Today is another travel day to Maui. We had to return the car by 12 noon so we had to occupy ourselves in the morning. Since we packed the night before we got up and took our time sipping our huge stock of Lion coffee that we purchased earlier in the week.
After some relaxation we walked to the mall which was right around the corner. Jonathan and Alex were able to locate a EB Game store and and arcade so we were entertained for a few hours. Around 11pm we checked out and headed to the airport.
Everything went smooth checking in the car and getting to the gate. It seemed as though the inter island flight terminal was pretty lax on security. We sat at the gate until our 4:50pm flight. The kids watched videos and Alex got a Wall-e coloring book.
The flight to Maui was short. Our luggage had made it there on an earlier flight as it was sitting over to the side when we arrived. We then headed over to the Alamo rental center. The attendant informed us that our reservation had been canceled. Although we had canceled an earlier reservation for a last minute $179 deal we had not canceled the more recent one. Obviously their system had messed up our 1st cancellation. The attendant acted annoyed and didn't seem like she was going to help us. I just persisted and we got the $179 rate.
We were on our way to the Kalapani Beach Club. We arrived got checked in and headed down for a meal. By this time it was almost 8pm. The bar had a cheesy male/female singing duo. Anne said it reminded her of the Saturday night skit with Will Farrell. I didn't think it was that bad. They started talking to the kids and asking questions. That's when the one way shouting started and we had to reel them in. Luckily the finished at 8pm. The male singer came over and said "Good luck when the become teenagers. It's a good thing you are young". I didn't know what to think of that.
Off to bed. Why does every travel day seem to take a day even when the flight is only one hour?
Monday, June 23, 2008
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Hawaii Vacation 2008 - Day 9
Ok, so I'm falling behind on blogging. I'm writing this two days late at this point.
Today we got up and packed lunched and headed towards the north shore. The drive today was not as scenic as yesterday. It took us about 50 minutes to get there. The first beach we stopped at was three tables. We parked about 100 yards from the beach in an alternate parking lot. As we started trekking towards the beach I noticed a public bathroom on the right. I decided to swing in before getting to the beach. As I turned the corner the smell of urine hit me in the face and there was 4 nasty looking homeless folks drinking 40's. It was uncomfortable and I walked away very quickly.
The beach had very large crystals and stuck to everything. The snorkeling was not that great and we didn't stay very long. We didn't feel our things were safe on the beach. We packed up and headed over to another larger beach. I can't remember the name of it now but it was only 1/4 mile south of where we just were. This beach was much larger and had lifeguards. The beach dropped off very quickly but the water was very calm. We stayed there until about 2pm and then we headed back. The drive home took us quite a while as we hit some rush hour traffic while getting back into Waikiki beach.
We cleaned up again and headed back towards the high-end shopping district. We had plans to go to the world famous Duke's. Duke was a famous Hawaiian Olympic surfer. We had to wait about 40 minutes for the mean but it was worth it. One of the Ahi appetizers that we ordered was one of the best I have ever had in my life. mmmmmmm. Anne got a tropical itch drink that came with a full size back scratcher. That was a hit with kids.
We started back to the fireworks at the Sheraton but we were crossing Fort DeRussy when they started. Needless to say both kids through a fit.
Back to the room and to sleep around 11pm.
I think we had enough of Waikiki living. Tomorrow it is travel day to Maui.
Today we got up and packed lunched and headed towards the north shore. The drive today was not as scenic as yesterday. It took us about 50 minutes to get there. The first beach we stopped at was three tables. We parked about 100 yards from the beach in an alternate parking lot. As we started trekking towards the beach I noticed a public bathroom on the right. I decided to swing in before getting to the beach. As I turned the corner the smell of urine hit me in the face and there was 4 nasty looking homeless folks drinking 40's. It was uncomfortable and I walked away very quickly.
The beach had very large crystals and stuck to everything. The snorkeling was not that great and we didn't stay very long. We didn't feel our things were safe on the beach. We packed up and headed over to another larger beach. I can't remember the name of it now but it was only 1/4 mile south of where we just were. This beach was much larger and had lifeguards. The beach dropped off very quickly but the water was very calm. We stayed there until about 2pm and then we headed back. The drive home took us quite a while as we hit some rush hour traffic while getting back into Waikiki beach.
We cleaned up again and headed back towards the high-end shopping district. We had plans to go to the world famous Duke's. Duke was a famous Hawaiian Olympic surfer. We had to wait about 40 minutes for the mean but it was worth it. One of the Ahi appetizers that we ordered was one of the best I have ever had in my life. mmmmmmm. Anne got a tropical itch drink that came with a full size back scratcher. That was a hit with kids.
We started back to the fireworks at the Sheraton but we were crossing Fort DeRussy when they started. Needless to say both kids through a fit.
Back to the room and to sleep around 11pm.
I think we had enough of Waikiki living. Tomorrow it is travel day to Maui.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Hawaii Vacation 2008 - Day 8
6:00am... wake up time! The sounds of construction trucks backing up was the alarm clock this morning, They sure start work early. I guess it is to avoid the heat.
We took our time this morning and head out of the room around 9:00am for the north shores. We first headed toward Kailua through the mountain pass on hwy 61. What an incredible drive! Once we got near the beach we stopped at the first small parking lot we saw. We headed for the beach with our gear. It was a small path with a bath house shaded by palm trees. As we emerged on the beach the view was spectacular. The beach wrapped left and right for miles. The beach was not very crowded. There were lots children in the mildly gentle surf. The kids played in the water for hours. It was a lot of fun.
We left around 2pm in search of some more Hawaiian snow balls. GPS took us right to one of the best listed in our guide book. From there we started towards north beach but the GPS said we would not get there until 4pm. As we looked back Jonathan was asleep and Alex said he wanted to head home. So we diverted and drove back across the H3 through another mountain pass. The weather on the north side was cloudy and gray and when we emerged from the tunnel on the south side it was sunny.
After we got back to the room we cleaned ourselves up and headed out for dinner. We walked through the high-end shopping district so the Sansei restaurant. It was about a mile walk. The food was very good. Jonathan ate way too much expensive sushi. After dinner we walked back along the beach while the kids complained the whole way.
We stayed up later until about 10pm until falling asleep. The plan for tomorrow is the North shore.
We took our time this morning and head out of the room around 9:00am for the north shores. We first headed toward Kailua through the mountain pass on hwy 61. What an incredible drive! Once we got near the beach we stopped at the first small parking lot we saw. We headed for the beach with our gear. It was a small path with a bath house shaded by palm trees. As we emerged on the beach the view was spectacular. The beach wrapped left and right for miles. The beach was not very crowded. There were lots children in the mildly gentle surf. The kids played in the water for hours. It was a lot of fun.
We left around 2pm in search of some more Hawaiian snow balls. GPS took us right to one of the best listed in our guide book. From there we started towards north beach but the GPS said we would not get there until 4pm. As we looked back Jonathan was asleep and Alex said he wanted to head home. So we diverted and drove back across the H3 through another mountain pass. The weather on the north side was cloudy and gray and when we emerged from the tunnel on the south side it was sunny.
After we got back to the room we cleaned ourselves up and headed out for dinner. We walked through the high-end shopping district so the Sansei restaurant. It was about a mile walk. The food was very good. Jonathan ate way too much expensive sushi. After dinner we walked back along the beach while the kids complained the whole way.
We stayed up later until about 10pm until falling asleep. The plan for tomorrow is the North shore.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Hawaii Vacation 2008 - Day 7
We woke up this morning at 5:30am but this time on purpose. We wanted to get to Diamond Head early to beat the heat and the crowds. We can see the top of the point from our room and it looked clear.
We arrived at the base of the mountain and started our accent at 7:03am. We were only a few hundred yards on the paved path before the kids started complaining. We had to coax them along the entire way. It was a really cool hike winding up the side of the hill. The tunnel through the side of the hill with the lighted path was a fun contrast. We drank 3 bottles of water on the way up mostly because of the sun. The climb was not that bad at all but it is hot. Once we climbed the spiral staircase embeded in the mountain to the peak you had to squat under a large slab to emerge on the absolute summit. It was very spectacular. I don't think pictures will do it justice. We'll see.
The decent was easy but still Jonathan complained the whole way down. We had to bride that they would get treats when we reached the bottom of the hill. The way I see it, if a bride eliminates the complaints then it's worth it. We got more snowballs at the bottom concession stand. Everyone was happy.
We continued on to Hanauma Bay to snorkel. We had to wait in a line to get our tickets and a time to watch the informational movie. It took us about an hour to get in. The bay is actually a crater that the ocean has overflowed into over time. There are tons of fish but the corral is very low and more like and algae on the rocks, Jonathan did very well with the snorkeling but Alex had more problems with it. He wanted to stop and stand up and they didn't want you standing on the corral. We saw about 6-7 different varieties of fish. Alex had a freak out on the beach when Anne tried to put spray sun screen on his neck. The day would not be complete without an autism moment. People sitting around us got up and left. It's upsetting that we can't even go one day without an incident. *sigh*
We returned home. When I got in the room I realized that I had left the charger for the new Canon camera in the room at the airport hotel. I used the computer and google maps to look up and Ritz Camera near our hotel. I called and they had a charger for $29, I walked over and picked it up. Problem solved!
We went to dinner at Sam Choi's Seafood resturant and brew pub. Anne and I both had fresh catch of the day. It was fantastic. I got the beer sampler's which included 6 3oz samplers of all the beers made on site. That was delicious as well. I would definitely go to this one again.
One more trip to Walmart for snacks and it was back home. Alex had a incident at Walmart that made me do a lot of thinking about what it really means to have a non-physical disability. Alex walked up to a customer service rep and pointed at a man standing at the counter who was missing his hand and said, "Excuse, me. Where is his hand." The employee said, "That's not very nice now go back to your Dad". So it made me think, this is a classic symptom of his autism disability; his inability to understand why asking a question would hurt someone's feelings. Yet, he is not viewed as having a disability but simply a rude little boy. The irony is sad and made me cry.
We returned to the room and the kids were out by 9pm. I made it until 10pm and Anne toughed it out reading the newspaper until 11pm. zzzzzzzzzz
We arrived at the base of the mountain and started our accent at 7:03am. We were only a few hundred yards on the paved path before the kids started complaining. We had to coax them along the entire way. It was a really cool hike winding up the side of the hill. The tunnel through the side of the hill with the lighted path was a fun contrast. We drank 3 bottles of water on the way up mostly because of the sun. The climb was not that bad at all but it is hot. Once we climbed the spiral staircase embeded in the mountain to the peak you had to squat under a large slab to emerge on the absolute summit. It was very spectacular. I don't think pictures will do it justice. We'll see.
The decent was easy but still Jonathan complained the whole way down. We had to bride that they would get treats when we reached the bottom of the hill. The way I see it, if a bride eliminates the complaints then it's worth it. We got more snowballs at the bottom concession stand. Everyone was happy.
We continued on to Hanauma Bay to snorkel. We had to wait in a line to get our tickets and a time to watch the informational movie. It took us about an hour to get in. The bay is actually a crater that the ocean has overflowed into over time. There are tons of fish but the corral is very low and more like and algae on the rocks, Jonathan did very well with the snorkeling but Alex had more problems with it. He wanted to stop and stand up and they didn't want you standing on the corral. We saw about 6-7 different varieties of fish. Alex had a freak out on the beach when Anne tried to put spray sun screen on his neck. The day would not be complete without an autism moment. People sitting around us got up and left. It's upsetting that we can't even go one day without an incident. *sigh*
We returned home. When I got in the room I realized that I had left the charger for the new Canon camera in the room at the airport hotel. I used the computer and google maps to look up and Ritz Camera near our hotel. I called and they had a charger for $29, I walked over and picked it up. Problem solved!
We went to dinner at Sam Choi's Seafood resturant and brew pub. Anne and I both had fresh catch of the day. It was fantastic. I got the beer sampler's which included 6 3oz samplers of all the beers made on site. That was delicious as well. I would definitely go to this one again.
One more trip to Walmart for snacks and it was back home. Alex had a incident at Walmart that made me do a lot of thinking about what it really means to have a non-physical disability. Alex walked up to a customer service rep and pointed at a man standing at the counter who was missing his hand and said, "Excuse, me. Where is his hand." The employee said, "That's not very nice now go back to your Dad". So it made me think, this is a classic symptom of his autism disability; his inability to understand why asking a question would hurt someone's feelings. Yet, he is not viewed as having a disability but simply a rude little boy. The irony is sad and made me cry.
We returned to the room and the kids were out by 9pm. I made it until 10pm and Anne toughed it out reading the newspaper until 11pm. zzzzzzzzzz
Hawaii Vacation 2008 - Day 6
We were up early again. We still are about 1 1/2 hours off normal sleep time. Today was overcast so we went for a ride to the punchbowl to check out the memorial. We also drove around and found Hilo Hattie, a store that features all sorts of Hawaiian shirts. We all picked up a flowered print shirt. The kids didn't last long in the store so we had to hit the snowball stand outside. We were very pleased with the Hawaiian snowballs! The ice was shaved very fine.
After the store we headed back and found Walmart. We picked up various items for our kitchen as well as beach items. We picked up an umbrella and a flat folding beach chair for $10 each. We found out the day before that renting two chairs and an umbrella for 1 day on the beach was $54. Yikes!
We went to the beach later in the afternoon and I watched the end of the Celtics/Lakers game at a beach side bar. We came back to the room and had some frozen pizzas from WalMart, watched some TV, We only made it to about 9PM. It seems to get a little better each night. We are starting to come to the realization that the trip home is going to be a nightmare when it comes to the time shift.
Aloha!
After the store we headed back and found Walmart. We picked up various items for our kitchen as well as beach items. We picked up an umbrella and a flat folding beach chair for $10 each. We found out the day before that renting two chairs and an umbrella for 1 day on the beach was $54. Yikes!
We went to the beach later in the afternoon and I watched the end of the Celtics/Lakers game at a beach side bar. We came back to the room and had some frozen pizzas from WalMart, watched some TV, We only made it to about 9PM. It seems to get a little better each night. We are starting to come to the realization that the trip home is going to be a nightmare when it comes to the time shift.
Aloha!
Hawaii Vacation 2008 - Day 5
With iPods and various sundry electronics charged we were ready for another day of travel. We got up at 5:30am and began our trek to LAX. We arrived at the terminal at 6:05am and was surprised to see the hustle and bustle at such an early hour of the morning. Our flight was 8:40am and the recommended time to arrive at the airport was 3 hours before your flight. I now see why. The security line was poorly organized, It was a two stage security. I agree it was thorough but it was surly inefficient.
The flight went well. We were flying on Hawaiian Airlines. Our flight was on time but we had to wait a while for our car at Budget as it was not ready on time. We drove to Waikiki beach and our room was ready at the Aqua Palms resort early at around 1 pm. The kids were very excited after traveling for the last 6 1/2 hours. We suited up and headed to the beach.
As we were only 1 block from the beach, we headed across the street and through the open air areas of the Sheraton hotel. We reached the beach and the kids dove into the surf. We had arrived!
After 3 hours or so we heard music coming from a beach side bar at the Sheraton. We headed over and sat down for a dinner while listening to a Hawaiian band playing all Bob Marley songs. After a few hours and a $110 bill we headed back to the room,
We didn't make it past 8:00pm. Good night.
The flight went well. We were flying on Hawaiian Airlines. Our flight was on time but we had to wait a while for our car at Budget as it was not ready on time. We drove to Waikiki beach and our room was ready at the Aqua Palms resort early at around 1 pm. The kids were very excited after traveling for the last 6 1/2 hours. We suited up and headed to the beach.
As we were only 1 block from the beach, we headed across the street and through the open air areas of the Sheraton hotel. We reached the beach and the kids dove into the surf. We had arrived!
After 3 hours or so we heard music coming from a beach side bar at the Sheraton. We headed over and sat down for a dinner while listening to a Hawaiian band playing all Bob Marley songs. After a few hours and a $110 bill we headed back to the room,
We didn't make it past 8:00pm. Good night.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Hawaii Vacation 2008 - Day 4
This morning was even better as far as w up went. We woke up around 7:30pm and the kids were still snoring away. Yes, Alex as snoring. He was also making poping sounds which he picked up from the Disney characters. It was the sound that they would make to simulate kissing. Pop, Pop! It was cute.
We headed to downtown Disney to visit some of the stores and browse for some keepsakes. The kids really liked the Lego store. They had so many unique kits that we have never seen before. After an hour or so we headed back to the car. We used the rented GPS to navigate to Craig's house in
We had a nice visit with the 3 C's. Jonathan beat Craig in Wii bowling. I really thought we could avoid video games for the next 2 1/2 weeks but apparently not. I really wanted to watch the US Open but I was destined to read about it in the paper tomorrow. Craig had a cool electronic drum set that we will have to consider for Jonathan rather than a full drum set. Their dogs Lucky and Bella were very nice. The kids interacted with them nice. It gave us more confidence that the kids would enjoy a family pet. We left Craigs around 6pm and headed back to the Sheraton at the LAX airport.
I dropped the family off and headed back to the Hertz rental center. It was about 1.5 miles from the hotel so I just put on my running shoes and shorts and ran back to the hotel. Ok, so I have not been keeping up on my half marathon training. Well, actually I have since my training really doesn't start until July. I just created my own schedule that extended into June.
When I returned to the room the family was not there. I knew they would be by the pool. So I headed down to the pool through the sheik black and shiney bar area. As I approached the doors I heard dance and techo music playing. It looked like it was a private party but then I saw Anne sitting in a chair by the pool. As I entered the pool area I saw black cabanas with flowing drapes and a DJ spinning records by the pools. There was also large BBQ pits with a chef cooking ribs and sausages. I had to yell in Anne's ear, "What is going on? A Party?" She said I don't know. I headed into the bar and got a drink and asked the bar tender was going on? He said, "Oh we do this sort of happy hour every Sunday". After I returned to Anne with our drinks I noticed that there was a flat screen TV inside the black cabanas where lots of young people were lounging. Anne said she felt like she was in a Entourage episode. She said, "This is so LA" I had to agree.
After the pool we packed up and headed back up to the room to get to an early bed time for long flight to Hawaii in the morning.
Another successful day!
We headed to downtown Disney to visit some of the stores and browse for some keepsakes. The kids really liked the Lego store. They had so many unique kits that we have never seen before. After an hour or so we headed back to the car. We used the rented GPS to navigate to Craig's house in
We had a nice visit with the 3 C's. Jonathan beat Craig in Wii bowling. I really thought we could avoid video games for the next 2 1/2 weeks but apparently not. I really wanted to watch the US Open but I was destined to read about it in the paper tomorrow. Craig had a cool electronic drum set that we will have to consider for Jonathan rather than a full drum set. Their dogs Lucky and Bella were very nice. The kids interacted with them nice. It gave us more confidence that the kids would enjoy a family pet. We left Craigs around 6pm and headed back to the Sheraton at the LAX airport.
I dropped the family off and headed back to the Hertz rental center. It was about 1.5 miles from the hotel so I just put on my running shoes and shorts and ran back to the hotel. Ok, so I have not been keeping up on my half marathon training. Well, actually I have since my training really doesn't start until July. I just created my own schedule that extended into June.
When I returned to the room the family was not there. I knew they would be by the pool. So I headed down to the pool through the sheik black and shiney bar area. As I approached the doors I heard dance and techo music playing. It looked like it was a private party but then I saw Anne sitting in a chair by the pool. As I entered the pool area I saw black cabanas with flowing drapes and a DJ spinning records by the pools. There was also large BBQ pits with a chef cooking ribs and sausages. I had to yell in Anne's ear, "What is going on? A Party?" She said I don't know. I headed into the bar and got a drink and asked the bar tender was going on? He said, "Oh we do this sort of happy hour every Sunday". After I returned to Anne with our drinks I noticed that there was a flat screen TV inside the black cabanas where lots of young people were lounging. Anne said she felt like she was in a Entourage episode. She said, "This is so LA" I had to agree.
After the pool we packed up and headed back up to the room to get to an early bed time for long flight to Hawaii in the morning.
Another successful day!
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Hawaii Vacation 2008 - Day 3
Today was day 2 and our last day at the parks. The kids got up around 6:00am which was much more acceptable. They are starting to adjust to the time change. We walked through Downtown Disney and had breakfast at a small walk in breakfast bistro. It was expensive but good.
We went into Disneyland again to finish up some of the rides that we did not get to the day before. We went to Fantasyland and rode all the rides in that area. We also did some rides in Toon town that Jonathan did not get to see because we went to California Adventure yesterday.
Alex and Jonathan wanted to see the Jedi Training Academy again and Alex wanted to see if he could get picked. We got to the area early and sat right up near the front in hopes of being picked. We were concerned if Alex would follow directions if picked. Sure enough, he was one of the 3rd or 4th kids picked. He jumped up so excited and ran up on the stage. He was barely standing on his assigned circle because he was jumping up and down. What they do during the show is give the kids robes and light sabers and tell them they are padawans in training to be Jedis. Then they instruct them on how to attack. Then Darth Vader and Darth Maul come out and the kids are split into two lines to pretend to fight them. Darth Vader was on the stage and Darth Maul in front of the stage. Alex was the first to attack Darth Maul. He did a great job and looked like he was having fun. After all the kids had a turn they did some more group things and then the show was over. The cast member MCing the show was funny. He would say things as the kids were fighting Darth Vader such as "Don't be afraid. He's just like Santa Clause, only Evil!" After the show was over all the kids got papers that were diplomas for graduating from the Jedi Academy. As we started to walk away talking about what a great job Alex did he got very angry and grabbed the diploma paper and ripped it up. We had to stop and talk and try to calm him down. It took almost and hour to let it go.
After that fun, we headed over to California Adventure. We hid the midway section and rode most of the rides. Alex was very disappointed that the Toy Story Midway Mania was open but they were not letting in the general public. It was a tease that haunted him the rest of day. He talked about it off and on. We did stand for quite a while and listen to the Mr. Potato head tell jokes and make funny comments about us. We then rode the California Screamin' Alex was happy and had a great time on the ride even though he was a little nervous at first.
We went into the "Crush turtle talk" show and Alex and Jonathan ran ahead and sat down on the floor way up near the front on the opposite side from where we were sitting. I had a feeling that would not be a good idea but I let it go. Of course as soon as the MC began the show, Alex sprung up and ran up to him and started talking. I instinctively approached but the MC waved me off and said, "That's OK. He's going to be my helper" I thought, OK good luck. He ended up taking the microphone from the guy and asking appropriate questions about the Crush tank/screen. It seemed to be going ok. He returned to his seat when asked. Then during the show, Crush was calling on kids and he called on child in the front near where Alex was sitting. As the MC approached the child Alex once again jumped up and grabbed the microphone. They MC again, was very patient and let him ask his question of Crush. Unfortunately it was not a question but more of a broken statement about the Indiana Jones ride from the day before. Crush responded with a witty response of "The answer to your question is .... True" Everyone laughed. I was disappointed because the child that the MC was heading towards never got to ask his question. I can only imagine what the other parents were thinking at that point. The show ended and we started to walk out. As we passed the MC at the exit Alex once again tried to grab the microphone and talk into it. The MC said "He's going to be performer one day" I was very impressed the MC was so calm and accommodating.
The Aladin show was a real hit at the end of the day. We left the park around 6:00pm walking out through a side entrance into the Californian hotel. We got a reservation buzzer to eat dinner at a cafe restaurant in the hotel and sat in the great hall and had some adult beverages. That was a nice moment. Dinner was very good. Jonathan got to make his own pizza and Alex had the standard Mac-N-Cheese.
We headed back to the room after dinner and put on our suits. Anne was not feeling well so she hung back in the room while Jonathan and I headed to the pool. Jonathan wanted to get in some slide time. Anne and Alex came down in a while and we hung out for a while. When we got back to the room, a little after 9pm, we were all exhausted and fell asleep before 10pm.
All in all it was a good day.
We went into Disneyland again to finish up some of the rides that we did not get to the day before. We went to Fantasyland and rode all the rides in that area. We also did some rides in Toon town that Jonathan did not get to see because we went to California Adventure yesterday.
Alex and Jonathan wanted to see the Jedi Training Academy again and Alex wanted to see if he could get picked. We got to the area early and sat right up near the front in hopes of being picked. We were concerned if Alex would follow directions if picked. Sure enough, he was one of the 3rd or 4th kids picked. He jumped up so excited and ran up on the stage. He was barely standing on his assigned circle because he was jumping up and down. What they do during the show is give the kids robes and light sabers and tell them they are padawans in training to be Jedis. Then they instruct them on how to attack. Then Darth Vader and Darth Maul come out and the kids are split into two lines to pretend to fight them. Darth Vader was on the stage and Darth Maul in front of the stage. Alex was the first to attack Darth Maul. He did a great job and looked like he was having fun. After all the kids had a turn they did some more group things and then the show was over. The cast member MCing the show was funny. He would say things as the kids were fighting Darth Vader such as "Don't be afraid. He's just like Santa Clause, only Evil!" After the show was over all the kids got papers that were diplomas for graduating from the Jedi Academy. As we started to walk away talking about what a great job Alex did he got very angry and grabbed the diploma paper and ripped it up. We had to stop and talk and try to calm him down. It took almost and hour to let it go.
After that fun, we headed over to California Adventure. We hid the midway section and rode most of the rides. Alex was very disappointed that the Toy Story Midway Mania was open but they were not letting in the general public. It was a tease that haunted him the rest of day. He talked about it off and on. We did stand for quite a while and listen to the Mr. Potato head tell jokes and make funny comments about us. We then rode the California Screamin' Alex was happy and had a great time on the ride even though he was a little nervous at first.
We went into the "Crush turtle talk" show and Alex and Jonathan ran ahead and sat down on the floor way up near the front on the opposite side from where we were sitting. I had a feeling that would not be a good idea but I let it go. Of course as soon as the MC began the show, Alex sprung up and ran up to him and started talking. I instinctively approached but the MC waved me off and said, "That's OK. He's going to be my helper" I thought, OK good luck. He ended up taking the microphone from the guy and asking appropriate questions about the Crush tank/screen. It seemed to be going ok. He returned to his seat when asked. Then during the show, Crush was calling on kids and he called on child in the front near where Alex was sitting. As the MC approached the child Alex once again jumped up and grabbed the microphone. They MC again, was very patient and let him ask his question of Crush. Unfortunately it was not a question but more of a broken statement about the Indiana Jones ride from the day before. Crush responded with a witty response of "The answer to your question is .... True" Everyone laughed. I was disappointed because the child that the MC was heading towards never got to ask his question. I can only imagine what the other parents were thinking at that point. The show ended and we started to walk out. As we passed the MC at the exit Alex once again tried to grab the microphone and talk into it. The MC said "He's going to be performer one day" I was very impressed the MC was so calm and accommodating.
The Aladin show was a real hit at the end of the day. We left the park around 6:00pm walking out through a side entrance into the Californian hotel. We got a reservation buzzer to eat dinner at a cafe restaurant in the hotel and sat in the great hall and had some adult beverages. That was a nice moment. Dinner was very good. Jonathan got to make his own pizza and Alex had the standard Mac-N-Cheese.
We headed back to the room after dinner and put on our suits. Anne was not feeling well so she hung back in the room while Jonathan and I headed to the pool. Jonathan wanted to get in some slide time. Anne and Alex came down in a while and we hung out for a while. When we got back to the room, a little after 9pm, we were all exhausted and fell asleep before 10pm.
All in all it was a good day.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Hawaii Vacation 2008 - Day 2
As expected Alex woke up at 4:45am and started talking. We told him we could not get up until 5:30am and he sat and stared at the digital clock calling out a each new minute passed. If we were not so tiered it would have been cute. We went in search of breakfast and walked into "Goofy's Kitchen". It was a character breakfast but because it was so early they were able to seat us right away. It was going to be a $110 breakfast but the kids seemed to excited about it that we went for it. The food was good. They had tons of breakfast items as well as some lunch items for the kids (hot dogs and chicken fingers) as well as tons of dessert items. I have to say the service was not as good as other meals or character breakfasts we have attended at Disney World. Alex and Jonathan were having fun interacting with Goofy, Chip and Blu (from the Jungle book). Alex was talking to all the characters telling them all sorts of storys about them. When Alice from "Alice in Wonderland" appeared at our table, Alex had a lot of problems looking at her and conversing. His speech became very broken. Anne and I realized it was because she was not hidden behind a mask and it was very apparent he was having a problem. At some point during the conversation he said something that prompted the actor to pretend to cry and Alex immediately started to get upset and we had to talk him down. The meal ended and we all had a good time. I did have to search out the waiter to request more coffee which was a pain.
We then walked through Downtown Disney and entered the Disneyland Park at 9:10am. After we got through the gates I asked an employee where guest services was located and she told me we had to go back out through the entrance gates. That did not sound correct so we proceeded ahead and found it located in the town hall much like the Magic Kingdom except on the other side of the circle. I went in to try and get a pass so Alex would not have to stand in the lines. We had a letter from his doctor requesting that he not have to stand in the lines due to his disability. They issued us a pass and we headed into the park. We first went to Tomorrowland. The rides were not crowded this early so we did not use the pass. After about 2-3 rides it started to get crowded so we tried to use the pass on the Autopia (car rides) and the cast member said it was not the right kind of pass. The one we had did not allow us to skip the lines because it was only for wheelchair assessable rides. She instructed us to go back to the guest services and request a pass with a red arrow. She was nice and let us pass the line. After that I went to the front of the park and they issued me a new pass. While I was standing talking to cast member a young Asian man ran up in a frantic moment and started yelling "You have to help me!, I've lost somebody in the park!" The cast member said "Sir, you will have to calm down. How old is this person that you lost". "23" the Asian young man responded. The cast member calmly responded with "There is nothing that we can do at this time. If she approaches any cast member they will direct her to come to this office" That did not satisfy the man. "No, you don't understand. This is an emergency. I'm not sure she is in the right state of mind". At this point, I'm just standing to the side observing but the cast member was still filling out the pass for me. He handed it to me as the argument continued and I slipped out the door.
We rode some more rides and around 12:30 we meet Chris, Craig and Catlin. We continued to have fun the rest of the day. The popular rides for Alex was Space Mountain, and the Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye. Jonathan's favorite rides was Space Mountain, the California Screamin' and the Peach (a swing ride).
The day ended with fireworks in front of the castle. The castle is so small it looks strange to me. The fireworks were very good. I think I liked them more that the fireworks at the Magic Kingdom at Disney World.
Overall, we had a great day and a lot of fun. The experience was surreal as I felt like I was in Orlando but then I would see differences and it would remind me where we were. I also noticed small details about the park that were different. For one, the parks did not seem as clean. Also, we encountered some rowdy teenagers at various points. Overall, I would say that Disneyland is certainly not at the same quality level as Disney World.
Tomorrow... another day at the parks.
We then walked through Downtown Disney and entered the Disneyland Park at 9:10am. After we got through the gates I asked an employee where guest services was located and she told me we had to go back out through the entrance gates. That did not sound correct so we proceeded ahead and found it located in the town hall much like the Magic Kingdom except on the other side of the circle. I went in to try and get a pass so Alex would not have to stand in the lines. We had a letter from his doctor requesting that he not have to stand in the lines due to his disability. They issued us a pass and we headed into the park. We first went to Tomorrowland. The rides were not crowded this early so we did not use the pass. After about 2-3 rides it started to get crowded so we tried to use the pass on the Autopia (car rides) and the cast member said it was not the right kind of pass. The one we had did not allow us to skip the lines because it was only for wheelchair assessable rides. She instructed us to go back to the guest services and request a pass with a red arrow. She was nice and let us pass the line. After that I went to the front of the park and they issued me a new pass. While I was standing talking to cast member a young Asian man ran up in a frantic moment and started yelling "You have to help me!, I've lost somebody in the park!" The cast member said "Sir, you will have to calm down. How old is this person that you lost". "23" the Asian young man responded. The cast member calmly responded with "There is nothing that we can do at this time. If she approaches any cast member they will direct her to come to this office" That did not satisfy the man. "No, you don't understand. This is an emergency. I'm not sure she is in the right state of mind". At this point, I'm just standing to the side observing but the cast member was still filling out the pass for me. He handed it to me as the argument continued and I slipped out the door.
We rode some more rides and around 12:30 we meet Chris, Craig and Catlin. We continued to have fun the rest of the day. The popular rides for Alex was Space Mountain, and the Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye. Jonathan's favorite rides was Space Mountain, the California Screamin' and the Peach (a swing ride).
The day ended with fireworks in front of the castle. The castle is so small it looks strange to me. The fireworks were very good. I think I liked them more that the fireworks at the Magic Kingdom at Disney World.
Overall, we had a great day and a lot of fun. The experience was surreal as I felt like I was in Orlando but then I would see differences and it would remind me where we were. I also noticed small details about the park that were different. For one, the parks did not seem as clean. Also, we encountered some rowdy teenagers at various points. Overall, I would say that Disneyland is certainly not at the same quality level as Disney World.
Tomorrow... another day at the parks.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Hawaii Vacation 2008 - Day 1
Today was the first day of our 17 day Hawaii vacation so naturally it was a travel day. We have a total of six pieces of luggage with 2 carry on bags. We need to coordinate how we were going to move all the luggage. We arrived at BWI early after a rocky start leaving home. We had to return to get some food we packed in a carry on cooler. We had to wait around for almost 2 hours before our flight arrived. The check-in and security in the Southwest terminal was very efficient.
We boarded a plane at 11:20am and traveled to Los Angeles through Phenoix, Az. The flight took longer than scheduled at about 5 1/2 hours. Alex had a some trouble with his right ear as we were descending into Pheonix to land. He made quite a scene. Generally the kids did pretty well on the flight considering how long it was. I had loaded up both our iPod Nanos with tons of movies so the kids were pretty well entertained until the batteries died. "Back to the Future" was very popular!
We arrived in LA and had to take a shuttle to the Hertz rental car facility. After waiting in another line for about 25 minutes, I was able to upgrade to a larger vehicle but when I went on the lot to find the car it was not in the spot. I returned back inside and had to wait in another line to talk to customer service. At this point I was starting to get annoyed but the nice saw I was starting to get upset at upgraded us to an SUV with a GPS free.
We punched in DisneyLand's address and start on our way. It was now 5:00pm (8:00om to us). It took us almost an hour and half to drive 31 miles. We never saw an accident it was just LA rush hour traffic. Yuck!
We arrived and checked into our room. They said they were very booked up and asked if we would be ok staying in a room with a roll away shower. They explained that the room was ADA and the shower did not have a tub so a wheel chair could simply roll into it. I took the room and we got settled into the room.
The kids immediately got into their bathing suits and hit the pool and the slides as they were going to close at 8:00pm and it was now 7:15pm. Alex started feeling sleepy around 8:30pm so Anne and him grabbed something to eat and headed back to the room. Jonathan and I headed to downtown Disney. We checked out a bunch of different resturants like ESPN and the House of Blues but they all had 30-40 minute waits. We just got a slice of pizza and sat and checked out the scenes.
We headed back to the room and we all fell asleep around 10:00pm. I would say it was a successful travel day.
We boarded a plane at 11:20am and traveled to Los Angeles through Phenoix, Az. The flight took longer than scheduled at about 5 1/2 hours. Alex had a some trouble with his right ear as we were descending into Pheonix to land. He made quite a scene. Generally the kids did pretty well on the flight considering how long it was. I had loaded up both our iPod Nanos with tons of movies so the kids were pretty well entertained until the batteries died. "Back to the Future" was very popular!
We arrived in LA and had to take a shuttle to the Hertz rental car facility. After waiting in another line for about 25 minutes, I was able to upgrade to a larger vehicle but when I went on the lot to find the car it was not in the spot. I returned back inside and had to wait in another line to talk to customer service. At this point I was starting to get annoyed but the nice saw I was starting to get upset at upgraded us to an SUV with a GPS free.
We punched in DisneyLand's address and start on our way. It was now 5:00pm (8:00om to us). It took us almost an hour and half to drive 31 miles. We never saw an accident it was just LA rush hour traffic. Yuck!
We arrived and checked into our room. They said they were very booked up and asked if we would be ok staying in a room with a roll away shower. They explained that the room was ADA and the shower did not have a tub so a wheel chair could simply roll into it. I took the room and we got settled into the room.
The kids immediately got into their bathing suits and hit the pool and the slides as they were going to close at 8:00pm and it was now 7:15pm. Alex started feeling sleepy around 8:30pm so Anne and him grabbed something to eat and headed back to the room. Jonathan and I headed to downtown Disney. We checked out a bunch of different resturants like ESPN and the House of Blues but they all had 30-40 minute waits. We just got a slice of pizza and sat and checked out the scenes.
We headed back to the room and we all fell asleep around 10:00pm. I would say it was a successful travel day.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Ron Paul: The true conservative
After watching this I can understand why Ron Paul attracts many conspiracy nuts.
It then become easy to understand how the liberal media can than label all his supporters as "nuts"... oh, wait they actually intended to say "passionate"
It then become easy to understand how the liberal media can than label all his supporters as "nuts"... oh, wait they actually intended to say "passionate"
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
How secure is this?
I received an email today containing the following content:
You have received a secure message from CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield. To read the message, please open the enclosed attachment.
To ensure your privacy, CareFirst has used software supplied by Sigaba Corporation to encrypt your message. Some of the pages you will see may include their SigabaSecured® logo or company name.
· Your secured message is contained in a file named CareFirstSecure.html which is attached to this e-mail. Click on the filename, then click open.
· You will be asked for your User ID and Password (that you use in My Account), and the message will display.
· Some e-mail systems require a free download from Sigaba Corporation to properly display the secure message. If you are asked to install and run software from Sigaba Corporation, please click Yes.
· After this small download is complete, you will then be asked for your User ID and Password for My Account. Then your message will display.
If you click Open and cannot view the message, try clicking Save. This will save the file on your PC's hard drive. You can then open the message.
Some computers (especially in large corporations) are "locked down" to prevent users from downloading software. Those locked computers may not allow you to read a secured message or to download the required component from Sigaba.
If you are unable to open the attached message, or need other technical assistance, please contact us at 1-877-526-8390.
Immediately I thought that this was a phishing attack as
1. I did not expect any messages from care first
2. had never seen this type of message before
3. the message was suggesting that I launch an attachment
4. The attached .html file contained an active-x control packaged in couriercontrol.cab. A quick google search showed link titles that contained spyware, and other references from HiJackThis.
But just to be sure I navigated to www.carefirst.com and logged into my account and looked for some sort of messaging area. I could not find it.
Then I proceeded to use the care first web site to send a message to technical support. I typed a long explanation of what I had found and wanted to know if this email had indeed come from care first. Upon trying to submit the form I got a 404 error. I was pissed. But as it turned out the message was delivered as I quickly got an email response.
Thank you for reporting your issue to the My Account Technical Help Desk.
The email you received is a secure email sent to you from CareFirst and
requires (as instructed in that email) that you install the Sigaba software
onto your PC. Once that is completed you will need to click on the
attachment (or save it to your desktop and open from there) to reach a
login page. The userid and password being requested, as a final step to
opening your secure email, will be the same as the CareFirst 'My Account'
web page account you created.
I like how it just restates that I have to install the software to view a message. Hmmmm, well let me talk to a human. I called the technical support and said I just wanted to know what the message was without installing any software. They said they could not help me and I would need to talk to customer support. Five transfers later I was back at technical support. I asked if there was a location on my online account that I could view the messages and I was told the only way was using the Sigaba secure approach. They took my information and said they would get back to me.
Now, Sigaba may be providing great security solutions but providing such instruction to retrieve messages is irresponsible.
I believe most of the general internet population has been trained to not save or open attachments and be suspicious of these types of email. If we tell them “well, you can trust these messages” what is to stop malicious hackers from spamming everyone with messages that look like these secure sign in pages.
Saturday, March 01, 2008
Saturday, February 02, 2008
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Rock Band on the XBOX 360
I purchased Rock Band on Saturday for my Xbox 360 and it is by far my favorite game so far. I never would have thought that this game would be so much fun.
I did not expect to have an immediate appeal to the game. I was skeptical how much fun the game would be as I was a professional weekend warrior musician for 15 years in my past life. I played keyboard and during all those years I had a secret rock and roll fantasy to play guitar, bass and drums.
I started playing the game and my kids immediately jumped in and we played multi-player. They loved it right away, of course! Anne then tried it, and after a few times she was really getting the hang of it. Anne and I started and Band and we are starting a tour. I'm playing drums and she is playing guitar. Finally, a game we can play together after the kids go to bed.
The game slowly introduces you on the easy level and then starts to hook you as you "feel" the music and feel as if you are interacting with your band mates. I can say that the experience is as close to the feeling of performing in a real band without needing musical skills. Well, not exactly true that you don't need musical skills. You need to have a sense of rhythm. This is especially true for drums.
I explored some of the Expert level drum tracks and they exactly match the original drum tracks of the songs. So, if you can play them in "Rock Band", you most likely could play them on real drums. Drums are definitely the most challenging.
I finished the Medium level of guitar only. I've listed all the songs with my favorites on guitar highlighted in red.
1960s
- Rolling Stones "Gimme Shelter"
- Aerosmith "Train Kept a Rollin'"*
- The Who "Won't Get Fooled Again"
- Boston "Foreplay/Long Time"
- Mountain "Mississippi Queen"*
- The Police "Next to You"
- David Bowie "Suffragette City"
- Black Sabbath "Paranoid"*
- Blue Oyster Cult "Don't Fear the Reaper"
- The Ramones "Blitzkrieg Bop"
- Deep Purple "Highway Star"
- KISS "Detroit Rock City"
- Molly Hatchet "Flirtin' With Disaster"
- The Outlaws "Green Grass & High Tides"*
- Sweet "Ballroom Blitz"*
- Rush "Tom Sawyer"*
- Bon Jovi "Wanted Dead or Alive"
- The Clash "Should I Stay or Should I Go"
- Faith No More "Epic"
- Pixies "Wave of Mutilation"
- R.E.M. "Orange Crush"
- Iron Maiden "Run to the Hills"*
- Foo Fighters "Learn to Fly"
- Metallica "Enter Sandman"
- Nirvana "In Bloom"
- Stone Temple Pilots "Vasoline"
- Weezer "Say It Ain't So"
- Smashing Pumpkins "Cherub Rock"
- Radiohead "Creep"
- Beastie Boys "Sabotage"
- Hole "Celebrity Skin"
- Garbage "I Think I'm Paranoid"
- Soundgarden "Black Hole Sun"
- The Hives "Main Offender"
- Queens of the Stone Age "Go With the Flow"
- The Strokes "Reptilia"
- Jet "Are You Gonna Be My Girl"
- OK Go "Here It Goes Again"
- Nine Inch Nails "The Hand That Feeds"
- Yeah Yeah Yeahs "Maps"
- Red Hot Chili Peppers "Dani California"
- Coheed & Cambria "Welcome Home"
- Fallout Boy "Dead on Arrival"
- The Killers "When You Were Young"
- New Pornographers "Electric Version"
- Anarchy Club "Blood Doll"
- Bang Camaro "Pleasure (Pleasure)"
- Crooked X "Nightmare"
- Death of the Cool "Can't Let Go"
- Flyleaf "I'm So Sick"
- Freezepop "Brainpower"
- Honest Bob and the Factory-to-Dealer Incentives "I Get By"
- The Acro-Bats "Day Late, Dollar Short"
- The Konks "29 Fingers"
- The Mother Hips "Time We Had"
- Timmy and the Lords of the Underworld "Timmy and the Lords of the Underworld"
- Tribe "Outside"
- Vagiant "Seven"
- Metallica "Ride the Lightning"
- Metallica "Blackened"
- Metallica "And Justice for All"
- Police "Can't Stand Losing You"
- Police "Synchronicity II"
- Police "Roxanne"
- Queens of the Stone Age "3's and 7's"
- Queens of the Stone Age "Little Sister"
- Queens of the Stone Age "Sick Sick Sick"
- Creedence Clearwater "Fortunate Son"*
- Foreigner "Juke Box Hero"*
- T-Rex "Band a Gong (Get It On)"*
- The Knack "My Sharona"*
- The Runaways "Cherry Bomb"*
- Wolfmother "Joker & The Thief"
- David Bowie "Moonage Daydream"
- David Bowie "Heroes"*
- David Bowie "Queen Bitch"*
- Black Sabbath "N.I.B."*
- Black Sabbath "Sweet Leaf"*
- Black Sabbath "War Pigs"*
- Ramones "Rockaway Beach"
- The Clash "I Fought the Law"
- Buzzcocks "Ever Fallen in Love"*
- Radiohead "My Iron Lung"
- Weezer "Buddy Holly"
- The Pretenders "Brass in Pocket"*
- 30 Seconds to Mars "Attack"
- 30 Seconds to Mars "The Kill"
- All-American Rejects "Dirty Little Secret"
- All-American Rejects "Move Along"
- The Sounds "Song with a Mission"
- Lynyrd Skynyrd "Gimme Three Steps"
- Black Crowes "Hard to Handle"*
- Rush "Limelight"*
- The Hives "Die Right Now"
- Iron Maiden "Number of the Beast"*
- Stone Temple Pilots "Interstate Love Song"
- Sweet "Action"*
- The Monkees "Last Train to Clarksville"*
- Blink 182 "All the Small Things"
- Oasis "Don't Look Back in Anger"
- Oasis "Live Forever"
- Oasis "Wonderwall"
 |  |
I highly recommend this game if you love rock music! You may not like all the songs but the game keeps you coming back. This is a game that you would never sell back. It's just too much fun.
Sunday, December 09, 2007
Dangerous Job
And you thought that window washers had a dangerous job...
http://www.flixxy.com/helicopter-cable-inspector.htm
Yikes!!!
http://www.flixxy.com/helicopter-cable-inspector.htm
Yikes!!!
And you thought that window washers had a dangerous job...
http://www.flixxy.com/helicopter-cable-inspector.htm
Yikes!!!
http://www.flixxy.com/helicopter-cable-inspector.htm
Yikes!!!
Direct Buy - Buyer Beware!
Anne and I attended a Direct Buy Marketing presentation at our local Direct Buy location here in Hunt Valley, MD. We are planning on buying some end tables and a coffee table for our living room and I stumbled across them during some googling.
I signed up for a visit without really knowing what it was all about. Looking back, I should have checked it out before I wasted 2 hours of my life I will never get back.
Here's the summary:
One couple walked out as soon as the presentation was over. They guys voice was shaking as he made a lame excuse about a dog in his vehicle. Clearly he was embarrassed and wanted to get out of the building.
The presentation was emanating such a feeling of sleaze that I was waiting for a multi-tiered marketing approach to sell my friends for a membership discount. That never happened, oh well. I couldn't help but feel I was about to buy some swamp land south Florida!
The salesman did say we could go over and review all the catalogs and pricing information. I asked for lists of manufactures and percent breakdowns by categories. He just talked around it and never produced paper.
The membership price did not shock me as much as the fact that the offer was only good for my one and only visit. They claimed it was to prevent people from leaving the DB center and using DB pricing as leverage against local retailers and therefor invaliding the trust relationship they have with the manufactures. A slick argument that I don't buy.
Circuit City has a policy that they will match or beat other local advertised prices or give you money back. They clearly state they do not honor club pricing because your discount is based on a membership fee. Apparently local manufactures and retailers don't have issues with Sam's Club or Price Club. Why would they have a problem with Direct Buy?
Related Side Story: I refuse to make any large purchasing decisions before I perform research. As an example, I recently purchased a new Mazda CX-9 and spent quite a bit of time researching and negotiating. When I finally purchased the vehicle (at the invoice price) the financial salesman was shocked when I did not take the extended warranty. It was stated as "you have to get this now or leave it" Or course I said "No, I don't purchase anything without researching it" and we drove home in our new car. When I got home I did some googling and found out that there are plenty of companies that offer extended warranties on any vehicle and the initial price was half of what the dealership was offering.
Things I learned after I got home from Direct Buy:
The financial argument made was that for my income level I would be saving over $125,000 during my 10 year membership. R...i...g....h....t...?!@*&
I can only come to the conclusion that Direct Buy preys on the meek and the uninformed.
The only scenario where you could justify the $5100 is if you were certain to be spending over $30k on major home improvement items or furnishings and they had all the manufactures you were interested.
Personally, I only buy certain things that I can put my hands on or see the actual item. This is not possible with DB. For instance, I recently bought a True treadmill after hours of research. I initially was going to buy one via the internet for pricing reasons. Some sold exclusively via the internet got got great reviews! I just could not bring myself to purchase one without actually trying it out. I purchased one locally from Gym Source on black Friday and got a great deal. It was delivered and 1 hour after use it was shutting down and displaying an error code. My local retailer sent and True professional repair man to my house and it was fixed in an hour due to a connector falling off. Would my experience with that purchase through DB have gone the same way? No. Also, DB does not carry True products.
I hope my stories and justifications help you to not waste 2 hours of your life at a Direct Buy center.
Mark
Read more opinions @ infomercial scams
Anne and I attended a Direct Buy Marketing presentation at our local Direct Buy location here in Hunt Valley, MD. We are planning on buying some end tables and a coffee table for our living room and I stumbled across them during some googling.
I signed up for a visit without really knowing what it was all about. Looking back, I should have checked it out before I wasted 2 hours of my life I will never get back.
Here's the summary:
- Membership for 10 years
- Initial signing cost was $5100 for 3 years. - You don't find this out until 1.5 hours into the slick presentation
- It must be payed up front or can be financed at 17%.
- $199 each year after that up to the 10 years.
- After 10 years you can pay at the current yearly rate.
- The prices are at manufacturer pricing
- They make claim retail marks up products from 50-70% to justify their financial model
- 900+ manufactures (I never saw a complete list)
- You must pay a 8% service fee on most items
- You must pay freight on all items
- Of course you pay tax
- Prices on electronics are no better if not worse than local retailers.
- and the drum roll please ...... You must take the deal before you leave!
One couple walked out as soon as the presentation was over. They guys voice was shaking as he made a lame excuse about a dog in his vehicle. Clearly he was embarrassed and wanted to get out of the building.
The presentation was emanating such a feeling of sleaze that I was waiting for a multi-tiered marketing approach to sell my friends for a membership discount. That never happened, oh well. I couldn't help but feel I was about to buy some swamp land south Florida!
The salesman did say we could go over and review all the catalogs and pricing information. I asked for lists of manufactures and percent breakdowns by categories. He just talked around it and never produced paper.
The membership price did not shock me as much as the fact that the offer was only good for my one and only visit. They claimed it was to prevent people from leaving the DB center and using DB pricing as leverage against local retailers and therefor invaliding the trust relationship they have with the manufactures. A slick argument that I don't buy.
Circuit City has a policy that they will match or beat other local advertised prices or give you money back. They clearly state they do not honor club pricing because your discount is based on a membership fee. Apparently local manufactures and retailers don't have issues with Sam's Club or Price Club. Why would they have a problem with Direct Buy?
Related Side Story: I refuse to make any large purchasing decisions before I perform research. As an example, I recently purchased a new Mazda CX-9 and spent quite a bit of time researching and negotiating. When I finally purchased the vehicle (at the invoice price) the financial salesman was shocked when I did not take the extended warranty. It was stated as "you have to get this now or leave it" Or course I said "No, I don't purchase anything without researching it" and we drove home in our new car. When I got home I did some googling and found out that there are plenty of companies that offer extended warranties on any vehicle and the initial price was half of what the dealership was offering.
Things I learned after I got home from Direct Buy:
- Lots of people are unhappy with DB
- a possible looming class action lawsuit?
- You can't place orders via the member website.
- Each DB location is franchised. That is why you see so many different membership pricing.
The financial argument made was that for my income level I would be saving over $125,000 during my 10 year membership. R...i...g....h....t...?!@*&
I can only come to the conclusion that Direct Buy preys on the meek and the uninformed.
The only scenario where you could justify the $5100 is if you were certain to be spending over $30k on major home improvement items or furnishings and they had all the manufactures you were interested.
Personally, I only buy certain things that I can put my hands on or see the actual item. This is not possible with DB. For instance, I recently bought a True treadmill after hours of research. I initially was going to buy one via the internet for pricing reasons. Some sold exclusively via the internet got got great reviews! I just could not bring myself to purchase one without actually trying it out. I purchased one locally from Gym Source on black Friday and got a great deal. It was delivered and 1 hour after use it was shutting down and displaying an error code. My local retailer sent and True professional repair man to my house and it was fixed in an hour due to a connector falling off. Would my experience with that purchase through DB have gone the same way? No. Also, DB does not carry True products.
I hope my stories and justifications help you to not waste 2 hours of your life at a Direct Buy center.
Mark
Read more opinions @ infomercial scams
Monday, November 12, 2007
Sunday, November 11, 2007
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