There's Nothing Like Wrapping Up a Long Work Day with a Little Credit Card Fraud

Last night I received the following text message:

"<> Fraud Department needs to speak with you about activity on your account. Please call XXX-XXX-XXXX ASAP."

Its a message you hope you never receive. But its also a comforting message. It feels good to know that my credit card company is looking out for me. (Well, really they're looking out for themselves, too, but we'll pretend its all about me.)

I hadn't lost my card, but someone had still gotten hold of my card info somehow and went on a little online shopping spree. Well, the shopping spree of an anti-social, basement-dwelling, Code Red-drinking teenage boy at least. EVERY SINGLE fraudulent charge (and there were quite a few) was for Gamefly and Marvel Entertainment.

So thank you, Credit Card Company, for recognizing that I had not taken a sudden interest in Captain America or launching an epic Halo 2 campaign.

Side Note: I'm so unfamiliar with the comic book world that I had to go to Marvel.com to find out which comic book characters were actually theirs. On the site you can search characters by category (Heroes, Mutants, Villains, etc). But the best category of all........Canadian. Really, Marvel?!?!?

My Life List - 2010 Edition

A year or two ago several of my friends told me that they were creating a "30 Things To Do Before I'm 30" list. And I, of course, decided I needed one too. (What can I say, I'm part lemming. I think it was on my maternal great-grandmother's side.)

The problem was that my 30th birthday was only about a year away and my list was pretty ambitious. By the time my I hit the big 3-0, I had only accomplished 7 of the list items. That's when I decided to turn it into a "Life List" (AKA a "Bucket List", but I hate that name).

I'm continuously marking off items as I accomplish them - this blog was one - and adding new goals as I think of them. They can be as simple and short-term as attending one of the movies in the park that Chicago holds every summer (accomplished Summer 2008) to swimming with dolphins (not yet, but let me know if you're friendly with some dolphins that might like to hang out with me).

The problem I came across a couple of months ago is that I keep adding really grandiose items that take time, money or a combination of the two. Things that will most likely not happen in the immediate future. Things like trips to Africa or completing a marathon. So I decided that, in order to stay motivated, I needed to identify the things on my list I could complete within the year. And that is how I come up with "My Life List - 2010 Edition".

I'm not going to give you the full 2010 list (a girl has to maintain a modicum of mystery), but here are a few goals:

1. Get completely out of credit card debt. - This was a big one and something I've been working on for a few years. And I'm so happy to say that I'm only 1-2 payments away from it actually happening!!

2. Take tennis lessons. - I'm signing up for a 3-week class in May. If you're in Chicago and want to take it with me, let me know.

3. Donate to at least 5 separate charities. - I can't believe this one is already done! I'll admit that the amounts I've contributed don't exactly compare with Bill & Melinda Gates, but it feels great to support wonderful organizations like Children's Memorial Hospital, United Way, Red Cross Haitian Relief Efforts, and National Public Radio (NPR).

I'll let you know as I continue to check things off my list. But in the mean time, what's on your list?