Day-of-the-Dead Dead

WHEN: October 20101

WHERE: Shadyside, Pittsburgh

Hard times have befallen this sexy, already-dead nurse.

Pumpkinhead

WHEN: October 2010

WHERE: South Side, Pittsburgh

These little toys look cute in cupcakes, but what sad fates befall them when the dessert is eaten and gone?

Happy New Year: Sad Version

WHEN: January 2009
WHERE: Friendship, Pittsburgh
That's right 2009, where's your Happy New Year fun hat now? In the gutter.

Fangs for Nothing

WHEN: November 2008
WHERE: Friendship, Pittsburgh

When Halloween's over, these fancy teeth just get kicked to the curb. Sad.

Hey Boo!

WHEN: November 2008
WHERE: South Side, Pittsburgh
ADDED PATHOS: Cigarette butts
The happiest, saddest ghost head.

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?

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?

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."

Inauguration Day Special

WHEN: Jan. 18, 2009
WHERE: Little Falls Park, Bethesda, MD

OK, so it's not quite a toy, but it is the kind of little flag you give a kid to wave. Maybe a kid at one of the Inaugural events. Except this little flag was found 2 days earlier lying in the leaves in a suburban Maryland park. Good enough for Inauguration Day.

UPDATE: I rescued this, and gave a new lease on life. It went to the swearing-in, or at least within a couple miles of it.

Santa's Not Feeling So Good

WHEN: December 2008
WHERE: Toronto, Ontario
PHOTO: Becky Johnson

It's Christmas in a Can -- a trash can -- for this headless Santa. Happy holidays!