Charlotte slipped off her reading glasses took a deep breath, then gazed back evenly at him.  “I guess that's really not such an unreasonable idea, Mr. McGinty.  But I’m afraid I need to tell you a little more about how this institution works.”

She reached behind her and produced a handful of brochures.

“What we really deal with around here are loan packages.  They have these clever brand names that the marketing department comes up with.  Each one has its own form.   All we actually do here is fill out the forms.”

She shrugged apologetically.  “Some banking operation, huh?”

She fanned out the brochures in front of him.  “Here's what we've got to work with.  Car loans...home remodeling loans...student loans...vacation loans...and so on.”  She looked helplessly at the brochures, then back to McGinty.   “I'm really sorry, but there just isn't much we offer these days that could accommodate you.”

McGinty struggled to find words.  “You mean to say you don't make business loans?”

She let out a small sigh.  “We do, yes.  But those are handled by a separate group at our corporate headquarters.   And they're pretty much limited to companies you hear about in the media.”

“Oh.” McGinty nodded his head slowly, allowing this realization to settle in.

After a time, he looked back up and rubbed his hands briskly together.  “Well, anyway, it shouldn't be much trouble to arrange a mortgage on my house.”

“Uh, pardon me for asking, but are you retired?  Would you be able to show enough income for us to approve you?”

He shook his head slowly in disbelief at the idea that he couldn't mortgage his own house.  Yes, times had changed.  He rose from his chair.

The branch manager's face was sympathetic.  “Mr. McGinty,” she said, “isn't there some kind of company other than a bank that you could approach?”

He didn’t know what to say.  He headed slowly for the door.

She watched his progress.  Instead of going to a parked car, he sat down on a nearby sidewalk bench to wait for a bus.  A light drizzle was falling.

She opened the front door and called to him, “We’re going to be closing up in just a few minutes.  Where are you headed?   Maybe one of us could give you a ride.”

McGinty thanked her, but waved the offer away.