After some dithering I seem to have found a way to get foreign currency
into dollars for your essential must-have subscription to Post-Factory
Photography, without your having to go to some heinous bank in your
country that will charge $35 for the act.
Thomas Cooke has a branch in NYC (north of 14th street, but not TOO far
north) that will change YOUR check or draft on YOUR bank, in YOUR money
just what you normally write to pay the phone bill, except made out to
Post-Factory Press (and mailed to P-F Press at 61 Morton St, NYC 10014)
into dollars at the going exchange rate plus an extra fee of just $4.
I'm going to do a runthrough with a stalwart volunteer in pounds, and
will report back on whether it works or not, but Stephen at the 34th
Street office of Cooke assures me not a problem.
The exchange rate changes four times a day, he tells me, but I daresay in
the amounts we're talking about we could settle for rate of the week. Base
subscription is $24 for the next four issues post paid surface mail, add
the $4 fee, and if you want the four issues airmail, add $6 (not the $10
it says on the coupon, because the differential turned out to be less than
anticipated).
As it turns out, incidentally, mail to the United Kingdom is so fast by
"surface" mail, I don't think it makes any sense to pay extra for airmail.
In fact, in a test, airmail and surface mail each arrived in three days.
(Mail to the Upper West Side of Manhattan takes four days.)
The "Continent" seems to take as long as Australia-- maybe longer. Sorry
about that.
Cooke's money changing service is available, it seems, for any of 33
national currencies and I expect would be useful for many purposes. It
would also perhaps work in the other direction, making it easier to buy
some of the papers, films, books and other supplies not widely available
in the US.(Cooke has an 800 number in the US to inquire.) Apparently some
banks in the US will just take a check in foreign currency like any other
(eg. Wells Fargo) but NYC banks most decidedly do not.
No doubt large companies, like Bostick and Sullivan (which it seems has
covered Japan like Coca Cola, or so I gather from a subscriber there ;- )
have Visa and other charge facilities, but here, in the shadow of Wall
Street, no bank will grant me charge privileges for less than $1000 a
month (next year maybe). Meanwhile, thanks to those who have inquired.
I'll report back.
Some REALLY clever people apparently had dollars under the mattress. As
far as I know these have all arrived without incident. If you want to
verify (without waiting to see if the next issue arrives!), would you
e-mail me? Either at this (panix) address or subs@post-factory.org is
fine. If you include your e-mail address with your note or on your check,
I will acknowledge directly.
Finally, I'm tempted to observe that MANY of you seem to have gone to
private schools, because your handwriting often has that illegible private
school look. If I've deciphered anything wrong, do please email
correction.... if intro issue doesn't arrive when expected (one to two
weeks in US), email & I'll check.
cheers and many, many thanks,
Judy