Coppers Everywhere

I did a little sweep around the place; behind and inside the sofa, under tables, behind shelves, in drawers, e.t.c., to find copper coins to exchange for paper money. I didn't find that many - less than £1 in total, which was quite disappointing, but was to be expected since I do this periodically. I did, however, bump into two large "piggy banks" in storage while looking for some other stuff. They were both full to the brim with copper coins. I had totally forgotten about them.

I spent about an hour laying them out, counting and bagging them in £1 batches as instructed by the plastic bags. You can get them from any bank and they're used to receive coins from the public. Shops usually use these, but anyone can bring coins in this way to exchange for more convenient notes.

These days, every little really does help. I managed to get just over £10 from my coins with some left over that I couldn't bag. I'll be pouring those into the coin machine at the supermarket. I noticed that many outlets frown on coppers, understandably, since they're laborious to handle, but they are legal tender so I can see why some outlets are able to refuse them. This was going on long before the pandemic, but since COVID, many shops and outlets have used the opportunity to basically ban coins as a form of payment.

Many coin machines don't accept them either, with the lowest denomination usable being 5p. I can understand that the coin box can become full quickly if people can be allowed to pour coppers into them. They'd have to be emptied out more frequently.

Personally, I don't like them either. I've been totally spoilt by wireless technology, especially for small payments, and ApplePay has made it so easy to just hold my phone up against stuff and zap, payment complete. I also get a list of transactions I can go through later. I realised that there is some privacy given up while doing this, instead of using coins, but It's a level I'm comfortable with - just about.

Anyway, I am determined to completely clean my place of copper coins - making sure there aren't any just rusting away slowly behind the fridge or sofa. Many homes are harbouring dozens of pounds rotting away this way. It's worth having a sweep around to capture these shitcoins. Maybe it could, like it did in my case, buy you a couple of cups of coffee, or lunch or in some cases even clear a utility bill for the month. Perhaps even invest your coppers in a promising shitcoin and potentially turn them into millions in the next bull market.

Peace & Love,

Adé