Paris Change of Plan is a Good Thing

It's amazing what can happen in a span of 24-hours, or rather, let me correct that, in 7 days. This time last week (Friday 5/10), I had different plans for Paris. Well, that changed on Saturday and I was left thinking for the next few days what to do. There's always a Plan B, always, but when you're really looking forward to something and shit changes it, you're left in a mental quandary about what to do. Well, although I'm not the most social person on the planet, I do have my friends in far and away places. My plans for Paris have taken a positive turn and in reality, I'm even more relaxed and comfortable with the plans, and consider the changes to be a true blessing in disguise that benefits me twofold!

So when life throws you a sudden curve ball, just dodge it, or catch it, and throw the ball in the direction you want it to go into. For me, my short time in Paris will be an absolutely wonderful time with a new friend!

I would love to do the Cannes Film Festival one day

WHEN I win the lottery, I will definitely attend Cannes! When I look at pictures of the stars on opening day of Cannes 2013, it really is the epitome of Hollywood and Film. The top stars really look their best, outside of Oscar night, and it looks like so much fun! The images of Nicole Kidman and Carey Mulligan are posted here because they were the best looking ladies of opening night. In the coming days, I'll post a picture of the best dressed actress or actor.



Nicole Kidman in Dior with Steven Spielberg



Carey Mulligan with Leonard DiCaprio

 You were probably shocked just like I was when it was announced yesterday that Angelina Jolie had preventative surgery by having a double mastectomy to avoid developing breast cancer, in which she was a carrier of the BRCA1 gene and therefore, had an 87% risk of developing the disease. And it was also announced just today that she will also undergo additional surgery to remove her ovaries since she is at 50% risk of developing cervical cancer. I applaud her decision but personally, I wish this was an option for my sister whom I lost to breast cancer five years ago this summer. Since breast cancer is common in my family, I need to get tested, but here in America, one needs health insurance to do that. My work situation is on a contract basis and there's no safety net. As you know, I'm working hard to change this. Anyway, Angelina is someone I idolize and I wish her the best.

Meanwhile, I'm just 15 days away from vacation and I made my last arrangement today in reserving my airport transportation. Since I'll be gone for 10 days, I didn't want to drive to the airport and leave my car there for 10 days and paying over $100 to park it. I can get a roundtrip, front door shuttle service, and including a $5 tip both ways for $72. Either way, I have to pay money to get to the airport, I may as well do it in comfort and save money.

Also, yesterday I registered with Instagram so I will be taking lots of pictures on my iPod touch 4 of my adventures in London and Paris. Please note the instagram camera logo near the top along the sidebar, and just click it on to see the latest images I post there.

A New Bookstore in Downtown Ann Arbor

I read about a new bookstore coming to Ann Arbor a few months ago, and as I left the bank on the way back to the office this afternoon, I noticed it was open for business. It is called Literati Bookstore (124 E Washington St.) and it's a beautiful store front that has a museum gift shop vibe to it. It is quiet (no music, no coffee barista), and you don't see people sitting around making it their personal library or office while hogging valuable sitting space and surfing the net. As per their pretty bookmarks located at the checkout counter, it describes the new bookstore - 'Literati, 1. Well-educated people who are interested in literature. 2. Ann Arborites.' I like that!

It is a bi-level store that has the name of the section of each shelving unit written in chalk at the top, in a very nice handwritten form. They have a nice children's section too. But downstairs is very nice, and a bit darker than upstairs because of the lack of windows. And there is where I found my favorite section regarding health and body. I found a book by Kimberly Snyder 'The Beauty Detox Solution', and it was $16.99. Now this is the moment when these independent bookstores lose a sale. Someone can easily look up the book at amazon.com or worse, go to walmart, and pay $5-$8 less than at this book store. Me being on a budget, but also mindful of the power of my dollars... I chose to purchase the book at Literati, and I'm glad I did. I got a great book that is going to help me 'eat my way to radiant skin, renewed energy and the body I want to get back'. So when you can, please support your local businesses.

Thanks for Nothing Delta Airlines

It was my intentions to purchase my usual r/t airfare with Delta Airlines for my upcoming trip to London, however, I was priced out of the economy section (note to self, don't travel to Europe first week of June). So because I was not going to earn Skymiles from Delta this year, I figured I would redeem my 15,516 miles and get some neat items from their Skymiles Marketplace. I've gotten lovely silver jewelry from them in the past and some magazine subscriptions. My philosophy with the skymiles was use them or lose them.

This afternoon I went to view the marketplace but an odd thing occurred. I could not view the catalog while logged on, that's strange. So I logged off and I was able to review the marketplace and I saw a few things I wanted to get. I clicked on one item that was valued at 13,200 miles, and then it said that I have to be an eligible member to purchase it. Ok, so I logged back on, and at that moment, I could not see the marketplace at all. So something odd was going on. I reviewed the Delta website trying to understand what was going on, then that's when I saw it. To redeem miles, one must be an "eligible member", and that basically means, having enough miles to reach the top 3 medallion tiers to qualify, as well as having specific partner credit cards to participate. What the hell is this now? Since Delta bought out Northwest Airlines, which I miss dearly, shit changes every year! Also, if you read the fine print, in order to meet the requirements to reach a milestone medallion tier, you have to acquire X amount of miles between Jan 1 and Dec 31. Sneaky ain't they? The only type of people who rack up those kind of miles are business travellers (ie. people who don't buy their own tickets) or very wealthy people who travel for pleasure and rack up the miles.

If you're a lame schmuck like me who saves her pennies to fly to Europe once a year on a preferred airliner, you're shit out of luck because that's only 8K miles round trip! And the other people who are lamer than me and only fly to Florida or California for a vacation, depending on where they live in the states, that's at most a 3k round trip flight - and IF that particular flight qualifies to get miles. This is so insane and elitist! It's just cruel to take away a small pleasure that someone like me would receive from Delta for being loyal to them. I have seen the light and learned that they aren't loyal to bums like me who do not fly at LEAST 50,000 miles between Jan 1 and Dec 31!

At Delta.com, here is their breakdown:

• 25,000 MQMs or 30 MQSs achieves Silver Medallion status.
• 50,000 MQMs or 60 MQSs achieves Gold Medallion status.
• 75,000 MQMs or 100 MQSs achieves Platinum Medallion status.
• 125,000 MQMs or 140 MQSs achieves Diamond Medallion status.

The qualification time frame for Medallion status is from January 1 to December 31 of each year.

And here is the email I sent to Delta, and they quickly replied back:

Me: I was visiting the SkyMiles Marketplace to see what kind of
nice item I can redeem with my 15, 516 miles. I have been happy with
several past purchases and wanted to review the latest marketplace. To
my shock and surprise, I now notice that one has to be "eligible member"
to buy from the marketplace. As a long time Northwest customer and now
Delta, I use only one credit card and pay cash for the rest of my needs.
I do not want to apply for another credit card. And now I notice that in
order for me to use my well earned miles - earned from two r/t flight to
London, UK - I now can't redeem my miles to use in the marketplace
without being some kind of "eligible member'? Please explain to me why
this policy change and when did it go into effect? I find this extremely
elitist and I gather it was designed to force people to enroll into the
Delta Skymiles credit card scheme in order to buy from the marketplace.
Please reply back.

 Delta: Dear Ms. Cromer,

Thank you for your e-mail. On behalf of Delta Air Lines, I appreciate
the opportunity to be of assistance with your query regarding SkyMiles
Marketplace.

Effective February 17, 2012, SkyMiles Marketplace has become an
exclusive benefit for Diamond, Platinum, and Gold Medallion members and
all U.S. based Delta American Express SkyMiles Credit Cardmembers. We
realize that SkyMiles Marketplace is a popular way for many of members
to use their miles; however, we have decided to limit redemptions to our
Diamond, Platinum, and Gold Medallion members and co-brand card holders
only going forward. As an alternative, you can visit delta.com/usemiles
to explore other ways you may use your miles.

Ms. Cromer, thank you for your continuing support and loyalty. As a
valued SkyMiles member, I appreciate your interest in our SkyMiles
program and look forward to your continued patronage.

Sincerely,

SK
Online Customer Support Desk
http://www.delta.com

It's unfortunate that I missed the memo about this change, and as it all stands, I will surely lose the current 15K miles I have because I have no need to use Delta's services for quite a while, if never again, so these will surely expire and in Delta's eyes, I'll be a worthless former passenger... pretty much what I am already to them. In the past, with Northwest Airlines, I was able to redeem 25k miles, twice, for a free ticket: one to Baltimore and one to Los Angeles. So I know what it's like to be valued by your preferred airliner.

Maybe in the next job I get that allows me to travel for business, I will be able to take advantage of the perks that Delta offers to their beloved business travellers. Meanwhile, I will continue to drive where I need to go, take the train, or use a competitor airliner.

Good bye Delta!

I Can Breathe a Little Now

It's Springtime!! Last week I received my grades for Winter semester Grad school, and I'm happy to report that I maintained my 4.0 GPA!!! I'm 86% complete and I cannot believe it. All those years where I feared going back to school due to the commitment of time and discipline, as well as the costs, I'm surprising myself at how well I am doing. In grad school, one must maintain at least a 3.0 GPA in order to receive a Master's degree. I knew that bare minimum would be no problem, but because I hold myself up to high standards, I pursued the highest scores, and I have made my goal. This semester was tough yet again, but I made it!

And this is why I am treating myself to London and Paris in less than a month! Just last week, I finally bought my plane ticket. But I got a little screwed over again for the second year in a row by Delta. Last year I missed the lowest price ticket by a day, and had to pay the highest fee for non-stop round trip. Which is a posh plane ride - Detroit to London in just over 8 hours. But this year, I watched the ticket price DAILY for nearly two months, only to get to the point where the ticket went up $50 which lead me to do some investigating. As I came to realize, all the seats were sold out in economy at the $1501 cost. WTF? Just a couple weeks earlier, about 35% of the seats were still available. But in those couple weeks, I guess a lot more people from the Detroit area have deep pockets and they all want to go to London! So I was priced out of economy - sure, business was available as well as a few first class seats, for $6k. Please!

Delta, the major hub for Detroit Metro, can charge outrageous prices out of Detroit because they are the ONLY airliner that offers non-stop flights to London. No competition = high fares. So I went to Expedia.com and started looking for 1-stop flights. Dammit - I haven't had a 1-stop to London since 1994. I found a 1-stop with US Airways out of Philadelphia for $1321. This isn't so bad after all because I was very concerned about flights taking me West first, like to Chicago, that is just stupid. So going slightly Southeast first, lay over for 1.5 hours, and then hop on another plane straight for London. The bonuses received going this route is that a) I leave Philly still 2 hours earlier than the Delta Detroit to London flight, allowing me to arrive at 10am instead of noon, b) I save $200 (On the return flight, I have to go through Charlotte, NC). Also, I look at it this way, when I get on the plane to Philly, I'm on vacation, so an earlier start on my vacation is even better! So Delta lost me on this trip, and USAirways gained a new passenger. And I even signed up for their frequent flyer program. If Delta is going to play the pricing game with me on a route that I practically take yearly, then I will shop around for a competitor who will still get me to my destination earlier while allowing me to save money, and use those monies to buy other things to help me with my holiday planning. The only thing left for me to do is reserve my shuttle to pick me up at my apartment and drop me off at the airport, round trip. Because I'll be gone for 10 days, it's easier to just do the shuttle instead of leaving my car at an expensive long term ride and park airport parking lot. And I save money on that too. I have never flow on US Airways so I am looking forward to this trip. If it's as seemless as I anticipate, I may use this in the future just for the savings.

I've been doing some shopping to prepare for the trip and I think I'm pretty much done. In all, I've probably spent around $400 in stuff to get me ready for my time in London and Paris. The largest item was an appropriately brand name item large suitcase by - London Fog - it is the 180 degree spinner wheel suitcase. Because I'll be away for 10 days, I need the space. I will surely be bringing back stuff, so I need the room to spare. And since this is International flying, check baggage is free, so I have no issues with that. I have a nice bag to use for carry-on too. The other stuff I have bought have been clothes, shoes, accessories. Stuff that will make me feel good while I'm on holiday. And this past Saturday, I went to Macy's to buy some Capri's and a basic black top. And then I remembered that the new Nordstrom Rack opened up on April 18th, so I finally had a chance to go there, and it was busy, busy, busy! I walked in there and I was immediately impressed. I browsed through the 'Active/Yoga' section, and dammit if they didn't have the very yoga pants and yoga top that I really, desperately, oh so very much, NEEDED! There goes $30. Their prices are just fabulous. Now there are still some pricey stuff in there, but for the most part, it's a store that I know I will get into trouble with if I go there often. The horrible thing is that the store is in walking distance too... so it's right there, to entice me!

In any event, I'm looking forward to meeting four new friends in the coming month and they are all people that I have befriended through my Fassinating Fassbender community. I'll be meeting one girl in Royal Oak on the 18th, and I'll be meeting one in London, and two in Paris on separate days. What an amazing way to top off months of studying and sacrificing all that time by not doing anything else.

Tata Harper at Lily Grace in Ann Arbor

At the register to buy my Tata Harper Resurfacing Mask, per her suggestion!

I have been looking forward to this event for several weeks now. I have been using a product from the Tata Harper line since late last year, and when I learned that Tata was actually coming to visit Lily Grace Cosmetics (located at 306 S Main Street, Ann Arbor), I knew this would be my one and only time to meet her and learn more about her products. I love Lily Grace Cosmetics so much, it reminds me of a posh cosmetic boutique that could be found on 5th Avenue in New York City, or on Abbott Kinney Ave in Venice Beach, CA. It was a complete coup for Lily Grace to have Tata visit their beautiful store.

What impresses me about the Tata Harper skincare line is that it's all natural - 100% Natural and Nontoxic. I have very sensitive and oily skin. And I realize that some of the foods I eat can contribute to breakouts and the overproduction of oils, which lead to my skin looking like an oil slick, and having break outs. Via the combination of modifying my diet, and using natural products on my face, Tata Harper's products are the natural choice for someone like me.

The old adage, 'you get what you pay for', rings true with her skincare. It is not cheap, but you also won't go broke, but with my budget, I can't buy the entire line all at once. I have to be selective in what I buy, and then prepare my budget to expand my regimen to include more of Tata's products.

A customer asking Tata a question at end of facial seminar.

As you can see from some of these pictures, she's just adorable, and she's originally from Columbia. She created her natural skincare line all on her own, using her own money to finance the hiring of chemists to create these serums and oils, all from natural ingredients and flowers. The event was interactive with Tata and we used all the products on our faces. My face feels so good that I dare not need to wash it for the evening, I'm done for the day. At the end of the seminar, I was able to ask Tata directly which product out of the entire line can someone like me with oily acne prone sensitive skin, who is on a budget, should buy today. I told her I already use the Replenishing Nutrient Complex, and she immediately told me to buy the resurfacing mask because it's a mask that I can use up to 2 times a week and leave it on for 25 minutes. So I thanked her and purchased it.

Tata helping a customer select which products to buy.

I look forward to the day when I can incorporate her entire product line into my daily regimen because it's an investment in my face, which is the first thing people see, and I need to take better care of it. Go check out TataHaperSkincare.com for yourself! This sunny day in downtown Ann Arbor was perfect weather for Tata's visit, and it reminded me as to why it's so awesome living in this fantastic town! Please visit the Lily Grace Cosmetics blog - http://lilygracecosmetics.com/ .

Getting closer to Paris



An aerial view of an avenue in Paris.

My Paris and London plans are firming up, however, I'm still just waiting for airfare to go down a little. It sucks in a way to live in Michigan because I'm in the mid-west, not the East Coast, and Detroit Metro is not Newark, JFK, or DC, so our prices will be higher. However, I still anticipate the price to go down a couple hundred dollars in the next 24-48 hours. And I'm just waiting to hit the purchase button when it does go down. I know I can save money now by buying a 1-stop ticket, but that's bullshit. There's no valid reason why I cannot fly to London non-stop, barring crucial budget reasons - and if that were the case, I really shouldn't even go. But, things aren't that tight, I just have issues with spending $1501 on a fucking non-stop to London May/June. Yes, I know it's "peak" travel time... but I have been to London, the past four times, in Nov/Dec, I want to enjoy the spring, especially in Paris.
And in getting physically prepared for my trip, I have been walking home on some days after work, the past few weeks. Now that I'm completely done with classes this term, I have given thought to walking to work and back home. This morning, I did my first walk. It was colder than I expected, and it was drizzingly outside, but it was manageable and it was a great morning exercise. It gave me a rush even! But I think one of the high points of my walk was that as I was walking through the empty Whole Foods parking lot, I found a $5 bill. Now you may say, 'that's nice'. And it is, very nice. But $5 isn't a lot of money. So in my continued effort to win the lottery, I used that five bucks to buy two EZ pic powerball for a chance to win $116 million, and I bought one classic lotto 47 for a chance to win $3.6 million. Needless to say, I will be happy with either grand prize.

Now I've been reading articles about lottery winners, and the chances of winning the lottery, and there are a gabillion different scenarios out there in the cosmos that need to line up in the right order for ME to win. Some say it's luck, some say it's all statistics and probabilities. I believe it's a little bit of both, but, with more luck to do with it than anything. However, what are the probabilities of me deciding to walk to work, for the first time today, in crappy weather, and walk directly in the path of that huge parking lot, to find a wet, folded over $5 bill? Now you think about that, because I surely have. My immediate thought was to invest it in some ez picks or some scratch offs. What do I have to lose since it's money that I found in an empty parking lot? So, I think with all things considered, some how, I may get a slight edge in wining something in either games. And that's not including the Wednesday drawing tickets I already purchased as part of my weekly lottery game allowance. So, we'll see. :D

After reading an article yesterday about how all the surviving Boston bombing victims who are hospitalized are expected to live, it was mentioned how much blood was used in saving their lives. There always seems to be a low supply of blood throughout the country, and especially in times of emergencies, it's all the more important to have access to blood. If you have never donated blood before, this is the reason why you need to donate, if you are eligible. I made an appointment to donate blood for this Saturday morning. I have donated many times before, but there was a period of several years when I could not because I was anemic. However, now that that problem is solved, just as my iron levels are "normal", the Red Cross friggin' upped their minimum required hemoglobin level to 12.5 (I was at a 11.1), so the last two times I tried to give, they refused my lame iron deficient ass. My iron level was now not at their new minimum level. I'm hopeful that I can donate this weekend, if not, just fuck it, I tried. I don't understand why they moved the acceptable iron level to a level where my body just can't meet. For a while I was taking vitamins, and I love spinach and iron rich foods. But I don't know if I'm naturally physically able to ever meet their minimum requirements again. I'll let you know if I succeed!

Boston Terrorism: I'm glad it's over!

Like many of you, I have been following the Boston Marathon bomb terror since Monday afternoon, and reading updates all through the week. On Friday morning, I heard on the radio as I was getting ready for work, that one of the two suspects was killed and the other was on the run. Subsequently, the entire city of Boston was on lock down in an effort to protect innocent civilians from possible gunfire shoot-outs. While at work on Friday, I listened in on NECN Live, they are a live stream news channel. Sadly, at a time like this, it was frustrating that none of the major networks allowed live stream of their broadcast. But in any event, I didn't need them anyway because I got news in other ways.

It was anxiety producing and stressful watching the waiting game of when they would find Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. The 19 year old punk did the unthinkable: Caused a major American city to be on lockdown. Never before has this happened before! Impressively scary. In the back of my mind, I figured that he was either far away and travelling to another state, or he was very close by, VERY close by. Surely in all the gunfire exchange he had to have been hit, and if that was the case, the slow loss of blood would tire him and he would be found dead somewhere or unconscious.  But in the end, he was found hiding in a boat at 67 Franklin Street (surely an address that will be famous forever, the owner may even have to sell the home for privacy I bet!)

Of all of Dzhokhar's relatives who were interviewed yesterday, his useless father, his deranged aunt, it was his uncle in Maryland, Ruslan, who proved to me the most decent and intelligent. It is now no wonder why Dzhokhar eventually turned on the city and country that raised him. It's too bad that this bastard could not assimilate into American society and instead of moving out of the country, he choose to help build bombs that killed 3 people, injured around 180 people (permanently maiming most of them for life). He then went on to help assassinate an MIT officer, and seriously wound a Boston police officer in a shoot out.

In the end, I'm relieved he was found alive, he surrendered, and is now in a hospital. He will be questioned to an inch of his life, and he will then go on trial, and eventually given a death penalty sentence, or life in prison and solitary confinement. Either way, it appears that Friday, April 19th, for just a 19 year old, was the last free day of his short life.

I'm proud of what the law enforcement did yesterday in finding the suspect and safely taking him into custody. I hope now that the people who have been directly harmed by his actions can find some closure as he is brought to swift justice!

The Daily Mail has a very good article posted, and that is where I got this abbreviated timeline:

'We Got Him!': Twenty four hours of chaos comes to an end: How Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was apprehended by police after day-long search

April 18 5.30pm - The FBI releases CCTV footage and stills of two suspects from surveillance cameras near the explosion sites filmed shortly before the blasts. FBI agent Richard DesLauriers asks for the public's help in identifying the men who are both wearing baseball caps and carrying backpacks. 'We consider them to be armed and extremely dangerous,' Mr DesLauriers said, warning that they should not be approached.
10.30pm - A campus police officer is shot and killed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, near Boston, after responding to a report of a disturbance.
Shortly afterwards, police get a report of a carjacking nearby. The two men are suspected of killing the MIT police officer, then stealing the car at gunpoint and later releasing its driver unharmed. The suspects threw explosives from the car as police followed it to the Boston suburb of Watertown.
April 19 1am - Witnesses report hearing multiple gunshots and explosions in Watertown. Residents are advised to keep their doors locked and not let anyone in. TV footage shows armed officers surrounding a suspect lying on the ground.
Police later say one of the two suspects in the MIT officer shooting is dead but the other, who is tied to the Boston marathon bombing, remains at large.
Public transport is suspended in the Boston area as the hunt for the remaining suspect continues.
A new photo of him on the loose is released showing him in a grey hoodie sweatshirt at a 7-Eleven store in Cambridge.
5pm - Police admit at a press conference they don't know where 19-year-old Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev is. Authorities lift 'shelter in place' orders and allow residents to venture outside.
5.45pm - David Henneberry finds a body in his boat on Franklin Street in Watertown, less than three quarters of a mile from where Tsarnaev ditched his stolen Mercedes SUV.
6pm - Officers surround Mr Hennerberry's boat and exchange fire with him.
7.05pm - Flash grenades are reportedly tossed into the boat to stun Tsarnaev.
8.43pm - Tsarnaev surrenders and it taken into custody. He is rushed to the hospital by ambulance

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2311443/Boston-bomber-caught-Dzhokhar-Tsarnaev-captured-ALIVE-hiding-inside-BOAT.html#ixzz2R0vUJK3B
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