I am struggling with bureaucracies the world over, but that does not surprise me any longer. The Croatian bureaucracy is notorious for its abominable horrors. The last two of my pensions are hardly surprising, either. The British and Slovene bureaucracies take some getting used to, but I know that I will ultimately manage to get what belongs to me, anyhow. After so many years on this planet, I take state bureaucracies for granted. They are a part of life, miserable as it has become.

What surprises me ever anew is the struggle that I have with my many banks. Their bureaucracies are getting ever more difficult to manage. The worst is the Bank of America, where I have both a checking and savings account. Next comes Lloyds TSB in Britain. I have a checking and savings account in Reading, and two accounts in Jersey, one in euros and another in pounds sterling. I also have two foreign accounts with Croatian banks, one of which is actually Austrian and another Italian, but I keep little money in either.

Years ago, the banks were dealing mostly with so-called retail. Being their customer gave me some clout. Things are different now. Having gobbled up smaller banks in their way, the biggest banks are now focusing on wholesale. Retail is their least worry. Having cut costs left and right, they have gotten rid of so many people who used to help me with my accounts. These people are gone never to return. They cost too much and bring in too little.

All the costs of dealing with my banks are now my own. I have to write and call over and over again for every service I wish. Although I never wish very much, the costs are growing at a clip. I spend ever more of my time for the simplest services that required but a few minutes of my time years ago. And this is called technological progress, no less. There are codes, ciphers, secret names, and identity numbers galore. Just remembering where they are stored takes an effort, for they cannot possibly be remembered if you have more than a single account.

I can imagine that I am still among the richest people in the richest countries of the world, but I am far from people rich enough to employ someone to manage my financial affairs for me. And that is what the really rich people do nowadays. What the banks used to do when I became financially independent now falls under the remit of personal accountants that I should pay out of my own pocket. For some reason, I refuse to do that. My own fault, I guess. But a clear pointer to the years ahead. My struggle with the bulging bureaucracy will only grow and grow.