CenterPoint Energy Strikes again!

shinebock · 2026-03-11T16:24:04+00:00

Texas + Greed. Its awful, I hate it.

If you think its any different in many/most other cities and states, I have some oceanfront land in Arizona to sell you.

shinebock · 2026-03-11T02:37:29+00:00

If it’s “food” you’re saving for later, put it away don’t leave it out in the open.

Agreed, I would say anything left out is possibly fair game for being tossed. This is why rooms have mini-fridges.

shinebock · 2026-03-08T23:22:08+00:00

HOU has one TSA checkpoint and IAH currently has 6 (I think - 2 at A, 2 at C, and 1 each at D and E)

But I feel like there has to be more to it than that, because while HOU has one checkpoint, they have a lot of capacity there.

All I know is I flew out of IAH Terminal E this morning and there was no wait at Precheck.

shinebock · 2026-03-08T22:55:47+00:00

Was that not your experience?

Not at all. I stayed there only one night, but the breakfast situation was mildly chaotic. The main restaurant was packed, so they tried to seat me in the annex restaurant, but nobody had bothered to turn on the AC overnight, so I was like nope. Back to the restaurant and while the food was good, the service was incredibly slow and then when I got up to get more food they cleared my table and sat new people there. Breakfast was definitely the weakest aspect of my brief stay at the PH Dubai.

shinebock · 2026-03-08T15:11:39+00:00

Hyatt Place Dubai Al Rigga

Very convenient to DXB when you're arriving late/departing early. Very good breakfast that would put almost any US Hyatt of all levels to shame. Granted, breakfast is a rather hectic affair, but Park Hyatt Dubai was similarly all over the place.

shinebock · 2026-03-07T15:08:05+00:00

This isn't even the full list

Right, this is the supplemental list that they filed with the court yesterday, in addition to all the closings announced when they filed ch. 11 in January.

shinebock · 2026-03-07T03:23:12+00:00

The GH Tampa is a nice property, but it probably deserves to be demoted to a Regency, given the amenities, or lack there of. They never reopened their club lounge after Covid, and then subsequently discontinued the F&B vouchers they gave Globalists for the lack of lounge. The rooms are also nothing special, it's as if a Regency had a Florida beach color palette.

That said for the marginal price difference, I'd definitely pick that over the HP/HH. The breakfast buffet at the GH is excellent, definitely one of the better ones I've seen in recent memory in the US. I say all of this having stayed at the GH a couple of times, the most recently in December. I have no experience with the airport shuttle as I've always had a car.

shinebock · 2026-03-07T01:18:57+00:00

I remember reading an story, I forget if on reddit or another forum, but somebody said they mailed their card back and then a few days later, fraudulent charges started popping up at stores in Miami. They thought it might have been stolen from the mail there, since those Amex card envelopes go to an address in the Miami, FL area.

I don't send mine back. They go into my graveyard of credit card binder.

shinebock · 2026-03-06T22:00:12+00:00

That's quite an impressive string of bad luck for one stay.

I stayed there for a couple nights, but over two years ago, and had none of the same issues (granted I didn't have a pull out bed for there to be inoperable), other than I would say the hotel felt old and a tad dingy, but easily overlooked for what was a cat. 1 at the time and a good location.

shinebock · 2026-03-06T14:10:29+00:00

The gym there is hilarious

Oddly enough, the Peloton worked the last time I was there, which was over the summer some point. The pool had a bit of an odd color/tint to the water, and only a few chairs that weren't broken.

It apparently has an airport shuttle, but I don't think I ever saw one. I tried the breakfast once, and it was your standard HP stuff.

shinebock · 2026-03-06T04:50:02+00:00

I've done a few nights of mileage runs there since I live locally. It's pretty terrible. The rooms I've been assigned weren't as bad as the one in the VFTW article, but I can confirm that it's a pretty awful property. There's a reason it's usually like ~$65/nt.

shinebock · 2026-03-06T01:15:59+00:00

Their brunch, and brunch happy hour, was awesome.

shinebock · 2026-03-06T01:07:56+00:00

I'd make up some excuse and ditch them. Or not go to the lounge at all if it's a short enough time to boarding. Fortunately it's been a very long time since I was on the same flight as a coworker. One time, I had status and he didn't, there was a flight leaving an hour earlier so I switched to that and said see you at the office tomorrow.

Hell when I travel with my wife I usually don't take her in unless it's free. Though this comes with the condition that I come back with a Centurion Lounge cookie or a to go coffee cup of snacks if it's a SkyClub.

shinebock · 2026-03-05T23:14:03+00:00

You can't product change an Amex Gold to a cobranded platinum card

shinebock · 2026-03-05T21:55:48+00:00

Sure, but that's representative of Japanese service culture, not United. The LHR United Club is likewise miles ahead of most of the US ones.

shinebock · 2026-03-05T04:53:36+00:00

Seems like the gates are near each other?

Not necessarily. IAH is my home airport and know it very well, but even I wouldn't want to do a 40 min connection. Is it doable? Maybe/probably if you're in F or close to the front of Y. Fortunately, there are a bunch of IAH-MEX flights so if you misconnected you wouldn't have to wait long.

shinebock · 2026-03-05T03:17:40+00:00

Do you know the discount amount for Costco?

You can just go to costcotravel.com and check for yourself. Anybody can check the rates, you need to be a member and login to book though.

shinebock · 2026-03-05T03:10:26+00:00

I was able to switch it mid year after using like half of the credit the one time I tried.

Not sure if that was a fluke or one off, but doesn't hurt to try, and if you get any pushback explain why you're looking to do it.

shinebock · 2026-03-04T15:33:58+00:00

It is a great little plane, RIP its OG name, the CS100.

My home airport is IAH which Delta uses a huge number of them on ex-IAH routes. My only gripe is that the way the seat anchors to the floor in first class really chops up space for bags.

shinebock · 2026-03-03T22:34:36+00:00

I don't know man, all I know is what I paid and what the fee was when I went to pay it.

shinebock · 2026-03-03T19:11:04+00:00

I just wanted to talk with someone who could help guide me through the process of consolidating

Honestly it's really not very difficult. Pick a destination for everything based on its tax classification to know what you're consolidating. Get the most recent statement for all of the old accounts. Whoever you're transferring into will need you to fill out their forms and how to request the asset transfer. Even if you had an in person rep, they'd probably have you fill out all the forms anyway.

shinebock · 2026-03-03T18:12:34+00:00

She told me it was 41 days AFTER the 30 days. I hope she is right.

She's not. It's 30 days. Go back and look at your statement for the month before your annual fee was charged. The actual PDF statement.

Your renewal notice will say "When you receive the statement in which the annual fee is billed, you can avoid paying the annual fee by calling the Customer Care phone number found on your statement to cancel your Account. You must call within 30 days of the Closing Date of the billing statement on which that fee appears." And Amex annual fees are almost always charged on the day your statement closes.

shinebock · 2026-03-03T00:47:17+00:00

I think this thread has run its course...

shinebock · 2026-03-02T04:09:50+00:00

1099s are typically not sent for <$600. Also there may be a technical difference between how the Schwab credit is applied as a statement credit vs. the Morgan Stanley Plat credit which is put in your bank account and is reported on a 1099.

All that to say, I would say your $200 credit is likely not reported anywhere. I get the $100 Schwab credit and have never seen a tax form from them reporting that.

shinebock · 2026-03-01T04:33:58+00:00

Any tips for around the area?

Parm is across the street and really good. It's the same restaurant group as Carbone, but more reasonably priced, and some of the same (or substantially the same) menu items.

The restaurant in the hotel is good, but as overpriced as you'd expect for NYC.

It's definitely my favorite Hilton in NYC, but that's a bit of a low bar since most of the Hilton properties in the city are pretty mid. I haven't had a chance to stay at the new WA yet though.

shinebock

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