I love credit cards so much! v2.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[DisneyMandC]

We really had to prioritize because some of those prices were The best seats for the swimming finals were over $1000! Each! We entered for the cheaper seats on those because the women’s gymnastics final was expensive enough. We also tried for diving, soccer, tennis. We know we won’t hit for everything but hopefully we can see something.

Yeah I'm going to put in for a swimming and gymnastics finals, but I'll put in for the lowest tier because I know they'll be astronomical!

 

[Humbug30X]

I agree - @Humbug30X - I'd consider going for the Chase Sapphire Preferred now, that MSR will keep you busy for a couple of months while you figure out a strategy.

The best offer on that card is 60,000 points for $4,000 MSR and it is available via a DISchurners link so you could support somebody here who you've found helpful if you went for it

So if the AmEx was an upgrade not a new card am I still 3/24 with Chase? The open on date hasn’t changed, it’s still 2015. If I just upgraded the Chase Disney card I have to the Premier does that now make me 4/24 with Chase? Looking at getting another card right now but I think it’s too soon to do another Chase card and if I am 4/24 with Chase then I need to wait until I can get the CSP.

 

[Judique]

Like you, my dh will be reluctant to take time off even though his workload is his own and no one really needs to pick up the slack. Unfortunately one of our upcoming dates is during FYE, which we planned specifically. His company gets SO pushy to get that last sale in and dh has just had enough. It has never been a problem before, but I can see it being one now.


With retirement in his sights dh has become less motivated to work with each passing year. Despite his amazing recovery from open heart surgery last year, his stamina and patience for work has waned, plus he has come to hate his job and employer. ( I wish we could afford for him to take early retirement but he must stay the course until Medicare kicks in.) He is extremely conscientious and I fear he will take less time off now that it is not an "earned" benefit, while coming to blame his employer for that decision. Such a conundrum!

Thanks for your input, I really appreciate it.

I can completely understand how your DH feels! Some of my predecessors worked until an older age then myself, but what triggered retirement in most cases was change. Change of location, change of supervisors and upper management repeating the same mistakes over and over because they weren't around when their solution had previously been tested and failed.

Fortunately for me I reached retirement before I felt completely disheartened but I have friends still working that can't wait to get out and of course there is a line up for people who actually want these jobs because the salary and benefits are excellent. There is an old saying about history repeating itself, and I just saw it happen too many times. It's like no one takes note of mistakes or seems to remember failure. Now, there were also plenty of successes to celebrate as well, not to be a complete Debbie downer, but, I was middle management and got to teach my supervisor too many times. I must make note that I had opportunities to move up that after I got to a certain age I wasn't so keen on because I had a lot of freedom to make decisions at my level, and I was happy after 4 or 5 promotions. Maybe if I had started younger I would have felt differently motivated. I think I left when I still had a lot of earned respect, if you know what I mean. The psyche needs to feel appreciated and I can say I definitely did.

I did have to alter my thinking in my last year and learn to support in different ways. Sometimes its not clear to the person that has to accept decisions made above you why the decisions had to be made, and were essential because dynamics themselves have changed. That said, I know I left pretty much fully intact and without regrets and didn't have to leave to look for supplemental employment as happens when burnout comes before you are in a good spot to retire. And, I am not a FIRE personality because I needed to be a worker in the years I worked. Now I can enjoy relaxing, but not in my forties or earlier.

 

[platamama]

So if the AmEx was an upgrade not a new card am I still 3/24 with Chase? The open on date hasn’t changed, it’s still 2015. If I just upgraded the Chase Disney card I have to the Premier does that now make me 4/24 with Chase? Looking at getting another card right now but I think it’s too soon to do another Chase card and if I am 4/24 with Chase then I need to wait until I can get the CSP.

Upgrading a card does not add to your x/24 count. So you should still be at 3/24.

 

[Judique]

I called the vet about that and they mentioned maybe having something. They called and I missed it but they didn’t leave a voicemail or call back so I need to try them again.

I have a Yorkie that I have to give a med to so that he can make the trip to the vet - all of two miles - high anxiety.

 

[1st*toright]

My husband does! I was super skeptical about it when he first started for his company, but honestly it's been great. He has never been questioned about any time he's taken off, and honestly it's been more of his boss asking him why he isn't taking more vacation. I think it really depends on company culture though. But no complaints about it here.

So how much time does he typically take in a year? IIRC, he's thirtyish, compared to my dh, who has been in his field since your dh was born. LOL! I'm just wondering if people are prone to taking less vacation under the DTO program compared to a more traditional vacation offering.

Those are my exact feelings as well. I wish we had a choice in the matter but we don't. The policy is effective July 1, and they are pushing for all ETO to be used by then. He is just a few years from retirement and we had been planning on using his unused vacation pay as a bridge into retirement. Not happening now, and I think that is EXACTLY the reason the company is moving to this. Cut their liability to employees, get them to use all their vacation time, and then have a mass layoff. Why yes, I MAY be a cynic.

Really depends on company culture, and individual temperament. Can be fine, but DH had it at his previous job, and he took about 3 days off in 3 years. A combination of pressure from the company and his own difficulty with letting go of work.

 

[havaneselover]

Yeah I'm going to put in for a swimming and gymnastics finals, but I'll put in for the lowest tier because I know they'll be astronomical!

Maybe you'll get to see Townley Haas swim.

 

[DisneyMandC]

Maybe you'll get to see Townley Haas swim.

I didn't even think about that! That would be really cool! We usually have some Virginia Equestrians too.

 

[amcc]

Without @Lain spreadsheet, I remember you being late 30's - early 40's. So at your age you feel 4 weeks is an okay amount of time off in a year? No way I'm judging anyone, just trying to get a feel for what people think is appropriate and at what age.

Mid 40s. I work at a large university. After 13 years, I get 22 days of vacation - use or lose - and 22 days of sick that accumulate. People have been known to schedule all their medical tuneups right before retirement to be able to use the accumulated sick up. I take all the vacation but, except for maternity leave, my sick is barely touched.

The current room only offer includes a Disney Gift Card at checkin for stays May 28 - June 30. (Per night = $10 values, $15 mod, $20 dlx, $25 villa). I bet that’s what they are referencing there.

I know this thread is big on points for Disney trips but proximity for us makes it just a weekend kind of trip (hangs head in shame). We are Fort Wilderness lovers for resort only visits but for commando park day trips, we stay at hotels. Last weekend we stayed at Pop and it was GREAT. I booked 2 more days on Monday for June to finish off FL Resident tickets. I just checked again and could get Coronado Springs with a new offer (can’t find the gift card one but will keep looking) for $7 more! Score! It’s been years since we stay at a moderate and since we are usually in our popup, the kids feel they are in the lap of luxury and I will too - HOUSEKEEPING!!!!

 

[DisneyMandC]

My husband is officially not allowed to be in charge of anymore subscription plans. I got a charge on our Hilton Biz this morning for a Dinnerly box to be delivered next week. We haven't gotten Dinnerly in months because of the terrible shipping and poor quality. Apparently my husband just "paused" the subscription and didn't actually cancel it. So now we have a box of food coming next week when he's out of town the whole time, and I can't cook This is after we got charged two months in a row for some membership for a podcast that he swore up and down he canceled.

This is why I'm in charge of the finances and credit cards...

 

[havaneselover]

My husband is officially not allowed to be in charge of anymore subscription plans. I got a charge on our Hilton Biz this morning for a Dinnerly box to be delivered next week. We haven't gotten Dinnerly in months because of the terrible shipping and poor quality. Apparently my husband just "paused" the subscription and didn't actually cancel it. So now we have a box of food coming next week when he's out of town the whole time, and I can't cook This is after we got charged two months in a row for some membership for a podcast that he swore up and down he canceled.

This is why I'm in charge of the finances and credit cards...

Sometimes being single isn't all that bad!

 

[Lain]

I am not having much luck lately. Just tried to apply for Barkley's business aviator. Got a pending message. They say they will call me. Oy.

First Barkley card. I have a ton of open accounts but should be only one recent inquiry. I do also have a recent heloc.

I also tried checking my status through the link Barkley's sent to my email and they have to app record.

Is there a reason why you keep typing Barclays as Barkley’s?

 

[DisneyMandC]

Sometimes being single isn't all that bad!

I love him to death, but that little stuff drives me crazy! He puts so much attention to detail and hard work into his career, but is the most forgetful person for anything outside of that. I make sure to handle all hotel reservations/flights/etc for him for horse shows, because otherwise I know he'd show up somewhere and not have a hotel booked.

 

[SBWB48]

Wow. It's dizzying keeping up with you post-5/24.

I'm planning on taking things slow this year with Amex. I (personally) haven't signed up for a single Amex card this year. Meanwhile, my spend at least on my Gold is still high -- lots of V/MCGCs at 4x from grocery stores. I'll probably self-refer for the BBP (the last MR-earning biz card I don't have!) in the next month or two, then I'm looking at applying for either the Hilton Ascend or Aspire later this year and canceling out my Hilton Biz. I'm at 9 Amex cards, 5 charge cards and 4 credit cards. I'm keeping all 3 Bonvoys for the FN certs, and have already paid the second year AFs on the SPG and SPG Biz. As you might've read, I got a retention offer on my converted MB Plat last week -- 30k MR for $4k spend in 3 months. I finally got back under 5/24 in March, so I'm going to try to make the most of it and I'm not in a position where I want to churn through the other personal Platinum flavors. (Are you planning on hitting the Ameriprise and Morgan Stanley Plats at any point?) I'm going to cancel my Biz Green for sure, but I'll need to think a little more about what I want to do with the BGR and Biz Plat. I'm trying to avoid canceling too many Amex cards. If the card is at least a wash for me, I may keep it one more year just to keep my good relationship with Amex going a little longer.

For me, I gave it quite a bit of thought as far as whether I wanted to get back under 5/24 in June or just go through a small sprint that will take me into next year before I can get back into Chase’s good graces. A few things I had to consider (me rehashing my logic).

1.) Opportunity cost: back in December, the CIPpy cup wasn’t a known, so the only Chase cards that I still wanted to pursue were maybe the CIU and United Biz. I was shut out of the personal Marriott and had every other card (including 4 CFs between DH and I) I was interested in for the time being since I got the SW cards for CP in November. The Arrival+ introduces the 70K bonus with AF waived and the refreshed Rose Gold card were both calling my name. Since we have a WDW trip up, the 70K from the Arrival+ was even more attractive to offset some of the extras we are paying for (EMM and DAH). And, I was able to cash out the remaining through cancellations and rebooking, which made the 70k more worthwhile in hindsight. I would have loved to be able to pick up another CIP, but couldn’t operate on future happenings

2.) My Amex timing as described previously. Given how hard I hit Amex last year, and the potential for a few cancellations this year, I had to time my Schwab app carefully while I was still profitable in Amex’s eyes. If I knew I had to get the Schwab before my Personal Plat is on the chopping block, I would have hit 5/24 before June, so it didn’t make sense to not pick up the Arrival+ and Rose Gold and start my return to 5/24 clock sooner. It also helps that DH returns to 2/24 next month and 1/24 in July. Plenty of runway for him.

I too ended up paying the AF on my SPG Biz (I refuse to use the new names just yet lol) and Marriott Biz, which I fortunately got in on the $100 retention offer being given out at the time. DH and I want to see a few ballparks and stadiums this year and next with CP in hand, so the nights should come in handy. Being grandfathered into the old AF also helped the decision hah. I’m also eyeing the Hilton Aspire (potential Japan 2020/2021 trip) and BBP, but would need to find a way to make room for both. I only have plans to close the Hilton Biz and Biz Green, which would only free up one CC slot since I want to downgrade my Lux instead of cancelling. This means my ED could be on the chopping block, but I’ve had it since college

I’m not sure if I can slow down with Amex just yet since I want to get both before my spend tappers off soon. The Schwab will disguise that for now

 

[hsmamato2]

I also tried checking my status through the link Barkley's sent to my email and they have to app record.

Like I said earlier- I got no email saying I had app'ed.... when I submitted, it said we need more info will call you/review etc.- when checking that page it says no app was submitted. Yet I got email from TU saying I just had a hard pull- and a screenshot of page saying I had app'ed and it was under review..... so my best guess is it's a glitchy mess but IDK

 

[afan]

Wow ... That's very cool (and prolly looks great on a resume)

Yes to the first part and not really to the 2nd unless it's inside sports. No one outside cares and where I've worked is generally never brought up in interviews other than the usual type questions. But it was also like any other workplace, there was good and bad we just had a more fun "product". There were plenty of days I wanted to throughout the day. I actually almost did as I threatened to have one of the guys drop the copier from a forklift if we didn't get a new one. We owned it and kept needing to get fixed and I had been complaining about it. My threat worked though and we had a new leased one within a month

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

Is there a reason why you keep typing Barclays as Barkley’s?

You haven’t heard of Charles Barkley’s new bank??

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

So if the AmEx was an upgrade not a new card am I still 3/24 with Chase? The open on date hasn’t changed, it’s still 2015. If I just upgraded the Chase Disney card I have to the Premier does that now make me 4/24 with Chase? Looking at getting another card right now but I think it’s too soon to do another Chase card and if I am 4/24 with Chase then I need to wait until I can get the CSP.

I will second the earlier comment that upgrades aren’t new cards so you’re in the clear there

 

[DisneyMandC]

I actually almost did as I threatened to have one of the guys drop the copier from a forklift if we didn't get a new one. We owned it and kept needing to get fixed and I had been complaining about it. My threat worked though and we had a new leased one within a month

If only we had a forklift in this office...

 

[AmyAnne]

I'm going to cancel my Biz Green for sure, but I'll need to think a little more about what I want to do with the BGR and Biz Plat. I'm trying to avoid canceling too many Amex cards. If the card is at least a wash for me, I may keep it one more year just to keep my good relationship with Amex going a little longer.

This is my thinking too -- I'll keep the AmEx cards an extra year so long as the benefits come close to covering the AF. I'm curious why you're for sure cancelling the Biz Green and possibly keeping the the BGR?