# I'm going to 1998, how do I bring money? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 28, 2010, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655 "2010-04-28T19:04:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Mosier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ea924/32.png) [@Mosier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mosier)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/41 "2010-04-29T09:28:46Z")
Sports betting. Don’t need a bunch of money to end up a millionaire overnight. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/42 "2010-04-29T14:05:44Z")
> [@Jolly\_Roger](#): > > Well, if there are going to be TWO mes in 1998 or 94 I can take 1998. Because I can’t go to the same place I was in 1998 (won’t that destroy the universe or something?). But since I’m still me I can do some background things to influence past-me to avoid a few bad situations. Let me know when you’re picking me up. I need to get a shitload of quarters. In the chapter on rules, they said it’s okay to meet yourself in the past, but you’re not allowed to change your personal history because it could have a butterfly effect, and you’re not allowed to make out with yourself because it just freaks people out. The gambling suggestion made me realize I could probably get a “low amount” lottery ticket. Like when you choose three out of five correct numbers and win $500. If the amount is low enough, you can redeem the winning ticket at the point of purchase and there isn’t much of a fuss about ID or anything. ::checking:: Yup, the area lottery/gaming commission says I can claim prizes up to $1,000 at the lottery retailer (if they can afford it, otherwise you have to go to a “Prize Claim Center” or a more affluent retailer). So if I just set it up to win a few prizes in the $150-$200 range, I’m good, and I only need a handful of quarters to play. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/43 "2010-04-29T15:07:38Z")
> [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](#): > > Our friend is lending us his 1996 Mazda Protege. So we should fit in seamlessly. In that clunker with 165,000 miles on it? ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/44 "2010-04-29T15:24:15Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > In that clunker with 165,000 miles on it? It was his grandmother’s. She only ever drove it to Bingo on Sundays. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/45 "2010-04-29T15:36:30Z")
> [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](#): > > It was his grandmother’s. She only ever drove it to Bingo on Sundays. Yeah, but if it’s a time travelling Mazda, EVERY day is Sunday. Grandma has a huge gambling problem. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/46 "2010-04-29T17:10:51Z")
> [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](#): > > Our guidebook says we’re not allowed to fiddle with history. Maybe that’s changed in the newer edition, but in the meantime we’re still aiming for “leave no trace” time hiking. Our friend is lending us his 1996 Mazda Protege. So we should fit in seamlessly. We’re just worried about how to pay for everything. What will the stickers on the license plates say? 2010? You’ll be pulled over for phony registration… ---
**Author:** ![Emily\_Litella](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emily_litella/32/3370_2.png) [@Emily\_Litella](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emily_Litella)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/47 "2010-04-29T17:42:52Z")
I don’t have anything to add really, just remember to party like it’s 1999. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/48 "2010-04-29T17:47:56Z")
One wonders why you’d want to go back in time 12 years just to go camping. How would you even know what year it was out in the woods? By looking at the bears using TrashForager 2.1 rather than the 9000X Picnic-B-Gone? Because I can tell you that many bears even today haven’t upgraded to the new system and are not going to take kindly to some stranger coming in mocking them for not being early adopters. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/49 "2010-04-29T17:55:30Z")
You could reveal that the Y2K bug isn’t going to happen, so everyone can calm down and save billions of dollars. That should be worth a fairly substantial reward. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/50 "2010-04-29T18:04:53Z")
> [@RalfCoder](#): > > You’d get hosed **VERY** badly. [This site](http://www.goldprice.org/spot-gold.html) shows gold was trading at about $400/ounce in 1996, and it’s now about $1150/oz. > … With that info, one can safely pay a little extra for pre-1998 bills. All you’d have to do is buy some gold in the past and sell it upon return to the present. Older bills, while perhaps rare, shouldn’t be too difficult to accumulate. Have you asked the Time Consulate for advice? ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/51 "2010-04-29T18:13:14Z")
> [@Skammer](#): > > It’ll be hard to find 12-year old bills, since the life expectancy of a bill is only a few years (18 months for $1.) But you could load up on coins. I’ll bet if you buy a thousand dollars worth of quarters, you’d end up with a couple of hundred in pre-'98 coins. Of the 85 cents in change currently in my pocket, 60 cents is pre-1998. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/52 "2010-04-29T18:20:35Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > You could reveal that the Y2K bug isn’t going to happen, so everyone can calm down and save billions of dollars. That should be worth a fairly substantial reward. Thus preventing people from fixing their software, which would result in the Y2K bug actually crashing many systems, costing billions of dollars. The time police would have you in temporal lockup for 10,000 years for that one. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/53 "2010-04-29T18:40:27Z")
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**Author:** ![Triskadecamus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@Triskadecamus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triskadecamus)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/54 "2010-04-29T18:46:55Z")
Stop for lunch a few times in 1998 in Las Vegas. Sports betting at a nice club with a buffet. Super Bowl XXXII – Denver Broncos won 31–24 over the Green Bay Packers World Series – New York Yankees win 4 games to 0 over the San Diego Padres. The Series MVP is Scott Brosius, New York Chicago Bulls win 4 games to 2 over the Utah Jazz, to complete their second three–peat of the decade. Kentucky Derby – Real Quiet, Preakness Stakes – Real Quiet, Belmont Stakes – Victory Gallop Tris ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/55 "2010-04-29T19:52:37Z")
> [@Triskadecamus](#): > > Stop for lunch a few times in 1998 in Las Vegas. Sports betting at a nice club with a buffet. > > Super Bowl XXXII – Denver Broncos won 31–24 over the Green Bay Packers > > World Series – New York Yankees win 4 games to 0 over the San Diego Padres. The Series MVP is Scott Brosius, New York > > Chicago Bulls win 4 games to 2 over the Utah Jazz, to complete their second three–peat of the decade. > > Kentucky Derby – Real Quiet, Preakness Stakes – Real Quiet, Belmont Stakes – Victory Gallop > > Tris Kid’s stuff. Print out a [bracket](http://www.databasesports.com/ncaab/tourney.htm?yr=1998) and bring it with you. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/56 "2010-04-29T21:47:20Z")
This would be a decent way to dispose of a still-working-but-obsolete computer. Better than throwing it in the trash, and you might even make some money. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/57 "2010-04-29T21:56:03Z")
> [@Enderw24](#): > > One wonders why you’d want to go back in time 12 years just to go camping. How would you even know what year it was out in the woods? We’re only camping because it’s cheaper than a hotel. We intend to wander the cities and museums and go shopping. I bt I can re-find my favorite pants! > [@Bricker](#): > > What will the stickers on the license plates say? 2010? You’ll be pulled over for phony registration… We just have to peel off the newer stickers. Granny just pasted the new ones over the old ones every year. It’ll be tough, but a little GooGone should do the trick. ---
**Author:** ![Jet\_Jaguar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jet_jaguar/32/3562_2.png) [@Jet\_Jaguar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jet_Jaguar)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2010, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/58 "2010-04-29T22:09:44Z")
You could always go back in a stepwise fashion. Collect, say, pre-2004 money, then stopping in 2004 to change for older bills. I don’t think it would be too hard to find 1998 money, but that might be handy to anyone planning to go back further, like to the 1950’s or something. ---
**Author:** ![Triskadecamus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@Triskadecamus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triskadecamus)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2010, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/59 "2010-04-30T02:49:41Z")
Step wise, the NCAA tourney, and a month in Vegas, once a decade, trade your winnings in on old cash. Same thing with horse racing, pretty much anywhere there is a track. If you get greedy, you could screw yourself up, but a five thousand dollar winner once a year isn’t even going to hit the radar at a major track. Come to think of it, pay whatever for a few 1950’s silver certificates, go back, and do the steps coming back forward, playing two or three exacta bets a year you could be bringing the old cash with you in untraceable, circulated tens and twenties. Pick two or three different tracks, on busy days, no chance anyone will notice. Tris ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2010, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655/60 "2010-04-30T15:01:42Z")
The steps idea is brilliant! I don’t know why I didn’t think of it. I just have to pull over in 2005 and 2001 and I’m pretty much guaranteed to get the bills I need for 1998! Genius! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-going-to-1998-how-do-i-bring-money/537655.md?page=4)