Flippin Tokens To Hoboken

It was four summers ago (2006) that both Guiney brothers got married. Their bachelor parties were in NYC.

I found this exact subway token somewhere and figured, hey, I rarely go to NYC, so why not bring it? I'd probably need to ride the subway somewhere during this bachelor party, and why not save a buck or two?

I brought it to the bar where we were meeting up and at some point procured the token. I was ridiculed immediately by the NYC-dwelling folk for thinking that such an antiquated item would still be accepted in the NYC token. Many jokes were made at my expense. The moment came and went without incident. For some reason, I pocketed the token. And never did anything with it. And for some reason, I didn't throw it out when I got home.

So today I have thrown it out, but not before scanning it and posting it here.

This post doesn't have much of a point beyond that. Although, now I am wondering, is it kind of sad and nostalgic that there are no such thing as subway tokens (or, for that matter, slot machines that you put actual coins into)? Or, is it just an inconvenience to have had to carry change around for such things, that is thankfully not so anymore? And, let's be honest, pocket change of U.S. currency is becoming pretty much obsolete in today's world.

Change... please!

I am requesting a change in the way change is given.

Most times I pay for something in cash, here's what happens:

- I take out my wallet and hand over the bills, so I'm holding my wallet in one hand
- They hand me back all the bills, the change, and the receipt in a bundle in my other hand.
- I have two choices: stuff it all in my pocket and sort it out later, or slide my bag over so the next customer can be dealt with, while I place the bundle down, put the bills away, then put the receipt in the bag, then put the coins in my pocket.

Why is this? Are clerks trained to give change in any particular way? It is so annoying. I worked behind a counter for a while, and I would try to see what would make the most sense as far as handing over the money. If a customer's wallet is out, they should hand over just the bills first, let the customer put them in the wallet and put the wallet away, then hand over the other stuff. Having one hand occupied with the wallet is what causes the confusion.

On Cash

- With the way our currency has inflated over the history of our country, I got to thinking that it must not be worth it anymore to make pennies - i.e. it must cost more than a penny to actually produce a penny. These people think so. Will we actually get to the point where we phase out the penny? Seems like we're already there. There have been "Leave a Penny Take a Penny" bins at convenience stores for years, but now I've noticed that more recently, sometimes when I buy something, from local stores or chains, some clerks will just round up or down to the nearest 5 cent increment when giving you your change. The pennies are so freakin irrelevant.


- The way in which change is given physically has started to fucking irritate me. Let's say I buy a coffee, newspaper, and bagel from the local Wawa. Let's say it costs 3 dollars and change, and I pay with a ten. I'll take my wallet out of my pocket, produce the ten dollar bill, and the clerk will sequentially put the five, a one, and the coins in a pile in my outstrecthed hand. I then have to put the change down on the counter, put the bills in my wallet, then put my wallet away, pick the change up off the counter and put in my pocket. I would much prefer that the clerk places the change on the counter and hands me the bills while my wallet is out. Therefore, I would not have to put the change back on the counter. Nitpicky? Absolutely. It's just so inefficient. Maybe some people just like to stuff all the money, coins and bills, in their pocket? I don't know.


- How much money do people carry on them? In today's world, just about everything can be paid for using debit / credit cards. I've broken down and charged stuff like $1.00 at the post office, whereas I used to think that was gay ("Just use a dollar bill, jackass!" I'd think when I'd see somebody do this.) However, I realize that I usually feel comfortable with close to $100 in my wallet, if it's possible - even if I'm not planning on spending cash on anything. If I don't know with certainity that there isn't a spontaneous A.C. poker trip in my near future, I will find myself trying to have even more cash on me - say, near $300. But, I've rarely spent all of the cash I have on me, when I have near $100, without a reasonable chance to pass an ATM and get some more. I've talked to people, who aren't rich, that feel comfortable carrying several hundred dollars cash all the time ("Just incase"), and others who feel uncomfortable with cash of any decent amount. Cash is very handy if you are paying for something that you want to remain untraceable.

(Side note on this point: Some time ago, my brother and I were driving with our friend who was borrowing his stepfather's car. This friend's stepfather has a lot of money, and the borrowed car was a loaded Lexus, if memory serves. We go to McDonalds and the friend opens the glove compartment to reveal cash. A lot of cash. Stacks of hundreds. We estimated that there had to be several thousand dollars in there. My brother and I went nuts asking the friend about the money. "I don't know, guys, he just likes to have a lot of cash on him." I have no idea why, but it certainly seems shady for a guy to have several thousand dollars in cash on him, doesn't it? If there's anything legal that one would be buying for that much cash, wouldn't one be able to charge it?)


Finally, this is more about the economy than about cash per se, but the declining dollar has led some players to sign in Europe when they have the option to play in the NBA because it makes better economic sense! Wow.