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A couple of weeks ago something scary happened to me. I discovered charges on my debit card equaling about $150 that weren't mine. I don't know which feeling was worse: seeing that chunk of change subtracted from a dwindling bank account or knowing that someone had invaded my privacy so harshly.

To put it plainly, I freaked out. I knew that I needed to call my bank, but I couldn't make my fingers do the dialing. At least not to the bank. Instead I called a boy. (Boy is my code word for eligible hunk of man.) I expected him to calm me down, tell me what to do, etc. I turned into a damsel in distress. He wasn't exactly calming, but he did have good advice: Call my bank. Of course, I'm not sure advice is good if it's advice I already know, or knew.

After I realized he wasn't going to stop my freakout, I quickly got off the phone and called my bank. Luckily, they have 24-hour service. Unfortunately, calling at 11 p.m. doesn't necessarily mean that you won't have to sit 20 minutes listening to elevator music while you wait for an available operator.

My knight in shining armor was named Joel. He listened to me babble and explain how there were odd charges on my account. He listened to me tell him I was freaked out. And he did his best to calm me down.

Two of the charges were from a random Web site I'd never heard of before. The charges stemmed from Luxembourg, a city I'd heard of but never shopped in. My Google skills turned up multiple complaints from others who had been ripped off as well. Some of the amounts were as small as $13 while others were in the hundreds. Joel said he recognized one part of the name as an anti-virus program due to the fact that he was into computer stuff. Hmm, my knight turned out to be a geek.

It was while I was talking to Joel that I realized there was another unfamiliar charge. It was a gaming Web site, apparently a valid one. So whoever hacked my debit card proved to be a geek as well. It was while discussing this interesting development that I began to let my own geek/loser colors fly.

Joel asked me if I played games online. I explained to him that I don't pay to play and that my night had been consumed by playing Bingo on AOL. That was as exciting as my gaming had been lately.

Ah, but I wasn't going to stop there. I had to make myself seem a little more pathetic first. When he told me my debit card was frozen and it would take at least a week to receive my replacement, I lamented the time frame due to the fact that I was going on vacation. I thought perhaps my situation might expedite the process. Instead, it just made him raise the question of perhaps my traveling partner could use their card. I then had to explain that my traveling partner was my mother, not a husband or lover with access to my account. I think I heard a note of amusement in his voice at the Bingo-playing gal going on vacation with her mother.

But I still wasn't through.

We began discussing the affidavits I would have to sign and return so they could prosecute the scumbag who thought it would be a good idea to steal from me. Apparently I had to give then permission to prosecute. I asked why it wasn't an automatic, and Joel explained that sometimes it's a loved one that is the culprit, i.e. a spouse, son, brother, etc.

He asked me if there was anyone that might have access to my card and could have used it. I didn't just say no. I went one step further by telling him that the only one with access to my accounts was my cat. I told him that while she was very talented, I didn't think she had mastered the art of Internet shopping yet. Crazy cat lady? Check.

I wrapped things up with Joel and pondered exactly all that had been said. I sounded a little eccentric and pathetic, even to me. So there was only one thing to do. I turned to Hallmark for my nightly "Golden Girls" marathon. I'm a Dorothy, just in case you were wondering ...

Amanda Greever is assistant managing editor for print at The Daily Times. She writes a weekly column in Women's Times. She can be reached at 981-1163 or amanda.greever@thedailytimes.com. Check out her blog, greever.blountblogs.com, or follow her on Twitter: www.twitter.com/agreever_editor.