A couple of weeks ago on a Friday my credit card was cancelled. The bank immediately cancelled the card when it became apparent the card had been compromised by fraudulent transactions. There I was at the beginning of a weekend with no credit card and almost no cash. That single card was my credit card, ATM card and card for over the counter bank transactions. The only course of action in such circumstances is to cancel the card but what an experience to have no cash and no access to money. I didn’t shop, I didn’t go out; I couldn’t buy anything. I had to use the car sparingly as I was almost out of petrol. I lived on the food already in the house. That wasan’t too difficult as I know how to ‘make do’! There is always something I can cook with what is to hand. There in the back of the cupboard were lentils and I cooked Dahl. Delicious comfort food. It took five days to receive a new credit card. What fascinated me was my own reaction and behaviour. I celebrated the arrival of my new credit card with a bit of a splurge. I realised how dependent I was on the card and how hard life is with no access to money or to very little money. After a dispute resolution process, the bank eventually refunded the money taken by the fraudsters.
Living well on a shoestring 