Friday Adventures

Now that the weather is finally nice I plan on taking at least one adventure a week. Freedom to explore at your own pace is one of the greatest perks of being a stay at home mom.

Since we moved here I've been wanting to go watch how money is made at the Bureau of Printing and Engraving. The tickets are free but they are first come, first serve so you have to show up early. On Friday, I loaded up JAC and headed downtown in hopes of securing tickets. By the time we arrived they were out of morning tickets but I noticed they offered tours at 5:30PM.

I asked for 2 tickets and gave Jess a call with a proposal. Could he leave work a few minutes early? We would come and pick him up and we could all go on the tour together. He agreed and it turned out to be a really fun trip.

Here's a couple of random facts about money that we learned.

1. The paper money is printed on is actually 75% linen so paper money is more cloth than paper.
2. 95% of money printed is replacement money for worn out bills.
3. The average worker at the bureau will print more than his annual salary in less than an hour. (That has got to be mildly depressing.)
4. Money engravers must go through a 10 year apprenticeship.
5. The first letter in the serial number on a bill indicates where it was first shipped. For instance, the letter L means the bill was originally sent to the federal bank in San Fransisco, CA.

They wouldn't let us take pictures during the tour but we stopped at the Tulip Library on our way home and took a couple of pictures. Enjoy.