futures

[adelaidesean]

I went for a walk yesterday and stepped over a one cent coin. What are the odds of that, given they were withdrawn from circulation in 1992?



I want to say that when I checked the date it said 2007 (or even 2011) but that would be taking this headline entirely too literally.

Has money from the future ever appeared in a story? I mucked around with reincarnation, the velocity of money, and Feynman's time-travelling electron in "The End of the World Begins at Home", but not impossible coins. I'd love to see what someone has done with the idea.

Comments

the death of money

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

a haunting of currency

What a magnificent phrase! We're not being sucked into a financial black hole after all. The ghosts of future crises are coming back to torment us.

[jaylake.livejournal.com]

I used some of the fifty state quarters in a story a few years back, specifically as money from the future per the US Mint's release dates.

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

What's the story called, Jay? I'll track down a copy.

[jaylake.livejournal.com]

"Spending Money"

http://ebookstore.sony.com/search?keyword=jay+lake+spending+money&x=0&y=0

You want I should send you a soft copy?

Re: the death of money

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

Yes: black holes are hairy. Maybe these small denominations are half a virtual pair popping out of the vacuum foam, the other half dropping behind the financial event horizon. If they were higher denominations, I'd buy two mitts and a dump truck, and buy you the drink of your choice from my takings. :-)

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

In exchange for letting me buy you a drink when next we meet? Sure! You'd probably make more from the deal that way than in royalties from eBook. :-)

[cassiphone.livejournal.com]

Not quite future coins, but my favourite magical coin story ever is Half Magic by Edward Eager - children find a fallen coin that grants half wishes, and learn to use it - it's a lovely story, the books were re-released a few years back (he was greatly influenced by E Nesbit and I think is in some ways a superior writer) and it involves lots of lovely recursive time travel.

[ericjamesstone.livejournal.com]

A modern coin in the past plays a significant role in the film "Somewhere in Time" and the Richard Matheson novel it was based on.

[lonfiction.livejournal.com]

Not from the future, but from a parallel timeline:

Stephen King's THE REPLOIDS (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Reploids), which appeared in the fairly notable early horror antho Dark Vision (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Visions).

[lonfiction.livejournal.com]

"Early" in this case meaning early in my own horror reading. :)

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

Interesting. I think I have that here somewhere. Will look it up. Thanks!

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

I haven't thought about that story for ages. Will dig it out and have a read. Thanks, Eric!

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

PS. Your userpic is hypnotising me.

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

I love the title "Half Magic". Thanks for the tip. I'll look it up.

[lonfiction.livejournal.com]

It's been repubbed under several names, depending on country, etc.

It's rare that a anthology is so good I remember most of the stories almost 20 years later. But this one is fairly solid. If anything, Reploids is the clunker of the book, given it doesn't really fit well, more than that it is a bad story. But It could easily have been published today as a Waldrop pastiche. The GRRM novella just rocks. Dan Simmons "Metastasis" I also remember particularly vividly.

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

Is this the GRRM story about the werewolves: "The Skin Trade" or something like that?

[lonfiction.livejournal.com]

That's the one! Not as earth-shaking of a treatment of werewolves as Fevre Dream was of vamps, but nonetheless a great read.

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

It's the only story I remember out of that collection, so that says something. :-)

[(Anonymous)]

Was it the Pygmy Possum that featured on the 1 cent?

And out of curiosity, what was the date on the coin?

[murasaki-1966.livejournal.com]

It's a featertail glider. We had one as a pet.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_1_cent_coin

[seanwilliams.livejournal.com]

To be honest, I didn't check the date. The mystery of what it might have been is much interesting (imho) than the answer.