Canada really pulled the rug out from under me this time.
I go away for two months and when I come back suddenly we’re not using pennies anymore. They up and decided that pennies won’t be a valid form of currency and if you don’t want to hold on to your now worthless pieces of metal, it’s time to cash in your penny jar.
That’s all well and good, really, but the problem is linguistic. How is one to be a “penny pincher” without a penny to pinch? Does that person now become a nickel pincher – a rather hefty step up?
And how is a penny “earned” if it can’t be “saved”?
Must I now have 5 cents to contribute to a conversation?
My confusion stemmed from the fact that I noticed a penny in the metro yesterday. I have a rule: If I see a penny on the ground I pick it up if it would not be dangerous to do so at that moment (Ex: if there is a line of people behind me, or I’m on my bike in traffic, I do not pick it up). So as I approached the entry gates of the metro I saw a shiny penny. I looked over my shoulder to see whether someone would bang into me if I stopped suddenly. There was no one. But then I thought about the value of that penny. Would I still be granted good luck if I picked it up? I doubt I’ll be able to adjust to saying “Find a nickel, pick it up…” whether or not I believe in it.
But perhaps this would be one of the last good-luck pennies, as theoretically I will stop seeing them as they go out of circulation. Perhaps this is an extra lucky penny. And when do you actually use a good luck anyway? Sometimes I would intentionally use it to pay for something when I noticed a cashier was particularly down, but this had to be at least one day after I had picked the penny up myself. No point cursing myself.
Well, I now have a penny in my home, and I may have gotten all the good luck out of it that I can. So if you really want it, let me know. Maybe it can do you some good. And for the metaphorical (rather than literal) penny pinchers out there, here’s a thrifty recipe for a savoury pineapple bread. It’s gluten-free and dairy-free. You’ll probably still like it if you’re neither of those things.
Thrifty Savoury Pineapple Bread
2 eggs
1/2 cup almond milk
3 tbsp oil
Pulp leftover from 3 cups chopped pineapple, blended and sieved
2 cups rice flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
In a blender, combine eggs, almond milk, oil and pineapple pulp (drink the juice or use it to make mazamorra morada – a thrifty dish only if you happen to have an abundance of purple corn, dried fruit and fresh small pineapple, aka “being Peruvian”). Blend to combine.
Stir remaining ingredients in a medium bowl and pour in egg mixture from blender. Stir just until blended. Pour into 8″ x 8″ greased baking dish. Bake in 350 degree F oven for about 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
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