Category Archives: news

What to Do with Your Coin Jar Now

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Pennies are being discontinued, but they’re far from worthless—your coin jar might hold hidden treasures, quirky uses, and nostalgic charm. Here’s how to turn your stash into stories, savings, or surprises.

Affiliate Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission—at no extra cost to you. Every penny helps keep Around Dusty Roads thriving!

🪙 The Last Penny Drops: What to Do with Your Coin Jar Now

The penny’s long goodbye is finally official. As of August 2025, the U.S. Mint has stopped producing one-cent coins, citing their rising cost—each penny costs nearly 3.7 cents to make. But while the presses have gone silent, your penny jar still hums with potential.

Whether you’ve got a coffee can full of copper or a cat-shaped bank stuffed with spare change, here’s how to turn those humble coins into something more than pocket clutter.

🔍 Are Any Pennies Worth More Than a Cent?

Yes! Some pennies are worth much more than their face value. Here’s what to look for:

  • Pre-1982 copper pennies: These contain 95% copper and have a metal value of 3–5 cents each.
  • Wheat pennies (1909–1958): Especially rare years like 1909-S VDB or 1943 copper pennies can fetch hundreds to thousands.
  • Error coins: Double dies, off-center strikes, or misprints can be worth big bucks.
  • Key dates: Check for 1914-D, 1922 no D, and 1955 double die—these are collector favorites.

🧠 Tip: Use “The 2026 Red Book: A Guide Book of United States Coins” or services like Numismatic Guaranty Company to assess value.

🏦 Spend, Save, or Swap?

Even though pennies are no longer minted, they’re still legal tender. You can:

  • Spend them: Retailers still accept them, though some are rounding transactions to the nearest nickel.
  • Deposit at banks: Most banks will take them, though some are rationing due to shortages.
  • Use Coinstar machines: Turn coins into cash or gift cards—some stores even offer bonus value for penny exchanges.

🌼 Creative Uses for Pennies at Home

Your pennies can still shine in unexpected ways:

  • Keep flowers fresh: Copper acts as a natural fungicide.
  • DIY cold packs: Fill a sock with frozen pennies.
  • Weigh down curtains or tablecloths: Add subtle heft with a handful of coins.
  • Crafts and mosaics: Create shimmering art with copper tones.

🧭 A Penny for Your Story

At Around Dusty Roads, we believe even the smallest things carry stories. That jar of pennies? It’s a time capsule. A reminder of candy-store splurges, tip jars, and the jingle of everyday magic.

So before you cash them in, take a moment. Sort through them. Look for the rare ones. Use the quirky ones. And maybe—just maybe—keep a few to remember the era when a single cent still mattered.

🛍️ Pennywise Corner: Tools & Treasures for Coin Lovers

Whether you’re sorting, saving, or showcasing your pennies, these affiliate-friendly picks can help:

Product Description Link
🧠 The Official Red Book Trusted coin value guide for collectors Shop on Amazon
🧺 Coin Sorting Tray Organize your coins by denomination Shop on Amazon
🖼️ Coin Display Case Showcase rare or sentimental pennies Shop on Amazon
🔍 Magnifying Loupe Spot tiny mint marks and errors Shop on Amazon
🧼 Coin Cleaning Kit Gently clean coins without damaging value Shop on Amazon

 

Where Were You That Morning? A Tribute to September 11

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🕊️ A Morning Like No Other

Do you remember where you were on the morning of September 11, 2001?

📺 “Is This a Movie?

I remember it vividly—not in the way you recall a birthday or a vacation, but in the way your body remembers shock. I turned on the news, expecting the usual hum of morning chatter. Instead, I saw flames, smoke, and chaos. For a moment, I thought it was a movie trailer. Something surreal. Something scripted. But it wasn’t.

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Internet

🧊 Numbness and Silence

It was horrifying.

I remember how I felt. Numb. Just stunned. My mind couldn’t catch up to what my eyes were seeing. The towers—those iconic pillars of the New York skyline—were collapsing. Lives were being lost in real time. And across the country, hearts were breaking in unison.

🤝 A Nation United in Grief

In the days that followed, grief settled over us like a heavy fog. But so did something else: unity. Strangers became neighbors. Flags waved from porches and overpasses. First responders ran toward danger with a courage that defied comprehension. And in the quiet moments, we lit candles, whispered prayers, and held each other close.

Twenty-four years later, the pain hasn’t vanished. But neither has the resilience. Every September 11, the Tribute in Light rises over Manhattan—twin beams piercing the night sky, echoing the towers that once stood tall. It’s a symbol of remembrance, of hope, of the promise to never forget.

🚒 Heroes in the Ashes

To the families who lost loved ones, to the heroes who gave everything, and to the millions who carry the memory of that day in their hearts—you are not forgotten. Your stories live on in our reflections, our ceremonies, and our quiet moments of pause.

Fred George, Ash Wednesday, Dusk, 9/12/01, New-York Historical Society, Gift of Here is New York

Today, I remember. And I honor.

 

Raising the Flag at Ground Zero - Wikipedia

Raising the Flag at Ground Zero- Wikipedia

Rangeley and Saddleback

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Rangeley and Saddleback

Main St Rangeley

The Little town of Rangeley may not be familiar to you but if you ski you most certainly have heard of Saddleback Mountain. It was while I was chatting with the waitress at the Red Onion that the importance of Saddleback became clear.

Saddleback Ski Resort

In the 1950’s ski fever hit the Rangeley area. Saddleback Mountain was developed into a world class ski resort. The influx of winter ski enthusiasts gave life to the little town if Rangeley. Saddleback actually opened for the 1960 ski season. The lower T-Bar opened on December 31, 1960, serving the Wheeler Slope. The upper T-Bar, serving Grey Ghost and Hudson Highway, opened in late January.

No gas sign from 1970s

No Snow, No Gas, Oh No!

Saddleback Resort continued expanding and upgrading, adding chairlifts and snow making machines. Then in 1973-74 poor weather combined with gas shortages resulted in a disastrous season for New England’s ski resorts. While 1974-75 was a better season, it was not enough to rescue Big Rangeley Corporation. In 1975, Casco Bank and Trust Co. foreclosed on the ski area and sold it to a company called Saddleback Kingdom.

The Appalachian TrailAppalachia Trail sign

In 1978, Massachusetts businessman Donald Breen purchased Saddleback and immediately began investing in it. Also that year, President Jimmy Carter signed H.R. 8803, which started a land acquisition plan for the Appalachian Trail. The Appalachian Trail Corridor runs through Saddleback and the proposed expansion area for the resort. Confronted with endless red tape and potential eminent domain losses, Breen held off on his investment as negotiations dragged on for over a decade.

Closure

In 2012 the Breen family announced the resort was for sale. In 2015 they announced that there would be new owners to open the resort in 2016.  The promised re-opening never came.

A New Hope

While I was in Rangeley the news hit the airwaves.  An Australian Company was buying  Saddleback. They would invest millions and open back up doing it right. The reopening date is contingent upon how quickly Majella Group can install a modern quad chairlift to replace an aging double chairlift, a light at the end of the economic tunnel.

 

Good Morning World! I’m Baaaack!

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Good Morning World!

What a beautiful morning. The sun is shining, temps are moderate, the air is fresh. It’s just a perfect spring morning and it’s Sunday. No work! (maybe) I’ve got some updates and housekeeping items to share today. There is more change on the breeze than the scent of flowers and grass.

What Is Going on with aroundustyroads?

Aroundustyroads.com is my baby blog. I wrote my first post on September 8, 2010. I was based on Blogspot at that time. A couple of years later I migrated to WordPress. That was a pretty smooth transition but I was still new and didn’t have a lot of content. What I had can be found by clicking on the archive link in the side panel.

7 Years Later

Its been 7 years and I hope my blogging skills have grown with experience. What hasn’t changed is the look and feel of aroundustyroads.com. Lately I’ve been hearing more and more about successful bloggers, even meeting one, and I realized that I, we, needed to make some changes if I want to move to the next level. These successful bloggers have been at it 2-5 years. I’ve been doing this for 7 years and being left in the dust! What’s up with that!?

 

The  Changes in the Works

The first thing I did was move again. Like moving from Blogspot to WordPress, I moved to Bluehost to give me more adaptability. For non geeks, that’s like moving your cell service from Verizon to Sprint or from a 2 bedroom ranch to a 6 bedroom colonial. It was more painful this time so I need your help. If you are not getting email alerts, please let me know. If anything else is not working for you like it did before. Let me know that too. Enter it in the comments so we can work on getting it fixed.

New Look

While the dust settles on the move, I’m looking into upgrading our look. Take a look at one blog I found and like: http://brittanyfromboston.com/. Or this very successful blog http://joshuaberman.net/ . I just have to learn how to make these changes.

Drum roll Please….

INTRODUCING

A new companion blog. downdustylanes.com  No it is not replacing aroundustyroads. I can’t give up my baby but in trying to find out how to change our look, I got a new website built for me. It’s gorgeous. I haven’t started using it yet but will make my first post there in May. It will help me learn my way around a more advanced website.

One Last Change

Because of the current work load at my job. I am going to reduce my posting schedule for a couple of months. I am going to try to post 3 times per week. Monday, Wednesday and Friday. When things slow down at work  I’ll kick it back up.

Tell me what you think of all this. as the saying goes, inquiring minds what to know.

 

 

 

 

Fifteen Years Later

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It’s been 15 years since the planes hit the World Trade Center, 15 years since the plane slammed into the Pentagon, 15 years since flight 93 crashed into a field in Pennsylvania.

Are we any safer today that on 9/11? That is a question for another day. Today we remember.

I still remember the images as if I am just seeing them. I remember the feelings. It was surreal. It can’t be happening. This is America, my home. Wars don’t come to our shores and yet there was the black smoke billowing from the tower, there was the plane, seeming to be in slow motion, crashing into the 2nd tower.  For me it is like yesterday. I will never forget.

So it came as another shock to realize that there are children that have no memory of the events that day. Children that were born after that tragic event. Of course when I stop and think about it logically, there will be young people that read about 911 as history like I studied Pearl Harbor.

And as we remember Pearl Harbor we must remember 911. Never Forget!

NEVER FORGET!

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