Having never posted on Twitter or Facebook, I cobbled up this blog as my own private venting space. Commence the venting.
The wife sent me to the local hardware store today to pick up bird seed. She’d been there Sunday, but they were out. The woman said come back Tuesday when more would have arrived.
Do I need a raincheck? the wife asked.
No, said the employee. The price would be honored.
So, as I waited in line, with my two 20-pound sacks of bird seed propped against the counter, the gentleman ahead of me was having a similar discussion about — bird seed and pricing. This woman said the sale had ended. Instead of $19 plus tax for two bags, it now would come out to about $27 or $28 (tax included?)
He ponied up the extra money. I took my two bags back to the display and despite the offer from an older woman worker to put them back in place, I slung them up on the stack and left.
I try to patronize this local business, but they make it tough. Do an online product search and the item shows up as being on their shelves. Drive on over to the store and the items customarily are not in stock. Ask someone there and they say never to bother doing online search because it is extremely inaccurate.
Then why have it at all? Better yet, why not improve it so it is accurate and helpful?
I urged the wife to call the store and voice her complaint about the bird seed. She of course will not do so. So I rant here about wasting my time. I just might call when I get done venting.
On this very same excursion, I attempted to cash a cashier’s check from an area bank. I was trying to cash this at my bank branch and had, in fact, just cashed a personal check on my account in this very same visit.
But when I tried to leave with the money from the cashier’s check, I was told they would put a hold on my checking account for that amount, in excess of $4,000.
Otherwise, I could deposit it to my checking account and withdraw it tomorrow.
I was astounded. A cashiers check traditionally (and still is according to my internet search) considered much more safe due to such checks being guaranteed by the underwriting bank, not by the individual’s funds.
So, why this extra step? I was told I could show up bright and early tomorrow and pull the entire amount from my account.
“Cashier’s checks are the most common kind of fraud” replied the teller, sounding like every boilerplate-reading telephone representative with whom you’ve ever tried to address an inquiry.
And so I rant.
Ah, but there is a happy ending. I went to a local sub shop, where milk is, inexplicably, considerably lower in price than at the regional supermarket chain outlet less than half a mile away. The grandkids drink A LOT of milk.
The cashier was friendly. Another customer – a woman – who was entering held the door for me to exit.
If only this sub shop sold bird seed, or offered checking accounts.
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