This weekend was hot. It was the official beginning of summer. I barely left my house. When I did I was again confronted with the changes in my neighborhood. It's like the rats on a ship or roaches in the dark metaphor. Into the blinding sunlight and mildly scorching heat came the ghostly bodies of my new neighbors. Mouth dryingly pale and still without manners. It's going to be a fun summer. I love sitting on the stairs of the library, now known as my office, and having to stare down the Park Sloper with the baby crying because it's hot and mommy can't take it in the library SCREAMING like that to cool it off or leave because she's got a great spot to get some sun on her legs.
So here I am sitting alone listening to my iPod scribbling furiously on the stupid story I've been hacking away at, I mean writing, for like 2 years now.... "Sorry, what? No, no one's sitting there." What could I say? No one was sitting there. I wasn't prepared to act crazy and have imaginary friends. So down she sits and my table's perfectly placed for two ways to get sun and put the baby under the umbrella. The screaming baby. The baby screaming so loud that my Erik Satie makes my head hurt and hands shake cause it's too loud and grating. I stare at the mother who apologizes profusely, but what am I supposed to say? "I accept your apology, but it would be better if you took your SCREAMING MONKEY home."
She started doing all the things mothers do to make their children shut up, to no avail. I start shifting. I'm already hot and uncomfortable and writing outside and feel weird. How do I describe how I felt with the future sitting there raising hell and a mother who kinda didn't give a shit. (Now, let me say that I have friends with kids and I know it's a tough job and adults don't want to be cooped up with kids all day. But I also know that that's why I don't have kids and really resent being subjected to other peoples problems.)
I guess it's just that I'm seeing something more and more that disturbs me about this neighborhood I love so much. Too many babies. When I'm dictator, I'm putting a moratorium on procreating in Prospect Heights. Go to Queens to fuck up your kids.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Chase Bank Can Suck it
I’m unemployed. Usually this doesn’t mean much because I’m freelance on commercials and have many weeks with no work. But I haven’t worked since December and it’s really annoying, at best. But that’s not the problem today. The problem today is J.P. Morgan Chase bank.
Or, as I affectionately call them, the devil. I get that we’re in an economic recession, which by the way, means nothing to me. I’m always in some sort of economic recession only everyone’s in my situation now and it’s not as lonely here. But “the devil” keeps taking what little money I do have. I understand banking practices and know it’s a system built on years of careful honing of greed and avarice. Not a wall to break down overnight, but when you don’t have any money, it becomes that much apparent.
In the last few months I’ve paid Chase over $600 in overdraft fees. That’s with the credit card that’s supposed to pay for those fees which charges 27% or so right now. I transferred my last CD into my checking account to cover some bills and it seems the more money I put in the more money they take out. Now, I’m not going to say I’m all that great with the account balancing business, but I’ve been attempting to be precise about it lately. I use chase.com to monitor my purchases and have been frugal and cognizant of my purchases to the last penny. Some automatic deductions do still throw me for a loop, like the gym and my non-Chase savings account, but I usually keep up.
But today was the breaking point. I’d walked around with $10 in my pocket all weekend to ensure all transactions were covered and still got charged. Online the payments were pending and deducted from my available balance, I made a deposit 2 days ago and today, they’ve taken $105 in fees.
I was furious. I called and was told I’d already gotten my yearly courtesy refund and I refused to take that as the final decision and spoke to a manager. She explained to me while yelling over my yelling that I need to make some changes in my life and some sacrifices. WHAT? I then went on to rail about no job, no money and giving one-fourth of my money to Chase every week. I lowered my voice, apologized for my tone chalking it up to frustration and requested another refund. I informed the manager that I was going to request a refund every time I believed I was in the right. I told her that even if they didn’t give it to me, I was going to ask for one when the time between the bank charging me overdraft fees, a merchant presenting a receipt, and a check clearing was a matter of hours because none of these things are in my control. I’ve done everything I’m supposed to do as much as I can short of having a combined balance of $5000. That’s just not in the cards for me right now. I wish it were because it’s very expensive not having any money.
Eventually, we wore each other down. She gave me back most of my money and I changed my account to one that doesn’t charge a service fee and fits my current needs better. What I learned was that in these “tough economic times” it’s expected that people will give up and be too embarrassed, ashamed and frustrated to stand up for themselves financially. Especially to a bank. That’s what they’re counting on. So don’t give up. Keep calling and asking for what you want. They can only say no and everyone’s not going to say no. Chase has enough money. I can’t afford to keep it afloat and neither can a lot of people. We have to stand up for ourselves and not be embarrassed about not having the money we used to have. Hell, the banks had to ask for money they didn’t earn. I’m just asking to hold on to the little money I have.
Or, as I affectionately call them, the devil. I get that we’re in an economic recession, which by the way, means nothing to me. I’m always in some sort of economic recession only everyone’s in my situation now and it’s not as lonely here. But “the devil” keeps taking what little money I do have. I understand banking practices and know it’s a system built on years of careful honing of greed and avarice. Not a wall to break down overnight, but when you don’t have any money, it becomes that much apparent.
In the last few months I’ve paid Chase over $600 in overdraft fees. That’s with the credit card that’s supposed to pay for those fees which charges 27% or so right now. I transferred my last CD into my checking account to cover some bills and it seems the more money I put in the more money they take out. Now, I’m not going to say I’m all that great with the account balancing business, but I’ve been attempting to be precise about it lately. I use chase.com to monitor my purchases and have been frugal and cognizant of my purchases to the last penny. Some automatic deductions do still throw me for a loop, like the gym and my non-Chase savings account, but I usually keep up.
But today was the breaking point. I’d walked around with $10 in my pocket all weekend to ensure all transactions were covered and still got charged. Online the payments were pending and deducted from my available balance, I made a deposit 2 days ago and today, they’ve taken $105 in fees.
I was furious. I called and was told I’d already gotten my yearly courtesy refund and I refused to take that as the final decision and spoke to a manager. She explained to me while yelling over my yelling that I need to make some changes in my life and some sacrifices. WHAT? I then went on to rail about no job, no money and giving one-fourth of my money to Chase every week. I lowered my voice, apologized for my tone chalking it up to frustration and requested another refund. I informed the manager that I was going to request a refund every time I believed I was in the right. I told her that even if they didn’t give it to me, I was going to ask for one when the time between the bank charging me overdraft fees, a merchant presenting a receipt, and a check clearing was a matter of hours because none of these things are in my control. I’ve done everything I’m supposed to do as much as I can short of having a combined balance of $5000. That’s just not in the cards for me right now. I wish it were because it’s very expensive not having any money.
Eventually, we wore each other down. She gave me back most of my money and I changed my account to one that doesn’t charge a service fee and fits my current needs better. What I learned was that in these “tough economic times” it’s expected that people will give up and be too embarrassed, ashamed and frustrated to stand up for themselves financially. Especially to a bank. That’s what they’re counting on. So don’t give up. Keep calling and asking for what you want. They can only say no and everyone’s not going to say no. Chase has enough money. I can’t afford to keep it afloat and neither can a lot of people. We have to stand up for ourselves and not be embarrassed about not having the money we used to have. Hell, the banks had to ask for money they didn’t earn. I’m just asking to hold on to the little money I have.
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