If you don’t know, June 25 was Global Beatles Day. It was on that day in 1967 the Fab Four sang “All You Need Is Love” on the BBC program “Our World.” That just happened to be the first-ever live, international, satellite television production. It’s believed more than 400 million people watched that broadcast.
While researching Global Beatles Day for this column, I was thrust in another direction. Forget memory lane, shall we take a stroll down … Penny Lane? Did you know it’s been more than six years since we stopped using the penny? On Feb. 4, 2013 we began rounding our financial transactions up or down. So why the fudge nuggets do I still have 63 pennies in my car? Seriously, I just counted. I bought that vehicle in May 2014, which means I had to transfer that defunct change from my old car into the SUV knowing full well it would never come in handy. However, my good friend Wikipedia tells me – quote – “Only pennies produced in 1982 or later are still legally Circulation Coins.” GREAT CEASAR’S GHOST! That means 10% of the stash in my vehicles armrest is as useful as John Carter in a 5k footrace. I have no idea what to do with those pre-1983 relics and I’m only staring at the queen’s head six times over.
I can’t help but think of my father’s living room, which is home to a couple of Texas Mickeys jammed full of pennies. They’ve been there as long as I can remember, so you know the bulk of those coins were made before “Fraggle Rock” even debuted on TV. Upon further investigation, our free internet encyclopedia may not be entirely accurate (shocking). According the the Royal Canadian Mint’s website, in the FAQ section of their Phasing Out The Penny page, it reads – quote – “The penny will retain its value indefinitely. As such, consumers can use pennies for cash transactions with businesses that choose to accept them.” Key words there, “choose to accept.” However, I don’t suspect many people still have a fistful of pennies just laying around the house that they can dump on the counter at some popular coffee shop. In this age of debit cards and tapping and magically waving a smartphone over an electronic pad to make a payment, we really have no need for a one-cent piece. The penny has been replaced and slowly fading from our memories, much like former Beatles drummer Pete Best. Are you asking yourself right now, ‘who’s Pete Best?’ It’s only a matter of time before people start asking what a penny was. Oh yeah …. Happy Global Beatles Day!
P.S. – This truly was just rambling, wasn’t it.
Steve Krysak is half of CJCY Mornings with John & Steve, on your radio 6-10 a.m. weekdays and 7-10 a.m. Saturdays at 102.1 FM and cjcyfm.com.
