What is your threshold, and BTW, any tips on where the freebies are these days?
One cent. They're all around you but you have to look for them.
Spouse was stationed at Lajes Azores in the 1980s. The command was so small that all hands did the daily FOD* walkdowns-- even the officers. She had about 18 months' occupational training in the skill of spotting small objects laying on the ground.
25 years later, on our walks she can still spot a coin on the ground at 20 feet. Inspired by her fiscal example I've managed to improve my detection threshold, but I'm going to need a lot more practice. We even vary our walking routes to avoid overfishing the same waters.
There's no fiscal necessity (as far as I can tell), but I enjoy the competitive challenge and the entertainment factor.
As for the "eeeuw" factor, Amy Dacyczyn used to desensitize frugal newbies by asking them if they'd pick up a $20 bill laying on the ground. Then she'd ask if they'd pick it off the top of a dumpster. What if it was hanging out from the dumpster lid? How about sticking out from under a trash bag laying on top of the pile in the dumpster under the lid? What if they had to break open the bag? What if the bag was filled with rotting food?
Picking up where Amy left off, we could take that exercise even further. What if the bag contained human waste? Radioactive waste? What if the dumpster divers were wearing gloves?
I suspect that the only things holding people back are (1) high probability of death or personal injury, not just a possibility and (2) degree of certainty that a $20 bill is actually in the dumpster.
Or with apologies to George Bernard Shaw, we're not trying to figure out our occupation. We're just trying to settle on the price.
*FOD = Foreign Object Damage to aircraft engines. Personnel walk down a runway in line abreast and pick up anything laying on the ground that could get sucked into a jet intake.
