When somebody borrow something, and PROMISES to bring it back,

[raccoon]

IME that is a sign that that is the last you'll see of said item!

Case in point: a few hours ago someone borrowed a pencil. That's the last I've seen of said item.

Your experience?

[rurallib]

1. 20 years ago I lent a refrigerator cart to a friend that I have never

seen again. Saw him once since about 8 years ago. Asked him about it. "I'll bring it back tomorrow" he told me.
So 4 years ago I lent my roto-tiller to another friend who just needed it to churn up a small garden. Still waiting to get it back also.
Although he did call me two years ago wanting some tips on how to start it. (how should I know? Ain't seen it for a while.) What is sad is he could buy and sell me @ 20X over.
Life in small towns. Mrs. Lib and I laugh about these all the time.

[Moondog]

2. If all it cost you

to learn this lesson about human nature was a pencil, you should be very, very grateful.

[freshwest]

4. Lost a lot more than a pencil. I don't lend anymore, just give stuff away.

Lending money is a sure fire way to never hear from someone again, so it's just a gift.

[raccoon]

9. Right. It's happened to me before, however. Lost a hammer that way.

I guess we live and learn.

And yeah, a hammer, well, it could be a lot worse.

Edited after reading response #3: I just remembered, I had an experience--no, 2, similar to the one in #3.

I loaned a book to a family member who SWORE she returned it, when she and family moved, guess what turned up? That book!

I loaned an electric typewriter to a family member who says she returned it or else it mysteriously vanished, IOW, she doesn't know what the heck happened to it.

[MilesColtrane]

3. An original bootleg cassette of a gig in CA with Scott Henderson and Jeff Berlin

There was some amazing playing on that tape.

I loaned it to a guitar player who dogged me for weeks to let him have it.

Some weeks went by and I kind of forgot about it.

When I finally remembered to ask him to return it, he claimed (with a very straight face) that I never gave it to him.

I insisted every time I saw him, but he never changed his story.

Bottom line: He was either a very good and ruthless liar who simply wanted to keep it or he was a dumbass who listened to it once then lost it and forgot about it.

I now will not loan out recordings from my personal library, even to my mother.

[JitterbugPerfume]

5. I never lend books any more

People NEVER return them.

[trof]

6. SUE the bastids!

That's what I always do.
;-)

[femmocrat]

7. "Neither a borrower nor a lender be....."

I am terrible at returning things borrowed, so I never do it anymore.

I don't lend anything... I just give it to whoever asks (if it's something not that valuable!).

[applegrove]

8. In my last year of high school I was a complete weakling. I had borrowed somebody's boots and lost

them on the bus. I was too scared to tell them that I had lost them. I felt like I had committed a capital offense by loosing them. She kept asking me to bring the boots into school and I kept saying "I will". Finally she gave up. I felt horrid about it for years.