News feed: American Girl Loses Bank Card for the Third Time

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Only in China do your humiliations get broadcast on the city news and at the same time give you advantages in banking. I am ashamed to say that I lost my bank card to the ATM again today. If it weren’t for the China Agricultural Bank’s great system of sucking your card back in after 30 seconds if you don’t take it, I’m sure I would have been drained of every RMB to my name by now.

When you make a withdrawl the ATM first gives you your money and then you have to select whether to continue with another transaction or eject your card. It’s easy to just take the money and leave - if you’re Lisa, that is. Well, I was hurrying off to the Jin Run Fa - sort of a Chinese Walmart - today trying to get a comforter and get to class in the space of an hour before Abbey gets here tomorrow. When I walked into the bank I told myself “don’t forget your card, don’t forget your card”. Everything seemed fine until it was half an hour before class time and I was in the check-out line at Jin Run Fa with 340 RMB worth of purchases, no bank card to be seen and only 290 RMB in my pocket. I gave up a few items but still had to use every last fen to get the essential things before tomorrow. I had no cab money so I had to walk home carrying my new comforter and was consequently late to class.

I put off going to the bank to retreive my card until 4:30 because I was so incredibly humiliated to ask for my card back yet again. The bank ladies didn’t know this, thank goodness, but I’ll let you in on a secret - this was the third time I lost it in this way. I was showing the bank teller my passport and everything looked like it would be over in a few humiliating minutes when low and behold the manager walks over and says “I know her”. I had to sign the book that keeps tabs on people who picked up lost cards and my name was already in it just five lines up. And then the news camera crews showed up.

It just so happened that the news was at the bank to make some PR clip about the great facilities and modern service available at this branch. When they saw the white girl who speaks Chinese, of course this being China, they had to film me. The bank manager asked me if I would let them film me for a few minutes. What could I say after she just found my card for me for the second time in two weeks. I said ok.

I am sincerely hoping that it is a sound free clip since we were talking rather quietly but I thought she was just telling me what we were going to say when they start filming. She included a part about I need to try harder to remember my card when I get money out of the ATM. I gave her a face that probablly looked like a puppy who just made a mess on the living room floor. “Please don’t tell all of Nanjing about this, ok?” I said. Then the TV crew said, “Ok, we’re finished filming that section. Just one more shot.” Opps, too late.

They wanted me to pretend to talk on a cell phone. So I stood there in the bank’s office and talked to myself and they filmed it. “Why do you want a picture of someone talking on a cell phone in a bank?” I asked. “No, no,” they said. “We are going to pretend you are at home enjoying the convenient dial in bank services.” I see.

When we were done, I said to the bank manager “I really have to go because you see I was coming here to get my card because I have to get to the Industrial Bank by five o’clock to pay my electricity bill - it’s the last day to pay it.” “Oh, don’t go to all the trouble,” she said. “We’ll take care of it for you here.” And just like that I became an Agricultural Bank of China VIP.

She used her own bank card to pay my electric bill through their ATM. It was a very cool system. You just put in your debit card and select “pay bills” and choose the company whose bill you want to pay. Then enter the account number on your electricity bill and you’re all done. I payed her back in cash I took out of the ATM - without forgetting my card this time. “Next time you need to pay your bills, just come find me! You can use my card anytime!” she said. “Ok, thanks” I said and strolled out of the bank, happy both to get away from the spotlight and to have saved myself a trip to pay my electricity bill.

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