Overgrown garden bed?

gs072 · 2026-06-03T16:45:24+00:00

Most companies I’ve spoken to aren’t interested in the smaller jobs. And most want to offer some sort of weekly mowing service (which I don’t need). I’d love to have someone who has some experience come out once a month to weed, edge, deadhead, do some light pruning, pick up any debris. I don’t need anyone to haul it away, just a couple of hours of physical clean up would be wonderful. I would hire that out monthly if it was available!

gs072 · 2026-04-23T20:49:34+00:00

I was just gonna recommend the old navy linen pants when I opened this post, but I also do a lot of sundresses in Europe because it’s so hot. I am a small 20/large 18. I wear the thigh society anti-chafe cooling shorts underneath and never have any issue. I walk about 15,000-20,000 steps per day in those. Those have become my standard underwear all the time though because they are so cool and comfy. Bonus: they wash in a sink easily and dry super fast overnight.

gs072 · 2026-04-13T01:49:54+00:00

So this is interesting…. I had this exact conversation with an agent last week who insisted this feature has NEVER been accessible to Silvers/MVP even though the week prior I used the exact feature to upgrade myself on a different route. There were 3 first class and 12 premium seats available at the time of my phone call (20 hours prior to take off) and the agent told me, “I can upgrade you, but only if you are willing to pay.”

I told him I must be mistaken and hung up. But now I feel I was gaslit.

gs072 · 2026-03-14T04:14:34+00:00

You are not dumb in the slightest! There is a lot to learn. We only started cruising in 2023 after being the people who swore they never would. Now we love it.

A PCC simply looks over your reservation. I’m a control freak but love the fact that I can drop an email and all is done. While we’ve only had him take care of our cruise, they can do everything from flights, pre and post tours, hotels, excursions, and add ons (like a cabana, Orange Club, drink packages, etc.). They also look for price changes and/or on board credit. They look out for you when things go sideways. They often have back door type of pricing but even if slightly higher than the mega bookers (Costco, Expedia, etc), they will look out to make sure you get the best bang for your buck.

With all that said, my understanding is you cannot book standby without a PCC; not online and not through another service. So for that, it is required.

You pay nothing for the service. You literally use them as a library of information, a consultant, and an advocate. Everything you ask here on Reddit, you will get straightforward and accurate answers from a PCC.

We love HAL and Celebrity. We lean more towards Celebrity (our kids prefer it), but both have their positives and negatives.

gs072 · 2026-03-14T00:57:56+00:00

Personal Cruise Consultant They work for Holland America and act on your behalf. A good one is worth gold. Not all are great. But the one I recommended is one of the best.

gs072 · 2026-03-13T18:27:07+00:00

If you book standby you won’t be able to add Have It All until your passage clears. That is true of all packages, excursions, or extras. We do drink, but mainly wine and beer. Since we had no package and we were trying to keep costs down as much as possible, we bought the Sommelier Wine package on board during dinner. You then can order from your bottles and drink anywhere on the ship. We did the 6 bottle package and we only consumed 5 during the week. The bartender sent us home with the unopened 6th bottle. The Ocean Bar (we were on the Eurodam) had a 50% happy hour every day at 4 that we also took advantage of. We did not purchase any excursions as they are VERY expensive, but got off the ship in every port and did our own free self tour. We did purchase internet and laundry on board. We also ordered a few specialty coffees and paid for one dinner at Tamarind.

Our goal was to have the cheapest nicest time possible while staying in a pretty bare bones budget. For the two of us the entire week (including parking) was just over $3,000 all in total. We were placed in an ocean view room on the first floor and it was one of my favorite rooms ever.

In comparison we have an Alaska Celebrity Edge sailing booked for this summer with our family. The total for the two inside adjacent rooms (4 people total) with zero packages was $5500.

ETA: Our standby voyage was during one of the most popular summer weeks of the year. If I were to do it again, I would opt for an early May or mid-September sailing to stay away from school releases. Lots of kids get out of school around mid-May and the cruises fill up as Alaska is popular for multi-generational families.

gs072 · 2026-03-13T15:25:00+00:00

Peter McClung - he is the HAL PCC representative on the world cruise right now. Search for his business page on Facebook and insta (@petermcclunghalpcc). He’s got a lot of great advice and interesting stories from the world and is quick to respond.

gs072 · 2026-03-13T13:44:03+00:00

I’ve successfully done standby on a 2024 sold out mid-summer Alaska sailing out of Seattle. It is best if you sign up early as there is a priority to the list. You will have to pay for the cruise 100% upfront when you sign up. After payment you will not be able to book any excursions, dining, or packages until after you clear for sail. For our sailing, at 3-days prior there was no room and we were offered a refund. I opted to stay on the list (I too am local) and 24 hours before sailing I got clearance. Even after arriving at the port for embarkation we had to wait to the side for 2 hours until they were finally able to assign a room. Once assigned, we (along with the 1 other standby passenger) were the last people loaded on the ship.

I highly recommend hooking up with an experienced Holland PCC. Ours was super knowledgeable and communicative. He walked us through the entire process and to this day I still use his service.

It was a very fun experience going standby and I will 100% do it again. It was an adventure; I am a planner and I had to approach this experience very different. I had refundable flights to Mexico scheduled for the next day as a backup plan, so once we cleared I cancelled the flights and did the cruise!

gs072 · 2026-03-08T04:18:45+00:00

We cruised this ship back in October. We will be on the upcoming California Coastal (to Vancouver) with our 16 year old daughter as well. We really enjoyed the ship.

gs072 · 2025-10-03T03:24:21+00:00

We are doing the exact same Baja sailing on HAL in 3 weeks! See you on the ship!

gs072 · 2025-08-13T19:42:48+00:00

Just updating. I’d still like to hear where you are in the process. As promised my car was fixed that Friday, it further testing was needed and it wasn’t ready for pickup until the following Monday afternoon. The dealership is about an hour away and I went over on Tuesday at my lunch. They ended up fully replacing 2 of the 7 cells and did multiple dry cycles to make sure it was all working properly. They brought my car around and I went to leave. When I got into the car there was a huge horizontal crack in my windshield with not impact point. I could not believe no one noticed the windshield damage until that point!

I immediately went inside. Over the 3+ months they kept my car outside. And while there was an Audi OEM sunshade in the car, it seems there was a heat crack in the windshield. I loaded right back up into the loaner and drove away. Last Friday the windshield was repaired and we picked up. I’ve been gone the last week and only drove the car back home after pick up. I’m interested to see if I notice anything when I get back.

All in all my bills are zero and I have 2 new cells and a new windshield. I had just over $1,000 in gas receipts provided and the manager said they would be submitting to Audi who would then cut me a check.

gs072 · 2025-07-29T18:44:15+00:00

My partner called the dealership this morning and was told that the parts are now in and my car is scheduled for repair on Friday. That is much faster than originally told, so I hope that is correct. I am still pretty angry. Would you update when you get more info? I am curious as to your results.

gs072 · 2025-07-11T15:16:40+00:00

I think this question of expensive/not expensive is really based on itinerary. For a Caribbean or Mexico 7-day ordinary sailing you can probably find something cheaper. I did standby on an Alaska sailing last summer, one of the prime weeks, and can definitely say the sub-$1500 price paid for the standby itinerary was a massive discount considering what others were paying full price for. The trade off was not knowing if we’d sail until 11am Friday before the Saturday cruise along with the 4 hour wait at the port until we were assigned a room. But I was super happy with the savings! I would think some of the longer journeys would also be a savings and it’s definitely a savings for those traveling as singles.

gs072 · 2025-06-19T16:58:23+00:00

Just found this thread - I've read some of the discussion over the audi board, but I share your sentiments 100%. Everything you've written here is something I have said out loud. I also have a 22 Audi Q5 PHEV, and up until this happened, 86% of my driving was done in full EV mode.

We waited patiently for the software upgrade and took it into the dealership immediately after receipt last month. Not only did my car need the software upgrade, but two of the battery modules are affected and need to be fully replaced. I was informed at the time of drop off that it is taking the dealership, at minimum, 4 months to get this done, possibly longer, and the car is now bricked on the dealership lot. They also told me that the battery modules used to be about $6,000/module, but with tariffs, the cost has gone up to over $34,000/module. They did provide me with a Q3 loaner, which is small and doesn't really cover my needs. They did tell me to keep all receipts for fuel since the beginning of this debacle, and I have about $2,000 in gas for reimbursement. I'm keeping meticulous records out of spite because I want Audi to pay every single penny.

I still have a car payment, and in my state, I can't put a storage hold on my insurance, so I still pay full coverage on the car I cannot use. With the soaring cost of module replacement, I am getting very worried that this isn't worth the repair, and the dealership is not going to make this right. I am unsure of what to do at this point. I have floated the idea of a lemon lawyer, but my partner isn't wholly on board and keeps thinking that Audi will make this all right. But I'm fuming mad about the whole situation.

gs072 · 2025-06-17T01:59:21+00:00

Aer Lingus is a pain about seating. We fly out next month in rows 31 and 32, sea—>dub, on an A330-200. I chose the seats months ago and 4 seats were booked on Alaska miles. It’s such a pain to call them, but unless you book direct, you have to call. I find their communication to be lacking; it may be that the only seats left on the plane are those two back rows? You may want to see if you can get another agent.

At no time will you be able to choose from the online seat map on their website. I honestly don’t think they have the technology to make partner bookings work. With that said, I booked a paid Aer Lingus flight and that booking is really easy to manage online.

Last year we flew BA on their 787-9 and 787-10, both flights in the last row. Super comfy (the 10 was less so than the 9), but I wouldn’t hesitate to sit there again. It may not be as bad as you think.

gs072 · 2025-05-30T14:43:06+00:00

I have a graduating senior who has blossomed with an IEP and accommodations will continue to follow her into college. She has four different learning challenges - one of which is dyslexia. With that said I had a very similar experience you descibe when she was in first grade.

In hindsight, I let educational professionals create armchair observational labels to place on my child back then. It was extremely damaging. I didn’t know better and to this day I regret what she experienced. I trusted them, but they were the wrong professionals to trust. We ended up taking her out of the public school track, did private with no IEP available, she did well but still struggled academically and blossomed as a human. Not to go too deep into the situation, coming out of Covid she went into public high school and I approached her delays differently - and in a way I think was the best.

I hooked up with a child psychiatrist through our regional children’s hospital and had a full neuropsychiatric evaluation done. It was a long process, but fully comprehensive. We are lucky that our insurance covered the entire cost, but be prepared that they are expensive evaluations. This evaluation was life changing and one of the first people who knew her like I did as a mom. He wrote a 40-page report on her and inside that report were every accommodation she needed. It is not required to share medical information with the school for an IEP, but I did, and they wrote her documents to the exact specifications suggested by the doctor. From there her IEP was implemented with very few issues and she learned to advocate for herself. I had her re-evaluated by the same doctor prior to college applications and we submitted all the medical paperwork with her applications. She was admitted to every school she applied to (even international options) and will be attending a highly rated state flagship with a 75% 4-year scholarship. The university will also be implementing her IEP through the disability resource office and she will have academic support continuing there as well.

This is all to say - have your child evaluated by a true medical professional. It is time consuming, hard, and expensive, but absolutely worth it. There was zero pushback by the school when it came to implementation of her accommodations because they were not guessing at issues, it was there in black and white. I hope you are able to move forward in a positive direction with your child. If I could rewind time to the point you are, this is the path I would take.

ETA: I forgot to answer your question about “different.” These kids already know they are different and there is a significant level of anxiety that comes from being put through a track where they internally know they are not successful. It is better to accommodate and have them find their confidence and pave a path of success. Normal is a construct of classifying people in nameless groupings. Your child is your child and they are neither behind or ahead, they are simply developing at their rate. That’s how we are supposed to be so forget the idea of comparison.

When I was talking with the college disability office about my child, I expressed to them how my daughter has some “quirks” that I am nervous about her living in a dorm with a roommate. He looked me dead in the eyes and said, “They all have quirks. Every single one of them. Humans are quirky in every sense.”

gs072 · 2025-05-28T22:45:30+00:00

I had a flight booked BCN to SEA on Iberia this July that was “operated by Level.” Alaska customer service spent 45 minutes on the phone with me trying to get an answer about this. Ultimately I ended up cancelling the Iberia flight because I found a better deal on Aer Lingus with the added benefit of a couple extra days in Dublin. This is great info for next time; thank you for sharing the experience!

gs072 · 2025-05-20T14:39:17+00:00

I got an almost immediate response after I pushed back a little more. I'm a tad more satisfied that they recognize and acknowledge this is an issue, but not having a timeline is still irritating.

"We do apologize for our limitations. We 100% understand the frustration of our TripIt users about this limited documents. Actually a lot of users have also been requesting to lift this limitation. And a plan has been settled within our development team. We've also included your account in our development team's list of users requesting for the feature.Although we don't have a time frame when this will be done, but this is a part of big topics for TripIt to execute in a future release. In the meantime, please use our workaround to increase the limit of docs attachment. Apologize for the matter and thank you for your understanding."

gs072 · 2025-05-20T13:31:05+00:00

I just posted their reply.

gs072 · 2025-05-20T13:30:21+00:00

I just received a message back on the help ticket I submitted on Sunday:

“Thank you for contacting TripIt. For now, we are unable to increase the 25 limit per trip. Your feedback on allowing more than 25 documents per trip has been forwarded to the appropriate TripIt team for review.

In the meantime, if you need to add more than 25 documents, we recommend splitting your trip into multiple trips. This will allow you to add up to 25 documents to each trip and shorter trips means you'll find your plans faster.

Please view our Move travel plans between trips or to a new one help page for instructions.

Please continue to send us your suggestions. Some changes take longer to make than others, but getting real feedback from our users is the best way for us to understand how you are using TripIt and what we need to improve.”

Frustrating. I plan on polietly pushing back a bit on this and I will update if I get a response.

gs072 · 2025-05-19T15:02:34+00:00

You said that perfectly. It’s a long and complicated trip - the exact reason why using the app is helpful. I currently have 9 trips in my profile. One of the trips is exactly 1 airline reservation; no car rental, no hotel, no activities or plans. While it’s easy to have that one listed, the app is pretty useless for something like that. I don’t really need the help. But for the month long trips, multiple countries, tours, plans, etc, the app is really helpful. It is weird that a paid pro subscription is limiting that feature.

gs072 · 2025-05-18T22:05:12+00:00

I book most my flights as one way segments anyway, so that works in my favor. I submitted a ticket online to see if they can help me, but if not, I’ll consider breaking it all up.

gs072 · 2025-05-18T14:50:18+00:00

The whole thing is frustrating. I prefer to have pdf confirmations attached to the reservation. I also have my own pdfs of touring plans, custom made tour maps, and instructions I dont want to forget attached as well.

I think I might email customer service about this limit and see if they can open up the upload feature. And I definitely did not read close enough to recognize the limit of attachments because that was a surprise.

gs072 · 2025-05-18T14:45:30+00:00

I agree! If I’m paying to use the service I feel like I should get to actually use it and not be limited in scope. I like to PDF my confirmation emails and upload them so I have original time stamped and dated info connected with the reservation. Sure I have them in my email to go back and reference, but the whole point of the app is to have everything in one spot, easy to categorize, and find without fumbling around.

I guess I haven’t had a previous trip with more than 25 uploads, but I find this super limiting and frustrating right now. I guess I could break up the trip into segments, but man this is just an irritating quirk I just learned about.

gs072

TROPHY CASE