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I recently brought two jars of change to the bank, and they totaled $86. But those jars represented about 4 years of change from my wife and I combined. At that rate, a lifetime of pennies comes to maybe $40/person. Who cares? Not worth the time to pick them up and spend them.
What does it matter how long it took to accumulate? How long does it take to stop and pick up a single coin, maybe 3 seconds? It's not like any significant work is involved; it's free money.
Or look at it this way. If someone dumped two jars of coins on the floor in front of you and said, "If you pick them up and put them back in the jars, I'll give you $86," would that be worth your while? It would be for me. And that's not essentially different from picking up the coins off the street one at a time. The same result for the same effort, just over a longer timespan.
I wonder if there is a strong correlation between the conditions of our upbringing (poor, middle class, wealthy, filthy rich) and whether or not we are willing to pick up change. Or more succinctly whether or not our parents "spoiled" us relative to strict parents who never allowed us anything but the basic necessities.
My parents pretty much hovered around the official poverty line for most of their lives, so we ALL we taught to be super careful with our $$$. I mean we never starved or had no housing, but we never traveled, had a car or other luxuries.
I guarantee my parents would stoop down to pick up a penny, even if it was dirty.
I will definitely pick up a nickel and up. Takes 2.5 seconds, my busy Presidential schedule will survive
What does it matter how long it took to accumulate? How long does it take to stop and pick up a single coin, maybe 3 seconds? It's not like any significant work is involved; it's free money.
Or look at it this way. If someone dumped two jars of coins on the floor in front of you and said, "If you pick them up and put them back in the jars, I'll give you $86," would that be worth your while? It would be for me. And that's not essentially different from picking up the coins off the street one at a time. The same result for the same effort, just over a longer timespan.
By that same token, when you are in a state that gives a rebate for bottles and cans, do you pick them out of public trash cans to reclaim the deposit?
Maybe you separate your aluminum cans and go to a scrap yard to sell the metal?
Neither takes much time, and may even pay more than grabbing pennies.
My point is that it isn't worth even 3 seconds to pick up a penny.
By that same token, when you are in a state that gives a rebate for bottles and cans, do you pick them out of public trash cans to reclaim the deposit?..........
Those bottles in the trash are for the homeless. I won't take their income away from them.
However, I had a rich neighbor who had a yacht moored down in the harbor who did go through the public trash cans picking out the cans for the deposit. He made quite a bit of money doing it. He claimed it paid for his gasoline to drive back and forth to his boat.
The aluminum cans go to the recycle and the county gets the money and uses it to help pay for the trash service. So basically, I am saving and spending those cans, so technically, yes, I do.
Those bottles in the trash are for the homeless. I won't take their income away from them.
Homeless people can pick up pennies as well, so your argument is not consistent.
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However, I had a rich neighbor who had a yacht moored down in the harbor who did go through the public trash cans picking out the cans for the deposit. He made quite a bit of money doing it. He claimed it paid for his gasoline to drive back and forth to his boat.
So he lived around the corner from the marina?
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The aluminum cans go to the recycle and the county gets the money and uses it to help pay for the trash service. So basically, I am saving and spending those cans, so technically, yes, I do.
But practically and actually, you do not.
It might have been simpler for you to just admit you are not consistent in your actions when it comes to negligible amounts of money. That is ok though, the amounts are so trivial as to not really matter to anybody. If you like picking up pennies, enjoy.
When I was a broke young adult, I did used to pick up cans and bottles from the ground. Once in a while, I still will, if it's a clean-looking single container and I'm close to home. I also take our household cans and bottles in for recycling if they are the kind you can get cash back for (otherwise, they go in our recycling bin that gets picked up with the waste).
I don't dig through trash cans and dumpsters. That is unsanitary and often illegal, and a lot more work than bending over to pick up a coin, so I don't see where the inconsistency comes in--those are two very different scenarios.
If I see a penny that's not heads up (because that's supposed to be lucky, and the other side is not) I pick it up just to turn it around for the next person to find, and leave it there.
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