If you've ever been the victim of a fat $35 fee for exceeding your credit card limit by a few bucks, now is the time to get up and bust out your best happy dance.  That is, if you happen to carry a Discover or Amex credit card in your wallet.

A friend of mine recently sent me the following quote by Lou S. Barnes, an owner of a Colorado mortgage bank named Boulder West Financial Services.

It gave me a good chuckle, so for those of you that haven't already come across his remarks elsewhere, I thought I would share what Mr. Barnes had to say about the current home lending environment.

You can buy cigarettes, porn, lotto tickets, and even a gun when you turn 18. Of course, you can vote and join the military without parental consent as well. But according to new rules recently signed into law by President Obama, you're not responsible enough to use a credit card without getting mommy or daddy's signature first.

My wife and I moved from Seattle to Thailand for work late last year. Other than preparing myself for lots of spicy food, tropical weather, and a 12-hour time difference with clients on the East Coast, I also wanted to make sure I was prepared to properly handle my credit cards while living overseas. I have always traveled internationally for work, and ever since my first trip abroad I quickly realized that credit cards were my lifeline. They could mean the difference between staying at the Hyatt, or sharing a hostel room with a talkative German named Franz. That said, over the last seven months I have learned some valuable lessons - many the hard way- about managing my credit cards internationally. Hopefully some of these experiences will be of value to you wherever you happen to call home.

Legislation that will forever change how credit issuers do business is swiftly moving through Congress with the strong support of President Obama and his administration. In fact, the House has already passed its version of the Credit Card Holders Bill of Rights, and now the Senate is gearing up to vote on its own version later this week. We still don't know exactly what will end up in the Senate's final version of the bill, but you can bet it will be even more thorough and complex than what the House put together.