Everybody Needs a Little Change

The money currently found in my wallet/pocket. There is a
20 dollar and 50 dollar note, and A$6.80 woth of of coins.

So let's talk about money, more exact, let's talk about Australian money. As the current exchange rate stands, the Aussies dollar is about equal with the American dollar. Great for Aussies, not as great for me. Mostly because this is a very expensive country to live in. A bottle of Coke costs A$3.30 in some places. I treated myself to a Slurpee at a 7-11 the other day (7-11's are everywhere and no one has ever heard of a Wa Wa), and it cost A$2.80... and I didn't get the ridiculously huge sized clear plastic cup ones either. Those were upwards of A$3.50. I got the tall thin paper cup kind. It is very expensive over here, but that is not what this blog is really about.
Aussie money is a bit funny... excuse the rhyme... What I mean to say is that it should be straightforward, as the amounts of each bill and coin are clearly written on them, but growing up in America I am finding the whole system a bit counter-intuitive. Their "paper" money or notes are actually plastic. Apparently you cannot rip them in half. They are smaller than American money, more colorful, and have transparent windows in the bottom right corner. They have pictures of people like Queen Victoria, Mary Reibey (an English convict and Sydney businesswoman), and David Unaipon (who is known as the Australian Da Vinci, and invented the basic concepts used in today's modern sheep shearing machine.) Aussie dollars come in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100. However, as the observant American can probably see, there is no 1 dollar note listed. Now we get into my real confusions I have with the money of this great country.

The real problem of the whole system to me, is the coinage. Unlike American coins, Aussie coins are actually worth something. There are silver coins which run in denominations of 5, 10, 20, and 50 cents. In Australia there is no such thing as a penny. These "silver" coins are often large and clunky. In fact, the 50 cent coin is so big it could probably be uses as a makeshift throwing star if you were ever in a pinch and found yourself needing to do combat with a band of ninjas. Next, we come to the gold coins. There are 1 dollar coins and 2 dollar coins. They are much smaller than their silver brethren and are commonly given as change to every purchase. This is the real taxing part of the whole endeavour. When I come home at night I cannot simply put my spare change aside in a jar or other receptacle to accumulate till I have enough to exchange it for valuable dollar bills. No, now I must take my change which me (regardless of how bulky, heavy, and noisy it is in my pocket) because I might actually need to spend them. It is an amazing concept to me that coins are actually used as currency and not just for being thrown in the odd fountain here or there. Worst yet, it seems like the more valuable a coin is the smaller it gets. The 2 dollar coins are roughly only a little bigger than a dime. It seems to be a system that is designed to bolster the pants and sewing industry, because if you have a rip in your packet you could loose hundreds of dollars a day.

Regardless, it has taken a lot to get used to, both in concept and in practical use. It is not a bad system, it is just a system that seems to favor the use of a purse over a wallet. As a man it is not always easy to find a place to store the scores and scores of change I am accumulating with every purchase. I am starting to feel like a cow with a bell around my neck. Maybe that is how the country keeps track of it foreigners... through the sound of jingling change... I guess when you think about it, it beat wiretapping.