It’s Getting Insane…
Delta is doubling most fees on checked bags. I especially like the part where you can be triple-charged; extra bag fee + overweight fee + oversize fee. You’re looking at a $315 charge for that bag, which is nuts!
Banks, who collect well in excess of $15B annually in fees, have proven that customers are willing to pay them. It seems like the airline industry is taking the same approach, which only seems sensible given our willingness to be nickle-and-dimed to death. My only question is why it took them so long to do it? The problem for airlines might be that air travel is a luxury that people can easily forgo. A second problem is that business travelers are a large segment for them and any business traveler worth their salt never checks bags. I doubt they’ll hurt demand, and I doubt they’ll go back down when oil price finally breaks.
Just one more headache for travelers, better weigh & measure your bags. But don’t take too many either…
Back to the grind
4 weeks of Marketing 101 started tonight, and it wasn’t as bad as expected. The topic is great, I find it interesting, but the 3+ hours in a classroom is still too much.
An F in home maintenance
Yesterday, our AC stopped being cold. The unit was running, and some air (not a lot) was blowing through the vents but it wasn’t cold. It was 85 in the house when I got home from work!
So I called a couple places this morning and found someone to come out over lunch, and it turns out the air filters were all clogged up. I had just cleaned the filters this Spring, but apparently I missed half of them. The HVAC guy pulled 4 out, I was only aware of 2 and even after looking for them tonight I still can’t find the other 2. I’ll have to look harder this Fall, when it’s time for another cleaning. In any event, I get an F today in home maintenance.
This incident did spur me to look at the filter in our humidifier, and it was disgusting. Big surprise, considering we’ve lived here over half a decade and I’ve never checked it before. So I went to HD and changed that out.
Maybe with clean filters, our energy bills will go down; that would be nice!
Party in park, kid style
Friday night we saw the Bee Movie with the girls, at Colerain’s Sizzling Summer Series. They enjoyed the movie, and Julie & I even thought it was pretty good. Julie & the girls made smores before we left, then I popped some popcorn on our way out of the house and it turned out to be a really good time. Except for the firworks… Some yahoo was setting them off during the first few minutes of the movie, and of course the girl’s got their “earmuffs” out when that was happening.
Fishing on the Lake
Joe took us out on the boat this morning, for some fishing with the girls. It was incredible, we were there for less than half an hour and caught at least a half dozen fish. We’d throw in the bobber, and within a couple minutes, boom!
Ava is in charge of the worms!
A lesson in Marketing
I went out for lunch yesterday, and I’m thinking I’ll just pick up a sandwich and eat that with the chips back at my desk. I’m trying to eat healthier, and fries are horribly bad for you…
I was debating between McDonald’s and Wendy’s. They’re both fast food, but McDonald’s is an extra half-mile away so Wendy’s it is! Or at least I thought… I’m about to turn left and I can’t. All I can think of is how horribly bad their food is for you, and how McDonald’s would be healthier. I ended up at McDonald’s, which is a pretty good case-study in marketing because I’ve never like their food. But I have been eating their off and on for a few months. Contrast that with the fact that before 2008 I had not been to a McDonald’s in at least 10 years. I even watched Super Size Me about 3 months ago and it didn’t change my opinion of McDonald’s one iota. The only possible explanation is marketing (Lovin’ It!), and the constant drumbeat of negativity that has forced McDonald’s to respond with healthier food claims.
To compare my perception to reality, I decide to lookup the nutrional info.
Wendy’s Spicy Chicken: 440 calories, 16g fat, 46g carbs & 1300mg of sodium
McDonald’s Premium Crispy Chicken Club: 630 calories, 28g fat, 60g carbs & 1420mg of sodium
There ya go, almost 50% more calories and 25% more carbs at McD’s. Wendy’s needs a better ad agency!
Networks
