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Thomas Jefferson Visits the Bagel Shop
I handed over payment, and the bagel shop guy said, “Um, I don’t know if we take these $2 bills….” The customer behind me laughed, and said just what I was thinking: “You have to take ’em, man — they’re legal tender!” Why do I get $2 bills from the bank at every opportunity? Because I live for moments like this, that’s why!
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Deuces Wild: Harlem Laundromat
February 2, 2015 — $2 Bill Rejected!
Thank goodness — someone wrote in with another $2 bill spending story! Even better: It concerns a rejected $2 bill (my favorite!). This anecdote and its accompanying photos come from Reuben Radding in New York City, who writes:
Here's how it happened:
I gave the laundry lady my ticket, and while she hunted down my bag of laundry I pulled out a $20, a $10, and a $2 bill, plus some coins to pay what I owed ($32.30). I laid them out on the counter.
When she returned, she immediately looked concerned.
She fingered the $2 bill like it had the Ebola virus and said, “I don’t know this bill — I don’t take them.” She’s Puerto Rican or possibly Dominican. Her English isn’t great, but she seems to understand more than she speaks.
I said, “But it’s real! It’s money!” I was actually kind of mad.
“I know,” she said, “I don’t take it.”
I fished around for a $5 to give her and said, “You know, I got this from the bank just now. The bank!” She didn’t apologize or say anything else, except: “I don’t.”
So there you have it. The plainly named “Laundromat” on Broadway at West 150th Street will not take a $2 bill.
—Reuben Radding, Harlem, NYC
Do you have a story about a $2 bill transaction? If so, write to me: [email protected]
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$2 Dispatch: Freddy's Bar
January 2, 2014
Location: Freddy's Bar, Brooklyn, NY
Date: July 17, 2013
Transaction: Tipped for drinks with several $2 bills
Behold the gentle lamb of Freddy's Bar & Backroom, Mike Sternfeld.
It was karaoke night. As usual, it was getting to be a little too late, and I went up to the bar to shell out a cumulative tip for the multiple drinks I'd had.
It's not like I prefer to pay in all $2 bills, because truly, I'd rather not. Using a bunch of $2's at one time is amusing, but it makes me itch because I don't want to deplete my stash so quickly. However, it was one of those nights; it's all I had in my wallet. I pulled some out and handed 'em over.
Mike dug them. Then, as bartenders do, he told me about other $2 bills that had crossed his path.
“There’s one old man — every time he comes in, he tips in $2 bills. It’s pretty adorable. He always wears a vest.
"I like them. But I don’t know what to do with them. The only thing you can do is tip someone else with them. I wouldn’t put them in the register. They're legal tender, but they’re really novelty.”
Thank you, Sternfeld. (He has a fantastic dog named Frankie Meatballs, by the way.)
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Happy New Year!
January 1, 2014
Happy New Year!
To those of you who are working today and will be engaged in cash transactions, here's a little ditty called "Two Dollar Bill," sent to me by Paul Lukas.
I hope you get a $2 bill today!
$2 Dispatch: The Bell House
December 30, 2013
Location: The Bell House, Brooklyn, NY
Date: July 7, 2013
Transaction: Paid for a beer with this $2 bill
At the Big Ten Inch 78 rpm listening party in the front room of the Bell House, I used a $2 bill to pay for a beer. Julian, the bartender seen here, loved it. (Click photo to enlarge)
“It’s a quirky, antiquated bill. I think money itself is becoming antiquated.”
“Money is based on faith,” he said, and because he believes faith is disappearing in this country, so too, he says, is the value of money.
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$2 Dispatch: Manitoba's
December 20, 2013
Location: Manitoba's, East Village, NYC
Date: July 2, 2013
Transaction: Paid for drinks with these $2 bills
I hate to sound like a broken record, but making people happy with $2 bills really doesn't get old for me. Here we have Tessa, a bartender at Manitoba's. (Click photo to enlarge) The place was nearly pitch-dark (although not so dark that I overlooked this ridiculous thing in the corner, which I assume and hope is a tribute to "Handsome Dick" Manitoba, not just an object poor in taste and rich in drunken-meathead appeal), and it's amazing my flash photography doesn't look even worse.
“Lucky $2 bills!” she said.
You know what? I hope I hear back from one of these people one day so I can find out whether any luck came of it. You hear it a lot: $2 bill = good luck. I'm not saying it's true or untrue. I just want to hear from someone who believes it for a reason (especially if I gave that person the $2 bill).
Special thanks, Al and Kristin Duvall, for the surprise $2 bill in a Christmas card last night!
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$2 Dispatch: Otto's Shrunken Head, Part 2
December 17, 2013
Location: Otto's Shrunken Head, East Village, NYC
Date: June 27, 2013
Transaction: Paid for drinks with several $2 bills, seen here
Otto's, take 2. That night, the wonderful Susquehanna Industrial Tool & Die Company was performing its monthly set, so I was there long enough to experience a bartender overlap. I'd earlier purchased a round from Michelle (see below), who good-naturedly explained why she didn't want the $2 bill I was trying to use.
I was buying a round of drinks for myself and Paul. Not wanting to annoy another Otto's bartender by attempting to spend another $2 bill, I found myself in a tough spot — because all I had left in my wallet was $2 bills.
But Nell, the bartender seen here, was a stark contrast to Michelle. She was thrilled at the sight of the multiple $2's I laid out. “I always save them. Some people say they’re good luck. One guy always tips in $2 bills.”
Hot on the heels of her comment, a barback named Pat blurted, "It's bad luck." Hah! Can you tell why I like doing this?
Later, Nell had more to say about receiving $2 bills at her workplace:
"I love getting them. I can't explain why. There's not a practical or emotional reason. But it always makes my night. I like all sorts of things that are not encountered every day. I probably only get tipped with a $2 bill two or three times a year. And I always save them.
"They're good to pass on to kids who like the novelty of something different. Or to another bartender that would also appreciate a break from the monotony of counting singles in their tip jar.
"I have a stack at home that I guess I could use if I needed to, but I'd rather hold onto them. I also collect foreign coins and bills. It's so interesting how each country chooses what to commemorate on their currency. Keep the $2 bills coming my way!"
I will, Nell. It gladdens my heart to meet someone so enthusiastic about receiving a $2 bill on the job — thanks!
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$2 Dispatch: Balducci's
December 13, 2013
Location: Balducci’s, Midtown, NYC
Date: June 25, 2013
Transaction: Paid for coffee with this $2 bill
Here we have Edward Greenwald, the happiest store manager I've ever seen. He's not smiling just because of the $2 bill I handed him. Your best-case scenario in a retail situation is to get lucky enough to interact with someone as generous and cheerful as Ed — I didn't know a store manager was even capable of being so upbeat and good-natured. Then I wound up going to this place repeatedly for morning coffee (we get a work discount there) and came across him. Of course this man appreciates a $2 bill!
“A two-dollar bill! Ha, ha! You don’t see enough of these. You used to see more.”
I like that — "You don't see enough of these." Exactly! So let's change that. Happy weekend $2 bill usage! See you on Monday with more.
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