Arsehole Economy

It is amazing what an arsehole can do for the economy.

No, I am not talking about politics. I am talking about Christmas card thieves.

I sent Judith a check to pay for some books. The check never arrived, apparently having been stolen from her mailbox, along with the rest of her mail, one day. The bank said it would cost $29. to stop payment, but then they said the real problem was that a thief apparently had our account information, and if he was smart enough, that could cause even bigger problems, so I should just close out the accounts and open new ones, with new numbers.

I had no idea how long that would take, and how much paper would be required, since direct depositors had to be notified, and Mari had to co-sign and, somehow, we ought to try to get it to stop snowing, since--going out the door from home--I had taken one step on the walk and fallen flat on my back. That may have affected how lucidly I described the problem.

But Wells Fargo displayed a lot more mercy my wayward check and stopping payment than they have on my mortgage, and waived the fees. Or maybe the guy just peeked at my balance and faced reality. Either way, we worked it out.

More than that, he promised to be in town when the rest of the work needs to be done: after the next direct deposits have been made, and after I figure out which accounts to neglect and which to use, and after it quits sleeting.

Ruth's book had damned well better be a good one. It has caused a major tremor to run through the whole banking system, and I landed flat on my back, too.

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