Jerch

I'm new to the forum and was looking for a relevant thread but couldn't find one. I'm hoping someone's had the same experience or could provide some insight into what happened this weekend. Let me back up a bit...

A few months ago I realized I was getting close to Silver status and started looking for credit card offers that would put me over the 25,000 MQM threshold, so that I'd be Silver in 2013. I was around 13,000 at this point. I found an American Express Gold offering 40,000 Award Miles and 15,000 MQMs after spending $1,000. Sounds too good to be true?

So I receive the card and promptly spend the $1,000 (much of which was on Delta flights), and sure enough my account is credited the 40,000 Award Miles (labeled "SkyMiles Amex Cobrand Credit Card") after I've paid it off (and not even at the end of the statement for that month), specifically in this order:

15,000
15,000
10,000

I wait for the MQMs to come in. At this point I've gotten so excited that I've booked 4 Delta flights over as many months, assuming I'd be Silver by then.

My Amex statement closes for that month, and even though I'd already been credited the Award Miles days prior, still no MQMs. I call Delta customer service, and they suggest I wait a few more weeks. Maybe it just takes a while for American Express to signal to Delta the MQM balance?

I wait the few weeks, and still MQMs. I call Delta back, and they suggest I contact American Express. I both call and email American Express and get the same answer:

Essentially I made up the 15,000 MQM part of the offer. They have no record of the offer I described ever existing anywhere, and not just for me. It was only ever going to be 40,000 Award Miles.

Incredulous, I went back through my browser history, emails, and any websites I could find that might have this offer listed. There were none. In retrospect I think I probably conflated several different offers from different tabs I had open into one magic offer that simply didn't exist.

Defeated, I resigned myself to the good feeling that at least it was MY fault and not Delta's. Then at least I wasn't being cheated by a company.

A few days ago (which is about a month after the above events), I checked into the first flight of what will end up being several more Delta flights this year. I noticed that my ticket read "Silver/Elite/Sky Club" at the top. That's weird. I checked my account quickly from my phone, and literally the day prior I had been credited the following:

"SkyMiles Amex Cobrand Threshold MQM Bonus"
15,000 MQMs
15,000 Award Miles
"SkyMiles Amex Cobrand Credit Card"
10,000 Award Miles

Excuse me, but what??? Not that I'm complaining! But where did this come from? I checked both my Delta and American Express accounts online, and I had no messages. No emails. No voicemails. Just randomly credited with not only what I had wanted (the 15,000 MQMs, which I admittedly made up) but 25,000 extra Award Miles??? So in the course of getting a Delta American Express Gold Card, I have racked up 65,000 Award Miles and 15,000 MQMs after spending only $1,000 (oh, and no fee for the first year).

Am I just lucky? Has anyone else gotten something like this? Is this some way of rewarding me? Did someone see my calls/emails to customer service and accidentally credited me the 15,000 MQMs I asked for, and if so why the extra Award Miles?