the badbadivy experience

So I finally got some of the money that one of my jobs owes me. Some, not all. Still, I was happy. I danced down to the bank, check in hand, and deposited most of the money.

But alas! There was an additional sheet of paper stapled to the deposit receipt. I looked at it, and it said my money was being held until…get this…NEXT Monday, the 12th. Now, I’m not a complete dumbass, I know the banks have the right to hold your money hostage for at least 5 business days if they feel like it. But I wanted to know why.

So I got the kids out of the car and went into the bank and asked, “Why is this deposit being held until next Monday?” I didn’t yell, I was not shitty in any way shape or form.

The lady that was manning the front desk started SCREAMING at me about how the bank has the right to do this, and…get this…it was because there was not enough money in the federal reserve to pay the check. BTW, the amount I was depositing was $589. ‘Our economy must be worse off than I thought’, I thought, and walked out of the bank. After we walked out, Megs said, “Why was that lady mad at you? You didn’t yell at her.” I told Megs it was because she was a haggard old bitch (OK, I really said it was because the lady had had a long, crappy day at work, but the haggard bitch was probably truer) and we went home, still broke.

On the way home, I called Mystery Lady X about it, and vented for a little while, and MLX suggested I call the bank’s customer service hotline to find out the *real* reason why they were holding my check. After I hung up with MLX, Megs then told me, “It’s time to be a diva so you can get what you want.” Megs knows the score, man.

So I called the customer service hotline and got a totally cool rep who explained it was because it was an out of state check, not because we live in Sudan or something, and there’s no money to cash that humongous $589 check. We got a good laugh about it, and I hung up, once again satisfied with my bank.

But I’m still going to spend a little time crying in the shower (Thanks Malia!) later about how I had to call the electric company and beg for an extension, when I thought I was never going to have to do that again because I got this new job.

When I was in NY, one of my co-workers laughed about how our pay rate was pretty minor, but she took the job for fun. Why couldn’t they have lost HER invoice? I’m such a bitch.