Don't be too down on Air Miles. They got my wife and daughter to Disneyland this year, and I took six flights using Air Miles this year, to California and Alberta as well as in B.C. Depending on the route and the sales on at the time, one Air Mile is worth 20 to 40 cents. True, you don't get Aeroplan points, and true, you're stuck in the back. But for short quick hauls, they work.
We get the points through banking (which we would do anyway) and (grocery shopping (ditto). One trip to Safeway last summer gave me enough points for a trip YYJ-YYC -- and the dollars spent was in roughly in line with the basic fare for the flight.
And for the record, a few years ago I did Air Miles to Europe, and ended up with Aeroplan points from the trip. I think that was a glitch in the system, but I decided I'd better tell anyone. Until now.