Tuesday, September 25, 2012

If you are a frequent flyer review theees tips for better savings

There are many ways to rack up frequent flyer points. The best way is to do so doing things you are doing anyways, but for some people, that can take a long time. Here are some ways to accrue frequent flyer points so that you can get cheap flights:

Plan your Flights

Obviously, you can earn miles through flying. However, there may be certain flights that get you more points. Research how your program works and how miles are accrued, and choose cheap flights that will get you the most miles.

Adjust your Budget

Many people only think of certain purchases being appropriate for their credit card - for example large purchases and gas. However, some credit cards will allow you to pay for utility bills or rent, and sometimes you can use it for business expenses and get reimbursed later. If you can keep up with paying the card off and not get into debt, the more you use your card, the more points you will accrue.

Compare Programs

Different frequent flyer programs will require different amounts of miles to get places. For example, Delta might require 100,000 miles to fly to Europe, but Continental Airlines might only require 80,000. However, you also have to keep in mind how easy it is to earn points. If you can get 2 points per dollar spent with Delta, but one point per dollar on Continental, Delta might still be the best bargain. It is necessary to shop around to find out what gets you the most bang for your buck.

Pick the Right Credit Card

Typically, people think of American Express when they hear frequent flyer miles. Although American Express has been known to give the highest amount of miles per dollar that might not always be the case. Also, Visa is more commonly accepted than American Express. If you have trouble using your American Express card, it won't be earning you much. This decision would depend on the area you live in and your particular spending style. Again, comparison-shopping is essential.

Take Advantage of Sign-Up Specials

The quickest way to get a lot of points is to sign up for a card offering a sign-up bonus. You can do this multiple times although your credit rating will be slightly affected with multiple inquiries. If you are disciplined, you can earn enough for a free round trip vacation each year. Make sure you look out for sign-up fees.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Propecia and the culture of beauty

The world has become more unfair over the last two decades. People were always treated differently based on their looks. But now technology has raised the bar and gives people false illusions and reasons to spend their money in the pursuit of the uncatchable. Starting with a simple truth, most people are at their physical peak in their late teens and early twenties. After that, it's all downhill as age creeps on towards the inevitable end. In school and college, there's always been bullying based on appearance. What makes this worst for the modern generations is the arrival of photoshop and the other pieces of software that allow images to be manipulated. For the teens in school, there's the chance to take pictures using cell phones and exaggerate the differences. What appears on Facebook and other social networking sites can be very cruel. In a parallel world, we're surrounded by images of celebrities airbrushed into perfection. Except, that is, for the gossip magazines that pay paparazzi to capture the same celebrities in their off-moments when, horror of horrors, they look just like the rest of humanity with bulging bits of body and wrinkles.

It's probably worst for the women. There are so many jobs that rely on them having perfect looks. It's almost as if they are not allowed to show any sign of aging if they want to keep their jobs or get promoted. That's why there are so many billions at stake in the cosmetics industry for powders and creams to cover up skin problems. When cosmetics fail, there's Botox and cosmetic surgery. What makes all this so alarming are the number of teens who are so unhappy with their bodies, their parents are paying for surgery.

There's more room for men to be less beautiful (according to modern standards). They can forget to shave, even grow a beard, wear old clothes and still manage to be accepted as cool. Except there's one factor that seems to cause problems. Forgetting acne which most manage to leave behind with their teen years, hair loss represents one of the worst things that can happen to any young man. The general view is receding hair makes men look older. The myths say women are less attracted to men with less hair. That's why younger men take to wearing baseball caps and other "hats" to hide the problem. Except, of course, all they do is draw attention to themselves.

Since the solution offered by cosmetic surgeons is not only painful to the pocket and not guaranteed to make any lasting differences, most men refuse hair transplants in favor of Propecia treatment. Whatever its faults, it has the virtues of being cheap to buy, convenient to use and consistently effective in stopping further hair loss. Hardly surprising, then, to find it a high-demand product. Yet, you have to ask exactly what is wrong with men who do bald prematurely. Why has our aesthetic sense become hypnotized by the idea of perfection? Not so long ago, we would all pride ourselves on the little differences that showed us younger or older, more weathered or with the skin of an office guy. Now everyone feels under pressure to take Propecia and try to look exactly the same as everyone else. That's just depressing.