Monday, November 13, 2006
Today I found 13 cents . . . . . all pennies.
This morning I found a penny on the ground in the parking lot of my apartment complex. At lunch I found another penny in the parking lot of the Chinese restaurant that I dined at. In the evening I found three cents at Wal-Mart. One was by a checkout line and the other two were by the front door. My final find, eight cents, was at JR’s Car Wash, the car wash next to my apartment complex.
I now pose a question that I have been giving some thought to lately. Next week I’ll be leaving for Europe for a two-week vacation. Since the inception of the Change Race I have found change every day, giving me a streak of over 600 consecutive days of change finds. I’m not sure what the change finding prospects will be in Europe, although I’ll certainly be looking. My question is, does a missed day of change finding in Europe end the streak? Conversely, is the streak only in America and regardless of Europe finds it would continue when I return? Or, would the streak continue, but with an asterisk. These are the questions that must be answered in the next week.
Totals for the day: 13 cents
Race Totals: $457.20
posted by Chris @ 10:06 PM
6 comments
6 Comments:
Chris... as I mentioned via email, I would enact the Foreign Soil No Change Act, which I used in 2002 to exempt myself from not making finds during some overseas travel. I invoked the act during what was a nearly half-year-long streak of finds, my longest ever.
Another option would be perhaps to continue making finds as you would in the U.S. and convert daily to U.S. currency. If you don't make a find in whatever country you happen to be in, then your streak is done.
password: hjwdiys
Hey Chris,
It's Nancy, Becca's friend from Boston. Becca finally forwarded this site to me and I just have to say "wow" to the diligence you have to your cause. It's pretty impressive you keep tracks of all your little precious.
As for the Europe question. I think it would be cool if you keep collecting on European soil and see if European are as 1- careless as 2- slothful as Americans for dropping their change and not picking them up. If they are you are in big trouble and you would have no room for souveniers in your luggage.
And if you happen to not find anything then get some holy water and garlic to bring your streak back :P
Chris,
I think you have to find foreign change to keep the streak without an asterisk. However, I do think that if you do not find any change in Europe or lose the streak in Europe, you come back to the US and continue to keep finding change in the US you can make your streak a consective US streak.
Brian:
Thanks for weighing in. I'm not going with your idea exclusively, but as you will soon see the FSNCA will have a spot in my plan.
Nancy:
Good to have you aboard. I like the holy water and steak idea, but TSA wouldn't allow the water so we might have to nix that idea.
Becca:
We are thinking fairly alike. Tune it in the next few days for my final decision.
Chris, if you want to keep the streak alive then don't go to Europe. Just kidding! Seriously, just like a hitting streak, you have to continue it on the road, so you will need to find some currency. Here's a real challenge for you though. Come up to Maine around say, Mid January just after a nor'easter hits and take a walk around looking for money. If you can extend the streak in those conditions then my hat goes off to you.
Best,
Jim
nhcardhunter:
I like that analogy and am going to apply it to the race. As for coming to Maine, I'm not so sure about that. One summer in college I worked in Maine for the summer and it was cold then! I know that winter up there would not be for me. Of course if I was thrown into it the finds would have to be indoor (grocery stores would probably help me keep it alive).
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