» New York

JFK jet blues

staci baird — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 02:36:14 +0000

This is my last night in New York and I’m spending it at JFK. I’m not happy.

My flight was scheduled to leave at 925 p.m. but I knew better than to think that we would actually push away from Gate 19 at 925. It’s now 1018. The departure board says our flight is now scheduled to depart at 1140. I’m not holding my breathe!

I knew better than to book a flight with JetBlue… with the
trouble they’ve been having with flights lately I really should’ve listened to my gut and paid the extra $200 to fly United. But I’m greedy. I wanted that $200 to go for something a bit more tangible like a new suit or the silver Tiffany’s locked I’ve been coveting.

So, here I sit.

I had to walk down two gates to find an agent and ask what the deal was with our flight. He said all flights were delayed one hour because of air traffic control. I asked if it could be delayed later than 1030 and he shook his head and said “No.” At that point, I was under the naive assumption that we could be leaving only an hour late. Could be worse…

So I pulled up a seat on the floor next to a power outlet and plugged in all my equipment – cell phone, iPod, laptop – the bare necessities. Then, while in the middle of a conversations with my mom, I overheard another passenger approach a nearby gate and ask if the flight to Nashville was still leaving at 1140. Eh? 1140? What?!

I quickly got off the phone and went over to gate 18 to ask the agent what was going on. I have to admit that I did feel sorry for her. She was being bombarded with people asking questions and her fellow gate agent was apparently telling passengers who were deboarding the plane at gate 18 that it was okay to do something she said they couldn’t do… The agent only said one cuss word – and apologized for it – but then the phone started ringing and – long story short – she started going off to the person on the phone. I felt like maybe her information was tainted, so I started to stroll down to another gate when I noticed that we finally had an agent at gate 19. He was changing the board to 1140. Then, he got on the mic and announced that our flight was delayed. No, really?!

Several disgruntled JetBlue employees were running around saying things like “I wish I was leaving” and “[I wish I] work[ed] for another airline.” Wow.

The worst part for me, tonight, is that I’m not flying directly to Knoxville. Oh no! I’m flying to Nashville, and Jay has to pick me up and then we have to drive back to Knoxville – 2.5 hours. So Jay will be in the car for five hours just to come get me. We won’t even get home until after 530 am… if we’re lucky. So, I’m going to spend Saturday sleeping. Don’t call me. I’m going to be grouch(ier).

The moral of this sad story is kids, don’t be cheap! Pay the extra bucks and fly United!

Extreme write-offs

staci baird — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 14:14:13 +0000

We thought it might be fun to take some video from our tax series and post it on YouTube. Our producer Peggy Collins got some great vid of Jeff Schnepper punching his IRS bag (which he was able to write off).

Read more about Extreme write-offs part of the Tax time countdown series on MSN Money.

Chocolate shortage? Ack!

staci baird — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 13:01:12 +0000

MSN Money Market Dispatch writer, Elizabeth Strott reports on the possibility of a World chocolate shortage ahead.

I’m not sure how much of a price hike the average consumer can expect to see, but just to be safe, I think I’m going to start hoarding chocolate!

New York, you changed me

staci baird — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 02:24:36 +0000

Crazy train
A couple weeks ago, I was living in Brooklyn and my commute consisted of a 20-30 minute train ride into Manhattan, a 15-20 min wait at Starbucks, and then a 30 minute van ride to work in New Jersey.
There was this guy that started getting on at the 42nd St stop… he would get on a say “Good morning ladies and gentleman, I am here to tell you about the good news about Jesus Christ.” He had sorta an Irish accent, but I sneaked a peek at him and I couldn’t tell for sure.
Anyway, the first time he got on I freaked out because I thought for sure he had a bomb and he was going to blow us all up. (Didn’t share this story with mom).
He was yammering on and on about how we were all sinners and would be judged by God…
I was able to safely disembark at my 96th St stop with no incident, so the next time he got on, I was like “Meh, whatever dude.” Free speech I guess, and I just turned up my iPod.
The last time I saw/heard him he got in a fight with another passenger who kept telling him he was a hypocrite, and his only reply was “Amen Jesus. Jesus is my savior.”
This guy was so New York.

New York…. well, New York and I will always have something special. New York is an amazing city. You can be walking down 8th Ave scurrying along trying to make it to Starbucks for a grande cinnamon dolce latte and multi grain apple donut before your van arrives, and see everything from a homeless man pushing a cart full of clothes and sacks, to a woman who is wearing shoes that probably cost more than my iPod, to a gaggle of tourists, all wearing matching red coats, staring up at the sky… Sometimes I just stand there waiting for the van, grinning like a maniac watching business men hail taxis and stealing careful glimpses up at the tall buildings and thinking, “Wow! I am freaking in New York! How cool is that?” The thing is, you have to act like it’s nothing. “Meh, it’s New York. Big deal.” But to me, it is a big deal.

I’ve tried to play it cool, but damn it! I’m in freakin New York and I’m a freakin New Yorker! I know how to get around on the trains, I know how to hail a cab and ignore the crazies that rant about sinners on the subway, I walk against the light and glare at the trucks that dare to try to stop me from crossing. I learned so much living in New York; about myself and about the life people lead in this city of 18,976,457.

If I was about 10 years younger and not completely head-over-heels in love with a man who lives in Knoxville… well, I’d definitely stay in New York. But the thing is, it’s time for me to move on. (More on that coming soon). I’ve enjoyed New York, but Knoxville is my home.

So, the best way to explain my time in New York is that it was like a four month vacation. Sure, I had to work, but I got paid to see the city – well, snippets of it anyway – and I proved I could do it. I lived in New York and survived on my own. Sure, it was scary at times. But now, I can ride the subway (real New Yorkers call it the train) and not feel insecure. And, despite what Jay might think, I, more or less, can figure out how to get from A to B.

In the end, I’ve got plenty of good stories to tell, and isn’t that what it’s all about?

It’s tourney time

staci baird — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 19:11:18 +0000

Elizabeth Strott for MSN Money.

My friend and colleague, Elizabeth Strott made her video debut today with a story about the NCCA tournament. See Putting a price tag on ‘March Madness.’ The video was shot and edited by our resident video whiz kid, Aaron Whallon. Aaron is also a KU grad. (Side note, Elizabeth is a Duke grad.)