Frugal Living: 25 new messages in 12 topics

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

25 new messages in 12 topics - digest

misc.consumers.frugal-living
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living?hl=en

misc.consumers.frugal-living@googlegroups.com

Today's topics:

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Woman is content living in 84-sq. ft. tiny dream home.
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/911886124117ed11?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 1:12 pm
From: "Rod Speed"

Tim Campbell <timcall@sbcglobal.net> wrote
> Rod Speed <rod.speed....@gmail.com> wrote

>> Yeah, saw that, but an RV or trailer makes a
>> lot more sense because its easier to move too.

> If ya don't mind all that plastic and the formaldahyde vapors...

Those are trivially avoidable if you're obsessed about those.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Breast-Feeding: Private Act or Public Right?
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/d9ae679497789a49?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 6 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 11:58 am
From: Kelsey Bjarnason

On Mon, 23 Jul 2007 12:07:50 -0700, firelock_ny wrote:

> On Jul 23, 1:45 pm, Kelsey Bjarnason <kbjarna...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> [snips]
>>
>> On Sun, 22 Jul 2007 20:08:38 +0000, Terry Austin wrote:
>> >>> Indeed. For atheists, it is apparently a natural talent, not learned
>> >>> behavior.
>>
>> >> Please explain what the correlation is between atheism and lying or
>> >> bullshitting. If you cannot demonstrate such a correlation, then your
>> >> statement is, itself, a lie, which doesn't exactly give you the moral
>> >> high ground, now does it?
>>
>> > You're not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, are you?
>>
>> That's nice. Still doesn't support the contention made. Shall we assume
>> you cannot, and therefore were, in fact, simply lying?
>
> Kelsey, you're talking to *Terry Austin*. He isn't
> here to show you whether or not he's lying.
>

Or much of anything else, apparently.

--
Hell hath no fury like the lawyer of a woman scorned.

== 2 of 6 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 11:58 am
From: Kelsey Bjarnason

[snips]

On Mon, 23 Jul 2007 21:22:06 +0000, No 33 Secretary wrote:

>> That's nice. Still doesn't support the contention made. Shall
>> we assume you cannot, and therefore were, in fact, simply lying?
>>
> Or perhaps you just want to suck my dick again.

Again? Never did it once, so "again" wouldn't apply. 'Sides, being
straight and male, the notion doesn't interest me overmuch, but I wish you
the best of luck in finding a willing partner.

== 3 of 6 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 2:47 pm
From: No 33 Secretary

Kelsey Bjarnason <kbjarnason@gmail.com> wrote in
news:q67in4-7ps.ln1@spanky.localhost.net:

> On Tue, 24 Jul 2007 20:35:24 +0000, No 33 Secretary wrote:
>
>> Kelsey Bjarnason <kbjarnason@gmail.com> wrote in
>> news:3nuhn4-7t5.ln1@spanky.localhost.net:
>>
>>> [snips]
>>>
>>> On Mon, 23 Jul 2007 21:22:06 +0000, No 33 Secretary wrote:
>>>
>>>>> That's nice. Still doesn't support the contention made.
>>>>> Shall we assume you cannot, and therefore were, in fact,
>>>>> simply lying?
>>>>>
>>>> Or perhaps you just want to suck my dick again.
>>>
>>> Again? Never did it once, so "again" wouldn't apply.
>>
>> Heh.
>>
>>> 'Sides,
>>> being straight and male, the notion doesn't interest me
>>> overmuch, but I wish you the best of luck in finding a willing
>>> partner.
>>>
>> Then you should stop begging in a public forum.
>
>
> Umm... it was you who brought up the bit about me sucking your
> dick, not I; if there's someone around here looking for such
> activities, logic would suggest it was you, not I.
>
> 'Course, that said, if the best you have to offer is aspersions
> of homosexuality, chances are you wouldn't be a very interesting
> partner even for someone of the appropriate gender and
> orientation.
>
I was only commenting on your actions. If you don't want people
commenting on your proclivities, don't do them in public.

--
"If he does that shit again I'm going to tie his ass hairs together
and kick him in the shin."

Terry Austin

== 4 of 6 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 11:41 am
From: Kelsey Bjarnason

On Tue, 24 Jul 2007 09:10:32 -0500, bearclaw wrote:

> In article <hv9fn4-4t5.ln1@spanky.localhost.net>,
> Kelsey Bjarnason <kbjarnason@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> I expect *you* as the *parent* to shut the kid up,
>> leave him at home, or get out.
>
> Personally, I don't have kids. But if I ever met someone with an
> attitude like yours in a public place, I would do everything I could
> think of to drive you smack out of your mind, including encouraging any
> nearby kids to scream, squall, run around and generally rain on your
> parade. I find upsetting people like you highly entertaining. It even
> becomes a game sometimes to see who leaves in a big huff first.

Figures. Someone else without brains enough to figure out that in doing
so, they're pissing off *everyone* around them, for no purpose other than
to be a prick.

I may be antisocial, but I'm at least *considerately* so; if I'm going to
make noises or whatever, I do it on *my* dime - I don't inflict my crap on
others who didn't ask for it and probably don't want it.

People like you should be banned from having kids; you're obviously not
mature enough for them.

== 5 of 6 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 5:13 pm
From: William_Wingstedt@comcast.net (William Wingstedt)

On Fri, 20 Jul 2007 21:29:15 GMT, Dubh Ghall <puck@pooks.hill.fey>
wrote:

>On Fri, 20 Jul 2007 03:40:39 GMT, William_Wingstedt@comcast.net
>(William Wingstedt) wrote:
>
>>On Thu, 19 Jul 2007 21:19:19 GMT, Dubh Ghall <puck@pooks.hill.fey>
>>wrote:
>>
>>>On Thu, 19 Jul 2007 20:27:34 GMT, William_Wingstedt@comcast.net
>>>(William Wingstedt) wrote:
>>>
>>>>On Thu, 19 Jul 2007 14:58:08 -0400, "Lee K" <lee_keedick@hotmail.com>
>>>>wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>"William Wingstedt" <William_Wingstedt@comcast.net> wrote in message
>>>>>news:469f90f5.147977640@Newsgroups.Comcast.net...
>>>>>> On Thu, 19 Jul 2007 15:23:34 GMT, "Lee K" <lee_keedick@hotmail.com>
>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>"Robibnikoff" <witchypoo@broomstick.com> wrote in message
>>>>>>>news:5g97ebF3f7j9hU1@mid.individual.net...
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I'm a supporter of the right to choose - therefore, I am pro-choice.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Whose right to choose, and to choose what?
>>>>>>>I'd wager you don't support a male's participation in the choice that so
>>>>>>>intimately affects him.
>>>>>>>If he wants to choose life, and she chooses abortion, it's just too bad
>>>>>>>for
>>>>>>>him.
>>>>>>>If she wants to choose life and he wants her to abort, it's just too bad
>>>>>>>for
>>>>>>>him.
>>>>>>>Financially, if he wants to choose not to be involved, it's not a choice
>>>>>>>available to him. The argument that he should have been more careful so
>>>>>>>as
>>>>>>>to avoid impregnation is bogus. A brief instant in time that results in a
>>>>>>>pregnancy cannot be undone, as far as the male is concerned, but the
>>>>>>>female
>>>>>>>has months to make her decision after that brief instant, a decision which
>>>>>>>then impacts the male for the rest of his life.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Those are the terms of the deal. That's why males have to be careful.
>>>>>> Until the baby is born, it is part of the mother's body, so recognized
>>>>>> by her immune system, which rejects that which is not self. What
>>>>>> supposed right to you have over the sovereignty of someone else's body
>>>>>> and from where do you derive that power?
>>>>>
>>>>>And you don't view enslaving the male to a lifetime of financial burden as
>>>>>not exercising sovereignty over someone else's body?
>>>>
>>>>Financial responsibility for your ejaculatory acts are not a burden.
>>>>They are one of the joys of fatherhood.
>>>
>>>They are?
>>
>>Well, yeah, why else would you undertake such an endeavor?
>
>The inlaws, wanted a football team.
>
>
>>To endure
>>the burden of unhappiness? No thanks! :)
>>
>>>
>>>>Meeting those responsibilities will make you a better person
>>>
>>>And poorer.
>>
>>>>with the side benefit that as you provide for your progeny,
>>>>you will also enjoy a better standard of living.
>>>
>>>I don't remember that, either.
>>>
>>
>>Must be all the opulence has dulled your memory...it's a protective
>>mechanism. :)
>>
>
>That, or the poverty. (:-)

I hadn't even considered that...you're Dubh Ghall, dammit! I thought
that alone entitled you to some sort of fortune. I can't, nor do I
even want to, imagine a world where a Dubh Ghall lives in poverty.

>
>
>
>--
>
>The spelling like any opinion stated here
> is purely my own
>
> #162 BAAWA Knight.

== 6 of 6 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 7:19 pm
From: bearclaw@cruller.invalid

In article <inthn4-7t5.ln1@spanky.localhost.net>,
Kelsey Bjarnason <kbjarnason@gmail.com> wrote:

> Figures. Someone else without brains enough to figure out that in
> doing so, they're pissing off *everyone* around them, for no purpose
> other than to be a prick.

Excellent. Enjoy life.

> I may be antisocial, but I'm at least *considerately* so

Whee! Once again proving the denial is NOT just a river in Egypt.

> if I'm going to make noises or whatever, I do it on *my* dime - I
> don't inflict my crap on others who didn't ask for it and probably
> don't want it.

Which is exactly what makes you such a perfect victim. Man, do I hope we
meet up someday. Don't worry, you will suffer on your dime, too. I will
be the one at the other table secretly enjoying your apoplexy. Tell me,
do you get migraines?

> People like you should be banned from having kids; you're obviously not
> mature enough for them.

Oh, no ban necessary. I enjoy kids as long as they belong to somebody
else-- especially if they are up to some delightfully innocent
provocation of those who walk around at the end of their rope. Surely
you know how "the little rotters" love to test "sensible" limits. Think
of my involvement as the spontaneous encouragement of frugal street
theater.

Surrender is really your only option because you are definitely your own
worst enemy, at least in this discussion.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Frugal luxuries that you treat yourself to
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/47c53b3bb3c6299b?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 2:52 pm
From: George

Seerialmom wrote:
> On Jul 16, 3:22 pm, William Souden <sou...@nospam.com> wrote:
>> Two things for my self. The cost of the first is almost
>> infinitesimal. I use a fresh towel each day when I shower . If I go out
>> in the evening I use two towels that day.
>>
>> When I am having a bad week I go to the local butcher and treat myself
>> to a nice T-bone, always well under $10.
>
> Isn't "frugal luxury" an oxymoron?

No, Some people confuse frugal with cheapness but it isn't that at all.

>
> But if you want to know about non-frugal treats that I partake in
> (after being frugally hypervigilant) in, here's my "go-to's":
>
> Turtles...not the aquatic kind but the chocolate/caramel/pecan
> convection featured on "Everybody Hates Chris". Usually able to snag
> these for a good price after a holiday (Christmas and Valentines day
> mostly).
>
> AYCE Chinese buffet for Sunday lunch while out and about.
>
> I have been known to buy the latest gadget just because it's too cool
> to pass up....but it's infrequent. Example: Go-Video VCR/DVR combo
> when it first came out. Loved the fact it took up the space of a
> VCR. Didn't love the fact that I never had a DVR before so though the
> skipping I had with it was due to "rental disks". Got it fixed one
> month before warranty was up. The other non-frugal but worth it buy
> was the Dyson when it first came out here.
>
>

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Repost: The Rod Speed work history
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/747e854fc8f838c0?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 12:13 pm
From: "Bob F"

"William Souden" <souden@nospam.com> wrote in message
news:xqdpi.29834$C96.22340@newssvr23.news.prodigy.net...

plonk!

Bob

==============================================================================
TOPIC: whither the ice house?
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/ece54484f7063e00?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 3 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 3:20 pm
From: Ecnerwal

In article <46a66e94$0$505$815e3792@news.qwest.net>,
"Morris Dovey" <mrdovey@iedu.com> wrote:

> Steve Spence wrote:
> | When power is in short supply, and winter provides sufficient ice,
> | a ice house is an appropriate solution. We have built in-basement
> | ice houses, and collected ice from the pond in winter. The ice
> | stays with us through October. Outdoor temps rarely exceed 90F here
> | in upstate NY.
>
> I'm not questioning the technical possibility. I'd suggest discussing
> this issue with your wife/mother/grandmother before allowing yourself
> to become too enthusiastic about this particular choice.

I would not assume that a direct return to the technology of the
traditional (messy, warmish) ice-box is appropriate. If you can provide
a little bit of power to run a circulator pump, you can have the mess
and fuss contained outside or in the basement (and reduce the fuss quite
a bit), and pipe the cool (via insulated pipes) to a dedicated
refrigerator which might be built from an old upright freezer box - or
you might have a small walk-in fridge and freezer with the cooling for
the fridge section coming from ice-house as long as possible, and
compressor if/when that runs out. If there's more ice capacity, cool
(within specs, but given that they work with outside air through the
winter, this is a wider spec than typical house fridges) the condenser
for the freezer part as well.

--
Cats, coffee, chocolate...vices to live by

== 2 of 3 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 6:41 pm
From: "Steve Spence"

It wasn't an ice box. It was an ice house, in the basement. sort of a
walk-in cooler. Food was stored on shelves in the ice room.

--
Steve Spence
Director, Green-Trust
http://www.green-trust.org
http://www.green-trust.org/bookshop/

"Morris Dovey" <mrdovey@iedu.com> wrote in message
news:46a66e94$0$505$815e3792@news.qwest.net...
> Steve Spence wrote:
> | When power is in short supply, and winter provides sufficient ice,
> | a ice house is an appropriate solution. We have built in-basement
> | ice houses, and collected ice from the pond in winter. The ice
> | stays with us through October. Outdoor temps rarely exceed 90F here
> | in upstate NY.
>
> I'm not questioning the technical possibility. I'd suggest discussing
> this issue with your wife/mother/grandmother before allowing yourself
> to become too enthusiastic about this particular choice.
>
> I remember iceboxes (in small town Michigan) and would assure you that
> they weren't abandoned for reasons that had anything to do (directly)
> with the technology involved.
>
> I also remember that there weren't any frozen foods in the grocery
> store.
>
> --
> Morris Dovey
> DeSoto Solar
> DeSoto, Iowa USA
> http://www.iedu.com/DeSoto/
>
>

== 3 of 3 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 8:02 pm
From: "Morris Dovey"

Steve Spence wrote:

| It wasn't an ice box. It was an ice house, in the basement. sort of
| a walk-in cooler. Food was stored on shelves in the ice room.

Ah! Thank you - I read "ice house" and thought "ice box". My mistake.

Still, that strikes me as a project needing a considerable mass of ice
and a substantial volume of insulation if it's to last from winter to
winter (or harvest to harvest).

Too much heavy lifting for me - I'll continue working on a solar
solution.

--
Morris Dovey
DeSoto Solar
DeSoto, Iowa USA
http://www.iedu.com/DeSoto/

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Inexpensive, Easy Process To Produce Solar Panels
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/1eb5a91cbd2518db?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 3:25 pm
From: Derald

"Don K" <dk@dont_bother_me.com> wrote:

>Ooh, an inexpensive process has been developed to use paint-on solar
>panels made from single wall carbon nanotubes.
Well, minus the commentary, the item made the A2 page of Monday's IBD;
that's something. From OP's citation, I read the nanotubes and buckyballs to be
constituents of the "paint", not of its support structure.
The "real" news is here (from OP's citation):
>"Developing organic solar cells from polymers, however, is a cheap and potentially simpler alternative,"
while the $64 qualifier is:
> "Someday, I hope to see...."

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Valley, Santa Clarita areas face problems with illness, poverty
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/123e617c98534333?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 3:26 pm
From: Millhaven

http://www.dailynews.com/ci_6447594

Valley, Santa Clarita areas face problems with illness, poverty
BY SUSAN ABRAM, Staff Writer
Article Last Updated: 07/23/2007 11:11:30 PM PDT

Residents in the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys are poorer,
mostly unhealthier and visiting emergency rooms for mental illness
more than they were three years ago, according to a report to be
released Wednesday.

While obesity and diabetes rates have grown steadily over the past
several years, mental health needs are surging, with more residents
being diagnosed with various forms of psychosis at area hospitals.

"The mental health diagnosis of (schizophrenia) is now among the top
five (inpatient diagnoses) among adults and children," said Ronald
Sorensen, director of the Providence Center for Community Health
Improvement.

"It raises a concern that there's not a lot of access to mental health
services. And mental health issues keep moving up on the list of
needs. If residents don't have access to a mental health provider,
what ends up happening is they go to the hospital."

The study by the Valley Care Community Consortium, a group of health
and mental health providers and schools, ties health to household
incomes, education, race and ethnicity, and neighborhood crime rates.

Among the findings, households that earn less than $25,000 a year have
increased from 17 percent to 23 percent
of the total in the San Fernando Valley and from 9 percent to 11
percent of Santa Clarita Valley households.
Diabetes accounted for 21 percent of deaths in 2004, up from 19
percent in 1999 in the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys.

Obesity rates in the two areas also rose to 21 percent in 2004 from 19
percent in 1999.

Funding for the study was provided by Kaiser Permanente, the
California Endowment and Northridge Hospital Medical Center.

The community consortium will meet Wednesday to release the study's
findings, identify causes for the general decline in health in the two
areas and find solutions.

Other key findings:

In one of the few positive improvements, asthma rates among children
age 17 and younger fell in the past three years, from 8.7 percent of
the total to 7.9 percent.

In Glendale, nearly 12 percent of the residents have heart disease.
The city also has the San Fernando Valley's highest rate of asthma and
diabetes.

While the number of uninsured adults decreased from 23.6 percent to 19
percent over three years, most adults still don't have a regular
medical physician.

The number of residents age 65 to 84 will increase by 35 percent in
the Santa Clarita Valley in the next five years.

"One of the main concerns is that the household income levels below
$25,000 are growing, so how can we make health care affordable if the
salaries are going down, and yet costs for health care continue to
rise?" asked Joni Novosel, program director for the Valley Care
Community Consortium.

Obesity also remains a top health crisis.

"That is a real concern because that brings in a lot of issues, such
as heart problems and diabetes," Novosel said.

Health experts and community leaders are expected to meet Wednesday to
discuss the progress made since 2004, as well as where more attention
is needed.

"This study is a picture of the San Fernando and Santa Clarita
valleys," Sorensen said. "We'll discuss what we have, and how to delve
deeper."

susan.abram@dailynews.com

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Can I Avoid Losing My Rollover Minutes When Changing Plans?
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/2ccfad333fda7ea2?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 5 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 3:46 pm
From: Courtney

I'd like to drop from my AT&T 900 min plan to the 450 min plan but if
I do they say they will take my 3500 rollover minutes away from me.

Is there any way for me to avoid losing my rollover minutes?

Thanks

== 2 of 5 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 5:36 pm
From: Logan Shaw

Courtney wrote:
> I'd like to drop from my AT&T 900 min plan to the 450 min plan but if
> I do they say they will take my 3500 rollover minutes away from me.
>
> Is there any way for me to avoid losing my rollover minutes?

If those are the rules, I don't see how you can do much about it.

Of course, there is one way: use them all, then switch.

- Logan

== 3 of 5 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 6:33 pm
From: Ward Abbott

On Tue, 24 Jul 2007 15:46:18 -0700, Courtney <ckinear@yahoo.com>
wrote:

>Is there any way for me to avoid losing my rollover minutes?

Don't try to argue with us.....we have NO power.

Your beef is with AT&T.

== 4 of 5 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 6:34 pm
From: Rick

Courtney wrote:
>
> I'd like to drop from my AT&T 900 min plan to the 450 min plan but if
> I do they say they will take my 3500 rollover minutes away from me.
>
> Is there any way for me to avoid losing my rollover minutes?
>
> Thanks

Why ask us? AT&T is the one telling you what the terms of changing the
contract will be. We don't know.

Assuming you have had the service for at least one year, and you have a
balance of 3500 rollover minutes, you are accumulating over 290 unused
minutes per month on your current plan. It doesn't sound like losing the
3500 minutes will be a problem for you, since you aren't using them
anyway and the oldest rollover minutes "roll off" and expire after 12
months anyway.

Then again, if you have had the plan for at least one year, under the
old plan 900 minute scenario you are accumulating an average of 290
rollover minutes a month. That means you are currently using an average
of 610 minutes a month. Are you sure dropping to 450 minutes per month
will be enough?

Rick

== 5 of 5 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 7:12 pm
From: Courtney

Thanks for the thoughts everybody...helped me think it through...

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Why I hate Washington Mutual (a rant)
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/02d22dacefd6cc05?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 2 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 3:57 pm
From: The Real Bev

1. About 12 years ago I needed to withdraw $30K in cash. I had more than
that in the account, but they refused to give me the cash, instead offering
a cashier's check. I took it to Bank of America, where I had considerably
less than that in my checking account. BofA cheerfully cashed the check.

2. As a result, a few months later I went to the closest branch to close
one of the accounts. After half an hour they said they were having trouble
getting our signature card faxed over from the main local branch. An hour
later they got the signatures and closed our account.

3. A month or so after that I went to the main local branch, figuring that
they wouldn't have to fax anything anywhere. After half an hour they said
they had looked everywhere but couldn't find my signature card. I asked
what else they could do. They said I could show them my driver's license.
AARRGGHH.

4. I recently inherited a couple of WaMu accounts, for which I needed to
order checks. I spent an hour in the branch (they have guard-operated
double doors now, possibly with poison gas available Just In Case) watching
the bankdroid order checks and verify the new statement address. The checks
were supposed to arrive within 7-10 working days.

Here it is two months later. No checks. Statements still forwarded from
the old address. I went back into the branch where I ordered the checks.
They had no record of the order. Moreover, they didn't seem at all
concerned that A F*CKING BANK TRANSACTION HAD SIMPLY EVAPORATED. They
rush-ordered more checks, waived the fee ($20 for 150 checks is ridiculous)
and said they'd call me when they arrived at the bank (I figured that was a
more reliable address than mine).

At no time during any of these transactions did a single bank employee offer
an apology. Nobody wondered why I was closing out my accounts. When I
close these accounts I bet nobody will ask why. I'm going to tell them
anyway. Loudly.

--
Cheers,
Bev
===========================================================
"You should be glad that bridge fell down -- I was planning
to build thirteen more to the same design."
-- Attributed to I.K. Brunel, addressing the
Directors of the Great Western Railway

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 8:14 pm
From: Rick

The Real Bev wrote:
>
> 1. About 12 years ago I needed to withdraw $30K in cash. I had more than
> that in the account, but they refused to give me the cash, instead offering
> a cashier's check. I took it to Bank of America, where I had considerably
> less than that in my checking account. BofA cheerfully cashed the check.

In *cash*? Like dollar bills? If you had asked, you may have found out
that for any withdrawal in cash over a limit that the banks sets, they
need so many days advance notice to order extra money in from the
Federal Reserve bank to accommodate such a request. It is *highly*
unusual for a bank customer to request a pay out in cash dollars of
$30,000.00 - for what should be some very obvious reasons. And no, they
don't keep piles and piles of cash just sitting around in banks. They
order it in as needed, in as small amounts as reasonably possible for
normal day-to-day operations. And they get rid of any excess amounts as
quickly as possible as well. Different banks, and even branches within
the same banks, may have different maximum cash amounts they can or will
pay out without advance notice, depending on the customer traffic at
that bank or branch.

> 2. As a result, a few months later I went to the closest branch to close
> one of the accounts. After half an hour they said they were having trouble
> getting our signature card faxed over from the main local branch. An hour
> later they got the signatures and closed our account.
>
> 3. A month or so after that I went to the main local branch, figuring that
> they wouldn't have to fax anything anywhere. After half an hour they said
> they had looked everywhere but couldn't find my signature card. I asked
> what else they could do. They said I could show them my driver's license.
> AARRGGHH.

And providing proof of who you were... Somehow that was a problem?

> 4. I recently inherited a couple of WaMu accounts, for which I needed to
> order checks. I spent an hour in the branch (they have guard-operated
> double doors now, possibly with poison gas available Just In Case) watching
> the bankdroid order checks and verify the new statement address. The checks
> were supposed to arrive within 7-10 working days.
>
> Here it is two months later. No checks. Statements still forwarded from
> the old address. I went back into the branch where I ordered the checks.
> They had no record of the order. Moreover, they didn't seem at all
> concerned that A F*CKING BANK TRANSACTION HAD SIMPLY EVAPORATED. They
> rush-ordered more checks, waived the fee ($20 for 150 checks is ridiculous)
> and said they'd call me when they arrived at the bank (I figured that was a
> more reliable address than mine).

Look, it happens. They didn't lose a transaction. "They" - and "they"
could be a bank employee, a post office employee or the place that
prints the checks - lost a check order request. It wasn't a transaction.
You didn't lose any money.

> At no time during any of these transactions did a single bank employee offer
> an apology. Nobody wondered why I was closing out my accounts. When I
> close these accounts I bet nobody will ask why. I'm going to tell them
> anyway. Loudly.
>
>
> --
> Cheers,
> Bev

You seem to be over the top on this. You wanted to take out a very large
sum of cash, that the bank either didn't have on hand when you wanted it
or for some reason they felt very uncomfortable transferring that amount
of cash to you. They lost a check order - whoopee. And you don't even
know if it was actually the bank that lost the check order.

Rick

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Frugal living in the Philadelphia region
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/9c8ddd075cd535b7?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 2 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 5:25 pm
From: "nemo"

"Sparrow" <funnybunnyfive@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1185200630.051628.143180@m3g2000hsh.googlegroups.com...
> Some ideas for saving money:
>

http://home.comcast.net/~plutarch/frugal-philly.html
>

It says:

'Hey, turn on Javascript!'

Bleedin cheek!

I say: Coillons!! I care about the security of my PC.

(It's Middle English for b*ll*cks and therefore classical, and therefore not
rude! :o)

cheap Nemo!

(I *still* use the insides of kitchen towel rolls flattened and folded
double as over gloves!)

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 5:32 pm
From: "nemo"

"nemo" <nemo@naughtylass.wet> wrote in message
news:HLwpi.9009$%v3.7617@fe3.news.blueyonder.co.uk...
>
> "Sparrow" <funnybunnyfive@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:1185200630.051628.143180@m3g2000hsh.googlegroups.com...
> > Some ideas for saving money:
> >

http://home.comcast.net/~plutarch/frugal-philly.html
> >
>
> It says:
>
> 'Hey, turn on Javascript!'
>
> Bleedin cheek!
>
> I say: Coillons!! I care about the security of my PC.
>
> (It's Middle English for b*ll*cks and therefore classical, and therefore
not
> rude! :o)
>
> cheap Nemo!
>
> (I *still* use the insides of kitchen towel rolls flattened and folded
> double as over gloves!)
>
That's OVEN gloves. Damned keyboatd!

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Handbags and wallets
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/c25bda08c395fefe?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 5:27 pm
From: "nemo"

MADE BY CHILDREN WORKING 20 HOURS A DAY IN SWEATSHOPS
NO DOUBT AND DYING IN THEIR TEENS THROUGH BREATHING THE FUMES FROM THE
POLYURETHANE ADHESIVE!!

BASTARDS!

"bestreplica99" <leeblanc999@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1185178790.495452.296550@e16g2000pri.googlegroups.com...
> We are a Chinese supplier of replica handbags located in GuangZhou.
>
> Our website carries MIRROR IMAGE 7 STARS quality replicas. They are
> 100% to the original, even the expert can't tell them.
>
> Packing : same as the original, come with dust bag/care booklet/
> authenic card.Embossed Serial Number/Date Code Inside.
>
> Workmanship : all pattern are perfect combined , make the bag looked
> like made by one pc of leather.
>
> Best regards
>
> welcome to www.bestreplica99.com
>
> MSN: bestreplica99@hotmail.com
>

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Frugal deals
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/browse_thread/thread/bcac699fb70f8bf8?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Tues, Jul 24 2007 7:02 pm
From: monkeyboo

A couple of good websites for frugal deals:

http://www.socialbuys.com
http://www.dealcatcher.com
http://www.deals.plus

Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!

==============================================================================

You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "misc.consumers.frugal-living"
group.

To post to this group, visit http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living?hl=en

To unsubscribe from this group, send email to misc.consumers.frugal-living-unsubscribe@googlegroups.com

To change the way you get mail from this group, visit:
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.consumers.frugal-living/subscribe?hl=en

To report abuse, send email explaining the problem to abuse@googlegroups.com

==============================================================================
Google Groups: http://groups.google.com?hl=en

Frugal Living

Blog Archive

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

25 new messages in 12 topics - digest

No comments: