VICTORY! , Tuesday, June 28, 2005

VICTORY!!! Today I found 85 cents. . . 4 dimes, 1 quarter, and 20 pennies. A dime that I found at a Shell gas station (a natural find) put me over the $100 mark, 136 days into the race.

I had several appointments this morning, and a lot of paperwork to complete, so I wasn’t sure how the day was going to end up. I stopped at a local car wash and found four cents (all pennies). At lunch I went to McDonalds and used the drive-thru. I found 1o cents (one dime). I never feel bad about taking drive-thru change, and felt even better today when I saw they way overcharged me for what I had purchased.

At an appointment I found a penny in the parking lot of the building I was about to enter. On my way to another appointment I stopped at Cheveron for gas and found two pennies on the ground by an air pump. While picking up my license plates for my new car I found another single penny by the reception desk at the car dealership in Kingwood, TX. On my way home I stopped at the Kwick Kar Wash and the Hallmark Car Wash, finding five cents (all pennies) and six cents (all pennies), respectively.

For some reason I was thinking in my head that I was 12 cents away from $100 at this point. In actuality I was 22 cents away. Returning to my apartment in the evening I grabbed my friend Robert and told him he was coming with me to be part of my change history. Our first stop was Kroger, a local grocery store, where I found 20 cents (two dimes) under the self-checkout machine. I was a bit bummed that my final find was forced, but I was happy. Little did I realize I was still two cents away.

After words Robert and I decided to celebrate. First, however, he wanted to stop for a beer. We swung into Shell gas station and as he was purchasing a beer I spotted and retrieved a dime on the ground. As it turns out it was this dime, minted 2002 D, that put me over the top.

After getting his beer Robert and I went to Sonic for some dinner. I promptly found 26 cents (one quarter & one penny). The penny was in the parking lot and the quarter was under a table on the patio dining area.

Totals for the day: 85 cents
Race Totals: $100.34