Has anyone ever tried to scam you?

Oh yes, I get calls about the IRS threatening to arrest me every day but I ignore them. I can usually tell if something is a scam but there was this one time when I was very desperate and someone thought it would be funny to con me.

It was 2018. I had quit my previous job and was being miserable as an unemployed. The job market was slow back then and it took forever for someone to get back to me. So I tried this freelance job website (the website shall not be named) and applied for a data entry position. About 24 hours later, someone got back to me and we texted back and forth, which should’ve flashed a lightbulb in my mind. SCAM ALERT!

I was desperate. $15 per hour for data entry? Remote? Flexible schedule? Come on, if that’s not appealing, I don’t know what is.

The person sent an electronic check and asked me to get it deposited. It was the deposit for the equipment – computer, printer, etc. Still, there was not a voice in my head stopping me. I deposited the check via the bank app – take a picture of the check on my tablet and bam, the check is deposited.

I was thrilled to see money in my bank account again especially after a few months of pulling from my savings to pay the bills. The person told me to report the next morning at a specific time.

The next morning, the person told me my first task is to transfer the fund I deposited the day before to a location via money order. When I went to do the money order, the guy at the desk advised they cannot do money order unless it’s to a person I know and that this might be a scam. Honestly, the word “scam” hadn’t crossed my mind until that moment. It can’t be, another voice said, getting scam doesn’t happen to people like me.

When I got home and told my mom that it might be a scam, she started screaming at me, which made me feel worse. I apologized to the scammer and said I couldn’t get the money order. He said my other option was to purchase gift cards. That was when it finally clicked. I got scammed. Immediately, I ignored the replies, which became threatening and senseless, as if I went to talking to someone who knew English to someone who did not.

This scam cost me $12 for the bounced check and taught me so many lessons, which include be more vigilant in online job searching.

What’s the best thing about parties?

Being someone with social anxiety, I can’t see anything good about parties unless the party is full of friends who I haven’t seen in a long time and people who actually wants to talk to me as oppose to put me in a corner and ignore me the whole time, otherwise, I can’t find one good thing about parties.

Do you listen to people’s advice if you didn’t ask for it?

Sometimes, depends on the advice.

Why is it impossible to spell funeral without fun?

Not sure, I guess whoever invented the word knew, somehow, that the dead would want the living to have fun instead of grieving for them.

GRATITUDE SECTION

How was last week for you?

Last week was a shortened week – 4-day workweek (I took Friday off) – same as this week. I am still getting used the standard 40-hour workweek as opposed to the 42-50 hours I’ve been working for the last 4 years. It feels a bit strange that I can take my time to complete my tasks and not rush from one thing to the next.

I got a lot of my gardening chores done before the 3-day storm that delivered about 2-inches of rain and got me stuck at home. I’m glad I got to stuck at home because I got to catch up on my favorite TV shows and watch a few movies over the weekend.

Share Your World Challenge