That went well

Expedia gave me a great price on my Christmastime vacation to Key West. And I planned the flights and the hotel all with my fingertips. Convenience and value ... yea!

But that was back in the spring. Since I booked the trip, Delta has changed my flight times over ... and over ... and over. I'm generally a good sport about this. As long as I get aisle seats and I don't have to change planes in Miami, I'll go along with just about anything.

Just about anything. With their last change, Delta had me changing planes in Atlanta, during Christmas week, in less than an hour. Sorry, not acceptable.

So I got on the phone and called Expedia. I dialed the 800#, sat on hold listening to Muzak, and spoke to an actual person.

In less than an hour, the Expedia sales rep gave me my choice of two other options and booked me on the one I preferred -- getting me that coveted aisle seat -- and it didn't cost me a cent. I suspect if I'd dealt with Delta directly, fees would have been invoked.

1-800-319-4834. That's the number. Sometimes doing it old school ends up being easier. Sometimes the human touch is just what you're looking for.

 

Sunday Stealing

Questions to Ask Your Crush

1. What do you find hilarious, but most people don’t find funny? My favorite joke: "Lou Gehrig died of Lou Gehrig's disease. What are the odds?" Or the baseball equivalent: "Tommy John needed Tommy John surgery. What are the odds?" My friend John simply does not understand this joke and it annoys him.

2. What was the best year of your life so far? When I was 35. I was in love and felt sexy and womanly, and I was hitting my stride professionally.

3. What’s your favorite thing to do on the Internet? Farmville

4. What fad have you held on to even tho it isn’t popular any more? Farmville

5. What do you spend most of your time doing? Farmville

6. What do you spend way too much money on? Everything, it seems. (I bet you thought I'd say "Farmville," didn't you?)

7. What event, large or small, has changed the course of your life most? That moment in my 20s when I met the guy I spent too many years with. I made life and career decisions based on his happiness, and he simply wasn't worth it. I often wonder how my life would be different today if I'd taken the job as an admin/receptionist in a dental office, instead of the one that put me in his path.

8. Who do you have a hard time taking seriously? Myself

9. What do you judge people for most often? I'm intolerant of intolerance. Especially intolerant Christians. I'm a Christian, and when I hear politicians merchandising faith in exchange for votes, I want to remind them of the story of Jesus and the money changers. I can just imagine Him at last week's Values Voter summit, overturning the podium.

10. What was the most beautiful view you have ever experienced? Early one morning, I watched the sun rise over the Swiss Alps. The sun actually bathed the snowy mountains in pink. Amazing! 

11. What is something you read or heard that has stuck with you for a long time? JFK: Reckless Youth. There are a gazillion books about John Kennedy, and I've read most of them, but this one is different and really quite moving. It takes him from birth to age 35. There's family dysfunction, grave illness, lots of girls and women, dear friends and genuine heroism as he finds his voice along the way. The thing is -- to age 35 his life was difficult and painful. And he had little more than a decade left to live. Despite the money, the charm and the power, his was not a life any of us would want. I learned an important lesson: the way a life looks on the outside is no indication of how it feels on the inside.
 
12. What’s your favorite thing to shop for. Why? Books. Because they're books.

13. What’s the best compliment someone can receive? I try to be a good person. Any compliment in that regard is most appreciated.

14. What’s something people go on and on about and you just can’t stand sitting through? Game of Thrones

15. What’s something you can do that most people can’t? Roll my tongue. Wiggle my ear. (Jealous, aren't you?)

16. When was the last time you tried to look cool and ended in embarrassment? I'm old. Every time I try to look cool, it ends in embarrassment.

17. What is the most ridiculous rule you have to follow? At the auditorium where my movie group screens classic films, there is a ladies room labeled, "Children Only." So I have to pass it and use the commode all the way on the other side of the theater. Now on weekdays, the building houses a daycare center so I suppose the "Children Only" rule makes sense. But on Tuesday and Saturday nights, the youngest person there is 19. WHY? WHY CAN'T I GO IN THERE? PS I did sneak in once. No, the toilets and sinks aren't exceptionally close to the ground.

18. What country do you not know the location of, even though you should? Guyana. I can never remember where it is, so it's placement on the globe always surprises me.

19. What do you have a hard time with but most people find quite easy? Math.

20. What’s the most impressive skill you have? It's a tie between ear wiggling and tongue rolling.

Saturday, the Cubs played the Dodgers

And I believe Joe speaks for us all.

via GIPHY

The only good thing to say about this game is that I didn't see most of it. A storm knocked out my cable and internet. It was cool to press my old-school AM/FM Walkman back into service.

Oh, well. It was only Game One of a Best of Seven Series. The Dodgers are a very good team, so while this is unpleasant, it's not surprising.

A good color for autumn

I got an Eddie Bauer one-pocket "boyfriend" shirt in this color today for just $3.50. I found it online on sale for $50, so I am feeling quite proud of myself.

I picked it up at a community sale that benefits infant welfare, the food pantry and the animal shelter. I also got a pair of black sunglasses for $1.00. This made me happy because I can lose $1 sunglasses just as easily as I can lose expensive sunglasses.

I treated myself to a lovely lunch at the nearby Italian restaurant -- just me, butternut squash ravioli and The Starter Wife -- and waited for the first Cubs-Dodgers game.

It was a challenge to stay dry. It rained and poured and stormed all day. Which left me worried about Napoleon. I hope they made it to the safety of the bus to Cleveland. This was not a day for living in a tent by the river!