Little Coffee Shop of Debt (part 1 of 2)
By Drew Johnson on Wednesday, August 8th, 2007 :: 1:15 pmCategory: Drew's Corner
I decided to go out and try to talk to some people about their debt. Dallas, the birthplace of the thirty-thousand dollar millionaire, seems like the perfect place to get some insight into the mind of the average debtor…
The coffee house/gelato shop called, appropriately, Javalato is awash in brown. From the dark leather chairs, to the light brown paint on the walls, the place is covered in coffee-colored ambiance.
Javalato seems to contain an accurate cross-section of the American public. Lots of middle-class folks enjoying their cups of coffee or ice cream, and undoubtedly a fair share of them are carrying a large amount of debt. Few socioeconomic groups don’t place highly on the scale of staggering indebtedness, and some surveys put the average amount carried by Americans at $8,500.
So it stands to reason that one may saunter up to just about anyone in this place and hear a terrifying sob story about how insidious credit card companies led them down the primrose path into debthood, and then abandoned them with a mountain of debt and no tools to climb over it.
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John is a sandy-haired guy in his mid-thirties. He works retail at Nordstrom, an upscale department store in a mall down the street. He sits at a table in the corner, his sandaled foot resting on the low-slung coffee table in front of him. A smile seems permanently chiseled on his face, and he exudes a powerful air of well being. One would never guess that John is facing bankruptcy, with $50,000 in high-interest revolving credit card debt dangling like the sword of Damocles over his cheerful head.
“Oh, I’m not going to pay it back,” he says. “I’ll probably file for bankruptcy.” John says this without a hint of anxiety or distress in his voice.
The consequences of acquiring all that credit card debt are so removed, so intangible, that his debt has turned into, basically, a non-issue. “I just don’t answer my phone,” he says “If it’s an 800 number, then I just don’t answer it.”
This attitude probably had a hand in getting John into debt. He used credit cards, mostly, to acquire new clothes. Over time he maxed the cards out, but the credit card companies just kept raising his limit.
He found that it was so easy to avoid the consequences of so much debt, that it was equally easy to keep acquiring more. “It was manageable at first,” he says, “and then things just spun out of control.”
One wonders what changes he would make, or how he would treat himself, if his debt was magically taken care of. “Oh, I’d probably buy a convertible, for sure. And I’d take a vacation; I’ve always wanted to go to the Galapagos Islands.”
Galapagos Islands? The place where Darwin did his thing?
“I just like the idea that not many people have been there or get to go there, it’s just appealing.”
This makes sense. The sort of desertedness of the Galapagos Islands would offer a welcome respite from the hurly-burly of the media marketplace. And despite seeming unfazed by his burden of debt, it is obvious that being relieved from it would be much welcomed.
When asked what he’s learned from his experience, and what he would do differently, John says, “Oh I would just spend differently. Credit cards would be for necessities and emergencies only.”
But after thinking about it for a second, John changes his attitude: “I would avoid using credit cards. I definitely don’t want to be back here someday.”
He doesn’t mention investing in a house or stock portfolio, but remaining debt free would at least let him focus on and direct his energy towards enjoying his life. After all, building a financial foundation is not going to make everyone happy; maybe all you need is a nice long ride in a top-down convertible on a lonely-stretch of Galapagos highway.
Author Bio: Drew Johnson is an expert in the various methods of debt reduction, including debt consolidation, and has successfully reduced his own debt. Drew studied literature at the University of Dallas. Please find more articles by Drew at the Credit Solutions Learning Center.
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