Free from exams, at last! Now I can just look forward to driving to LFT through this lovely biblical-scale frogwasher S.E. Texas is experiencing today. I've not yet checked my Hertz reservation to see if I've received the coveted upgrade from the Grand Marquis to a Lincoln Town Car...the suspense is killing me, but I'd rather not ruin the surprise quite yet :D

For the EWR folks. Just curious, what is the furthest in advance you've received notice that a flight cancelled due to weather, non-winter?

I received an e-mail 8.5 hours in advance for tonights non-flight.

Heh...I haven't even signed up for the alerts. I just turn up at the airport, and if the flight is delayed, I punish CO by raiding the liquor stockpile at the PC.

Just noticed that my Mileathon bonus finally posted. I stupidly fell 9 credits short of the 25,000 level. Should have worked in a few ShopOnePass purchases and an H fare to MSY or HRL.

Man I was bummed to hear Marvin Zindler passed on. Didn't even live in Houston, but knew of him from working a summer at a sister station. That guy was a class act...did some real good...and a real kick to watch. Anyone remember if he ever busted CO?

You mean I need to start worrying about the ice I get on CO? ;)

Life in Houston will never be the same again.

Keep doing whatever it is that makes you happy Marvin.

Indeed, Marvin was an institution here in Houston. My father was his attorney up until the time of the chicken-ranch expose...

I too mourn the passing of Marvin Zindler. How I remember well the evenings of my youth, sitting in front of the huge console TV at my grandparents' house watching Shara Fryer and Dave Ward sigh as they introduced Marvin... the sense of anticipation for my developing mind - would today be Slime in the Ice Machine day?? Or would he talk about some sleazy business owners? Oh, how I hoped and prayed it he would tell me about some Whataburger in Baytown that had roaches!! I will miss him.

To Marvin, I dedicate this, my 777th post. Cheers Marv!!!!:cool:

Ah, and for those keeping track, the rental this weekend was a marvelous upgrade...to a Ford Crown Victoria :p. Oh well, at least it qualified me for 5*.

Also, I discovered that Lafayette is not a complete pit. The "downtown" area was actually quite nice, and they had a sushi restaurant (Tsunami) that was pretty good.

Thank goodness I get to go to Austin this weekend.

I was attending the Astros/CO Baseball Clinic today (another fine event) and as I was leaving there was a car in the parking lot with the Texas personalized license plate "CO Star." So fess up, who is the owner? :)

I know I'm an addict, but I haven't splashed out for FT vanity plates (not like my handle would fit on one anyhow, and ALCO would be a bad thing to have on your plates) :p

Just got back from a vacation in San Francisco (full trip report coming soon) and I had an interesting experience on Flight 430 last night but didn't want to start a new thread for it.

I was in 15E, my S/O in 15F. Sitting in 15D was an elite (silver). He was a younger guy, probably younger than me. He didn't say a single word the entire flight (to us at least). He used both armrests and listened to his iPod at much too high of a setting. Well, about an hour into the flight and he takes his dress shoes off. No big deal. Then he proceeds to cross his legs and touch my tray with his feet... :rolleyes: As if that wasn't bad enough, it was burger night and they had some weird pepper salad dressing. My S/O and I definitely passed.

So this guy gets pretty much plastered on the plane. I counted four gin & tonics within an hour and a half and by the time we got off the plane, he had had six. Just an all around weird flight. There was lightning hitting the ground all around IAH when we touched down which was neat to watch though.

I swear, it wasn't me (though the 6 G&T's on a 3:45 flight does sound familiar) :D.

As an informal poll, I was wondering which FF programs other CO Forum regulars would choose if they weren't locked into CO (for whatever reason, be it hub convenience, corporate contracts, route map, etc.). If you could (theoretically) fly from any airport at the same yearly mileage-earning rate as you do now, booking the same classes of service, which program would you choose?

Though I have no intentions of switching away from CO, I think I would aim for DL, as the service levels appear to be consistently improving, the route map expanding (though perhaps not in the most rational manner), EUA system for domestic flying, PMUs on higher-fare tickets for international travel into a BizE cabin that's slated for big improvements in the near future, slightly better mileage redemption ability than CO, and staff that's as friendly as CO's. Also, the ability to upgrade on AM would be interesting.

As much as I have touted the benefits of BD recently, I think they suit me best as a secondary FFP, as their route map is fairly thin compared to what I can get out of DL or CO.

Even with UA's new Biz rolling out, I couldn't see myself choosing them, even though I could qualify as a 1K. I don't like the idea of having to use certificates or miles to upgrade domestically (and almost-guaranteed E+ vs. EUA'd F just doesn't do it for me). Further, the near constant stream of customer service horror stories pouring out of the UA board is a bit off-putting.

AA would be a close call, as EXPs get the domestic upgrades. However, I loathe slopey-seats, and I would only ever be using eVIPs for Y->C. Barring some drastic change of plans by AA in response to UA's new C, I just couldn't see myself making that sort of switch.

Perhaps there are European or Asian FFPs out there that offer intriguing benefits that I'm just not aware of, or perhaps I lack imagination. However, given the choice (free of the constraints of "reality"), I think if I had to switch, DL would be my choice. What would you pick?

Probably DL just for convience sake, as I have been exiled to the ATL from Texas.

I WILL NEVER FLY AA, E-V-E-R. A rancid TA, a woman wanting to throw down with me in the middle of MIA (Seriously), a second rancid TA, no orginization to speak of, and a CSA (with no S) that was totally unhelpful that ended with a 10hr drive from MIA to ATL.

I do fly AA along with CO on a pretty regular basis. I like them but they have their faults.

I cannot see myself going to DL ever. My past experiences with them have been extremely poor and I don't see them digging themselves out of that hole.

Having never flown UA, I'd be willing to give them a shot. I will definitely be flying VX at some point in the near future.

SQ's new Biz class looks pretty interesting (the 777 seats) and I want to try it out.