i got these two pennies in my change from the same cash register on the Fourth. Nice and brand new for being 38 & 39 years old. The 1982 is neat because it has a slight obverse misalignment. The 1981 is cool because we know it’s not one with a zinc core. Someone must have been spending old money.
In 2009, I found all sorts of old AU coins in my change...mostly due to folks cashing in their change jars/jugs. I hear there's currently a shortage of change. It could be that bags of old coins, that have been sitting in the Treasury's vaults, are being put into circulation.