Thanks for this thread. I've got about 100K HH and the last activity was a hotel redemption in Mar/12. Since I still have the points, I infer that's a valid "stay"?

I was resigned to buying another 1K at $12.50 but I'm wondering about the shopping options. I see Staples is a partner (2pt/$1) and I happen to have Staples Plus status (free shipping on all orders). If I ordered the smallest thing I could find, would that still count as long as I don't return it?

And how long would that purchase take to post? I'd like to get something I actually need, but if I can buy a $1 item and keep my HH account alive, that might be an option.

Thanks!
=aw