I do not think I have mentioned this but I finally was able to win an auction for a Mac Mini. I am using it to post this blog (and it was also used to post my last entry as well). It took me many months as I was very picky (and very cheap) when bidding. First of all, I did not want to spend more than $135 (including shipping) and I also wanted to make sure that the auction included the power brick (some did not) and the original install discs (many did not). I probably bid and lost 60 auctions before I finally won one. I had really given up hope of keeping the price under my budget but my persistence paid off finally. I am using some blog software (free) called Qumana (hence the Powered by Qumana tag at the end of this post).
One thing we had to do because of our move to Texas was find a new bank. The bank we used in Indiana only had branches in a handful of Indiana cities. I get a deal though my work for many of the big banks. Mostly that means I get the higher level checking account at a discounted rate or free. Then I got a letter in the mail from Chase that offered $125 for opening a new checking and savings account and met certain other criteria. There are so many banks near our house (including 3 Chase branches) so I had my choice. If it were not for that letter I would likely not have chosen Chase (so in this case, junk mail worked). I followed the included instructions and was soon on my way.
It took a few days to set up the connection to my current bank and confirm I was who I said I was but eventually I had made a transfer of funds and was set up. Our first real deposit was the rent check from our renters back in Indiana. It was a chance for the wife to check out one of the local branches and get a feel for our new bank. When we were living in Texas previously, my employer had a credit union that I used. Since my company was bought by another company, that credit union changed its name. I was leaning toward it when the junk mail from Chase arrived even though there were several more layers of paperwork involved. Anyway, I logged in to the Chase web site the next day to see if the deposit was recorded. To my surprise, only $200 of the check was available and the rest was on some sort of hold. It was still on hold a week later when I got another letter from Chase, and this one was not junk mail.
At the top of the letter in bold print were the words "Deposit Hold Notice". It listed the amount being held and the reason...
the deposited check(s) is/are not consistent with the account's normal deposit activity
Huh? Other than the initial transfer of funds to open the account, I have no deposit activity. The more I thought about it I came to the conclusion that since this was my ONLY deposit activity then that made this deposit EXACTLY like my normal deposit activity. This WAS my normal deposit activity! Fortunately, I did not need these funds but the letter indicated they would be held for an additional week still before being released. Since I will get a check like this every month, I decided to call the bank.
I explained the absurdity of calling this anything but my normal deposit activity. I was trying to determine if this check would be held each month for 10 business days so I could plan accordingly. The lady on the phone was nice enough and even called the check's issuing bank to see if they could confirm funds. She came back on the line a few moments later and indicated that the issuing bank had a minimum dollar amount that they would confirm funds for and this was below that amount. I joked that if this was to be the normal bank response then I would have to consider raising my rent (I think she thought I was serious). After a bit more back and forth we ended the call.
So anyway, we got our debit cards. I wish I could change my pin some other way than going into the bank (the ATM would not let us do it) and the little Visa logo looks funny to me (our last few debit cards were MasterCard) but other than that we are happy. And there is the $125. I guess that is payment for my frustration.
Jon
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