Just to remind everyone: a few weeks ago, I took Joy’s pink, glittery high-tops to the Amazon returns counter at Kohl’s. They were cute shoes, but after Joy tripped in them while running for the bus and did a pretty impressive face-plant, I decided they needed to go back.
There was just one problem. I forgot to remove the AirTag.
According to the Find My app, the shoes stayed in the back room at Kohl’s for several days. Then they started traveling.
First stop: a warehouse in Grove Valley, Missouri. Then a much larger warehouse in Kentucky.
A few days ago, they were on the move again, this time in Georgia. Yesterday, Find My showed them at a truck stop in northern Florida.
Today? Miami.
They are currently sitting in a nondescript shipping and distribution building on NW 70th Street, not far from Miami International Airport.
And I am now completely invested in the journey of a $14 pair of used girls’ high-tops.
I check Find My a few times a day. Where are they going next?
Because these are pink-and-glittery size 13 Little Kid high-tops that have already been worn, I am not confident that they are destined for some glamorous second life. There is a very real possibility that their final destination will be a landfill.
And that makes me a little sad.
I’m hoping somebody eventually decides they are worth a dollar. So maybe they get sold. Maybe donated. Maybe some little girl ends up wearing them to school.
I would love to open Find My one afternoon and discover that Joy’s old shoes are sitting at a park. Or Chuck E. Cheese. Or an elementary school.
That would be a satisfying ending.
Of course, another possibility is that somebody finds the AirTag, removes it from the shoe, and tosses it into the trash. In that case, I may end up tracking the AirTag instead of the shoes until it is crushed, buried, or simply goes silent when the battery dies.
Still, I’m hooked.
In fact, this whole experience has made me want to start putting AirTags in more of my Amazon returns just to see where everything goes. Although there are some obvious logistical problems.
Where exactly do you hide an AirTag in a throw rug? Or a sweater that was too small?
I’m beginning to think tracking Amazon returns could become an entirely new hobby.
For now, though, I’ll keep watching that little dot in Miami and rooting for a pair of pink glittery shoes to get one more chance.
Come on, shoes. Find a kid.
Joy Elizabeth 