The first thing I taught myself when I got to college was how to do my own laundry.

Learning to do this task on my own was a small but necessary step toward my foray into adulthood and independence.

Never mind the fact that I still went to my parents’ house every other weekend to do my laundry.

Since then, I’ve taken a few more important steps. My latest endeavor has been getting my own credit card.

This is something I manage to pay for without the help of my parents. (Far be it for me to protest, however, were they to offer to pay my bills for me. I may be independent, but I’m not stupid.)

Of course, the decision to get a credit card did not come without its concerns. I’ve seen enough Will Smith and Matt Damon movies to know that identity theft is a very real danger in today’s society.

However, given my modest credit history and even more modest income, I can’t imagine someone wanting to steal my identity … unless, perhaps, that person was trying to do me a favor.

And considering that I go to a school where one’s social security number is currency for everything from buying books to getting coffee, many of us have probably jumped off the secured identity bridge years ago.

The majority of my anxiety stems from the thought of falling into credit card debt, which I’m trying to avoid by using my card strictly for emergencies.

The prospect of winning a gift certificate to Semolina’s lured me to one of the “Take Charge” events on campus. I anticipated having to feign interest in the credit counseling because that’s what is sometimes necessary to get free food.

But as it turns out, the information was new and useful to me. Apparently, there are some things the credit card companies and Hollywood just don’t tell you.

Money is a lot easier to spend when you’re not physically handing over cash, so having a credit card can be a tricky thing.

While Clinique Bonus Time may be cause for emergency credit card use to some people, I now see how this often wasteful spending is just the kind of thing that leads to credit card debt.

But sometimes a girl’s just gotta get a free gift with the purchase of $35 or more, you might say. I know, and for the most part, I agree.

I’ve got to establish a credit line somehow, and if there are no pressing emergencies for which I need my card, wouldn’t passing up a sale on makeup, clothes or, say, the latest in computer software be the real waste?

Every now and then I can justify charging a minor luxury to my card, but I know where to draw the line.

And should the day come when I can’t pay off some emergency spa getaway in Hawaii … well, that’s just another life lesson waiting to be learned.