as of february 11th, i will have been collecting street change for 1 full year. not pocket change (i have a separate jar for that)- sidewalk change, floor change, gutter change, snowbank change… abandoned money, dropped accidentally or cast aside by people who didn’t think it was worth the effort to bend over and pick it up.
when i first started this little project, i wasn’t really sure how long it would entertain me. and at first i felt extremely awkward about people seeing me picking up dirty pennies on the street (i tried to be so slick about it at first). and then i found $20 in front of the porno store on congress street, and all my awkwardness faded away (now i’m completely shameless about it). what i learned this year is that A) nobody is really paying attention anyway, and B) there is REAL MONEY on the ground. i found not one but TWO twenties this year. 5 ones. and 1 five. and a golden dollar coin wedged in the couch cushions at bubble maineia. that’s $51 before i ever had to pick up my first dirty penny. all left behind by their previous owners and trod on by people in too much of a hurry to look down.
did i tell you about that time i found a check for $57,000 made out to a local microbrewery? sopping on the ground in a rainstorm, i walked it back to their office and was gratefully gifted with a free case of beer (really good beer). so now we’re up to $51 and a free case of assorted microbrews.
seriously yo, change hunting is awesome.
to celebrate my first year of collecting, i am dedicating my february giveaway to the practice. everyone now knows that i have at least $51 dollars in my found money jar (pictured above). leave a comment below guessing the total amount, and win a sweet prize. here are the rules:
1. one comment per person.
2. price is right rules- the winner will be the closest without going over.
3. the game begins right now, and ends on february 15th. the winner will be notified via email on or around the 16th, and a celebratory post in their honor will let the losers know that they’re the losers (sorry guys!).
oh, and the prize is this totally hilarious bank that looks like a giant save key (below), pre- stuffed with a crispy $20 bill. that’s right, sweet bank & twenty bucks. it could be you! let the guessing begin!
broke 207 
$94.21
$63.11
$59.73
Allie;
You HAVE to add this to Win It Wednesday tomorrow! This is SO cool! Hubby and I both guessed. 🙂 FUN!
i’m so there! i’m always really bad at promoting my giveaways, so thank you!!
$78.67
$61.27
$69.69
i like the way you think!
$72.27
$103.77….I love how change can add up fast!!!
i was actually really shocked at how quickly it accumulated. considering that i don’t find change every day, and the change i do find is mostly pennies, the jar is surprisingly full!
Lets see…how about 95.50
I’d guess around 84.26 thanks for the fun! 🙂
I’d guess $77.85. 🙂
My guess is $98.32 – fun idea!
I’d guess $114.13
$ 86.50
$123.12
$102.20
This cracks me up as I work on congress st and know where you are talking about….Congress st is a Universe all its own…. Thanks for the chuckle.
BTW: a co-worker was just telling me about all the change she finds on the street.
I have no idea—87.98
🙂
portland represent! congress street is amazing in a way that no one can truly understand unless they live here. we’re the lucky ones!
as for the change, this city is riddled with parking meters and brick sidewalks. it’s the perfect storm for change collecting. the pennies drop when people are looking for silver change, and then they camouflage in with the sidewalk (also people don’t give a crap about pennies).
$95.51
$87
no change- bold move! i like your style!
$104.30
How cool.
$69.30 Very cool idea!
I love the idea! I’ll have my daughter help me and the money can be hers!
$79.45
$76.27
$57.28
You’re quite funny, thanks for the laughs.
$81.09
thank you! you’re quite welcome.
What fun!! $52.56
86.50
I’ma go with $74.47. You are so brave, girl. I couldn’t stick my hand in between strange seat cushions. There might be pubes or hypodermic needles in there!
mostly it’s cracker crumbs and used swizzle sticks (still gross- but that’s where the hand sanitizer comes in). i don’t know what kind of bars you go to where people are getting their pubes all over the couch cushions… but you should tell me so i can go there. 🙂
Lets see i say 107.30 🙂
$98.39
My guess is already taken so I’m going to up it a bit and go with $136.00.
I love your blog! It’s so darn outright honestly down to earth crazy!
thank you so much! that’s so nice to hear. wow, i can’t believe somebody already took your guess- tragic!
$82.39!
Awesome post!! My guess is: $89.31
thanks! i’m glad you liked it.
I love to look for money on the ground. My husband makes fun of me becuse when I walk anywhere he days I am constantly looking at the ground. My dad always told as I was growing up that if I take care of the pennies the dollars will take care of themselves. My guess is $72.01
Jeanne
your dad was a smart guy. see how much your husband makes fun of you when you find a $20! i found paper money 5 separate times this year. keep looking!
I am going to go with $111.23.
Change adds up fast. I went to Coinstar with my 3year-old and his piggy bank yesterday (he wanted a $7 toy and I told him he had to pay for it). That kid had $44 bones in there! I bought him the toy and got a $44 e-certificate for myself at Amazon. Win-win situation for all…(and yeah, I guess that makes me a bad mom. Oh well.)
are you kidding? you’re my hero. he’s 3- he’ll never know! and i’m positive that you’ve put in way more than $44 worth of work into raising him over the last three years. he got his toy, you got yours. you’ve got to relish these years before he understands the value of money!
71.54
This is fun =) My guess is $ 75.90.. love your sense of humor
Thank you! That is always so nice to hear.
I think there is $74.93
$81.63
I started a pocket change jar for my Christmas fund this year, but this found change idea is great!
i have a jar for pocket change too! although i raid it too often for laundry quarters 🙂 i’ve also been thinking about looking into one of those “keep the change” accounts from bank of america (where they round all your purchases up to the nearest whole dollar and then put the change in a savings account). i’ve always been really bad at saving money, so starting small is teaching me that every penny counts!
I guess $60.20. Thanks!
Kelly Deaton – secrets_girl23@yahoo.com (aka) dkad23@gmail.com
My guess is 138.39
84.36 fun idea.
75.50
My ex-husband used to throw away..in the trash can all his pennys! You would think I would have thought about that~ I am going to say 113.36. Thanks!
OUTRAGEOUS! your ex-husband deserves a good stern spanking for that!
This is a neat giveaway, my guess is 102.67
$77.77
$99.99
107.16
This is the neatest giveaway Ive come across on a blog!
thank you! that is an incredible compliment considering the amount of giveaways on blogs these days!
What a fun idea. I think it would be great for my daughters to do this and then donate it at the end of the year to a charity. It would be a fun project for us.
I am guessing $61.93
that is a great idea! considering that the money technically technically isn’t mine, i should probably do the same! good luck!
I am guessing $63.94
Let’s try….$87.28
I guess you have about $57.28
eddiem11@ca.rr.com
$64.72!
59.62.
Awesome giveaway!!
oheeyore at hotmail dot com
thanks! glad you like it!
I just love this giveaway, its just so much fun,
My guess is107.04
thanks! fun is good!
101.56
$89.50!
I’m guessing $63.29. I pick up change, too. Hey, money “spends the same” no matter the value. This guy was walking out of the grocery store in front of me and dropped a bunch of change. He turned around and picked up a silver coin or two but left 6 or 7 pennies. So, I stooped to pick them up (I tried to be all sly, too. But, it was pretty obvious.) If you stop to pick up the nickel, why wouldn’t you pick up the pennies, too?
if i’ve learned one thing through this whole experiment, it’s that people are fundamentally lazy. i’ve found handfuls of pennies at the base of parking meters- as if someone had just tossed them to the ground while they were looking for silver change. apparently there are a lot of people out there who think that pennies are garbage. i think that’s good news for us!!
hi, my guess is $82.87. love your blog, so honest, you say everything the rest of us just keep to ourselves, lol. always cheers me up! and the bank is cute!
thank you so much! mostly i just have a big mouth, and i’m probably asking for trouble… but i’m glad you’re enjoying it! i love that bank! i’m having a very difficult time giving it away. i very well may get another one for myself 🙂
i guess 72.72 –
thanks for visiting!
I am going to guess $104.44. Thanks for keeping us smiling!
My guess is 98.77.
We just cashed in 6 months of pocket change and added it to our savings account. Great idea, here! And I love that bank!
it really is amazing how quickly it all adds up. this little experiment has taught me the value of a penny in a big way. i was never a saver before, but hoarding this change has really changed that (no pun intended) 🙂
My guess is $89.02. This is such a great idea. The kids and I have started collecting found change in a washed out yogurt container. They are excited to see how much we can collect.
it’s totally amazing! my boyfriend thinks i’m a giant weirdo, but i get so excited about my little finds. i’ll come home and be all like “today was the best day! i found 18 cents on my way home from work!” but i like it that way. it just goes to show that you really don’t need money to have something worth being excited about.
68.37
I’ve always picked up spare change when I see it. My hubby has a habit of asking how it was sitting. I tell him it doesn’t matter. Finding free money is lucky no matter how it lays!
my thoughts exactly. like i’m not going to pick up a quarter on the street if it’s face down! i’ve been collecting change all year- and my luck has absolutely been better than worse. your can tell your husband that he’s full of crap! 🙂
This is such a fun thing. 😉
I’m guessing $62.32
better late than never: $123.15 (You are a coin-findin’ machine!)
yay! the boyfriend is at home right now counting it while i’m languishing at work on a holiday. boo-urns! check me out, i’m in the PPH today!
i saw! congrats! you’ll still have time to hang out with us little people, right? (sandwich par-tay!) 🙂