dangers of indorsing a check

What I learned in class today:

Let's say you get a check from someone, which says "Pay to the order of John Smith" in the amount of $500.00. In theory, John Smith should be able to sign the back of the check, take it to the bank and cash it or deposit it into his account without any worries. Yes, that's the theory.

But what if John Smith was on his way to the bank with his paycheck that he just signed and dropped it on the street. Should he worry that no one else will be able to take his money? Should he worry that he can get another check from work if he told them he lost it?

Yes he should worry. If John Smith just signed "John Smith" on the back of that paycheck, he just turned that piece of paper into "bearer paper," which means that the "bearer" of the check is the new holder of the check and thus can cash the check without question. Thus, Jane Doe can pick up John Smith's paycheck and as the new holder of his paycheck, she can cash it at a bank for $500.

Next scenario: Suppose John Smith signs the back of the paycheck "John Smith" and then gives the paycheck to a check cashing place in exchange for immediate cash of $500, then the check cashing place rubber stamps "Check Cashing Place" underneath John Smith's signature, does this protect the Check Cashing Place from losing money if it drops the check on the street where Jane Doe picks it up? Nope, for the same reason above. By rubber stamping "Check Cashing Place" underneath "John Smith", this is just saying that John Smith signed the check over to Check Cashing Place, and thus it is still "bearer paper" and the person who bears the paper is the holder who gets money.

So how should John Smith and Check Cashing Place protect themselves from the Jane Does of the world?

When signing the back of a check made payable to you, always put "For Deposit Only" underneath your signature. And if you want to be extra careful, put "for deposit only to account xxx" under your signature. This by law does not convert the check into "bearer paper" and the only holder of the check is the owner of the account the check is being deposited in.

Of course, if you want immediate cash, make sure you don't sign the check until you are physically in front of a bank teller or employee of a check cashing place. Because once they give you the cash, who cares if they're negligent in losing checks on the street.

Vocabulary lesson: You have to INDORSE the back of a check to get the funds; and you only ENDORSE a presidential candidate if you really really really believe all the lies he/she is telling.

funny pictures of kids

go away freaking cold weather

It has been really really REALLY cold here. I can't stand it anymore so am now going to whine about it in hopes that the weather god will give me some sunshine.

The weird part with this weather was that when I got back to KC on New Year's day, it was cold. But then, all of a sudden, the temperature got really really warm. I was wearing my down coat one day, and the next I was running around in just a t-shirt -- that's how warm it was. And it was such a nice feeling to be free from being all bundled up with layered clothing, scarves, hats and gloves. Sadly, the warmth only lasted a few days.

And now we're back to this freezing coldness.

I had to go to the post office the other day to mail off 40+ resume packets to SF and the temperature was so cold, I think my ears were about to fall off. The post office is only two blocks away from where I live, so I figured if I run, I'll keep warm. Not so true, the harder I ran, the more it hurt to breathe in the frigid air! I felt like I was going to have a heart attack in the middle of the street. And then my legs were getting cold from just standing in the middle of the street to catch my breathe. It was awful.

This morning, I had to get up and go to spin class at the school's gym. Initially, I didn't want to get out of bed at all because it was so cold. I would stick a foot out from under my blankets to see how cold it was and immediately my foot retreated itself back under the covers. But since I committed myself to the spin classes by paying for it, I was going to get my freezing butt out of bed and trek through the cold to get my $48 worth of spin class. And I did it.

Now I'm sore in addition to being cold.

Damn winter, go away and let spring come already. I'm done with the cold. Give me some warmth please.

Thank you very much.

new blogs for your reading pleasure

If you're in the need for some recipes for Vietnamese food, here's a collection of home-made recipes.

If you just want to read about the life of a stranger, here's a collection of a fellow classmate's inner thoughts (or not).

advertising for salad dressing

It's funny how we had this whole selection of salad dressing laid out on the table and the only bottle we used was the Kraft Ranch dressing.

how to get over a broken heart

1. Go to Happy Hour.

2. Drink lots of So Cal Strawberry Lemonade.

3. Order the giant Hazelnut Sundae dessert.

4. Devour as slowly or as quickly as you like. Curse the idiot who broke your heart a few times and eat some more.
5. Take a huge bite out of the giant hazelnut truffles and imagine how much life will suck less each day.
6. Lick the martini glass and leave no remnants of the sundae behind.

7. Repeat if necessary.