Shaft

I've been using online service, vendors, banking, etc. since the beginning of 'internet' time. It must have been more than 10 years. I've had very few 'problems' aside from the occasional suckbucket on ebay. None of my problems have ever amounted to much. Until today.

When logging on to my online banking this morning I noticed that Paypal has taken a nice chunk of my money. A $2,649.99 chunk, to be exact. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (this is the amount of silence it took before what was happening sunk in). Fu#@#^^&*%$###$***$#@!!!!!!!!! began the line of obsenities that spewed from my mouth. In my kitchen. Where my kids were eating chocolate chip waffles. I'll probably get a call from the principal today when my 7 year old asks her teacher what "you fucking fucker douchebag shit" means.

Apparently, someone has captured the password of my Hunk's ebay and paypal account. Upon which they decided they wanted to purchase a $2,649.99 loose diamond. They changed the confirmed shipping address on the paypal account and did an instant transfer from our bank account. For $2,649.99. ahem. Apparently, I have moved to El Paso, TX where I will be receiving my loose diamond via US Postal service any day now.

So, Paypal will investigate this claim, but it takes 10 days. My bank will let me file an unauthorized form of some sort, which takes 5 days to process. I doubt I have a leg to stand on with the bank. Paypal.....we shall see. I've heard a lot of bad stories, but I'll hold my judgement until it is considered a closed deal. My hope is that Paypal will indeed protect this purchase.

I checked out the auction that Hunk supposedly won, a brilliant loose diamond. Not only am I missing money, it was lost to something that I don't like AT ALL, jewelry. I don't wear any jewelry other than my wedding rings. I don't have any desire to wear jewelry. Anyhoo, I called the number of the "Seller". They have a website - a strange address, though (no www). I dialed the 877 number and a man answered, possibly having been awakened by the phone. He was clearly NOT at a jewelry store. I asked him if he could refund my purchase, he said yes, but he needed to call his partner. "Has the item been shipped?" Yes, I was assured that the diamond was shipped to El Paso yesterday. "A Tracking Number, please". He didn't have it at the moment and he really needed to call his partner to figure this all out. His partner happened to have just left for Israel. Hmmmm.

I then followed up my dispute with a call to Paypal to see what leg I have to stand on, especially if they say this item has shipped. According to Paypal, they have not yet released the money to the seller (thank GOD if that is true). Which brings me back to the seller - why would they ship a diamond supposedly valued at $6,500 (I really got a bargain!! ha) if they haven't received their $2.649.99???

There's a lot of fishy going on here. At first I thought that perhaps both the seller and myself had been duped. But with the reaction I'm getting from the seller, I'm wondering if they are not a part of the scam? Whatever the case, if the seller is legit, and they shipped this diamond then someone in El Paso is going out for a steak dinner and doing a happy dance.

A good lesson learned here, is that I should be logging on to my online banking DAILY. Paypal 'says' that there is a 3-4 day waiting period before they would have actually released the money. If I had not happened to have checked, the money would have DEFINATELY been gone and I would have no grounds at all. I'm in my account a lot, but if I set up all my billpay info, I can go a week or so without logging in.

I've made all the appropriate changes to passwords, etc., but it doesn't replace the fact that I'm out of $2,649.99 in CASH, and I may never see it again. I honestly do not see how people can live with themselves by taking things from other people. What kind of a mind do you have to have to feel as though you deserve something that I worked for? It really is amazing how people can be so different, so unfeeling, so self righteous. I wonder if I would be a different person if I weren't as blessed as I am. I don't want for food, or clothing. I have a nice place to live. If I didn't have these things would it alter my compassion for others?