Tag Minus x, before the start

I actually wanted to be on my way a long time ago, yes actually. But as I always say: If I have to start a sentence with 'Actually,' then something is going wrong.

The plan was to disappear from the cold, damp, and uncomfortable Germany shortly after Christmas, or at least by the beginning of the new year, and to seek out the sun somewhere. Where? – no idea, it’s not that important, it just needs to satisfy my basic need for sun and warmth. Oh right, it has to be affordable too, as I wanted to stay until spring comes back to Germany. After a brief research regarding weather, flights, and accommodations, it quickly became clear that Tenerife would be the first stop. Perhaps with a bit of island hopping, let’s see. Anything goes – nothing is a must.

There is just one small problem left. I no longer have a credit card. After being satisfied with my VISA card for decades, I needed to exchange it at the bank a while back. The old one would still have been valid for another year, but when the bank says 'Please exchange,' you just have to do it. After that, I had a debit card, without even knowing what that is. It still says VISA on it, the card number and security code also look great, and the bank employee assured me everything is just like before, which unfortunately is not true. For many cases, it’s quite nice, but unfortunately, the fun stops precisely where my needs begin. I might want to book a hotel or rent a car while on the road, and that is exactly what you cannot do with a debit card. Because you cannot block a few hundred euros as a deposit without paying them immediately. Since I am not willing to lay down a stack of cash every time for something like renting a car or booking a hotel, I need to get a new card.
My main bank has very acceptable conditions, even cheaper as a member, so I quickly ordered the membership and card. With all the confirmation emails, I eventually stopped reading. I know I ordered it – rolleyes. Unfortunately, there was eventually a message telling me that the order for the card was unfortunately not accepted because I was not yet a member and that would take a little while. Damn, I should have just taken the more expensive one, as long as it was quick.
While desperately waiting for the result, I even opened letters from the same bank addressed to my son, just to end up holding bank statements that were not addressed to me.
At some point, I went through all the emails again and frustratingly read that I had not ordered anything so far, and my waiting, although not in vain, was indeed pointless. Since the shortest way to help and information is still a conversation, I called the bank and was totally surprised by a super friendly and helpful colleague from Bochum who definitely deserved the title Employee of the Year. He really gave it his all, understood my wishes and tried to help me in every way possible. The fact that he could not help me immediately was certainly not his fault. However, somehow he must have managed to pull some strings in the background after our cordial conversation, because the whole process then went significantly faster than expected and unexpectedly as a member with a favorable annual fee after a completely new order. Many thanks to an unknown person.
Now quickly check the weather, sign up for Airbnb, find and book accommodation, book a last-minute flight, and rush to book a car and pack. So that’s definitely the plan. Most of it went smoothly until suddenly I had to write some sort of application letter on Airbnb. I definitely did not expect that, just a newbie. So, I just threw something together to next see that the landlord has 24 hours to respond. Oh, I was already about to unpack the bags. Well, whatever, what could possibly go wrong… said Murphy.