Almost all airlines have some type of frequent flyer program designed to reward individuals who fly their airline repeatedly. While I've collected them periodically, I've never really obtained anything substantial using my accumulated frequent flyer milage. When I set out on my adventure back in January of 2011, I had a goal in the back of my mind to finally achieve some type of elite status on an airline this year or the next. I have worked with many business people who had either silver or gold elite status, and I imagine bypassing a huge lineup or getting the odd free flight is a pretty great ...

Today is the day where more than four months of planning finally comes to fruition and the journey finally begins. First, about 20 friends came out for a little going away dinner last night. I had promised myself to only have a few drinks such that I wouldn't be hung over in the morning. Unfortunately, one drink often leads to another, and before I knew it I had a nice little chorus line of empty glasses on the table. I still felt fine, but I knew I was probably going to have a rough sleep and wake up feeling like garbage. I randomly ran into one of my co-workers from my previous job who just ...