Money is like languages to me, I don't get it. Why are there so many different kinds? Why can't we all use the same one?
And why is money valued differently? What does it mean when the US dollar is high or low or x-to-x ratio to another currency? Why can't one US dollar equal one EC dollar? Let's just say I was no finance major.
So I am very grateful that the EC dollar is fixed at 2.67 to 1 US dollar. This means I only have to remember one conversion rate and by now I've got it down - $10EC is $4US, $20EC is $8US, $50EC is $20US and so on.
One thing I kind of like about EC is there are no bills under $5. $1 is always a coin. One dollar pieces are larger than an American quarter and easy to spot in my wallet.
There are several coins for anything smaller than a dollar. There are 25 cent coins, 10 cent coins, 5 cent coins and 2 and 1 cent coins. There are different shapes for the 5, 2 and 1 cent coins - 5s and 1s can be round- or squiggly-edged and 2s can be round or square. That means there are nine different sizes of small coins to keep up with.
The small coins have provided some anxiety for me over the past two years. I admit, only recently have I had the courage to make exact change when purchasing something at a store. Because I don't recognize what each coin is (besides the dollar) it takes me a long time to pull together an exact amount.
Consequently, my wallet is weighed down with dozens of coins. When the cashier rings up my total and it is something like $8.37 I start to sweat. Should I try to make 37 cents or should I just hand her a $10 bill?
Usually I hand her the bill so I don't look like an idiot sifting through a pile of change trying to identify which pieces are which. On several (and I mean several) occasions I have attempted to make exact change and the cashier has reached across the counter and picked the right coins out of my palm before I can even recognize a 25 cent piece. It's humiliating.
I know I am not the only one with this problem because at the end of every semester here we've received a box or old salsa container or grocery bag full of change from a friend or neighbor who is leaving the island for good. If we added up all the small change sitting in every student's apartment on this island we could probably pay for a semester of tuition at SGU (o.k., not quite).
The banks here do not want to hassle with exchanging small change for bigger currency. I think you have to have about 500 coins before they will exchange them for something larger.
However, I am proud to report that finally - finally! - I am making exact change with confidence. In the last two weeks I think I have made exact change four different times. With ease. No anxiety. I just made the decision that all this change is weighing me down and if someone behind me has to wait, so be it. I will overcome my fear of making change. I will!
I think the confidence boost came when I realized that the 10 cent piece is the smallest and actually easy to spot. Yes, it has taken me a long time to realize this. And the 25 cent piece isn't bad either, it is similar to an American quarter. So that just leaves three coins - actually six - to muddle through.
Too bad I'm only now feeling this conviction. Some unlucky friend in Grenada is going to get a huge pile of coins from me in less than two weeks with a note that says "Have fun making change!"
Too bad I'm only now feeling this conviction. Some unlucky friend in Grenada is going to get a huge pile of coins from me in less than two weeks with a note that says "Have fun making change!"
2 comments:
we usually take in everyone's change too. Craig and I actually count it all out and put it into bank bags. So if you really need it off your hands, we can take it, we are not scared!
Hi Julie! Just read this post and I smiled. In Canada we don't have bills smaller than a 5. Now that we're in the US I'm constantly confused by a mass of bills that doesn't equal anything substantial! It may be lighter than coins, but it is much more disappointing :)
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