Runaway Rope

WHEN: January 2009
WHERE: Westland, Netherlands
PHOTO: Dymphie

Is it snaking out of the garden, or back in?

Free ... Just Needs Head

WHEN: January 2009
WHERE: Ft. Greene, Brooklyn

PHOTO: Jon in NYC

This holiday dude is free to a good home. And he comes with a box of clothes, including a hat that he'll never wear again. He's also missing feet. Is there no room in your heart for this plucky guy, still standing?

The Buzzer Has Rung

WHEN: December 2008
WHERE: East Liberty, Pittsburgh
ADDED PATHOS: pile of tires

So far, the largest sad toy I've found: This full-sized basketball hoop has just been shoved up against the side of an abandoned building with a bunch of other trash. Currently, this site is being cleared to build a Target, where, of course, you can probably buy a new basketball hoop.

Sport of the Future ... on Hold

WHEN: Feb. 2009
WHERE: East Liberty, Pittsburgh

The cheapo we-care hedge of a drive-through, business-bank parking lot is a lonely place for a soccer ball.
But this ball illustrates the ephemeral nature of so many sad toys. Snapped this in the morning, it was gone by late afternoon. Rescued? Rolled away? Thrown away?

Snowman of Love

WHEN: Feb. 2009
WHERE: South Side Slopes, Pittsburgh

I saw this from the bus, and actually got off to take a picture. This combo-holiday item -- I dunno what it is, a snowman invited to a wedding? -- was tied high up on the fence of St. Michael's Cemetery.

Happy Washington-Lincoln Day!

WHEN: Dec. 25, 2008

WHERE: Bloomfield, Pittsburgh

I went for a walk on Christmas and found these three-inch long pieces of toy money scattered all over a four-block area.

Love: Kicked to the Curb

WHEN: November 2008
WHERE: Lawrenceville, Pittsburgh

Special not-quite-toy item for Valentine's Day: This was found in the same trash explosion as the Power Puff Girl. It's a homemade heart-shaped cookie in a bag labeled "Valentine's Day, to Nicole, from Ron, 'o8." There's a couple of unanswered questions here: Why didn't Nicole eat it? And if not, why did she keep it for for 8 months?

World of Wheels

WHEN: December 2008
WHERE: Homestead, PA
ADDED PATHOS: Stolen shopping cart

So somebody took off with some store's wheeled cart in order to transport another wheel? And then ditched the whole thing in a vacant lot?

Shopping carts are even more ubiquitous in cities than sad toys, and I urge you to check out this awesome study and taxonomy of lost carts: The Stray Shopping Cart Project

Uh, Santa Called ... He's Looking For You

WHEN: Feb. 3, 2009

WHERE: Penn and Main, Bloomfield, Pittsburgh

ADDDED PATHOS: Getting snowed on

PHOTO: Lydia H.

Lookee -- it's Rudolph, out on the town! Or at least, out on the garbage can. Lydia sez: "I would have rescued it if I didn’t already have so much crap. It must have been on top of the garbage can only because it didn’t fit in it."

An Oldie But Goodie

WHEN: Early 1970s
WHERE: Rockville, MD ("An all-American city")
PHOTO: Dave N.

For the younger set: This a crushed lunchbox featuring the dreamy visage of former teen idol Bobby Sherman.
Dave sez: "I was walking along the train tracks (notice that fine Pittsburgh steel!) being artistic with my fancy 35mm camera and saw this sad sight. It was shot on Kodachrome slide film."

Dead Flowers

WHEN: January 2009

WHERE: Berkeley, Calif.

PHOTO: Julie M.

So much for "flower power" in this former hotbed of '60s radicalism.

Now Not Boarding at Gate 42

WHEN: Feb. 1, 2009
WHERE: JFK Airport, New York

One last bear! I saw this poor panda lying forlorn at the airport, a bit of unclaimed baggage that didn't make his flight and faced an uncertain future at some nearby landfill.