Another TBB post featuring the most eclectic links around the web such as the recent 10 day stock market losing streak, the crypto crowd in government, famous castles, blogging lessons, model portfolios suck, ETFs have saved investors over $250 billion in fees, a Tim Cook of Apple interview, memecoin insanity, the end of the 20th century, pandemic key charts, private train cars, the new Thessaloniki metro and of course always all of the most important developments in the crazy world of miles and points at the lower half of the post. Enjoy the weekend!
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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.
This is a one man labor of love operation, enjoy it while it lasts.
BLOG HOUSEKEEPING
If you are reading my blog in your email inbox, I highly recommend you click on the link at the top of the email (just below the TravelBloggerBuzz blog graphic image and right above the date and time sent) that will take you to my blog website where you can read it much easier on your phone or laptop/desktop.
I added back the “My Action” section to distinguish it easier from the rest of the content. I renamed it “My Action and Whatever” and I will throw in there some of my hobby activities and a variety of miscellaneous things along with some philosophical tangents and stuff like that.
Both suggestions above came from a blog reader, thanks S!
Starting next week I will also start posting 2024 Annual Best of Lists material. Ten per each post. I had four of these posts in 2023. I have enough material for at least two posts at the present time. I think you will like them. And I need to put together my annual “I burned x.xxx.xxx miles/points in 2024” post which I always enjoy.
Happy Holidays, thanks for reading my blog, I can’t believe I am still here!
PERSONAL FINANCE
Investing is a marathon, not a sprint. It is getting really difficult staying sane amidst one of a hell of a bull market still raging. This is understandable and very common. Yet again, many will succumb to this euphoria. Be careful out there. And never forget All That Really Matters.
Time
Consistency
Paranoia
Sanity
Great piece, a must read imho. You need to start investing early, the earlier the better. And just stay with it, be consistent, which is easier said than actually making it happen. It is okay to be a little paranoid but maintain your optimism. Because pessimists have missed the boat consistently over the years. Finally, if you are too worried about your investment portfolio and it affects your health, you need to lay off the risk. Prioritize your health. Always.
The stock market can be an incredible machine for building wealth. But if the way you’re going about it is through astronomical yearly portfolio goals, you’re probably setting yourself up for failure.
The above was written before the market went on a 10 day historic losing streak, including a huge 2.9% drop in the S&P 500 Index this past Wednesday. Which just goes to show you that it is definitely not a one way street. It happens, this is normal. Actually, this was the fourth drop larger than 2% in a single day this year. And we already have experienced an 8% drawdown earlier this year making the 3.8% drop of the past two weeks look minor. Source: Tker.
I went to all ETF portfolios many years ago. Because it was the right thing to do: US investors have saved $250bn by investing in ETFs, says BofA. At the time, colleagues thought I was insane. Oh well, it is what it is.
Many financial advisors, in order to maximize their profits, just slot their clients’ portfolios in buckets of varying risk levels. To sound more professional and justify their fees, they call them “Model Portfolios”. Which I always thought it was a load of BS. But I do understand the appeal for the advisors. I could have signed with an outfit that does this for us advisors and make a lot more money while my clients pay more fees but nope. Every client is different so every investment portfolio should be built differently. Yeah, do the actual work instead of sticking the clients into a certain model bucket. Off my soap box and here is an article that proves my point, you are welcome. The Disappointing Performance of Model Portfolios. Be careful if you choose a commercially available model portfolio. Very few have outperformed an indexed benchmark over the long term.
The models consistently underperformed the benchmark, and the degree of underperformance worsened from five to 10 years. The degree of underperformance is understated because of the survivorship and selection biases.
SCAMS/CRYPTO/AI/TECH
This is a really good interview: Tim Cook Wants Apple to Literally Save Your Life. Much as the CEO seems awestruck by AI and his just-released Apple Intelligence, he’s more convinced that the tech giant’s health apps will define the company’s legacy.
The crypto crowd insanity shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. If you did not like bitcoin at $20,000 or less, perhaps, you should not consider buying it now? Obviously, you should not listen to me because I was wrong…so far. Wrong or early? Lol. Remember, if you invested nothing you lost nothing, ok? Also, you profit only when you sell. Ok, enough intro. This is just getting even more ridiculous now, Fartcoin, seriously? Memecoins like Fartcoin are riding Trump’s victory to huge valuations. Experts say it may have only begun.
Ground zero for launching memecoins is a website called Pump.fun, which allows users to “launch a coin that is instantly tradeable in one click for free.” Launched in January 2024, the site has generated over $288.4 million in revenue since its inception. [Maybe I should start a TBBCoin for giggles LOL]
At the same time, there is no doubt that everything is coming together for these types: Crypto Got What It Wanted in November’s Election. Now What? Yeah, now what? Beware! Or as I like to say frequently around here: Be careful out there!
The industry is now in a position to weaken financial rules that might protect consumers from the next crypto crash.
Stick with a big bank and don’t put all your cash in one of these fancy fintech outfits please: ‘I have no money’: Thousands of Americans see their savings vanish in Synapse fintech crisis. Unreal that this company was so screwed up it couldn’t even keep records of what its customers held, yikes!
This blog is not going to blog itself. I rely on my readers helping it grow as I don’t have time to do any promotion/marketing. Which leaves the content clean of intrusive sponsoring posts and stupid ads and stuff like that.
You like my blog? Send a link to someone please!
ODDZ & ENDZ
Long deep dive, I must admit I agree with the author: The end of the 20th century. The U.S. election ushers in a new world order.
Concomitant to these global shocks emerged three massively disruptive technological forces: social media, Silicon Valley and Bitcoin. The social Web—Wikipedia, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, etc.—seized communicative power away from experts and the legacy press, while simultaneously flooding our information ecosystem with new media forms… This ecosystem privileged attention above all else, forging the incentives for staggering amounts of misinformation and disinformation…
Amazing collection of photographs from past Arctic expeditions at the Scott Polar Research Institute.
20 million deaths. And traumatic experiences we are still trying to dig out from. I think the pandemic threw us all for a loop and our minds (and bodies) are still coming to terms with it. Anyway, these are 17 key charts to understand the Covid-19 pandemic. When I hear people calling it ‘scamdemic” it infuriates me…and then I let it go.
Amazing photography from the 2024 Nikon’s Comedy Wildlife Awards.
TRAVEL
Hopefully these rules can stick: Federal Trade Commission Announces Bipartisan Rule Banning Masked Junk Ticket and Resort Fees.
I had no idea this even existed. The Private Train Car Edition. On hitching your luxury shuttle to an Amtrak, codependency, and industrial barons. If you support me with your clicks around here, I could afford a private train car and give you rides for freeeee, lol.
I have actually been to most of them: 20 Famous Castles Everyone Should Visit at Least Once.
Many Greeks thought that they were never going to be alive to see the subway in Thessaloniki finished. And yet, it happened! It looks great by the way and it will mean so much for the city’s hellish traffic. They started building it the year I left Greece to move to the US. Yes, 40 years ago! Thoughts on the new Thessaloniki Metro. And the gif makes me chuckle every time I see it!
I even made a gif of a moment… when the gates opened for the first time, the first one who enters is a very old dude and you can see from his gesture of triumph that he thought: “YES I LIVED TO SEE IT!!!”. That was so hilarious!
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This blog started with a focus on miles and points and travel. It has evolved since then. Everything below deals with the hobby of collecting frequent flyer miles and points and maximizing your travel experiences. If you are not interested, you can stop here, thank you.
We have a lot to cover, fasten your seat belts!
Hotel promotions continue to get worse. IHG’s latest promo is another double points promotion which only applies with and after your second stay, boo! Register HERE:
This link will send you to links for all the 5% credit card categories for the 1st Quarter of 2025 to register for.
Welcome development, not that I expect any mega deals come our way: Hyatt adds The Venetian and The Palazzo hotels in Las Vegas.
This is great news: China Extends Visa-Free Transit Stays for Americans.
I never got aboard the seats.aero award search software, maybe I should give it another chance? Seats.aero Expands to Track 17 Airline Programs. Here’s Our Full Guide.
For the more advanced hobbyists, and especially those into earning miles/points from manufactured spending, here is an update on Pepper Rewards: What’s the Word, Pepper Bird? Frankly, I am shocked this company is still alive!
I get into my action items below after this from your sponsor, just kidding! Don’t give up reading now, there is more below.
Please help the small independent blogs like mine continue to exist by supporting them with your CREDIT CARD clicks, thank you!
I am SHOCKED Capital One has kept this 75k Venture X offer for so long, there is no way in hell this will survive in 2025, hurry!
The 75K CAPITAL ONE Venture X card has a minimum spend of $4k in the first three months. If you like simplicity and looking for one (premium) card, I highly recommend this card (and yes, I have it myself!). It has an annual fee of $395 but it comes with an easy $300 statement credit for travel booked on its own travel portal, essentially turning it into a $95 annual fee card. But wait, there is more! On each card anniversary you earn 10,000 points essentially making it FREE! Every dollar of spend earns 2 points and flights booked on the travel portal earn 5 points per dollar. You get access to Capital One and Plaza Premium airport lounges and a Priority Pass Select lounge membership and, this is important, you can add FOUR authorized users FOR FREE who can also have their own Priority Pass Select airline lounge membership and, this is BIG, they can bring in unlimited guests with their FREE Priority Pass card! You can transfer your Capital One points to up to 18 Transfer Partners. No foreign transaction fees. Free Hertz President’s Circle rental car top elite status. Cell phone protection and PRIMARY rental car coverage. Awesome seats at baseball stadiums for just 5k points each. And lots more.
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MY ACTION AND WHATEVER
First, an article by someone who has been around this hobby a long time and one of the small number of people I respect in this space: Lessons learned from 13 years of blogging. I have to agree with almost every one of them. For the record, my blog never sold pee pads either lol. I just single out a few below and inject my amusing commentary to them…
If you are in it for the money, get out. [Oh, so true here. If it wasn’t for the few $ clicks around here, this blogger would not have been around so long]
Daily outrage is a lonely endeavor. [In the early years of the blog I would post rants against the BS infecting my precious hobby. Not anymore. I am sure some miss this, sometimes I miss it too!]
If you have nothing to say, don’t get a bot to say it. [I don’t post often. And no bots and/or AI ever. I make my posts count. If you find them helpful please send a link to someone you care about, thank you]
Getting to Brooklyn, NY tomorrow before heading to New Jersey at brother in law’s place for Christmas. I am returning to Michigan the day after Christmas to start getting ready for the new year, always the busiest time of the year for me. For my day job that is. Oh, I have a Hilton free night cert that is expiring in early 2025. If you wanted to burn it in New York City, which property would you use it at? The Conrad? I understand the Waldorf Astoria is not opening until mid 2025. Of course finding availability next week may be a fantasy. Also, any Hiltons that have restaurants that can absorb our several $50 Hilton Gift Cards some of us have been accumulating lately from Amex cards?
I burned more than 2 million miles and points last year. I feel, well, kind of an accomplished player in this space after three decades in it. What’s next? I have really slowed down lately and I am trying to simplify my life going forward. I know I should go for the last card hurrah with Barclays and the Hawaiian Airlines credit cards that are going away. Same with the American Airlines cards that are finally moving on to Citi. And yet, I just don’t want to add another bank in the mix. Because all this takes mental bandwidth.
And I should just start not being so stingy spending too much time trying to maximize every redemption and making travel almost free. Because, again, I am old enough and can sure pay. But it is that internal strong sense of travel hacker in me that is making such mindset change extremely difficult. It is the same with clients who retire and find that actually spending money from their nest egg when the paychecks stop coming in is much harder than they anticipated. Yeah, I know, these are first world problems.
I went on a fasting spree after I returned from Thailand/Malaysia. Because, again, I ate too much at the awesome spreads at breakfast and lounges in the hotels we stayed. And I did not visit the gym as much as I originally wanted. Which happens every time! Maybe it is time to switch to lowly hotels or Airbnbs to avoid this predicament? Just kidding, kind of. This is my last mountain to climb, control eating/continue exercising while traveling in style for free. Maybe this becomes my New Year Resolution. I would not take this bet lol. Oh wait, lost my train of thought. The point I wanted to make is that I weighed myself about a week after my return and was shocked to see I hit my lowest weight in 2024 #winning. And yes I am back going to the gym, walking half an hour a day, weights and cardio. Maybe I get back to running in 2025 without the feet problems that I have been dealing with for more than a year.
I am reading a book “How To Retire” by Christine Benz. I like it and will be recommending it to my own clients.
The personal finance and investing advice from YouTubers in the miles and points is so bad is unreal, be careful out there!
The current batch of movies in the theaters these days are bad to awful. I did watch The Order which I liked. Yes I enjoy going to the movies and popcorn (organic with olive oil).
My YouTube channel now has 50 subscribers! After posting several videos from my recent trip. I haven’t posted anything since my return. I am no YT material in case you have not noticed lol. I don’t have the time to post and sure don’t have any time for editing. I am still shocked how many YTubers just keep pounding this medium to “make it”. And the vast majority do not. It’s also hilarious looking at some of them who preach retiring early and then keep work their ass off to make and post videos and plead “like and subscribe’ lol.
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MILES & POINTS
HOT CREDIT CARD OFFERS: 75k CHASE Ink Business Cash, 75k CAPITAL ONE Venture X, 75k CHASE United Business, 75k CHASE Ink Business Unlimited, 150k AMEX Business Platinum, 200k CAPITAL ONE Spark Cash Plus, 150k CAPITAL ONE Venture X Business, $1,000 Cash Back CHASE Ink Business Premier, 75k CAPITAL ONE Venture Rewards, 90k CHASE Ink Business Preferred, 60k Chase Sapphire Preferred, 80k CHASE Southwest Performance Business, 15k AMEX Blue Business Plus and many more!
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As of today, I have burned 2,027,816 miles/points year to date (1,148,286 in 2023) and have 4,277,225 miles/points in the bank.
Remember, you are NOT allowed to ever carry a credit card balance!
Let me leave you with this:
Some of the links are behind a paywall. You can try to read them using Archive.is.
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Feel free to contact me anytime at travelbloggerbuzz@gmail.com, all feedback is very appreciated.
George
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I think everyone is on holiday mode…maybe I should have taken some time off instead of pounding content like this you guys.
Snowing here
Good morning Buzz
Silver for sunny Tucson, woofrigginhoo!
Thanks for the great post young fella. Have a great weekend and best to the family Buzz
I can bring a note from the Doctor as an excuse for being late. Getting ready for cataract surgery in the right eye.
Thanks for all the terrific links. The financial industry’s opposition to ultra-low cost
index funds is a lesson in just how much trust we should place in experts.
Hey, I am retired and wake when I want and today that would be 8 am! Plus I am 2 or 3 hours earlier here time-zone wise. Don’t get riled at me.
Tons of good stuff here and gonna soak it all up over the next couple very busy days. Trip planning seems to be bogging down my growing older by the minute mind and then the holiday stuff, even the parts I try to avoid, are using way too much bandwidth!
Glad the weight thing is going good for you! I have gone this year from 212 lbs to 167! With the help of changed diet AND Ozempic but whatever works. My pre-diabetes seems to be under 100% control now so I am glad of that.
Thanks for staying with this as it is one of the most-looked-forward emails of the week for me!
Now, off to the day’s errands and assignments!
I’ve been following you for some weeks now. It’s interesting and I like reading your thoughts on things! Happy Holidays & Happy New Year!
Well done on your burn rate for 2024. I’d say go hard and burn as fast as you can because let me tell you once interest starts waning it’s hard to care about the points. For us now, we use points if it’s easy on a carrier and route I want but other than that care factor is zero. ETF’s, wish I had of been smarter in converting from MM a long time before I finally pulled the trigger. For us now it is mainly ETFs with a handful of individual stocks which I am selling and taking the tax hit. Has to be done sometime.
@ David: Thank you, you too!
@ DML:So, what is next, dog ate the doctor’s note? 🙂 Good luck with that surgery.
@ Carl: Great news on the weight and diabetes! Yeah, these new drugs do work. Read an Atlantic article recently how in the US we are undergoing a health wave.
@ Elena: Welcome, good to have you around here and thanks for taking the time to comment. I started this blog to follow the action in my addictive hobby miles/points space. It has evolved over the years and lately I curate wonderful stuff I find and read online and keep it real to help people, you know, giving back and also keep me out of trouble. It has also been at the edge of shutting it down because it takes a lot of time and the monetary rewards are minimal. But the psychic rewards are enough I guess. Hope you stick around…me too! Enjoy the holidays, thank you.
@ Vicky: You are really influencing me on my miles/points philosophy lately. Yeah, I need to keep reducing the mental bandwidth and better get out there taking advantage of good health. Because who knows what happens…Maybe to do that I need to quit this blog. But it is my baby now and so hard to quit your babies lol.
Oh shoot, I need to pack
Merry Christmas to all! Having my parents out here for a few days which is awesome because my mom has been in a hospital the last few years but this year she’s good to go. Then we’re going back to their place in Chapel Hill for a few days while my wife’s brother and his family come down from DC for a visit. We’re using a couple of Hyatt free nights to house the ones that don’t fit in the house, so there’s your loyalty travel tie-in. Cheers!
Sounds good, we are in NYC. Watched the Lions game yesterday with my kids, tough to believe at 13-2 we have not even locked up the division yet. Enjoy the holidays too!