my whole life i was adamantly against getting credit cards...when I bought my car a few years ago, the dealer ran my credit and told me "no credit is worse than bad credit...you need to get some credit cards or something to build your credit, but for now you need someone to cosign for you..." So when I got back to Cali with the new car, I applied for some cards. I got a few in the mail and activated them as I needed them. I paid the bills on time and made sure I kept the balances low. Then I needed help one month on the car note...next month it was groceries...then several grand for unwarrantied repairs on my car...then a 200 dollar hotel room when i was stranded in Spain...a little here, a little there, my boss cuts my overtime at work and I'm fucked...Its REALLY easy to let those things get out of hand. I considered myself pretty educated on the perils of credit cards, and I also considered myself pretty financially responsible, and now the hole is so deep i can't even see the sun anymore...
PS: creditors calling you at all hours of the day is STRESS!!!! be careful ... and pay your student loans (unlike me)...