Your Lesson for Today...Listen Up Posse

I get a lil surprise this morning when I log into my bank account. Apparantly someone decided to write down the numbers on my husbands debit card and create a "fake card" and use it at Walmart to spend a couple hundred dollars...I guess they figured I should buy their Christmas gifts.

Thank goodness I am anal in the sense I check my account faithfully every morning to check off what cleared and look for suspicious charges...or keep tabs on hubby's spending.

There is a lot of ways this type of fraud can be done after speaking with Walmart and our banking institution. One way is handing your card to lets say a server at a restaurant. They can write down all the numbers and create a fake card that can be used anywhere...well until you find out about it and cancel the card.

Another way is they put a device outside the gas tank where you swipe your card and immediately get the information.

Think about it; all someone needs is the numbers on the front and back of the card and they can order online now days.

So lessons I learned:

1. Pay cash at restaurants...it's sad but trust nobody.

2. Pay for my gas inside the gas station instead of swiping my card outside at the pump.

3. Do not use my debit card to order online (I typically don't do this I normally would use a credit card if I wanted to order something)

4. Pay Cash and be done with it.

Times Are Hard on the Boulevard

We are definately in hard times right now. ..and it sure is hard times. Don't you remember being a kid and not having to worry about money...just being a kid and having fun? Damn would I like those times again. Now we are adults and we worry about providing for us kids now and their future. I am sure each of our parents have experienced these hard times at least once in their lifetime and now we know the constant worry they must have felt.

I work in the New Home Construction industry and we are definately feeling it. I have survived several lay offs. I am just hoping and wanting to hold on until after the holidays.

How do you look at it? The glass half empty or the glass half full? I am the "half empty" girl. I do try to be positive but (like Dr. Phil says when you use the word BUT it means forget what I just said and what I am about to say is what I really mean) I always have the "worse case scenario" complex. You know the "well what if" and "what happens when" type of mentality.

My hubby on the other hand is the "half full" guy. He always remains positive and takes things as they come. Which he is always right in the sense when he tells me "why stress about it"..."stress isn't going to help you out so no sense in stressing about things you can't control". However a little Bacardi and Diet does help with the stress...or a glass of Red Wine.

And even Puff Daddy (aka P Diddy, Puffy, Sean Combs) is feeling it too. I remember reading an article about a month or so ago about how he is not flying his private jet anymore due to the high gas prices so he opted to fly commerical and save the $100,000 or so that it took to fly between New York and LA. So I guess he was looking at it as the glass "half full" cause the man has options.

When will the madness end?

No Later Than...

Sigh...
The car dealership called hubby yesterday and informed him that the car would be ready no later than tomorrow (Friday). But I mentioned below it was supposed to be ready no later than November 4th. And then on November 4th it was going to be ready no later than November 7th but if not, definately no later than November 10th. Then on November 10th it was going to be ready no later than November 12th. And now on November 12th it is going to be ready no later than November 14th.

Can someone please tell me what "no later than" means?

Fall Schmall

You know after reading all of these blogs and hearing people say "fall is here" "first day of fall"...what I say Fall Schmall. How am I supposed to know it's fall? Heck I don't even know when each season starts; even my calendar doesn't tell me "hey Rachel today is the 1st day of fall"...it's HOT here and then you know what; it gets really cold...for about 2 months and that is it. I live in Florida people...fall to me is at Christmas Time when it gets a little chilly...I want falling leaves, pumpkin patches, crisp air...I want it all for FALL! What I get is HEAT...take your breath away, wet patches under your arms and between your legs HEAT!

I long for the day we move to Colorado. I love it...the mountains, the streams, the houses, the food, the people...I want it! I'm thinking of starting a collection fund..."Rachel Wants to Move to Colorado Fund" and "Rachel Need a Job in Colorado Fund" (need my resume email me)...maybe I can get a bank to host it; you know collect all the checks...until then a girl can dream and live vicariously through my blog buddies.

Are you kidding me?

So Zman and I are on our way home tonight from piano lessons and I am on E...I mean Empty...the gasoline light is on and I have no idea how many miles I get til empty. I don't want to chance it but I hate to stop especially if I am travelling a new way and in the dark for that matter. Sometimes you just wanna get home but I didn't want to be stranded on the highway and call AAA or Hubby; besides Zman would have freaked out...He was already back seat driving "mom you sure you know where your going?" no Zman I don't ...you wanna try it? (JK I didn't say that)

I stop, get out of the car and put my card in the machine at the pump and as soon as I lift the pump out of the holster...BOOM...and gas flies out...my first instinct was the pump was exploding and I fall out of my shoes (because I don't have the straps on...listen they were 8 hour shoes and it was well beyond 8 hours)...I look on the other side and some stupid idiot driving a Mercedes for that matter decided...well I guess he wanted to bring the pump home because he started to drive away and it broke off the machine.

The person behind me was like WTF and I looked over and the guy got out of the car and was like "what happened...did it break". You stupid idiot what do you think happened...so he begins to pick up the pieces that broke off and walks in inside I assume to tell the attendant.

But really did he think the pump would take itself out of his gasoline tank and put itself back into the holster? Did he go inside while the gas was pumping itself and just got into the car to drive off.

I don't know but that just proves no matter how much money you have or what car you drive you may still be day late and a dollar short upstairs if you know what I mean.

I get back in the car and Zman was like "what was that?" "Did he just drive off with the pump?" Yes he did...so can I go this way? Yeah I can..."mom do you know where you are?" Now I'm frazzled and I call my hubby and tell him (because I can't wait I thought I was about to blow up) and he listens and then says "ok is that it; I'm on the other line".