OF ALL THE LUCK!

      I got my first 2010-D nickel last night and I'm kinda irked because of it.

      Last year, coin production plummeted to levels not seen since the 1950s/1960s for some denominations. Nickels were hit especially  hard by the continuing recession with "only" 39.84 million pieces coined in Philadelphia and 46.8 million pieces for Denver for all of 2009. For comparison, nickels have tended to be about 600-800 million pieces per mint in the past decade so that precipitous drop has actually made searching through pocket change fun for the first time in all my life. Usually I would have all the coins of the year well before year's end. 2009 has been an exception.

      I have all the Philadelphia pieces but still need the Denvers for the 2nd and 4th design of the Bicentennial Lincoln cents; the nickel; the dime; and for Puerto Rico, American Samoa, and the Northern Marianas quarters...and 2010's almost over. It's cool but the fact that I have a 2009-P nickel is what annoys me.

On November 22, 2009 [yes, I keep track of these things], I received my first (and so far only) 2009-P nickel.

        They're out there, but they just haven't been making their way into my till. I'm patient. I know I'll get them eventually. The reason I'm annoyed is because I now have both the Philadelphia and Denver nickels for 2010. Had I not received that 2009-P nickel, I would've gotten all the 2010 ones before ever seeing a 2009 one --- something that has never happened before and unless the economy tanks impressively again, something that will likely never happen again. It's a lost opportunity. I didn't get my first 2009-P dime until early January 2010. That's never happened before either (that it would take over a year to get the new year's coin for any denomination) and again will not likely ever happen again. Sigh...

      I hope the economy tanks again. There's been talk of a double-dip recession for some time now. I'd love to see 2011's coin production plummet like 2009's again. Coin collecting has never been more fun for me. Yes that comes at the expense of many out-of-work people but I can't be thinking about that as the mint creates illusory modern rarities. 2010's production has already outpaced 2009's and I regularly see 2010 dated coins in my change...except for quarters. I've only seen two so far all year but then I give out half dollars in change so I don't go through quite as many as I used to. So while 2010's mintages are already boring, there's always hope for 2011 if the economy threatens collapse again.

      I just  have to come to terms with it: My happiness is predicated in others' pain. It's the way of the world. I should embrace it rather than pretend it isn't so.

*evil laugh*