Easy Way To Double Your Reward Points

loop·hole –noun
[loop-hohl]
1. a means or opportunity of evading a rule, law, etc.

Now this may be painfully obvious to some, but it only occurred to me just yesterday. The easiest way to double your reward points, like Air Miles, Aeroplan, Shoppers Drug Mart Optimum Bonus Points or any other reward programs that are out there, is to first purchase a gift card.

For a personal example: I used a credit card, which gains WestJet Dollars, to purchase a $100 gift card at a local grocery store that is part of the Air Miles reward program. Then when I use the gift card to purchase my groceries, I once again can collect Air Miles on those purchases. For the same $100 worth of groceries I can collect double the amount of points!

So the question to you, Dear Reader, is with all these extra travel points where should Chasing Distractions fly to for the next distraction?

Best. Phone. Ever.

in·de·struct·i·ble –adjective
[in-di-struhk-tuh-buhl]
1. incapable of being destroyed; very durable

Just before Christmas I decided it was time to upgrade my technology and cash in some Fido Dollars for a sweet new cell phone. After much deliberation I opted for the Sony Ericsson Vivaz pro. It took a little bit of getting used to; the touch screen was new to me, as was the full qwerty keyboard, but just as I was getting the hang of it, my phone went AWOL.

December 26th, Boxing Day. A thick fog blanketed the valley as a light rain fell, turning what little snow that had acquired into a soupy, slushy mess. The temperature was hovering in the negative single digits as I arrived at Vorlage to attend another day of one-hill training. I had recently become a member of the Canadian Ski Patrol and was excited about earning my jacket. That excitement, coupled with my late arrival, led to the escape of my phone.

It would seem that in my haste I had forgotten that the phone was sitting on my lap. Once I arrived in the slush filled parking lot of Vorlage I bounded out of my vehicle without concern and rushed into the patrol hut. I would come to the realization that my phone was missing much later in the day. In fact, I had arrived home and was just beginning to dry off when I realized that my phone was most likely lying in a puddle somewhere in that slush covered parking lot.

I returned to Vorlage that night at 6pm, and with my headlights shining down on the dark parking lot, proceeded to kick around the slush, snow and ice in an attempt to find my phone. It was pouring rain so my search had to be called off after 30 minutes.

To my surprise my phone continued to ring for three days until the battery finally gave out. It was a good sign that my phone was not in fact in the parking lot, but must be in a warm a dry place, like the patrol hut. I returned one week later, and to my disappointment could not find my phone.

On the first day of 2011, the temperature was unseasonably warm. So much so that what snow and ice covered the parking lot soon melted away. And lo and behold there was my cell phone, right where I had dropped it. After a quick 2 hour charge the phone was as good as new. It even looks brand new.

As of today there does not appear to be anything wrong with it at all.

I have to repeat: Best. Phone. Ever.