What have you lost lately that you were not expecting to lose?

Wow, this could go in a depressingly existential direction. I never expected to lose my health to the point where it would jeopardize my ability to do my job. That's a good lead-in for telling my beloved Toasties that I applied for extended FMLA. I'll be working part-time at my job starting March 21 and continuing through the rest of our spring semester (May 13).

don't worry about the moose! moose, and deer and all of their ilk, shed their antlers for winter every year. It's perfectly natural and they will grow back.

I HAD NO IDEA THAT MOOSE ARE A SPECIES OF DEER?!

I thought they were two entirely different but related animals?!

On the one hand, I'd love to have a magnificent set of antlers growing out of my head.

On the other hand, I'd be sad when they'd get shed.

On the third hand, at least when they're shed there wouldn't be dipwads out trying to shoot me so they can display my magnificent antlers over their fireplace.

On the fourth hand, should I be worried about all these extra hands?

I lost a friend recently (as in the friendship terminated, not that the friend died), which I did not expect, but there are signs that maybe the friendship will grow back, just like the moose's antlers will. It's all part of the cycles of life, I suppose.

Moose are fundamentally goofy looking, so I feel sorry for the one antlered one here. No dignity left at all.

And also moose are delicious, I don't know if that makes me an equal opportunity moose lover or not.

I firmly maintain that moose are mythical creatures. Maine and Vermont have promised me sightings of them, with dire warnings about road accidents, but I have never actually seen one. They are the jackalope of the Northeast.

"In the video, shot by Eberhart’s uncle, a woman can be heard saying: 'He's in pain, he's crying. Poor guy.'

But the moose more likely experienced a sense of relief, says moose biologist and author Bill Samuel of the University of Alberta. Moose and other deer relatives shed their antlers every year, and the process is thought to be painless, says Samuel."

This was very, very comforting to me.

Also, I liked the part in the video that said squirrels, birds, and other small animals eat the fallen antlers! Because a, it's nice to think of certain lost things in terms of them moving on to nourish or help others, and b, BONE-EATING SQUIRRELS, GUYS

Someone out in the world who has the same name as me apparently frequently forgets his e-mail address, or lots of people he knows assume what it is and I get a wide range of amusing e-mails meant for him (don't forget to dress up for Zombie Skate at the skating rink! Do you want to play professional basketball in London?), but my favorite, which I still have saved in my inbox, was from a person named Scott. The subject line was "today's moose" and attached were five distant pictures of a moose just chilling in the woods. No text in the body of the e-mail, just pictures of a moose. It might be my favorite e-mail I've ever received.

Now, thinking about it, knowing that there is another angrypedestrian out there who is receiving daily pictures of a moose, and not me, is a great personal loss.

I lost my timer at work today. I was in the middle of timing something, but I never found it. It's just gonna beep sadly for a while but it will never fulfill its purpose.

Somebody stole my wallet while I was out to lunch two days ago and I lost a) my driver's license and all of my bank cards, and b) my sense of myself as a Hardboiled City Dweller Who is Aware of City Risks. I made noise that was more huffing, embarrassed/exasperated than the moose's.

I lost my social security card. When we were starting the process of getting approved for a mortgage.

Thankfully the social security office was wildly efficient, and I received my new card exactly a week to the day of going into the office and applying for a replacement.

A $900 dollar check, which has been resent 2x and keeps vanishing into thin air. Lost too to me, is the tracking number, which would have clarified where exactly it got lost, as despite sending it certified mail, my old work's HR apparently thinks the point of certified mail is to put the sticker on, and then cheerful throw away the MATCHING TRACKING NUMBERS ON THE SLIP SHE IS SUPPOSED TO KEEP TO MAKE SURE IT GETS WHERE IT IS GOING AND WHICH IF SHE HAD SHE COULD GIVE TO ME SO I CAN FIND OUT WHERE THE DAMN POST OFFICE HAS HIDDEN MY CHECK.