"Honey, we've got to talk," she tells you as she pours herself a double. "I was balancing the checkbook today, and guess what. We're missing $6.5 trillion from our account."

"No problem," you respond, as you take a sip from your cocktail. "I'll just call up Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen tomorrow. I'm sure she can help us make good on the shortfall. After all, the Fed has the authority to create money out of thin air."

Of course, this scenario would never occur. While the Fed can create monetary reserves "ex nihilo" – literally, "out of nothing" – it acts on behalf of the US Treasury, not private citizens.