Citibank Hates Me, And Some More Michael Vick Thoughts

Quick-hitters:

- What's the worst thing you could do, when you already have a cut on a finger?

Get a papercut on the same finger!

Ouch!

(10,000 Stupid Points.)

- I cooked myself some Pad Thai today, straight out of a semi-instant pack (it came with noodles and seasoning; all I had to do was include the veggies, the egg, the ground peanuts, and any meat I wanted--chicken, in this case). I didn't have any bean sprouts or green onion, though, so I used sliced brown onion instead. All in all, the seasoning was far too sweet, and I tasted a hint of freezer burn in the chicken--it had been sitting in the freezer for a while.

The pack wasn't the worst thing in the world, though, and I may try making it again. Or, I might try to make some Pad Thai from scratch.

- So a few days ago, I finally got my Citibank Dividend World MasterCard. I was excited to start milking the Extended Warranty feature of the card, when I stumbled upon this FatWallet thread.

It seems that this new credit card has one major flaw: Citi does not report its credit limit to the three major credit bureaus!

Why is that necessarily a bad thing? Well, one variable that makes up your FICO credit score is the ratio of your total credit card debt to the total available credit (debt/credit utilization); the smaller the ratio, the better. A decrease in the apparent total credit, therefore, increases your debt/credit ratio, and thus impacts your credit score negatively.

Now, if one have zero credit card debt, then a decreased total credit won't affect that individual much. But, for those that do have credit card debt, like me, this will impact one's credit card score somewhat. In fact, someone in that thread reported that his credit score dropped 30 points as a result of the switch!

(Granted, I won't be buying a new car/house/etc. any time soon, so perhaps a high credit score isn't necessary. But still!)

- More quick Vick thoughts: apparently the NFL, NFL Players' Union, and the Atlanta Falcons are urging Vick to take a leave of absence, to concentrate on his federal indictment for dogfighting. I think Vick should leave the team; his presence is only going to be a distraction to the team. Yes, the Falcons' QB options after Vick are crap, crap, and crap, but for the players' sakes, as well as his own, he needs to leave the team until there is resolution in his case.

Here's what I don't get: Pacman Jones got suspended for a year, despite not being convicted of anything (yet). Tank Johnson got suspended for eight games because he owns too many guns (apparently). So why is Vick getting the chance to take a leave? Why hasn't Goddell come down with the hammer yet?

(And yes, I was amused by PETA's protest.)

As usual, more on this next time.

Next time, you'll also get my thoughts on the really big story of the day: the alleged controversy involving an NBA official, points shaving, and gambling. Again, any time the Feds are involved, you know this is a big deal.

Happy blogging!