The Check Bounced!

Unbelievable.  I received a check for $120,000 for Drift Away from an ad I placed on the MTOA (Marine Trawler Owners' Association) website, sight unseen.  This rich guy from London said the boat sounded perfect and he wanted to buy it as a gift for his son.  He included an extra $41,000.  All I had to do was to cash the teller's check and give the balance to the delivery captain.   I mailed the check to my bank in upstate New York.

Yesterday, I got a nervous phone call from NBT Bank.

"Mr. Gibson?"

"Yes?"

"This is Mrs. Smith from NBT Bank.  I'm calling about a check for $120,000 you deposited?"

"Yes!  It went through, right?"  (I can be such as ass).

"Uh...  well... no..."

I laughed and told her that I didn't expect it to go through.  This is classic scam, of course.  I know it happens, but I don't know why anyone would fall for it.

In boat sales news, I've had quite a few inquiries from the three Craig's List ad I've run, and two brokers who want a crack at in in non-exclusive listings.

I also had a call from a broker who was very excited and said he had a client from Switzerland who was going to hop on a plane and fly over to see it, only I had to sign an exclusive contract with his company.  I declined.  I told him that if he wanted to sell Drift Away that's fine, and I'll pay the standard 10% commission, but he wasn't getting an exclusive listing.  I know from experience that most sales people are lazy.   One broker I was initially dealing with couldn't even keep appointments to see the boat, or even return telephone calls.  He got the boot.

So the fun continues.  It looks like we might have a decent weather window opening up, so maybe I'll get the deck painted.  I have to pull the foredeck hatch anyway to caulk it for the sixth friggin' time.