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A Few Quick Things, vol. 75

September 3, 2018 By Jeff 16 Comments

It’s as humid as the underside of a Walmart shopper’s backflaps today. I saw the birds flying in a V on Saturday, which means this hell is almost over. But it ain’t over yet. Sweet sainted mother of Sebastian Cabot. Summer is bullshit and it’s not going to go quietly.

Today is our 25th wedding anniversary if you can believe it. And I did something unorthodox and just wished Toney a happy anniversary face-to-face. You know, just here? Inside our house? I didn’t feel the need to use Facebook as a middleman on that deal. Since she’s, you know, in the same building as I am? Crazy, I know.

We’re going to Las Vegas on Sunday to celebrate. I’m not sure how we decided on Vegas, but we did. It should be fun, I hope. We’ve both been there, but never together. Neither of us are gamblers, so that’s not the draw. We just wanted something unusual that wasn’t going to break the bank. We’ll be gone for a week, and it’ll be mostly about gluttony. At least on my part. I’m going to eat my way right up to the cusp of a blackout, then wash it all down with copious amounts of craft beer. Just like I did on our honeymoon, a quarter century ago. Holy shit!

I might attempt to tip my way to a room upgrade. Have you ever been successful with something like that? I’m not usually that ballsy, but what do I care at this point? I think that city runs on tips and bribes, anyway. I’m going to try to tap into that shit, too. Let me know if you have any suggestions or stories on that front. Use the comments section. I need guidance.

Oh, and before I forget… No updates next week. The bunker is going dark. No podcasts either. However, I plan to document the trip in real time on Instagram, using the hashtag #JeffInVegas. So, feel free to follow me there, or just follow the hashtag itself. A handful of other Jeffs have used it in the past, but not very many. And the most recent is from 2017. So, I’m taking it over, dammit.

Speaking of the podcast, I finally uploaded the Monday episode, right here. And this is the description:

All of us have encountered various forks in the road during our lives, points where we were forced to make big decisions on how to proceed. And, if you’re like me, you’re convinced you made the wrong choice nearly every time. In this one I tell you about the unlikeliest of such forks and the way in which I botched it. I hope you enjoy it! Pass the beer nuts.

This one’s available at all the regular podcast places, as well as Patreon. I’ll do a Patreon-only Thursday show (and Surf Report update) this week, and then I’m on vacation until 9/17. The good news? I should have no shortage of stories when I return. Oh yeah.

Help me out with your tipping stories, won’t you? Do you have good success? I don’t think I’ve ever attempted it. Oh, I tip for superior (or even mediocre) service. But not to get an upgrade, or something like that. Do you have anything on this?

And I’m cutting this one short. It’s a holiday, as well as our anniversary, and I probably shouldn’t be in front of the computer. Right? By the way, a weird mailman just delivered a CD to me from Amazon. It was a tiny, tiny person with a backpack and a windbreaker with a hood. WTF? He/She was driving an official mail truck, and I don’t know what the hell’s going on… It’s Labor Day, for one thing. They deliver mail on national holidays now? And it’s a million degrees outside. Why the winter coat and luggage? The whole thing was bizarre. Here’s what they brought me. EASILY my favorite lesbian Australian indie rock singer. There’s not even a close second.

I’ll see you guys again on Thursday.

Have a great week, my friends!

Now playing in the bunker
Support us by doing your shopping on Amazon! In Canada? Here’s your link. Thank you, guys!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Man_Up says

    September 3, 2018 at 3:01 pm

    First?

    My Mom was a cheap tipper, so I used to wait until she got up from the table and I would add a few extra dollars.

    Reply
    • Root 66 says

      September 4, 2018 at 12:54 pm

      My granny would snap a quarter on the table like she was Diamond Jim Brady, or something! Yeah, one of us grand kids would always find a reason to sneak back to the table and leave a respectable tip! Hey, if 25 cents was good enough in 1955, it ought to be good enough now, right?!

      Reply
  2. Jim Britton says

    September 3, 2018 at 3:16 pm

    Happy anniversary!

    Reply
  3. Ognir says

    September 3, 2018 at 3:34 pm

    Those recruiters have a quota to fill. I recall they use to pick up someone I knew and take him out to eat. This was a few years after you. But the job situation was pretty much the same at the time. A lot of kids went in the military after high school.

    Reply
  4. Ognir says

    September 3, 2018 at 3:39 pm

    They still do that. I had to talk to some FBI guy about a kid who worked for me a few years ago.

    Reply
  5. Joe T says

    September 3, 2018 at 3:48 pm

    I’ve read stories where something as simple as giving the flight attendants a box of candy for them to enjoy, can ingratiate them into giving you an upgrade, if first or business class isn’t full. Or at the very least, a free drink or two.

    Reply
  6. SaucyDeb says

    September 3, 2018 at 4:06 pm

    My husband is forever getting us upgrades. I don’t think we’ve ever flown together without him giving that adorable smile and asking ever-so sweetly if they’d be so nice as to upgrade us. It probably helps that he’s cute and charming and flirts like a hooker. The upgrades totally make it worth all the waitresses and flight attendants throwing their whore-asses at him. My resting bitch face gets me nothing.

    Reply
  7. Tiff says

    September 3, 2018 at 4:48 pm

    Amazon deliveries happen on holidays and Sundays, and yes they use regular mail trucks.

    I’m well past the age when upgrades are offered (oh to be young again and get free stuff!), so now I just buy them, especially airplane tickets. That $40 to sit in the exit rows is totally worth it! A nice tip to the hotel’s concierge might get you tickets to a show, but because I have zero experience with Vegas anything I say is coming straight out of the wide part of my leggings. Some folks seems to know a lot about it though…’las vegas tip for upgrade’ Googlies yields 68 MILLION results. Surely you’ll have time before the end of the week to read a million or so, right?

    Reply
  8. Laura says

    September 3, 2018 at 6:17 pm

    Many years ago, (like 20+) when I was checking into the Mandalay Bay, I gave the person at the check-in counter a $20 and said that this was a rare and exciting vacation for me to be able to stay somewhere so nice. I asked if she could please give me a room with the best view, on the highest floor that she was able to. I think she felt sorry for me because we got a really high floor with an ah-mazing view, straight down the Strip. ??

    Reply
  9. Limey says

    September 3, 2018 at 6:53 pm

    I agree it’s baking hot here at the end of summer (got sunburn today) but at least Las Vegas will be cooler.

    I’ve been to Las Vegas 4 or 5 times, and I think once it was the hottest temperature I’ve ever experienced – 115 rings a bell in my memory. It was painfully hot, literally, it wasn’t nice to breathe. Enjoy!

    The Grand Canyon by helicopter is amazing. Worth the money.

    Reply
  10. Root 66 says

    September 4, 2018 at 1:01 pm

    I’ve never tried the ‘tipping for an upgrade’ thing. One reason is that I’m admittedly too cheap to throw down money with no guarantees that something good will come of it! But I did get an upgraded room once without even asking…the hotel was kind of slow and they bumped us up to a bigger suite. It was super nice!

    Reply
  11. madz1962 says

    September 4, 2018 at 3:00 pm

    I only got upgraded once – LAX to NY we got moved to Business Class which was wonderful. I never tried tipping for an upgrade, but I wouldn’t rule it out.

    Reply
  12. Ldub says

    September 5, 2018 at 4:08 pm

    I have been told that if you are dressed for success you are more likely to be offered an upgrade than if you are dressed like a Pennsylvanian. But you pretty much need to be a frequent flyer member to even be considered. When I flew to San Antonio we were offered a $50 upgrade to first class at check in for our Philly to Dallas leg… But that got us tagged SSSS on our tickets which you don’t want. On our return flight we were offered it on the short leg and took it and when we got to Dallas I had my hubby ask if there were any upgrades available and they said how would you pay for that and he said “cash” and they said welcome aboard David & Ldub after he handed over $100 bucks We got the first row, a thick comfy blanket, hot nuts, ‘snacks’ that were grilled salmon or chicken enchiladas and hot cookies that when we said no thanks the flight attendant said (AND I SWEAR THIS IS TRUE) “but I baked them just for you…” It was like a dream…

    As to hotels when I went to Vegas in 2003 we were at the MGM Emerald Tower over Thanksgiving weekend and the clerk said “we can upgrade you to a better room in a better building for $10 / night” and I was like “Done and done” when I went to London in 2009 we were offered an upgrade to Business level amenities at the Hilton for £50 / night and I took that too, free English breakfast and internet access.

    It never hurts to ask… when I don’t want to get home I always offer to be bumped

    Reply
  13. Christy Conlon says

    September 5, 2018 at 5:42 pm

    My husband and I visit Vegas rather regularly. He has some grand stories of getting his rooms upgraded during his previous marriage in his young and broke days. He would have his wife take off his wedding ring ahead of time. He would then check in to the hotel and state he was going to propose that night. Not only did he get upgraded he’s get a bottle of champagne sent to the room free of charge!!

    On another trip he reported that it was his anniversary and his wife loves Vegas but he is an alcoholic with a severe gambling addiction (neither of which are true) and he is just there for her. Again with the huge room upgrade and bottles of champagne!

    That was several years ago though and I’ve noticed less comps lately….but happy anniversary and good luck!

    Reply
  14. oldSidney says

    September 5, 2018 at 6:16 pm

    To have any tipping advice, I would actually have
    to leave my house. I got nothin…

    Reply
  15. squawvalleyskip says

    September 5, 2018 at 7:05 pm

    I don’t know anything about tipping in Las Vegas, because I only tip at restaurants. I’ve been to Las Vegas on several occasions, but except for the time I was put in a smoking room instead of the non-smoking room I reserved I’ve never been upgraded, and never asked.
    A friend from work has a daughter and son in law who regularly get comped three day weekends at some of the more expensive places on the strip. Seems they go and credit card chips (using their player’s card when they do) $1000 at a time, gamble a little and cash the remainder in for cash (without showing their players club cards), then go to another window and credit card another $1000 worth. Repeat as often as necessary. It makes them look like high rollers while they maybe lose at most $50 to $100 a night. And this at places where the rooms run in the multiples of hundreds a night.

    Reply

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