Tag Archives: Amazon

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New American Express App Feature: Get Your AMEX Pass to Access 25 Venues + 10% Cash Back on Qualifying Concessions

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Good afternoon everyone.  I was clicking around the American Express app and stumbled on some new features that are being rolled out.  If you sign into the app and click the Account tab in the bottom right corner, then click Try New Features, you will see 3 new features: New Wallets & Merchants, Amex Inspire, and Amex Pass.  This post is dedicated to the AMEX Pass feature, but I cover the other 2 features at the bottom of the post.  The AMEX Pass creates a special QR code that you can use to access select AMEX venues (25 as of 1/8/25) and you can earn 10% cash back on qualifying concessions by using your enrolled card.  Here is the process to set up your AMEX Pass.

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2024’s Must-Reads: Have You Read My Most Popular Posts Yet?

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Good afternoon everyone, happy New Year’s Eve!  As we wrap up 2024, it’s time to take a look at my top 10 most popular blog posts of the year. Barring any crazy last minute spikes in blog readership today, these are the top 10 blog posts written in 2024 and top 10 blog posts written in previous years. If you are curious, here were the most popular posts from 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023.

2024’s Most Popular Blog Posts (Written in 2024)

  • PSA: Bank of America Won’t Automatically Send a Replacement Debit Card when your Card Expires (2/20/24) – I realized my Bank of America debit card had expired in July 2022, and I never received a replacement debit card until I requested one in February 2024, despite having it stored in ApplePay. My frustration grew from the lack of notifications and outdated PIN change process. Judging by the number of pageviews this post received, I guess I wasn’t the only one with this problem.
  • My 2023 Peloton Bike Rental Year End Review (Total Cost of Ownership & Workout Class Stats) (1/21/24) – In 2023, I rented a Peloton bike instead of buying one, opting for the flexibility of a monthly rental with the option to pause or return it. Although I didn’t meet my fitness goals, I appreciated the variety of classes, the ability to create multiple profiles, and the affordability of the rental option, especially with my employer’s fitness reimbursement.  I wasn’t planning on writing a 2024 Peloton year end review, but since this post was so popular, I will work on a 2024 update in the coming days.
  • Attention Coinstar Users: Not All Kiosks Offer Amazon eGift Cards (1/19/24) – During a recent trip to SoCal, I used a Coinstar kiosk to convert a bag of change into an eGC, only to find that Amazon was missing as a redemption option. After researching, I discovered that not all kiosks offer Amazon eGCs, with availability varying by location and grocery store chain.  I wish all Coinstar kiosks had the same redemption offers so this issue would be avoided.

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Too Many Cardboard Boxes? Get ZipSnip Handheld Cordless Electric Cardboard Box Cutter

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Good afternoon everyone.  Between my wife and I, we do a lot of online shopping and end up with a lot of cardboard boxes.  We have a small recycle trash can at home, so it was pretty easy to fill up the recycle trash can with cardboard boxes and other recyclable items.  I started using a sharp box cutter knife to break down the cardboard boxes into smaller pieces, so I could fit more cardboard in our recycle trash can. Bending over to cut the cardboard into small pieces would start to hurt my back after several minutes and I had to be careful with the sharp box cutter not to cut myself.

Last year, Laura saw an ad online for this ZipSnip cardboard box cutter and bought it on Amazon (affiliate link).  I was skeptical and reluctant to use it at first since I thought my old method was superior (minus the back pain and fear of cutting myself), but after using it for a few minutes, I could tell that this was a huge improvement.  The blade is sharp and cuts through cardboard very easily and I don’t need to bend down to cut the cardboard into small pieces.  Here are some photos of the ZipSnip and the smaller cardboard box pieces.

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Around the World in 24 Days: Preparing for Takeoff

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Buenos dias everyone, I’m getting ready to take off on my 24 day round-the-world trip for the SAS EuroBonus Millionaire promotion so I thought I’d share a few updates on the final planning stages.

Hotels

At this point, I have all of my hotels booked except for the very end of my trip (Taipei, Denver, and Boston). Since many of the destinations I’m traveling to are fairly inexpensive, I ended up doing a lot of cash bookings, but I do have points redemptions with three different hotel programs scattered throughout.

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500 Email Newsletter Subscribers Celebration! 5 x $10 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway [Winners Selected]

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Updated at 7:45am PT on 8/19/24: Thank you to everyone who entered the giveaway.  Here are the 5 winners who will each receive a $10 Amazon Gift Card sent to them via email:

  • Rob Tomanek: Enjoy reading the “too good” helpful hints to maximize travel. Thanks. (blog post)
  • t: My Underwhelming Experience with MaxMyPoint, Awayz & StayWithPoints Hotel Award Alerts (blog post)
  • Bill G.: Not really sure I would remember all the posts to pick a favorite. But I do enjoy the no-hype factual stuff, be they reviews or news about a promo. I do scan most of the posts but I read a lot of different blogs and definitely appreciate the factual style (your friendly conversation style is good too.) (blog post)
  • Heath: I enjoyed your trip summary about your trip to Europe with Laura. (blog post)
  • Andrew SHANSBY: I like to read about maxmy point and retention bonuses, keep up great work! (blog post)

Good afternoon everyone, happy Friday!  2 months ago, I wrote Calling All Readers, Help Me Reach 500 Email Newsletter Subscribers!  At the time of that post, I had 476 subscribers and I was slowly inching my way toward the 500 subscriber mark.  I just checked my stats and I am at 504 total subscribers – thank you to all my subscribers!

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