Wow. I guess I should start this off with an apology to all those who actually read this blog! My views per day went from around 70 to zero in a matter of days! So. I am sorry for not posting in so long. Thanks for reading and checking back once and a while!
Right, so I left off with me skiing, boredom during winter break, and other “ventures” that I was “planning.”
I’m going to try and write(read:type) this in some sort of chronological order, with some random ideas/theories/comments thrown in between(or as I write).
Holidays. Merry extremely belated Christmas/Kwanzaa/Hanuka/New Years to all those who celebrate. I celebrated with my family(read: mom’s side) and for the first time ever Christmas Eve was at our house. Traditionally we had Christmas Eve at my grandparents(mother’s parents house), but since my grandfather(RIP, Dido) passed away, I think it was decided that we were going to have it at our house. Good thing I was working most of the day(Sears Holdings Corp) because when I came home it was chaotic and tensions were high with both my mom and my grandmother(mother&daughter) in the kitchen. At least the traditional Ukrainian food was good. Unfortunately I ended up getting sick and being stuck in bed after dinner and into Christmas Day.
Vacation. Part of the reason I didn’t have time to write a post was because we were traveling.We drove to Florida. It was a good time other than the fact that I was drowsing in my own mucus, having spontaneous bloody noses, and the mid/high 40 degree weather and rain. I would do it again, except to Aspen.
Free WiFi in hotels.
I am going to go ahead and address this issue now because I have been thinking about it since the day we got to our hotel in Orlando and I feel like it would be entertaining for anyone to read. The hotel we stayed at in Orlando charged 10 bucks a day for freaking WiFi and WIRED! The reader should note that this was an upscale hotel and not a craphole motel that has not been updated or renovated in 40 years. But wait. Even those little crapholes provide complimentary WiFi! The nightly rate at the hotel we stayed at was ~300 dollars a night(note: we needed two rooms since there we 5 of us) . No free WiFi. “Complimentary muffins” in the morning. That pretty much sums up what we got. No WiFi. On the way back we stayed at a Country Inn(never, ever, ever stay there) and get free WiFi for ~115 a night(again, we needed two rooms). Think about that. It is absolute trash for a hotel to charge anyone for WiFi or internet access. If I can go to a Holiday Inn and pay half or more for my room, but get complimentary internet why would I even bother to go to an even more upscale place and spend 100 dollars a week for internet? My take. This might make a few people angry. Internet is becoming an necessity for most(note that I wrote MOST) people. Most do casual surfing, business, and other things on the internet when they are away on vacation. No, I’m not mad because I couldn’t watch mah pR0nZ while I was on vacation. Thats just weird. Back to the original idea. The hotel industry has done something smart and use free WiFi as a marketing point when it was a “new” and “emerging” technology. Charging people for the internet is like charging them every time they run the water. Granted, excess water usage will get you a higher room rate(ask me how I know that), but that is still completely irrelevant. If the hotel provides free WiFi, the hotel also has every right to regulate, throttle, cut, and ban users from the use of the hotel Internets! I know Holiday Inn will kick you off after you use to much bandwidth or are doing insane streaming(again, ask me how I know this) so how can this even be a question of how much bandwidth with 1,200 users take up? It’s not. I think at the end of the day it is a question of the quality of the management of the hotel or chain. As soon as competitors start switching to free WiFi, a manager or someone in the corporate office should know that the time is soon coming and that maybe they should get ahead of the game and switch over too! It would be a smart marketing move. Beat your competitors to the punch. But some places still refuse to give free WiFi? How could this be of any benefit to them?Its not. No one uses it. I just used my iPhone 3Gs and I was okay for Facebook, Twitter and my e-mails. Is it a sign of the(economic) times? No. People who can’t afford 10 dollars for internet a day are not going to stay in a hotel that charges 300 a night when they could stay at a Holiday Inn and burn that 200 somewhere else(and get free WiFi!). But the rich will pay for it, right?! Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! In fact, a millionaire will not pay for the internet. Why? Because true millionaires know where they should not spend their money. In the September 2008 Issue of Smart Money there was an article published titled “10 Things Millionaires Won’t Tell You.” Number two was this:
“I shop at Wal-Mart…” About 80 percent of all the millionaires interviewed say they spend with a middle class mind-set. “That means buying luxury items on sale, hunting for bargains- even clipping coupons”
10 Dollar-a-day slow internet is not a bargain. That answers that question pretty thoroughly. I could quote half of an interesting book I am reading now but I think I will refrain. Bottom line is that most millionaires(again, using MOST because this does not apply to all!) live way below their actual means, simply because it is financially safe(read: less risky) to do so. So who buys the 10 dollar-a day slow internet then? The stupid ones who don’t know better! Simple as that. Some people just do not understand that you can go to Starbucks across the street and check the news, weather and your e-mails for free! Whats my point? Please do not buy internet or WiFi from a hotel unless you are in a life threatening situation. End of that story.
I just realized how long I spent typing up that little rant. That was nice, but I have some other things to do. Check back tomorrow for more entertaining blog posts about my experience as a cashier at Sears during a liquidation. Lulz will ensue.
