We bring you the ways to fly to New Zealand with AA Miles, fly with miles to Africa in business class, how to enjoy Singapore stopovers, read about Mile Nerd‘s move to West Virginia as a child, stay on OYO hotels, watch the most popular websites timeline, show you how to invest, the differences between amateurs and professionals, check out the new Beijing airport, a scary Uber ride, learn about biology, an awesome geek dude working for free saving people, an amazing long distance swimmer, check out wildlife photos and lots more always freeeeeee!
TBB Blog Mission: To Educate. Entertain. Inspire. In That Order!
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Lets get the party started!
Link of the Day is the monthly post by Mile Nerd about his move to West Virginia as a child. Another wonderful inspiring post!
MILES & POINTS
This is a nice addition and should have some award space! American Airlines Becomes the Only Carrier to Fly from the U.S. to the South Island of New Zealand.
And another good resource if you want a flat bed to Africa: The Best Options For Flying Business Class To Africa.
TRAVEL
If you transit Singapore for more than 5.5 hours, you can do a Free Singapore City Tour! And get a $20 voucher to spend too. Reading my blog is not only free but it earns you money…probably more than I make here, insert sad lol!
Nice video about the new Beijing airport. While we are wasting record low interest rates into tax cuts that explode the deficit during an unprecedented long economic recovery and unheard of low unemployment rates. Oh, never mind, this is the Travel section!
I think I am going to shift from Uber to Lyft from now on. Earning Delta and Hilton Honors points might have something to do with it lol. On a more serious note, this is yet another disturbing experience. Think Uber is Safe? Think Again! My Terrifying Story and How Uber Failed to Intervene in the Worst Way. And please you guys, do some research how to get to your destination from an airport before you get there!
Anyone stayed at an OYO hotel? Sounds really basic 🙂 A Budget Hotel Chain That You’ve Never Heard Of Is Exploding In The United States.
PERSONAL FINANCE
Great read on the subject: Crazy Like a Fox.
But while markets can seem all-knowing, they can also seem utterly mad. Who hasn’t watched the movement of major indexes and individual investments, and thought, “That’s totally nuts”? Dot-com stocks in the late 1990s. Housing prices in 2005 and 2006. Global stock markets in early 2009. Bitcoin. Negative interest rates. Need I say more? When investors are collectively exuberant or scared, crazy things can happen. [What really concerns me is that almost all new investors have not experienced anything like this…and we’ll see what happens I guess when they try to get through to their advisor on the phone or chat with their robo(t) advisor lol]
Don’t fall for complex active investments, they are not worth their fees. Read the rest of the article. Oh man, I could really pump here my SoFi referrals and make more money than I could blogging for month(s). But I guess I am not into that kind of blogger. You know, doing things for my pocket…so I prefer to whine about the lack of support clicks instead, sad lol again!
Another little gem: The Difference Between Amateurs and Professionals. THINK!
ODDZ & ENDZ
This is deep. Biology is Eating the World: A Manifesto.
We are at the beginning of a new era, where biology has shifted from an empirical science to an engineering discipline. After a millennia of using man-made approaches for controlling or manipulating biology, we have finally begun using nature’s own machinery—through biological engineering—to design, scale, and transform biology.
Wow, humans are amazing! The inspiring true story of a record-breaking, death-defying, 54 hour swim across the English Channel. Respect!
Some people are not cashing in! And they are heroes, like this guy! The Ransomware Superhero of Normal, Illinois.
Thanks to Michael Gillespie, an obscure programmer at a Nerds on Call repair store, hundreds of thousands of ransomware victims have recovered their files for free.
Click and sit back, wow! The Most Popular Websites 1996 – 2019.
Amazing photos! 2019 National Wildlife Magazine photo contest winners.
Interesting: Births by age group of mother in the United States.
BLOG BUZZ
We are now entering BLOG BUZZ, a section for advanced hobbyists and veterans of this fast imploding hobby and also a section where I go on and on about some stuff that happens in my life because it helps me feel better about myself.
Amex is determined to raise the annual fees of its cards and take away benefits to make them irrelevant! Next up was the pretentious Black card to go to $5,000 annual fee from $2,500 (on top of the initiation fee of $10,000!!!). We are in WTF land now!
I may do that myself, not like I am making any money with it anyway! Rakuten/Ebates Now Lets You Switch to Earn Membership Reward Points with Shopping Portal!
I will be in San Diego all of next week so my activity here will likely go down. If you are not satisfied reading my blog, I will give you your money back! Bwahahahaha!
Avoid Mastercard gift cards. But not Visa gift cards. This is not turning into an MS blog lol.
There were several airfare deals this week. But you have to move FAST! If you see them posted on The Points Guy it is probably too late!
I am so excited about the TPG Awards you guys #notreally.
Frequent Miler now starts every day with a credit card post filled with you know what, sad!
Another song recommendation. One of the best Nirvana classic song covers ever?
Patti Smith – Smells Like Teen Spirit
And I leave you with this…
TBB
travelbloggerbuzz@gmail.com
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Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
Great group of links and spot-on commentary today, Buzz.
Yeah, right: Sarcasm wins every time, even in grammar puzzles. Perhaps my highest regard for you is your mastery of subtleties in a second language.
US to OZ in coach for 6k? Free? Yeah, right.
The Amateur/Professional comparisons were filled with wisdom-I sent them to my son.
A word about those Wednesday posts. I think there’s been a post each Wednesday since you were had quit posting on Wednesdays. Is this supposed to be like married sex?
Yeah, right.
Sam is on today!
I moved to Lyft after an Uber driver never showed up. Never looked back.
Greetings from soggy Costa Rica where Wednesday brought ~ 8 inches of rain and yesterday about 7 inches. If only we could send it to the People’s Republic of California.
Buzz – I grew up in the San Diego area so if you want some ideas on what to do with freeeeeee time, holla.
Happy weekend and #TBBon
I have a full schedule at the conference as always. I Try to maximize my free food/drinks/swag from the exhibitors always lol.
Last day I am going to burn a Hyatt Visa free night at the Andaz.
I have taco place recommendations too 🙂
The Uber article was a little troubling, but not too bad. Was expecting more of the Miles2Memories story. Also, MileNerd did not make my updates that I emailed. Oh well. Happy Friday.
One day I will be like Mile Nerd posting once a month.
These bloggers are determined to kill everything!
Got to agree with you about Frequent Miler. Used to be quite awesome but is getting more pimp-y all the time between begging for referral action on the SOFI card and more and more credit card pumping and assorted stuff. I think once Greg started hiring more people is when it turned the corner.
Grew up right by Sandy Eggo. Hope you get great weather without fire smoke! Have a good time!
Sandy Eggo LOL
it is a true business for the full time bloggers with employees.
If it was the same for me…I would probably do the same.
At the end of the day, it is what it is.
A real shame about FM. Even just a year ago he wouldn’t have run posts comparing AMEX Green to the CSR, or SoFi money, or promotions of Drew’s recent juvenile shenanigans–and those are just from the last couple of weeks–after the ridiculous 40k whatever. He’s the last of the mega-bloggers I’ve turned off.
a 6% tax on top 1%ers net worth. A .1% tax on on financial transaction plus a mark to market cap gain tax on 1%ers each year even if you dont sell your stock. Try those new taxes on. The socialists want to make sure everyone is broke and that no one can make it financial independence. Hey and TBB is gonna vote for her. yeaaaa taxes!
Overall problem with healthcare is the tremendous cost. ~18% of the GDP. $20000 per year to insure a family of 4. That’s like Oprah giving away a car to a family every year. Meanwhile every other “rich” country can provide reasonable healthy care at 10-12% of GDP.
I say, cut administrative costs (healthcare and insurance), cut some drug prices, cut unnecessary health care tests.
You are so quick to jump on her while you let Donnie’s insane shit pass without a mention. EVER!
Warren’s wealth tax plan is an insane impractical monstrosity. Yeah, same for the mark to market cap BS.
The .1% tax on financial transactions is not too bad if the money is spent well. Spent well is NOT equivalent to more money for the rich ok?
I could go on…
Hey, Donnie lost his appetite for gun control already LOL.
“Spent well” — yeah, the government is sooooo good at spending MY $$$ said no one ever!
The funny thing is that when Republicans bitch about them tax and spend Socialist Dems. Then, when they get elected, they proceed to spend at a rate even true Socialists would go WTF!
spent well can mean many things:
infrastructure
higher SS benefits to people who truly need them
expanded health care coverage…like Obamacare perhaps 🙂
I could go on…
We are truly in an insane period in our nation’s history. It is a total freakshow accompanied by a mother of all bull markets, record low interest rates and unemployment along with an insane trade war and foreign policy almost daily shifts
Enjoy it while it lasts…
Exactly my point: the “fiscal conservatives” have no problem with $1 TRILLION deficits.
Next week is infrastructure week, right?
Maybe things will change in 2024?!
Yeah–unlike those private sector beacons of financially responsibility: Enron, Bear Stearns, Lehman, Countrywide, General Electric, Pets.com, WeWork–just to name a few.
You must find it weird that US pharma companies sell their drugs to the NHS in the UK for literally 10% of what they charge in US – because there is one national contract here, and if you don’t sign, you don’t sell anything. Works for us.
And that’s why you barely have any big pharma companies left in the UK.
Actually, the government runs Medicare BETTER and CHEAPER than private insurance companies. Private health insurance companies are like an annoying uncle who insert himself in every conversation for no reason, but unlike your uncle, they also charge for it.
And take it from someone who’s never fed a political troll on either side.
you must not have anyone who is on medicare. because you know it would be a lie. Medicare is run horribly.
I am on Medicare and know many others who are. I can’t think of any who don’t like Medicare, even the ones who think the government can’t do anything right.
Do you have any examples that formed your opinion?
Clear correlation between TBB getting the CNB CC and devaluation of the program. Will you be keeping it?
Bloggers always kill the best CCs.
Nirvana’s best performance was on MTV Unplugged. Best episode that show ever had.
Just learned the news. Fucking bloggers did it again how they were killing it on them AA gift cads and screaming out loud about the “insane” values with the card. I did too…buried in Blog Buzz with a readership that does not even register in any web meter what so ever.
Now queue up all the angry posts by the same bloggers…
Maybe I should just stop this baby at my 7 year anniversary and become Mile Nerd.
I feel for my son who LOVED bringing in guests into Priority Pass lounges!
I ‘ll keep it for one more year at least. To me it is still a good alternative on pure miles/points cards as it appears Barclays does not like me anymore.
Sad day
Eligible for $100 from Drew?
Lol!
Just realized that, addtionally, they plan to add a $95 fee to each authorized user.
Ok, I think we are done here, it was good while it lasted.
I may be loungeless sooner than I thought.
Good, they were overrated anyway like the Centurions ones.
Sam, I only missed on Wednesday!
I need to retire this baby one of these days, 7 years in 11 days wow!
Buzz – are you going to this conference?
https://seismicshift.com/venue/
No…not going to a “sales enablement” conference! 🙂
When li’l dumpy ran on building an unnecessary wall that Mexico would pay for he gave absolutely no real info on how it would be financed.
Warren actually comes out with a starting point on discussions to fix a much, much bigger (and actual) problem…and the famous Circular Liberal Firing Squad predictably forms.
There’s literally a single candidate trying to figure out how to fix a multitude of the US’s problems while everyone else just waves their hands and has no attack plan.
Ever wonder what the problem is? Look in your mirror.
Not buying it, sorry!
I remember her when she tried to help with the fiduciary rule some time ago. It became very evident she was totally clueless and was just winging it…snd it became very obvious she was in it for her…branding snd nothing else. And then she let us hang and would not give us any time…She is a fraud and her plan is so out there I think it will be catastrophic for our economy.
So there:)
At least Beto is out lol
the one thing TBB and I agree on. Fraudster Liz and her Buddy Bernie.
Yeah, the CFPB was just a dumb idea, huh? George, you’re uninformed in some areas but it never precludes you from presenting an ignorant position!
The CFPB was and is a great idea. And I would have loved to see Warren run it and instill some real hurt to some assholes that so deserve it.
But running for Prez? I don’t think so.
Sorry to hurt your feelings. We need a moderate to try to bring us together. Her and Bernie just won’t.
Isn’t that what Obama was? During the time period, the country became more divided than during the Bush era resulting in Trump winning the election. What we need is for Facebook et al to be regulated or broke up. Those platforms are toxic. Biggest issue is healthcare. R has brought ZERO solutions to the table since Nixon. Anyone trying to reduce healthcare costs will get my vote. 18% of the GDP is sick!
What? So Obama is responsible now for Trump? Come on!
And Facebook is responsible, really?
Maybe it is personal responsibility like Ingy says?
I agree about healthcare. Obamacare was the initial first step. Most done about it than all the others before him.
Only 18%? Come on!
I’m not implying cause and effect during Obama. Many factors played a role. FB pretending to be just a tech platform is criminal. We hold news media and ads to higher standard. Remember Russian hoax that suggested that the CIA initiated the AIDS epidemic back in the early 80s. Multiply that by the internet speed and we are where we are. I thought we would be more informed and rational. But instead we are more tribal (human behavior). And FB et al are the accelerants. There’ something morally wrong when the founder of the platform says that it is fine for people to deny the Holocaust (especially when he’s Jewish). The guy has NO moral compass.
Wife’s Hyatt Visa annual fee posted. When does the free Visa night post? If I cancel now (after keeping it for about a year)…are we out the free night?
Don’t need another free night 🙂
Cashless, keyless and full of robots — Alibaba’s hotel is straight out of the future.
https://twitter.com/cnbc/status/1190873238970097669?s=21
Can’t wait to see the reviews. “How was your stay with us?“
“Sterile and soulless. I may need therapy.”