Maybe it’s a delayed reaction to all of the free credit report commercials on TV interspersed between my childhood SpongeBob viewings, but I have recently developed a strange preoccupation with my credit score. This preoccupation manifests itself through a fixation on checking my credit score repeatedly (even though I realize it is only updated about once a month), and obsessively ensuring that I pay all of my bills far in advance of any due dates, or practically immediately after the purchases are made.
I used to easily skate along using a debit card that nicely promised to prohibit transactions when I had insufficient funds. The concept of a debit card was safe; I was incapable of permanently screwing up my future prospects by using one, so things were good back then. But one day, my bank decided that it no longer wanted to provide debit cards, and I was forced into the unfamiliar, terrifying territory of credit cards filled with such mystifying terms as: Annual Fee, APR, Cash Advance, Current Balance, Grace Period, Introductory Rate, Minimum Payment, Over-the-Limit-Fee, Secured Credit Cards, Statement Balance, Variable Interest Rate… the dizzying list goes on and on.
My desire to have an A+ credit score was propelled by two things: 1) my credit card naivety and 2) a problem I did for my class on investments that made me realize once I’m behind on payments, my life is basically over. Why such lofty goals? Unfortunately, the real world doesn’t operate on an S/NC basis, and “satisfactory” just won’t cut it. Not to brag, but due to my efforts, I’m now at a solid 721 which some would say is prettyyyy good for someone who just recently established credit (*insert smug face*).
I find journeying through my online bank account a far superior use of my time than studying, so at least this provides me some (maybe?) productive procrastination! I’ll keep aggressively refreshing my bank account page, waiting for the happy day when I get to see my credit score rise; I’ll obviously be rewarded for my above and beyond dedication to the cause (the USAA website’s my homepage for fuck’s sake). I’ve yet to have any midterms this semester, but even if those don’t work out, I can still rest on the laurels of my respectable credit score.
