SurlyORama

Final update: ended up getting upgraded both AUS->JFK and JFK->LHR. We were #2 and #3 on both upgrade lists. First flight I put my wife in first and took coach, then got pulled up when the #1 (Concierge Key) didn’t board even after checking in. Then got put into business as soon as we got to the gate in DFW. Already upgraded for Madrid flight to DFW, so all-in-all, best I could have hoped for I think (DFW->AUS) would be icing, but a thin layer in comparison. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Coach DEV-uh-nee did pretty good there. Lol.

My wife doesn't like whiskey of any type. But even she would know that Eagle Rare would be a great choice, should she be otherwise. I guess I've talked about it enough, had her pick some up for me often enough, etc. (She also knows it's relatively inexpensive for how good it is, so she doesn't begrudge me the purchase, which is nice.)

That's funny you say that. I have bought several bottles of ER there, and always paid around $30 (have also bought the 1.75s for $65). Then last weekend I stopped by to pick one up, and was shocked to see the $40 when it rang up. I still bought it because it's still a good value for that price to me, but I was surprised.

These things are crack. Every time I go back to visit my mom, she makes sure to have a big container full of the singles. I end up eating the whole damn thing. A couple of those with a cup of coffee? Yes, please.

1. Oreos (original, not any of the abominations) 2. Keebler fudge stripes (how tiny a donut can you create by eating around the hole without breaking it?) 3. Lorna Doone

I guess I disagree here, but it may depend on the airport. I don’t like it when I have time to get a quick drink and/or snack, but it’s at one of the airports with the “$xx at a restaurant” deal, most of the time. Many times the place is crowded, so you’re waiting to be seated. The staff doesn’t really seem to relish the PP when it’s trotted out. And, since you can’t apply any of the credit to a top, you have to go out of pocket unless you are ok not tipping at all. It’s certainly better than nothing, but I prefer a regular lounge. Gift horses and all, I guess, since I get this for free with the CSR card. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sorry I was unclear. Outbound is AUS->JFK->LHR. All AA flights. I purchased the Premium Economy, didn't use miles. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Just an update. Ended up booking Premium Economy, leaving on a Thursday, return on a Tuesday. Then called up Exec Plat desk, and surprisingly, got confirmed upgrade on the return trip from Madrid->DFW (still economy DFW->AUS, but exit row, etc., so fine, and I often get upgraded on that leg anyway just due to status.) I was really surprised, because NOTHING I could find (AA website OR ExpertFlyer.com) showed any availability, and I check every day. Waitlisted on AUS->LHR, hopefully it comes through, the rep seemed to indicate it wasn't hopeless. So, although at this point I'm still in Premium Economy going east, I did get an upgrade to business coming back west, which is the longest flight of the whole trip (11 hrs). Bonus: when I called and she confirmed the availability, I got her to change my original reservation from Premium Economy to regular-old economy, then apply the upgrade (still gets you to business.) Saved a quick $300 just for asking, which I thought was cool. On the last question, I had enough miles to book 2 RT in business, but only with MileSaaver fares, which limit your options. All of them involved BA flights and terrible schedules, and additionally they would have cost me something like $1300 in fees to book my "free" flights. That, the crappy times, and having to use all those miles, I just couldn't see my way to doing that.

Had chicken cacciatore at a tiny Italian restaurant last night in Scottsdale. I'm on the Slow Carb Diet (look it up, I think it's great, and both myself and a friend have had a great experience with it, lasting well over a year now because we find it so maintainable.) Went there with a college swimmer needing to eat pasta or similar, so was generally not expecting to find a lot of good choices. However, ingredient list for CC looked fine (chicken, red wine, tomato, mushrooms, etc.), so I gave it a try. Have never had it. I'd say it's the best SCD-compliant meal I've had in a restaurant. Could be I just had a good one and others may not be as nice, but I was pleasantly surprised. Google shows LOTS of low-carb chicken cacciatore recipes, so I'm going to give one a try in the near future.

Like I said earlier, the Vollrath's are a good value, and I had several of them over time. However, in my personal experience the non-stick does not last as long as the Calphalons. At least, the Calphalons that I have used. Plus, when they start to stick, you get to replace them for free. Not even a shipping charge. I always thought that restaurants must use the Vollraths for 6 months and then replace, since they are so reasonably priced. When pretty new, they are pretty amazingly non-sticky.

I bought these for several years, and agree that these are great, great values. However, I switched over to Calphalon after I got a couple as gifts. Since getting them 7 or 8 years ago, once they begin to stick a bit, I take advantage of the lifetime warranty. Send them back and get brand new ones for free. Think I've done that once or twice on each of the pans. I don't abuse them, don't use metal spatulas, etc. But over time, if you use them enough (these are my daily go-to's), they eventually start to wear out.

Here's another example of where I don't know enough. When you say "cleared a week in advance", that means you did NOT see availability of SWU when booking, just booked economy (or premium economy), then called and REQUESTED a SWU? Or something else? Thanks for any info.

This is where I am.

I have AA Exec Plat status, but still a relative newby to making best use of it, and have never done so for something like I'm describing below. Trying to book flights for my wife and I for a trip to Europe in April. Need to fly outbound from Austin to London, then return from Madrid. I have 4 systemwide upgrades, and wondering how/when is best time to try and book flights so I can make use of them to go from economy to business. AA's booking site makes it a bit hard to find flights where the SU's are available. I signed up on ExpertFlyer.com and set up some alerts for upgrade availability on the dates I'm looking at. I guess I'm just unfamiliar with when/if use of the SU's will be possible? Taking my wife on her first trip to Europe, she's not comfortable on long flights, so getting into the business seats would be a big help. Thanks for any insights or advice.

Take the inner pot out and out it on the stove. Then you don't dirty 2 pots. I saw on Amazon where the support folks at the manufacturer say you shouldn't do that. Will it be ok? Maybe.

Love this thing so much we now have two (a 6-quart and a 3-quart). My wife rolled her eyes when I first told her about it, but once we got it and she used it, it's now her favorite way to make meals. So much so, that we bought a Mini so that she could make two things at once (the small one quite often used for rice.)

Oops, I see your point. Looks like a max of 4 SEC teams scheduled 2 P5 opponents, not 1 as I said. I was confused because you didn't include the part of my post that was flat-out wrong. Sorry about that. Looks like 1 SEC school scheduled 0 P5, 9 scheduled 1, and 4 scheduled 2 (if you count Notre Dame and BYU). Regardless, I think the overall point that very few SEC schools play against 10 P5 schools is relevant. Their records are definitely better because of this. Additionally, overall the conference probably gets 6-7 fewer total losses by the fact that they only play 8 conference games, since most of those games are replaced by lower-tier opponents.

And? It's because they only have 8 conference games. That's the point. 8 conference games allows them to pad their schedule with weaker opponents, inflating their records to support their desired narrative.

Yeah, agreed. But that's why I said "at least" they can't push another conference champion out in favor of an SECSECSEC non-champion if they did this. A conference is free to schedule how they like, and determine their champion how they like, and that champion makes the playoff.

But only 4 (at max) SEC teams plays a P5 non-con opponent, while almost every team in the Big 12 does.

Or, and call me crazy, have a playoff system where P5 conference champions are automatically admitted. That way, conferences at least can’t use these tactics to game an extra team in over another champion. Just quit whining that “it’s a travesty if a 3-loss champion” gets in because they “don’t deserve to.” As above shows, one three loss record is not necessarily like another. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

For next year, seems similar: Is the ACC starting to follow a similar scheduling strategy?

Too lazy to find the original, and it's not the exact same stat, but a tweet from "Pick Six Previews" showed that the SEC non-conference schedule (all teams in the SEC combined) had four FCS opponents for every P5 opponent. So, a 4:1 ratio in favor of the weaker opponents. Big 12 was effectively a 1:1 ratio, and the B1G was 1:2. Cannot recall ACC or PAC, off the top of my head.