Best Retirement Advice, Crypto Bros Went AI, Best Street Food, Off to Thailand Again

Another TBB post featuring the most eclectic links around the web such as the best retirement advice, crypto bros went AI, the best street food, off to Thailand again, the best total solar eclipse photos, warnings about Best Of anything lists, AI slop, jury duty scams, museums and ticks and drones, e-visas to Vietnam, fun drives, the best photography and Thailand links and of course always all of the most important developments in the crazy world of frequent flyer miles and points at the lower half of the post. And much more. Enjoy the weekend.

 

Blog Mission: To Educate. Entertain. Inspire. In That Order!

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No clickbait. No ads. No algorithms. No sponsors. No AI. No paywalls.

 

This blog started way back in 2012 focusing on my crazy hobby addiction of traveling with frequent flyer miles, hotel and bank points. It has since evolved to curated posts featuring the best web content along with my commentary.

 

BLOG HOUSEKEEPING

This is truly a one man labor of love operation, enjoy it while it lasts.

I will be traveling for the next month or so. I will try to keep posting here but if I take I break it is because I deserve it πŸ™‚

Follow me on Instagram if you want to see pics from my travels, I will try to post more often on that platform.

 

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

 

β€œNo one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite” – Nelson Mandela

 

MUST READ GEMSΒ 

Some total solar eclipse photos for you…

The moon completely covers the sun in this photo of the total solar eclipse that was taken from an observatory in Arcos de las Salinas, Spain, on Wednesday, August 12. Christian Hartmann/Reuters

 

 

PERSONAL FINANCE

As most of my professional life these days revolve around retirement issues, I think this is indeed The Best Retirement Advice Ever.

1. Learn to match your lifestyle with your finances

2. Look after your health and energy like they are assetsΒ 

3. Learn to feel comfortable spending your moneyΒ 

4. You do not need to stay busy β€” you need to stay engagedΒ 

5. The first few years shape more than you realizeΒ 

6. Motivation usually arrives after action, not before itΒ 

7. Expect your sense of purpose to evolveΒ 

8. Family alone cannot carry an entire retirementΒ 

9. Adjustment takes far longer than most people expectΒ 

10. Be careful not to slowly lower your standards for effort

11. Expect your social world to changeΒ 

12. Adaptability matters more than the perfect planΒ 

13. Keep a reason to leave the houseΒ 

14. Stay open to changing direction completelyΒ 

My industry is abuzz with the report that someone at Forbes received a “small gift”: Forbes Fired Top Editor After Discovering He Received $6 Million Payment. Heads up, if you are basing your decisions to work with a financial planner because they made the “Top 10” of a Best Of list at Forbes or Barron’s, you are making a huge mistake. These publications have long ago sold out to the highest bidder as they branched out to new avenues of revenue as main subscriber and ad revenue has taken a hit. I did benefit from one of these Best Of lists over the years (by Investopedia) and I did promote this on my website and Linkedin. But I resisted all relentless follow up marketing pitches that come afterwards. And then somehow I ceased to being picked for the honor and you bet that would not have happened if I had followed up to fork over some money to help me in marketing my award.

But this guy receiving a $6 Million “gift” and then saying he is sorry about it that he should have disclosed it and feels awful losing his job is infuriating. Yeah, I am sure he is sorry with $6 million in the bank and now with all the time in the world to be “focusing on his own projects. In 2023, he co-founded the National Thoroughbred League, a competitive horseracing association. And this summer, he mounted a rock musical he wrote about Benjamin Franklin titled β€œThe Sound of America” in Philadelphia that cast the founding father as β€œAmerica’s first rock star.” Only in America smh.

 

 

AI/TECH

People have way too much time on their hands smh: Inside an AI Tik Tok Shop Slop Factory That Shills Supplements Recalled by the FDA. If regulators and law enforcement will not shut these assholes down, it is upon you to stop clicking on this shit, come on!

 

 

SCAMS/CRYPTO

I feel bad for people falling for scams revealing all to journalists. Because they invite very negative comments towards them online. Then again, I feel grateful they do this because it can help prevent others from making the same mistakes. This was very disturbing: The β€˜Jury Duty’ Scam That Cost This Family $25,000.Β In a growing ruse, swindlers pose as cops and use tremendous pressure to trap people; β€˜They had every single thing about me.’ 

In the last few posts I wondered out loud whether I should drop Crypto coverage in my blog. Because, you know, all the crypto bros are moving to where the money is these days. Which is of course AI. So, here you go:Β How the AI Trade Is Stealing Crypto’s ThunderΒ These investors are dropping bitcoin and other digital tokens after getting swept up in the mania over AI stocks.

 

 

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19 Comments

  1. Good morning Buzz,
    Gold, silver or bronze this morning perhaps.
    Thanks for the great links today.
    Have a great time in SE Asia, you do deserve it. Will look forward to whatever you may end up posting, as we are heading that way in a few months.

  2. George, you have the best travel (and everything else!) blog on the internet.
    You are a Unicorn.
    Please keep it up!
    Thank you very much:
    Stacy Stark
    Long Time Reader

  3. What Stacy said!

    That is some trip you have planned … waiting for the Old Style Trip Report!

    Thanks for everything!

  4. Woo! Lots of good reading for my weekend! Thanks, George! Looks like a fun trip coming up for you though lots of hotel changes. But you will have fun I am sure! Still trying to figure out my next trip without much success but that is OK. Part of the problem is deciding where to go and how!

  5. Looking forward to hearing how the KROMO Bangkok is! That one was on my radar as a place where you could get 2 free nights with the FHR credit, and the location looks pretty nice. Great stuff as always, keep up the amazing work.

  6. I’m with @Stacy

    Any list of street food that excludes Bangkok from the top 10 is dubious at best.

    In a very rare instance of disagreeing with you completely, holding multiple award reservations – particularly in premium cabins – is absolutely wrong. I mentioned a blog post to my wife this morning where a blogger had booked a “placeholder” booking on top of their regular one, and she was similarly appalled. She said that that exemplified everything wrong with our hobby: the “I got mine and everybody else can go screw themselves” mentality. While not quite as vehement, I must admit she’s right. Why are we holding redundant award flights when other people badly need them? Are we better than everyone else because we have spare miles? It’s an uncomfortable subject but I’m going with no.

    For the Park Hyatt Saigon, leave yourself a day to just chill and enjoy the pool and immediate environs. The bath towels are the size of tents and the toiletries are worthy of theft. Breakfast is out of the ballpark.

    On the A/C front, with global warming it’s just becoming more necessary all over.

  7. The criteria for that street food list skews the results so far out of whack East Asia had no chance. I’m surprised Vietnam made it. I’m also confused why Rome is so far up the list. I am in Rome 2~3 times per year for work and dont recall seeing what I consider a street food vendor ever. Does a gelataria count? Does sitting down to an outdoor table count? Yes those do “as well as sit-in restaurants that serve classic street food bites.” That isn’t street food!

  8. @Dimitri: Kind of funny calling you that name. My blog is so popular I guess that another reader started posting with your real name lol. Thanks as always for the support. Will see what ends up being posted here…

    @ Stacy: Wow, thank you. You have been a reader for a long time. I am trying to have a quality product here and the intention was if I build it they will come. Well, NOT. Woke up at 3 am on Friday morning to finalize the post. With dwindling cc sales (just 2 in July and August, sad lol) this has become kind of a farce on me. And you guys are tired of me whining. Which I now do in the comments only and not in the body of the posts. Anyway, it is what it is. This is a public service product really, enjoy it while it lasts. Please forward a link to everyone you care about…maybe one of them is under 5/24 and takes a pity to give me a cc app LOL.

    @ DML: Thank you for always taking the time to post, it really helps ad revenue around here. Ok, laugh with me. Those old trip reports? You can multiply by 10 the amount of time it takes to produce one compared to the amount of time it takes to produce one Friday post. Meaning, they are never coming back. Wait, no. I will do an old style trip report again when my blog hits 10 cc sales per month (which is supposed to be the minimum quota by the way and I have no idea why I still have not lost the links!). When my cc links are taken away due to low sales volume, this blog ends. I am shocked I am still around and posting regularly since 2012 you guys.

    @ Carl: Yeah, a bit more hotel changes than usual. And wife hates moving hotels so this trip will be interesting. But the first two hotel changes I am solo as she tends to her elderly mother in Malaysia. I just hope our elderly mothers do not interfere with this trip, it’s getting dicier as time goes by. Hope your trip comes together. I am looking forward to slower trips because this pace can be a little intense at our age lol.

    @ bc: Ok, I will likely post more pics/videos on the KROMO in Instagram. Son identified and stayed there using the Amex THC deal, which is fantastic indeed. Basically free for 2 nights and then all the Amex goodies on top. He liked it but he did not love it and I will need to confirm. So many choices in Bangkok to burn the Amex Platinum FHR/THC credits!

    @ Nick: That article you sent, Wow. I read it, it will make it to the next TBB post. I had heard of this guy a very long time ago. I don’t think I have ever seen the movie. But the turnaround in the middle of the story was intense, great read, thank you.

    @ Sean: Yeah, that was such an odd list. Sometimes I like to have those here because they create controversy which increases traffic which increases ad revenue. Oh wait, I don’t have any ads. I have another list from the same source which will likely make it to the next post and I expect pushback as well. If I make another post that is. Which, based on my history, is likely a certainty πŸ™‚

    @ Christian: Thanks for agreeing with Stacy and of course that incomplete street food map & A/C should be in the same necessity list as wifi πŸ™‚

    Now let me address your push back on me holding a 2nd reservation. Notice I said “2nd” which is definitely not “multiple award reservations” imho. For the record, this is the first time I have done this. Because, yeah, I thought it was wrong. But things have changed and let me explain why.

    I have not been able to use my AA miles in several years now. Actually, what I booked was a fluke. My last two times flying AA was a complete disaster. So am I hurting AA by doing this? You know, after stranding me on my birthday last year please excuse me if I do not feel anything at all for trying to hurt AA πŸ™‚
    Wait, I have more. I burned 18,500 more miles to book me the Air Canada Aeroplan award. Which is called “Latitude” award. Which specifically says it allows me latitude to cancel up to 2 hours before departure. I think I played by the rules, Air Canada’s rules.
    Man, with fucking ticket resellers and bots just grabbing awards mere seconds after they become available and ruining this whole award availability thingie, please excuse me for fighting back playing by their rules. Don’t get me started on all major bleeding devaluations we have suffered in the last several years. So, please excuse me for having a 2nd reservation that I am certain when I cancel one it will be wiped out by a bot before you say “upgrade” πŸ™‚

    I have not decided yet which one and when to cancel. I am just wary of AA getting me to DFW from DTW on time due to prior experience. I am now monitoring weather…

    Will definitely slow down and enjoy the Park Hyatt in Saigon. Actually, the older I get the slower I travel.

    Will try to keep up the Instagram posts, my way of doing trip reports these days.

    1. Do yourself a favor and watch “Shattered Glass”, it’s a good movie. It’s also a nice time capsule of the media and the internet circa 1998. When people say Hayden Christensen can’t act based on the Star Wars prequels, I point to this movie to make the case that George Lucas, whatever his strengths, has some shortcomings when it comes to directing actors.

      btw is U of Michigan tired of being thought of as a good school? https://www.woodtv.com/news/grand-rapids/no-grades-for-first-semester-u-m-freshmen-next-year-in-new-program/

  9. @George – Fair enough. Sorry to take my ire out on you. It just grinds my gears that some people have the bad taste to actually brag about taking award space from everybody else. I wonder how they would feel if someone made multiple redundant appointments including one with them, knowing that the person would just cancel last minute after deciding which one they felt like attending.

    As to bots and jerks hogging saver space, look into EVA’s program. Great airline (with mediocre lounges) and it has pretty solid saver space in business. Big PITA to book though.

    1. Regarding EVA, “Big PITA to book though”: I was going to take a closer look but your comment will keep me from doing so…And as miles dwindle (from Chase) I think I am going to stick with what has been working. At this stage of my life I need less PITA of everything lol.

    1. Long weekend here…trying to figure out if I posted anything about musicals in this post πŸ™‚
      And now need to pack and cancel one reservation…I am afraid as soon as I cancel the Aeorplan award the AA flight disruptions will start LOL.

        1. oh yeah I see, forgot about that last paragraph of the link with the crooked Forbes guy. I don’t this song will ever grow on me lol. I can’t believe Forbes still had that video up, at least they noted “Former” Chief Content Officer…

          $ 6 Million…

          and he is sorry about…he lost his job, Phuck! We are all immune to the corruption these days, what is $6 Million when the Prez hauls in billions smh.

  10. Greetings from Sapporo, finally got out of the heat and humidity. Cools off quickly here in the evening, similar to Chiang Mai in that regard. Last days of the beer festival here. Been pounding Sapporo Classics like it is my job.

    For Saigon, visit a pasteur street brewing for a beer. They are pricey relative to the local stuff but worth it. Good food options as well. When I was there in late May/June i spent a couple evenings at the one in District 3. But you can go to the ones closer to town as well.

    For Bangkok, try and get to a Thai Port FC match. They have a nice setup pre-match outside the stadium with street food you can eat. Show up early and try to beat the insane afternoon traffic.

    1. Greetings from the Sakura Lounge at HND on my way to BKK.

      My alcohol drinking days are behind me. Not that I was ever a big time drinker.

      I did check out the schedule for Thai Port FC matches, it looks like the season starts later in the Fall. One day I am going to attend a Buriram United FC match, I watched a video from the awesome stadium the club has and I was more than impressed.

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