At the bank they want you to fill out your slips before getting in line to make a deposit. So, they set up little counters with everything you could possibly need to make a deposit (except for the money that is). They have deposit and withdrawal slips, calculators, calendars, and pens … pens that are held to the counter by wires and chains so they cannot escape. They sit there on the counter until the day comes when they run out of ink. And then they sit there some more. That is the time when you show up, needing to perform simple tasks like copying check numbers to a deposit slip.
The dedicated staff of edhat.com was on the hunt for these spent pens. How many were there? Which banks had the most? The staff was all over town “jumping from bank to banky” as the old camp song goes. We went in, we tested all the pens, and we recorded our data. Before we left, we took the time to introduce ourselves to bank personnel and to report to them the results of our findings.
After an initial snubbing by a “banker’s banker” at Montecito Bank & Trust, we encountered mostly friendly employees. “You gotta be kidding!” was the most common response we received. On a few occasions alert bank employees approached us … apparently, our dedicated staffers wearing baseball caps and carrying clipboards appeared a bit suspicious in these troubled times.
Overall we tested 113 pens in 21 banks (that’s an average of 5.38 pens/bank). Of those 113 pens we found 101 good ones and 12 bad ones. In other words, 89% of all pens worked! Bank of the West, Mid State, Los Padres, and Montecito were the banks with all pens firing. First Bank (50%) and Santa Barbara Bank & Trust (67%) had the most baddies. Pens outside near the downtown walkup teller were the downfall of SBBT. Today’s contest winner is Lefty whose guess of 90% wins two movie tickets … probably to see something starring Sean Penn.
January 14, 2004 - Pens at the Bank
