Almost A Perfect Solution

The frustration was sudden, abrupt, inexplicable. Wells Fargo has now earned a spot on my "shit list". Having long been a grateful fan of my credit union, and the opposite of most banks I have done business with, I was shocked but acknowledged it fit right in with my prejudices. Or can you still call it that if it comes from years of bad experiences?

My jewelry is starting to sell! Hooray! A little spending money here, a little there, a justification after developing my skills for graduating into working with sterling silver. That's pricey, though, making the ability to use the earnings for more supplies important. It hadn't been a problem. Until last month.

My credit union is way back in Minnesota. We've had a good connection for something like 30 years, and the benefits I received gave me - still give me - no incentive to change. I could have chosen to endorse and mail checks back from here. But Steve and I had a better system. His Wells Fargo bank is nation-wide, and they don't care where he does business on-site. I would endorse my modest checks to him, he'd deposit them in his account, and hand me cash. There was never a big enough check coming through that it couldn't already be covered in his existing balance. And had we been informed that they reinstated the old practice of not cashing anything for X number of days until it cleared, very common before the internet handled such issues immediately, we could have understood. Not a biggie. That wasn't what they did, however.

Last month I did my usual of endorsing my check over to Steve so he could make the deposit, This time he returned with the now twice-endorsed check refused by Wells Fargo for deposit. No stipulations, just flat refusal. No warning, just an announcement of policy already changed.

I wound up taking the check back to the club, seeking their advice, thinking  possibly voiding and reissuing of the check. I hated to make extra work for our new treasurer, but hey, money is money and I worked for it. They had a solution. I could get the check reissued, along with funds from a couple additional sales, the next time checks were written. (They have a thing with their software that three checks print at a time. Sometimes somebody waits until the next three are ready. Again, no biggie.)

Further, they would cash it for me. Ideally, of course, I could run it through the supply store for whatever I needed to make more jewelry. Seemed like a win-win solution. I started making out my supply wish list, keeping in mind wanting to continue working on jewelry while on summer vacation without the difficulty up there of acquiring the "right" supplies, quickly, and of course with my accustomed club discount instead of retail. I can get great beads and beading supplies 5 miles from home, but sterling? Try silver-filled instead. The right gauge? Shape? Other metal? Uh, no, don't carry that, don't plan to. Forgetting to supply myself in advance meant waiting on whatever the project was  until my return. Much can be done without relying on club machinery with advance preparation, returning in the fall with a bucketful of items ready for that final finishing before sale.

I got that replacement check this morning. It was a pretty nice one, as a hefty sterling piece had sold. I took my check and list to the supply room and got everything on it. I knew I was outspending my check, but that's what plastic is for. I was going to be equipped!

The plan was to pay the bill with the check first, and follow with plastic for the balance. Everything I wanted was available, and the tally ran up. Just one little thing was forgotten. The club uses something called the "Square" system for keeping track of sales, categories, etc. Even refunds if necessary. Checks, folding green, and plastic all accepted. Receipts are given both hard copy and via email. There was just one little snag.

It turned into two. The "Square" isn't programmed to split payment into two types per single sale. OK, we'll put it all on the plastic, then refund the check amount. Well, it's not programmed to refund an amount that is not directly connected to a full sale. So, after consultaion, would I mind cash back as a separate transaction? Nope, groceries are on the shopping list too, and it'll get spent either way. Thus the first snag went away.

The second snag was theirs, not mine to deal with. It seems the stamp the club uses to endorse checks received for deposit refused to work. In fact, it had refused to work yesterday, which explained why there was another check sitting on the counter (bad choice!!) waiting for endorsement. By the time the fourth person, two supply room staff and two mechanical guys, including out treasurer, was trying to fix the stamp, it finally dawned on me that I had everything needed and had done everything needed for my purchase. Confirming that with the supply room, I headed home for breakfast and a nap.

And, of course, organizing all my purchases for either working on before the trip or safely packing them for travel. One of the chunks of wire needs to be cut and torched, pickled and polished, for use as head pins the right size and strength for a specific project designated to be done on vacation. (Yes, Virginia, you can make your own head pins.) Another needs to be flattened in the rolling mill, cut and stamped either "sterling" or ".925" to identify the finished item it would be attached to so buyer and seller would know its quality, hard to tell by eye. The small amount of wire remaining on a big spool had to be removed and wound around a small one that it fit, and which would now fit in the box with other sterling items so all the sterling could be kept isolated and protected.

Oh, and for the record? Any further club checks this spring can be held on to until I'm back near my credit union offices for simple deposit. Last year's treasurer had a fit when they weren't cleared right away so her books were simpler. This one is not so fussy... at least not yet. We'll see after he endures his first summer. Meanwhile those of us who anticipate possible summer sales are asked to leave a couple of SASEs for wherever we plan to be while we're gone to facilitate payment processing.

Now, off to buy those groceries. I seem to have cash to spend.