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New York Best City To Lose A Smartphone

If once is a coincidence and twice is a trend, then I can confidently attest to the fact that if you're going to lose your Jesus Phone anywhere on earth, make it New York City.

A friend, despite being an investment banker from Boston, recently came to Yankee Stadium for a day game all dressed in his pinstriped suit and dapper shoes. His excuse for not having changed into something more appropriate? "I left my iPhone in a cab last night and this morning I got an email from the guy who found it. He was leaving on a business trip this afternoon, so my choice was change for the game or get my iPhone before he blew out of town."

Great story. One in a million, right?

Yesterday, my wife left her BlackBerry Curve in a cab (her excuse: all drugged up because of a kidney stone); since she was in no condition, I called the Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC), and reported the time and place the cab dropped her off. They promised they'd track down the driver using GPS information and call us back within 24 hours.

Less than an hour later, my sister-in-law emailed that some guy had called to say that he'd found my wife's BlackBerry.

I spoke to Carlos, a tattooed Yoga instructor working near Union Square; less than an hour later, I was in possession of my wife's BlackBerry.

I wasn't sure how to begin thanking him, but this is New York and he was busy, so he brushed me off saying, "I'm glad I could be helpful."

While I was on the subway, the TLC left a message saying the driver had checked the seat and floor of the cab but hadn't found the BlackBerry.

I felt like I had put the entire City of New York on red alert for the thing -- in fact, I felt a little bit guilty about sounding the alarm.

People in other cities actually have to use the iPhone's "Find My iPhone" feature. But I should have known that in New York City, smartphones are never lost, they're just in someone else's care.

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