Jul 07 2009
Are Dimes the New Penny?
When you spot a penny on the street, do you pick it up?
I do.
Well, I do if it doesn’t look icky. Based on how many pennies I’ve picked up off the ground over the years, not many people pick up pennies. Pennies aren’t worth the effort.
Pennies must not be worth the effort of pocketing as I’ve seen as many as seven scattered together.
I feel a bit self-conscious picking up the pennies but invariably that extra penny allows me to even out my change when I pay in cash. I like being able to give $10.02 for something that costs $9.77 and get a quarter back instead of 2 dimes and 3 pennies.
This brings me to the topic of dimes.
If you saw a dime on the street, would you pick it up?
I certainly would. Unless it were covered in goo.
This past Sunday I was buying bread at the Farmers Market. The bread stand usually has a line snaking around it.
As I reached over to pay for the bread, I noticed a dime on the white cloth covered display. The dime wasn’t hidden amongst the folds; it shone in bright new dimeness. Since it wasn’t covered in goo, I took it.
I ended up using the dime soon after to pay for something that involved 35 cents. I only had 27 cents so the dime was perfect.
The next day I spotted a dime as I was leaving the train station on the way to work. People were streaming along with me.
It was not far from the little coffee shack where people paused to buy a cup. You’d think they’d have picked it up then.
It’s not like it was covered in goo.
As I stooped to pick it up, I wondered if people thought a dime wasn’t worth anything. If a penny is thought to be worth nothing, were dimes valued at next to nothing?
Are dimes the new penny?
I was also struck by the fact that I found a dime 2 days in a row. A penny I can understand, they are uh, a dime a dozen on the street. I wondered if this was merely coincidence.
I found out that I’m not the only one finding dimes.
I also found a site that wasn’t about coins but about change.
You may not want to pick up those pennies and dimes lying on the ground but small (positive) change is a good thing.
Keep Your Coins I Want Change
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Haha I still stop to pick up pennies some of the time! I definitely stop for dimes.
You know, it does seem barely worth it but I have to pick them up. I even pick them up if they’re a *little* gooey (but not too much). Because to leave money just sitting on the ground seems wasteful. Like, there are people starving and kids that have to steal toilet paper from school, but we’re just going to leave money around on the ground as if it’s trash. I doubt that reasoning makes any sort of sense, but that’s why I keep on picking up pennies even though it’s not even really worth stooping down.
That’s funny on that link to finding dimes. When I was little I found knives for awhile. I found a couple of pocket knives and a steak knife. Maybe a butter knife too.
I stop and pick up pennies. If they’re heads up I’ll put them in my shoe for good luck (so long as there is no goo involved.)
My luck isn’t as good finding dimes.
When I’m on my bike I see all sorts of change, and tools, and bungie cords.
Here in Australia they round everything up in the shops so whilst a 5c piece is relatively useful, a penny is no longer currency. Sad really. Nothing costs 37c anymore.
Oh and when we were at school we used to stick money to the ground with chewing gum (or glue depending on whether you wanted the coin back) and watch people try to pick it up. That may be why pennies are covered in goo.
Derek: good for you on the pennies. And I’m still stumped on why someone wouldn’t stop for a dime (barring goo, traffic and obstacles).
Jill (parts 1 and 2): yeah, does seem wasteful to leave money on the ground! You found knives?
delmer: you’ll put the penny in your shoe? Doesn’t it make you uncomfortable?
arizaphale: I recall the gum/glue on a coin on the ground joke. I never played that joke on anyone. I also heard the fishing line attached to paper currency joke which I also never played on anyone. But I recall it so when I have found paper currency on the ground, I’m always wondering if it’s a joke – I’ve found a roll of money once – maybe $120. No one around.
Yeah, I had a little spell where I found quite a few knives in a row. I remember the pocket knife was like half buried in the dirt on the side of a road. I can’t remember much about finding the other ones. My main memory is of my mom telling me that she thought it meant something and I got scared and didn’t find any more after that.
I just picked one (dime) up two days ago. But I was thinking at the time – was that really worth it? I usually ignore pennies on the ground – they’re usually too beat-up or “icky” looking to bother with. Why? Well, they usually stay on the ground a lot longer than the shiny ones.
Jill: I can understand your getting scared if finding knives “meant something!” Knives aren’t usually associated with good things.
esofthub: Dimes still feel like “money” to me despite the fact that I’m not sure what I can even buy with a single dime these days!
Interestingly, I found 2 more dimes within a few days of each other – one on the street near the train station and then one (along with a nickel and 2 pennies) on the floor of the Asian market I go to – it was right near the checkout counter. So I’ve found 4 dimes within something like 2 weeks. I later found 4 pennies at the bottom of some steps. It looked like someone just threw them away, didn’t want to keep them in their pocket.
I pick up change. Can’t remember finding any ucky to prevent me from doing it, but doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.
What can you get for a dime? Several things at Staples during the right sales. I was just in there yesterday and say some spiral bound pads for a penny. I’m sure it’s a “lost leader” kind of thing, where they pull you into the store with the cheap/nearly free stuff, you browse around and pick up something else.