Bits of Plastic Found in Backyard May Be from Target
A Montana couple found bits of broken plastic buried on their property that appear to have been parts of disposal forks and knives from a retail Target store.
BILLINGS, MT — A Montana couple found bits of broken plastic buried on their property that appear to have been parts of disposable forks and knives from a retail Target store.
Marv and Harriet Semipole were digging in their backyard, preparing the soil for their annual tomato planting, when they made the discovery.
“In all the years we’ve been cultivating,” said Mr. Semipole, “we’ve never seen anything like this.”
Suspecting their find might have some significance, the Semipoles contacted the anthropology department at the University of Montana.
After three days of scientific testing, university professor Dr. Elmore Jung determined the items to be broken pieces of plastic forks and knives, used “most likely in an outdoor dining ritual in the late 1990s.”
Preliminary results indicated the plasticware originated on aisle nine or ten of the local Target store on Main Street.
The Semipoles said they vaguely remembered hosting a backyard barbecue during that time period, but couldn’t recall ever buying anything from Target.
