100 ways this hobby has altered your life

[italdesign]

Let's see if we can get to 100. I'll start.

1. You're always a week/month/year behind on mail. And no, Dear Chase/Citi, I don't want any of your 50 balance transfer offers from last week.

2. Paying for an ordinary merchandise is never as simple as using "a" credit card.

3. You are not just you. You are your mother, father, significant other, and/or siblings... at least when it comes to making complicated phone calls concerning their accounts.

 

[taxicabnumber]

I'll play...

4. Friends don't let friends use debit cards.

 

[pointsaholic]

So many ways this hobby has changed my lives -

5. I have a new appreciation for gas stations

6. I have a gazillion restaurant gift cards either from SBS or buying at Staples or Kroger (for gas points)

7. I pay much less for gas

8. Instead of 3 or 4 vacations a year, we go somewhere nice almost every month.

9. I am able to give very nice wedding presents to close friends or relatives

10. I can fly back to where my family is for special occasions without a thought and so can my kids and SO's kid

11. I can stay in hotels until 4pm

12. I have access to Centurion club and Admiral's club

13. I make lots of huge purchases at the grocery store

 

[italdesign]

14. Even though you don't like the idea, you can't help but feel a new appreciation for Walmart.

 

[pillow25]

15. This hobby lets me take trips that I couldn't dream of and lets me travel pretty much wherever and whenever I want. I can't even tell you how many shocked expressions I get when I say that my plane ticket cost $11.20 or $36.20. Or when a $200 hotel room was free / 4000 points. Now instead of seeing old college friends once every few years, I can see them a few times every year depending on schedules.

16. It's given me a new appreciation for financial savvy.

17. Friends don't let friends pay the $450 AmEx Platinum fee without telling them how to game the system. Seriously, I have friends who pay the $450 fee every year without knowing about the GE credit or the $200 fee credit.

 

[pillow25]

I'll play...

4. Friends don't let friends use debit cards.

4. Friends don't let friends use non-mileage/points earning debit cards. FTFY.

 

[italdesign]

19. Friends also don't let friends keep most cards more than 13 months**

** AF refunded if cancel within 30-60 days of anniversary.

 

[italdesign]

Or when a $200 hotel room was free / 4000 points.

You have my curiosity. Which program lets you do that now? I can only think of the UR-Amtrak-Choice thing.

 

[pillow25]

You have my curiosity. Which program lets you do that now? I can only think of the UR-Amtrak-Choice thing.

Lol think way simpler than that. I booked a room at the Sheraton Metairie (NOLA) for 1 night during Mardi Gras weekend for 4k points (I had a Tuesday 6 AM departure, so I wanted to be close to the airport for Monday night). That room was going for $209 that night.

 

[PurpleSquirrel]

- I didn't know WM and Amex were my best friends until they stopped de-friending me.
- I cringe at paying full price for an air ticket.

 

[pstlb]

Never stepped foot in a WM until BB came along. What was I missing all these years...

 

[italdesign]

Lol think way simpler than that. I booked a room at the Sheraton Metairie (NOLA) for 1 night during Mardi Gras weekend for 4k points (I had a Tuesday 6 AM departure, so I wanted to be close to the airport for Monday night). That room was going for $209 that night.

this can only mean one thing. I need more SPG points. It has been too long that i no longer think of it.

 

[MickiSue]

I can get my kids to visit for free, instead of sending them $$$ for a plane ticket.

 

[kristian]

Similar to your number #1 but in the opposite direction, Why do I always pay my mortgage so damn early and often have utilities paid up 6 months in advance

 

[italdesign]

when ppl ask how many credit cards you have, your reply is not in # of cards, but boxes/wallets. You might also seek clarification: is that including the expired ones?

 

[InstinctX]

More organized... when it comes to running errands to maximize my time (WM are a trek for me)

Higher credit and FICO scores!!!

 

[R.R.]

27 (I think). I have a new and exponentially-greater appreciation for Target! (And I now know where four of them are locally, instead of just one.)

28. I have a greater appreciation for Amex.

Re-numbering due to concurrent posting:

32. I now wouldn't dream of paying my student loan directly from my checking account, as I used to.

33. I have more tracking spreadsheets than I used to (with which I can dazzle my spouse).

34. I can probably retire earlier, due to greater savings directly attributable to lower travel spending.

35. I now have experience buying MO's (never bought one previously).

36. I now know where Staples is (always visited Office Depot before).

 

[Malvina]

29. More time with DH.
Trips to WM, Target, banks. Evening discussions of next day plans.

30. Advanced math skills.

31. Advanced negotiation tactics.
Need improvement in reading and comprehension, especially of some Matt's posts.

 

[italdesign]

31. Advanced negotiation tactics.

Something like "I want to cancel this card, unless you give me 10K... nope, 5K won't do... it's either 10K or I shred it right now... Great, have a nice day." ?

 

[KennyBSAT]

32. All the great people I'd have never crossed paths with otherwise!

 

[James from BNA]

33. I get 3-5 e-mails/phone calls a week from random people. They always start with "Hey, so and so told me you know a lot about credit cards and you know how to travel for almost free. Can I ask you a couple questions?"

34. My children have flown/traveled more in their first 3 years of life than I flew in my first 21 years of life.

35. Co-workers ask "Hey James, where you going this weekend?"

36. A few banks in town broke up with me.

37. I see life through an MS lens. Whenever I'm driving in a new place, I immediate notice CVS, Staples, Valero, Target, WM, grocery stores, etc and think "I should stop in there and make a couple hundred dollars while I'm here."

 

[R.R.]

Haha, well, I guess my re-numbering attempt above didn't work... Anyway, we've got ~42 items now. Almost halfway there!

 

[raenye]

43. Walking in the street with 4-5 digits worth of cash equivalents on your person seems normal.

 

[italdesign]

44. It doesn't feel as life-threatening after a while when you walk into a Walmart with $10,000 of MO/GC.

45. When the cashier exclaims, "wow, this is the biggest purchase I've ever done," you just roll your eyes.

46. You spend hours trying to figure out whether the terminals at an airport are connected airside so you can go to a better lounge in a different terminal.

 

[swazzie]

47. You look a little closer at the Sunday paper for money-making MS opportunities.

48. Authorized users becomes a good thing.

49. You become a little more social because of doing MS tasks, joining forums, and attending events

 

[KennyBSAT]

50. You frequently coach grocery and discount store cashiers through the process of loading money into prepaid card accounts.

51. I signed up for Twitter. And it wound up being useful!

 

[Fuerza]

52. You learn that procrastination is Really bad!

 

[InstinctX]

53. Have gained quicker finger reflexes to hit change payment button quickly before it disappears for MGC's

 

[DarrellDoesDallas]

53. you keep old cell phones to help with burners/uber

54. you keep an old cell phone for your BBM/Line/FB private groups

 

[niehlin2]

55. MS becomes my full time job and my full time job becomes a side job.
56. I was able to treat my mother-in-law who is terminally ill with an extended stay at a 5-star hotel. It made her feel so good.
57. It makes me spend less on other stuff because I am always busy spending on GCs.

 

[italdesign]

51. I signed up for Twitter. And it wound up being useful!

Good one. I'll elaborate further.

58. My Twitter inbox basically consist of countless "Can you give me the partner PNRs for XXXXXX?" DMs to airlines.

 

[italdesign]

50. You frequently coach grocery and discount store cashiers through the process of loading money into prepaid card accounts.

59. Airline reps learn more from you than their training.

60. You become more forgetful in general because all your brain function is now occupied by things like all the 3-letter airport codes in the world, how much you need to swipe on each card today, and so on.

 

[Jawa]

61. You once dated a walmart cashier to make it easier to load BB.
62. You deliberately plan travel during bad weather hoping for flight cancellations so you can stay in a hotel for points and get it reimbursed via travel insurance from your CC.
63. The only cash you carry comes from fee free atms using your two (per SS#) A4Ts loaded with amex GCs purchased via TCB when the bonus was bumped to 2.25%.
64. You started carrying an extra wallet to hold all your prepaid/reloadable cards
65. You spent an hour arguing with apple fanboy coworker that GW is superior to apple pay...because it allows you to generate fee free AA miles via UFB direct in the fine tradition of AP circles.
66. You have become an avid supporter of the boys and girls club of delaware and their prepaid debit card that allows $2500 daily CC loading and has billpay https://www.getdebitcard.net

 

[italdesign]

61. You once dated a walmart cashier to make it easier to load BB.

And dumped her once the train moved to Target.

 

[Jack]

62. At times, the word Approved appearing on a small screen can provide you with almost unimaginable pleasure.