Do you have credit cards? I venture that most of you do. You cannot do many things if you do not have a card on file. When Don and I went to Alaska we made the arrangements with our credit cards. We decided who was going to pay for what and went ahead.

I took the plane reservations. He took the rental of a truck as well as the gas. He also took the food. His first question to me was – “how did you find such inexpensive reservations?” I told him I just put in where I wanted to leave from and where I wanted to go. I looked at what was offered and opted to fly into Chicago, then on to Anchorage. There was just a three-hour layover. He said when he flew before he never got that option. He was impressed.

As we made the reservation for a vehicle, a truck was the cheapest option. He could drive a truck. He had driven one for years with his job. That turned out to be our best decision. The roads we traveled were not so good. We did not have to worry about ripping something off the truck.

Now the credit card companies had our information. We each received numerous ads for many things. That really got me thinking. If that information was that easy to access, what about anything else we did?

We are being pushed more and more to use our credit cards. They know what we purchase, where we are, and how much we spend. I am not sure that this is so good. You cannot rent a car without a credit card. You cannot make a flight reservation without a credit card. You cannot make hotel reservations without a credit card.

While I do like the flexibility they provide. I just wonder what is going to happen if we switch everything to credit. I still go to the bank to get cash for some of my transactions. There are some places that only accept cash.

When Don and I first got married he was using a debit card for many things. Then he had to remember to get his receipt so he could deduct that amount from his checking account. When I noticed how he did things I suggested that he use his credit card instead. In the end it was so much easier to just pay one bill at the end of the billing cycle. He liked my method. He did still use cash for many things too.

The history of credit cards is complex. I looked up to see how they gained in popularity.

It appears that the first charge card was the Diner’s Club card. The story goes that a New York businessman was treating some of his clients to dinner when he discovered that he left his wallet behind. Since he was a regular customer at the restaurant, he was allowed to leave his business card to assure payment. He launched his first Diner’s Club Card in 1950. He had 200 members.

This was not an entirely new concept even then. Since the 1920s hotels and service stations have issued “shopping plates” allowing customers to pay later.

At the printing date of the reference that I used they listed nearly 8 million Diners Club Card members in more than 200 countries.

Next came the credit card issued by the Bank of America known as the BankAmericard in 1958 which was later renamed the Visa card.

From that time forward there have been so many different cards offered that it is nearly impossible to know all of them. It is big business. Each card operates independently with its own regulations. If you do not pay what you owe on time you are assessed a fee. That fee has an extremely high interest rate. You pay for that service.

When you get your bill, you are allowed to pay all of it off. Then no interest is charged. If you do not pay on time, you are charged a fee. You can also simply pay a small amount, add interest on the balance and keep the account going.

That is where people get in trouble. They max out their credit card with no idea how they are going to pay it off.

The lesson on using a credit card efficiently is to use your card then pay your balance at the end of the month.

Ann Swanson writes from her home in Russell. Contact her hickoryheights1@verizon.net.