Anyone else pick up 'street money?'

[ralph7]

A guy I work with will go out and spend up to $60 a day on scratch offs.
I have gone back and looked at the ones he played and in the last 10 years, I have cashed in on just under $300 he has missed, that he won and didn't realize. Some of these were a third game that wasn't even scratched off.

 

[ladder13]

Growing up in the projects, I found alot of glassine envelopes on the streets, little money though.

My father, however, found this Rolex on the streets of Manhattan some 30 or so years ago, he was the postman on E 84th and 85th.
I'm in the process of looking to restore it.

 

[Jack Flash]

Once I found a $20 bill. Another time I found a 10. I thought that was good but most of you have me beat.

When I was in college, I found a bundle of stamps. They were a fairly high denomination, like a buck or so each. (This was back when a regular stamp cost about a quarter.) I took them to the P.O. to exchange them for cash but was told the P.O. sells stamps, they don't buy them, i.e., no refunds.

So I mailed some pretty high priced letters till they ran out. I felt like the guy who lights a cigar with a $10 bill.

 

[cougar14]

I'll pick up any coin except a "tails up" penny. I WILL turn it over, and come by later and pick it up, if it's still there.

 

[PatriotX]

My brother once found a couple hundred bucks hidden inside the toilet paper tube at a motel, apparently hidden and forgotten by a prior occupant of the room. No, he did not inquire at the desk as to who last occupied the room before him.

I found a $2 bill inside a motel bible as a kid, back in the early 70's, in Gulf Shores, Alabama.

The reverse of the bill depicted the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and I thought it was the neatest thing ever; it probably kicked off a lifelong interest in numismatics, now that I think about it.

 

[walkinghorse]

I'll pick up any coin except a "tails up" penny. I WILL turn it over, and come by later and pick it up, if it's still there.

Never heard this one before, bad luck?

Finding money, strictly nickle and dime for me. Living in Amish country, you read in the local weekly paper, notices for finds (buggy whips, lead ropes, hammers, halters, box of nails, shovel, occasional umbrella, hat, kids toy, etc. ) and what farm to pick it up at.
In town had a elementary age boy ask what he had found, was a new striker for a cutting torch. Bet it was wore out that afternoon!

 

[hoc9sw]

I found a $2 bill inside a motel bible as a kid, back in the early 70's, in Gulf Shores, Alabama.

The reverse of the bill depicted the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and I thought it was the neatest thing ever; it probably kicked off a lifelong interest in numismatics, now that I think about it.

Back before the Euro, when I worked over there, a friend at a local bank called me, asking if I had a small assortment of specific small USD bills she could buy. Asked why. She said a teller had taken some fake bills, and they didn't want to fire him, if they could switch them out with real before the end of the day.
The bills were actually real, from the 1890-1920 period. I just traded them for the current bills of the same denomination. I suggested they might want to sell them to a collector for a healthy premium, but the tellers got checked each night, and if found with them, instant discipline actions, so no.
So I kept them. Made the downpayment on a car with the premium value.

 

[GatorFarmer]

I found a dollar by the creek not too long ago. There were empty whiskey bottle around. It appeared someone was drinking, then fell in the creek and lost the dollar from their pocket. Their trail ran back up the other bank, so they survived.

I find coins periodically. I never thought to keep a tally.

I also found my coffee cup. It is a stainless GI canteen cup. It, along with a canteen and cover, were laying off a trail. It had been there a while based on how rusty the ALICE clips were, but the cup cleaned up fine and I have been using it for years now. Probably the most useful thing I have found.

 

[hangnoose]

I always keep my eyes peeled.

Almost always will stop to investigate whatever is in the road & at least toss it to the shoulder or bring home to throw it out. On the motorcycle was easiest to investigate & have found close to 50$ once, asst bills, knives, tools, coolers etc. I'll even follow trucks with tool boxes left open & try to warn them first. This just happened yesterday. My highest percentage is following blood trails when in the woods, I've found several knives, clothes, etc, near the gut pile. The custom knife, I unfortunately ran into the hunter dragging the deer and asked if he lost something, being honest aint easy. No guns yet.

 

[Irn-Bru]

Found a $100 chip in the Venitian casino a few years ago. I found a roulette table and stuck it on my lucky number. Pushed my luck a little too far. Easy come easy go I guess.

 

[Watchdog]

Why would anyone not pick up money laying around on the street?

My tally is at $.06 so far for 2016. Hey, it's a start.

 

[grizz700]

Having worked as a road mechanic for 25 years I have spent alot of time traveling on two lane and four lane highways. I have picked up wallets(which I have sent back to their owners) suitcases full of clothes, tools, brand new in the wrapper pillows (expensive ones I later found out), an assortment of other stuff. I once saw a bank safe in the median of the freeway. Stopped and looked at it, was still closed but to dang heavy to lift so I left it. Went by a couple days later and it was gone.

 

[cmore]

My dad picked up coins off the ground all the time.
Everyone at his work knew he did this and sometimes glued a quarter
down to the floor. He was onto them though and would always
touch it with his shoe to see if it was loose. I worked there too,
and I think there is still a quarter glued to the floor to this day,
probably 20 yrs. later.

He would also check change returns on all phones, pop machines, etc.

He did it for years and put them in a cloth bank bag. I still have it
and now that I'm retired I hope to have time to go through them all to see if any are special.
The bag weighs at least 10 lbs, so may take awhile.

 

[DeathGrip]

I found a guitar amp on the side of the road. It must have slid out of a truck bead the night before. It was kinda trapezoid shaped and I had to straighten it out a bit but it still works and is in my shop.

Oh, Radio shack 50 solidstate and it sounds pretty good.

 

[PatriotX]

One reliably regular haul is the upper change dispenser on the tollways.

I use a radio-linked pass, so the gate opens automatically, but sometimes stop to grab a handful of change left by inattentive cash payers.

One time a tollbooth operator started yelling at me, telling me to stop what I was doing. She looked like she was going to lunge through the wee door at me, so I left about a third of the coins.

I bet she counted on that money. Shame.

 

[walkin jack]

No street money per se but for a while after my retirement I world part time doing lite maintenance for a largeself storage facility. Changing out light bulbs, repairing doors, cleaning vacated units, etc. The manager sent me to clean out one recently vacated unit to get it ready for a new tenant and I found a huge glass jar that had been full of money. Mostly coins but some paper. How it happened I don't know but when I opened up the unit the jar was broken in the middle of the floor. The unit was otherwise cleaned out and vacant. I called the manager on the radio and told him and he got on his golf cart and came over to the unit. He took one look and said clean it up. I asked him what about the money. I nearly fell over when he said I could keep it. He was in a hurry as a customer was waiting to move in. I swept up all the glass and money in to a 5 gallon bucket and took it home. It took a while but I finally got all the broken glass away from the money. It came out to almost 700 bux.

But people go off and leave all sorts of stuff. Good stuff sometimes. Furniture, Lamps, Jewelry, art work, Musical instruments, Tools, etc. The manager was usually pretty good about letting me keep what ever I found.

I never got a grand total but in the 3 1/2 years I did that I did alright I'm a thinkin'. Several lamps of various description. A childs recliner for my granddaughter. Lots of jewelry including a ring made of Mexican silver and a beautiful opal that had at lest 12 fires. A fairly nice assortment of hand tools. One of the best sources of goodies was old chest of drawers or desks that in and of themselves weren't much count but contained cash or other valuables that had been forgotten about. It was a most interesting experience.

 

[hoosierone]

Once was walking out of Target and between the two exit doors a $100 bill was on the floor folded very small. Figured no way to get it back to owner so it was mine. Last summer, on my bike I picked up two $20 bills on the curb. Usually find a couple bucks a year just bike riding. Also, riding through parking lots I've seen lots of evidence that folks were having a good time there the night before. Yuck!

 

[Cyrano]

You guys are lucky. I stand 6' 3" and have a bad back and bad knees. If I could get my hands much below my knees it would take a derrick to get me vertical again.

 

[Whitwabit]

Found money at wally world one day .. and taught someone a lesson on being nicer to customers .. checking out the clerk gave me 10 dollars too much in change .. I had given her a 50 .. I said sorry but you gave me the wrong change and off she went on a tirade .. I did not !! I gave you exactly the right amount back and Blaa Blaa for about 20 seconds .. so I said ok thank you and walked out with what I had bought ..

went through her checkout again a couple of weeks later and she looked at me and said your the one .. I smiled and said yes thank you .. she checked me out and counted the change twice before giving it to me .. she was very polite to me and the customers ahead of me and she did count their change twice too ..

Believed she learned a valuable lesson ..

 

[cowart]

In the street outside my previous house, found a set of 3 padlocks, keyed alike, still NIB. Each with a set of keys. Still using one to lock the gate to my back yard.