My group chat is in a full-blown civil war over the correct way to write a Venmo note.
By @karay · Friends
We're planning a trip and one friend is insisting everyone use hyper-specific, itemized descriptions for their share of the Airbnb deposit. they says using joke notes is 'financially immature' and now everything is super awkward.
The full story
i'm not even exaggerating. the group chat is a wasteland of passive aggression right now. so, there's six of us planning a long weekend trip for july. one friend, our designated planner, booked the airbnb and sent out venmo requests for the deposit. simple enough right? no. one of the girls in the group pays her back and writes a note that's basically a legal document. something like '_Reimbursement for User X. transaction Y. share of rental deposit for PROPERTY Z, dates of stay ABC, total amount $XXX.XX. this payment covers my 1/6th portion._' i paid my share and put something like 'for our summer shenanigans fund' with a palm tree emoji. literally what venmo is for among friends. well apparently that's a problem. legal-document-girl gets in the chat and posts a mini-sermon about how we should all be using detailed notes for our own 'financial protection.' she said and i quote 'if something goes wrong with the booking you need a clear paper trail, joke descriptions won't hold up.' hold up for what?? a venmo court of law?? she said it makes her 'uncomfortable' that we're so casual with money and that it reflects on our maturity. she said her venmo is 'public-facing' and she doesnt want people seeing unserious transactions tied to her name. we tried to explain that literally no one cares and her feed is private but she's not having it. she said it's 'good practice' like we're interns at an accounting firm, not friends splitting a rental for a beach weekend. now half the group is being super weird and formal and the other half thinks she's being completely absurd. the vibes for the trip are already ruined and we haven't even packed. is treating your friend group like a collection of business associates the new normal or is she just being extra.
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