The Check is in the Mail

This is a relatively modern adage. It is unusual in that it is often used in the literal sense. That is, whenever someone is pestered to pay a bill they respond that "the check is in the mail." Often, this is a complete lie but they are trying to buy time and postpone facing up to the consequences of not paying the bill.

In a more general sense, saying this adage can often indicate that what someone has just said is a poor excuse, along the lines of "the dog ate my homework." For example, someone could say that they got to a test late because they were abducted by aliens. The professors response is likely to be "Yeah, and the check is in the mail, right?"

The worst part of using an excuse like this is that the one making the excuse is trying to pass the blame for their own ineptness on to someone else (in the case of the adage, the "someone else" is the post office). This failure to take responsibility for one's actions seems to be a growing problem in society, and I would like to see that change. And I have found the solution, too, but my maid must have displaced it! (Yeah, and my check's in the mail, too.)