Today's post is late because I have been embroiled in what can only be described as a bizarre sequence of events. It all started with me looking down, no surprise there! I was at a bus stop in Hoboken N.J., and down in the gutter glinting at me in the late afternoon sun was what appeared to be a credit card. I bent down with the intention to secure the card, and if possible repatriate it with the rightful owner, before it could be put to a more nefarious use by an individual less scrupulous than myself.
However on further inspection I saw that it was not a credit card at all, but in fact a gift card to be used in a Starbucks Coffee outlet. I would have given it no further thought, had it not been in pristine condition. Curiosity got the better of me and there are several Starbucks in town close by (isn't that the case in every town in America?), so I resolved to find out if there was any balance on the card.
Well you can imagine my shock when the cashier checked it and told me there was an active balance. My shock soon turned to panic when she asked me what I would like; I do not drink coffee, I don't even speak coffee and I'm totally out of my comfort zone in the company of Barista's (I guess I can rule out Starbucks as a future sponsor of my endeavor!). This leaves me with one and potentially two problems...
1)If you have lost a Starbucks coffee gift card at a bus stop in Hoboken, leave me a note in the comments section below or send me a tweet, stating at which bus stop you lost it at, and also the balance on the card before high noon E.D.T. on 16th June 2009. If your information rings true, I will return it to you.
2)In the event a legitimate claim is not made by the cut off time, how will I monetize this "plastic" find to add to the Sidewalker Fund?
When I started this adventure I never thought finding street cash would get this complicated. I think I need a coffee...
-Luke Sidewalker
-Current balance $13.11 (plus pending Starbucks resolution)
4 comments:
Oh, quite a dilimma. Especially since you can't really "cash" one of those cards. The best you could really do is sell it to someone for less than what it's worth. That would get you SOMETHING for it.
I don't live in NJ. I've never been been in that area of the country, and don't know anyone there.
I wonder if you can "Trade up"...like that guy with the paper clip....
That is definitely something I would consider, if the owner does not come forward before the deadline. Or perhaps I could stand outside offering to buy people coffee, but as I said I don't speak coffee so I'm not responsible for quality control!
-Luke Sidewalker
I like the trade up idea :-) One man's *trash* anothers *Treasure* :-)
Evie, assuming the owner does not come forward in time, I'm inclined not to follow the trade up idea as it has been done before. The Sidewalkers love cold hard cash!
-Luke Sidewalker
Post a Comment