RT loses his phone

It all started with a beautiful day and a hike in the Smokey Mountains.  We decided to do an easy hike at Metcalf Bottoms.  If you ever get the chance, it's a beautiful hike.  It ends up at an old one room school house.  The school house served as a school during the week and as a church on Sundays and sits across the way from a cemetery.

We met some people from Georgia on our hike.  They were a wealth of information.  You know me, talking it up with them.  I learned quite a bit about the area we were in and about some of the families that used to live there.

We made our way back to the car and started loading everything (backpack, trekking poles, water bottles, etc.)  That's when it all started.

RT:  Honey, have you seen my phone?

Not just any phone.  His new phone.  The old phone completely died a couple days ago and he had to get a new one.

Me:  No, I haven't.

Then, the checking every inch of the car started.

RT checked the backpack, under the dog blanket, in the seat pockets, under the seats, inside the garbage bag that was in the car.  When he didn't find it, he started all over again.  Then I checked the same places.  I even checked inside my purse and the box of crackers.  This happened at least a dozen times.  The back seats in my car were stowed (so the back was flat).  I pulled those up and looked under them.  I even opened the seats to make sure the phone didn't fall in.

This searching escalated to, "Someone stole my phone."  Yes.  Memories of "someone stole my swim goggles."

I tried calling and texting his phone.  The only problem was we were in the mountains with no cell service.  After checking the car a dozen more times*, including the bathrooms and picnic tables and the entire surrounding area.  RT decided to go retrace his steps.  Maybe the phone fell out of his pocket or his backpack?   While RT is backtracking (Bella decided to go with him), I try walking around to get cell service.  When this doesn't work, I decide to hop in the car and drive around until I get cell service.  This is where Bella came back down the path and jumped in the car with me.  Bella was checking the phone for service while I whipped around the mountains.

*I'm not exaggerating these numbers.  We really did check the car a billion times.

I drove quite a distance and no cell service and realized that RT might not know that Bella is with me.  We turned the car around and drove back to the trail.  Once back, I decided not to tear the car apart again.  I figured RT would find the phone on the trail.

RT returns from the trail empty handed.  We drove back into town to where we parked the car when we stopped for lunch.  I thought maybe the phone fell out of RT's jacket when he was taking it off in the parking lot.

We get into town and RT checks the lot.  He talks to the parking attendant.  He checks at the restaurant where we had lunch.  No luck.  In the meantime, I'm texting his phone asking him to call me.

RT decides that he just wants to go back to our cabin and relax.  He's at a point where he just does not want to think about it anymore.

Once we are back at the cabin, we empty the car.  RT puts his hand in the side pocket on the drivers side and....finds his phone.

The funny thing is, we all checked that pocket!

We now have phone tracking devices on all of our phones.  I also told RT to turn up the ringer on his phone so we can hear it ring (if this happens again, which I'm sure it will).

Again, never a dull moment.