I just clinched A-List Preferred ("A+") status on Southwest Airlines for another year. It's the highest level elite status in one of their two elite programs. Of course, I also have the other valuable elite status- I re-earned Companion Pass in OctoberA+ status is much like elite status in other airlines' programs. Its main benefits are early ( Read more... )

The other day I wrote about the 2% cash-back credit cards I own. Cash-back cards like these are great options for people who want to get into the game of cards that pay dividends but don't want the complexities redeeming points with airlines and hotels. As I've explained before, airline/hotel affinity cards are only worth it if you travel regularly ( Read more... )

"Well, folks," airline pilots tend to say when they're about to share bad news over the intercom. Well, this aviator has flown its last flight (for now) and has landed in the great hangar in the sky. The aviator I'm talking about is the American Airlines AAdvantage Aviator card from Barclays Bank. I closed the card recently because I don't see it ( Read more... )

A few days ago I posted about the bottle of Piñaq liqueur I bought at Costco. I bought the pre-mixed passion fruit cocktail on a whim, largely because of the bespoke pineapple-shaped bottle. ...Which was kind of strange because it's made with passion fruit, not pineapple. But whatever, it's really catchy. 🤣


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Recently I passed my 8th anniversary of owning an American Express Hilton credit card. Four years ago I upgraded it to Aspire, the top dog of 3 Hilton cards from Amex. Every 12 months since then I've carefully weighed whether or not to renew it as it comes with a hefty annual fee (AF) of $450. And now it's increased to a whopping $550. I've paid ( Read more... )

This morning I got an email that struck me as strange right off the bat. Lyft was advertising to me that I should use their service for my commute. "WTF?" was my immediate thought. "Hiring a ride to/from work every day would be expensive!" ...Not that I actually have a commute right now. I've been 100% remote the past 5-6 years and partly remote ( Read more... )

One of the narratives in the news the last several months about why the real estate market in the US is so tight is that too many of us are locked in to our current places with cheap mortgages. "Sub-3% Handcuffs," some headlines call it. The gist is that many homeowners have low rates on their mortgages, way lower than we'd get if we sold our house ( Read more... )

Australia Travelog #29
Leura, NSW - Fri, 29 Dec 2023, 12pm

I pumped gas into our rental car today in Australia. That gave me occasion to do the math on gas prices. It's $1.99 at many gas stations in the area. But that price is (a) in Australian Dollars and (b) per liter. The AUD-USD exchange rate is 0.68, so that's $1.35 US per liter, and at 3.785 ( Read more... )

Australia Travelog #24
Leura, NSW - Thu, 28 Dec 2023, 8pm

Hawk and I are back at the hotel now after a long day of hiking. First we hiked the Three Sisters then a big loop down into the canyon and back up at Wentworth Falls. We worked up a pretty good appetite from all that. We drove next door to Katoomba for supper, as that's the town with the ( Read more... )

Our Costco dividend check arrived this week. Woohoo, almost $114!

We get this dividend for being Costco Executive Members. The gist of executive membership is simple: we pay an extra $60 a year (on top of the $60 basic membership) and we earn 2% cash back every year for our purchases at Costco (not including their gasoline stations).


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