Ms. Rice had noticed that Pacific Northwesterners were polite and considerate, but she wondered, did they usually leave money to be picked up by others?
"It is very uncharacteristic, but once you are chasing the game like that you leave yourself open to be picked off.
Each has over-committed and underfunded its obligations, a reflection of how easy it is for politicians to appease workers now while leaving the costs to be picked up by future generations of taxpayers.
Most docs still draw blood, label the test tubes and leave them out to be picked up by the likes of Quest Diagnostics, Lab Corp. or a neighborhood hospital.
Conversations are left on the table, to be picked up like an unpaid tab the next morning, or maybe the next week.
"I have no incentive to conserve the fishery, because any fish I leave is just going to be picked by the next guy".
Some janitors are nice and allow you to paw through the bags of stuff they leave outside the dorms to be picked up.
When the seeds have sprouted and formed true leaves, they are ready to be picked out.
"When you leave, if the lawn just needs to be picked up, fine — the cost is nearly zero.
