Balancing Act

Does anyone balance their checkbook anymore?

I think I'm possibly the last person on earth doing it. And I do, I get a piece of slate and a sliver of coal and I sit near the fire trying to figure out if the bank is accurately taking care of my money.

Actually, I don't write many checks anymore, but I also record and track my debit purchases, which is another thing I think few people do. I've had many people tell me they just look at their online balance and if there's money in their account, life is good.

I just can't do it. It almost seems foolhardy to me.

Back in the day when the bank actually returned my checks AND sent me a paper statement, I would try to balance to the penny, but my personal cut-off point was one dollar. If I could reconcile with the bank within a dollar or less, I'd do the math adjustment and call it a day. If the bank and I were off by more than a dollar, though, I'd look for it. I'd check my math. I'd compare the amounts written on the checks with the amounts I recorded. I spent a lot of time looking for a little bit of money.

That seems foolhardy, too. In all these years of balancing my checkbook, I've never once had to go to the bank about a mistake THEY made.

Yesterday I used my online statement and balanced my checkbook. More or less. This time the bank and I were off an even $25. I made a note of it, and moved on. I just haven't decided if that's personal growth or mere laziness.