Visitor Just Taken Items Out

[+JeeperMTJ]

Last weekend my first cache went online. In my opionion I put some pretty neat stuff in there and I extra made laminated "Souvenir Bagdes" for this cache.

 

Also it had some (pre €uro) coins und 1 US dollar bill. Today somebody just took the dollar bill and left nothing behind.

 

These are the people who don´t understand the whole game. This is the worst trade-down possible and it really annoyed me. What do you think about this and how would you handle this?

[+The Weasel]

Let sleeping dogs lie. People will trade (or not trade) as they see fit. Unfortanatly some people play the game this way. The more caches you put out, the more you will see that this is a pretty common thing.

[BassoonPilot]

Well, the person has logged plenty of finds, so he obviously knows how the game is to be played. I agree that if he didn't intend to leave anything of equal (or greater) value, he shouldn't have taken anything ... but perhaps he is jobless, hungry, and the batteries in his GPS are about to expire.

[+Tiwica]

You should have said goodbye to everything you put into the cache as soon as you placed it and walked away. It's not worth getting your knickers in a twist over. It's going to happen. That's just one of the hard realities of this. Not everyone who visits will do that, just a handful. Cache on!

[+JeeperMTJ]

Thanks for the moral support. I guess you are right. One moment I thought about deleting the log. I was really pissed. Not because of the money. If you needed it, I wouldn´t have put there. But for those people who kick the idea of this game with their feet.

[+briansnat]

I'd just drop it and realize that there are a lot of inconsiderate boobs out there and some of them geocache.

[+dhenninger]

i dislike the "Took Something Cool Left Nothing" cachers, but it's nothing worth getting upset over. It happens

 

dave (dhenning25)

[+JMBella]

I know just how you feel. My knee jerk reaction would be to delete the log as well. You could use my "trade up, trade equal or don't trade logo." Other than that there's not much you can do.

Edited February 24, 2004 by JMBella

[+Sparky-Watts]

That's the way the ball bounces....not cool, but it happens. Or, just to play Devil's Advocate here, if he was FTF, maybe, just maybe, he thought the Dollar Bill was a FTF prize.....not likely, though......just let it go, and teach by example...always trade even, up, or not at all, like JMBella said......

[+JeeperMTJ]

I know just how you feel. My knee jerk reaction would be to delete the log as well. You could use my "trade up, trade equal or don't trade logo." Other than that there's not much you can do.

@JMBella: Thanks. Where can I find this logo. I´d like to place it on the cache page.

[BassoonPilot]

I know just how you feel. My knee jerk reaction would be to delete the log as well.

"Two wrongs don't make a right." He apparently did legitimately find the cache. That wasn't his "sin."

[+Lazyboy & Mitey Mite]

One moment I thought about deleting the log.

You don't need an angry cacher where you live. As suggested let sleeping dogs lie. Just think bad thoughts about him, that works best

[+Renegade Knight]

One moment I thought about deleting the log.

You don't need an angry cacher where you live. As suggested let sleeping dogs lie. Just think bad thoughts about him, that works best

Now that cachers is going to need the aluminum foil beanie to protect themselves from bad vibes.

[+clearpath]

These are the people who don´t understand the whole game. This is the worst trade-down possible and it really annoyed me. What do you think about this and how would you handle this?

Come on ... forget about it. Let it go and worry about more relavent topics like ... is Martha going to jail ... will Pete finally make the Hall ... will Janet have another wardrobe malfunction ... are the Muppets and Mickey going to get along ... (just to name a few).

[+rover-r-us]

just let it go..

[+The Marauders]

The whole trading scenario is an object lesson in fairness. While caching, I use it to teach my kids about being fair with trading. When selecting toys at the house prior to leaving, I remind them to bring something special if they want something special in the cache. Now being 4 and 6, they have little idea of what value is placed on many objects, so when we get to the cache, I tend to put worth on some of the items in the cache they want. Then they decide how many of their toys to give up for the trade item.

 

Value of items is often in the eye of the beholder. For example, my kids love McDonalds toys, but I have seen in forums where these are the bane of caches. I think I may have traded poorly on some occaisions, but over all I have treated cache items fairly.

 

A dollar is still a dollar, which was worth more when you put it in the cache than when it was taken out. Money in caches is a strange thing (unless its a Wheres George), but usually something that we usually carry in our pockets. I don't usually trade for it.

[+Gizmo & Brazin]

The whole trading scenario is an object lesson in fairness. While caching, I use it to teach my kids about being fair with trading. When selecting toys at the house prior to leaving, I remind them to bring something special if they want something special in the cache. Now being 4 and 6, they have little idea of what value is placed on many objects, so when we get to the cache, I tend to put worth on some of the items in the cache they want. Then they decide how many of their toys to give up for the trade item.

 

Value of items is often in the eye of the beholder. For example, my kids love McDonalds toys, but I have seen in forums where these are the bane of caches. I think I may have traded poorly on some occaisions, but over all I have treated cache items fairly.

 

A dollar is still a dollar, which was worth more when you put it in the cache than when it was taken out. Money in caches is a strange thing (unless its a Wheres George), but usually something that we usually carry in our pockets. I don't usually trade for it.

I think the dollar had more value, because he is in Germany and it was a U.S. bill.

[+Bloencustoms]

Look at it this way. It is better that they left nothing, than left some trash. You could have wound up with a bottle cap, or a damp, moldy stuffed animal with a leg missing. I'd rather be the owner of an empty cache than one that needs to be cleaned out.

[Slytherin]

Last weekend my first cache went online. In my opionion I put some pretty neat stuff in there and I extra made laminated "Souvenir Bagdes" for this cache.

 

Also it had some (pre €uro) coins und 1 US dollar bill. Today somebody just took the dollar bill and left nothing behind.

 

These are the people who don´t understand the whole game. This is the worst trade-down possible and it really annoyed me. What do you think about this and how would you handle this?

Your English is pretty good.

 

Why not make your cache pages in German and English.

 

It would certainly help us ignorant Brits when we come across to mainland Europe to geocache.

 

BTW - like it or not, I can never resist taking dollar bills out of caches.

 

A.

[+JeeperMTJ]

Your English is pretty good.

 

Why not make your cache pages in German and English.

 

It would certainly help us ignorant Brits when we come across to mainland Europe to geocache.

 

BTW - like it or not, I can never resist taking dollar bills out of caches.

 

A.

Thanks I will do the translation over the weekend. I only wanted to wait for the first cachers to find the cache and see if I have change anything. Then I make the adjustments in one step. See my other cache GCHJ5M, it already has the english translation.

To be honest: I couldn´t wait to get this cache approved and that why I didn´t bother with the english text. I figured the first visitors would be germans anyway. You see, germans can be far more ignorant than "Brits".

 

BTW, look for the link of the "Stella Alpina" in GCHJ5M. Some "islanders" are going there every year with their bikes. Why not join them?

 

Eat-Sleep-Jeep!

JeeperMTJ

[+joefrog]

I made the ultimate bad trade just the other day... I took a $1,000,000 bill and left a $3.00 bill. Woo hoo!

 

 

[+bigredmed]

As irritating as it is to hear a dozen forum members tell you to forget about something that has obviously p*ssed you off enough to comment about it here, it is, sadly, good advice.

 

There is really no effective way of dealing with geo losers. If you go after them here, its a flame war. If you delete their logs, you are going to get flamed for being a bad cache owner. TPTB can't, or more likely won't, do anything about the geo losers, so you are kind of on your own.

 

These goobers really got me torqued a few times and it got me high blood pressure, but nothing in terms of a resolution.

 

Best to focus on the positive experiences of geocaching, like putting together a cache and having a log that compliments your hide or the clever theme or the great view they never knew about. Leave the geo losers to their own pathetic world, and look for friends in the hobby who are neat, interesting people.

Edited February 26, 2004 by bigredmed

[+briansnat]

For example, my kids love McDonalds toys, but I have seen in forums where these are the bane of caches

 

I don't think anybody has an issue with new McToys, in their original wrapper. The problem most people have is with broken and dirty McToys pulled from under the back seat of the car, half chewn by the family dog.

[+Ltljon]

As most have said, probably best to let it rest.

However, a person with no more respect than this should be "reminded' through an anonymous sock puppet email account such as Hotmail to let them know that "someone" doesn't approve of their actions!

[+WalruZ]

The contents of your cache will change randomly over time. Some people will take something and leave nothing. Some people will take nothing and leave something. Some people will take one thing and leave three. Go revisit the cache after awhile and see what it contains - it's really sort of neat to see that the container has stayed the same and the contents are completely different. As long as the contents are reasonable, don't sweat it.

[+calvinrtvp]

I was "tickled" by the post of one cacher..."took $2 bill...left 2 dollars". Hmmm...

[+aka Monkey]

I was "tickled" by the post of one cacher..."took $2 bill...left 2 dollars". Hmmm...

That's not in the spirit of trading up. It should have read "Took $2 bill. Left $2 and a penny."

[The Old Goat Patrol]

Don't let the SOB live rent free in your head. Move on.

[+clearpath]

Don't let the SOB live rent free in your head.  Move on.

I like how you put that ... I have way too many SOB's living rent free in my head ... wish I could raise the rent and get rid of some of the riff-raff.

[martmann]

Lots of people (around here at least) leave stuff, and take nothing, to try and make up for the selfish cachers. If they can take stuff and leave nothing (consistently), and live with themselves, I doubt you could do anything but anger them.

[+Geo Ho]

I have sent polite and diplomatic e-mails to cachers who indicate that took something and left nothing. I find that they are generally new cachers who don't know the "caching etiquette" of actually trading for something you take and are grateful for the information.

 

 

If it's an established cacher who should know how things work then they're just being rude.

 

That is my opinion . . . such as it is.

 

Happy caching and stuff!

[+gbod]

E-mail the cacher this snippet from the Geocaching FAQ:

 

What are the rules in Geocaching?

 

Geocaching is a relatively new phenomenon. Therefore, the rules are very simple:

 

1. Take something from the cache

 

2. Leave something in the cache

 

3. Write about it in the logbook

 

Where you place a cache is up to you.

 

 

Politely remind the cacher the he is in violation of rule #2

[+SeaTrout]

I recently had someone take my ammo box and left an old leaky tacklebox.

I wish that I had left a hidden mark on it. It was probably a cacher,no muggles would

have walked that far twice and bothered to leave anything.

Seatrout

[+Spoo]

I'll tell you what I would do:

 

I'd hunt the S.O.B. down and take a baseball bat to his left knee........That'll learn him a lesson !!!!

 

Trust me.........I know.

[+clearpath]

I'll tell you what I would do:

 

I'd hunt the S.O.B. down and take a baseball bat to his left knee........That'll learn him a lesson !!!!

 

Trust me.........I know.

Dang, Spoo, you sound meaner than a gunney sack full of rattlesnakes ...

[+Gizmo & Brazin]

I have sent polite and diplomatic e-mails to cachers who indicate that took something and left nothing.  I find that they are generally new cachers who don't know the "caching etiquette" of actually trading for something you take and are grateful for the information. 

 

 

If it's an established cacher who should know how things work then they're just being rude. 

 

That is my opinion . . . such as it is.

 

Happy caching and stuff! 

I was reading the logs for finds in my area today and saw where someone did a lunchtime cache, didn't have a trade item to leave, but took something anyway. And logged it online even! I thought.....Newbie, so I checked.

Nope.

They have been a member almost two years. Someone like that knows better. It wasn't one of my hides, but if it had been: Yes, I think I would politely email them and remind them of the trading guidelines. Not so much because I mind replacing things, (I have already replaced a cache stolen by muggles), but because taking and not giving back is not the right thing to do….. and I am really big on doing the right thing. (Note...Really. I even gave a clerk back $32. this evening because she undercharged me.....pathetic, aren't I?)

[+shunra]

BTW - like it or not, I can never resist taking dollar bills out of caches.

I was caching yesterday with my almost 6 year old. She usually decides the trade. Yesterday she decided for the first time to pick coins rather than dumb McToys, and at the end of the day she had $1.05, which bought her a a bag of M&Ms on the ferry home (which I had refused to uy her on the ferry out). It also gave me an opportunity to tell her about John Kennedy, about Helen Keller, and about oxydation of various metals. Coins are trade items just like anything else, and I appreciate it when people leave coins rather than trashy toys.