Money

What are we blogging about?

Scott: I don’t know.

You must have done something interesting over the past couple of days…

Scott: Well… Eh… Hmm… How about we talk about that bacon roll? No, we already talked about that…

Has nothing interesting happened since the bacon roll?

Scott: I’m just thinking…

Anything you learned at school?

Scott: Not really.

Anything you saw?

Scott: I don’t think so. What do you think we should talk about?

Something important.

Scott: Like what like?

Life, death, money, God…

Scott: Money sounds interesting…

What do you want to tell me?

Scott: I don’t know – I’m just thinking it sounds like an interesting topic.

What is money?

Scott: Well, in case you don’t know – which is very unlikely – money is a form of trade which you use to buy things.

What would happen if there wasn’t money?

Scott: Then no-one could buy anything.

Would that be a bad thing?

Scott: Depends. I mean, generally. If you think about it, it would be a good thing but at the same time it would be a bad thing. We could get anything, but the bad thing would be that nothing would have any value – not the tallest towers or the most precious diamonds.

You’ve summed it up very well. That’s one of the problems.

Scott: What do you mean?

Well, a lot of people are very rich and a lot of people are very poor, and that’s not fair.

Scott: If you think about it…

Should rich people give more of their money to poor people?

Scott: I don’t know. I’ve been thinking about the credit crunch. If rich people donated their money to the credit crunch, the cost would go down but their money would go down so it would be equal.

But they’d still be rich, they just wouldn’t be as rich…

Scott: Yeah, but…

Some people have billions and billions of pounds they’ll never spend.

Scott: Weird. Think how much that would do for the community if they just give it away.

That’s socialism.

Scott: What is?

Doing things for the benefit of others, or the common good. Does that sound good?

Scott: Yeah.

Unless you’re rich?

Scott: Well, yeah…

Money. Sort of.

What are we blogging about?

Scott: Hmm…

Helen: Random things.

Scott: Money.

Helen: Random things. My Assembly tomorrow.

Scott: Money. Why don’t we blog about it on the day so you know what it’s like?

Helen: I know what it’s like.

Scott: Never mind. Money.

Helen: No. We both need to agree.

Scott: I’m never going to agree to that.

Any questions you want to ask me?

Helen: Yeah.

Scott: Nah – I want to talk about money.

Okay, what about money?

Helen: Money’s what you spend on clothes and things.

Scott: That’s an uninteresting way to talk about it.

• And at that point, they started to squabble so much we had to cut short the blogging…

Daddy blog

As Daddy was blogging tonight, he got to do the drawing.

So, we decided you’d ask me questions and I’d do a drawing…

Scott: Yeah. What categories should we put the questions in?

Helen: What do you mean?

Scott: Like…

Helen: I do not know what you mean…

Scott: Helen, what category? Name me some categories.

Or you could ask random questions.

Helen: Nah…

Scott: Hmm – random…

Go on, then…

Scott: How do you figure out the answer to all nine times table questions?

Multiply by 10 and then subtract?

Scott: That isn’t what I’d do. I would, like… Let’s take an easy one like nine times three. You know it’s 27, but first take away the number that isn’t the nine and then you take away one from that and then the number you’ve got there is the number at the 10. And that added to that makes nine, is the answer to the units.

Eh – I think I understand. What else?

Helen: Let me think…

Scott: Your question, Helen.

Helen: This is a question we never knew, I’m just asking Daddy this. How old was Grandpa Sandy when he died? He’s in the gold frame.

I don’t know actually – 50?

Helen: Yeah – he died before even one of us were born.

What question next?

Helen: Scott.

Scott: My turn…

Helen: Random things which isn’t sums…

Scott: What do you think the rarest coin in?

Oh, I don’t know – maybe a very old Roman one. Helen?

Helen: Hmm… How many eyelashes are there on your eyes?

Scott: I’ll count. I can’t count!

I don’t know – hundreds on each eye. One more question each…

Scott: Eh…

Helen: A million!

Scott: What do you think the… The biggest… Biggest… As in the worst possible – the forgery of money was and people fell for it?

Helen: I’m growing a willy!

If they fell for it, we’ll never know.

Scott: Then it was found out later.

I don’t know – hundreds of millions of pounds probably.

Scott: Hmm… Rich…

Last question, Helen.

Helen: Hmm… What’s the rarest CD?

Hmm…That I have, or ever?

Helen: Ever.

It’ll be by someone we’ve never heard of because so few were made – it won’t be by The Beatles or anything.

Helen: Oh.

Do you prefer asking or answering questions?

Helen: Asking.

Scott: Answering.

Clay characters

I took a picture of the clay figures like you asked me to.

Scott: Yeah.

It looks like a person and a dog.

Scott: Yeah.

Helen: What’s up with that?

Is that what it is?

Scott: Yes.

Who is it?

Scott: It’s just a character.

And a dog?

Scott: Yeah… No – that must mean characters, then.

Tell me about it.

Scott: What are we talking about? It was originally a man doing press ups with a dog on his back, then I thought that didn’t look right – then I took the dog off. Then I gave the dog a tail, then I made him stare at the man. He is red!

Anything else?

Scott: Em… Well… Do not… Not sure.

Anything you want to tell me, Helen?

Helen: No, I’ve got nothing I want to tell you about Scott’s little things.

Anything you want to tell me generally?

Helen: No.

Scott: No, no, no – Helen is only no.

Anything else you want to tell me, Scott?

Scott: You mean just in general, rather than just about the clay models?

Yeah.

Scott: The smash bank smashed yesterday – there’s over £100 of money in there, plus £5 in coppers.

How long have you been putting money in the bank?

Scott: Nine whole years.

Helen: Nine and a half years.

Scott: I’ve been saving up since I was born!

Money

Why did you want to talk about money again?

Scott: I just thought that drawing popped into my head – I thought it would look good for the blog. So I thought it would be a good thing to talk about money.

It’s a great drawing.

Scott: Not really a drawing, to be honest.

It’s a great idea for a picture.

Scott: Yep.

So what is money?

Scott: Well, it something that you’ll spend usually or save up. I also call it trading.

Why is it important?

Scott: Em… Well… We wouldn’t be able to buy anything without it. Even the smallest amount of money can make a difference.

How much money have you got?

Scott: Well, maybe £9 now. I borrowed 5p from Helen as well…

Helen: No, you didn’t!

Scott: Don’t mind, Helen.

What are you going to buy with your money?

Scott: I’m saving up for the Trash Pack. And by the way – no…

The garbage truck, you mean?

Scott: Yeah.

How much is it?

Scott: £17 you said, didn’t you?

How long will it take you to save that?

Scott: Say, two or three weeks if I’m lucky – five if I’m not.

Maybe I could ask you to do something for me and give you money for it.

Scott: Really?

Yes, like a job, a task or a chore.

Scott: Can we do that after we blog?

Not now – but sometime over the weekend?

Scott: You could give me a quick one now.

Helen: Because you’re still saving up for it, and that would give you more.

Money yet again

Scott: Money!

What is money?

Scott: (pause) No better way to say it than “money”.

Yes, but what is it?

Scott: It’s really hard to say, but there’s no better way to say it.

What does it look like?

Scott: It’s round, most are small cylinders. I always get hexagons and pentagons mixed up, so I can’t say what the 50p and 20p look like.

What does it do?

Scott: Let’s you get stuff.

Why is it important?

Scott: If you didn’t, you wouldn’t have a house to live in.

Who’s the richest person in the world?

Helen: Pirates.

Scott: I don’t know.

Helen: Well, pirates.

Scott: Millionaires are usually rich. Helen, pirates are extinct. I’d say millionaires are the richest.

Helen: Pirates have sailed the seven seas.

Scott: But pirates are extinct – so what are we supposed to say?

Who’s the poorest person in the world?

Scott: I don’t know.

Helen: I don’t know.

How much money have we got?

Helen: Well, lots.

Scott: A lot.

Why do you say that?

Scott: I don’t know – we can afford a house and quite a few other things.

What would the world be like without money?

Scott: Well, things would be a lot cheaper.

Helen: Gold and silver and earrings. And jewels and coins. And 5ps and 6ps…

Scott: Helen, no-one would have money!

Helen: No, that’s treasure.

Scott: And you would never get any reward for finding artefacts.

Money. Again.

Scott: Let’s talk about money, MONEY spells money.

Okay, tell me about money.

Scott: Money is stuff that you buy stuff with.

Is it important?

Scott: Very.

Why?

Helen: Because you can buy things with it.

Scott: We’d die of starvation if we didn’t.

Anything else?

Scott: Die of starvation… We’d be quite bored.

You counted your money earlier, didn’t you?

Scott: Yes.

How much did you have?

Scott: £31.77 in my pocket money bank.

What are you going to buy with it?

Scott: I was planning on getting some Lego.

Helen: Which is not a good idea.

Why not?

Helen: Because he’s got too much Lego.

Who do you think is the richest person in the world?

Helen: Eh… A farmyard person – they’d be the richest. Who do you think?

Scott: Can I make up someone?

Yes.

Scott: MMM – I’ve made up someone. It’s just a piece of money – a gazillion pounds.

No, who do you think?

Helen: I think Scott’s the richest.

Scott: Vincent Van Gogh because he’s the best painter in the world.

Who is the poorest person in the world?

Helen: Me.

Scott: Yes, you are Helen. You are so poor you want to die. I don’t have much, but it’s enough  to buy a million pounds.

 

Money

What’s the worst thing that could happen to you?

Scott: Losing the Wii.

Why?

I wouldn’t be able to play Super Mario Sunshine, unless we got a Game Cube.

Helen: Mine would be losing my tights, because I love them.

Scott: Who’s got the best answers? We should get points for each.

And what’s the best thing that could happen to you?

Scott: Em, em – getting all the Lego Ninjago for Christmas.

Helen: Getting all the Disney Princess things.

The best thing ever?

Scott: It might not be the best thing ever, but it’s the best I can thing of as Christmas is a long way away.

What about the best thing to happen to anyone?

Scott: I know – getting double all the money in the world.

Helen: Double a little bit of money.

Scott: That would be the best.

Why?

Scott: You could buy anything and the shops would run out. All the money in the world is only just enough to buy everything in the world.

What would you do?

Scott: I’d buy all the Ninjago I didn’t have and I would also buy a DS and Super Mario Bros DS and Yoshi’s Island DS.

Would you buy Mum and Dad anything?

Scott: I’d buy you a bed that always gives you a long lie. I don’t know if they exist, but I would pay someone to make you one.

All the money in the world.