Suturing the Claw Marks

Ms. Betty has officially transformed from sweet Southern woman to vapid raging bitch.

This week I got a letter from her saying something to the affect that I wasn't cashing her rent checks fast enough. I don't know what "fast enough" really means. So, I did the only thing I could think of when faced with an insane statement. I ignored her, naively chalking her terse letter to a lack of polished writing skills.

The other day, she followed up with an snippy e-mail, telling me I was "messing with her checkbook" by not cashing her checks the day I receive them.

Ms. Betty doesn't know which day her rent is delivered to my PO Box. And, if I don't go to the PO Box for a week, the check just sits there anyway. But, somehow I am responsible for her finances being in disarray. It gives me cause to wonder if the water, gas and electric companies have also been privy to such treatment.

I am not sure what I am personally supposed to do. If she doesn't know how to use a checkbook register or more importantly, manage her finances, there is little guidance I can provide at this point.

This time, I responded to her e-mail with what I thought to be a friendly suggestion that she might want to send a cashier's check in the future if it was too much of an issue to wait for her check to be cashed. I personally thought it was a grand idea. From her inexcusably snotty response, apparently I inadvertently touched another nerve.

The way I figure it, the underlying subtext of Ms. Betty's e-mail was was that her money situation is too chaotic for me to let any check from her sit around for a day or two. Good to know! I will get to the bank right away.

Just a quick tip: Ms. Betty's bizarrely snide notes to me pretty much lost her any future favors. I don't mind a cordial relationship. I draw the line at downright rude and nasty. The adage is correct: you can catch a lot my flies with honey.

Marty Sunshine, the eternal optimist, pointed out Ms. Betty is probably frustrated about something else and it is landing as a money issue with me as the bad guy. And, my untimely bank run this week is a minor frustration manifesting itself as a big-ass problem in her life.

My thought is that she is pregnant and the hormones have taken over.

Neither of which excuses her behavior.