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Goodbye to All That: In a Month, Dallas Here I Come!

April 28, 2016 by Harlan 14 Comments

Also see:

It begins: my last month as an official New York City resident.

Movers are booked.

The date is set to wake up and start driving away, all my things loaded in my new Subaru Forester – including the pup!

This little guy has spent his whole life in Brooklyn!

My dog will be 6 this year, and he’s never known much outside of New York. He’s gonna shed SO MUCH in Texas.

My house is sitting there, waiting to be lived in. I even went ahead and joined a gym in Dallas (and got a sweet discount thanks to FoundersCard).

The house

Grand Opening: Choice Hotels Opens First Cambria Hotel & Suites in Manhattan

July 15, 2015 by Harlan 4 Comments

The Cambria Hotel & Suites in Manhattan celebrated its grand opening on July 14, 2015.

Cambria is part of Choice Hotels, and the Chelsea location is the first in New York!

Out and Out was excited to attend the grand opening celebration, and to talk with key members of the Choice Hotel senior management team about the hotel and Choice Privileges, the hotel chain’s loyalty program.

Is Living In Cities Worth It?

June 25, 2015 by Harlan 6 Comments

I recently discovered a blog called Financial Samurai that got me thinking. Particularly the articles about living in cities:

I’ve mentioned before that living in New York forever might not be in the cards for me as part of my path toward FIRE.

It’s simply a shift in priorities.

The Good Things About Living in Cities

New York Story

August 10, 2013 by Harlan Leave A Comment

My new book is available in digital and paperback versions. It’s all about living and loving in the beast that is NYC. I wrote it while I was between jobs last year, and edited it in my free time. Very pleased with how it turned out, and with the response I’ve gotten so far.

For more info and to purchase, click here: New York Story

Do You Get Double Points on Chase Sapphire for MTA in NYC?

March 16, 2013 by Harlan Leave A Comment

Answer: YES. Absolutely. As a ~~fellow disgruntled~~ forced loyal MTA rider (like most of NYC), I always use my Chase Sapphire Preferred card when I load up my MetroCard. I also use it on all my other travel and restaurant spend, except when I’m trying to meet minimum spends on other cards.

You’ll also get double points for these other travel expenses:

Rental cars
Anything remotely related to air travel (tickets, drinks on the plane, baggage fees, change fees, booking fees [OK – any fees], gift cards, and some points purchases)
TAXIS (important to also know in NYC!)
Any type of car service (for the Brooklyn people)
Public transportation anywhere (Tube in London, BART in SF, CTA in Chicago, etc.)
Hotels, even including Airbnb – I confirmed this with a phone rep

Restaurants is another huge category:

Fast food
Bars
Lounges
Catering
And pretty much anywhere that’s coded as an “eating place” – meaning they serve food (or drinks!). I use my Sapphire in bars all the time.

“Eating Place” (also, I love Mexican food)

Interesting to note something that’s not included in the “travel” category, though: GAS. If you fill up your rental car with gas before returning it, you’ll only earn one point per dollar. Better to use the Chase Ink Plus/Bold or the American Express Premier Gold Rewards card for those transactions since they do earn two points per dollar at gas stations.

Since travel and restaurants are my two biggest spend categories, I love love love the Chase Sapphire Preferred card. Worth every penny of the $95 annual fee.