Venmo at the farmer's market last Saturday caught me off guard

I used to always carry $40 cash for the local market, but last week I had to run to an ATM because the pie guy only took digital payments. Has anyone else run into places that are cash-only suddenly switching to cashless without warning?

3 comments

3 Comments

james_bell3d ago

Wait is that for real? A pie guy who only takes digital payments feels like some kind of hipster version of a Twilight Zone episode. I feel you though, I showed up at a taco stand last month with a $20 bill and the guy just stared at me like I handed him a rock from the stone age. Had to sheepishly walk to the nearest convenience store and buy a pack of gum just to break the bill, then walk back with my tail between my legs. Now I keep a five in my phone case just in case, but idk, it's getting harder to predict what they'll want. Maybe it's just me, but I miss when the hardest decision at the market was choosing between jam flavors, not figuring out how to pay for the jam.

the_paul3d ago

@james_bell I hear you, that taco stand story hit a little too close to home.

sethfoster3d ago

Whoa wait, a five in your phone case? That's genius actually but also kind of sad that we've gotten to that point haha. I had to do the exact same thing with a ten at a coffee pop-up, folded it up behind my cards. It's wild to me that we went from "cash is king" to "cash is basically Monopoly money" at some places in just a couple years. I swear last summer the pie guy took cash, so that switch feels personal somehow. Idk maybe it's just bad luck but it really does feel like a trap every time I hit the market now.