Hello readers, during the next few weeks, whilst my co-blogger takes a well-earned break from trice daily postings, I will take the reins of the good ship Thomas the Think Engine.
With that, I am announcing a new multi-part series called ‘What’s wacky about the USA’. Hallmarks of this new series will include: mixed metaphors, lots of commas, lots of hyphens, lots of spelling mistakes, fewer posts and veiled criticisms of the greatest country on earth. I hope you enjoy the reading…
Thus, the first topic is Incompetence:
I visited the local Bank of America branch the other day to change the address for my personal account and the ‘James / Wifey’ joint account, in preparation of our move this weekend. I provided the friendly ‘consultant’ with the necessary details to complete the process: ATM card, photo ID, current address and new address (which I both orated and provided in written form on a piece of paper – important for later). After it was done, I asked if it were possible for wifey to change the address of her personal account online. “No” I was told, the fact that we are not American was the inexplicable response.
Not one to take “no” for an answer, Wifey checked out the Bank of America website today to see if indeed it is possible to change the address online. Of course is it. But even more importantly, Wifey checked the address that was listed for the joint account. Yes, it had been changed. The friendly, but nonetheless grotesquely incompetent ‘consultant’ had dropped an extra zero into the street address.
If I had just told her the address, that may explain (but not justify) the confusion (some of them really struggle with the accent). But I handed her a PIECE PAPER WITH THE ADDRESS WRITTEN ON IT! Seriously?
Thomas the Think Engine 
oooh – v. excited to hear from you Jim.
My experience with the American banking system was that it was far more user friendly than the one in Oz.
Whenever I try to change my address in Oz they inevitably don’t change it for all of my accounts – even when I do it online it inexplicably doesn’t change. Wells Fargo happily changed my address to a German one, then an Australian one and didn’t charge me anything for the international postage.
Hope the move went well.
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Damn racist yankees!!
Tell them your name is Bret McKenzie – If they think you’re from Flight of The Conchords you might get a better run.
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