Pennies and the Art of Dating

I'm totally kidding here. I'm pretty sure after last night...there is no real art to dating. But finding pennies can really make a bad date seem not so bad at all. Even when you're sharing a margarita with a Joey Buttafuco look-alike...and I speak from experience.

My evening last night started out pretty great. I was off to meet friends for a drink after work . Enroute to the location...I found three pennies. SCORE! I met with my friends (after threatening to put my galoshes to good use by climbing in the fountain to scrouge up all the wish pennies) where we had a buffet of cheese & oysters to accompany a very tasty glass of wine. What could be better?!

We planned to head back to my place for a little Grey's Anatomy & maybe some more wine. But ever the optimist, I mentioned a guy I'd been e-mailing & texting who I'd turned down for a drink because of our girl date. My dear friends refused to let me skip an opportunity to meet what could be the man of my dreams for a silly TV show. Besides...we knew our friend was Tivo-ing it and would surely let us crash his place to watch it. You will let us watch it at your place, won't you Eric? :-)

So we geared up for the rain and headed over to Eastern Market. I found 2 more pennies and a nickel on our way to the bar. DOUBLE SCORE! And then...we met the guy. The words cro-magnon entered my mind as soon as I set eyes on him. Put the toothpick down when you say hello, for God's sake!

What ensued may have been one of the most akward and ridiculous dates of my life (and I've been on quite a few). The saving grace? Well...there were actually two saving graces. First, my dear friends had come along and seriously cushioned the blow when I had to make a quick escape. The second...I found two more pennies on my escape bringing the total findings to 12 cents for the night. Not bad.

If I can't find the man of my dreams on a random Thursday night, Lincoln x 7 and Jefferson x 1 is a pretty damn good substitute. In fact...I'm sadly starting to prefer them to match.com. Do you think there's a market for matching up single penny finders? Let me check my list...hmmm.

Ok, that's probably a bit much. But honestly...some girls would spend the evening lamenting time lost and the lack of chemistry with Mr. Cromagnon Buttafuco. But I'm sitting here, giddy as school girl, while I update my spreadsheet and see the total climb to $46.66. 12 cents closer to...well...something! And maybe whatever it is will be my true love after all!

Poetry in Motion

Such a muse, the penny. Lincoln's sassy beard. That lovely memorial on the back (aka--"tails"). Pretty copper color (provided the found penny hasn't been trampled by busy feet in the metro or savagely run over by rush-hour traffic). You just never know when finding one will send you into a blitz of creativity.

And if you find something MORE than a penny...well, then you're just driven to poetically taunt your fellow change finders. Which has a way of producing its own breed of creativity. See the lovely string of poems from dedicated friends of the penny...and those who just want to mock my dear old dad!
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
I fond a dime today,
Did you?

I didn't say it was good poetry.
"Tim"

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“Tim”,

Thanks for your bit of inspiration today – this has actually prompted me to try my hand at a bit of poetry myself.

Roses are red
Violets are blue
Some poems rhyme
But this one doesn’t

Hmmmm . . .I suck at poetry.
E

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hhhmmmmm.

Roses are Red,
Violets are Blue
If Lincoln were alive
He'd give you a high five.

oh well....I suck too.
Rick

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And finally...my friend Julia found her first penny for the spreadsheet which inspired an actual poem that makes sense (or cents). Take note, you silly boys (not that I didn't love your poems in their own, special, "short bus" kind of way!).

I found a penny yesterday a-walking home from work.
Sir Lincoln's head was staring up, his tail smushed in the dirt.
His face was scratched up quite a bit but in all he seemed just fine,
for 'spite the cars and boots and grime, that penny kept its shine.

crosswalk of 7th and Maryland Ave, NE.
23 Oct 07

Julia

Do You, Heads, Take Tails, To Be Your Mate Forever?!

My friend Stephanie was, at one time, a bit of a sceptic about this whole "picking up pennies off the ground" thing. It wasn't her cup of tea, which I understood (especially given some of the crazy situations I've found myself in on the hunt for a few cents). And even if she did find one, she certainly wasn't going to pick it up if it was "tails up." That's just asking for a dose of bad luck!

But the tide turned one day when she went to dinner with her mom (a very beautiful and elegant woman for those of you who have not had the chance to meet her) who put a penny on the table and said, "Give this to Leslie."

A few days later we were in Levante's (our favorite after work Happy Hour spot) when Steph sauntered back from the restroom, placed a penny on the bar and said, "Here...I don't know what you do with these...but I found it on the sink in the restroom." And so began Steph's participation in the Penny Project!

Who knew just a few months later she'd have a dime's worth of pennies on the spreadsheet and a story from her new job about love, balance, and how a penny laying "tails up" might be just perfect!

"You Compete Me" --by Steph G.

Leslie,

I found not ONE but TWO pennies yesterday.

Where you ask?

One was outside (heads up) next to the wedding I was shadowing for work. The ACTUAL wedding (you know, bride, groom, priest, et al).

The other was inside (tails up) at their reception/dinner.

I think it is an omen to find two pennies at a WEDDING, both on different sides up...they complete one another!!! Just like the bride and groom :-) Awww....

Elizabeth's Epcot Adventure

My friend Elizabeth has been a dedicated penny picker-upper ever since I told her about my little penny project when she visited DC for work this summer! She's gotten friends picking up pennies, her husband stopping by drive-thru windows to see what they can find, and her nieces & nephews working with her when they make family trips to Wal-mart (kids are great for penny finding!).

But I think she hit the mother load when she went on vacation in Orlando. Come to think of it...my friend Illeny found 35 cents when she went to an amusement park earlier this summer. Hmmm. Perhaps we need to stop stressing & just have more fun! Vacation brings pennies! Anyhow, here's Elizabeth's message about her fabulous finds in Orlando:

I have good penny news from Orlando! I found 6 pennies in the Birmingham and Orlando airport on the way to Orlando, 2 dimes in Magic Kingdom, 1 penny in the hotel room, 1 dime and 5 pennies in the Orlando airport on the way home, and drum roll please.... $1 in Epcot!!! It only cost me $2000 to find $1.42!

Only in a world where we truly appreciate the joy of finding a penny...does a $1 bill garner a drum roll! Who knew these things could bring such excitement! Thanks for the great message and serious penny finding skills Elizabeth!!