After further deliberations with Mr. A, seeking my grandmother's advice and reading comments from those wiser pet-owners out there, I'm letting the cat dream go. No hard feelings, no regrets. I've been thinking about this for a few years, but lightly, not as an actual plan; a few more years won't make a difference. It's just not the right moment, and I'm not in the right place. Thanks to all of you who weighed in -- from encouraging comments from Cathy, crusoeinengland and mi tia, to the counsel of Nita and IGC that an outside-only cat isn't feasible, to MP, who told me in all frankness that I "missed the boat" with this half-baked idea. I valued your perspectives.Who knew a blog about negotiation and assertiveness would end up helping decide me not to get a pet!?
Today, from my mother's house, I called my credit card company and pleaded for one crucial piece of info: my card's expiration date. The card itself was sitting on my desk at home, and I was about to click "purchase" on a plane ticket on my mom's computer, 10 miles away.
I had the card number on a statement and I know the secret code, but I forgot the expiration date. And I needed it, stat, since I was about to book a ticket and I wanted to use that card (it gives me miles).
I called the company and explained the situation, and then I asked the rep to confirm the expiration date.
"Is it 3/12?" I began.
"No, I'm afraid it's not."
"Could you just tell me what it is?"
"There's no way I could do that."
"I see. No, I appreciate that. How about I try one more. What about, 3/11? Is that even close?"
"It's not right, and I can't say anything else."
"That's okay. I'm glad you can't give it out. It's good to know you're so secure. Thanks anyway."
I ended up using my debit card, because we were about to eat dinner together and I wanted to lock in a great fare. A last-minute fare to... Greece.
That's right. I found the fare today, after weeks of looking for cheap tickets and finding nothing. I may need a car, I may be a measly grad student on a measly stipend... but I work part time, I have something set aside in an IRA, the hotel is paid for, and I figure I got the rest of my life to plan ahead. If I can't hop to Athens now to meet my boyfriend for a week, when can I??I'm leaving Wednesday.
Filia (that's xoxo in Greek),
La Roxy
Gained: No identity info, but that's a good thing, on second thought.
Continuing this recent trend of asking a question at the end of every post... have you been to Greece? did you love it? any favorite islands or suggestions?
well I went there, to Athens actually, but i wouldn't be any help since I was around 10 and only complained about all those rocks we were supposed to admire..(yeah i was dumb). I totally agree this comment is useless but it's my lunch break and i'm bored. ;-)
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping to go to Europe - specifically Romania, but hopefully Greece and maybe Italy as well - after graduation in May. You seem to have great luck finding travel deals, so - any advice? When is the best time to book - both in terms of months away vs. a few weeks away, and in terms of times of day/week?
ReplyDeleteThanks for any advice you have - and if you don't have time right now, that's ok too!
What a wonderful trip! If you've never been to Romania or Italy and have questions, feel free to email me. I've been a few times and could give you tips about towns, food, cafes, museums, etc, if you're interested.
ReplyDeleteSometimes, buying ahead is better. For your intracontinental hops, I recommend easyjet or ryan air, and if you book now for september tix are like 9€, and maybe 50€ for June. But otherwise the best time to buy is when there's a promotion or sale -- and those keep popping up, especially in this trying period for the airlines. Try travelzoo or shermans travel.
Buying last minute can work for or against you. I used bt-travel for athens. If you don't mind their sketchy appearance, the savings are worth it. I just saw San Diego - Paris for $200 plus tax in April. OMG!!
Flexibility is key. I always click the "+/- 3 days" option and see what the site can come up with. Sometimes buying two one ways is cheaper (only for the US), or open jaw.
The other key is perseverance. For the Hawaii $750 deal, I used Expedia and checked back every few days for a few weeks until that sale popped up. I had a budget and didn't budge it... but sometimes you just get lucky on the first try.
So good luck and drum bun. And congratulations on your graduation!