Good stories! Reminds me of something I haven't thought of in years.
When I was a young trim carpenter I was fitting the top tread on a closed in staircase when I bumped my chisel off the stringer where I had foolishly set it down. It dropped into the staircase and I heard it bump and slide it's way all the way to the bottom.
I suppose I could have pulled up the first tread and retrieved it but it was late and I was tired so I left it as a present to the next guy working on those stairs.