I love credit cards so much! v3.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[wendow]

Yes I filled it out and got the very brief response email titled HSBC savings bonus from Slickdeals with my slickdeals user name and my paypal email.

I did receive that too after I submitted the form.

 

[wendow]

So in off-topic news, DD got a job at Chick Fil A. I'm so happy for her. Treating her to Thai takeout tonight to celebrate.

My dd20 worked there! Great job and looks good on a resume. Whether people like CFA ‘politics’ or not, most will admit they’re training their employees well.

 

[wendow]

I'm so curious to see how this all shakes out over time....will this mean the beiginning of permanent changes like you're either onsite or no luck? Don't bother with 3rd party tickets? etc etc....

For now anyways, Disney is really trying to ‘own’ everything. Staying offsite and/or buying tickets elsewhere is pretty risky. Once capacity increases, I expect we will see more options but this park reservation system is looking like something we will be dealing with for the foreseeable future.

 

[havaneselover]

My dd20 worked there! Great job and looks good on a resume. Whether people like CFA ‘politics’ or not, most will admit they’re training their employees well.

Yes! I wanted her to have excellent customer service training because I think it will serve her well throughout her career. And honestly we do love the product! And really she needs to get out of the house and have a bit of structure in her life--even if it's just one or two days a week.

 

[WVMomof3]

I think it is a great deal. I still don't understand why it is at such a low price for a brand new phone but I am happy it is. $199 for a new iPhone that doesn't require a new line or tie me into a contract is nice. When I saw it on Slickdeals in mid-April, some people on there were surmising that the trade-in value months from now will be the same as this purchase price. Going from a 6 to this SE will probably be a big improvement. I have a 7 and am now considering getting this before the deal expires.
You might need to be patient dealing with Walmart though. If I remember correctly, our shipment was a day or two late. Communication and delivery is not Walmarts strong suit.

Came on time today via Fed Ex! Yay I have a phone again. Though I got tired of my old phone telling me it hadn't been backed up in 18 bajillion years so I turned off the icloud. Sooooo, starting from scratch on all my apps and stuff. Kind of a pain, but I guess it was one way to get unused apps off my phone. lol

 

[Killer Fish]

@Killer Fish Did you get your Xbox GC alright? I didn't quite take my own advice to not cut it too close. Was hoping the cashback portals would go back up. I procrastinated and missed out when it was at 15%. Bought two $100 in one order on 6/21. Got 1 fine, today I get an e-mail that the order is delayed until July. Just chatted to cancel the one I didn't get and was told it needs to go through the back office. $200 charge is still pending on the biz plat. Hope they'll post the $100 in time. Going to go buy two $50 ones now - in separate orders this time!

A cautionary tale for anyone buying Xbox GC to use the Dell credit!

They were both in my digital locker and I redeemed both into my Microsoft account. The credit has not posted yet but I am not too worried.

I will grab some other stuff early in July to make sure it ships!

 

[wanderlust7]

Hey guys.
I'm not new, but I'm infrequent, LOL.
I'll keep this short. What cards to help with Swolphin stays? I feel like I ask this at least once a year when I get it in my head that I'm going to ditch WDW resorts fro now on and stay somewhere that has a rewards program. I'm not willing to leave the bubble though, so Swolphin appeals to me.

That AmEx Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant caught my eye and has me thinking about AmEx. I'm typically a Chase girl, but now just use my UR to transfer to Southwest. I do have one MR-earner, just a plain Everyday card that sits unused because I never got into the MR scene.

Would it be wise to get into the MR/AmEx program a little more if I'm thinking about Swolphin in the future? Does anyone here stay there on points?

Thanks!

The Bonvoy Brilliant and Bonvoy Biz card SUBs are at 75k now. The high is 100k, so it's not a good time to get them since Amex bonuses are once per lifetime. The Brilliant comes with a 50k free night, so you could use it for Swolphin on non-peak times. If you have Chase Bonvoy cards, you have to check the complicated rules on which Amex Bonvoy you can get.

MRs can be transferred to Bonvoy 1:1. Recently there was a targeted 30% transfer bonus. But even with that the value is questionable, depending on how you value your Bonvoy points. It can make sense to top off or for a specific high value redemption. MR can be cashed out with a Schwab plat at 1.25 cents per point, so that's the benchmark I use.

 

[disneybirds]

@Killer Fish Did you get your Xbox GC alright? I didn't quite take my own advice to not cut it too close. Was hoping the cashback portals would go back up. I procrastinated and missed out when it was at 15%. Bought two $100 in one order on 6/21. Got 1 fine, today I get an e-mail that the order is delayed until July. Just chatted to cancel the one I didn't get and was told it needs to go through the back office. $200 charge is still pending on the biz plat. Hope they'll post the $100 in time. Going to go buy two $50 ones now - in separate orders this time!

A cautionary tale for anyone buying Xbox GC to use the Dell credit!

I hope it works out for you! Not the same situation but we made a Dell purchase during the last Amex offer and placed the order mid-January. It didn't ship until February 1st (offer ended 1/31/20) but we still got the $100 credit and 10% off. The Amex offer showed redeemed 1/31/20, but it posted on our cc account on 2/1/20.

On a different note, we just made a Dell purchase in mid June that was over the $1500 and we received 10% off the entire amount with the Amex offer.

 

[georgina]

For now anyways, Disney is really trying to ‘own’ everything. Staying offsite and/or buying tickets elsewhere is pretty risky. Once capacity increases, I expect we will see more options but this park reservation system is looking like something we will be dealing with for the foreseeable future.

I'm curious too. I have an AP and finally got my park reservations for my October on-site trip, but Friday I am going to try to get 2 days in December when I will be off-site.

 

[havaneselover]

Finished using my 2020 Door Dash credit from CSR. Thai shrimp fried rice was really good!

 

[Judique]

Have to go to Home Depot today. I need 3 appliance bulbs for my refrigerator.

The third one finally died after about 10 years. Does that mean I'm going to need a new fridge very very soon??

I will be using one of my home depot gift cards from cashing out MR's at 20% off. Problem is I can't just go to the store and just look at 1 thing.

I am in the middle of deep cleaning said fridge also. All the way in the back side down by the water tubing where something has spilled behind it. It's been a while. Nuff said. Maybe I'll explain that a bit - it's a huge fridge, and has all the older bells and whistles such as sliding shelves and there is space between the shelves and the back wall. I found two water bottles that fell from up top hiding back there once I removed the shelving. You couldn't see them.
(Do you see why I'm wondering if it's time for a new one?)

 

[havaneselover]

Have to go to Home Depot today. I need 3 appliance bulbs for my refrigerator.

The third one finally died after about 10 years. Does that mean I'm going to need a new fridge very very soon??

I will be using one of my home depot gift cards from cashing out MR's at 20% off. Problem is I can't just go to the store and just look at 1 thing.

I am in the middle of deep cleaning said fridge also. All the way in the back side down by the water tubing where something has spilled behind it. It's been a while. Nuff said. Maybe I'll explain that a bit - it's a huge fridge, and has all the older bells and whistles such as sliding shelves and there is space between the shelves and the back wall. I found two water bottles that fell from up top hiding back there once I removed the shelving. You couldn't see them.
(Do you see why I'm wondering if it's time for a new one?)

I think my fridge and dishwasher will die soon. I love my fridge. It's an LG stainless french door fridge with two freezer drawers and water/ice in the door. But it keeps freezing my baby carrots. And it's about 10 years old (might only be 9). And my dishwasher is a 13-year old basic Bosch model. It does the job and is quiet but I hate the design (hard to efficiently load it). I'm sitting on 150k MR points so that should help when they die.

 

[Judique]

So, my kitchen is approximately 12 years old. Counters are dark granite in perfect condition. Cabinets are white and not so perfect but not hideous yet.

Appliances are all working but 12 years old. Stove, fridge, dishwasher, exhaust fan vented to the outside. I also had a convection oven mounted in a wall but I wasn't using it so I had it removed and replaced the space with more countertop some years back. I got rid of the built in microwave also and went with a teeny counter top one.
Hardwood floors. Three windows. Double stainless sink. Backsplash in white, gray, clear stone, glass and marble. On the stove end wall there is about 75 sq ft of back splash - nice but would be really expensive to replace so I want to keep similar colors. I actually have a few extra cartons if I need to 'fix' anything.

So, I'm going to go find a designer and get some ideas.

 

[Judique]

I think my fridge and dishwasher will die soon. I love my fridge. It's an LG stainless french door fridge with two freezer drawers and water/ice in the door. But it keeps freezing my baby carrots. And it's about 10 years old (might only be 9). And my dishwasher is a 13-year old basic Bosch model. It does the job and is quiet but I hate the design (hard to efficiently load it). I'm sitting on 150k MR points so that should help when they die.

I discovered a little slide thingy in the bottom of the fridge on the freezer side. It says veggies/meats with about 4 positions for allowing colder air into the bottom. I'd forgotten about it. It was all the way open and I could actually keep meat frozen down there and veggies would definitely freeze so I would have them stuffed up top. This fridge has water in the door, crushed and cubed ice and water filter, etc. It was a loaded model and it's probably going to be replaced with all the features, but I'm not interested in a tv on the front, lol.

I've hated both Bosch dishwashers at my daughters houses. I don't like the way they load. I have a whirlpool that does a great job and loads the way I prefer, and I've had many different dishwashers in other houses, plus this is the 3rd in this house. So, choosing 'new' will be a chore for me.

Oh and a story on my daughters French door fridge. 2 freezer drawers, 1 skinny 1 deeper. I think it's LG. We all went on vacation and came back to a moldy freezer section. The bottom drawer somehow got left slightly open. Everything inside was ruined and there was black mold. She was ready to have it hauled away.

But, a gallon of Clorox and a lot of cleaning rescued it. So, if you have little ones running around, check your fridge drawers before you leave for a week. Actually could have been anyone, but it's absolutely amazing what 2 toddlers/prek's can't get into in a very short time.

 

[hsmamato2]

For now anyways, Disney is really trying to ‘own’ everything. Staying offsite and/or buying tickets elsewhere is pretty risky. Once capacity increases, I expect we will see more options but this park reservation system is looking like something we will be dealing with for the foreseeable future.

I agree.

 

[hsmamato2]

The Bonvoy Brilliant and Bonvoy Biz card SUBs are at 75k now. The high is 100k, so it's not a good time to get them since Amex bonuses are once per lifetime. The Brilliant comes with a 50k free night, so you could use it for Swolphin on non-peak times. If you have Chase Bonvoy cards, you have to check the complicated rules on which Amex Bonvoy you can get.

MRs can be transferred to Bonvoy 1:1. Recently there was a targeted 30% transfer bonus. But even with that the value is questionable, depending on how you value your Bonvoy points. It can make sense to top off or for a specific high value redemption. MR can be cashed out with a Schwab plat at 1.25 cents per point, so that's the benchmark I use.

I'm hoping they have a transfer special again MR-Bonvoy..... will they notify members if this becomes a thing?

 

[WinterAloe]

Came on time today via Fed Ex! Yay I have a phone again. Though I got tired of my old phone telling me it hadn't been backed up in 18 bajillion years so I turned off the icloud. Sooooo, starting from scratch on all my apps and stuff. Kind of a pain, but I guess it was one way to get unused apps off my phone. lol

I'm glad you got it so quickly! How do you like the phone?

 

[WinterAloe]

I need to upgrade my son's phone and I see his phone has an upgrade offer through ATT, $10/month for SE, $15/month for XS with a 30 month term. That seems ok for me, but it mentions an agreement to pay for those 30 months. Does that count as a (store) credit card and do they pull credit? Maybe I'm overthinking it.

Look at Walmart's iPhone SE 2020 upgrade deal. It is only available to those that have AT&T or Verizon as their carrier and are available for an upgrade. I posted about this here a few days ago.
AT&T will do a soft pull and everything will be billed through them. AT&T does charge a $30 upgrade fee (Verizon charges $40) but I believe they charge that every time a phone is upgraded. That fee will be on your first bill afterwards. Your monthly charge will also be on your AT&T bill and the phone can be paid off anytime, making that line to be available for an upgrade again.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/AT-T-Apple-iPhone-SE-2020-64GB-White-Upgrade-Only/979697514
I saw this deal on Slickdeals in mid-April, which was before the phone had actually been released. We ordered DD a red 64gb and are paying $6.63/month. We haven't paid it off yet because we really have no need to at this point. I'm now considering getting one for myself since my iPhone7 is now acting up.
I just found this article that explains it. Keep in mind that the article was written in April, pre-release of the phone and when the phones through this Walmart deal were selling out quickly. It appears they are all available now.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/22/cnn-underscored/walmart-iphone-se-preorder-200-off/index.html

 

[elgerber]

I think my fridge and dishwasher will die soon. I love my fridge. It's an LG stainless french door fridge with two freezer drawers and water/ice in the door. But it keeps freezing my baby carrots. And it's about 10 years old (might only be 9). And my dishwasher is a 13-year old basic Bosch model. It does the job and is quiet but I hate the design (hard to efficiently load it). I'm sitting on 150k MR points so that should help when they die.

my French door fridge has a little vent thing in the middle of the very top. If there is something stacked too high on the top shelf under that vent, it freezes my carrots. Not sure if yours has this, but just wanted to pass it on. We had service come out, only to find out the pizza boxes stacked up were blocking the air flow LOL

 

[thevalley]

I am thinking about getting a Amex card. I currently have the bbp. This is my only MR earning card. Does anyone have any suggestions where to start. I would cash out for HD gift cards or possibly to cash out for 1.25 rate. Thanks