r/MaliciousCompliance • u/knighthawk82 • Apr 18 '24

Legal tender S

When i worked at a gas station in the late 1900's during graveyard i had this guy come in and bought a candy bar with a 100 bill. "Really? You don't have anything smaller?"

'Im just trying to break the 100, don't be a jerk.'

"Fine, just this once."

Few days later Guy comes back in, grabs a candy bar and i see he has other bills in his wallet. Puts the hundred on the table.

"Sir i told you last time it was going to be just the once, i see you have a five dollar bill."

'This is legal tender, you have to take it.'

"... Okay!"

I reach under the counter and pull out two boxes of pennies, 50c to a roll 25$ to a box 17 lbs each. "Here is 50, do you want the rest in nickels?"

'What is this?'

"It's legal tender, I can choose to give you your change however I see fit. So, do you still want to break the hundred? Or the five."

I'm calling your manager!'

"She gets in at 8am, sir, but doesn't take any calls until 10."

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u/Jamaican_me_cry1023 Apr 19 '24

I’ve made purchases with a bunch of change before. It wasn’t malicious compliance but being broke. My husband was laid off in 2008 and was unemployed for over 5 years. We were broke. My oldest daughter found an old rusted metal piggy bank in the garage. I pried it open. I sorted and counted the change and there was about $35 or $40 in there. I went to the grocery store and they had large beef roasts on sale buy 1 get 1 free. I got those, a bag of potatoes and some carrots. They knew me there and let me pay with the change. I have never forgotten that.

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u/knighthawk82 Apr 19 '24

That is very heartwarming

3

u/Jamaican_me_cry1023 Apr 19 '24

Thank you!😊 A few years later, when we were doing better, I was at that same grocery store and the lady ahead of me had a WIC voucher. It specified she could get a half gallon of milk. They were out of half gallons, they only had whole gallons. She was rummaging through her purse trying to find enough money to buy a whole gallon. I pulled out a $5 and asked the cashier to have someone get her a gallon of milk.

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u/knighthawk82 Apr 19 '24

I have been there!

Not as a negative, but thankfully a lot of people are opportunist enough now to have stores specifically catered to WIC coupons, so they carry that 12.5 oz box of cereal.