December 9, 2025

The government has stopped minting the lowly penny. No longer will anyone say “A penny for your thoughts.”

Years ago I was in a British hospital and a nurse approached and asked “Want to spend a penny? I thought she was selling lottery tickets but as everyone but me knows it was a bathroom related question.

Corso’s Grocery on High Stret had rows of jars of penny candy, where my kids (they tell me later) stopped on the way home from Sunday school to spend their nickel (Sunday school offering).

And a final indignity. Place a penny on the railroad track and wait for the next train to run over it and disfigure Lincoln’s nose.

Penny wise, pound foolish. I guess the nickle is next.