Do you pick up pennies? I do but only heads up!

@wotfpatty (2065)
United States
September 19, 2007 1:24am CST
When you are out and see a penny (or the equivalent in your country) on the ground or floor, do you pick it up? I will pick one up if it is heads up otherwise I leave it there. I have NO idea where this silly superstition came from but it stuck with me and I never break it. What about you? Are you a penny picker upper or do you just step over pennies? And.....do you have any superstitions about money you want to share?
8 people like this
38 responses
@sr0415 (1140)
• Philippines
19 Sep 07
Hi patty! :) I do pick pennies - whether it's head or tails. And for me, picking up a penny is already a good sign. It means, that I'll be able to make good in money by the day or the day will come that something good will happen that will bring about money or extra income. hehe :) take care always and God bless!
@wotfpatty (2065)
• United States
19 Sep 07
Yep, I well remember the saying "Find a penny, pick it up and all the day you'll have good luck". I am sure I have picked up tails up pennies but usually when I see one will leave it for someone else. It must be something my mother told me ages ago. I have no idea where that thought that heads up pennies are good luck and tails up are bad came from. Thanks for replying.
2 people like this
@raijin (10345)
• Philippines
19 Sep 07
I am not superstictious, even if my country has lots of these beliefs because I don't rely my faith beyond it. I do pick some pennies, heads up or tails. I feel lucky if I found some, because a dollar or whatever denomination it is, wouldn't be complete without starting from a penny!;)
@wotfpatty (2065)
• United States
19 Sep 07
Very true! I have seen people throw away a pocketful of change because they didn't like carrying around coins. I wanted to run and get it all. Haha. I am not REALLY afraid anything will happen if I pick up a tail up penny and I am sure I have before but, when I look down and see one and it's tails up, I leave it for the next entrepreneur. lol.
3 people like this
• United States
21 Sep 07
Oh yes I pick up every penny that I find. there has been times when the pennies that I picked up feed us
2 people like this
@James72 (26790)
• Australia
14 Jul 08
"See a penny pick it up; all day long you'll have good luck!" is the saying that I know as well and actually do practice when I see a coin on the street! I have not heard of the "heads up" variant though! Another superstition that I am aware of concerning money is to turn over all your money under a full moon. The superstition apparently states that doing this will double your money by the next morning! I have done this many a time and unless something happened in a metaphorical sense that I may have overlooked each time; my small pile of money had stayed the same when I checked it the next morning! lol.
2 people like this
@Jemina (5770)
21 Sep 07
I always pick up pennies heads up or down. My principle is that one cent added to 99 cents will make up a hundred. If I find 25 cents everyday, I'll have one baht in four days. And if I multiply that to thirty days I would have seven bahts and fifty satang. Here on mylot it's just like picking up pennies for every line we make. And towards the end of the month if we're lucky enough to qualify for payment we get ten dollars. If I find one baht everyday, that would make me 30 bahts richer by the end of the month. That's a lot easier than typing at least thirty words to get 2 cents here. LOL!
2 people like this
@msjigga (864)
• United States
19 Sep 07
Hi woftpatty! I always pick up pennies when I see them on the ground when the head up. My Grandma use to say a that pennies that are head up are good luck for the rest of the day if you put it in your pocket.
@wotfpatty (2065)
• United States
19 Sep 07
Hi! Yep that is what I was told too. When I see a heads up penny I think "Whoo hoo, good luck for me today!" It's funny how these old sayings stick with us.
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
19 Sep 07
I pick up any penny I see. I guess you had better not believe that superstition as a penny found is a penny earned, a variation on the saying. I also pick up any coins I see on the ground that do not belong to someone else, or is not on someone else's property. I hope everyone else steps over the pennies so I can pick up more. Here is a saying: Look after the pennies and the dollars will look after themselves.
@wotfpatty (2065)
• United States
19 Sep 07
I pick up any other change! No matter what side it is on. I love to find quarters. I only step over half the pennies but you could still make a buck fast. I see them everywhere it seems. It's like they have no value at all anymore which is sad since I have a huge bank full of them. I should go change them in for dollars but it took so long to fill that bank! lol.
1 person likes this
@raychill (6525)
• United States
19 Sep 07
Usually I can't ever remember what side is the lucky side, so i never pick the penny's up. Ha ha. I got a new desk at work and my old desk had about 6 pennies inside, which I left for the next person who uses that desk because I just didn't know which I could pick up! It's silly, but yeah I never pick them up because I just don't remember what is lucky or not!
1 person likes this
@raychill (6525)
• United States
19 Sep 07
I'm pretty superstitious so I can understand. Most are stupid and some I don't care about (umbrellas inside!) and some I'm pretty cautious of (walking under ladders!)
1 person likes this
@wotfpatty (2065)
• United States
19 Sep 07
Hey, better safe than sorry. lol. It's such a silly suspicion but I still hold onto it. I even tell my kids to check first. Poor kids have no idea why they should pick up heads up pennies and not tails up ones.
1 person likes this
• South Korea
19 Sep 07
I can't try it, if you come from some where like India, or some African countries you will understand the danger in picking up coin or note on the street. I have heard alot of this stories about this issue of picking things on the street.
@wotfpatty (2065)
• United States
19 Sep 07
What kind of dangers are there from picking up a coin? Like disease type dangers or superstitious dangers? That is interesting.
1 person likes this
• United States
28 Nov 07
I always pick them up. It doesnt matter if its on heads or tails.
1 person likes this
@megumiart (3771)
• United States
2 Dec 07
I always pick up coins I find on the ground; 'Find a penny pick it up, All day long you'll have good luck.'
1 person likes this
• Australia
17 Aug 08
I have never heard of that. I have heard the penny thing, "see a penny pick it up, all day long have good luck" I dont know if i believe in that it really works but i usually do it, unless the penny is somewhere gross or at someone's house!
@4ofmyown (1119)
• United States
14 Jul 08
I pick them up when I see them. There always seems to be some in the parking lot of our grocery store. But no matter where we go, if my daughter is with me, she finds tons of coins. It is like she is a coin magnet. We think it is funny and she loves it!! Got my husband a metal detector and take it to the beach all the time..that is fun too!
1 person likes this
@_sketch_ (5742)
• United States
14 Jul 08
I always pick up pennies no matter which way is facing up. I dont have any superstitions about money
1 person likes this
• Canada
21 Oct 07
Heads or tails, it doesn't matter to me, I will pick it up. Money is money, and if I have picked up 100 pennies in my life, I've picked up an entire dollar. Those little things build up. I keep my small change in a jar on my table, and when the jar fills up I roll the money.
1 person likes this
@twoey68 (13627)
• United States
20 Sep 07
I always pick up pennies...although like you only the heads up ones LOL I don't know why though b/c I'm not overly superstitious or anything but I guess it's force of habit. My Stepmother taught me about it when I was little. **AT PEACE WITHIN** ~~STAND STRONG IN YOUR BELIEFS~~
1 person likes this
@coolcrux1 (141)
• India
20 Sep 07
I see a penny will pick it up no matter it is heads up and down. I know that if you will not pick it someone else will pick it so why don't you? I am superstitious. I dont have any kind of superstitions for anything.
1 person likes this
@Nardz13 (5055)
• New Zealand
20 Sep 07
Hi there. Yes I do, If I see a pennie I pick it up and put it in my pocket, no matter if its, heads or tails, I just dont believe in walking over the penny, because there will come a day when that very penny will come in handy, without having to break a twenty dollar note, and then we would've have though back to when we walked over it... So I pick them up...
1 person likes this
• United States
20 Sep 07
Hello wotfpatty, I pick up pennies if they are face up. If they are face down, I won't pick it up. Why? I think I do believe it is that superstition that I grew up with. I have a habit of watching the sidewalk or the ground where I walk, not necessarily looking for pennies, but I do find a few. Happy posting..
• United States
25 Nov 07
I only pick up pennies if they are heads up. It stuck with me from something my grandmother told me years ago. I would love to know who started this superstition. lol. Also, I am funny about my bills - they all have to face in the same direction or it irritates me. I don't know why and I guess it's not really a superstition, but I guess you could call it a pet peev. Take care!!
1 person likes this