Classy

How do we feel about a new airline that has all business class? Max Jet is bringing this to life (at economy prices) soon with NYC - London flights...

Pet peeve

Why do people answer their second line when they're on an important call, and then when they answer, immediately ask if they can call you back? They can't stand to let a call go to voicemail?

I know there are some circumstances when you're waiting for an important call and you have to check every incoming call while you're on the other line to see if it's the important person, but I feel like there are some people that answer all their calls without sending any to VM as a standard practice. It's annoying.

Lindsey's in the red

Yipee, Lindsey is back in her god given red hair. I'll be excited to get Star Magazine's take on the change...

Sarah's degree frames aren't on the list

A funny article profiling the worst wedding gifts ever. Although, knowing the couple and the gift giver I think some might not be as inappropriate as they are out of context. Either way, I'm happy I've never given any of these...

Promise keepers

NWA got 'er done when they awarded me 10,000 bonus miles for successfully completing their Fly Free Faster promotion today. I signed up (and blogged about it) in May and had till 9/30/05 to have everything post and believe it or not, they followed through and awarded me the miles as promised. Thank you NWA.

I hope you got 'er done, too?

Word verification

I have instructed Blogger to ask you for verification prior to you leaving a comment in order to avoid the spam that happened on my site (real spam, not just Marc's comments). I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but I had to do it.

I learned something about myself - I am BAD at word verification - the "type in the letters above" prior to commenting on a blog / trying to buy tickets on ticketmaster, whatever. I am very good at the numbers verification, but if you ask me to type random letters as they appear above I have to be super careful and double check to do it correctly. My fingers don't like typing things that aren't words, but learned from Excel to type any numbers without complaining.

Airline refund when requested?

I had heard an urban travel legend: If you find the airfare for a flight you booked has decreased, just call the airline and ask for a refund. They won't give it if you don't ask, and the change in fare has to be for the EXACT same fare you originally booked, but just ask and they shall refund you.

For the first time in my life, I had the chance to give this a try.

I'm going to Vegas in November, and booked my airfare last week. It was a reasonable fare, but went up $25 overnight - I didn't want to pay any more so I booked but in the back of my head I was thinking it might go down.

And tonight I was correct when I found the fare was now $45 cheaper than when I originally booked. At first, I said "Damn you, Northwest" but then I Googled "refund when flight price goes down" and found several sources that confirmed the urban legend was true.

WTF, might as well give it a try. I called the regular 800 for NWA (was on hold for less than 10 seconds - nice work NWA), and gave them my original trip confirmation code. I explained the flight price went down since I bought the ticket last week, and I'd like a refund of the difference in price. Please.

I was told there was a $25 admin fee (here's where the "Damn you, Northwest" original thought comes in handy) but they'd be happy to issue me a $20 voucher for the difference less the fee. What the hell, that's better than nothing. I should get the voucher via email within a few days.

Lessons learned:

• If you're about 2 months out from the trip, fares almost always go up a bit before they drop to the lowest fares you're gonna get. Don't get scared - wait for it to drop those extra bucks before you book. I always get scared and book a few days too early - did with Mary's wedding and then this trip. I need to grow a pair and wait a few more days.

• Don't be scared to book a fare you think is "fair" 6-8 months out -- keep watching the fare (use Orbitz's tool to watch the fare for your travel dates) and holler at them when the price fluxes. I can't be sure, but I bet if my fare goes down another $45 I could call again and get another $20 voucher. Keep this in mind.
  

• Just think about if companies did this with every plane ticket they booked. Could be worth many dollas. Think about it with the work trips you book...
  

Bob Jones, Detroit factory worker

Bob Jones works at a factory in Detroit, Michigan. He makes cars for Chevrolet. He gets paid decently because of his union, but his real happiness comes in the fact that he gets the employee discount on the cars and trucks he and his family buy.

Then, in summer 2005, Chevrolet starts offering the employee discount to everyone in the whole damn country with out any qualifiers.

OK, so I made up this story as an example, but I think this isn't that unrealistic... If I were a diligent factory I'd be pissed everybody and their brother got my employee discount.

How hard can it be...

to set game times for Gopher Football? I know it's national broadcast schedules that affect it but seriously, I want to know when the games are going to be.

Warning - Julie, Brandon, and Heidi - do not read this

I must say that today's homecoming game was one of the best Gopher games I've been to in the last few years - we got there in the first quarter and stayed till the end - yeah us! After the game, Sid Hartman even congratulated the strong cheering student section on our enthusiasm and credited us for helping the team win.

Congratulations to the Gophers on the win! When you read the Tribune article about the game, note the picture of Dana and Lenertz on the top left - Dana was a good fan today but unfortunately Lenny didn't join us. He was missed. But we had a good time, good bloody marys, and enjoyed the following( in chronological order):

1. The high guys trying to park
2. The Purdue fan posing the "What town in Minnesota in? Stupidtown. Hehe" question.
3. The guy in the blue dress with lots of blue eye shadow attempting to climb over the ladders and managing poorly
4. The guy in the blue dress with lots of blue eye shadow trying to jump over the fense and failing miserably
   

Laurence Maroney, right, carried the ball 46 times against Purdue but had enough bounce left in his step afterward to revel in the Gophers' big victory with teammate Alex Daniels in front of a cheering section at the Metrodome.

Need a laugh?

This Planet Dan post is funny funny funny. I like Uncle Ray.

Also posted by Planet Dan are pictures from his Friday night - he saw a show at the Cedar Cultural Center. Not all that noteworthy, except for the fact that when I got my hair cut on Friday night Charlie mentioned he was also going to a show later that night at the Cedar Cultural Center. I think it's random I knew 2 people going to this random show.

PS Right now, immediately, bookmark Planet Dan's blog. It is funny funny funny, pretty much every day. And he's a Minneapolis-ian which makes it even better.

Bob

I'm going to give kudos to Twin Cities Public Television for its advertising efforts for Monday's Bob Dylan show directed by Martin Scorsese, "No Direction Home: Bob Dylan". I saw 2 or 3 advertisements for the show - at least 1 bus billboard plus maybe a TV ad (running on a station other than TPT). Also kudos to the PR for the show - quite a few articles have recommended it.

I am quite loyal to NPR/MPR but realized that I haven't watched TPT in years - probably since high school (remember I was a loser in HS and watched Almanac on Friday nights with my mom). I've been wanting to watch more TPT and maybe this will be a good way to ease myself into it...

Tune in Monday night at 8pm for the Bob Dylan show (the conclusion is Tuesday night at 8) so we can compare notes afterwards :)

UPDATE: I'm watching part 1 of 2 of the series and so far so good. Remember you can still catch part 2 Tuesday night at 8 on channel 2. Or, just Netflix the whole damn thing.

My favorite quote so far: "I enrolled at the University of Minnesota but didn't really go to class. I just didn't feel like it. I was busy all night and just didn't have time for classes and studying."

Single white female

You might think it's silly for me to read an online article entitled "The Two Kinds of Husbands". You might not be surprised. The article is somewhat interesting - I like thinking of friends I have and deciding which kind of husband I think they have. And I'm pulling reports that are slow so I can read things online while they are generated - reading while I work = no time wasting.

Starbucks is coming to Jackson!!!

Well maybe not Jackson, but Starbucks CEO made the following comments during a NYT interview, regarding growth of the chain:

“We actually pour less than 7 percent of the U.S. coffee consumption. We announced that in 2006 we'd be opening 1,800 stores, 1,300 of them in the U.S. There are a lot of smaller rural areas we're going to be going to, as well as off-highway locations. And we're finding that opportunity still exists in mature markets. One of our highest-returning stores last year, based on first year return on investment, was in Seattle, one of our most mature markets.”

$1500 pizza

The sarcasm used in this Minnesota Daily article was a bit much, but the article about the football team still made me laugh a bit - I could see this happening...

Gas

I learned last week the IRS increased the rate for reimbursement for miles driven by an employee from 40.5 cents to 48.5 cents per mile. However, just 5.9% of companies planned to change the reimbursement rate for their employees to follow this IRS change.

I was happy to learn today my company is part of that 6%. Makes me feel warm and fuzzy.

Hallelujah!

I have a job! Yeah! I'm starting today and, my bad, already blogging at work. Since people keep getting fired for blogging about work, I'm going to leave off my company name but if you know me you already know anyway. My summer of 2 jobs is officially over, yipee.

Today is a VERY big day for several other reasons (random order):

1. Gabe starts a new job today
2. It's Alicia's birthday
3. Missy takes the GMAT
4. It's Brandon's birthday
5. Fall TV shows premiere tonight

Yeah!

Target soldier

I was surprised to read that a female buyer at Target is going to the Middle East with the Minnesota National Guard. As you may know, Target girls can be easily and correctly stereotyped, and camo and boots isn't it. Who knew?

Paper statements?

As I'm sorting through credit card and bank statements for the last few years, and deciding that my building's dumpster is sketchy enough that I'd better shread them, I began debating if I even need them at all.

Have I EVER gone back to my paper statement for reference?

Do I need a "paper trail"?

Why am I, a somewhat early adapter to computers, still getting paper statements?

I don't know.

What's your take on electronic vs. paper statements?

The only pro-paper statement I have is that I heard about a woman who wrote a book as a chronicle of her life based on her credit card / bank statements. Rehashing her life thorugh her purchases, essentially. I can't find the book online, $1 to you if you can find it. I know NPR and/or the Today show talked about it in 2005.

I like the idea of this book but I'm sure Alicia will be quick to point out I'll never write a book, thus it's not a good reason to keep statements. And I should thow out a bunch of other sh*t from my apartment. Lo siento, not happening.

Time waster

In case you have time on your hands, browse this SUPER fun blog, a woman's take on fun home design things to buy. You'll like it.

I'm ready for the boys-wearing-striped-shirts phenomenon to be over

Done.

Now.

I said it.

I was reminded of this while looking at Michael's pictures from his Greek vacation - kudos to Michael and Glenn on 99% of their fashion choices, but seriously - there must be other tops available for purchase. Stop with the f-ing striped shirts. Done.

When I questioned "What did boys wear before those striped shirts?" Alicia was ready with answers. Past annoying trends embraced by too many boys:

• Those "blue" button up shirts - you know the blue shade I'm talking about

• Turtleneck cabled sweaters (think J. Crew) - usually in grey heather

I know men weren't topless before 2001 when those sweaters were popular - can we go backwards from there and pick out other annoying shirts?

Marc (yeah I mentioned you) - with your Gap Co. know-how, you should be able to offer some help as Gap helped create/distribute/increase the annoying factor of past trends...

Fun with the Emmys

I'm enjoying the Emmys tonight - Jon Stewart's Daily Show has already won twice (you've all heard my shout outs for his show). Jon's pre-recorded monologue was fricking hilarious, including the "George Bush hate Black Sabbath" part. PS Did you know "Larry" is in the middle of hilarious, as in hi-larry-us?

I was excited Warm Springs won - I just Netflixed it and really liked it. A solid recommendation for you if you're an FDR fan like I am.

I heard about Huff for the first time tonight - several nominations and I was clueless. Makes sense since I barely watch any TV at all. Oh wait.

Ooh, Lost and Everybody Loves Raymond are the big winners. If you're on the West Coast I hope you aren't reading my blog right now. Have I mentioned HOW MUCH I HATE "EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND"? I'd rather watch Fox News. Thank god it can't steal awards from quality shows ever again.

I'm excited about this week being when many new shows start up their new seasons. Good times. Let me know if you have a favorite show I'm missing out on. As for me, the shows I looked up time/day and marked in my calendar (I'm a loser):

• Scrubs (duh)
• King of Queens (I don't care what you say Marc)
• Desparate Housewives (unoriginal but a good-y)
• Grey's Anatomy (such a good show)

Nano

I'm sure you've seen the announcement of the iPod Nano, the super small (I might break it?) new iPod. While browsing a few blogs tonight, I found this blog e from Thailand showing a girl getting a Nano for her birthday. Lucky her.

I like beer

Who thinks it would be fun to go to a craft beer fest downtown at Peavey Plaza? I think it would be fun... It's on Oct. 8 in the afternoon - $25. More dets here. Anybody?

Too funny...

not to blog about Bush's note passing. Hehe.

Kanye is everywhere

This article is talking about making new teen drivers safer, but the caption below the picture on the right sums it up. Kanye is everywhere.

One of Bush's many, many vacation days - this time in New Orleans :)

I love Photoshop.

Why you can't ignore Kanye

This article pretty much covers it. I like the discussion about the dilemma about how to market the suburban Kanye, and how the gangsta rappers giggled about the idea of Kanye moving to artist from producer.

Q: Where are the 2006 Winter Olympics?

A: Torino, Italy.

I feel like I've heard a lot more about Singapore '08 than the upcoming games in Italy. Looking at Olympic Games, some are easily remembered, others I barely recall. I know Google will tell you all the answers, but not using reference sources, here's what I remember...

96 Atlanta
00 Australia
04 Athens

I know there's a Lillehamer winter games in the 90s and maybe Barcelona?, but apparently Winter Games are not as memorable for me. Without using aid, what else do you remember?

PS I feel like Zip will be good at this quiz, maybe only b/c she's the only person I know that's been to the Olympics.

Wow losers

I think nerdy-ness / geeky-ness reaches a whole new level at this website:

The Board Game Designers Forum: "Think of this site as a support group for game designers, both professional and aspiring."

Quite impressive are their discussion boards - here's an example.

Grocery practices

After working with CPG coupons, telemarketing this summer, and now working PT at Purina with grocery accounts, this case study caught my attention. It talks about coupons being sent to consumers, having a voicemail sent to consumers giving them a "heads up" on the coupon, and all of this being paid for by the manufacturer. And it results in incremental dollars being spent. Wow, I'm a nerd.

Cell phone know all

Q1: Why aren't land lines working in New Orleans? Because the land lines are wet.

Q2: Why aren't cell phones working in New Orleans? Because the towers are wet.

Which of these two questions are correct? Number 1. Question 2 is partially correct, but the full story is detailed in this article explaining why even if a tower is ok, calls still might not go through. Very interesting if you're a cell phone geek.

Good point

On NPR, they're talking about relief efforts for New Orleans. Someone made the point that the Republican federal government especially needs to play their cards right in the coming weeks in months while they recover for one big reason (aside from the fact that people need and deserve help):

The republican right has replied heavily on the South - both the states having Katrina damage and the surrounding states taking refugees - to get elected. Don't piss off your bread and butter.

I like the way they talk. On the other hand, I fault Alicia for not including the link to the "GWB hates black people" video on her website.

Where not to go

St. Cloud State University. Do you know anyone who has ever started their as a freshman and graduated in four years? No. No one. And this article profiles the "why". I'm going to research their graduation rates versus the U. They HAVE to be worse...

Ooh, and don't forget that bouncers may suffocate you while you're living in St. Cloud.

Q: What religion is/was Judge Rehnquist?

A: Lutheran.

Who knew?

Happily cancelled

How glad am I that we ended up cancelling our girls trip that was slated to go to New Orleans in October? If we hadn't cancelled last month, we'd have all our plane tickets bought, etc. and it'd be a huge pain.

Apparently some good karma (aka me not getting a job yet and having to pull out) came our way...