When I first heard of 0 interest credit cards, I was shocked and amazed. I mean, why would they offer that to you, it was like a free loan for months at a time. I got a credit card, and at first tried to exercise restraint, but soon I was using it for practically everything. I bought vacations, plain flights, my groceries, my new guitar, everything in it, thinking I'd pay it back later.

In the time I was 18 years old and playing in a rock and roll band, and I though I could pay it all back later. How naive I was, but what fun those days were. We traveled all around the country, paying for our hotels and our rock star living using our 0 interest credit cards for years, thinking we were about to make it big until our irresponsible spending caught up with us. We played shows from Amsterdam to Arizona, from Berlin to Belgium, but in reality, we weren't making very much money just barely above breaking even, actually so we did it for the love of the music.

By the time I went home, I was so greatly in debt that I was on the verge of getting my house repossessed for delinquent credit card payments. By that point, it wasn't a 0 interest credit card anymore! I almost had to file for bankruptcy, and as it was, a lengthy legal battle ensued. Fortunately, my band mates bailed me out, paying for part of my debt so that I could get it taken care of and get back on the road for our fall tour. After that, however, I lived differently. No more staying at the ritz carleton, no more caviar with our Jack Daniels.

From then on, I was living cleanly and within my means. I'd stay at budget hotels, and spend responsibly. After the shows, we wouldn't even drink the customary bottle of $150 champagne any more. All of us were feeling the burn of our success. Sure we had fans and groupies, but we had gotten deeply into debt and besides, our rock and roll life style was ruining our health.

Our drummer had cirrhosis of the liver, our guitarist had emphazyma, and our keyboardist had several broken ribs from a fight. You may think, when you're young, that you can spend what you want and do what you want, but in reality, you've got to be careful. You can end up a washed up has been like me when once you were a rock and roller. Your 0 interest credit card certainly can't buy back your youth.