Other day, I set out to run errands for few household chores. My wife always tells me that I need to always carry around, at least a hundred bucks cash in my wallet; you never know when you will need and for what! I used to stoutly dismiss her, thanks to the plastic age – making payments has become a breeze, either online or offline!
Coming back to the chores, I kept checking off the items one by one in my TTD (things to do) list and the items were melting away, like the snow in the rain outside! And there I was, at the last bullet! And I heaved a sigh of relief – finally it is getting over! I wanted to treat myself with a coffee from Timmy’s –before I wrap up with that one last thing more to check off from my TTD. I remembered a Tim Horton’s gift card lying in the glove box, given by someone and I thought I would use that! Then suddenly, I changed my mind and wanted to complete the full list, before I go for that coffee!
It was to fax out a bunch of papers. I found in the bunch, inter alia, a void cheque. So, I had to first take a photo-copy of the void cheque (obviously), before I fax. I found nearby, a Shopper’s Drug Mart, sporting the Canada Post signage. I was happy, as normally most of the Canada Post outlets do have a fax machine and a photo-copier too. The feel-good-factor was great, as I was sure that both copying and faxing can be done at one single stop and by one single payment using one single plastic, period!
I went in to the mart and checked for Canada Post. I was directed to go to the corner of the mart and there remained hidden Canada Post! I gave the fax number and requested the serving lady to fax the bunch and before faxing, to add the photo-copy of the cheque to the bunch. She told me much to my disappointment that she did not have a copier. I told her that normally the Canada Post carries one. She said ours is not normal! I asked rushingly where I could get a photo-copy really quick, as I wanted to get rid of the list equally really quick! She said mart has one and it is in the other corner.
I went to the ‘other’ corner to be greeted only by no one and there lied a copier glumly and almost gathering dust. At the very first look itself, I could figure out that it is a generations old copier and in its last phase of life, almost dying or dead! I was wondering, with no one around, thanks to the self-help culture, how successfully I could photo-copy my cheque! I approached the machine after mustering some courage and placed the cheque on the scanner glass, closed the cover and pressed the ‘Start’ button. Nothing happened!
“Put 10 cents”, boom came the voice from behind and there was a mart person standing there and looking at me with a ‘you-don’t-know-even-this’ look! I obediently started examining the machine and found an attachment with a coin slot with a hand-written sticky saying ‘Drop 10c here’, eagerly waiting to devour 10 cent coins! And here I am the guy, with a feeling of ‘the poorest’ on the planet! I told that lady that I don’t have 10 cents. She said we need 10 cents. She strangely added, sounding practical though, that I may give any money, even a hundred-dollar bill (this one, for a change, sounded familiar, as I had heard this several times from close quarters!) and I will be given the change!
My mind raced to the past, thinking about when was the last time I had a hundred-dollar bill (for a moment, I forgot all I need is just 10 cents!) in my wallet! Ironically, only the other day I was assigned (by who else, of course, my wife!) to give away one-hundred-dollar bill as some ‘all cash deal’ payment to someone who did some repair work at home! I quickly checked with my ‘quick silver’ memory, if I continue to have that bill still in my wallet. As luck would have it, I wasn’t having it! That meant that, I have already given that away to that someone! Tired of that many that’s!
My immediate thought made me feel guilty for not listening to my wife to keep cash always! After overcoming that, my mind went to side holders of my car where we usually throw the ‘unwanted’ but now the ‘most wanted’ coins. I ran to my car to check my luck! I ran and my luck too ran out! I remembered only the previous day, when we went to the temple, my wife wiped off all coins from all compartments in the car to offer donations into the several donation boxes located at several vantage locations throughout the temple! Hoping against hope, I checked on the car floor, floor mats, carpets, crevices, folds, nooks and crannies; tough luck, not a single coin! Now, I had several options before me, to get hold of that ‘10 cents’.
Option 1: Go back to Shopper’s Drug Mart, buy some thing, some random thing, and try your luck, if the machine gives a ‘Cash back’. Many machines nowadays don’t!
Option 2: Go to Tim Hortons and don’t use that gift card! Instead, try again a ‘Cash back’ trick, after buying your coffee using the plastic though I wasn’t sure!
Option 3: Go around and look for some one generous who will help you with 10 cents counting you as one more ‘homeless guy’ and doling you out that ‘invaluable (or valuable?)’ 10 cents!
Option 4: (easiest) Go to the nearest ATM and draw some money, any money which will make up at least to 10 cents!
I chose obviously the last option (easiest) and drew a twenty-dollar bill from the nearest ATM. Back to the mart. Timmy was on the way. Pampered myself with the muchneeded caffeine load – with a large double-double! It came to 2 dollars and 10 cents (finally!). I was given a change – 3 x $5 bills, 1 toonie, 3 quarters, 1 nickel and 1 dime all $17.90, which I looked at with great respect, held and secured safe to myself, as my most priced possessions!
Next, I strode – like a king with all pride and joy as if the entire world of fortune was under my feet – so much cash (?) by way of bills and coins in my pocket – in to the mart once more, and went to the machine straight and started operating it with complete confidence! Everything was on my side now and I was smiling! After dropping the 10 cents coin, placing the cheque underneath the cover and above the scanner glass, I pressed the ‘Start’ button. The machine promptly disgorged a sheet of paper. I took a look! Holy smoke! The output was some back side copy of some id of some person used the machine perhaps before me! Definitely, it was not the copy of the cheque. Quickly, I was reminded of the unpicked receipts by the previous customers at the gas station stalls. I literally screamed and shrieked after seeing it and after going through all what I have gone through, in the name of 10 cents! ‘Voice from the behind’ person re-appeared and saw me and quickly realized what happened.
Apparently, this wouldn’t have been the first time and she might have been quite used to, seeing the way she handled the ‘situation’. She, with all grace possible, opened the coin box and re-set it. She took the copy and gave it to me, nonchalantly! I was reminded again of an adage “half-heartedly done is to be twice done!” Self-help and unmanned (plus ‘un-woman’ned? siding feminism too, in this male chauvinist world!) systems exactly make things to be done 2 times! I grabbed the copy of the cheque and made one single bunch and was readying myself to fax the whole bunch! I counted the papers – in all 19 pages and approached Canada Post for faxing.
The lady said the fax machine too is stationed in the mart and it belongs to the mart! Back to the ‘Voice from the behind’ person only to be told that mart will charge $1.50 per page! Least to say that It was an atrocious pricing! I thought it would be something like 30 cents per page similar to other Canada Post outlets! Most redeeming feature was that they allowed me this time to pay by my favorite plastic! Otherwise, with my 17 dollars and 90 cents cash in my pocket, I would have been pushed to the ATM back again to meet my fatty fax bill of 31 dollars and 92 cents for 19 pages that included 12% tax! There goes the story about the dearness of 10 cents! And the importance of listening to your wife! What I would have done next with my wallet is anybody’s guess!
N. Bala
B.Engg; MBA
(Finance); CAIIB
