The Banks are at it again

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Busy day  running around with last-minute things that have to be done before I leave on vacation.

I started the day by stopping at the bank. I took out cash for the week and went to a teller to change  $20.00 for quarters for laundry. Then I headed over to Mastria Auto Dealers..GM, Buick Suzuki…you name it and Mastria probably sells it. They took over the Saturn Dealership when the auto industry was reorganized.

Last spring I got an email offering me free maintenance for 1 year. Basically 4 oil changes and tire rotation etc. At first I thought it was a scam. Nobody gives anybody something for nothing but I called and they honored the offer. That was right before the Sedona trip. I wanted to be sure the car was all set for the drive to meet my sister in New York.

It was time for another oil change so I called again and they got me right in.

I started out in the waiting room but they had the AC cranking to the point that I was freezing so I went outside to a bench they had by the door. It may have been warm but there was a nice breeze. As I was sitting there I was joined by a very pleasant man with a lilting accent. As we talked I tried to pin point where he was from by his accent..not Haitian, not Jamaican not Dominican…I was stumped. Finally the gentleman took pity on me. He was from Ecuador. He was an electrical engineer in his home country and that had given him the opportunity to travel all over. He’s been to China many times and said he loved it there. He also liked India. He says the people are very friendly. We laughed about the vagaries of language.

He learned English in school as a child but day-to-day use is much different than you learn in school. For example one day he was looking for the “Elevator”. He didn’t know what it was. He said he asked someone and they pointed it out to him. He laughed and said he knew it as a “Lift”. If he’s been in England he’d have been all set!

About then they brought my car around and it was time to move on to my next errand which was  at Ritz Camera in Hingham (37 miles away). I needed  to pick up some filters for the camera and some odds and ends I wanted for vacation. So far I had paid cash everywhere.

After I left Hingham I went to BJ’S Wholesale Club for cat food and kitty litter. I have to be sure that all is well stocked for my pet sitter while I’m away. This is the first time I used my debit card other than when I took out cash this morning.

I returned home and unloaded the car then ran back over to the grocery store to pick up some mushrooms, broccoli and chicken tenders for a stir fry for dinner. When I tried to use my debit card there, it was declined! I tried it twice..same thing. I handed over the cash and headed home. It was too late to do anything now as it was after 4pm.

Once in the house I logged onto my account. I had money in there. It showed my withdrawal  from the morning. The BJ’s charge hadn’t been posted but the amount had been “held”. I haven’t used that card anyplace I haven’t used it before.

As I puzzled over it I pulled my cell phone out. It had shut itself off..again. One of these days I really have to get a new phone. I  turned it back on and there was a message from the bank. They had suspended my card as they did not believe I had possession of it. They were”protecting” me from fraudulent usage and would I call them at my first opportunity.

Of course they weren’t there at 4pm either.

My friends at work are either pulling my leg or maybe they believe it, but they say I am a marked woman now. They are blaming these problems on my previous posting where I ranted about inflation and banks. I’m sure you remember the one. It was titled Really Federal Reserve, Really? They can’t wait to see if I get a hassle next time I fly. They are convinced this is all “government retaliations”. They are calling me a Terrorist! After all, they track terrorists by following the money. I guess that’ll teach me to keep my opinions to myself. What is that about freedom of speech?

I’m laughing now but we’ll see what the bank says tomorrow.

In the meantime I’m doing my laundry and spending a quiet night with my kitty cats!

Scout’s Tips forThe Perfect Cruise

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Scout

Dusty has friends that cruise. They really , really love it. Then she  has friends that would not be caught dead on a cruise ship. Dusty took a cruise… once, for 4 days.  I bet if she had a choice she probably would not make it her  first choice as a vacation destination. Some exceptions do apply.

For example, Alaska. I know Dusty thinks that Alaska  is made for a cruise what  with the Inside Passage and glaciers and all. So many of the sights are on the water or along the coast. Mix it up with a shore excursion or two and you’ll probably cover  a lot of the highlights. If she didn’t think it would be a good value or worthwhile she wouldn’t be trying to put together a cruise trip there for next year’s vacation with her sister.

But we’re learning a lot about cruises as Dusty works on this so I thought I’d share some of what we’ve found out so far.

1.  The destination is important but don’t forget to consider the cruise line and even the particular ship. There is a big difference in atmosphere and facilities. Some lines  are known as party boats while others are geared toward families and children, still others  have seniors or singles  in mind and gear their activities accordingly. Some cruise lines have different ships within the same cruise line  designated for  the various demographics.

2. The best way to get a good deal on a cruise is to either book early or book last-minute. The early bookers get about the same  sale prices as the late “sale” bookers but they have more choices and options. Booking early avoids the chance of being disappointed by having the cruise of your choice sold out. . “Early” usually means three to six months before the cruise; the savings generally are 25 to 50 percent off the published brochure price per person.

3. Take care of business. Tape a to – do list to the fridge or someplace else that’s visible so you don’t forget to stop mail delivery or to pack your favorite shampoo. Make sure arrangements have been made for your pets whether they are staying at home or heading to a kennel. Shop for film,( does anyone still use film in this age of digital cameras?), travel size toiletries, sunscreen etc. They will be available  on the ship but will be more expensive.

4. Pack light, pack right. Be prepared for the off-chance your luggage will get misplaced. Even if your bag isn’t lost, it often takes hours before it gets to your cabin. So pack for survival: Put a little of everything you’ll want and need in  a carry-on bag. This includes undies, shirts, socks, a bathing suit , any medications and  something to wear to dinner. As added protection, buy travel insurance that covers you for lost, stolen, damaged or delayed luggage. As this is an expensive trip travel insurance should cover you if for some reason you have to cancel at the last-minute. After all, life happens!

5.  Explore the shore excursions and book as early as possible. Some cruises let you book the shore trips before boarding but many others do it after you board the ship. These excursions go fast so do not delay if there’s one you really want.

6. Then there’s that old nemesis, tipping… How much and to whom? Some cruises allow you to pre pay your tips but then if the service is bad, you’d be out of luck. If you choose to cover the tips on your own most cruise lines supply you with tip guidelines. It runs about $3.50 per day/per person  for the waiters and the cabin steward and $2.00 per day/per person  for the bus boy. Tipping the maitre’d is optional.

7. Last but not least on the learning curve..dining! It used to be that you”dressed for dinner” and had assigned seating in the dining room. Usually there were 2 dinner seatings. More and more cruises are beginning to use “open seating”. You can change tables or even your seating time. There’s also more options for restaurants outside of the main dining room. Check out your options carefully before you book so there are no pricey financial surprises. Also find out the dress code. Many are going casual or having only 1 formal “captain’s dinner”.

So that about wraps it up so far. I know Dusty’s head has been spinning. I think she is finding getting this cruise info together is much more involved than just heading off on vacation. Her friend Julie would disagree but that’s why everyone is different.

Well, she still hasn’t booked the cruise yet so I’m sure there will be more updates to come. Any cruisers out there that can offer advice? Let us know.

A bit of this and a bit of that

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More Great White sightings off Chathem, Ma on Cape Cod. Seems like there’s a new report of sightings every day. The most recent was 150 yards off Monemoy Island. That’s about 1 1/2 foot ball fields. I so want to see one!

The Barnstable Fair is this weekend. Traffic is going to be at a stand still on the Cape. I won’t go looking for Great Whites this week!

A friend of mine just got back from vacation and immediately was out sick for a week. I spoke to him today and asked if he was feeling better. He said yes, thankfully. He had food poisoning from eating lobster! I said where did you get the bad lobster so I don’t go there, of course  I was thinking it was local. His answer was not to worry because he was in New Hampshire. Oh Oh…I’m going to New Hampshire so I told him I was heading to Waterville Valley. His response was “WATERVILLE VALLEY! THAT’S WHERE I WAS!”

Well, he couldn’t remember the name of the restaurant but he gave me detailed directions to the restaurant not so I could find it but so I could avoid it and said do not eat the lobster there.

My co-worker Nick who went to Ireland has gone off on a Mediterranean cruise to Greece so I still haven’t hooked up with him to get his Ireland story for you.

I’m having dinner at Diane’s house on Tuesday. Diane told me about her trip to Mexico and let me share it with you. Maybe I can get her to tell me some more stories!

I tell everyone that I’m not interested in international travel but it did occur to me that there are certain areas that I would love to see.

Australia

Galapagos

Costa Rica

The Amazon

Alaska is domestic and I’m still working on that trip. Goal…2012 late August or early Sept.

I  miss my kitties when I travel. I don’t think they miss me. They like their pet sitter a lot.

So how scary was that? A glimpse into the way my mind works. As you can see my little brain jumps all over the place. Hopefully something with a bit more substance will pop into it before Monday rolls around. Maybe I should let “Scout” or “Rocky” do that post.

Have a good weekend everyone! 🙂

Planning the New Hampshire Vacation

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I started looking into the things to do in New Hampshire when I head there the end of the month. I don’t want to give away my ideas for the photo contest but I don’t mind sharing some of the things I am considering. I had most of these on my list before I ever heard of the photo contest.

This past spring while trying to get pictures of the whales off shore on Cape Cod I met a vacationer who told me about the Moose Tours. He showed me pictures he’s taken of moose so that is high on my list of things to do. My online research shows there are a number of outfits offering these tours but I think I will be loyal to the guy I met on the cape and use the outfit he works for.

The Time Share where I am staying is the Valley Inn at Waterville Valley so I will be using that as the base of operations.

I found a reference to a waterfall near Waterville Valley called Sabbaday Falls. It says it’s off the  Kancamangus Highway which is awesome. I have the directions so that is on my list.

At Cannon Mountain there’s the Flume Gorge and The Aerial Tramway. Both sound like great opportunities for some amazing photos. I can’t wait to check them out.

I also pulled up the Mount Washington Cog Railway in my online research. I am not going to hike Mount Washington and I don’t want to put my car through the drive up. I’ve seen those bumper stickers that say “This car drove Mount Washington.” Maybe if it was newer but I’m having enough trouble keeping up with its aches and pains. I’m not going to add to it by pushing it up a mountain. If I get to the top of Mount Washington it will be on the Cog Railway!

I also heard about the Lost River Gorge and Boulder Caves.  The online information says there’s a board walk as well as more “ambitious” routes.

Any suggestions of not to be missed places within reasonable driving distance from Waterville Valley?

New Hampshire Photo Contest

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Living first in New York State and now in Massachusetts, I am very familiar with our neighboring state of New Hampshire. But I am familiar in a day trip/ drive through to somewhere else kind of way  or in my younger days as the place to buy alcohol on a Sunday and illegal fireworks (legal there but not in Mass.) for the 4th of July.

I made one memorable motorcycle trip with my brother. It was in the fall and we biked the Kancamagus Highway to see the fall colors. I have two thoughts on that…COLD! but Spectacular. Nothing like seeing those views without being limited by the car window.

So this year I had some points left over on my time share to spend but I didn’t want to do anything expensive. I’d just returned from my “big” vacation in Sedona in May and was still trying to replenish the coffers. As you know if you’ve been following for any time my car has been doing it’s best to prevent me from making any progress in that regard.  So I searched the time share list for some place close enough to drive so that I could avoid airfare and car rental costs. New Hampshire popped up. The time share had openings and was within the points budget. It also met the other criteria like driving distance and time off from work  so I booked it.

Once I had the dates, I happened to see a TV ad for New Hampshire Dream Vacation Photo Contest. It took a little searching online to find it but the idea meshed perfectly with my plans for this vacation. I know that New Hampshire is a beautiful, scenic state so my purpose was to visit interesting places like the Lost River Gorge and look for photos ops. I want to take my time setting up the shots and really try to push my photography skills to the next level. Adding in a photo contest would just give me a little more incentive.

The rules require that the person submitting the photos be in the picture or they can use others in their party but they want people having fun. Well I am a party of 1, so I guess I’m going to learn to use either my remote release or the timer on my camera. Works for me.

You also have to have an “Official Sign” to hold in the picture so I downloaded that.

As with most photo contests I’ve seen there are 3 phases. The first is to have your picture qualify. That’s usually pretty easy. I’ve never had one disqualified.

The 2nd step is a bit harder and it’s where I usually fall down. This is the popularity contest part. The photos are online and  the more people to vote for your photo the higher you rank in the standings. It’s like the popular vote on Dancing with the  Stars or American Idol. I don’t usually send anyone the link so I only pick up “accidental” votes. In other words someone happens to be browsing the pictures and happens to think one of mine is good or cute or something and votes for it.

The end result is that I have had a couple make “semi-finalist” but that’s as far as it goes.

The final decision is  made by a panel of judges but since I’ve never actually won a photo contest I don’t know if I’ve ever got to that level.

Well, this time I plan to do things differently. Photos were the reason for the trip so coming up with 5 photos that meet the contest criteria should be achievable.  I’ll upload them per contest directions and I’ll show them here with the link to vote. Maybe with your help I can move from the pack of semi-finalists into a finalist spot.  Watch for the update and photos at the end of the month!