You have your snack and drink all ready and you settle in your recliner, feet up, to watch a movie. You are quite comfortable as you reach for the remote to turn on the TV. But the remote isnβt there.
You look around you, hoping you wonβt have to get up, but no such luck. Who had it last? You holler to the kids, but they donβt know. Eventually, youβll have to get up, only to find that you were practically sitting on it. The remote had slid between the cushion and side of the recliner.
Consider yourself lucky. You found it in a reasonable amount of time and didnβt have to tear the house apart.
Several years back, my son, home from college, was looking for the remote and had almost given up. I told him I had heard on TV that it is commonly found in the freezer. He was desperate enough to check and there it was. I didnβt mention that Iβd seen him get ice cream just before that. I just let him think the βmagical mom powersβ he believed in as a child were still working.
Steve, a reader in Green Valley, had a story to tell: βI think our daughter was about 4 or 5. We searched everywhere for the remote to our brand new 26-inch TV (a huge TV for the late β80s). After days of looking, we gave up, went to Kmart and bought one of those newfangled universal remotes. Many years later, while re-arranging some things on a closet shelf, we found the remote tucked in between the folds of a rarely used spare blanket. She denies it, of course.β
So how do you find the remote?
Start near the TV and work your way out. But first, check your hand. Maybe you picked it up just as someone asked you a question, breaking your train of thought.
It will be easier if you donβt have lots of clutter, but if you do, pick up every piece of clutter from the coffee table and side tables. That remote can hide really well.
Check sofa and chair cushions and also look beneath the sofa and chairs. If you have a throw rug, look under the edges.
It may seem obvious, but look on the TV stand and the floor in front of it.
Check your pockets. Are you sure it was your phone you just put there?
Where did you go during the last commercial? Thatβs right, check the bathroom and the kitchen, including the refrigerator and freezer.
Do you have a dog? Ask him. If his tail doesnβt wag, he may be collecting treasures.
Get the family involved in looking. And whenever anyone suggests a place to look that makes you say, βThereβs no way it could be there,β thatβs the next place you should check.
If all else fails, check the car.
If the remote is truly lost, though, you donβt have to buy a new one. Most cable systems and smart TVs can be operated from your smart phone. With the make and model number of your TV or information from your cable box, you can check the Google Play Store or Apple Store for an app.
Many cable boxes also have a button you can push that will make the remote beep. If you canβt find it, call your cable company and ask.
There are also gadgets you can buy that give you tracers to stick on frequently lost items like remotes and key chains. You click the finder and the tracer on your lost item beeps. That works only if you didnβt lose the master, of course. It could be hiding with the remote control.
Also remember, you can get out of the chair, go to the TV, open a little door on the side and use the buttons there to change channels. That is the old fashioned way.
