Two Plus Two Newer Archives - Roomate claims gambling problem, friends blame me

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Roomate claims gambling problem, friends blame me

I'm bored at work so i'll share a story:

My roomate, who has been a close friend of mine for the last 6 years, comes home early from work on Saturday. He proceeds to tell me that he just received a three day suspension for writing personal checks to his work and having them cashed.

My friend is the 3rd manager at Albertons, which is a large grocery chain on the west coast. I also used to work at this same store, so i'm aquaintences with all his co-workers. He has terrible manangement of his life and has lost his ATM card several times. The last time he lost his card, about 6 months ago, he had no way to get cash out other than cashing personal checks. Albertons has a $100 personal check limit. He would write checks for well over this, upwards of 500, and then override the system with his own management key to get the cash out. He did this with 6 checks and all 6 checks bounced. The store now has viewed this as him stealing upwards of $2800 from the store.

He claims he never even knew the checks bounced. When finnaly confronted with the bad checks by the store director, he first response was that he has a gambling problem. He says that the plan was to always withdraw the cash and go to a casino and win and then deposit the money back to clear the check. Don't we all wish it was that easy.

I personaly think that his gambling problem was just a well thought out excuse, because corporations have more trouble letting someone go when they have a problem and would rather just allow them to seek help and maintain their job. I like to think that he just has horrible money management, but even i don't know how many late night trips he made to Commerce.

This story about the bounced checks and gambling has spread through our friends, and now the finger from the majority of people is being pointed at me for influensing his "problem". They say that living with someone who plays as much poker as i do and lives like i live (veiled brag) has drove him into his problem. I just feel that its total nonsense that i would have anything to do with it. I've tried to educate him on proper bankroll management, but if he fails to abide by the warning i give him and he runs into a problem like this, then how can i be blamed. If anything, i tried to aid the situation before it came to this by educating him. I feel this is just a classic situation of people not understanding what i do. People who happen to come over and see me 8tabling think right off the bat that i have a gambling problem. They have no concept of poker or gambling in general and its just easy for them to find blame in me.

He found out yesterday that he has lost his manager spot, and has been transfered to night stocking shift in order to keep him out of the store spotlight. They allowed him to keep his job because of how hard working an employee he is and because he immediately payed back the owed money. They even demoted him without paycut. He'll have to reclimb the rankings all over again, which took him 5 years to do originally. I don't like to discuss, as i'm sure most of you do, that i play poker except my cloest of friends. Now i'm left with my lifestyle in the public scrutiny of my peers for causing my friends problem.