After the rain

We took a quick family stroll after the freak thunderstorm and found one lonely penny by a baseball field. The penny looks to be in almost bleached condition-- guess the sand kept it clean for the most part. I found out my daughter's first real crush (a 12 year old boy named Felix) is moving tomorrow. She looks pretty sad. Maybe i'll go get her an ice cream and talk about why they're called 'crushes' (wow I sound just like a parent right there!)

Total today: $0.01
Total thus far: $319.13

Friday, May 31, 2008

Today we found a total of $0.28-- my daughter found two dimes and a penny at school, hubby found a penny at work, and we found a nickel and a penny while food shopping at Stop N Shop. Hopefully the weather will be good for walking this weekend because my girls feel like taking a pretty nice trek around central park. It will be their first time exploring that park. I think i'll cop a squat under a tree and read a good book while they peruse the park with hubby :)


Total today: $0.28
Total thus far: $319.12

Coins.. and a fight!

Today we found a total of $0.39-- two dimes, two nickels, and nine pennies in our daily travels. The first nickel and two pennies were found by the nearby gas station not far from the house. The girls love walking to school (I love it too since it saves me gas!) . The rest of the change came from a Citibank parking lot, a Popeye's chicken parking area, a telephone booth, and the hess gas station where they celebrated customer appreciation day-- free hot dogs and soda between the hours of 12-2pm. I wasn't impressed with the dogs but the soda came in handy (I won a free 20oz 7-up with the drink1win1.com contest).

Earlier today I witnessed a pretty ugly fight which resulted in two women getting arrested. One woman (who was apparently very high and very angrrrry) attacked an older woman out of nowhere. During their cat-like scrapping, the younger one declared her love for some man and promised to leave some 'marks' on the elder woman. The fight didn't last long-- two patrolmen sprung from their posts and broke up the scuffle. I felt bad because the man who they fought for just looked on and laughed at them both as they were hauled away. Ah well.. such is life.

Total today: $0.39
Total thus far: $318.84

Wacky Wednesday :)

Today we found five yucky pennies- two by the service road off the expressway and three at the Wendy's drive-thru. Judging by their condition, it looks as though they've weathered a few storms . I feel so bad for them that i'm actually considering cleaning them like our fellow change blogger at PennySquisher did in her post Penny Squishing: Change.
I wonder if ketchup would help?

Total today: $0.05
Total thus far: $318.45

Happy Tuesday!!

Come check out my article at gather.com!

I'm happy to report that today we found an impressive $0.37-- a quarter, a dime, and two pennies. The quarter was found on the roof of our carport (hubby went to retrieve a stuck basketball up there and found a lodged quarter in the mix). My oldest daughter found a dime at the park, and I found a penny in front of citibank and another right by Dunkin Donuts.

I'm surprised that it didn't rain today despite the menacing clouds and unbearable heat/humidity that came along with it. We were lucky to find some money considering gas in our area is now ::gulp:: $4.29 for unleaded!!!

Total today: $0.37
Total thus far: $318.40

Happy Memorial Day!

(source: irakli.ru)


What beautiful weather! Today was a day of reflection and thanks to those who have served to keep us free-- thank you so much for your services. You will not be forgotten!

We found a total of $0.11-- a dime by the curb, a penny at a nearby Commerce bank and what appears to be a 1979 Jamaican cent (a first for the foreign change collection jar).

Total today: $0.11
Total thus far: $318.14

That was then, This is now.

As I go through the posts i've written here at the Changepot, I can't help but feel a little nostalgic.
Here is where we were exactly one year ago: The Return...
This is where we were two years ago: Unexpected Outings, Unexpected Finds

Even though the concept of finding money is so exciting, one thing has changed. Our mighty dollar is not as strong as it once was. We can blame so many things-- government, foreign debt, oil and commodities-- I think the fault lies in the pretty little plastic card in my wallet. It makes me feel like trump on a budget. It is getting harder and harder to find money (aside from the popular places). More pennies are finding homes as opposed to being discarded. Suddenly a fool and his lint- not his money, become so eagerly parted.

Ironically, the Changepot is having the best year ever. Go figure.

Sunday dues--

Today we took a walk. A really long walk! The walk proved profitable though-- $1.13 and a canadian penny profitable. One place in particular had a spectacular cache of pennies- fourteen to be exact. Two quarters, three dimes, and two nickels provided the shiny silver portion of our finds. We also found a 10K heart shaped bamboo earring (which sounds more like tin) which we'll put aside for our next found gold trade in at some point in the future. If you haven't read about our last found gold exchange, you can read about our profitable venture here in the post Gold Rush

(Side note: Reader Marianna K. from Bronx, NY asked me what our most profitable changepot day of only change was. I'll check the archives and answer her question on this entry.)



I just finished watching Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street . I actually enjoyed it! Despite its unnerving London sensibility, I couldn't bare to move an inch from my sit the whole entire time. Hubby and I were both equally spellbound. He is so impressed, he wants to go purchase the DVD tomorrow. Go figure!

(and here I was thinking Hubby would never watch another Tim Burton film again after finding out his political affiliation!)


Total today: $1.13
Total thus far: $318.03

Summer's coming!!

Here is an alternative way to keep track of what we found


Amount: $3.14 total !


Places:

Staten Island Mall $1.80 (dollar, quarters, nickel) everywhere
Convenience Store: $1.10 (dollar, dime) parking lot
JobSite: $0.11 (dime, penny) foot of stairs, above fireplace
School, Stop n Shop, Dunk'n Donuts, School: $0.13 (pennies) carious locations


Here's a picture of me-- Mrs. Krabs along with my darling Kitty Crabs... ahh I can't wait for this summer!!! Pooltime!!!





Total today: $3.14
Total thus far: $316.90

Dimes they are a changin'

Wow! today was like THE day for dimes here at the changepot! I found a dime early this morning on my way to a business meeting (i'd also found a penny to complement the previous find). Hubby found two dimes while checking on the car as we waited to eat at Olive Garden. After a hearty meal, my eldest found a dime at a nearby Target as we walked trying to get dinner down. The other thirteen pennies found their way quietly into my changepurse-- making it quite a profitable day: fifty four cents richer to be exact!

Total today: $0.54
Total thus far: $313.76

Proficiency

Mrs. Krabs is looking for boost up her typing skills. After taking the test at speedtest, here is her results:


252 points, so you achieved position 164008 of 732811 on the ranking list


You type 333 characters per minute
You have 59 correct words and
you have 1 wrong words

59 words

Speed test

Ferry Green...

On my way home from the Staten Island Ferry, I stumbled upon a neatly folded dollar bill- apparently it knew how to stay dry (claiming a home in my changepot purse!) Hubby found a dime and a nickel at work and my oldest found a quarter and three pennies on her way back from basketball practice. No finds for kitty today- she's busy preparing for graduation!!!


Here's a pic of the changepot purse in question-- and as always, the cat that loves to block my path as i'm typing (she chases the cursor!!)

Total today : $1.43
Total thus far: $313.22

Bank Transfer (Take One)

Since the economy calls for a lower brick and mortar bank interest rate, Big Boss and I decided to close the changepot account and transfer the money over to an online savings account. Our most recent statement reflected a savings interest percentage of 1% (that is down -3% from last May) so we're going for a 3% rate right now. ING bank has always been good to us-- and it can also be good to you! If you aren't already a customer and would like to open up a great savings rate with a $250 deposit, ING will give YOU $25.00! Here is a little more info explaining how it works:

By using the ING account referral program to open a new, no-fee, FDIC-insured Orange Savings account with APY, you'll get an extra $25 bonus.

The ING Direct Orange Savings account has no minimum balance requirements (after a $250 minimum opening balance) and no annual or monthly fees. Interest on your savings account is accrued daily, compounded monthly and credited to your available balance at the end of each month.

How to get your $25 ING referral bonus:

To receive your bonus, you will need an existing accountholder to send you an invitation directly from the ING Direct site. If you're interested in receiving an invitation from us here at the changepot, please email us at ChezFrugal@aol.com, include your first and last name, and include the phrase 'ING referral' in the title. We'll send the link within 4-6 hours.

Only U.S. residents with a valid social security number and who are currently residing in the U.S are eligible for this account.

Now back to the subject at hand-- The current amount for the past two years plus interest is now a whopping $656.25 (+26.51 in interest + silver found change sales). We've found change thus far today but we're about to step out again.

Tricky Tuesdays

Today's change found came from two family members-- 47 cents procured by Hubby and my oldest daughter. I stayed home and played with the dirty clothes. I really didn't feel like doing any chores or going to work. Ughh rain rain go away! My cat had a field day scratching the heck out of me though (now i know what a scratching post feels like). Here's a shot of her harrassing my daughter while she was on her computer lol.











Total today: $0.47
Total thus far: $311.79

Manic Monday

Found no money today. I did find a coke myrewards bottle cap right by my right driver side door. I jotted down the code and entered it.. great.. now I need about 1,000,000,000 more to get that plasma TV I always wanted :)

Food Fair!

Today the Krabs headed out to Hell's Kitchen in NY to check out the Ninth Avenue International Food Fair.

We ate, made merry, and found $1.31 in the process. Here's a clip of Mr. Krabs and his boasting of a dollar find in the street:




The quarter was found right by a train station in 42nd street. We found six pennies scattered around Manhattan despite the rain and cool winds.

Total today: $1.31
Total thus far: $311.32

Give me a 10 for Cutest Pet

Give me a 10 for Cutest Pet

What a day!

Even though the noble weatherman called for immense rain, today was sooo beautiful and sunny-- so nice in fact that people left us a nice trail of dollars and quarters for us! The changepot crew found a total of $9.51- a five dollar bill, three one dollar bills, five quarters, two nickels, one dime, and six pennies. We walked ALOT today (our feet can attest to this fact). The three dollars were found crumpled up with a receipt outside of Stop and Shop (where we picked up a pretty new plant for my office). Kitty found the five dollar bill right under the tire of our car by the mall (where we picked up some necessary items). Kudos to hubby for pinning the five spot with the tire-- it could have flown in someone else's path were it not for the tire!!
The change was found in various places.... but most of all.....

and congrats to the little girl who found a week old kitten. Hopefully they took the baby to the vet for some quick checkups. Looks like said kitty will need bottle feeding!



Total found today : $9.51
Total thus far : $310.01

The Way home... (Broke 300 today!)

Finally! Hubby is back from a week-long business conference! He returned with $2.32 that he'd found during his business travails. When he got home, we stepped out in the rain to purchase some wares. We found a collective $0.07 (nickel by Staples, two pennies in CVS)-- bringing today's total to $2.39 plus yesterday's penny makes it an even $2.40... woohoo!

Last time the Changepot saw over three hundred dollars in a calendar year was August 2, 2006
But I must say, the changepot would not be here if it weren't for Sandy's idea to sell the odds and ends (one earrings, broken jewelry) gold we've found in the street. Read all about the exchange in this post here --> Gold Rush


Total today: $2.40
total thus far: $300.50 (wow!)

Thursday.. what a day!

I found a penny while taking the girls to school today. Right now I won't add the total since it isn't even 9AM yet-- my eyes are still swollen with sleep (or lack thereof). I sold a few books on this website that will bring in extra cash (thank you Reader Alan for referring me to Cash4books. I have a ton of books from college that really take up space on my bookshelves. This money will definitely help me reduce my debt without taking time away from my precious family (overtime really isn't worth it anymore).

On a more somber note--
after watching the Spurlock documentary Maxed Out, I've noticed that we here at the Krabs household have catapulted ourselves in a sea of credit card debt. This is definitely not good. Today I've made a resolution to tackle debt slowly by snowflaking (collecting money from various sources except the found change of course!)

Wednesday.

Found a nice little stash of change on the ground-- 0.92 cents in the parking lot at the gym. I'm thinking someone must have dropped a whole heap of change right before I got there. It has been a while since I found change of this magnitude- it is definitely a cause for celebration!


Total today: $0.92
Total thus far: $298.10

Tuesday.

Found a penny on the way back from the store in the morning. Woohoo.. a penny!!

I've been looking for different opportunities to fund 'snowflakes'-- a semi-new concept at the PF blogger forums. I've decided i'm going to try to make some money online to start these snowflakes up. Times are tough.. but i'm sure you don't need me to tell you how bad it's getting. I'm doing a few things online to make some money. While it's no windfall by any means, two to three dollars helps. I've been getting paid consistently by SurveySavvy-- there is a link on the sidebar or you can click here to be taken to their website directly.






Total today: $0.01
Total thus far: 297.18

On a side note:

What would you do?

Monday.

I found a penny on the way home from the gym this morning. My daughter found a penny while getting off the school bus this afternoon. We're not planning on going out since Mr. Krabs is on a business trip-- we normally like taking outdoor treks together.


Total found: $0.02
Total thus far: $297.17

Happy Mother's Day!

First off, we here at the changepot would like to wish all our blog reading mothers all there a very Happy Mother's Day. Despite the hype, I think a mom's job is quite underrated. It's ok though-- dads are also in this very category when it comes to certain things.

Now off to the change found today: We managed to find a total of twenty nine cents- a quarter and four pennies. Hubby found a quarter at the local dollar store and we girls found four pennies in all different locations. I got my nails done and received a few gifts in commemoration of this day-- I love my family!

Total today: $0.29
Total thus far: $297.15

dreary saturday

chalk up yet another twenty cents (dime, nickel, and five pennies) for the changepot-- my kids are penny pros! Worked for a few hours despite the pleasant weather ( the economy beckons!)

The Krabs family awaits their stimulus payment much like the rest of qualified America, how about you?


Total today: $0.20
Total found: $296.86

Rainy Day...

Despite a very ugly day here in Staten island, I managed to find five pennies and hubby found a dime. Work was hectic, but then again what job isn't?


Total found: $0.17
Total thus far: $296.66

Gold rush!

Today we found a total of $1.09-- a quarter, four dimes, six nickels, and thirteen pennies scattered around Staten Island. We did something odd today in favor of the changepot though. Today we sold the gold we've found during this change hunt and made a total of $155.00 from the exchange! This money is going into the changepot and until I find a way to make some money from the other objects we've found throughout the years, we're going to keep accumulating it in a separate jar.

Here's a small inventory of what was sold:

2 unmatched single earrings (obviously dropped unknowingly)
2 broken bracelets (both 14K)
1 bent dolphin ring (found under the boardwalk)

So in case you happen to find gold in the street and have a change jar just like us, sell it! It's a good time for it, I think :)

Total today: $156.09
Total thus far: $296.49

thirty one flavors meets thirty one cents....

2 dimes and eleven pennies made their way to changepot territory today-- despite two changepot hunters being down for the count. My youngest is in her second day of not going to school (fever/flu), and I missed work in order to watch her.

total today:$0.31
total thus far: $140.40

Tuesday blues

No finds today. No luck (but plenty of warm weather!) How are YOU enjoying this pre-summery weather day?

Oh well...

Incredibly, the Krabs ended their change finding streak today-- Nothing found today. Couldn't expect the change streak to continue on anymore!

Oh well... there's always tomorrow!


----------------
Now playing: Jillian050408
via FoxyTunes

Traffic everywhere!

Despite the aggressive NYC traffic due to the bike thingy today, hubbs managed to find eighty one cents. At one point, he managed to stop traffic to pick up a quarter and a penny on an offramp (yes he is on a mission!) I managed to find a badly mangled penny which I won't even count but i'll insert it into the pot anyway lol.


Total today: $0.81
Total thus far: $140.09

Saturday treks...

Chalk up a whole dollar thirty nine for the changepot-- Two quarters, four dimes, four nickels, and twenty nine pennies all found in the same general vicinity (the mall!). I happened to pick up a really nice journal to record my new mission progress (subject of blog #4!) which i'll happily impart once I get my mission started.

LOL... I almost forgot-- here is some video footage of my husband's attempt to rouse a really testy rooster at the Bronx Zoo last week!!





Total found today: $1.39
Total thus far: $139.28

Back to normal--

Nothing good lasts forever-- especially when it comes to found coinage.
Today hubby and I found one penny during our rounds. The girls found a quarter and a penny while out with grandma. I guess twenty seven cents is better than zip, right?

I've been putting off my tackling of bills for far too long. After talking to a colleague of mine about budget crunching, I've decided to heed my own advice-- work hard to put an end to this impossible credit card trap we've stumbled right into.

The buck stops here! (gulp)

Stay tumed for yet another blog from the Krabs'-- details to come soon.

Total today: $0.27
Total thus far: $137.89

Law of Attraction: The Changepot WILL get to 1K... (gulp)

So I've been telling my best friend R about The Secret and I realized I haven't been putting the concept of the Law of Attraction into play much. The mind is so uniquely powerful yet here I am letting it idle until I find something else to pique my interest. Bollocks! It's time to find a new hobby!

As for the finds-- today has been a multi-trip day here at chez Krabs. We've been running errands and preparing for tomorrow's events. The first find of today was a dime in the grass by hubby's job. Once the dime made itself known, change followed quietly. Two dimes here, two quarters there, pennies, pennies, and more pennies rolled along happily. All in all we found a total of $1.31 in change today. As usual, hubby saves the day with his innocent GREEN finds. As I stopped into a nearby shoe store to purchase the finishing touches on tomorrow's wardrobe, I notice hubby walking (no.. make that RUNNING) over to a car that just pulled away. He bends down and picks up something then walks back over to us with a Cheshire cat grin. How he managed to see it in the darkness is beyond me (it was already 830) but he managed to find EIGHT DOLLARS- A FIVE DOLLAR BILL AND THREE SINGLES! I guess some people have all the luck, eh? I'm thinking he's got us beat with dollar finds for this period.







Total today: $9.31
Total thus far: $137.62

----------------
Now playing: Amy Winehouse - Stronger Than Me

Article...

hmmm would you do the right thing in this case? Dollar bills aren't exactly traceable-- check out this story Man Finds thousands of Dollars.

I'd have a hard time doing the right thing ::blush::