def METHOD_NAME(self):
    save_file = os.path.join(self.save_dir, "last_checkpoint")
    try:
        with open(save_file, "r") as f:
            last_saved = f.read()
            last_saved = last_saved.strip()
    except IOError:
        # if file doesn't exist, maybe because it has just been
        # deleted by a separate process
        last_saved = ""
    return last_saved