Credit Kills

In 11th grade I went to a Gator's football game with a friend and I wanted a Gator's t-shirt. He had the brilliant idea of signing up for a credit card to get the t-shirt for free and since he was 18, he could. Then a couple of months later in my AP Economics class we watched a video on how teens and young adults under the age of 25 were committing suicide over being so in debt because of their credit cards. It was scary and I was really nervous, especially when everyone of my teachers warned us that when we turn 18 and start college our mailboxes would be overflowing with offers for credit cards and we needed to be careful or we might end up like those in the videos. I never once got one of these offers and I honestly don't ever remember going to an FSU game and seeing a free t-shirt offer for signing up for a credit card.

The past few months it would have be really handy for me to have a credit card because 1. I need to start my credit, and 2. because I've had some hefty expenses with my car and school that could have been afforded over smaller payments. I have been rejected for almost every card that I've applied for and its starting to get frustrating. This frustration has made me look further into why I'm not getting one and why I was never overwhelmed with credit card applications. One thing that I found was that credit card companies are not allowed to issue a credit card to those who are under the age of 21 without a substantive income. I have no clue if that is why I haven't gotten one or if its for other reasons, but one thing I do know is that this quest of mine to start my credit and be a responsible adult is slowly killing me. I guess credit does kill, whether you have it or are trying to have it.