Currency Better Than Credit At Times

Some people may think the use of plastic has become the only way to make a purchase. That's not true. There are still places where you must use cash. Getting a money advance prepares you for those times when only cash will do.

• Children at school:The lunch lady doesn't take plastic from children. If Johnny or Mary wants to get a bowl of tapioca in the cafeteria, a cash advance helps the child get it faster. If your offspring need to buy some pencils, they can get them and get to work. Kids are still kids and sometimes lose lunch money. A lost $5 bill is much easier to deal with than the hassle of a lost credit card.
• Donations to others: Most donations are made in small denominations. In practice, it's easier for charities to handle them that way and there is no risk of checking bouncing. When the collection plate is passed around at church, it's hard to toss in your credit card and hope the ushers charge the right amount. When Santa rings his bell and collects money during the holidays, change and bills are the traditional way to donate. The girl scouts seem to have wider smiles when they get real cash for their boxes of cookies. Having a cash advance is also handy when helping someone on the street who is down on his luck.
• Parking meters: Park your car in a major city and you'll likely need to feed a parking meter. Generally, it's much less expensive to use a meter than use a parking garage, which may charge as much as $10 an hour. Although cheaper to use, meters still require coins. Having spare cash in the form of change is critical if you want to avoid paying a parking fine.
• Vending machines: Very few vending machines have made the conversion to accepting credit and debit cards. They still need cash you can get in an advance. A key reason is the items being purchased are so cheap that it's not cost-effective to do a transaction over computer networks, which are maintained by fees charged to merchants. If you want a candy bar to satisfy a chocolate craving, most vending machines will only take coins or currency to take care of you.
• City buses: For years, getting a seat on a city bus required dropping cash into a square box near the driver. Inside is a mechanism that routes the coins based on their size so it can be determined whether the right fare has been paid. With transportation prices rising over the years, those boxes now accept bills in slots similar to those found in vending machines. A cash advance will help.
• Newspaper racks: Unless you get a newspaper delivered to your home or at a newsstand, you will need to have cash to buy a copy. Newspaper racks are clear boxes that hold a stack of the publication. When the right combination of coins is fed into slots on the box, a newspaper can be purchased.