Man and I thought I was cheap...

[Exterous]

While several people like to make jokes about how cheap I am (I prefer to refer to it as 'Efficient Application of Money') I ran into a guy at Kroger that put me to shame.

In Michigan you get $0.10 back for a bottle return. I was standing in line waiting for the bottle return machine and it was a surprisingly busy night. A guy came into the room with a single two liter and, when he saw the line, loudly asked a couple of times if anyone had a dime.

No one answered so he asked everyone individually. "Excuse me, do you have a dime? I'll give you this two liter if you can give me a dime." He spent several minutes trying to find someone who would give him a dime for his two liter. Finally one women ponied up and gave him a dime in return for his bottle

I'll be honest - if I wasn't willing to wait in line to return a bottle I would not have asked loudly if anyone had a dime to trade let alone gone up to each person individually to ask. I just done care enough about $0.10 and would have just given someone the bottle

 

[purbeast0]

everyone in that line cares about 10 cents, or else they would not be in that line.

 

[waggy]

Maybe he was asked by a drug dealer outside if he wanted a Dime bag. He had no cash but the bottle..

 

[rudder]

I would have offered a nickel. You need to get something for your time sheesh.

 

[Red Storm]

I just done care enough about $0.10 and would have just given someone the bottle

...

I was standing in line waiting for the bottle return machine.

It would seem you do care enough about $0.10.

Unless you have like 1000 bottles on you, standing in a line for $0.10 returns just shows how very little you value your own time.

 

[AustinInDallas]

I would have offered a nickel. You need to get something for your time sheesh.

I would have counter offered for sure. Does NO one watch pawn stars?

 

[Hugo L.]

The guy found a quick way to get out of that line, while you stayed. So by being willing to waste a lot of time in that line for a few cents per bottle, I'd be able to make a convincing point that you're actually cheaper.

 

[AustinInDallas]

The guy found a quick way to get out of that line, while you stayed. So by being willing to waste a lot of time in that line for a few cents per bottle, I'd be able to make a convincing point that you're actually cheaper.

agreed, he values his time less than the other guy

 

[KB]

$0.10 for a bottle? Time to load up the Post Office truck full of bottles and head to Michigan.

I bet the guy drove there and spent a couple bucks in gas to get his dime.

 

[Mixolydian]

LOL i didn't think people actually took advantage of bottle deposits in states that had them.

It would cost me more than $0.10 just to get to a store to return them.

 

[JoetheLion]

So that's the line Johnny Cash walked?

 

[Exterous]

It would seem you do care enough about $0.10

everyone in that line cares about 10 cents, or else they would not be in that line.

I care about multiples of $0.10. For $12.50 I will spend a couple of minutes to return my many bottles. For $0.10 I would not make someone trade me for a bottle

I would have offered a nickel. You need to get something for your time sheesh.

I didn't have any change

 

[Exterous]

The guy found a quick way to get out of that line, while you stayed. So by being willing to waste a lot of time in that line for a few cents per bottle, I'd be able to make a convincing point that you're actually cheaper.

Only if you knew the total time taken by both him and myself and knew the number of bottles I returned within that time

$0.10 for a bottle? Time to load up the Post Office truck full of bottles and head to Michigan.

They need to have specific bar codes on them to be accepted by the machines

 

[MontyAC]

$0.10 for a bottle? Time to load up the Post Office truck full of bottles and head to Michigan.

I bet the guy drove there and spent a couple bucks in gas to get his dime.

Wasn't that an episode from Seinfeld?

 

[NoCreativity]

LOL i didn't think people actually took advantage of bottle deposits in states that had them.

It would cost me more than $0.10 just to get to a store to return them.

Are people aware it's $0.10/bottle? Most people not only return more than one at a time, they tend to return in conjunction with an already planned shopping trip.

 

[Jeff7]

While several people like to make jokes about how cheap I am (I prefer to refer to it as 'Efficient Application of Money') I ran into a guy at Kroger that put me to shame.
...

"Monetarily Efficient."

I would have counter offered for sure. Does NO one watch pawn stars?

And then you settle on a price.
Then you're calling out, "Can someone here break a dime?"

 

[z1ggy]

Maybe he was .10 short on the order of 3 dozen bagels he was holding up the grocery line for?

 

[notposting]

This has to be one of the most wildly successful recycling efforts ever. First of all you already paid the DEPOSIT so it is your money you are getting back, and the amount is enough to make it worth while.

Personally I think it should go nationwide, but whatever.

(also, you can tell a Michigander when out of state because of the reaction when you crush your can and pitch it in the garbage -- *GASP* ).

 

[Anonemous]

This has to be one of the most wildly successful recycling efforts ever. First of all you already paid the DEPOSIT so it is your money you are getting back, and the amount is enough to make it worth while.

Personally I think it should go nationwide, but whatever.

(also, you can tell a Michigander when out of state because of the reaction when you crush your can and pitch it in the garbage -- *GASP* ).

And if you take it to a recycling center where they pay by weight (you are responsible for removing and tossing all the caps), you actually get about 80% of the redemption value than counting each bottle individually as .05 or .10. It's kinda lame but it saves time from counting all the bottles.

 

[Wonderful Pork]

here in MA its 5c per bottle but for some reason you can't just return them everywhere. Like, if a particular store doesn't sell beer you can't recycle your beer bottles there, the machine kicks them out.

I used to live really close to a redemption center where a person would tally everything and give you a slip to cash at the register (so they took everything!) but unfortunately I moved and recycling is too much of a PITA now since the town doesn't take it from the curb either.

 

[Midwayman]

Handling all the sticky stinky bottles, having to store them, and haul them to the store risking stinking up your car hardly seems worth the effort. I like the curbside recycling much better.