Last week, I ordered food from a restaurant and went to go pick it up. To my surprise, there was nobody at the counter. However, my food was sitting on a shelf in the lobby, labeled "mobile orders".
I had a moment of pause. Should I wait for someone to witness me taking this? It is, after all, my food. Bought and paid for. I confirmed the name and order number on the bag.
But even if the employee witnessed me taking this, what would that prove? They don't know what the person who ordered this looks like.
When the pandemic started, and these popped up everywhere, I imagined they'd be abandoned relatively quickly. After all, it would be very easy for me to walk into a restaurant and grab a bag.
I'd imagine these companies would have a very low tolerance for food theft, intentional or otherwise. I figured only one or two transgressions would result in the shelf being locked behind the counter.
Maybe the food isn't taken. Or if it is, maybe the loss is small enough to not bother. Maybe it goes unreported.
Whatever the cause, I'm glad they've remained.
This actually happened earlier this year.
I was driving with my partner in a somewhat rural area. We were driving on the interstate. It was a sunny, bright winter morning. There was not all that much snow on the ground.
I notice on the side of the road, what appears to be a bear sitting in the shoulder next to the freeway, its back is turned to us, so we see its ears. It is completely black. Not black like a black bear, but black like those character locked memes.
I literally think it's a wooden cutout. People sometimes make those for wild animals around where we were. Although as we pass this thing, it's clear to me it is in fact a three-dimensional bear. I get a quick glimpse of its face. It is a fully, jet-black bear. The only details I can make out are small glints from its eye and the wetness of its nose. Apart from that, it looked like a void in space.
My partner and I sit in silence, and I eventually say "did you see that?" And they say "yep". We've talked about this since, and my partner stands by the fact that they think it was a 2d cutout. They didn't see the front side, which is making me think I somehow imagined it.
There are a few logical explanations, but it's certainly the weirdest thing ive ever come across while driving.