Payday!

Checks and Balances

I cashed my first paycheck today. Yes, right, a check... I already told you about our first experience with the US pay system (see my second post in December last year) but even after 6 months, it's hard to getting used to.

There was a time in Belgium (and most of Europe), long ago, before Internet, HD television, cellphones and laptops even existed, that people used paper forms, also known as checks, to trade goods which were subsequently endorsed, stamped, processed and cashed at large bureaucratic institutions named banks. But then, a groundbreaking discovery was made, the "wire transfer", it changed the lives of people forever... no more paper, no more standing in line at the bank, no more worrying of losing the check, no more hassle. Unfortunately, the discovery didn't reach the United States, maybe because of the great distance, maybe the language barrier (sure), who knows.

So, that's why, in the US, everyone still uses these pre-historic little papers... *sigh*. My salary is paid by check sent to my home address. Once I receive the check, I have to go to my bank, sign the check, fill in a form, wait in line, wait for the bank cashier to swipe the check, check the number and authenticity, swipe my bank card, type in my pin code, hand over the deposit form, and wait for the receipt. Simple enough, no? Hmmm... in Belgium, payday is as follows: receive money on my bank account, period. Well, I know, no point on nagging about it, that's how it goes in the US and two little legal aliens will not change the system. But still, I cannot understand how the land of the free and the home of the brave does not want to simplify things and get rid of checks all together. Especially, New Yorkers are all about now, quick, fast and hurry (even a 12 year old has a blackberry) but they still don't seem to mind to work with this slow pre-historic payment form.

Funny thing is that debit cards (or Maestro in Belgium) are not as big a success in the US as they are in Belgium. Almost everyone pays by credit card. Just now, when I cashed in my paycheck at my bank, the bank cashier tried to sell me a credit card - she couldn't believe that we didn't have one yet in the US. I didn't get one in the end, way too dangerous in a city like New York and I'm not talking about getting robbed, you are insured for that but you're not insured for an afternoon of shopping in Saks Fifth Avenue!