Fun With Credit Cards!

Have I been exclamation point heavy lately? I certainly hope nope–I despise the exclamation point. It’s just too damn perky.

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I had yet another problem with my credit card. I know they’re trying to protect me, but isn’t almost getting me evicted good enough? Tonight, I tried to buy something online and my credit card was declined. I know I’ve got plenty of room on the card and this isn’t the first time something like this has happened to me–hell, it’s not the first time this happened to me this week (fine–eight days ago). With all the times my account has been frozen for security purposes, it’s a wonder I can ever purchase anything. Hell, it seems like my card is frozen more often than it’s active.

I know identity theft is a problem, but I wonder if other folks have the problems I have. I’d say my card gets decline once every couple months for “security purposes.” It’s really starting to piss me off. And it’s not like I can talk to someone to make it stop: the damn computers are doing it.

But what makes it even more annoying is when I call to get it unfrozen, I gotta wait. You know how it is when you gotta call anywhere.

“Enter your 16-digit account number.”

“Enter your eight character password.”

“Please state your mother’s maiden name.”

“What purpose are you calling for?”

After undergoing an examination that’s just short of blood testing, you get to spend the next 27 minutes waiting on hold for the next available operator (apparently the initial integration wasn’t painful enough). And I don’t give a damn how often prerecorded voice assures me my account is important to them and they appreciate my patience: it doesn’t make the wait any better.

Unfreezing my card tonight must’ve been a helluva challenge. Not only did I hafta really promise to be me, they asked a whole bunch of questions regarding my address–including true false. Dammit, I graduated from college for a reason: to get out of taking tests. Even that wasn’t good enough for the operator I spoke to: a supervisor was needed.

But it wasn’t all bad. At the end of the call, she apologized for the inconvenience and wished me a “Merry Christmas.”

I just hope she doesn’t get fired for it.