Monday, October 14, 2013

Capitol One Security Questions

I don't know the answers to these questions. I couldn't log into my Capitol One account today, so I called their tech support.
"What can I help you with today?"
"I locked myself out of my account by not knowing the name of the hospital where I was born."
"I'm sure it's not a question of not knowing the name, but we're moving from a three question system to a five question system, so it will want you to set new questions."

And he unlocked my account and told me to set five security questions. And I am really trying. But my best friend in high school had a hyphenated last name and only went by one of the names. Just yesterday I was looking at my father's mother's new address label and wondering what the "P" stands for. I don't know how to spell any of my teacher's names before 3rd grade. Luckily, my grandfathers had the same profession. But that still leaves four more security questions to set. I will have to remember (read: won't remember) to not get confused by the present tense, when I go to log into this account in six months, and type "retiree."

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Gutenbergs

I've got a birthday trip to Boston coming up. I am going to do a lot of sightseeing! I'm not one for sights, really, I just like to soak up one thing all day and then sleep. This time, though, I've had a year (since Casey moved to Boston) to make a wishlist and there are a lot of things on it! There's an exhibit of fore-edge painting at the public library, which also has a hidden letterbox. There is a Doctor Who letterboxing series with 12 boxes! There is a glass globe of the world of the 1930s. And I was thinking if it was convenient I could check out whatever Gutenberg Bibles are around. But, Casey reports that the public just plain can't look at Harvard's copy. This made me feel really justified in my boycott of Netflixing movies set at Harvard, but it also annoyed me. I told Casey that this interferes with my goal of seeing all of the Gutenberg Bibles. It surprised me to hear myself say that because I actually never set that goal. It just occurred after I kept seeing them accidentally, at the Library of Congress and the New York Public Library main branch. (I am really, really comfortable in libraries and always seek them out.)

The same thing happened to me with the license plate game (you try to see one from each of the 50 states). I was driving in Santa Cruz and I saw a license plate from Hawaii and I thought well, I guess I am playing the license plate game now. Anyway I don't care to see all of the Gutenberg Bibles so I am striking that as a life goal. Maybe I will just see the one in Tokyo and the one at the Hogwarts library. Because I will be there anyway.