Taking A Walk

by Dwayne Phillips

I used a Visa card extensively while taking a walk. My wife didn’t like this. “How can you use a credit card when you are buying something that cost two dollars?” was her usual disdainful question. I understood her dislike for this, but I still used the Visa card.

Every day I bought several things that cost two or three dollars. I would stop in a gas station, use the restroom, and then buy coffee and maybe a snack as well. Those calories kept me going for a couple of hours.

I didn’t like to use cash for several reasons. First, I saw cash as something for emergencies, something to use at the rare places that didn’t take Visa. I wanted to have cash on hand in case of trouble that required a person to help me on the side of the road. I am thankful that I never had such an occasion, but if I did, I wanted to be able to repay someone money for their assistance.

Next, cash means change. That means lots of heavy coins jingling in your pocket, making noise and bouncing against your leg. I carried enough stuff – probably too much stuff – in my pockets already. I didn’t want to carry any more. And yes, change in my pocket bouncing against me legs was  painful. Please understand that I walked 15 to 20 miles a day. That is a lot of steps and if a pocketful of change bounces against your leg every step, well it can be painful.

Looking back on the walk, I found a surprise benefit to using a Visa card for almost everything – memories. I was sitting at my desk in Reston a month after completing the trip. I was reading my Visa card bill to ensure that I wasn’t paying for something I didn’t use (that has happened before). Each little gas station, each little store, each restaurant I visited appeared on my Visa card. Memories, oh the memories. That was a great experience and a great surprise. The Visa card bill was a trail of events on the walk. I loved it.