BORING

Life is not as interesting as it once was. The subject of banking in last week’s blog post, Money in the Bank? What's That? got me thinking about bank register books. Recording all transactions with a note about the allocation of the funds is still my thankless job. Yet, those simple lines tell so much.

Our children ask, do you still use a recorder for your checking account? Why, they insist, arguing the computer keeps records? I try to explain it’s not the same even though I check my account online each morning. Unlike check recorders with a line for the “TRANSACTION DESCRIPTION,” those online bank statements do not indicate the reason for the distribution of the funds. 

To add to my reasoning, I acknowledge that when family members left this earth, it was interesting to learn from entries in their check recorders what and on whom they spent their money. Banking registers can add flavor to a person’s legacy.

These days with the help of our online banking, we no longer sit for lengthy evenings writing out checks. While many accounts are registered online, and the funds are automatically drawn from our checking account, I still add each and every deposit and record each payment with a note on the second line. 

Still, the younger crowd has no idea what a time saver having the funds withdrawn automatically can be or almost magically being able to make deposits right from the cell phone. As for that, I will not say some things today are more boring. 

Nothing was quite as boring in my day as writing the checks, addressing the envelopes, and adding postage stamps. Plus, the trip to the post office. Those days are fewer and farther between since we have minimal bills that are not auto-credited. I will admit it took me a long time to give in and allow the bank to do the work.

That topic brought back a happy memory of watching my father routinely making out the bills at the kitchen table. My mother sat nearby, one of the few times I saw her sitting on any given day rather than up and about cooking, baking, serving, and tidying. When it came to bill paying, she sat down and proudly assumed her role of sealing the envelopes and affixing the stamps. 

In the days before pre-self-sticking postage, my mother would seal the envelopes with a quick "lick of the tongue" and stack them for mailing. The everlasting memory shows my mother’s face glowing with a sigh of relief for having paid off another bill. Rather than boring, my mother saw the task as rewarding. 

Moving on about life becoming more boring over the years, my cousin Shari and I agree that conversations with people bring added interest to life. Bemoaning the lack of social skills in the current generation, we see the younger generations failing to communicate other than through written correspondence, especially texting. Their heads are always down, looking at their phones, iPads, or other gadgets. Boring.

Then, again, with all the day-to-day hurdles, my friend Marita says she prays for boring. We both awake ready to start the day until our original plans are upended when we find the need to console family members or friends.

At the end of the day, making life boring can be truly interesting. You can bank on it.