Yesterday's evening commute back from work took me by a deserted coastal road at the southern suburbs of Athens, which during the winter is very badly lit. Having turned on my dyno-driven halogen and a spare cree flashlight, I noticed something thrown at the road's edge and stopped to check it out. It turned out to be a gun, probably 45mm with it's magazine missing and the gun barrel cocked back. Because of the widespread burglaries and heists happening around Greece as of lately, I decided to ride up the road to a point where there's a private security car guarding the entrance of a marina and report it to the guard; fast forward to an hour later where I ended up going back to the spot with a police officer and spend another half-hour explaining how I found it, who I am and why I decided to take that road back home.

On the one hand, I was smart enough not to touch or move the gun and report it, but on the other hand, I lost nearly two hours waiting in the cold and ended up being (mildly) harassed by a LEO who acted as though I was the one who threw it there.

I think you did the right thing. Who knows? It might lead to the arrest of a dangerous criminal.

What is an LEO?

I agree, but I don't understand the dumb cop routine they put you through. Why would you throw a gun then report you found a gun? That makes no sense.

Exactly! It doesn't make sense, which is why its so brilliant! What a great way to get rid of your gun and make sure you're not a suspect. Good job.

BTW, Ekdog, LEO is a Law Enforcement Officer, aka Police Officer or "cop"

But if I threw a gun it's because I did something illegal with it, I wouldn't want anyone remotely thinking that I may have had that gun, so going to the cops thinking they'll think it's not yours is crazy. But criminals have done far dumber things. But then again if I threw a gun it wouldn't been so close to the roadway for a person walking or riding a bike to see.

Thanks. I was raised by my grandfather, who was a retired cop. That's what he called himself, a cop. Why not use plain language--cop, policeman, police officer...-- instead of these strange abbreviations?

No disrespect meant Ekdog, my grandfather was also a cop, but unfortunately I didn't have the chance to know him well because he passed away when I was young. These abbreviations are internet fads, and I sometimes get carried away with using them (pre-mid-life-crisis!).

A bit of trivia... cop is also an abbreviation for Constable On Patrol!

Update on the gun issue: I received a call to pass by the local police station after New Years Eve so they can check-up on my alien residence permit. It seems that there's quite a few forged documents going around and the cop which took my statement wasn't familiar with these permits. Shame they don't let them do their jobs and bog them down with tons of bureaucratic BS.

I thought I was the only guy who found tools...adjustable wrenches, screw drivers, vise grips, etc. A buddy of mine says guys leave them on the car when they're working on it, then forget they are there and then they drive off and the tools falls off onto the road. Anybody find my Zefal HP frame pump on their commute?

Hmm, LEO is what we use around here in California too.

Not to get into too much boring detail or derail this thread, but there are thousands of people in the Law Enforcement field, sworn officers, who do not fit the description of what you would call a "cop." Local street officers are usually called "cops." FBI/DEA are usually considered Law Enforcement Officers, but not "cops." They don't usually conduct traffic stops or stop liquor store robberies. A cop is a LEO, but a LEO isn't always a cop.

Now back on topic...

Thursday I found a dirty 3XL safety vest. I salvaged the sew-on reflective tape and put it on my new commuter jacket. Tomorrow I get to test it out.

Another common scenario, they're carrying two hands full of stuff out to the car, and realize it's locked. Set stuff on the roof to get keys, hop in, drive away. I suspect that accounts for most of the cell phones I've found on I-90 -- they stay on the roof until the driver hits highway speeds.

I've found a Marine NCO handbook, about $17 in pennies (I stopped and picked them up.), and countless hats, shoes, undergarments, etc (didn't collect any of those!). No good tools or anything like that.

My new commute is down a much busier street...I may find more interesting stuff!

Mens Tungsten comfort bad wending ring. I find its weird to take that sort of thing off so I dont understand how I would find one in the gutter.

My grandpa who was a Texas Ranger before WWII used to say you could tell a lot about a cop by whether he called himself a Peace Officer, or a Law Enforcement Officer.

Found another water bottle today on a short ride. That would be 3 bottles the past few months, a hanger I use now at work to put my jacket on to dry.

~a wrecked bike next to a bloody shoe, waited 15min, no one came around so I took the 700x38c tires off it. NEW condition.

~a brand new pair of "Answer team 2" gloves IN MY SIZE, still got em.

~Blackburn pump

~tons of cellphones/wallets *I live next to a uni, some(most) w/ pictures they wouldnt want any stranger to see lol.

~bicycles in the trash that clearly are worth something but the person tossing em doesnt know, I always ask before I take

~Abandoned longboards, 4 so far, usually sat morning. (again, I live next to a uni)

~a singer industrial sewing machine, I had just attatched my extracycle so it was an easy haul home from where I was some 10mi out, otherwise I woulda died trying haha.

~A Kabar 8in folding knife, still got it.

As I've been losing weight, my wedding ring's gotten a lot looser. If I've got a good sweat going, it can get pretty close to falling off.

I like "peace officer"--as long as the copper who uses the moniker lives up to it. Many don't, alas.

I had to stop today to remove a few layers and where I pulled off, there was a 2 bike rack (like you would find at a store) hidden behind some trees. I will have to drive back there tonight to pick that up. That would be perfect for my garage (which no longer fits a car due to the sheer number of bikes). This is the best find so far...

Nothing too "weird" but a few nights ago I saw two Acerbis Motocross boots along side the MUP. Notice that I didn't say "pair". Two boots but different models. This was along the MUP running through the San Fernando Valley. Strange place to spot them as there's no road running along side this portion of the route.

And I see it so often now that it no longer can be classified as "weird": drunks pissing on the side of the MUP through Van Nuys (usually around Sepulveda or Van Nuys Blvd.). Disgusting. Usually once or twice a week.

Spotted on the commute today: a u-lock in the bike lane, and a gigantic caster wheel. I stopped to grab for the caster for the scrap bin, but changed my mind when I realized it was solid steel and weighed about 20 pounds.

This weirds me out. Any thought given to the idea that a cyclist may have been hit by a car and was rushed to the hospital? The bike may have been left to be picked up later. Even if the cyclist might never ride it again isn't that somewhere between stealing and tampering with evidence?

Finding a shoe along side of the road has always puzzled me. Why would someone throw a perfectly fine shoe out of the car? Kids goofing? Some of the shoes I've seen looked like adult shoes. If kids, how does a kid explain to their parent, "gee, I lost a shoe but not sure how it happened!" I could understand if the shoe was beat up and they threw out the window like trash, ok, I don't agree with littering, but you know what I'm saying. But to throw out a perfectly good shoe?

I saw a pair of soles of jogging shoes laying need a bench at Mission Peak,Fremont. Weird huh?

It's hard to get in and out of the emergency room in 15 minutes.