View Full Version : In Defense of Writing Checks
Admittedly, most of the time I use the debit card. Sometimes, however, I do take the checkbook to the store, usually when I feel like I've been a little too profligate at swiping the debit card. I think that, in spite of the actual mechanics of the debit card, it still seems like a credit card to me, and a credit card is something I was gravely warned about throughout my childhood. I like the act of writing a check for a purchase, and I still see enough people writing checks at the store that it seems I am not particularly alone, though clearly writing checks is a more archaic act than film photography, vinyl, and using a typewriter.
I thought there must be some vocal fans of the check out there, but when I google "In defense of writing checks" or "checks vs. debit cards" the only thing that shows up are rants against check writing, usually on the grounds that it is so slow, though I don't believe it is as slow as it is perceived.
I'm thinking of writing a "defense of the check" blog post. I thought if there were any fans of checks out there, they may be on this board. Checks seem to me to be a thoughtful way to exchange money, even more so than using cash, which is why I sometimes default to the checkbook at the store. (I'm 49 by the way, and I do also often use the debit card, so I don't think I qualify to grumble about new technology.)
I also always use the checkbook to pay the monthly bills. That is a ritual I enjoy. I would hate to have that automated. I have always thought that most people probably still wrote checks for bills, but in looking into this matter recently, it seems that is a dying practice as well.
Are there any real fans of writing checks out there?
I would add that it really bugs me when a store makes me jump through i.d. hoops when I write a check, as if fraud were the only reason to write a check at a store in 2015. I also find it really annoying when a store - Walmart comes to mind - scans my check and then hands it back to me. "No, no," I want to say, "that was my payment to you, you're supposed to keep it." Can't they just dump all the checks in a shredder at the end of the day, if they don't really need to send them to the bank?
I think the ONLY benefit to writing checks is the one that you mentioned with regard to monthly bills. In the "old days," like you, I made a ritual out of taking my list of bills from my DayTimer and checking each one off as I wrote the check, wrote the check number on the bill, filed the bill stub and stamped and mailed the payment. It definitely keeps you more mindful of your money, rather than AutoPay, which got me into trouble when I became freelance (I would forget to delay payments on things when my anticipated accounts receivable didn't come).
I would also say a prayer of gratitude with every check I wrote for the fact that I had the money to pay the bill.
BUT, that's the limit to the defense of check-writing that I will do. Writing checks in stores is a PITA. I wouldn't consider it. Plus then you have to remember/write it down because it takes days to clear. And, you shouldn't be too surprised at the ID hoops: checks do bounce, and they can't tell who has money to cover the check and who doesn't.
So, I'm not surprised that you couldn't find like-minded people on the internet. I'll be surprised if anyone writes checks at all in the near future.
i was grateful for my checkbook yesterday. i gave my son my debit card to take the cat to the vet and was at the store trying to buy lunch without it. thank goodness i wasn't trying fast food because it wouldn't work there. so they ran the check, had me sign something and then gave it back. okay with me since i just needed to get lunch.
I still regularly use checks at places like the vet, the doctor, and the dentist's office without a second thought - actually, if I do think about it, the reason is I believe they are charged a fee for processing debit or credit cards, and they are providers I have a relationship with, (as opposed to Walmart), so I assume that, by writing a check, I am saving them a small amount of money. I write checks at the local bird store - Feathered Friends - for the same reason. Any place where there is really a personal connection, I use the checkbook. In those situations, using the checkbook doesn't seem at all odd to me. Is this behavior now odd without my even being aware of it?
Also what is "PITA"? That's an acronym I have never encountered before.
catherine
9-15-15, 10:05am
Also what is "PITA"? That's an acronym I have never encountered before.
Pain in the a$$ >8)
ApatheticNoMore
9-15-15, 10:22am
I've never owned a debit card, I use checks occasionally and of course for monthly bills, mostly of the time though: cash.
A Dr. I just went to the other day charges $3 to use a card, they prefer checks or cash. I have to admit, it gave a very negative impression, I associate card fees with 99 cent stores.
I haven't written checks in years and usually rage against it simply because it's yet Another thing to deal with when tracking spending - was that a debit? A credit? A gift card? Rebated? Discounted? Mine or his? But my fondest memories of bill paying, if one can be said to have that, is of neatly writing out checks and then attaching the paid checks to the old bills when they came in my statement. Simple, clear and irrefutable paper trail.
Will I ever go back to that? Probably not. But in an odd way, I see the allure.
sweetana3
9-15-15, 11:12am
My dentist gives a discount for cash or check. It makes me happy to give him a check. He might not be following his CC agreement but with happt customers who dont complain, who cares?
ToomuchStuff
9-15-15, 11:18am
I would add that it really bugs me when a store makes me jump through i.d. hoops when I write a check, as if fraud were the only reason to write a check at a store in 2015. I also find it really annoying when a store - Walmart comes to mind - scans my check and then hands it back to me. "No, no," I want to say, "that was my payment to you, you're supposed to keep it." Can't they just dump all the checks in a shredder at the end of the day, if they don't really need to send them to the bank?
They still have to worry about storing them and employee theft and ID theft that they are responsible for, as well as the electronic theft of data as well, then. A lot of the newer registers that these use, are designed to not hold the checks anymore.
Check user here, who consistently hears "who uses checks, who takes checks anymore". No one has ever responded back to my "how do you pay a credit card with a debit card?".
At my work, we take checks and cash only. Three places it is marked no debit or credit cards, starting with the front door, where stores are supposed to place the accepted plastic stickers. People still seem to ignore them. If we were going to take cards, there is the extra commercial phone like expense (not the same as a home phone line), for the machines that you either rent ($$), or purchase and maintain, then there is the fee associated with accepting cards. That doesn't count the extra that both owners are going to want to cover that percentage.
What about business checks? Businesses are consistently using checks still. This isn't England, where check writing is no more as of 2016. (by some law)
I write my monthly bills via checks, pay the CC off every month (use it for online/work purchases) and for things like doctor visits, groceries, etc. (over a certain amount or if they don't like cash). Still can't believe I see people using plastic, for a fifty cent refill at a convenience store. Never used an ATM and dealt with enough computer issues (hacked or hardware failures) for all sorts of people, that electronic banking, isn't dependable enough, IMHE.
I also find it really annoying when a store - Walmart comes to mind - scans my check and then hands it back to me. "No, no," I want to say, "that was my payment to you, you're supposed to keep it." Can't they just dump all the checks in a shredder at the end of the day, if they don't really need to send them to the bank?
When I was in Banking in the early '90's one of my clients was wal-mart. They made 4-5 deposits a day with 200-500 checks per deposit. We had to run 2 matching tapes, my 10-key skills were stellar. I would of loved for electronic checks to have been a thing back then. So much easier for the bank and easier for the client to make sure they get their money.
I hate getting behind people writing checks (usually folks > 70 years old) in line, and seemingly ALWAYS in the express lane. First, they usually wait until everything is totalled before even pulling out the checkbook. Then there's the "who do I make this out to" and "what was the amount again?" and then there's the recording the information in their register, then hand it to the clerk, who then often asks for phone number if its not on the check. Meanwhile, I run my debit card through while the items are being rung up, so we are done at the same time and I'm on my merry way. I like efficiency, and I like not slowing down the line for everyone else. It feels more polite to me.
I use checks for monthly bills sure, but never in retail establishments.
I still use checks for bills to help out the post office and because it's a satisfying ritual--and also because I fear (irrationally) that the computers at one end or other of the transaction will go down, and then...I do pay the bills associated with my credit union on line--Visa and a soon-to-be paid off equity loan (woohoo!) Even my resolutely computer-phobic SO uses his debit card.
I was standing in line at a checkout counter lately and wondered what the holdup was until I saw that it was an older woman (probably my age) writing a check. Slowly, as we do everything...
I won't miss checks, and I'm looking forward to newer technology vis-a-vis credit cards, which should be more secure. I'll use cash for small, random purchases.
And I keep a small pouch commercially labeled "pot money" or "cannabis cash" or something (a friend gave it to me for my birthday) that I maintain for just that transaction. Because state governments are micromanaging the hell out of pot sales, and require cash transactions.
I hate getting behind people writing checks
Patience is becoming a lost virtue. Yes, it's aggravating but what's the hurry?
I am one who appreciates not having to write checks but still do for certain things - never a grocery though as my head might get bitten off.
I pay as many bills as I can with on line bill payment. If the receiver accepts electronic payment then it's really paper free. The few that don't, receive a check on the mail sent by my bank.
I use credit card for day to day purchases and pay the credit card balance in full with online bill payment.
I still use checks for paying my family or friends if I owe them money - easier than anything else unless they use Square.
iris lilies
9-15-15, 12:22pm
...I use checks for monthly bills sure, but never in retail establishments.
Yes, that's me. I still apologize for an $8 transaction on my credit card, but the shopkeepers these days are all young and do not remember the days of $10 minimum charges so they are all "umm lady, it is OOOOO Kaaaaaaay!"
Gardenarian
9-15-15, 12:33pm
Patience is becoming a lost virtue. Yes, it's aggravating but what's the hurry?
+1
Yes, it's aggravating but what's the hurry?
Because I'm typically picking up a few things at the grocery store on my lunch hour, and I also have to stop at the bank, get gas, pick up my mail at the post office and maybe other errands.
I hate getting behind people writing checks (usually folks > 70 years old) in line, and seemingly ALWAYS in the express lane. First, they usually wait until everything is totalled before even pulling out the checkbook. Then there's the "who do I make this out to" and "what was the amount again?" and then there's the recording the information in their register, then hand it to the clerk, who then often asks for phone number if its not on the check.
This.
What's really frustrating about it is that the procedure for writing a check almost never changes. If you know you're writing a check, why wait until the order is toted up before the checkbook is even out of the pocket or purse? I get why someone would want to record the information right away in the register, but half the time you've got a receipt to refer to. And for a long time in my check-writing days, I used carbonless-duplicate checks just to speed up that issue (and reduce memory errors). Of course, the phone number is not on the check because the person writing the check often has a fear or mistrust of electronic payment, so they put the bare minimum information on the check and so more must be written down. And if the check is big enough, someone else (manager) has to come over to approve the payment.
I write maybe a dozen checks a year. It's a disruption to my workflow, almost in the same way as calling someone who does not have an answering machine or voicemail. I understand that accepting debit/credit cards is more expensive than accepting checks, but businesses have lots of expenses these days that they didn't before. It's just part of doing business and I don't mind paying a few percent more for the convenience and the paperless trail.
Patience is becoming a lost virtue. Yes, it's aggravating but what's the hurry?
I am one who appreciates not having to write checks but still do for certain things - never a grocery though as my head might get bitten off.
It's not so much the act of waiting--the annoying thing is the inconsiderate nature of waiting until the end to take out the checkbook and taking your sweet time with no thought about the people behind you. And then slowly recording, putting things away, snapping up your wallet, tucking away your receipt, zipping your purse. la-di-da-di-da.
Just like people in TSA lines who stop RIGHT at the top of the belt and then slowly put away laptop, put on shoes, put on jackets, etc. instead of moving their stuff down to the end to allow other people in to get their stuff.
lessisbest
9-15-15, 2:52pm
Whatever works best.....that's why we have choices.
-For day-to-day expenses - ca$h.
-There are a few automatic withdrawals from the checking account.
-There is an automatic deposit to the savings account each payday.
-On-line purchases - debit card.
-A few times a month I write a check (donations, memorials, etc. that only come about occasionally).
-Gas - debit card.
-For large purchases from a local retail business, I occasionally use a credit/debit card as a bartering tool. I give them the choice of a check AND they give me a 2% discount, OR I can use the old VISA and the credit card company gets the "cream off the top" (1.95% - 2%). They have more often than not given me the 2% discount. Happy customers tend to come back!
Remember the commercial for the credit card company where the music stops when someone tries to pay with cash? I hate it when I get behind someone who has to try three different cards to finally find one that has enough credit on it to make the transaction - not only does the "music" stop, I start looking for another check-out. OR, the little old woman/man who can't see the buttons to quickly make the transaction, forget the "new" number, or have any number of problems from which way to place the card to slide it.
Funny thing about cash - it works every time it's tried. I absolutely refuse to pay at a restaurant with a credit card - we always use cash. This is one of the biggest places for credit card fraud.
I have to admit my financial waiting pet peeve is not so much checkout lines as the ATM machine, specifically the drive up machine at my bank. Checkout lines always seem to have some lurking issue, whether it's a check payer or a mismarked item or an app code that won't come up or some other bit of nonsense. I do my best to speed up my processes but occasionally I'm the culprit, I admit it. But ATM? Card in. Pin in. press three screens and here's your cash or your receipt. One of my first jobs was as a bank teller, in 1982. The basic process for getting money out of these machines hasn't changed in 33 years. In what universe could this possibly take ten minutes? This is specifically designed to be fool proof! Have they invented a better fool? What Are These People Doing, Having Lunch?
I want to get out of my car and just do it for them. "Here, excuse me, what is it you want? $20? Could I just pay you $20 to Get The **** Out Of The Way?"
Remember, many older people remember a time when everyone had their purchases removed from their cart for them, then they wrote checks, chatted with the clerk, and weren't in such a hair-on-fire hurry. They may still be living in that time in their minds. You may find yourself out of the loop too some day, if you're lucky.
rodeosweetheart
9-15-15, 3:40pm
Paul, I am with you on liking checks. And it does take me a bit longer than the people who are running the debit card through. As Dave Ramsey says, you pay 23% more if you pay with a debit card--not sure about the number with checks.
I prefer to write checks for recurring items so that I can make sure that they are not putting in extra charges, which happens more than you would think. And the errors are never in my favor, lol.
I am probably one of those slower people in the lines. Just as you all hate being behind me, I hate having you behind me looking impatient and angry, rolling your eyes and making me feel that I am a pain in your a$$%, and saying unpleasant things about me on the Internet. I'm not 70 yet--ageist, anyone??? but I'm not 35, either.
Believe me, the feeling of dislike that you describe is mutual!
I'd like to be in a community with fewer impatient people and more check writers, a more pleasant pace, in my opinion.
But obviously, in life, ymmv.
I've noticed that when shopping among the Amish, they are pulling cash out. They are often held up here as arbiters of simple living.. .
I use checks to pay our monthly health insurance. I don't trust Highmark as far as I can spit and I don't want them to have access to my account, automatically. I also pay local and school taxes, write birthday gift checks, and the occasional charitable donation. Other than that, I have the bills paid through my credit union's bill pay system.
I guess you've got your answer, Paul. Limited support here, too for writing checks.
rosarugosa
9-15-15, 9:13pm
I probably write about 4 checks a year. I us credit cards for most transactions and cash for a few. I love paying my bills online - no paper, no postage expense. I don't auto-pay though.
Simplemind
9-16-15, 2:20am
I don't own a debit card. I use a check to pay for personal services (like haircuts) where they prefer not to take cards. I use a check for my monthly bills which is only one check, to VISA, because I put everything on VISA for FF miles.
People are getting increasingly impatient. One of my greatest joys in retirement is that I am rarely in a hurry for anything. I don't mind letting somebody go ahead of me in line if they look like they are going to have a stroke because somebody actually has the 10 items in the express check out. Everybody is so self absorbed, running at their own speed. God forbid should somebody be operating on a slower clock. This is coming from somebody who used to have everything timed down to the minute and also ran errands on my lunch hour. Expect lines, expect to wait. Some place along the way you are going to need an extra second or two and will be the subject of eye rolling and sighs.
Miss Cellane
9-16-15, 6:41am
Checks don't make people move slowly in lines. Slow people move slowly in lines.
Or maybe you've just not been stuck behind the person who waits until everything has been rung up to pull out their debit card, then has to make three swipes with it before they get it the right way in the swiping machine, then has to ask their shopping companion what their PIN is, only to have the shopping companion have no idea, so they dig in their wallet to find the card they have with their PIN, then the cashier asks them if they want the receipt in their hand or in the bag and this question is so serious that it takes them a minute to decide. And through the entire transaction, they are chatting away on their phone or with a companion, so that the cashier has to continually redirect their attention back to the little key pad to answer if they want cash back, etc. (Spent a year working retail. Checks are not the problem; people are the problem.)
If someone is slow writing a check, they will be slow counting out change if they pay cash, and slow with a debit/credit card if they pay that way. The check only makes things more obvious.
I write almost no checks anymore. I use my credit card at the grocery store and try to pay with cash most other places like restaurants. Even my rent I use my credit union's bill pay system (which admittedly then sends my landlord a check.) Checks are expensive. Last time I had some printed the cost was about $.33/each. The checks that ran out had my address from 9 years ago on them, so you can get an idea of how often I use them.
One word of caution about using your debit card at stores. If your credit card gets hacked and purchases are made, it's the bank's money that's gone until the charges get cancelled. If your debit card gets hacked it's your own money out of your bank account that's gone until the charges get reversed. With that in mind I would recommend not using a debit card for retail purchases if it is connected to the bank account that you pay your monthly bills like mortgage, car payment, insurance, etc, out of. It can take time for fraudulent charges to be reversed and in the meantime you may start bouncing payments all over the place. Personally I avoid this by not even having a debit card but an alternative would be to have a separate bank account with a debit card that is just for retail purchases. Having a separate account would also be good from a budgeting standpoint since you could transfer all your "spending" money into that account at the beginning of the month and avoid the over-spending problem associated with card use.
rodeosweetheart
9-16-15, 10:27am
I write almost no checks anymore. I use my credit card at the grocery store and try to pay with cash most other places like restaurants. Even my rent I use my credit union's bill pay system (which admittedly then sends my landlord a check.) Checks are expensive. Last time I had some printed the cost was about $.33/each. The checks that ran out had my address from 9 years ago on them, so you can get an idea of how often I use them.
One word of caution about using your debit card at stores. If your credit card gets hacked and purchases are made, it's the bank's money that's gone until the charges get cancelled. If your debit card gets hacked it's your own money out of your bank account that's gone until the charges get reversed. With that in mind I would recommend not using a debit card for retail purchases if it is connected to the bank account that you pay your monthly bills like mortgage, car payment, insurance, etc, out of. It can take time for fraudulent charges to be reversed and in the meantime you may start bouncing payments all over the place. Personally I avoid this by not even having a debit card but an alternative would be to have a separate bank account with a debit card that is just for retail purchases. Having a separate account would also be good from a budgeting standpoint since you could transfer all your "spending" money into that account at the beginning of the month and avoid the over-spending problem associated with card use.
That's such a great idea about the separate funded account! Will have to think about that!
Radicchio
9-16-15, 11:34am
I never use my debit card, other than at the bank's ATM. Too much at risk if the debit card is compromised. I did a quick search to find some information to back up my concerns and this is the first one I found.
http://www.clarkhoward.com/5-more-places-you-should-never-use-debit-card
We don't use many checks in our household. My wife, in her role as family CFO, writes a few checks a month when paying household bills. I wrote a check a month or so ago when I purchased a new car and another one last November when I renewed the tags on a couple of vehicles. It wouldn't bother me to never write another.
The one I wrote to the car dealership actually turned out to be a major PITA. It seems that many businesses use checks they receive to effect an electronic funds transfer and then dispose of the check. When they keyed in the details of my funds transfer, a "keying error" cost my account an additional $5000 which my wife discovered a couple of days later. We had to initiate an investigation between the two banks involved and the business to get things straightened out, which was hampered by the fact that neither bank nor the dealership had the actual check.
Ultralight
9-16-15, 12:15pm
Family CFO? Nice!
I'd add, again, that I always fill out my check while I'm waiting in line, if I'm using checks.
Also, if I'm paying with cash, I go to the self-checkout machine so I can get rid of change without holding up a line. I tend to collect change for a long period of time, and then realize I'd better drag it to the store before I drown in pennies. I managed to get rid of 25 pennies yesterday while paying for coffee. I would ditch both the cards and the checkbook and go to cash, but when I have cash, I inevitably end up handing it out to my teenage children.
Paul, you seem like a considerate person, so it does not surprise me that you would do things to minimize annoying the people behind you in line. Would that others were that considerate. It sounds, from several of the posts here, that many people are not. And I sense that the frustration is not that some transactions take longer than we'd like for some unforeseen reason, but that people are not avoiding the avoidable delays (like not having the checkbook out and ready to write on at the counter). That's not a serious factor of age or mental faculty. I think Miss Cellane got it right: slow people are slow people. It's nice to reminisce about slower happier days and to deal with a transactional problem at the moment that happens, but speed -- for better or worse -- has become a social norm in the U.S. One violates that norm at one's own peril. :)
Last spring, I wrote a check for around $17K to buy a car. It was a big event for me to save up and buy a car with cash so I wanted that memento. I had to complete a form that is required for cash purchases over $10K. Not sure what that's about but kind of surprised me at the time.
ApatheticNoMore
9-17-15, 10:37am
If it's about the time thing though you can literally get annoyed with anything (in fact it's almost like looking for annoyance), for instance people using cards annoys me and I'm like "oh for heaven sakes, why can't they just use cash?", but no fiddling around with sometimes cards that don't even work .... The credit card companies will try to say meanwhile that cards are faster than cash but I've never found that to be the case waiting in line.
Last spring, I wrote a check for around $17K to buy a car. It was a big event for me to save up and buy a car with cash so I wanted that memento. I had to complete a form that is required for cash purchases over $10K. Not sure what that's about but kind of surprised me at the time.
Form 8300. It's to report to the IRS any cash transactions over $10,000.00 to prevent money laundering. Did a lot of those when I was in banking.
Last spring, I wrote a check for around $17K to buy a car. It was a big event for me to save up and buy a car with cash so I wanted that memento. I had to complete a form that is required for cash purchases over $10K. Not sure what that's about but kind of surprised me at the time.
it is a banking regulation to track people who do large cash transactions (watching for illegal business basically). Car dealerships fill out those forms all the time but unless someone is moving that kind of cash monthly it is not something anyone watches.
Teacher Terry
9-17-15, 11:56am
I don't mind if people use checks as long as they write them out before the transaction is completed. Otherwise I want to strangle them. I rarely use them anymore. I use my bill pay for my bank & my debit card or cash. My chiro doesn't take cards trying to keep his prices down so that is one of the few places I go to with a check but I have it filled out before I get there because I know the price.
I was at the grocery a few weeks ago and the person in front of me took a long time. Coupons that didn't ring up etc. when it was my turn the cashier apologized. I said "no problem. I'm not in a hurry today". She was surprised to hear that and smiled through our entire exchange.
It was nice to not be in a hurry. One of the best changes in recent times in my life has been going to 12 hour shifts at work. There's only 2-3 a week, so lots of time for non work days.
Ultralight
9-17-15, 1:13pm
I was at the grocery a few weeks ago and the person in front of me took a long time. Coupons that didn't ring up etc. when it was my turn the cashier apologized. I said "no problem. I'm not in a hurry today". She was surprised to hear that and smiled through our entire exchange.
It was nice to not be in a hurry. One of the best changes in recent times in my life has been going to 12 hour shifts at work. There's only 2-3 a week, so lots of time for non work days.
This! This right here! Yes!
People don't believe me when I tell them that one of the biggest perks I experienced in SLing and minimalism is not having to hurry. I used to be running late all the dang time. Now, it is so rare that when it does happen I am like: "Whoa! Don't want to do that. I remember now how annoying and frustrating it was to hurry all the time!"
I really enjoy loading my pockets with all our spare change and making a small purchase at CVS - they have self checkout machines that takes handfuls of coins. Just like the "turn your change into cash" machines except they don't take 10% to do it. It's like my purchase is free. :)
Ultralight
9-17-15, 1:44pm
I really enjoy loading my pockets with all our spare change and making a small purchase at CVS - they have self checkout machines that takes handfuls of coins. Just like the "turn your change into cash" machines except they don't take 10% to do it. It's like my purchase is free. :)
I do this too! My gf thinks I am a total nut!
I was at the grocery a few weeks ago and the person in front of me took a long time. Coupons that didn't ring up etc. when it was my turn the cashier apologized. I said "no problem. I'm not in a hurry today". She was surprised to hear that and smiled through our entire exchange.
It was nice to not be in a hurry. One of the best changes in recent times in my life has been going to 12 hour shifts at work. There's only 2-3 a week, so lots of time for non work days.
I would love to do 3 twelve hour or 4 ten hour shifts per week and have more full days off. I'm not sure I could really make it happen effectively since I'm out of the office at meetings and doing presentations probably 40-50% of the time and doubt I could get insurance brokers to agree to a 5pm dinner and learn session for example (I teach lots of lunch and learns and breakfast and learns) since they wouldn't be on my 10 or 12 hour per day schedule, but wow, the idea of having more than 2 full days off each week sounds like heaven. I already don't do much during the week outside of work so having longer work days wouldn't really be an inconvenience.
This! This right here! Yes!
People don't believe me when I tell them that one of the biggest perks I experienced in SLing and minimalism is not having to hurry. I used to be running late all the dang time. Now, it is so rare that when it does happen I am like: "Whoa! Don't want to do that. I remember now how annoying and frustrating it was to hurry all the time!"
People also forget that they can always choose to Just Do Less. Years ago I had good friends who were Christian Scientists. Part of the basic philosophy is that illness is very much in your head. Toward that end, in addition to the praying for health part that I didn't believe or understand, they also refused to over-schedulte themselves or commit to things that caused stress. They lived in a different city and if I was going to be there on a work trip and wanted to see them they were comfortable saying no because they already had too much scheduled that week and needed the one evening I had to see them as their time to decompress and relax at home. Most of us would probably think "oh, but that's the only time JP will be in town (after all, who WOULDN'T want to see JP!!!???) and it would be nice to see him so I'll just suck it up and get together with him" but they wouldn't. They knew their limits and probably were much calmer and healthier as a result.
rodeosweetheart
9-18-15, 11:04am
Tammy, do all the self checkout machines do this or just CVS? How do you identify those who do?
Now even my bank charges a percentage to take coins!! Only the Chippewa and Ottawa casino does it for free, another reason I enjoy visiting there.
rodeosweetheart
9-18-15, 11:05am
Jp!, I am all for this, working within limits. Trying to to this, to get out of the relentless "hurry up and do more" that is my workplace. Ironically, it is hurting the workplace, and the product is not as good as when people take their time.
This is my year for identifying limits and setting boundaries on my time. It is an interesting experience.
Teacher Terry
9-18-15, 1:04pm
Now that I am semi-retired I rarely am in a hurry which has been wonderful. Much calmer & stress free life.
Checks don't make people move slowly in lines. Slow people move slowly in lines.
Or maybe you've just not been stuck behind the person who waits until everything has been rung up to pull out their debit card, then has to make three swipes with it before they get it the right way in the swiping machine, then has to ask their shopping companion what their PIN is, only to have the shopping companion have no idea, so they dig in their wallet to find the card they have with their PIN, then the cashier asks them if they want the receipt in their hand or in the bag and this question is so serious that it takes them a minute to decide. And through the entire transaction, they are chatting away on their phone or with a companion, so that the cashier has to continually redirect their attention back to the little key pad to answer if they want cash back, etc. (Spent a year working retail. Checks are not the problem; people are the problem.)
If someone is slow writing a check, they will be slow counting out change if they pay cash, and slow with a debit/credit card if they pay that way. The check only makes things more obvious.
Agree with this and add: The other day I was behind an elderly lady in the grocery line at our "neighborhood" Safeway. She had written her check and was bagged up, ready to go. For some reason, I can't imagine what, the checker needed to have the check checked out. First there was some short discussion with this lady. Maybe a changed address because he had asked for her ID, too (good grief!) Called the manager. That took a while. When he finally got there, he took a quick look at it, swiped something on his till, and she was good to go. Now...why? By the time the poor woman was "released" there were 3-4 of us behind her. I have to say, I was being patient; I was simply fascinated by the whole thing,
Oh! I just remembered an incident--how about a grandmother who thinks she's helping her grandchildren "learn about money" by dumping oh, half a dozen Ziplock bags of varied change they'd saved from chores on the belt to pay for their trinkets? Really? I forget what they were buying, but it was substantial. And the poor checker had to count. all. that. change. It took a good while. The grandmother kind of smiled meekly and I mentioned to her that the store had a coin counting machine. She rebuffed saying, oh, but they keep a fee for that. So the tradeoff is ticking off lots of people behind you and the checker.
I was in kind of a hurry this time and was not too patient, giving a sideways stinkeye when I caught the eye of this grandmother.
I've only noticed it at CVS and only in some of their newer machines. I love it.
freshstart
9-19-15, 3:19pm
in addition to the praying for health part that I didn't believe or understand.... They knew their limits and probably were much calmer and healthier as a result.
calmer and with fewer stress related health issues, makes sense, I can see me trying that. Overall health issues not treated except by prayer? Pass.
freshstart
9-19-15, 3:47pm
I also maybe write 4 checks a year, hate them. I use online bill pay which shows exactly which company got paid and for how much. When the paper check finally wends it's way through the system, it just shows check number and amount paid, not helpful when you are watching exactly where your money is going by looking at online checking/savings acct and credit card info. When I know I will be writing a check, I add the person to my payee list and they get sent a paper check. Hate checks, hate cash. I only use cash for the only MD I have who does not take credit cards. And my kids when they convince me that they actually must have cash for the most important event, Chipotle visit, iPhone case EVER and they will pay me back. They actually do since they both work and I am so surprised at that that I'll say "keep your money" sometimes. Only sometimes, gotta keep them on their toes!
I try to be patient with grocery store people in general because I know I am very slow at self checkout, even though there's rarely anyone behind me. But if you are cognitively up to the challenge, please start the check writing process before the bitter end, it's kind of rude to not even have your checkbook out until everything has been rung up. If you are 85, cataracts more visible than my dog's, wobbly and doing anything like trying to write a check in the modern world where they are frowned upon, I will patiently wait, go take a BR break and I'll bag your groceries.
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