# Would you pick up a penny off the dirty floor of a public restroom? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 13, 2007, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986 "2007-04-13T17:26:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ferd\_Burfel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@Ferd\_Burfel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferd_Burfel)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2007, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/21 "2007-04-13T21:00:12Z")
[QUOTE=Trunk] I wouldn’t bend over to pick a penny up if it was lying on one of Sheryl Crow’s tits. [/QUOTE] Funny. I wouldn’t pick up Sheryl Crow’s tits, unless they were covering up a penny. ---
**Author:** ![Litoris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9f8e36/32.png) [@Litoris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Litoris)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2007, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/22 "2007-04-13T21:02:20Z")
Is it head’s up? ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2007, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/23 "2007-04-13T21:45:08Z")
Penny, no. Nickel, no. Dime or quarter (or new dollar coin), sure, depending on where in the bathroom it is. I’m not touching the ground anywhere around the base of the toilet, or worse, the urinal (you _know_ that area is covered in pee!). But if it’s under the sink or by the garbage can or something, sure, why not? ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2007, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/24 "2007-04-13T22:24:36Z")
[QUOTE=Dung Beetle] Me too! And then I’d spit it into my pants for safekeeping. 🙂 [/QUOTE] Well, yeah! How else??? ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2007, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/25 "2007-04-13T23:11:10Z")
A public bathroom floor is probably cleaner than the sidewalk since at least it gets cleaned once a day, so I don’t care about that, but I don’t pick up pennies in any case. I have too many as it is and it’s not worth it. A nickel or more? Sure. ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2007, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/26 "2007-04-13T23:25:25Z")
[QUOTE=Eyebrows 0f Doom] A public bathroom floor is probably cleaner than the sidewalk since at least it gets cleaned once a day, [/QUOTE] Yeah, but they’re dirty with different things. The sidewalk probably just has dirt and grime on it; the bathroom floor has dirt and grime _and_ urine and, at its worst, fecal matter. (Which the sidewalk might have as well if someone got dog poo on their shoe, but it’s not as likely.) ---
**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/27 "2007-04-14T01:53:54Z")
I’d leave it for poorer folk to grab. Slight hijack story. My uncle was once hospitalized with a lung infection. They found fecal coliform bacteria in his lungs. They figured the only way he could have got it (he was elderly then, and not kinky) was that he put his coffee mug down on the counter of the mall washroom he used. I don’t put any of my possessions on the floor in public washrooms and I avoid putting them on counters if I can manage it (to avoid the puddles, among other things). That said, a metal coin is probably easier to clean than almost anything else you could find, but I’d still leave change on the floor for people who really need cash. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/28 "2007-04-14T02:13:14Z")
[QUOTE=Eyebrows 0f Doom] A public bathroom floor is probably cleaner than the sidewalk since at least it gets cleaned once a day, so I don’t care about that, but I don’t pick up pennies in any case. I have too many as it is and it’s not worth it. A nickel or more? Sure. [/QUOTE] Read this from [Snopes](http://www.snopes.com/medical/disease/purse.asp). Mind you, the purses were likely on the floor in the stall next to the toilet, but still . . . ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/29 "2007-04-14T04:19:39Z")
I might keep a penny if it dropped in my hand from above. The act of closing my hand around said penny is the most effort I would ever make for 1¢. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/30 "2007-04-14T04:51:00Z")
I always pick up pennies, and have been for several decades. A few years ago, in a parking lot, I picked up a penny that happened to be a 1914-D, in “XF” condition (yeah, I had it certified). It’s currently valued at about $700. I would have picked up \*\*\*that \*\*\*penny from the filthiest restoom floor. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/31 "2007-04-14T07:55:58Z")
Only if I could wash it off. No amount of money is worth handling human waste without proper sanitation procedures. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/32 "2007-04-14T08:17:55Z")
Hell to the naw. I’ll generally pick up other coins, but not in the restroom. To those who said yes (and were serious) - Jesus, don’t you have even a _little_ self-respect? ---
**Author:** ![chowder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@chowder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chowder)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/33 "2007-04-14T09:14:01Z")
[QUOTE=Magiver] Only if I could wash it off. No amount of money is worth handling human waste without proper sanitation procedures. [/QUOTE] So if you saw a $100 bill sitting on some dog poo in the street you’d leave it until you had proper sanitation procedures at hand. I doubt it ---
**Author:** ![ParentalAdvisory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@ParentalAdvisory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParentalAdvisory)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/34 "2007-04-14T09:21:43Z")
[QUOTE=Magiver] Only if I could wash it off. No amount of money is worth handling human waste without proper sanitation procedures. [/QUOTE] Human waste and all that we carry is everywhere. Didn’t you ever see that 20/20 episode (or Dateline) with the blue die all over the place after people supposedly cleaned up? ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/35 "2007-04-14T12:55:19Z")
A curious question to all the germaphobes in this thread. Just what kind of sanitary conditions do you think the money that’s in your pocket right now has been through? :dubious: Anyway, I wouldn’t pick it up. That due to sheer laziness. ---
**Author:** ![Morelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Morelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morelin)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/36 "2007-04-14T13:06:45Z")
I’d leave it for my Mom. She was notorious for sending me halfway across the parking lot to pick up a penny. So now when I see one, I leave it there for her to pick up. Even though we don’t even live in the same state. It drives her crazy. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/37 "2007-04-14T16:49:38Z")
I pick up any money I find in clean enviroments. Nothing is too small. I won’t pick up a penny in the case of public restrooms, by dead animal, or say wrapped in a condom, not that I’ve run across that yet. I always figure a person that will take money out of a tiolet will be snickering as they exchange it at a register, so don’t take money from snickering stranger. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/38 "2007-04-14T17:14:35Z")
[QUOTE=chowder] So if you saw a $100 bill sitting on some dog poo in the street you’d leave it until you had proper sanitation procedures at hand. I doubt it [/QUOTE] A bill actually stuck to dog shit? No, I wouln’t take it. Of course, I wouldn’t even get close enough to it to see how big a bill it is. ---
**Author:** ![Caridwen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c89c15/32.png) [@Caridwen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caridwen)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/39 "2007-04-14T17:33:21Z")
[QUOTE=SHAKES] A curious question to all the germaphobes in this thread. Just what kind of sanitary conditions do you think the money that’s in your pocket right now has been through? :dubious: Anyway, I wouldn’t pick it up. That due to sheer laziness. [/QUOTE] Not clean. I wasn’t really talking about the bathroom, not that it’s better. I try not to let my hands come in contact with the pavement if I can help it. I was serious when I was talking about people spitting on the sidewalks. Bacteria lasts a long time in saliva, sometimes up to 6 months. Animal feces, particularly animals that may be sick. If you pick up anything from the sidewalk keep your hands off your face and wash your hands. Get someone to take a scraping from the bottom of your shoes sometime and have it analyzed. ---
**Author:** ![AngelicGemma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/439d5e/32.png) [@AngelicGemma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelicGemma)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986/40 "2007-04-14T18:09:33Z")
No. If I needed a penny that badly I’d borrow it from a friend. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-pick-up-a-penny-off-the-dirty-floor-of-a-public-restroom/399986.md?page=3)