Hooked on ATMs

I felt "like totally lame" this afternoon when I had to ask Kate, "ummm, how does one get money out of the bank without an ATM card?" I'm serious, who actually uses archaic means of banking...human tellers are just downright quaint and how do they know who you are if you can't used your PIN...I supposed a government issued photo ID card would do the trick, but it all seems so very strange. I used to possess life skills such as utilizing a teller window and actually banking via human interaction having properly filled out all my various slips and forms. However, having used an ATM card for the past decade to withdraw money has rendered me a bumbling newborn with regards to the finer points of person to person banking. I even get my paycheck deposited electronically, which eliminates yet another reason to actually go to the bank.

I unsuspectingly let my ATM card expire last month and tried to withdraw cash from an ATM with no avail this weekend. I thought, "no problem, I'll just use the cash back function on my debit card." Unfortunately, "no dummy, your debit card is your ATM card and neither is functioning properly." I ordered a new ATM card this morning, which will arrive in three to eight business days. This potentially leaves me an entire week without easy access to cold hard cash. YIKES!

Bringing me back full circle, I concluded that human interaction was necessary if I wanted cash any time soon. Kate, helpfully, suggested using a "withdrawal slip" or writing myself a check for cash. "Ingenious," I thought as I proceeded across the street to my local Fleet branch. I carefully inspected all the little cubbies filled with forms they had available at the bank, "Checking Deposit, Savings Withdrawal and Savings Deposit," but no "Checking Withdrawal" slip. Not knowing my savings account number, I really needed a slip for checking so I crossed over the other station filled with slips hoping to find the elusive "Checking Withdrawal" slip, but once again I failed to locate it.

Plan B was to write myself a check and cash it so I did just that and walked up to the teller hoping that this would work because there was no Plan C. While at the teller window, I inquired whether a "Checking Withdrawal" form even existed. The teller kindly informed me that “Checking Withdrawal” slips no longer existed and folks are now expected to just write checks to themselves..."Yeah Plan B…B is for ‘Booyah!’" I can't wait until I get my ATM card.