While waiting to catch the Metro to the doctor today, I found a $20 bill on the platform. There wasn't anyone nearby who may have dropped it, and my first instinct was to bring it to the station manager in case anyone claims it. However, as I was walking back towards the station manager booth, I thought about it a bit more cynically, and figured the station manager would just pocket the cash himself, and what was to prevent someone from watching me turn in the $20, then claim it as soon as I walked away? It was a moral dilemma! I decided to hold onto it for awhile and think about it.

When I was done at the doctor and heading back to the office, I bought lunch on the way, and left a large tip in the tip jar for the employees there. That accounted for part of the $20, and I decided to spend the rest of it similarly, on tips, donations, maybe buy a copy of Street Sense, and "pay it forward" that way. I'm usually not the lucky type to find or win any money, so wasn't sure what to do with it, since unlike a wallet or pair of glasses, cash isn't something easily identified as belonging to an particular individual. 

Washington City Paper, 5/13/08