Pending

Yesterday, I logged into my account on my bank's web site to balance my checkbook from the weekend and got a great big shock. It seems the bank has cashed my rent check twice. One check, #1351, was rightfully made out and endorsed by my landlady, and had cleared by Monday morning as we share the same bank. The other check, #1321, was made out for the same amount to god-knows-who and was "pending." However, check #1321 was used waaay back in June and was made out to the gas company for $11.09. That check cleared in July and therefore should be null. Me, being me, of course, believes that this was human error. Afterall, "both" checks were made out for an odd amount (my rent is stabilized and therefore goes up in strange increments) and since the 2 is right below the 5 on the keypad, well, it just makes sense that someone's finger landed on the wrong digit. No problem to fix, correct? Well, this is the bank we're talking about, so you would be wrong. Majorly, majorly wrong. Worse, by the end of yesterday, they started to charge me overdraft penalties. That Starbucks latte just went from $4.50 t0 $39.50. Gah!

After I picked my stomach up off the floor, I calmly called the 800 number they provide for customer service and after a few automated gymnastics, I got a real person who basically told me that I had to wait 24-hours before they were able to do anything as she couldn't "see" the check and who it was made out to. Considering that check #1321 was in the system, I'm assuming she meant the one that was "cashed" on Friday, but since I'm pretty sure it's a phantom, I'm thinking she's going to be waiting for a long time for something to appear. However, being the patient saint that I am, I did as I was told and waited until this morning to log back in and to see if the check cleared. It was still pending. At which point, I gathered all the documents I needed for checks #1351 and #1321 and marched off to my local branch...where I got no satisfaction, but did get a small lecture about moving my account from Connecticut to California because they could service me better from in-state than out of state (funny, considering I called the national customer service line on Monday and they couldn't help me either, but I digress). The nice lady at my local branch did, however, open "a case" for me and I am now awaiting a phone call from my bank to clarify the matter. If it's bank error, she assured me, all monies including overdraft fees should be replaced by Friday. However, if it's fraud, the bank is going to screw me until they find out who stole the money because it could be me. (There were a couple of questions there that I did my best not to sigh heavily over and roll my eyes in blatant contempt at such amateurish interrogation tactics.) In the meantime, all my funds are frozen. That is, until I get paid next Tuesday, at which point the "overdraft" plus overdraft fees will be covered by my new paycheck. You know, the one that pays all my bills for the month? The bills that if you don't pay them by a specific time you get slapped with late fees and your credit score gets dinged? That paycheck and those bills. I have a feeling my bank is not going to intercede on my behalf with my other creditors and replace those monies. Nooo... "Bend over, sweetheart. This is going to hurt. A lot."

As I maintain that this is human error and not fraud, I have faith that this will be cleared up by Friday. Weirdly, I'm really not emotionally involved in this, and I'll tell you why. While I'm annoyed by the inconvenience, I think this is a cosmic test. You see, I've been stressing about money all year long (evidenced by a couple of earlier posts, follow the "lottery" label below). And all year long, I've been wanting to win or earn enough money to wipe out my debt completely. I've wanted to ease my way and clear my path towards something else (what else? I have no idea). So, just at the most stressful time of the year, the time when I need the most money, I lose 1/3 of my income through no fault of my own. Once again, I feel like Dian Fossey watching the gorillas, except this time, I'm watching the cosmos. What will happen? How will this right itself? I've been learning to let go. Maybe this is just one more area from which I need to pry my fingers.