A Penny for your thoughts........

Sorry, what about them? We've got a cheque book, VERY occasionally write one. Things do come and go, and cheques are getting to be an endangered species, at least for everyday transactions. Any small contractors we've dealt with, it's credit card or Interac e-Transfer.

Every car we've bought (for cash) over the years, it's been a personal cheque, 'cept this last one, needed a special cheque from the bank, they didn't trust me. After the nonsense I discovered during and after the sale, the feeling is mutual...

 

I assume purchase amounts are not rounded up?

 

With cheques? No, as long as no cash is involved, there's no reason to "round".

 

I know a place that will buy the wheaties for more than face.

They stopped being mostly copper in 1982. Now they're zinc plated with copper.

Got some steel pennies, as well as silver quarters and dimes.

 

We used to have 50 cent pieces up here. States as well?

 

States as well, and silver dollars. I have three gold coins from my grandparents when they had a bakery. Las Vegas used silver dollars. I guarantee people still use cash, and they expect the correct change. Grocery store has a machine on each checkout that dispenses the coins, to the penny.

 

If they nix the penny, and you're paying cash/getting change, sometimes you lose a penny or two, and sometimes the opposite: you come out ahead. As much as 2 cents, lol.

If that tears anyone up:

 

I still pay a bill by check, and otherwise mostly use a credit card. No whinge, but a lot of seniors will, unless the stores stop pricing everything ending in 9 cents.
So something is $1.79, and the store gives you back 20 cents. Store wins, and it will add up. You think the store will give back 25 cents? I think existing pennies will just have to make through 47 more months.

 

The whole world is on an unpaved, potholed road, for the next 47 months, too true.

Yeah, from plastic straws to Greenland, it might be Vance at the helm, eventually. I was going to say if what's-his-name goes off his nut, but that ship has sailed, more like if his followers finally wake up.

 

Been writing more checks lately. Don't like paying extra for the privilege of using a credit card.

 

My thoughts are a little dark lately

 

About 7 billion pennies are produced per year at unit cost of 3.7 cents. there's the motivation.

About a billion nickles were produced per year (recently but now fewer) at unit cost of 13.8 cents. Without pennies to seems likely that more nickels will be needed. So it seems like one-dimensional chess to de-Lincolize coins. Also (and not seen in media coverage) nickles contain 25% nickel, strategic for magnets and other green uses.

Pennies now are zinc with 2.5% copper. Melt 1981s and earlier.

 

I still make an effort to avoid those. If I haven't noticed before pulling up to the pump, I'll drive away.

But a favorite restaurant here now charges more for using a card. And so does the local Toyota parts window. It's getting more common.

1. it turned out 1965 was not the eve of destruction.

2. past performance is not a guarantee of future results.

3.

(thanks to Bob for an earlier link)

 

Doesn't look like anything a RAV4 Hybrid or RAV4 Prime/PHEV could not do with improved reliability...

 

I believe the 2025 RAV4 Hybrids have AWD (Electronic On-Demand All-Wheel Drive).