Third Party Travel Sites

Why do people use third party travel sites like Orbitz, Expedia, etc?

Obviously, people use them as their growth and longevity is proven. I use them to research but leave it at that. I generally go to the hotel, airline, car rental company directly once I have completed my research. Only in a few cases have I found the rate on the 3rd party site to be lower. For airfare, when it is, it usually involves one or more stops and usually is more than one airline which sounds like confusion and disaster when "flight A" is late. The second airline really could care less and may not have a need or requirement to help you find your way to the final destination. Furthermore, many of their itineraries involve weird connections with 10 hours between and "arriving the next day".

In the Strib Sunday, they run a column called "Travel Troubleshooter" by Christopher Elliott. He also has this website with many more stories.

My observation when reading these is that the resounding theme is, "I booked with Expedia"...."I booked with Orbitz", etc. They get overcharged. They get unreported fees. The hotel could care less about their reservation specifics such as "King bed", etc because it was a cut-rate, surplus room rate reservation. If you read some of the stories on his site, yes, some were booked direct with the carrier. airline, etc. My observation is that the complaints are heavily weighted to third party sites.

What is the draw to these sites other than to provide one set of options as a form of research? I just do not see it. Maybe YOU can tell me!

Pushing The Lines of Honesty?

Jess and I made a decision to be better shoppers for consumables and groceries. This means planning meals and shopping trips, etc. Through various coupon sites, the Sunday ads and the store specials, it has been amazing watching the savings multiply. Our last 4 grocery trips have yielded savings of $95.00, $48.79, $49.52 and one just over $50 (did not have this one written down).

Add in gas coupons (Cub gives coupons for Holiday gas that are based on your total pre-coupon sales amount so $210 in groceries would give you a 12 gallon coupon for 21 cents off per gallon). The last 4 gas coupons saved us a roughly $11.00 at the pump.

Lastly, the yucky part - mail in rebates (General Mills, etc) have yielded $12.50.

All summed up, it equates to over $266.00 in just about 2 months! That is amazing. It means stocking up on things that are good deals. Combining a store "loss leader" with coupons, etc. For example, we rarely eat Hamburger Helper but bought 6 boxes tonight since combining the $1 per box store loss leader with the coupons brought them to .63 per box**. When we need a quick dinner - now we have it on hand rather than just going out somewhere.

OK, good for us right? The title has to do with honesty. What's that all about?

Well, I have to admit - I squeeze in extra coupons. Not a ton but usually in situations where I am buying a higher quantity of something. See the ** by the Hamburger Helper line? Well, I had 3 coupons for that product. $1.10 off of 3 boxes x 2 and .75 off of 3 boxes. I used three coupons for $2.95 which would have required purchasing 9 boxes but I only bought 6. So - technically, my price per box was .51 at the checkout. I "screwed" them out of .75.

My justification goes like this:

• I will use extra coupons when I buy a ton of something like the HH example above.
• I will sometimes do it when it requires 3 but I only buy 2 or buy 1 instead of 2.
• I will not throw in coupons for things that I do not actually buy.
• If a coupon requires the "21 oz size" I might buy the 15 oz size and still use the coupon.
• If the store has a set of coupons that are activated by "one additional $25 purchase" and "limit one per household", we will get 2 carts and double up on them if those deals are plentiful and exceptional. For example, today- they had about 8 items that were $1 if you spent $25. They all were savings of 50-65% so we did those items 2x and checked out separately.
• Always seek out the youngest checker, preferably a guy. They'll never question you.

The way I see it, for every guy like me that cheats a little, 10 other customers don't use a single coupon. If you combine my order with the next guy, we comply with the coupon's requirement PLUS the store gets reimbursed for the coupons anyway. I guess that logic works for everything except the loss leaders.

Am I wrong? Is this just shades of gray? I don't think so but maybe someone else does.

Why Pawlenty Would Not Have Been a Good VP Either

Again, with the pre-post disclaimer - I don't think Obama or McCain are decent choices for prez. Certainly, aside from her looks, Palin was not a good VP choice. As a quasi-Minnesotan, I would have though Pawlenty (MN-GOV) would have been a better choice. Then again, maybe not. Here is why...

T-Paw is forcing the whole ethanol/corn BS down our throats in MN. I know it starts at the Fed level but it is his baby here locally.

I sat next to a guy on a flight from DC to MSP once and he enlightened me to some facts that I looked into and he is exactly right.

Why make corn into ethanol instead of sugar beets? Anyone who has been in a biology class knows that sugars convert to alcohol. Starches must first be converted to a sugar to become an alcohol.

VS

Which would be more efficient? A one step process or two? Hmmmmmm.

Then I see a story like today's in the Strib. Sugar beet farmers may have to plow under 10 percent of their crop?

If we had plants that converted a sugar beet to ethanol instead of the 2 step corn process, we could make these beets into GAS GAS GAS with LESS LESS LESS! Here I thought the sugar beet lobby in DC was big and strong like corn. I guessed wrong again.

These are the things in government that so many people don't see but are so clearly wrong. We can raise so much more of a sugar beet crop than corn in this state if we had a reason. Think about it, any storm will destroy a corn field but a sugar beet field will be far less impacted because of it being under ground for the most part. They grow these things in the Moorhead and western MN areas - ANYTHING that can grow there is like a cockroach and will survive anything!

Bottom line, I think this whole initiative of ethanol, at least as it exists today is a waste especially with the extra $$$$$ the subsidies pour into it. We need to be smarter. I would change my mind on ethanol if we truly could do it without the extra subsidized cost and/or use a different renewable source such as sugar beets. Corn is clearly not the answer. With so many ears.....how come nobody is listening?

Wrong Place, Wrong Time...

I think this is the story of my life. Now, this is not a situation where I am just whining ... ok, maybe a little - because I am pretty happy with my life. Just when I sit back and look at what bugs me, it is because the place I live, the job I do, etc etc etc are impacting what I have.

I'll say it again, I am very fortunate - but look at a few of these things.

• If gas goes up, it goes up in my neighborhood when others don't.
• If gas is cheap somewhere like now in the north metro ($3.28), my area is still $3.49 or more
• When the hailstorm hit New Richmond in May - everyone got a free roof in my neighborhood. Mine only has "marginal" damage which means it will not need replacing until after this winter's snow and ice when it is not covered by the hail event (and my roof is roughly 48 square a.k.a. big and expensive)
• At the casino, the guy next to me wins the Royal Flush
• At the liquor store in MPLS (years ago) - my truck was the one sprayed with bullets in the drive by shooting.
• When other people's friends get married, it is across town or maybe Jamaica. When my friends get married, it is in Regina or Saskatoon.

Yeah, its all minor. After enough of these things you start to feel like John Candy in Summer Rental - where you'd like to win just once.

Oh well, life is good anyway.

On The Day You Were Born....Living Live!

I rarely find a website so neat that I have a desire to share it. Today, Karissa sent me one that I really like. This site tells you the #1 song the day you were born, married, etc. It is simple and fun. Then again, I am the type of guy that likes to look through the Billboard Top 100 book as comfort reading. I might be a little different.

I am curious to know what the songs for your birthdays, etc are. My songs of note...

• Birthday: Tears of a Clown by Smokey Robinson - somewhat fitting for me I think.
• 21st Birthday (What we did shots to....): Black or White by Michael Jackson (cool video)
• Wedding Day: Take a Bow by Madonna....I don't even know this song.
• Day I started at LTCG: Everything You Want by Vertical Horizon....again, I don't know this song and LTCG is NOT everything I want....not yet anyway.

Here is Smokey doing the LIVE cut of my song!

It Is Drug Season

I would like to post my disclaimer up front to this post - the parallel I will be drawing to actual drugs is meant in no way to diminish the severity of true, hard drug abuse.

Last night, I bought my first bag of Honeycrisp apples. They are as close to a drug or addiction that I have. They will practically put me in the poor house every fall. I just ate my first one. I think I saw the face of God. These gems were bred at the University of MN and are now starting to show up with "Washington" and "Michigan" stickers on them. We need more. Every orchard needs to plant Honeycrisp trees. They can saw down all of the Delicious Red and Gala trees and plant Honeycrisp trees. I saw that there is a grower in Blackfoot, ID. How close to Pocatello is that Al? I can say that even though I can attend a Pocatello funeral online, I'd pay the airfare to go to that orchard. (NOTE: Due to past concern and comments, The Orracle will not speculate as to WHOSE funeral may or may not be attended in Pocatello)

Last night, I bought 6. $12.45 was the total cost. Still cheaper than a gallon of gas.

Normally, I will censor myself and only buy items, even if seasonal when they are finally plentiful and available for much less. Not these babies. If they made them $6 a pound, I'd still buy them. They are far too good to not eat. Fortunately, Jessica cannot eat them because of her TMJ. Jake and Ashlie like them too much too. It gets to be an expensive addiction.

The sad part is that it is already mid September and they will be gone soon. I will be left with withdrawl and sadness and the yearning for next year's crop of Honeycrisps. Heavenly.....

In Sickness and in Health

No, this is not the announcement that I will be traveling to Saskatoon to see Al venture into marriage again. Sorry.

This is about my sickness and my daughter's health.

WORST FIRST!

I have always had bad ears. As a youngster, they were bad. Tubes helped until I had a SCUBA accident and had to come to the surface without breathing. In 2002, I was diagnosed with a Cholesteatoma. Initially I assumed that meant I had 6 months to live. Technically - it should have had surgery but I was not into the idea. Furthermore, I was told that avoiding infections would prolong the growth of the cystic area. Good enough for me.

Well, I have had a couple of small infections but nothing noteworthy. Until now....it started late August and into my Disney vacation. I came back and noticed some blood in my ear canal every AM. No pain and none of the tell-tale signs of an infection. Logically, I ignored it. I flew to Indy this week and then I felt it coming. By the time I descended into MSP on Wednesday, it was full blown. Thursday AM left me with the most blood coming from my ear that I can ever remember. Doc on Thursday to get my regular regiment of meds including drops, antibiotic and a steriod dosepack to reduce inflamation in the ear canal which is now swelled shut.

It is now 2 days into the meds and draining is high but I am not confident we are nailing the thing. Kind of scary....

ON TO BETTER THINGS!

New Richmond has a rich history of marching bands. Currently, the middle school is perceived as better than the high school for a variety of reasons. The MS director is the former director of the HS bands that won national awards.

Ashlie has a dream of pursuing music. Her piano and guitar abilities are great. Her sax is second nature. She felt she needed something to boost her resume and when they announced tryouts for the future Major/Majorette, she wanted it. As a ninth grader, this was a lofty goal. This would mean she would begin learning it yet this year as the current Major is a Sr. She as been in this band just since June.

Of course, the reason for the post is that Ashlie was selected Majorette of the NR Tigers Marching Band beginning her learning from Andy this year and taking over next summer. This is huge and he competition was tough. She will have 3 years to help refine this band to the quality it once was. I could not be more proud of her. This is a great achievement.

CONGRATS ASHLIE!

Change is Everywhere

In a time when all we hear is "CHANGE!" from our prezzy hopefuls, I bring you several items of change for me.

1) The biggest, most important. Boxers. No, not Mike Tyson like - but underwear type. You see, I tried them once when I was very young and I could not handle the looseness. That is to say that I was flippin and floppin....too much excitement for a young stud like I once was. You see, in Disney last week, I had a bad chafing problem. I know, TMI - but in the interest of full disclosure, I feel compelled to tell you all. Knowing I could not go 7 days at Disney in 95 degree weather, I had to try them and I LOVE THEM! So for all of you that ever asked me, "Boxers or Briefs?" well, it used to be briefs (boxer-briefs actually) and now is full blown boxers.

2) Change #2 is to formally announce that since we are "back to school", I will be changing my blogging pattern to something more than once a month.

3) #3 - ah, hell....there is no #3. This was really about #1. All about the freedom in my pants. OK, enough, I know.

Here is to change, wherever you are.....whoever you support or whatever supports you!