I love credit cards so much! v2.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[Haley R]

I somehow missed the bathroom tour mirror shot...there is the phone! Phones work well and I plan to get a little handheld tripod for our next trip and try to make a video...what scares me is the editing...no clue where to start/what to use.

I’m pretty sure Dh is just editing it on YouTube but I might be wrong. I haven’t actually seen him do it but I think I’m gonna help on the next one so that we both know how to do it.

 

[Lain]

For folks who wonder how to use MRs (amex), I thought this was a very helpful guide-

https://frequentmiler.boardingarea....m_source=BoardingArea&utm_medium=BoardingArea
Also, this article by Lucky describing his dad trying to figure out SW is absolutely me (which is why I have still never flown it)...except his dad is cute, lol.

https://onemileatatime.com/dad-flying-southwest/

I have to say, I kinda like Ben. He's still shilly, but not thaaaat shilly.

And after Richard Kerr joined TPG recently, someone tweeted which blogger would be next. Ben's reply was golden:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1151282102593314818

 

[Haley R]

Since we have reserved seats, everyone shows up while trailers are playing. In the dark. Food orders are placed and delivered to your seat. In the dark. Pretty much dark until movie and credits are over.
Can’t recall the last time I was in a theater with full lights on. There was the time we accidentally had tickets for the “sensory friendly”show but even then the light were dimmed a bit.

That’s not evil. Just stirring the pot.

But the little guy has such an evil expression

That’s funny that you mention the lights thing. When we saw Aladdin they forgot to turn the lights off. The beginning of that movie is dark so all we could see was a glare. One lady even yelled lights and they didn’t do anything. Luckily two of them left to tell them. I’ve never had them forget to turn the lights off before. I think my AMC theater just sucks lol

 

[Haley R]

https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/homemade-soft-pretzel-bites/I got on a bread kick and made the easy bread in a dutch oven, french bread, focaccia bread, and tried making my own sourdough starter. The only thing that failed me was trying to start sourdough starter. Looked for anything with yeast and I love soft pretzels.

Omg I’m so making these. I literally hate cooking but soft pretzels are my favorite food (next to pickle wraps).

 

[PolyRob]

Just be sure to check DPs before selecting United or paying for an upgrade to first. I've read economy to first may not credit because it's a change in fare class and not merely a seat assignment fee.

Thank you! I will have to check. Some of the first class prices roundtrip were insanely high so that will take some planning. Fortunately the October 2020 flights haven't been released yet.

 

[Lain]

 

[ten6mom]

Interestingly, a coworker was just complaining about the Target remodel by her and how much she dislikes it. She says it's no longer fun to go and just stroll through and kill an hour. The one I usually go to is not done yet but it's under renovation now and it's a mess. I guess I shall have to wait and see.

Stopped at my local Frys (Kroger) this morning to inspect the MC gift cards. Is it normal for them all to say "debit"? And I could not find any indication on the back that they were issued by Metabank. I almost took a photo of one of them to post here for your assistance but I was afraid an employee would think I was doing something fraudulent so I decided not to.

Nachos or pretzel bites... hmmmm. Why not both?

 

[Albort]

Interestingly, a coworker was just complaining about the Target remodel by her and how much she dislikes it. She says it's no longer fun to go and just stroll through and kill an hour. The one I usually go to is not done yet but it's under renovation now and it's a mess. I guess I shall have to wait and see.

Stopped at my local Frys (Kroger) this morning to inspect the MC gift cards. Is it normal for them all to say "debit"? And I could not find any indication on the back that they were issued by Metabank. I almost took a photo of one of them to post here for your assistance but I was afraid an employee would think I was doing something fraudulent so I decided not to.

Nachos or pretzel bites... hmmmm. Why not both?

yar, they should all say debit... U will find the issued by *bank name* somewhere in the txt. if its not, then its probably something else.

 

[Judique]

Managed to snag $800. Could have done more, but didn't want it to look sketchy. But, I'm sure I still appeared sketchy to the older cashier doing 4 separate transactions and putting $40 on the Amex cards with the remaining on the CIC...

I did get in line twice, though, since I wanted to see if they would allow more than one despite the ad with the limit one per customer in the fine print posted. This location has been good to me, and I've only had the 'limit one' enforced only once. Many times I've been able to get well more than a couple.



There's a Kroger in Laurel now???

I went on the Kroger website looking for locations and it came up with Laurel Town Center. I just checked the address using Google maps and it is a Harris Teeter. So, in this area Kroger is Harris Teeter. @Alexle2007 take note....is there Harris Teeter in your area?

These stores are trying to confuse me!

 

[Judique]

Ok, so Kroger owns Harris Teeter? Do they typically have the same deals as Kroger like Safeway and Albertson’s?

I see you figured this out. I would hope so, but I don't know. I was just surprised when I found Kroger listed on the website.

 

[Alexle2007]

I see you figured this out. I would hope so, but I don't know. I was just surprised when I found Kroger listed on the website.

There is a Harris Teeter in Ellicott City near an Italian restaurant that I go to when I am in the office. I thought it was more an upscale grocery store like Wegman’s. I think there is also a HT in Canton. I’ll have to peruse it next time I am in the area.

 

[Alexle2007]

I’m not sure if I posted this but we’re going to Busch gardens and seaworld this weekend! We’re using the tickets we got back in May from the daily getaway deals. We booked our hotel stay at the Hampton by Seaworld through chase. It was like 10k URs. They offer free parking, free breakfast, and no resort fee. It says it’s only an 8 minute walk from the park so hopefully that’s accurate.

We’ve never been to Busch gardens so I’ve been trying to come up with a plan of attack. I have somewhat of a plan but I’m not sure. It’ll be a Saturday so I’m sure it’ll be busy.

I am guessing it is a little more than an 8 min walk since it is at least a 5-8 walk from the Renaissance which sits directly across the parking lot from SeaWorld and you literally walk across the parking lot to get there.

Here’s a map and walking route you would probably want to take. Central FL Pkwy can be busy.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Well I got the "
Thank you for your request.
Unfortunately, we are unable to approve your application.

We will provide you more detailed information in 7-10 days that explains the reasons for this decision."

From my CIP application. I'm not under 5/24 until 11/19. Considering I've gotten 2 mailers for the CIP now w/ invite codes I felt like I MIGHT have gotten a loophole, but it's not looking that way. So do I want to wait the 7-10 days before I go for the Hilton Biz card? After I finished my Citi #2 MSR, I was going to go for the CIP and then the Hilton Biz. If the CIP is out of the picture, yet again, then I want to get the Hilton Biz.

So sorry......it would appear the mailers do not bypass 5/24....so in November you can go for the CIP.......
Since the Hilton business is Amex you can apply for that now...

 

[DisneyMandC]

Oh boy how I love the FP process. Website is completely down. Been trying on my app and website. I could get stuff to pop up and now that won't even work.

 

[GlamMistress]

I have to say, I kinda like Ben. He's still shilly, but not thaaaat shilly.

And after Richard Kerr joined TPG recently, someone tweeted which blogger would be next. Ben's reply was golden:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1151282102593314818

I like Lucky too. Probably my fave Boarding Area blog.

 

[happ]

Adding---my credit monitoring services notified me that I had a hard inquiry on Experian and Transunion. My credit score has taken a bit of a hit since we started this game. Is that normal? I went from 815-820 to 760-780. Everything is paid in full monthly.
[/QUOTE]
My score has actually gone up since I started. It takes a slight dip with new apps and closures. The other thing I've noticed is if I let a billing cycle close on a card with any significant balance, it will also dip down. To avoid that, I try to pay my cards before the statement even posts.

Edit: I'm sorry. I messed up the quote thing and now I can't even find the page with the comment I was trying to reply to. I should really drink my coffee and eat before attempting to write anything. My stomach is growling and part of my brain keeps picturing soft pretzels.

 

[elgerber]

Got an email from Chase just now telling DH is approved for a CIP and the card is on it's way. Yeah, MSR already met, and points pending last week LOL.

Ah Target, I have loved Target my entire life LOL. It's a mile from my house (in my last house I could see it from my bed) and my dd works there. It is where I shop for pretty much everything, including groceries. But yes they do make me very mad, often! The dairy dept on Sunday mornings is a joke. One morning they had no half gallons of milk (we don't drink enough for a gallon). I had to wait 10 minutes for someone who could actually go find some, and then wait for it to actually get put out. This week it was cottage cheese and sour cream, empty. Yogurt is often empty too. Drives me nuts!! I really wish they did all overnight stock like the old days, it's just frustrating.
We also got the full remodel this year, the roundabouts in the main aisle bug me, I just want to walk from front to back, not having to slow down and take a turn around whatever the display is at the time. That said, I still love Target and will never give it up. Walmart makes me feel like I need a shower after, and their checkout lines are always insane.

 

[Haley R]

I am guessing it is a little more than an 8 min walk since it is at least a 5-8 walk from the Renaissance which sits directly across the parking lot from SeaWorld and you literally walk across the parking lot to get there.

Here’s a map and walking route you would probably want to take. Central FL Pkwy can be busy.
View attachment 419344

You’re right. I just looked and it said a 17 minute walk. I think I got it mixed up with the renaissance.

 

[amalone1013]

We also got the full remodel this year, the roundabouts in the main aisle bug me, I just want to walk from front to back, not having to slow down and take a turn around whatever the display is at the time. That said, I still love Target and will never give it up. Walmart makes me feel like I need a shower after, and their checkout lines are always insane.

Oh gosh, a roundabout? Ours is just being worked on now. I haven't seen a remodeled one so I didn't quite grasp how annoying this would be. I already hated the displays in the aisle by the checkouts that look like giant Target baskets, they always feel like they are in the way.

Actually, the Starbucks by me remodeled while we were on vacation and I hate it. I get that they are going for more modern/minimalist, but it looks like they forgot half the furniture. There are just huge areas of empty floor space that used to have tables, and could have the new tables and look fine, but it looks like they cut the seating capacity to a third of what it was.

I almost never stop in a Starbucks and stay anymore, though, so let's be honest... I'm mostly upset that they moved the mobile order stand from the end of the registers near the door to the normal pick up area, back in the corner as far from the door as possible

 

[DisneyMandC]

Phew.... ok after a very stressful morning of FP booking and Japan return flight booking, I'm finally at work and caught up! The FP process was INFURIATING because the website kept going down over and over again. And I could see FoP availability and was just internally screaming because the website wouldn't confirm it! But, it finally worked long enough for me to book a bunch of stuff, and, I have to say, I am pretty freaking excited... Here's our schedule:

Saturday: Arrive in the afternoon, early dinner at Homecomin' and walk around Disney Springs.
Sunday: Magic Kingdom- Space Mountain (9:25), Be Our Guest Lunch (11:15), BTMR (12:55), Splash Mountain (1:55), MNSSHP
Monday: Animal Kingdom- Everest (9:15), Safari (10:25), FoP(!!!!) (5:10), Yak and Yeti Dinner (6:00)
Tuesday: HS in the morning, no FPs, Epcot in the afternoon. Spaceship Earth (1:05), Seas with Nemo (2:10), Soarin' (3:10), Teppan Edo (6:40)
Wednesday: I'll probably get up early to check out Star Wars Land then meet everyone at Boma for breakfast at 9:00, Buzz Lightyear (10:30), Space Mountain (12:00), SDMT (1:00), Cali Grill (5:55), watch Happily Ever After
Thursday: Only plan so far is SDD at 1:10. No earlier times on that.
Friday: Repeat of AK schedule again with the same FPs. Yes, FoP again!!!! My mom specifically requested more time in AK because she loves the animals, so I'll tell everyone they can either come back again or branch out and do whatever they want. DH and I really enjoy AK too so I'm sure we'll go.

Overall, I'm really happy with this!! I don't think it gets much better than SDD, SDMT, and FoP in one week! However, it does REALLY stink that if you get SDD, you then can't book ToT, RnR, or TSMM. I mean, it's just asburd. So I guess I'm going to hope I can get all of those crammed in there Tuesday morning or after SDD on Thursday. The only other option is to scrap all my Epcot FPs. While I'm not thrilled about them, I was glad to get Soarin and I see it's already gone. If anyone has suggestion on how to make this work better, let me know! We do have Parkhoppers, so I can always try to make it to a different park in the afternoon or evening if we want to. I am REALLY looking forward to this trip now!

As a bonus, DH and I are now flying first class for our arrival AND departure flights to Japan!!!!