What happened to March?

A quick catchup before the big post:

I'm exhausted just thinking about all the happenings around here in the last few months. It is April 14th and my brain is screaming that it must be at least June!

Three weeks ago we made another trip to Arizona, our second one this year. The purpose of the last trip was to get my brother-and-sister-in-law's home ready to sell so they can relocate here. The little town of Ajo is quaint and quiet, but it is also a two hour drive to get medical care other than the GP variety. With advancing age and some pretty serious health problems the timing seemed to be right. I spent a week prepping the house to be put on the market. Thanks to the wonderful ladies of SIL's church it was ready to have a "FOR SALE" sign placed in the yard. I will freely admit that I was running on empty by the time we boarded the plane and headed for home on the seventh day.

(Yes, that is a cat on my blog. Sam lives in AZ and is the only cat in the entire world that I would allow here. She is a cranky 14-year-old cat whose sedentary life was turned to chaos when I stepped in the door and started dismantling her home. I also slept on her bed and wouldn't let her in, even at 4 am as she cried at the door. By the end of the week we had made peace and actually shared some nice kitty moments.)

My poor suitcases didn't even get put back in the closet. Our long-awaited trip to Washington DC with Athena and Eris and the gang was only five days away! Mike and the girls had been working on this educational experience for months. Reservations for hotels, tours, cars and shuttles were set. We had been holding regular planning meetings for months and Eris had prepared us with a 90 minute history of the United States. It seemed like a dream when all eleven of us boarded that airplane and headed east for what turned out to be the best trip EVER! We returned home three days ago and each one of us is still working through the exhilaration and exhaustion.

My goal is to have another post and photos up in the next few days.

Quilt report: finished one! That's right! Bound and ready for auction at a church dinner this coming Saturday! It felt so good that I might just do another one.

Dimple report: Have been off medication for four weeks. The unpleasant side effects are now gone, which means that I am sleeping at night. Surgery is scheduled for the first week of May, a procedure that hopefully will be simple and easy. It's done as an outpatient but requires an entire day at the hospital. I'll just be glad when it's over because that means summer is here and it's time to play, slathered in sunscreen of course!

New wheels: I now have a new-t0-me mountain bike! Trail riding is much harder than on pavement, also muddier! Doubtful that I'll ever be a true mountain biker but so far I have really enjoyed coming home with mud up my back!

Coinage was counted before our DC trip. Unfortunately, the total for the last eight months was a paltry $84. Bicycling has really taken a toll on the numismatizing.

$3.78

(Apologies for the random spacing. I'm out of practice at blogging!)

Payday Again.

Yesterday was payday again.

Total collected: $126.62

Only $2 in paper money, both in last week

Canadian coins: $.34

Collection time: Eight months, one day

Of the total amount there is $6.64 in coins that the bank either rejected or was not sent in due to the condition. The photo below shows some examples of what Zeus and I call "coffee coins". Broken coins are rare, most often found in cracks of streets in winter when it is cold. Bent coins are also found in the same place in the hot summer months. Bent coins are my favorite.

The lucky penny jar now contains $.34 in seed money. Totals have taken a severe dip since I began riding. Running is still on my calendar at least once a week and rarely do I return home from a ride without a few coins in the water bottle pouch. Generally, any outing will find some stray coins brought home in my left pocket, the one reserved for found coinage.

$3.13

I'll make a million!!!

Moneywalker asked a question a few posts back about how my new bike has affected my thoughts and observations while exercising. After giving it some consideration and the with healing of my first road rash I can now answer.

Today our weather turned wintry again with rain and snow showers. In the past five years those conditions wouldn't have stopped me from lacing up the shoes and heading out to find shiny, round objects on the roads. I'm certainly not afraid of getting cold and wet. However, those same conditions will keep me off my bike. And that does not make me happy at all.

The last three weeks of riding has been interesting. I'm no longer afraid of cars whizzing past my left shoulder, although I must admit that I still give them plenty of respect and leeway. Mostly they are ignored except at intersections where I'm careful to make eye contact with drivers before crossing paths. Drivers making right turns are especially dangerous, a fact learned fast when I began running.

At first the transition from running against the traffic to riding with the traffic was weird. More than once I found myself on the wrong side of the road. Utah laws require bicycles to observe to all moving vehicle laws. The first time Eris showed me how to cross a major highway in a traffic lane was very unsettling but I'm now getting used to it. Still not ready to "shoot the gap" and don't plan on ever doing it.

As for numismatizing, it is much more difficult but certainly not impossible. There are three car washes along my current route. It's easy to get off the bike and take a quick stroll while catching a drink of water.

Road finds are much harder. But I think I've found a solution. Training wheels. Yup. Training wheels. I'm thinking that if I install them on my rear wheels and duct tape some powerful magnets to the bottom sticky-out side my ride totals will go up considerably. Yes? Just think... I could make a million off this idea!! Bikers of all kinds will be clamoring for my invention!

To answer the rest of MoneyWalker's question, the addition of biking to my exercise routine has had a few surprises. When out ralking there was nothing to keep me from slowing down or stopping altogether. Can't do that on a bike. I have to work to keep the mph at a decent level. I also believe the cardio benefits are much greater than ralking, at least for me personally. Mixing up the workouts relieves some of the boredom that was setting in.

Tonight while talking with Athena about her "boot camp" she mentioned how much she hates a treadmill and stationary bike. I totally agree. I want to be outside with fresh air, marveling at our incredible mountains and feeling the wind on my face. Each time I hear the frogs croaking in the pond or see the newborn ducklings on the canal I love it even more. Athena, you would love it. I dare you.

$1.99 (total from last week)

(The top photo is Little Ms. taken at a July 4th parade in 2009. She is now riding sans training wheels.)

Street Plastic

One of my favorite street finds (other than paper dollars) is gift cards. It's like a Christmas present under the tree with a sticker on it that says "Don't open until Dec. 25th". (I know most of you don't wait, but I do.) The anticipation of finding out what's in that pretty wrapped box is part of the fun.

The same thing happens whenever I pick up a gift card on the street. It goes in my pocket and is carried home where I either call the number on the back for a balance or go to a website and punch in the numbers. Often they have been run over or damaged in some other way. Shortly after the holidays I found a Sears card in which the laminated front had completely come apart from the back due to being in the snow for quite a while. After finding out it had a $20 balance I took it to our local store where the nice salesperson immediately exchanged it for a new one. Too bad Walmart won't do the same. No swipe, no cash. Ugh.

Two days ago after running an errand at the university Littlest and I took a side stroll over to the parking meters where the snow had recently melted. The ground yielded six quarters and a few dimes but the exciting find was a gift card. It was nearly two hours before I could log on to discover that the balance on the card was $1.48. Not the $100 that I was hoping for but better than nothing! I've found countless cards while numismatizing. They have bought gas for cars, burgers at fast food restaurants, groceries and a few items of clothing.

Side note: Littlest is ruthless when it comes to finding and pocketing coins. She doesn't give them up to me. They go home in her pockets where I suspect they eventually end up in Eris' washing machine.

$3.61

$1.48 gift card

Buddhizing Numismatizing

Yesterday morning I attended a lecture given by Zeus on Buddhist Ethics. He only had a few hours notice because the scheduled speaker was unable to make it due to a snowstorm up north. Of course, Zeus did a masterful job. His subject matter, along with the MoneyWalker's (bleason) comments on my last post have prompted this subject matter.

I often joke about picking up coins while ralking. But seriously, I do realize that there is a fine line between what I do and pocketing money that doesn't belong to me. Bleason and I seem to be travelling the same paths many time zones apart and he has touched on the ethics of our strange hobby.

About five years ago I started daily walking, at first finding random coins in gutters that I thought were quirks. As my walking continued and I ventured out onto other streets I began to realize that there was coinage all over the place, a person just had to know how and where to look for it. For a while I didn't talk much about it to others but then my finds became common knowledge to those around me. Oh yes, I have taken a fair amount of teasing, mostly good-natured and always deserved.

Along the way I have developed my own "rules" for numismatizing, most of which are similar to Bleason's. I will share a few of these with you.

1. Walk early and fast. Most of the fast food establishments have not even opened when I go under the windows. Coinage that has been left outside all night is fair game, right??? Regarding "window wardens", I've seen all kinds of them, from the fun woman at a McDs who called me back to tell me that I missed a quarter to the guy who threatened to call the cops. That was in a different city and I never went back. Oh wait, there was one really rude guy who I told to catch me if he wanted his nickel back. He didn't. Also, I won't interfere with business. Coinage in the street, all mine, baby!
2. Safety. I've been on a morning ralking hiatus this week partly due to the pitch black darkness that lasts until seven. Of the three places I frequent one is scary in the dark and the other two are unsafe due to traffic. I wear ID and reflective clothing and have learned to never trust drivers making right turns. This weekend the time changes. Hallelujah!
3. Never miss an opportunity. Vending machines, telephone booths, parking lots, car washes, they all are ripe and ready for picking. Learn to laugh when others look at me quizzically.
4. Smile and say good morning to everyone I pass. It's a challenge to see who will reply.
5. Relish the sunny days and enjoy the rain. Endure the bone-chilling cold with more layers and thinsulate. Sleep in on the windy or icy days or hit the pool.
6. Realize that numismatizing provides needed motivation to get outdoors and enjoy the solitude. Who could have guessed that I would love mornings?

7. Mostly, be grateful that in my senior years (ouch!!) I can still ralk and that the circumstances of my life allow the time and luxury to do it. Also, the support of Zeus is priceless.

$.93

Trollified!

Hello from unsunny California! In fact, very unsunny. The major storm that was predicted is supposed to hit at any time with high winds (ugh) and lots of rain. Not sure what that will do to our plans for tomorrow but if we have to we can hang out in our lovely room.

Actually, the above photo was taken this afternoon while we toured the prison on the Island of Alcatraz. The room above is a typical cell, 5 ft wide, 8 ft high and 9 feet long. No view of other prisoners and most had no direct sunlight. Prisoners sat in these cells for 23 hours a day. Solitary confinement was even worse than this! The prison was closed in 1963.

It's impossible to spend time in San Francisco and not enjoy the wonderful cuisine. Zeus enjoyed a great dish of spaghetti and salmon while I enjoyed a very different and delicious lasagna. The sourdough bread here is to die for! Ummmm! I could eat it with every meal. And it goes without saying that dessert came from Ghirardelli Square. Now I just need to keep that ribbon tied tightly.

We took a couple of rides on cable cars in our outings. They are not as "friendly" as our Trax and Frontrunner systems back home.

However, they do produce trollified pennies just as well as our traxified pennies!

$.04 and one trollified penny

Update, Tues AM: It's raining and blowing, expected to continue all day. We have some interesting places to visit, all indoors and in the city. It's a good thing the hair was cut before leaving home.

Payday!

Yesterday was payday!

Total weight of coins: 28 pounds

Paper money: twenty three dollars

Gold dollars: eight

Collection time: Seven months, 13 days

Grand Total: $202.13

(This includes $8.81 that the bank rejected.

That will buy Zeus' morning cup of coffee for a while.)

6860

I'll bet not one of you can tell me what the significance the number 6860 has. But I know it by heart. I have written that four digit combination down so many times that I don't even have to look at the bin in the bulk food aisle anymore to make sure I got it right.

The number 6860 is the code used at my local supermarket for purchasing my favorite indulgence. The amount is always the same, one bag that contains six chocolate covered jelly rings, usually costing around $.56 cents. The bag is always kept on the top of the groceries for easy access on the short drive home. Often they are gone before I open the garage door.

I took the photo about ten minutes ago. Hands are starting to shake and mouth is watering..... Must go.....

$22.81 (includes a $20 bill in the gutter folded neatly just waiting to jump into my pocket plus a loony, a Canadian dollar. Guess we'll have to go back to Victoria to spend it! I love Sunday mornings!)

MORE Competition

What the heck! Are they trying to put me out of business????

McDs has added a new feature to their drive-in window. This little contraption wasn't there at 6 AM this morning, or at least I didn't notice it (still a little dark at that time). By 9 AM it had magically appeared at my local walk-thru. Now who had this brilliant idea? This particular collection point is not one of the more lucrative spots so I doubt that it will effect my totals all that much. Time will tell.

Money Walker, have you noticed any of these in the south? As of this afternoon when I went grocery shopping the other local McDs doesn't have one..... yet.

$3.26 and another debit card to return

The competition

Picking up coins and objects is something I learned from my father. He would bring the car to a screeching halt for just about anything that he saw in the road, especially tools. Mom claims that he stopped the car on a Los Angeles freeway once to retrieve a screwdriver and nearly got both of them killed in the process.

Found objects are nothing new to me. About eight years ago I found a woman's wedding ring in a downtown gutter. It was a beautiful solitaire setting and the stone was nearly a carat. The local Lost and Found ads produced nothing for weeks. The ring was examined by numerous jewelers, all with differing opinions as to the authenticity of the stone. Some said real diamond, others said fine quality fake. But the setting was definitely gold. (In the end it was determined to be a CZ, at which time Zeus informed me that if the jewelers couldn't tell the difference by looking through a loupe then he had purchased his last diamond.)

Serious numismatising began five years ago. While I was out walking I would pick up curbside coins and bring them home to Zeus. We called them his Lucky Pennies. For Father's Day Eris made him a personalized jar to collect them for a rainy day. As my ralking became more frequent the skill of numismatising became more of an art. (That's right, an art!)

Just as my father taught me about street finds I'm finding that my children and grandchildren are also becoming quite adept at spotting round, shiny objects. When Little and Littlest were very small I would point out a coin to them and they would scamper to pick it up. They were easily convinced to put it in my left pocket (the "lucky penny pocket") or to proudly give it to Grandpa when they got back to the house.

Those days are past. No way will they give up a found coin. Worse than that, they are RUTHLESS when it comes to spotting and pocketing. Those who were once my trainees of numismatising have now become my competition.

(The photo above was taken last week after our Gateway trip. The empty hand belongs to Jubee, who has not fully embraced the concept of numismatising.)

Oh, it makes a grandmother smile! And to all the rest of you who proudly boast of your exciting finds, congratulations! It makes my heart sing!

$1.46

A day gone awry

Sometimes a well-planned day just doesn't work out the way you expected. For instance, I left the house this morning expecting to gather pocketfuls of coins from post-rain car washes. Instead, the ralking was a dismal failure, at least as far as coinage was concerned. All of the construction has basically shut down about half of my usual pickup areas. I was about 15 minutes behind schedule and I'm guessing that the rest of my hot spots got scooped by the guy on the bike who was watching my route two days ago. Grand total for 90 minutes of ralking, a lousy 32 cents. Note to self: set alarm for 5:30 AM. On the plus side, it was warm enough that I was able to ditch the sweat jacket and do more running than walking.

With summer finally here and our first temps in the 90s we were all looking forward to the relief of the pool. Yes, we've been a few times already but you don't fully appreciate the water until it's hot, hot, hot. So we were all very disappointed when word reached us that a pump at the pool had gone down and it would be closed for the day.

Luckily, Eris pulled out her $5 slip-n-slide from Target. The kids, including the clan from Idaho who were visiting for the day had lots of fun playing in the water for a few hours. Sitting under the large tree in her front yard and letting the little ones play to their hearts content was a fair alternative to the pool.

The last change of plans was the postponement of Little Ms.' final softball game. That left me with nothing to do tonight except edit a few photos and go to bed early. The photos are done and I'm off to work on my crossword puzzle before falling asleep. G'night!

$ .32 plus
.25 this afternoon.

Total: $.57 (still a lousy total)

Did I deserve it?

Last night, 1:30 AM, Zeus and I were sleeping soundly when we were rudely awakened by a crashing sound somewhere in the house. After quickly looking around the house I turned on the light in our closet to find that the upper rod bracket that holds all of Zeus' neatly starched and pressed shirts had broken. There was a two foot pile of shirts, ties, belts and other items piled on the floor. It took about ten minutes to move the shirts into another part of the room and (hopefully) stack them so that they wouldn't wrinkle. Then the unpleasant task of going back to sleep started which took another 20 minutes and some crossword puzzle frustration.

Needless to say, I was relieved at 5:45 AM when I awoke to the sound of a downpour, a good excuse for no ralking and to go back to sleep. At 6:25 AM Zeus woke me again to tell me that it was no longer raining hard and if I put on a windbreaker it should be a nice morning. Ten minutes later I was in the car headed south for my usual hot spot when I had to turn on the windshield wipers, FULL SPEED! Zeus must have been expecting the cell phone call that I made to him because his first words were "I'm sorry, it wasn't doing this when I woke you".

The ralking was mostly running this morning, partly to keep warm. By the time I got home two hours later I was soaked through my lined windbreaker and my shoes were sloshing with each step. Wet clothing is hanging out to dry all over the garage and bathroom.

On the positive side, the roads were void of cars and the smell of rain was wonderful. Also, the numismatising was good. The weird find this morning was at a 7-11. Two quarters, a dime and a nickel, all stacked neatly on a sidewalk right in front of a Highway Patrol car in the parking lot.

Now I need to get that closet rod repaired. Zeus told me this morning that he is going to pare down the number of shirts that go back in the closet. That means a trip to the DI tomorrow! Yippee!

$4.13 1/2

The Quarter Goddess

The Goddess of Quarters was smiling on me this morning. While out on my extended Sunday ralk it seemed that each time I turned a corner or looked in a newspaper stand there was a quarter just waiting to be lovingly put in my left pocket. Dimes seemed to be plentiful as well. For some reason nickels are the hardest to come by. (Bleason, thoughts on this?) Pennies are a piece of cake.

The weather was perfect, a gentle breeze and bright, angled sunshine to make the waiting coinage look like it's winking at me. I just kept ralking, knowing that my left pocket was getting full and heavy. When I finally got home Zeus was out on the deck reading. He was impressed when I let him feel what was in my pocket (heh, heh, heh..). Here are the stats.

Quarters: 17

Dimes: 21

Nickels: 6

Pennies: 89

Total: $7.54

Time spent walking: 3 1/2 hours

I am sure that this total will stand forever. It was just a freaky day. For the last five years I have been unable to come up with good explanations about why some ralks are more lucrative than others. Perhaps this time I might attribute the large amount to the recent good weather and that more people are outside. Regardless, I thank all of you who so graciously donated to the all-time high that was waiting for me this morning.

Note: Zeus is very methodical in his counting of the coins. Pennies go in stacks of five, nickels in stacks of five, dimes in stacks of ten and quarters in stacks of four. Today after he was finished I turned them all into a big smiley face which seemed appropriate!

The Mystery of the Bird Feeder

The birds in the back yard have been sparse during the winter and since the episode of the killer hawk. We've missed them.

Lately, some weird things are happening. We noticed a few birds trickling in occasionally so I began watching the feeders and partially filling them. One day the feeder on the right was empty. Hooray! The birds are back!!

After filling the feeder all the way to the top it stayed that way for a number of days, barely changing. Then one morning, EMPTY! This has happened three times now. Obviously we are feeding a rodent of some kind. It sneaks in in the middle of the night and fills it's belly, hardly leaving anything behind on the ground for the hungry doves.

Could be a mouse, maybe a squirrel. A birding friend of ours has suggested it might be a raccoon. I'm skeptical of that explanation.

Three days ago I filled it again. This time I sprayed the pole with cooking spray. Whatever is going up to feast on the bird feed will slide back down. I thought about staying up to watch, hoping to catch a few giggles. Instead I went to bed to catch a few zzzzzs.

$2.75 (includes 100 pennies)

This amount was gathered yesterday in a three hour marathon walk. It felt so freaking wonderful to be outside on a sunny spring morning that I just kept on going.

Also, a special note to bleason, the Money Walker: I hit three Jiffy Lubes. The first one, empty, second one 18 cents, third 34 cents. Thanks for the tip!

Road Work Ahead

It's taken a few years to get my weekday ralk (run/walk) route down to an exact science. I know which spots have a high yield as opposed to the occasional penny. I am familiar with the schedules and busy times so I know where to hit first. Also, I know which of the morning people will smile and wave as opposed to the ones who snarl (avoided at all costs).

When my well-rehearsed ralk is disturbed for any reason it can cause great distress. My entire routine is thrown into a spin and my mind is likely to go all over the place instead of concentrating on shiny, round objects.

So you can imagine the extraordinary levels of discombobulation that I will be feeling for the next few weeks (months?) as I am forced to maneuver around all of this mess. Not to mention the lack of coinage that will be available for pickup due to decreased business in the area.

Hopefully the post-rain car washes will make up for monetary losses incurred while the necessary road work is being completed.

$1.75 3/4

P.S. Everyone sing a Happy Birthday to Kara!

A Study in Genetic Predisposition vs. Learned Behaviors

Over the past few months I have become painfully aware that I am responsible for creating a monster. I had suspected this for some time but last Saturday I could no longer ignore the problem.

After the final soccer game as I was driving Eris home she suddenly shouted "PENNY! PENNY" The next thing I know the passenger door was flung nearly off the hinges and she was bounding out into the middle lane of I-15 (okay, it was 7th Street, only two lanes) to retrieve the three copper coins that were shining up at her in the gutter. We both laughed at her finds and I gave her a pat on the back along with a "good job". It wasn't a mile later at the next stop sign when the door was flung open again and she jumped out, this time the bounty was one penny. She generously shared two of them with me.

Just two weeks ago I watched in disbelief as she shrieked and dived under a curtain at a large exposition to claim a coin, only to cry with disappointment when she found it was a Junior Mint.

coins with various levels of TRAXiness

The question: Is this a genetic aberration or simply learned behavior? At this time I am inclined to go with genetic aberration after carefully observing the following and determining the statistical relevance:

1) Eris has three children. Of those three children two of them are compulsive penny-picker-uppers. The other one hides when this behavior is exhibited.

2) Athena does not participate in the sport of coin hunting, although a few weeks ago I suspected she carried the gene when she bragged about a "find" in her parking lot at work. She has two teens who cringe and run the other way when I stop to pick up coinage.

3) My father would never drive past a tool or a golf ball in the road. I have my own toolbox made up of Dad's road treasures that is off-limits to Zeus .

4) Age and education seem to have no bearing on the ability/compulsion to engage in these behaviors. You are either born with the talent or you are not. And yes, it is a talent.

On the flip side of the coin, there is also a case for learned behavior. I have heard from many, including Stefanie, Muriel and others that their children have picked up this talent after spending time with me. Further evidence is the penny that the Princess, who is not yet two, picked up two weeks ago to give me (with her daddy's help).

SLC TRAX

One of Eris' favorite money spots is the TRAX line in SLC. Apparently people throw coins down into the tracks to see them flattened. Considering her genetic predisposition, what choice does Eris have but to jump right in and retrieve them? I just hope that she doesn't become TRAXified like the coins she picks up.

$.11 (will it ever stop snowing?)

To bleason, my fellow numismatizer in New Orleans, a note concerning the verbiage of numismatising: I believe it was FNKara who coined the wonderful word coinage. Eris gets the credit for TRAXiness. Isn't in fascinating to see a new language develop?

keen-what???

Zeus will eat anything. In 17 years he has never refused anything I made for him. There have been a few things that even I couldn't choke down. A couple of times he has kindly told me not to bother fixing it again, but only after he ate it.

uncooked quinoa

For a couple of months I have been trying to locate quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah). It is kind of a grain/cereal/seed that is very high in protein. Finally last week I found it in the health food section of one of our grocery stores.

After an Internet search for a recipe I finally decided to try, Quinoa Stuffed Squash. It was pretty good! Zeus loved it. The addition of tart cherries, maple syrup (partially substituted with Splenda Brown Sugar) and cinnamon made it not only nutritious but yummy!

(If you haven't heard of quinoa before you aren't alone. Even the spellcheck for this post didn't recognize the word.)

$3.32 (highest daily total without paper)

Lucky Friday the 13th

I struck gold this morning! When I am running (or walking fast) I usually don't stop to closely examine the round things that I pick up. They just go in my left pocket. Quite often as Zeus is counting the coinage he will tell me that I have a "wheatie" or some other interesting coin. These coins don't go in the "Lucky Penny" jar but are instead kept in a separate place. The best one I have found was a 10 peso coin that required plucking out of a very busy intersection.

This morning I was putting in an extra 30 minutes due to a weigh-in for Team Athena (dismal failure). There was a huge amount of construction on my usual route so I detoured a little and took in a car wash. Whoa! Nice payout!

I didn't even know these things were out. Until I got home I just thought that I'd picked up a car wash token.

$2.92

Shredded

(Sorry, another money post.)

Last Saturday Zeus and I paid a visit to my brother-in-law and sister-in-law. While we were there the BIL handed me an envelope. Inside this is what I found.

Apparently, quite a few months ago while working at his desk he picked up an envelope and sent it through the shredder. Immediately he knew that he had shredded the wrong envelope, one that contained two $20 bills. Too late, it went all the way through. Whoo boy, I'll bet there was some blue air that day!

I took the envelope and strips home and thought for awhile about the easiest way to reconstruct them. Later that night I put some double-sided tape on a piece of paper and started to reassemble the bills using an intact $20 as a reference. At first I was pretty confused because they just weren't fitting correctly. Then I realized that those two bills were different, one was the old style and the other was the new one. Only two slivers off the top one were missing. The serial numbers were perfectly visible. It took about an hour to get them all put in order.

Took the taped together bills to my bank. No questions asked, they exchanged them for new ones.

An interesting thing popped up on my computer when I tried to edit the above photos. Apparently my new PSE7 editing program has a feature that detects images of currency. I was able to edit but it will not allow these images to be printed. To err on the safe side I was advised by legal counsel (thanks, B) to convert them to black and white and also to mark the images with these red Xs. Sorry, no printing allowed. What will they think of next??

$1.36

Twenty-three pounds of coins

PAYDAY!

Before.. and after...

Total: $184.87

Collection time: 8 months 11 days

Zeus has a serious case of cabin fever and is sending me all kinds of travel information. This will buy us a few sweatshirts from wherever we end up. For sure I will be bringing home a Berkeley sweatshirt.

$.84 (The jars look so empty!)