LETTERS, ACRONYMS AND MYOB

TLW, (The Little Woman) is now becoming the company spokeswoman for her credit union. It started out quietly enough when she joined the place about 6 years ago, and has been slowly building a world of credit union jargon, lore and wardrobe!

Being a spouse of a credit union employee, I have to witness and listen to all that occurs in a few hours each day. Weekends, like the “Bank” hold no exception for me. It’s credit union as usual, be it Mondays or Saturdays. Sundays are not a day of rest either. For instance, on certain Sundays we go on a tour in NYC, usually to places like: Central Park and Chinatown. On each occasion, there was a bank employee with us. It is not unlike touring the old Soviet Union, and having a spy guide along for the tour. A kind of KGB agent that is implanted into the group. But instead of KGB we have TFCU agents to watch over us, I guess to make sure we are not using other banks or credit unions, and that our loyalty to the credit union is sincere.

On our tour of Central Park, there was agent “Lois” or so she calls herself, then on the Chinatown tour there was agent “Barbara” again, keeping her eye on things. We will be going to “The Rainbow Room” this Sunday for a great dinner, and I wonder who will represent the credit union. These trips are NOT sponsored by the Credit Union, but are free and independent of any bank or credit union.

At home I get briefings about the “bank”, stories about who did what to whom, and who said what to who didn’t do what to whomever. Then the day came when TLW put on a blue button down shirt one Friday, with the embroided letters; “TFCU” over the breast pocket. We now have bookmarked websites for TFCU and I have learned all the jargon for bank loans and their acronyms different kinds of forms and the letter assignments for them, I can now even talk a good loan! There are desk calendars, book calendars, trips to ballgames, hats and I’m sure, underwear. The reason I’m sure is when a teller checks out, they have to: “Count her draw.”

There is a problem that I foresee coming, and coming soon. Embroided PJ’s with the TFCU emblazoned on the top of the breast pocket. NO, not hers, mine.