but wait...I have a penny!

For the longest time I used coin-operated laundromats, so I developed the habit of saving up quarters for laundry days. Now that I’m living once again in an apartment without a washer and dryer, I’m back in the habit. I’ve become very quarter-centric; all other change is just a means to get me to another quarter for the laundry stack. It’s not any extra effort; I just put a dime into the snack machine before the dollar bill so that I can get a quarter back with my 85 cent pack of crackers, stuff like that. No big deal. The added benefit is it keeps me from accumulating lots of small change in my pocket.

So I’m at a Starbuck’s getting my decaf (sigh) latte, and the total comes to $3.36. So, I hand over a five, a dime, and a penny, so I can get the third quarter instead of a dime and four pennies. The cashier, who seems nice enough, types $5.00 into the register, then stops, pauses, looks really befuddled, and finally gives up and says “OK, now you’ve really confused me.”

Huh.

Maybe I’m way off base here, and I know that people who don’t “get” math resent those of us who can do simple arithmetic in our heads, but what gives? Is it really so unusual? Am I the only person on the face of the earth who doesn’t have a gallon-size jug of pennies piling up at home?

Honestly, I don’t mean to be obnoxious. I’m not trying to be the smug guy that can do math in his head. And it’s not a test, some sort of “Let’s see how smart the flunkie behind the counter is” crusade. I just want the quarters.

I have to admit, I don’t try this at places like Dunkin' Donuts…the confusion it generates isn’t worth a whole roll of quarters. But at a yuppie-catering place like Starbuck’s, I kind of expect a bit more from the staff. The cashiers at the cafeteria at work actually like it when I give them extra coins to make the change easier.

To be fair, the girl at Starbuck’s was nice enough, but she did kind of make a big deal out of it, when all she really had to do was type $5.11 into the register and let the machine do the math for her. I mean, that’s the gig right? Type numbers into the register and give the customer change?