Here’s what happens when random thoughts mix with too much time.

I was playing a game on my IPad and because I am too cheap to buy the game, I was watching an ad. You know how that goes. Not actually watching it but still, there it is, sneaking into your subconscious.

The ad was for some attractive clothes. Of course, it is based on some wild algorithm that is tapped into my brain waves – so I think these blouses are quite nice.

My mind wandered off to reflect on previous online purchasing – my own and stories I have heard. A friend told me about a package arriving 6 months after the initial purchase. She laughingly told me she had forgotten about it.

Then my mind took a left-hand turn and I was reminded of how many people do not monitor their money. They see a charge on their credit card, they remember that blouse they ordered last week, and pay the bill. That’s the end of the process for many folks. Does anyone set up a tickler file to remind them that they have an outstanding purchase?

So, my random thought du jour is: how many things get ordered and paid for from some online merchant, never received and no one notices?

Oh, my fellow obsessive money watchers – it never happens to you. You probably don’t buy much, if anything, from Facebook ads. And when you do, you remember. And you keep the contact information so you can deal with it. But I think there are lots of folks who don’t.

I like shopping online from reputable businesses. And I try to do my due diligence on businesses that are unfamiliar to me.  I’ve bought some great stuff with no problem. But the potential…

By the way… as my brain does a 360 spin in the dry grass… Bell charges me 1 cent too much HST each and every month. Consistently. Not enough to bother my pretty little head. But I suspect that never makes it to CRA. Some quick math – let’s say Bell has 10 million customers. That’s 10,000,000 x $0.01 x 12 = $1,200,000 a year. Should I alert the authorities? Amuse me and check your Bell bills. Let me know – maybe I’m just paranoid.