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I Committed A Cardinal Sin

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On Sunday I committed a cardinal sin…

…in the miles and points community…I used cash to pay for my purchases at Costco.

And it wasn’t even cash that I had withdrawn from my Bluebird, MyVanillaDebit, or American Express for Target; it was cash that I had in my purse.

I could hear the wailing and gnashing of teeth as I handed over the cash.  Of course, that could have been my own.

Why didn’t someone in line ask if they could pay for my purchases with their credit card? (Read my post Extreme Mile and Point Collecting for details.)

I can see you smacking your palm against your forehead and thinking, “What kind of travel hacking moron doesn’t have at least one AMEX in her purse?”

One that’s only been home for five days since her last trip and is getting ready to leave for yet another trip.

Thank God I was only picking up a few items as normally I only carry $20 in cash.  Thankfully, I still had cash left over from my previous trip.

But this brings to mind a question: do you carry all your credit cards in your wallet or just the ones you think you’ll need?

Whether it’s at home or when traveling, I only carry the cards I’m going to need for that day or trip. I leave the others stashed in the sock drawer and swap cards if I need a different one the next day or trip.

I’m sure many of you leave most of your credit cards at home when traveling, but I’m curious to know if you do the same while at home?  How many credit cards do you carry in your wallet at a given time?

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Plush Adventures

Tuesday 28th of May 2013

Easy fix. If you go to customer service, they will do a quick refund and then recharge to another card.

Debbie Schroeder

Wednesday 29th of May 2013

Hi Plush Adventures,

Great idea. I'll bring my receipt next time I go and see if they will return and recharge.

TravelBloggerBuzz

Monday 27th of May 2013

OMG, you did what??? I think this needs to be brought up at the next F2B Quality Control Peer Review meeting pronto! Not only a sin...it should be considered a felony!!! :-)

Traveling Well For Less

Tuesday 28th of May 2013

Hi TravelBloggerBuzz,

I sure hope not...I don't look good in orange or stripes.Maybe I could just pay a fine...with a Bluebird check.

dotti cahill

Monday 27th of May 2013

it depends on whether i am going international --then i only bring the 2 cards tat do not have foreign transaction fees

Traveling Well For Less

Monday 27th of May 2013

Hi Dotti,

I'm with you - less cards when traveling, reduces liability. :)

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