There’s an ad running here on this site from Paypal: that reads “paypal merchants are virtually immune to identity theft and scammers”. Note the key word here: virutally. Not totally. Not completely. But virtually.

This is an advertistement, so one should always know that what you see isn’t always what you get, but I got to thinking : that would be like me saying that I’m virtually out of debt. Again, the kicker is the virtual part.

(I should pause here I suppose and state that I wish no harm against paypal and I have had nothing but a fantastic experience with their service. Lawyers: go away)

OK, where was I ? Oh, right. Me being virtually out debt. Does that fact that I knocked down my debt a month or so ago count as ‘virtually’? do I have to wait until I have a balance of $100? or $1000? How about 27 cents? All those scenarios could have me be ‘virtually’ out of debt.

But here’s the thing – there’s no virtuallly, in life. I hate gray. Either you love me, or you hate me. (I’ve experienced both sides of the coin, and I can tell you the former is much, much better. Whatever your status is financially – do your best to keep the latter part down to a minimum, or even better: have it so virtually nobody hates you, or better yet – nobody. This now ends my feel good message of the day)

And so here I am. In debt. Not virtual, not virtual reality. Real world. I owe the man. The end. Do not pass go, do not collect $200. (or if you do collect $200, toss it on your credit card debt). And I’m doing my best to get out of debt as fast as I can comfortably. It’s not worth it to eat plain pasta every night (dinner tonight BTW), just so you can squeeze another three bucks towards the debt.

Life’s funny. I had no idea what I was writing today, and then this ad popped out at me and got me thinking: I’m not virtually in debt. I AM in debt. And I’ve realized it, and am doing my best – however slowly to remedy it. If it takes me five years, or ten years or twenty years (won’t the credit card companies love me if I end up carrying this balance for 20years? God forbid. )

But at least I know I’m in debt. Not kindof in debt, not sortof in debt, not virtually in debt. I have debt, and I’m working on it.

It’s the best I can do. Virtually, or otherwise.