Two Coffee Cans

We finally got to the bank yesterday to cash in on our change. We started putting change in a coffee can sometime last year. Pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters, all change went into the coffee can. About a month ago we topped off a second coffee can.

Barb said, "Let's go!" and off we went to the bank yesterday. I've been with my bank for a little while. I took change there once before. You had to drop it off in the branch in Elizabethtown. They counted it, and a deposit appeared in your account a day later.

We called our Marietta branch and again the Elizabethtown branch was the place to go. Off we went, two coffee cans full of change in tow.

Now it's rather amazing how heavy a collection of change can get. Barb and I agreed that we would both have to lug one can into the bank.

A man leaving the bank saw us coming with our heavy coffee cans and was kind enough to hold the door for us. He knew what was going on. He joked as we passed him, "Now that's something I've been meaning to do."

I just began to approach a teller who looked at our coffee cans with great fear. She instantly pointed to the front corner of the bank and said, "Dump it into the machine and it will give you a receipt to bring back to the counter."

A father was already using the machine, helping his son empty piggy bank after piggy bank into the machine. Later I saw the father opening a first bank account for his son.

We waited patiently and upon our turn attacked the machine with coins. The first can was slowly dumped in, so as to not jam the machine. Then Barb reached for the can I was holding.

"No. I want to dump it," I said. "This is cool."

It was cool. You lifted up the plastic cover and a spinning wheel below sorted the coins through perfectly sized holes. I know. I know. I don't get out much.

I poured too fast. Then, I poured too slow. Then I got it just right.

Suddenly I saw a golf tee fall out of the coffee can. Oops.

Barb and I looked at each other with the same expression, worried that we just jammed or even broke the machine. But everything seemed to be operating just fine. We agreed to push on.

Then I saw a beret fall out of the coffee can. Double oops.

I looked down at a cup attached to the machine that was labeled "Rejected Coins." There was a button and a metal washer in the cup. Whew, I wasn't the only one.

The machine showed us an active dollar count as we continued to pour the coins in. It continued to tally the grand total as we cheered it on, "Go! Go!"

So how much money total do you think we had in two coffee cans? Really, what do you think?

$481.23

How about that? We were amazed!

So dig out them coffee cans and get 'em to the bank. That will pay for gas for a couple weeks!

And by the way, I did tell the teller about the golf tee and the beret. She said, "Don't worry, it happens all the time. We'll get it out."