New Credit Card!

[silver_chipmunk]

Work was pretty good, we were still short staffed because someone called out sick, but things worked out ok. I did the laptop program, got two kids only, which was a bummer.

After work I stopped at the bank to use the atm, and since they were still open I went inside to order new checks. And while the man was in my account ordering my checks, he said I was pre-approved for a credit card, and did I want to apply? At first I was hesitant, thinking of the trouble my ex husband got usinto with credit cards when we were married, but I'm doing ok keeping up with the bills on my own. And I started thinking, it would be good to have a regular credit card in case of emergencies, since all I have now is the secured credit card from MCU that I used to start fixing my credit, the Care Credit, which is medical only, and the Old Navy store card. So I did, and as soon as soon as it comes in the mail, I'll have a $3000 credit limit! But like I said, that's going to be Very Carefully Used.

Anyway, just as I was finishing with that, my phone rang, perfect timing, and it was the FWiB of course. We had a nice long talk as I continued through Flushing, got my dinner, and waited for my meeting to start.

The meeting was very good, step six and tradition six. Got a ride home as usual, and now here I am.

But it feels good to have a credit card and real credit after so many years of bad credit or no credit.

Gratitude List:

1. My meetings and the people there.

2. Good credit.

3. The FWiB.

4. New pink umbrella.

5. Cats.

6. Good dinner.

Comments

[paynesgrey]

Yay! A little extra credit is always good, especially if used for emergencies. <3

[rocket_to_neptune]

Not that I'm the best person for advice on credit cards given the amount of debt I have (ha), but I think it's always nice to have one just in case something comes up.

[fjbryan]

I recall getting a credit card. It is tough to not reach for it when you see something you really want...but so long as you keep in mind what happened to your ex, you ought to be fine.

[silver_chipmunk]

Yeah, I'm planning on keeping it for emergencies, the one exception might be for travel expenses if my daughter moves with her husband to England like she keeps talking about (the SIL is a British citizen) . I have no desire to get smothered in debt.

[silver_chipmunk]

Yeah, emergencies can be expensive!

[silver_chipmunk]

Yeah, and it's just nice to be able to actually qualify for a credit card. At the time my marriage broke up, I got turned down when I applied for a Target card!

[fjbryan]

A good book to buy, borrow, check out of the library, is Jane Bryant Quinn's Making the Most of Your Money Now. She has great advice on how to manage or prepare for different events (like big life changes, from marriage, kids, to retirement, college--chapters are self-contained so you can skip what you don't need). One of the earliest pieces of advice is to live on less than your current income, pay off debts, and starting saving for the future. Solid advice, but very few people follow it. I rec this book to anybody who is wondering about their financial futures, since she has seen and done it all: been widowed, gone broke, you name it. She writes in a manner that I can understand (without a finance degree) and that makes sense.

[silver_chipmunk]

Thanks for the tip, I'll keep an eye out for it.