09/05/17: Abandoned shoe #7

Millwall Dock, E14. A tiny tot's shoe joins THIS collection of tragically abandoned footwear.

09/05/17: Abandoned firearm #4

Millwall Dock, E14. Not the first weapon found here, either (see HERE).

09/05/17: Abandoned fork

Whetstone. A fork in the road.

07/05/17: Abandoned "I bumped my head today" sticker

Whetstone. Stuck to the pavement. More abandoned stickers HERE.

26/04/17: Abandoned Why?

Totteridge. Over the years, this blog has tried to address some of the biggest questions of existence. This is both the smallest and the biggest question of all. Why? Why indeed?

20/04/17: Abandoned "I have clean teeth" sticker

Millwall Dock, E14.

19/04/17: Abandoned "Hello!" book

Millwall Dock, E14.

15/04/17: Abandoned face mask

Totteridge, near the duck pond. A slightly disarming discovery. Does anyone know who he is?

19/03/17: Abandoned hope

Great Russell Street, near the British Museum. The text reads "Brexit = national suicide. No! to art. 50". Someone has crossed out the "national suicide" part of this and written "yes, lets just ignore Demoracy" (sic).

19/03/17: Abandoned hat #3

On the platform bench at Hendon Central tube station.

05/03/17: Abandoned bottles

Whetstone. Not so much abandoned as carefully placed.

04/03/17: Abandoned shoe #6

Mill Hill. Lots to enjoy here: the name "Stephan", the orange sole, the fancy pink strap across it and the shiny silver buckle.

28/02/17: Abandoned soldier

Isle of Dogs. Contrary to popular belief, the Queen's Guard are not merely a ceremonial presence to be enjoyed and photographed by tourists. They are, in fact, fully operational soldiers. This poor little guy had lost his head, but, incredibly, could still march in the name of royal duty.

15/02/17: Abandoned Bob Marley "container"

Initially, I thought this was a Bob Marley pencil sharpener. It's wasn't. It was a small container for storing something else.

15/02/17: Abandoned number plate #5

Whetstone. See the rest of the series HERE.

13/02/17: Abandoned Valentine

Whetstone. One day before Valentine's Day, this romantic, heart-shaped balloon had already been discarded. Tragic.

12/02/17: Abandoned sheet music #2

Whetstone. The lyrics on this sheet music include "states are crumbling" and "from this moment". A quick Google search reveals this to be "Aftermath" by Muse.

24/01/17: Abandoned lager

Totteridge & Whetstone tube station. I see a lot of lager cans left lying around, but not many of them are unopened. According to the list HERE, Dębowe Mocne is the 11th most popular Polish beer.

18/01/17: Abandoned origami

Whetstone. This lovely bird, fashioned from a till receipt, was on the same windowsill as this Minion.

08/01/17: Abandoned bicycle

Finchley Central. On the same walk that I saw 37 Xmas trees, I also saw this bicycle with something fairly fundamental wrong with it.

08/01/17: Abandoned Christmas trees 2017

Went for a walk and saw 37 (yes, 37!) abandoned Christmas trees left on the pavements of Finchley Central. This image shows five trees in one place.

28/12/16: Abandoned cucumber

Brook Farm Open Space, N20. Still wrapped and chilled.

28/12/16: Abandoned fish #2

North Finchley. A fish out of water.

28/12/16: Abandoned iPhone #2

Found this black iPhone in the road in Totteridge Lane, encased in a deep frost. Surprisingly, it still worked. I picked it up and cleaned it. There was 56% of the battery still showing, so I hoped the owner would call before it ran out. Sure enough, a couple of hours later the phone had a call from someone called "Fat Cheeks" (I think this was the owner's girlfriend). I answered and spoke to the phone owner, who appeared to be tracking the device through his Apple account. We arranged to meet by Totteridge & Whetstone tube station, where I handed it back. He seemed very grateful and said that if he had a present to give me he would have. We shook hands. I was pleased to have a happy ending to this story.

24/12/16: Abandoned "Bear's Time Travel Adventure" trading card

Boots and Waitrose car park, Whetstone. No idea what "Bear's Time Travel Adventure" is about.

23/12/16: Abandoned playing card #10: queen of clubs

Oakleigh Road North, N20. "But what does the Queen of clubs mean?" I hear you ask. According to the internet: "The Queen of Clubs is the card of high intuition, knowledge and mental balance. The Queen of Clubs represents the receptive principle of man's spiritual nature. They are not students in this life. They have close contact with higher forces of Intelligence; spirituality expressed in balance, wisdom and logic. They don't formulate judgments with emotions, but rather use their brain... People are often drawn to the Queen of Clubs for advice and assistance. There is a need to cultivate tolerance, and be more patient with those who are not as advanced and progressive. Queen Of Clubs can be impatient and might be tempted to rule through the weight of their crown than through their authority of wisdom and ability."

14/12/16: Abandoned playing cards #8 and #9: joker and ace of spades

Near Millwall Dock, E14. The joker has been a part of playing card sets since the 1860s. Tarot cards have included a jester/fool character since the 15th century, but apparently there is no connection.

Nearby was the ace of spades. According to the internet: "The Ace of Spades is the most spiritual card in the deck. It is the symbol of ancient mysteries and the card that represents transformation. Found in the Mercury/Neptune position of the Master Life Script, people with this card have the ability to reach spiritual truths more readily than perhaps any other card. Coupled with ancient wisdom is ambition and drive to achieve on a material level as well. Due to this merging of spiritual and mundane, being and doing, this card may experience a conflict between the two as they attempt to achieve balance in their life."

To others, "The Ace of Spades" is a memorable 1980 song by Motörhead.

12/12/16: Abandoned shoe #5

Marsh Wall, E14. Same day, another location. More fun footwear. The party season is truly upon us.

12/12/16: Abandoned shoe #4

Whetstone. This early morning shoe suggested someone had been enjoying a fun night out.

11/12/16: "Frozen" scarf

North Finchley. A pink scarf decorated with a character from Frozen – to stop you being frozen.

11/12/16: Abandoned "boot" key ring

Whetstone. A little brown boot on a key ring.

10/12/16: Abandoned creature #13

A gutter in Hendon, near the library. The poor little thing had only one eye. Other tragically abandoned creatures: HERE.

20/11/16: Abandoned video tapes

Boots and Waitrose car park, Whetstone. As with the examples HERE, these are more sadly unloved VHS tapes – a format no one will ever again desire.

16/11/16: Abandoned bear #4

ASDA, Isle of Dogs. This pink-footed chap was found very close to the little bear HERE. Why do so many bears head off to ASDA, only to get lost in the car park?

13/11/16: Abandoned spider (with pod)

This huge black spider (with red eyes) had escaped from his pod and was about to unleash a reign of terror on Whetstone.

11/11/16: Abandoned creature #12

Whetstone. This little blue monster is rather scary. One eye is larger than the other, and his mouth looks a bit angry. Are there any experts out there who can shed some light on what this is?

10/11/16: Abandoned Velma sticker

Stuck to the floor of the Waitrose in Whetstone. Velma Dinkley is a character from the Scooby-Doo cartoon. She often lost her glasses.

10/11/16: Abandoned playing card #7: "V" (Jack?) of hearts

Whetstone. Latest in a series. This looks like the Jack of Hearts, but it displays a "V" instead. Are there any experts out there who can shed some light on what this is?

07/11/16: Abandoned shoe #3

Whetstone. Just one.

06/11/16: Abandoned car

Brook Farm Open Space, N20. The first time I saw this car it looked "abandoned, but alright". A week later it looked like this – burned out completely. Even the tree above it had been torched.

01/11/16: Abandoned hair

Outside South Quay DLR station, E14. Disgusting, really.

01/11/16: Abandoned British Airways sticker

Stuck on the pavement in Whetstone. "Enjoy your flight!" says the sticker, which shows a girl enjoying the flight so much that she's sitting on top of the plane.

30/10/16: Abandoned boy

This little lad was left on top of a bin in North Finchley. Even worse, his arm had fallen off.

29/10/16: Abandoned shark

I think it's a shark, but it could be a whale. Underneath it says "China". Either way, he looked like he'd rather be in the ocean than in the Boots and Waitrose car park, Whetstone.

28/10/16: Abandoned Su Doku book

Just outside Totteridge & Whetstone tube station. The Times Difficult Su Doku Book 1. Subtitle: "200 dreadfully tricky Su Doku puzzles". Obviously too difficult to be worth keeping.

23/10/16: Abandoned playing card #6: nine of diamonds

Whetstone. What, I hear you ask, does the nine of diamonds mean? Let's ask "the internet":

"the Nine of Diamonds completes this cycle of its soul evolution through giving and releasing to others in this lifetime. Their life lesson is to trust in the universal flow, an expression of their Neptune/Saturn placement in the Master Spirit Script. When the abundance of the universe is doubted, the letting go of material things can be a challenge. Aligning with trust in a benign universe and willingly letting go for the benefit of others allows for more to flow into their life and thus is the higher expression of this card."

So there you have it.

13/10/16: Abandoned pig #2

Found in the road outside Totteridge & Whetstone tube station, this little piggy looked melancholy. Understandable, really.

07/10/16: Abandoned creature #11

ASDA, Isle of Dogs. This plucky youngster was abandoned in the fruit and veg section of ASDA on the Isle of Dogs. He could well be related to abandoned creature #3 or abandoned creature #4. If he's yours and you're missing him, please get in touch. One day all of these abandoned creatures should get together for a big party.

07/10/16: Abandoned bear #3

ASDA, Isle of Dogs. This poor little pink bear was abandoned on a grass verge leading into the car park. He was waving at me and caught my eye. I couldn't possibly leave him there, so I brought him home.