Your details? Completely safe with us!

Dear Mr. Earls,

Thank you for your message. We understand that the message, which we replied to you, was totally different from your query. Please note that the incorrect message was picked up by the system due to a technical glitch and sent to you. This was escalated and the issue was immediately resolved.

We would like to assure you that your account and personal details are safe with us and in no way have been compromised.

We regret the inconvenience caused in this regard.

Should you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to send us a message or call us on the contact numbers mentioned below.

Yours sincerely,
Citibank

I logged into my online Citibank account over the weekend to check on whether a transfer had gone through or not. I noticed that there were two debits for Citibank fees (I was expecting one), so I sent a secure mail to Citibank through their website, asking why there were two charges. I logged in the next day to find a reply, stating something to the effect of "Thanks for writing to us, Mrs. Rebecca Hamilton. We have investigated your missing deposit and have a few updates for you, blah blah blah." So I sent them another message, asking who the heck Mrs Rebecca Hamilton is, and why the heck I'm receiving her mail through Citibank's secure system. Equally important to me is who is receiving my stuff? How does this happen? Ahhh! But luckily, I received the above letter shortly. I feel much better now that they've assured me that my personal details and account information remain completely secure with them. It's also nice to know that it's the computer's fault that messages were incorrectly sent to me. Damn machines.

In other news, I got a delivery last weekend that was packaged with lots of foam peanuts for protection. Normally those are a pain, since they aren't particularly recycleable, and they fill up a huge amount of space when you just throw them out with the rubbish. I literally had thrown them out into the bin, dumped used coffee grounds on top of them, and then read this package insert:

"Disposal of packaging: We care about the environmental impact of our product packaging. Therefore we use bio-degradable and recyclable packaging wherever we can. The loose fill beads in this box are for cushioning during transit. They dissolve easily in water. You can re-use them or dispose of them by composting, dissolving them in a sink of water, or putting them in your bin."

MELT these packing beads in my kitchen sink? Clearly that's impossible - and thus sprung up my idea to create an experiement and document its key steps.

Step 1: fill the sink with water

Step 2: stuff in the fillers

Step 3: dissolve! dissolve!

Step 4: No way! Who would have believed?

I am pleased to report that they, in fact, were not lying. Indeed, these dissolved quickly in the sink and became little more than a distant memory. I'm glad I have the pictures to remember them by. Although, this experience does make me wander around, wondering what else might dissolve in water. (And for anyone who's missing random things from their desks, sorry. But at least your pencil has been sacrificed towards the greater good of science. Pencils are - absolutely - not easy to dissolve in water).

(This article viewed 152 times.)
Previous article: Does anyone else remember the Snippits?
Next article: Please stop talking, Mitt Romney