livingdeb: (Default)
livingdeb ([personal profile] livingdeb) wrote2010-04-18 07:03 pm
Entry tags:

Spanish Class and Other Money Annoyances

The fun-sounding Spanish class at Austin City Spanish School is not working out.

We showed up in plenty of time, found parking, but could not find 1126 1/2 W. 6th Street. I had googled it and found the building and memorized what it looked like and we were at that building, but like people who aren't Harry Potter, we could not find anything with a street number of 1126 1/2.

We asked someone in a shop in that building about the address. I half-expected her to say "Oh, that terrible Spanish class again!" but she just told us that address did not exist and asked if we were sure it was West 6th Street and not East Sixth Street. We do get lost a lot, but the web page said "Clarksville," so it was not East 6th Street.

We called the school's number but there was no answer. So we left a message and got no reply. So sad.

Meanwhile, we saw no sign that anyone else was looking for that class.

Got home, sent an e-mail, got an automated response saying there would be a real response in two days, but there wasn't.

Tried again. Then had to dispute the charges, but since we had paid so far ahead of time, we had passed PayPal's 45-day limit. But we still got a dispute case number (you have to call and talk to a person to get this) which we were able to use in contacting our credit union and credit card company. My credit card company would not allow me to write about my "case #" because the symbol "#" is not allowed.

Can't tell if the owner/instructor is just sick or dead or if this is fraud. No real address probably means fraud, though. So we also filed a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center (FBI). (They already knew that the address was invalid because I am not allowed to use the symbol "/".)

My apologies for having invited you all to join me in this madness.

**

I also have to mail in an automatic deposit change form to explain that now that the prisoner I was sending money to has been released, I no longer want to send money to his prison account.

At least the form is paper and I can use whatever symbols I want.

I wonder if I will have to do the same sort of thing when my house is paid off. "Dear slimy bank: Please change my automatic monthly payment to zero and please send me all the overages related to this account."

**

Speaking of which, my escrow payment is going up more than I thought it would this year. After looking at the numbers it does make sense, though. So at least I don't have to contact anyone about that, let alone contact them in an illicit-symbol-free way.

**

Tired now. Time for fun. Or at least something much less annoying.

(Anonymous) 2010-04-19 04:15 am (UTC)(link)
Texpenguin here...Looks like the website listed their address slightly wrong. It's not 1126 1/2 W. 6th St., it's 1126 W. 6th 1/2 St.! Yes, there is a 6th 1/2 St., about (oddly enough) 1/2 block off 6th St. running between Highland and Oakland Streets. Hope you are able to get in touch with them and take your class after all! They should definitely include a map link with an address like that. Here it is, FYI: http://maps.google.com/maps?q=1126+1/2++W.+6th+Street&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=1126+W+6th+1/2+St,+Austin,+TX+78703&gl=us&ei=ndfLS9CECJOQNrPx6J8F&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CAcQ8gEwAA

[identity profile] livingdeb.livejournal.com 2010-04-21 04:23 am (UTC)(link)
Interesting. I haven't been by there yet. But the google picture implies that 6 1/2 Street ends slightly before it gets to 1126.

[identity profile] livingdeb.livejournal.com 2010-04-24 05:53 pm (UTC)(link)
Nope, nothing there. It's more like an alley than a regular street. Totally fun idea, though!