<HTML><BODY STYLE="font:10pt verdana; border:none;"><DIV>Dear Dan and Tom:</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I have exactly $153.75 in my checking account. A quick look online at my bank record shows that they believe I have much, much more. That's because some checks have yet to clear, some checks have yet to be mailed, and some balance transfers have yet to post. Nevertheless, I know that my figure is accurate, right down to the penny. How? Because I practice a little something called double ledger accounting. It isn't hard to do, and I'm not a CPA. Double ledger accounting can be done electronically using any number of commercial software programs. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>But listen -- all of this is beside the point. The Chamber of Commerce's finances should not be run like Jane Jetson's checkbook. (George! George! Where's your wallet? Astro has spaceworms!) There is absolutely no excuse for the Chamber's books to be in disorder. They have a bookkeeper. They have an executive director. They have a board responsible for financial oversight. They should be able to accurately track money in and money out. If they can't, then they need a new bookkeeper and/or a new director. If the board isn't interested in arranging for those changes, then they clearly need a new board. Let's make a few phone calls to Texas, see if we can get Sherron Watkins up here. Remember her? She's the accountant who figured out that Enron was money in, air out.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Joan Opyr/Auntie Establishment</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>PS: Just in case my checking account balance strikes some of you as sadly low, let me assure you that there's no need to stage an Auntie Establishment telethon. I hate Jerry Lewis. Also, I have a couple of savings accounts which I use to "hide" money from myself. How's that for tricky-dicky accounting?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV></BODY></HTML><br clear=all><hr>Get more from the Web. FREE MSN Explorer download : <a href='http://explorer.msn.com'>http://explorer.msn.com</a><br></p>