Wendy and I were walking on a New Jersey beach a few weeks ago and she found an iPod partially buried in the sand.  It was a fairly empty beach, but we still looked around to see if anyone had dropped it or was looking for it.  There was no telling how long it had been there or who the rightful owner was, so we kept it.  Wendy had recently bought an iPod, so we were both familiar with the cost.  Considering the fact that it was full of music, this iPod was probably worth around $300 for the owner. 

A similar thing happened when we were hiking a few years ago.  We hiked a section of the Appalachian Trail and found a camera in the parking lot where we stopped.  It had a bunch of the same pictures I had just taken, so I knew the owner had just hiked the same section as us.  We looked around but didn't see anyone, so we put it in a place to make it more visible, hoping the person might come back and look in that exact spot. 

The thing with lost and found items is that I would gladly return them to the rightful owner.  I have no use for an iPod, especially one covered in sand (though I cleaned it up and it works fine).  And I have no use for someone's digital camera because I already have a few myself.  Personally, I'd rather return the object to its rightful owner, complete with all its digital media (music and pictures).  With most cameras I use, I'll keep a picture on it that says I own it and that if I lose it, it would be nice to have it returned but to at least email me the pictures.  The thing is, digital cameras are a dime a dozen these days, but the pictures are worth quite a bit more.  One time a "friend" picked up my camera and when he saw my identifier picture, he laughed at me.  He's the kind of person that would steal something directly from my pocket, but either way, he wasn't convinced anyone would have the common decency to return it.  I personally would.  I own several small digital products that have a tendency to fall out of pockets, and I have enough money to go buy my own.  If I find one that belongs to someone else, I'll gladly return it. 

So to all the people who own digital cameras, mp3 players, cell phones, and the like, always put a file on your device that says who the owner is and how to get in contact with them.  Or at least use a sticky note. #psychology