The Quarter

[HondaKid86]

[Mirrored from my blog... I wrote this at 3.15a and wondered what kind of reception it'd get here at GTP5.]

This quarter from 1965 that I hold in my hand... what has it survived? Maybe a hippie spent it on ganja. Did it buy a cup of water at a Cesar Chavez rally? Did a parent use it to teach their young child the denominations of money? What if a kid placed the coin in a machine in 1990 only to choke on his shiny gumball? A stamp to send away the divorce papers, a postcard that changed someone's life, thirty minutes of parking for a Lexus that was towed away two hours later... this quarter, the great enabler. How apathetic was the spender? Who held this quarter? How did I get it?

You think it's just a quarter... twenty five cents compacted into one alloy disc solely for your convenience. The backstory doesn't matter to you, as long as the machine accepts it and you get your Fanta Red.

And me? I'm absolutely thrilled that I have five of these.

 

[vat_man]

Mate - that's a sign that you really need to get to bed.

The one I get if I'm tired is thinking of people's lives as a collection of threads. Threads start and get longer with each passing second, they become entwined and untangled - when you see someone in the street, where did their thread start, where has it been, has it crossed threads that have crossed yours. Mind-blowing stuff.

Oh well, Friday night and I need a beer...

 

[Der Alta]

I've always wanted to wirte down the serial number of paper bills that go through my wallet. Build it in a database, and see if I ever get a repeat. It'd also allow me to see how much money has crossed through my pocket.

One of my old army buddies wrote his name and address on a $50 and then sent it on it's way. Almost two years later, he got a letter from a lady in Hawaii.

The interesting stories that bill could tell on it's path from Vermont to Hawaii.

AO

 

[GilesGuthrie]

Originally posted by vat_man
Mate - that's a sign that you really need to get to bed.

The one I get if I'm tired is thinking of people's lives as a collection of threads. Threads start and get longer with each passing second, they become entwined and untangled - when you see someone in the street, where did their thread start, where has it been, has it crossed threads that have crossed yours. Mind-blowing stuff.

Yeah, that one's crossed my mind before. Bit of a head****. I remember going to my driving test, and being quite nervous (without reason, it turned out). I remember thinking to myself as I saw other motorists "Well, all these people passed, so it can't be that hard".

Obviously I wasn't in Birmingham at the time.

Originally posted by vat_man
Oh well, Friday night and I need a beer...

Correct. Only two hours to the client's company barbecue!

 

[milefile]

There is a film that traces the lives of a few people through the movement of a dollar bill. I can't remember the title. But yes, interesting how a coin can be so thought provoking.

 

[Duke]

Originally posted by HondaKid86
This quarter from 1965 that I hold in my hand... what has it survived?

It was minted the same year I was. Maybe I've held it in my hand and bought bubblegum or a popsicle with it after biking down to the store as a kid.

Anyway, if you're interested in this, check out www.wheresgeorge.com . Sorry about the few popups you may get but it is an interesting site.

 

[Jugend]

Thinking of this linking between persons it came to my mind something I read a while ago.

A person is connected to every other person on the planet in at most 6 steps. e.g. I should be connected to Ms. Blahonga in India - e.g. I know a uy in finland (1) whose father (2) has a business-partner in malaysia (3) that is married with a woman(4) that was born in a city 10 miles from Ms. Blahonga. That woman has a sister (5) that used to play with Ms. B:s cousin as a child and have met Ms. Blahonga once (6).

I have no Idea if this is true but if, it's very cool.

David

 

[Der Alta]

GTJugend:

That's often a game called "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon"

For instance:
Carrie Fischer was in Star Wars with
Harrison Ford was in The Fugitive with
Tommy Lee Jones who was in Batman Forever with
Val Kilmer who was in Heat with
Robert Dinero who was in Sleepers with
Kevin Bacon.

I've dropped a few bills into wheresgeorge.com, maybe I'll check bakc in a few months and see if they are listed again.

AO

 

[rjensen11]

Originally posted by Der Alta
GTJugend:

That's often a game called "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon"

For instance:
Carrie Fischer was in Star Wars with
Harrison Ford was in The Fugitive with
Tommy Lee Jones who was in Batman Forever with
Val Kilmer who was in Heat with
Robert Dinero who was in Sleepers with
Kevin Bacon.

I've dropped a few bills into wheresgeorge.com, maybe I'll check bakc in a few months and see if they are listed again.

AO

Yeah, I did a few of those. I even started a few bills on there.... Maybe I should check up on it, if I can find my account info....