the danger of Too Much Information

There are times when it's wise not to say too much. Such was the case when I went to get a document notarized this morning.

I was attempting to complete an affidavit for my attorney; it's for a small claims issue and is only a single page long. It states a couple facts and is targeted at mom's bank, which (due to acquisition) has branches here in Dallas. So, I thought it would be proper to have this notarized at one of those branches, since they could verify the account balance as stipulated in the affidavit.

I ran into a roadblock in the form of the branch's Vice President*; she refused to notarize the document, citing confidentiality laws. The trouble is that the role of the Notary Public is not to attest to the (presumed) facts in a document; rather, they are simply confirming that the person who signed the document in their presence is who he claims to be.

I left the branch and proceeded to another bank. This time, I simply advised I was there to have my document notarized. This Notary Public asked to see my Driver's License, watched me sign the document and then affixed her official stamp. Done. Was that so hard?

* Banks are notorious for paying small wages, and they compensate by giving grand titles to most folks who work there.

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This morning (~8:30am) the weather forecast was:

...WINTER STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM THIS EVENING THROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON...

FREEZING RAIN WILL BEGIN THIS EVENING...WITH PERIODS OF PRECIPITATION CONTINUING THROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON. SOME SLEET MAY ALSO MIX WITH THE FREEZING RAIN...BEGINNING ON SATURDAY AFTERNOON. TOTAL ACCUMULATIONS IN EXCESS OF ONE QUARTER OF AN INCH OF ICE AND SLEET ARE EXPECTED THROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON.

As such, the town's in a massive panic, and the lines in the grocery stores are long. There's nothing like fear to motivate the locals, who might otherwise run out of pork rinds and chicken wings during this impending catastrophe.