This is for the ones who stand,
for the ones who try again,
for the ones who need a hand,
for the ones who think they can.
It comes and goes in waves.
Hello again, myself.
Last week, I applied
for a new debit card. I already have one, but the magnetic stripe is tore up a little
bit so sometimes the cashier will have to swipe it few times before it got
through. A week later, the new card was ready. I had to activate the card by
calling the customer care line. The operator asked a few questions and just
like that, my card was activated. But of course, later on I need to withdraw any
amount of money from the ATM machine and wait for 24 hours before I can use it
for swiping action and online payment.
Hello. How can I help you?
Hello. I would like to activate my VISA debit card.
Okay. Can you give me your card number?
Alright, they are **** ***** **** ****.
Is it okay if I ask you a few questions for verification purpose?
Sure, no problem.
What is your name?
******* *** ******
Your date of birth?
It’s October 29, 1990.
In which branch of Standard Chartered did you open your account?
Irbid.
How much do you have in your account balance?
God! Currently? I‘m not sure. I never really keep track of my account balance. Can I skip this question?
Just give me a range.
Okay, maybe a couple of *********. Am I screwed?
No you’re okay. Your card is activated now. Can I help you with any other things?
Thank you. No, that would be all.
Okay, have a nice day.
Thank you very much. Bye.
When I mentioned I didn’t
really keep track of my account balance, I really mean it. I’m not saying that’s
a good thing to do, but I’m just stating that not everybody keep track of their
account balance. So I’m not really sure if that’s a wise thing to include that
question in the verification process. I withdraw, spend and let the bank deals
with my balance. That’s not a good habit because we should always know the
status of our finance so we can plan ahead. What if the bank messed up?
Are you a shopaholic?
Or a big spender, as one may say. I don’t think I am. But when I want to buy
something, I don’t really look at the prices. Some might compare between
various stores, but I don’t really do that. I just buy it when I see it. I don’t
really care about the prices. I hate dealing with numbers, so that could be one
of the reasons. I don’t really know how much one thing should cost, I mean like
its standard price. When I say I don’t remember the price of the things I
bought, I really mean it.
Some people find
happiness by shopping. These are shopaholics. When they’re feeling empty, they
shop again. And again. And again. That’s not a pure happiness. You can never
satisfy yourself like that. It’s like an ongoing continuous process where you
need refreshment every time you run out of ‘it’. Of course, when you’re living
a rich life where you have no limit of money supply, you will not see that as a
problem.
I once thought I like
to shop. Few years ago, I went to Dubai. Lucky as one may say, there was a
shopping festival during my visit there. It was like the biggest annual
shopping festival. Lots of discounts and half prices. I thought I would buy
lots of things. But to be truth, I’m not really a shopper. I didn’t really buy
anything there. But I have to admit that Dubai is indeed a nice place for
shopping.
Yes, Dubai is like a different version of Arab world.
Have you ever tried buying
things on the internet? My first experience was with this online shopping site
centered in Middle East. I bought a hands free earpiece and a case for my
phone. The delivery took a
very long time. I also read some other complaints about their bad service, so I
decided not to order from this site anymore.
My second trial was
with a low fare flight company. I booked my flight tickets directly from the
site. It was easy and the process went really smooth. Well, there was not gonna
be any deliveries so that’s why. At the same time, I booked hotel rooms for my
stay in Italy and London.
How I miss spending my time alone in Italy. It was like an accomplishment. Somehow, I always think that I'm gonna be alone for the rest of my life. :/
After that, I would
like to order some books from the site eBay. But I have some problem with my
PayPal account. I turned over to the site amazon, but I encountered some
problems too. So that was all.
I would like to
highlight some problem here in Jordan concerning online payment and later on
the deliveries of your order. We don’t use residency address here. Any formal
or official business must be through the rental mail box. Lucky me, students
can register the university personal mail box for free. I hope the system will
get better maybe after 10 years. This country really needs to sort this thing
out and gets everything organized. I think the capital city has already used
the residency address system because I notice each house in Amman is labeled
with a number so that must be the house number right?
Oh just to clear things up, I don't come from a rich family. My sister always scolded me for spending too much money on school trips but hey, I was a little kid. I knew nothing about financial management and less that I knew that we had to save money for house needs. She was right though. I did join too many school trips. I wouldn't miss every chance I had.
Both of my parents have different approach than my elder sister. They don't want their children to think or worry about money. So they always say YES whenever I asked. I remember the routine pep talk my parents used to give us about how we must study really really hard so we can achieve a financially better life in the future. I can actually see that we're living much better than we used to before. All praise to Him. Damn it, writing about all this makes me feel sad all of sudden.
Do you like to buy
things? Why do you buy things? Do you really need them? Have you ever had a
financial problem in your life? Is shopping your obsession? How long can you
stay out of stores or malls? Do you frequently check your savings account?
P.S. Those spam messages really bother me. I might take the chat box down.
P.S. Those spam messages really bother me. I might take the chat box down.
I keep trying to walk,
but my feet don't find the solid ground.
I keep trying to scream,
but my tongue has finally lost its sound.