Misc
Banking
Sep 28th
In 5th grade I signed up for my own savings account with Citibank, 15-16 years later I still have that same account. At some point with them I opened a checking account and got a debit card, again I still have this and love it. No problems ever.
Recently I have been looking for a new bank since there are no Citibank locations nearby (100miles) and needed a place to deposit checks. I thought this would be an easy enough thing to do. I got on google maps and the yellowpages and searched for all the nearby banks. I had the following criteria that a bank must meet:
- Free Checking
- Free Checks
- No ATM Fee
- Online Banking/BillPay Service
I thought this was simple enough, Citibank has always provided this and more for me at no cost. Little did I realise that almost all banks charge fees to take money out of someone else’s ATM. From small local banks with 10 branches to mega-corporations such as HSBC. Their fees ranged from $1.25 to $2.50.
I laughed in peoples faces when the told me I had to pay a fee that was in addition to whatever the ATM fee was. I have never paid a fee, so I was not used to this rape charge. In Europe and Asia I have never even had an ATM fee.
I finally found one bank that had no ATM fees, and even at the end of every month refunded all money charged by other ATMs. Awesome.
So I withdrew a few hundred dollars from Citibank to deposit in this new account. I then paid a $11 cable bill a week later. I then received a fairly substantial check. I created a savings account and specified that I wanted $1000 deposited in the savings account and the remainer into my checking account.
I was told that this would not be an issue, but that the money would take a few days to clear. I told them no problem. After the check was deposited I was then told that I had something pending and that my account may not cover it. I asked why, I was then told that they had transferred the money from my checking account into my savings and that the remainer of the $1000 would come from the check.
I was told that this was standard procedure, and that depending on the ‘pending’ whatever, I may not be able to cover it. Today I received a notice stating that I was charged $27 because I did not have the money in my account to cover the $11 check.
Do not get me wrong, I could not be upset if I had no money, or if the only money I had was from a check that had not cleared yet. However I had money and this bank transferred the money out, not listening to what I had told them to do with my check. Way to go, you have lost my business.
BTW the bank is Liberty Bank.
Sam & Max Strike Back
Sep 8th
So word on the street today is that Sam & Max will have a sequel. The new game will be released in episodes which is similar to the new Sin game. I havent played it nor have I downloaded it. However they release different episodes over time keeping consumers coming back for more. The first episode of Sam & Max will be available from GameTap starting October 17th, and available elsewhere online for purchase November 1st. the first game was simply awesome. The original was made by LucasArts using their old Scumm game engine which has been ported to both Xbox and the Nintendo DS.
It contained:
Worlds Largest Ball of Twine
MiniGolfing over Alligators, with Max as the Club.
A Bigfoot Convention.
And Carnies.
IGN Exerpt: “Just under a year ago, indie studio Telltale Games acquired the rights to make games based on the underground comic Sam & Max: Freelance Police. The news was a godsend to many old-school gamers who loved the first game the comic inspired, 1993′s Sam & Max Hit the Road, and lamented the 2004 cancellation of its sequel, Sam & Max: Freelance Police.”
A fun and interested interview with one of the designers from TellTale, who worked with LucasArts for a longtime.
Relevant Links:
TellTale Blog
Official Sam & Max Site
GameSpot
Slashdot
Unofficial Sam & Max SCUMM Emulator
Vanished
Sep 5th
I dont normally watch any television outside of the History Channel, Food Network and the Travel Channel. However I happend to see a commercial for a new Fox show called, ‘Vanished.’
Related Links:
Watch the First Episode for Free
Vanished Boards
The first episode is definately worth the watch, the forum, maybe not so. Awesome show. The show is on Monday nights on fox at 9pm(est).
The offcial summary of the show:
“This FOX drama centers on the search for Sara Collins. She’s the wife of Senator Jeffrey Collins. Sara vanishes and the FBI lead by Agent Graham Kelton is on the job, but before they can find her they need to find out who she really is.
The mystery surrounding the disappearance is seen through the eyes of the FBI, members of the family and a reporter trying to get the story of her career.
The search for Sara will expose many secrets. Nothing is as it seems. Everyone is a suspect because of their secrets.”
More Legal Discrimination
Aug 30th
I havent seen this on the American news outlets as of yet, but an American citizen, who happens to be of Iraqi descent, wore a T-shirt that said “we will not be silent,” the slogan was in Arabic and English. Some of JetBlue’s passengers, that are ever to smart, became scared since they did not know what it said. He was approached by security, the airline bought him a giftshop shirt to wear instead.
I have had my problems with JetBlue in the past, and this is just one more reason why you do not want to fly an airline. Also for those of you too lazy to read the article, JetBlue’s offcial reason for not allowing the shirt was this, “You can’t wear a t-shirt with Arabic script and come to an airport. It is like wearing a t-shirt that reads “I am a robber and going to a bank.”
Relevant Links:
Link to the BBC article.
More information and ordering information for the shirt.