The Power of Social Media

Last night I randomly logged on to my Fly Delta app to verify my AMEX points had properly transferred to my Sky Miles account. The points are fine, but I noticed my itinerary for a November trip and been thrown out of whack.

When I initially booked the trip, I was suppose to fly from Knoxville to Memphis, then on the Vegas. Well, it would appear the TYS to MEM flights have been cut. My new itinerary had me going from Knoxville to Atlanta to Memphis, then on to Vegas.

Aside from it looking completely stupid on paper, the updated flights would have caused me to miss my Vegas connection in Memphis. Since Delta took it upon themselves to re-book my fight, why didn't they just have me fly to ATL then on to LAS?

By the time I found this issue, it was after 11PM and I was not about to call the 800 # at that hour. I was not able to change my flights online, which annoyed me even more. So, I did the next best thing. I vented my frustrations on Twitter. What happened next shocked me.

Not long after my tweet to Delta, I got a response from their @DeltaAssist account. All I had to do was direct message them my confirmation # and they would look into the problem and see if they could find a solution. 

My issue was fixed in less than 10 minutes and they re-routed me on my first choice out of Atlanta. All of this was corrected without additional charges and without me having to sit on hold for 45+ minutes.

I've had my issues with Delta in the past, but lately, my flights have been taking off on schedule and arriving a little ahead of schedule. Hope this continues.

Several companies could learn a thing or two from this experience. I do not advocate taking to social media to bash companies, but if I see areas they can improve their service, I will continue to speak my mind.

Bravo Delta, I look forward to gaining more Sky Miles to use toward future adventures!!

Better late than never...

I've known my buddy Joel ever since I moved to Nashville in 1987. Yes, that means we've been friends for over 26 years. He kept saying he felt "old", but I like to think of our friendship like a fine wine...it gets better with age.

One of the many reasons I love Joel is, he's one of the most caring people you'll ever meet. I forgot to remind him of this story, but in the summer of 1993, the summer before our freshmen year of high school, we had a house fire. We lost almost all of our material possessions, but no one was hurt. I was in Hawaii at the time and my mom, step-dad and BoJangles were at a conference in Gatlinburg. 

I remember calling Joel because we talked multiple times a day and when you're that age, material things mean a lot more. He called my parents when they got back home and offered his house, if we needed a place to stay. Mom flew to Hawaii to bring me home later in the summer and Joel came with my step-dad to the airport to pick us up. To this day, I don't think he realized how much that little gesture meant to me.

My time with him in Chicago was short, but we had a blast. It's like no time had passed since graduation day. Here's to another 26+ years of a fantastic friendship.

                                     

Blake, Joel (in the glasses) and I

Gradation Day from Father Ryan High School -- May 1997

Afternoon wine break

I was told all the tourist take this shot at the Bean, can you see us?

I gave the deep dish a whirl

I also wanted a cheeseburger and a Coke

Holy cow, we found the Goose Island Wrigleyville Pub

Flight of beers

Words can not describe how good this was

Take me out to the ballgame...

Even the Derby hat couldn't help the Cubbies on this day

Welcome to Chicago

The Water Tower, where the past meets the present

 I want candy

Pass the popcorn

Navy Pier

"Sears" Tower

I spy Soldier Field

The Madhouse on Madison

Cute little beach bar

Looking north

Loved this design

So peaceful, in the middle of the city

Chi-Town Bound

In all my years of traveling, I haven't set foot outside of Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. I have run through it several times and even slept in there on more than one occasion. But the wait is finally over, I finally get to see the city.

The Bulls have started their post season run and the Cubs, well, they're the Cubs...so things could get interesting.

13.1

As I've stated before, I hate running. Did I also mention I hate to sweat. Yes, I'm also not big on manual labor.

But I got this wild idea today. Why not run in next year's Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon? Well, I guess I should be more specific in that I think I can run the half marathon. 13.1 miles, that's a little less daunting than the full 26.2 miles. I think if I actually get serious about it, I could survive it. Maybe.

While this idea is still rolling around in my head a co-worker planted another seed. What about the First Annual Southernmost Marathon? Or in my case, the half marathon. I mean Key West is much flatter than Knoxville and what's the worst that could happen...I'd end up at Margaritaville.

Hogfish and chocolate covered key lime pie on a stick. That's about the only motivation I need. Now here's the kicker, the price. The half marathon registration fee is only $65.00, but the plane ticket and hotel are over  $1000. Am I serious enough to drop that kind of cash to run through the streets of Key West?

Decisions...decisions...decisions....

Who's RAD?

I hate running. Not only is that my personal philosophy when it comes to working out, but that was also our team name for this weekend's Color Me Rad race. This was the second time Knoxville hosted the event. Last year, it was in October and in Chilhowee Park. The date and location, downtown Knoxville, was much better this time around.

There were over 9,000 participants, but a good time was had by all. Perhaps the funniest moment for me happened about half way through the race. I was down on Neyland Drive, heading toward Bridge View Grill, when all of a sudden, I saw one of my friends. He was heading toward the turn around point. I yelled his first name....nothing. Tried his last name...zippo. Finally I shouted "Naked Dave" and he stops dead in his tracks. It was awesome!

Here's a quick note for next year. Roll in the color with caution. I got dizzy and one of my other friends got stepped on. But I'd do the race again in a heartbeat. Sign up early next year...those spots fill up FAST!!

Wish the shirts were white

I had to break out last year's shirt...and I was shocked Brad opened the wallet for this event

I can't tell you how many times Libby changed outfits during the race

Never yell "hit me" at a color station

Libby, Mary Ellen & I stopped for a photo-op

You know we had to roll around in the orange color

Where's Wells? There he is

See you kids again next year!

Back to Tampa

While today is official "first day of Spring", my "summer" started over the weekend. Yes, it was time for me to head back to Tampa for the start of Kenny Chesney's "No Shoes Nation" tour. Before I get into the details of that concert, I wanted to give you a quick re-cap of my mini-vacation.

For the first time in a long time, my mom and I flew down to Tampa together. I normally fly out of Knoxville and she'll fly out of Nashville. But this time around, I had some vacation days to burn and it was more cost effective to take Southwest.

We landed in Tampa around lunch time, last Friday. A friend of mine recommended we hit The Colonnade. And I'm glad we did. Not only was it a quick drive from the airport, the food was delicious and set the tone for the rest of the trip.

This was the sign that greeted us, as we entered....this already got my stamp of approval.

You really can't go wrong with the shrimp scampi or bay scallops.

We had a seat next to the window, so we could see the bay. 

But no one warned us we might have a lunch guest. This little guy and his buddy kept running across the window seal. 

Here's the moral of this story. Next time you're in Tampa. Go visit The Colonnade.