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In this world of pressure, stress, time sensitive material and everything else that makes our everyday life that little more difficult, it is always nice to read something that is firstly a little comic but secondly a touch impressive/bizarre depending on your point of view. One such incident that made me take note this week was that of the extraordinary achievement made by Thomas Daigle and optician in Boston, Massachusetts. It seems his eagle eye has seen him pay off his mortgage a little earlier than anticipated, and with a shed load of pennies.
Pennies make pounds is an often bandied about phrase that never resonates with the majority of us, particularly as we never seem to have enough in the first place. Such a thought was thought ridiculous by Mr Daigle's wife as well, back in 1977. Ignoring his wife's point of view, Thomas, the optician, began collecting pennies as and when he found or received them and kept them stored up for a rainy day. I can only imagine all the times he must have recommended that people get their eyes examined and checked so as to be able to see perfectly, picking up even the most minute detail or item. It seems he practiced what he preached. Over 30 years of spotting a little glistening in the road or by the footpath saw him collect an astonishing 62,000 pennies, weighing in at over 800lbs.
So what is a man to do with so many pennies? Pay off his mortgage it would seem. And the look of bewilderment on the faces of his bank when he arrived must have been a picture. It actually took over two working days to sift through and count up all the loose change. By the end of it, Thomas was able to pay off his final mortgage payment. A good days work all in all.