|
|
|
|
Tuesday, December 13, 2011 |
|
Wednesday, September 22, 2010 |
|
Hidden fees can kiss it |
|
|
|
So, two weeks ago I made dinner reservations for my wife and I to have a nice dinner cruise while we are in Chicago this week. Little did I know that the dinner cruise people had a ton of hidden fees, and also that Chicago has some fairly wacky taxes. Check out my costs:
------------------------------------- $227.80 - Adult Saturday Dinner Ticket for 2 $97.80 - EC First Class Service - Dinner - must purchase for entire party $0.00 - Table for Two $50.00 - Guaranteed Window Seating - Dinner $375.60 - Subtotal $58.61 - Administrative Fees - Ody Chicago (18.00%) $19.48 - Fees-Ody Chicago Tickets (8.55%) $6.83 - Fees-Fuel Surcharge Ody Chicago (3.00%) $3.91 - Fees-Ody Chicago F&B (4.00%) $7.52 - Ticket Tax - ODY - Chicago (3.30%) $10.76 - Taxes-Ody Chicago F&B (11.00%) $7.18 - Amusement Tax-Ody Chicago (3.15%) $2.25 - Amusement Tax - Ody Chicago OTHER (4.50%) $492.14 - Total Charge ------------------------------------- So my first problem with this BS is that the math just plain ain't right. If you look at any of the listed percentages and apply that to any of the initial totals, they just aren't correct. Never mind that though.. what really boils my balls is that I have friggin $116.54 in hidden fees and taxes here. I mean damn, that's 31% in taxes and fees. WTF? Ok, so today I get my rental car reservation notice from Enterprise (my wife, the sweetheart, reserved a car for me), and here's the bill: ------------------------------------- Car and Rate Information PER USE: Full Size Chevy Impala, Nissan Altima, Dodge Charger or similar $181.74 USD (3 Day @ 60.58) $0.00 USD (Drop Charge) $40.39 USD (2 Hour @ 20.20) $25.04 USD (CONCESSION RECOVERY FEE 11.11 PCT) $15.00 USD (CUSTOMER FACILITY CHARGE 3.75/DAY) $2.75 USD (LESSOR TAX 2.75 USD/RNTL) $3.28 USD (VEHICLE LICENSE RECOVERY .82/DAY) $12.52 USD (AUTO RENTING OCCUPATION TAX) $15.03 USD (MPEA TAX) $2.50 USD (MASS TRANSIT TAX) $20.04 USD (CHICAGO TRANSACTION TAX) $318.30 USD (Total Charges)
NOTE: Pricing does not include coverage. -------------------------------------
Yup, that's $136.56 in taxes and fees. That's 75.1% in taxes and fees. Can I get a WTF, please?
The dinner cruise people I can almost forgive.. almost. But Enterprise rent-a-POS can kiss it. And to you bitches at Enterprise: if I get stuck with a damn Dodge Charger again, and you think I'm ever going to rent from you again, then you is on the crack.
Welcome back to the Crack, motherfuckers. :)
Posted by
Travis @
1:31:00 PM --
(0) comments
|
|
|
|
|
Monday, October 30, 2006 |
|
Monday, June 26, 2006 |
|
Friday, June 23, 2006 |
|
Why NOT to be in Harlem at 1am |
|
|
|
As a preview of the perils that await me for the next 10 days, I got a sample of subway life after midnight in Harlem. Walking up to the Cathedral Station stop on the corner of CPW and 110th, I noticed all manner of unsavory types lurking around in the shadows.
Descending the stairs into the well lit station I felt a bit relieved to see an MTA employee in the booth... behind 1 inch thick (presumably bullet proof) plexiglass. Swiping through the turnstile I descended down another flight of stairs onto the eerily quiet platform. Even the rats and mice seemed afraid of this station -- tracks are usually teaming with them by this time of night. The warm stench of urine and urban grime permeated the air and there were a few homeless men indulging in their favorite brown bag beverage.
No sooner had I taken a seat on the worn wooden bench when a disorderly fellow, strung out on something, came stumbling down the stairs yelling obscenities into the air. Despite the nearly empty station he sits down right next to me and continues to spit out the curse laden gibberish until suddenly the station falls silent again.
Out of the corner of my eye I see a glass device emerge from his shirt pocket along with a lighter. This guy was LITERALLY smoking crack! I wish I had the balls to photograph this guy because he would have made the perfect posterboy for this blog taking a fat hit off his crack pipe.
Just as he exhaled a massive cloud of almost blue smoke my train came speeding into the station, the blast of warm wind blowing the cloud right into my face. I had to admit I was curious for a split second but thought better of it, held my breath, and headed for the train.
Upon boarding there was a rabble of gay ass gangstas. Not the white boy in suburbia driving daddy's escalade and wearing pants around his ankles kind of gay. These Gs were actually flaming gay. You know, the lanky kind wearing bright form fitting clothes, when you're not quite sure which ones are guys and which ones are girls with their lady bits taped up. They talked like thugs (though 1 octave too high and with a slight lisp), had the requisite bling, and even the token guy with a 'fro, but this crew was most certainly not gang bangin... at least not in the traditional sense.
Posted by
Marc @
6:36:00 AM --
(0) comments
|
|
|
|
|
Thursday, June 22, 2006 |
|
Monday, June 19, 2006 |
|
Trailer food, the new fusion? |
|
|
|
So I'm on the train this morning wearing a black winter suit (because I'm a jackass and didn't get the "memo" about it being in the 90's today) literally melting into my suit when something someone said from across the aisle jolted me from my heat induced stupor.
A little girl was pointing to an ad behind me and asking her mom "What is that?". I'd noticed the ad for the American Peanut Grower's Council when I walked on the train, and it was a giant poster with a photo of a slice of sandwich bread with peanut butter slathered on it and 5 slices of banana neatly arranged on top. The slogan said "It was good enough for the King of Rock and Roll, it should be good enough for you."
Okay, so it's not the most catchy writing in the world, but the photo had me craving one something fierce. Upon the child's inquiry the mother looked at the ad for a moment, turned to her daughter, and confidently stated: "It's sushi". While I sat there slack jawed (I thought for a moment that the woman was referring to me, because no one, NO ONE in their right mind could possibly mistake a peanut butter and banana sandwich for sushi), the daughter followed up with: "What's sushi?". To which the mother answered "It's Chinese food... you wouldn't like it".
Okay, I admit, I made the last half of that sentence up, but it was implied. I wasn't even so much offended that this woman didn't know what sushi was, after all there are only 463 sushi restaurants in New York. What really got my goat is that this poor girl was going to grow up thinking peanut butter and banana sandwiches are the devil's food. I mean who could not love that rich creamy peanut butter meld with the lightly sweet satiny banana all wrapped up in air rich Wonderbread goodness?
Ohh the travesty!
Posted by
Marc @
7:03:00 AM --
(1) comments
|
|
|
|
|
Sunday, June 04, 2006 |
|
Tuesday, May 30, 2006 |
|
Sunday, May 21, 2006 |
|