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Feeling blue about losing my blue jacket--again

Are you a "muddler," a disorganized or forgetful person, someone who has a habit of misplacing things? Not me.

Heck, my wife loses stuff more often than I do. Honest. Cheryl will be running around trying to find her shoes or sweater or keys or something or other. I've been known to quickly scurry around downstairs while she's searching upstairs, and if I find the lost item, sit it on the table and continue reading the paper and drinking coffee as if the item had been there all along.

She knows better.

Recently she lost a gallon jug of liquid flower fertilizer. In a bright yellow container, no less. She wound up buying another one. I actually found the first one before she did, but I figured it was the new one--sitting in the garage, right in front of where she parks her car, so easy to see once her car is out.

But somewhere in this city are two blue jackets I've lost in the last five years or so. Both had distinguishing characteristics.

The first one I lost at Cost Cutters on Milton Avenue. I took off my jacket before a clipping around noon one autumn day about five years ago. When I went to retrieve it, someone had grabbed my jacket off the coat rack. The trouble is, I didn't just lose my jacket but also my reading glasses that I used for work. They were in a case tucked into an inside pocket.

Why didn't the person who mistakenly took my jacket quickly return it? My guess is that this was the last mild day of fall. It turned cold the next day, and the person probably hung it up in some closet and grabbed a warmer coat. Months later, the next time it was again jacket weather, the person probably discovered the glasses inside my jacket and had no idea where they came from.

So it goes.

I bought a second blue jacket from Boston Store. I can't recall the brand name, but it had sort of a brushed look. More distinguishing, the zipper was made for a left-handed person. I learned to adapt. But last spring, it disappeared during my work week. I tried retracing my steps from the previous few days, unsure of the last day I wore it and hoping I laid it down somewhere. But I couldn't find it.

This summer, I went to Boston Store and found a third blue jacket on sale (Obviously, I like wearing a dressier blue jacket over my shirt and tie on cool work days). I have yet to wear it, hoping my most recently lost blue jacket would turn up and I could return the third one unworn. But Lost Jacket No. 2 hasn't turned up, and it's getting cool again as autumn approaches.

One of these days, No. 2 will be history and I'll try to keep a closer eye on No. 3.

Greg Peck