It's Dai Time

Katie & Scott & Simon & Cecily.

Author: Scott (Page 41 of 104)

Day 237: credit card?

October 6, 2009 / / 0 Comments

Hello friends and family.

Are you in need of a credit card? That’s a serious question. Because if the answer is yes, I have an offer for you. It’s not a fabulous offer, but it’s OK.

So, here’s the deal: my main card is the American Express Blue Cash Back. I got an email that offers me $25 if I refer someone else to the card, as well as giving the new applicant a $25 credit as well after their first purchase.

So, if you are looking for a new credit card (or an extra one), let me give a brief overview of the card itself:

  • It’s a cash back card. Initially, it’s 0.5% on all purchases with 1% back on “everyday” purchases such as gas and groceries. After $6,500 on purchases within 12 months, those get bumped up to 1.25% and 5% respectively.
  • It’s an American Express card, so it won’t be accepted as many places as Visa or Mastercard.
  • I personally have always had pretty good customer service from the company, including my recent Xbox 360 extended warranty. They’ve also responded pretty well when any potential fraud charges showed up.

So, no pressure. I’m not even completely aware of what the APRs are like because I don’t carry a balance on the card from month to month. I also realize that in this economic climate, another credit card might be the last thing you need. But – if you’re looking for a decent cash back card and wouldn’t mind a $25 credit to go with it, shoot me a quick email (or comment) and I’ll send you a referral.

Day 236: offline

October 5, 2009 / / 0 Comments

Katie’s cell phone has been acting up recently, and we’re not sure whether it’s the battery or the phone itself.  We may end up getting her a new phone (or “upgrade” or whatever AT&T wants to call it), or may try getting a new battery.  Either way, it won’t cost much.

The real price is in this gray zone, when she has a phone that only functions some of the time.  Even though I’m not the one who has the broken phone, it’s sobering to be thrown back a decade into a time when cell phones weren’t the everyday device they are now.

It’s a little scary, not knowing whether I can actually call her during the work day if something comes up, or knowing that she probably couldn’t call me (or AAA) if she were driving and the car broke down.

We’re spoiled nowadays.  With my iPhone, I get instantaneous access, nearly anywhere in the country, to all the information I would ever need.  I can pinpoint my exact location, find a nearby fill-in-the-blank, and read reviews on it from the palm of my hand.  I can check my bank accounts, buy stocks, look up an old friend’s contact information on Facebook.  It’s really a bit unbelievable if I think back on my cell phone-less childhood.

Maybe we haven’t been spoiled.  More, technologically bettered.  It’s not that our parents didn’t have this technology because they were poor or choose not to adapt it; this convenience simply didn’t exist back then.

Still, it’s a bit much, especially considering I’ve only been alive 26 years.  And to see how one malfunctioning cell phone can throw us off.

Day 235: ultrasound pictures

October 4, 2009 / / 0 Comments

Behold, our baby in fuzzy black and white!
(Click the pictures for bigger versions.)

feet

Some feet!

face

A face!  It’s sideways, with the top being to the right.  You can also kind of see a hand above the face, like the baby’s waving.

 

body

This one actually looks like a baby!

Day 234: yogurt by weight

October 3, 2009 / / 0 Comments

Somehow, a few months ago, someone out here decided that the next big thing was going to be selling frozen yogurt (with unlimited toppings) by weight.  Amazingly, they were right.  Now, every other street corner in any even slightly urbane neighborhood has a yogurt by weight place.

For those of you who may not have encountered such a place, I’ll describe it.  You walk in and grab a bowl.  Small, large, doesn’t really matter.  Just depends on how hungry you are.  Then, you put some frozen yogurt in it.  Most places have a row of those soft-serve machines with different flavors.  However much frozen yogurt you want to eat.

Then, you move on to the toppings bar, where you put toppings onto your yogurt (or, if you’re pro like me, you alternate between the two areas so you have layered toppings underneath yogurt).  Again, however many toppings you want.  Most places have a relatively large selection, comparable to something like Cold Stone.

Then, you move to the register, where you place your little cup onto a scale.  Depending on how many ounces it weighs (above the weight of the cup), you pay some amount per ounce.

It’s a pretty slick idea, and it has two factors going for it: the “healthier than ice cream” appeal of a cold treat and the customer choice of nearly every section (flavor, size, toppings).  I’d never gone to such a place a year ago, but now I can think of at least a half dozen such places off the top of my head, and I pass by storefronts promising a new yogurt place coming soon all the time.

How did this happen?  How did frozen yogurt by weight become this year’s Crocs?  Is there a national chain of these?  All the places I know go by different names.  Is it only a matter of time before a bigger corporate entity decides to buy them up and streamline the business model?  Why didn’t anyone think of this before?

I feels like I’m in the middle of some kind of revolution, but I don’t even know what we’re revolting against.  Something is happening here.  Something big.  For those outside of northern California, are these things in your neighborhood too?  How wide is their reach?

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