there’s AirTags on her wallet and all her keys.

Need something for her glasses and we’d be all set…

We've been very lucky that my wife almost never actually loses anything. She mostly just misplaces it in the house or occasionally in the car.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by Bill Douglas

I have heard that if you lose something like your keys (or phone) you go to sleep that night thinking about the lost item and events leading up to when you last saw them.

Your mind does some background processing overnight and you wake up in the morning thinking "That's right, I put my painting clothes on to do that small job and they are probably in the pocket."

Didn't work for me, but good luck to the next person.

I don't even have to go the sleep. I can remember where I went, what I was after (most of the time in retrospect, not always when I get to the closet, etc.) I went to get one 1/4" bolt out of my bin in the shed. I used the bolt and that job was done. Next I needed the keys to get into another cabinet and only then were they not hanging on the lock to the shed. At that point no clue.

But as you say, that routine will play over and you will find the keys in the drawer where the bolt was (maybe, not this time), or nearby on the handiest shelf available while your mind was on the bolt. Not this time.

This sends me into a spiral and it's all my fault. I know this happens sometimes so actually have a "place" I set the key chain until its hung on the peg at the end of the day.

[GH85Carrera]

I have a key to my storage shed hanging on a nail by the door in the garage that leads to the back yard. No key ring, just a small padlock key. In the 28 years we have lived here, it is either on that nail, or hanging out of the lock when I have the storage building unlocked for whatever project I am working on. My wife has an identical key, on a little key ring that is mostly in a kitchen drawer. She has misplaced it for a day or two at a time.

She does not misplace her phone, and the few keys she has are in the bottom of her purse, but she never uses them. Her Macan has key-less entry, and no key needed to start it. She always parks in the garage, as do I.

[Zeke]

Well, you have a system. Same as I for the hose bib key on the nail on the inside of the garage door jamb. Can't leave a handle on a bib out in the alley or there will be a camp out there soon.

I have left it in the bib before and more than half the time it's still there. Lucky. I have left a padlock unlocked on the outside of the gate. They stole it for the metal. Thieves stole my chain link gate right off the hinges, I didn't reverse them so that wasn't easy. Everything in my backyard has to be locked if I'm not out there. People jump over the fence for any metal or something better.

What gets me is the Google map car went down the alley. If I walk or ride my bike, I can't see over people's fences. Now I just use Google maps and check out all my neighbor's yards. The camera must be about 10' high on the car.

My home is worth a flat million and I live in a ghetto.

[MAS956]

I would second the "Find My" app for your phone and an Airtag or Tile for your keyring.

[A930Rocket]

I’ve been using the Tile for years, but sometimes I don’t replace the batteries and they’re worthless.

I keep a spare set of 911 and F150 keys in a basket on the kitchen countertop. The same countertop is also where I keep my everyday F150 keys. I walk in the house, put them down in the same spot every day.

For my toolbox, I’ve got a spare key in the basket as well. My everyday key is on a shelf in the garage.

I’m a creature of habit.

Ms Rocket loses her phone at least twice a day and I have to call her to find it. I keep mine in my left front pocket. A night, it’s on the nightstand. I never lose it*.



* famous last words…

[Zeke]

BTW, we had Tile at one time. Miserable product for us. Interesting that each color had an item. I have no idea where they are but at first battery failure they likely went in the trash.

Since today was trash day, I suspect that's what happened somehow. By evening of a day of a lost item I'm over it. This is the one thing that frustrates me to a fault. Of course nowadays I'm keeping track of everything for my wife so just one thing lost for me is a bit too much. Tomorrow is destroy the in-handle lock on my big tool cabinet.

I now have no way into my rental garage man door nor the gate that goes to it. I can still use the big door opener. The funny thing about that is the landlord is always asking me for the key when he needs to access the breaker panel.

[sc_rufctr]

Often when I misplace my keys my routine has been broken somehow.

Like walking to the fridge in the garage to get a drink and getting distracted by someone.
- After a major search and hours later... My car keys were found in the fridge.

My GF also likes to play games sometimes. Recently she hid my electric tooth brush for a laugh.

[Bob Kontak]

Originally Posted by LWJ

I have three cards that go into a slot on the back of my phone case. A car key. Reading glasses.

I ditched my rear pocket wallet 15 years ago and have a front pocket only money clip that can handle ten cards. I need three. Keys on a lanyard. Nothing enters the house beyond the rear door entry kitchen except reading glasses.

The IPhone ping function saves me once per month and if I genuinely lose the phone it shows me where I left it within a few feet.

It was bad until I was in my mid 50's (2010) and I started simplifying with ditching the wallet. If I could figure out the I-wallet / apple pay business I could take the next step as you can pay with your phone and take pics of driver's license, medical cards, etc. The counter kids at Advance Auto try to help me.

I should get a neon color Otter Box phone case but it would look filthy from the shop in two days.

[Zeke]

[FOUND] While the rest of the country is sweltering it's cool in the mornings here. I donned a shirt with a pocket for just that amount of time from job 1 to job #2. They fell out of the pocket when I picked up the shirt this morning.

The only thing I can tell you is that I'm satisfied that for all the time I looked I didn't overlook them. They weren't anywhere near the garage, shed and thankfully, not in the trash. I'm relieved and amused.

Air tags are a bit large but doable. I'm looking at passive trackers where you need to hunt the object to within several feet and go from there. I like the wallet cards for things like a purse or wallet. Some come with a charging pad for under $20. Anyone know if these are good enough or basically junk? The Apple related ones are a bit more money and I assume reliable. Ridge brand pops up @ 3 for $100.

Another small tracker is an RFID but the longer range scanners price them out of possibility. The cool thing is how small the tracked device is. I mean you could literally attach one to a pigeon like an ankle bracelet. But if you wanted to track the bird very far you'd be spending quite a bit.

I realize an Apple Air Tag could be put on a bike and you can find it anywhere as long as someone with an iPhone happens by. Seems unnecessary for strictly home based items and adds that bulky tag.

I see an opportunity here for a compact (size of a dime) passive device.

[Roswell]

Congrats on the find!

I have worked with several different trackers over the years. Bottom line - only Apple Air Tags for me. They just work.