The To-Do list is done.

Yeah.  So, I have never had quite as many checklist items on my to-do list as James and I had over the last 6 months.  And that checklist was being checked off right up to last night when we finally boarded our plane to Paris.

Let me tell you about some favorite moments.  First, AT&T.  Turns out, they will not let you cancel or suspend service when you go to Iraq unless you are military.  Apparently our service to the country is less valued, and hey, that's fine.  But look, the fact remains that we cannot use our service in Baghdad and that we have no option, but to pay exorbitant fees while not using our phones.  Our customer service rep was helpful, but come on, seriously?  This may be a bigger racket than the gym membership, which at least lets you out of your contract if you move 50 miles away from the closest franchise.  AT&T, get a grip.  You're not exactly winning hearts here.

And this may have been my favorite moment with customer service so far.  We were talking to USAA about our car insurance when they tried to up-sell us on some additional personal insurance.  We asked her what conditions it protected us from and she listed fire, robbery, and a few others as examples.

We said, what about sandstorms?  Her answer:  Not EVERY sandstorm, we're a little picky about which sandstorms we would cover.

How about Mortar fire or rockets, do you cover those?  Well...she hesitated, that is also on a case by case basis.

We politely refused.  Since we consider these to be our main safety problems.  Which let's be honest, is odd in and of itself.

But seriously....I ask you, how can you evaluate damaged goods by rocket fire on a case by case basis.  And sandstorms - exactly what is the differentiation?  Why on earth wouldn't these qualify on equal ground with a fire?  Is it fear that someone might claim a sandstorm at a beach in California of their own creation?  Or that someone might shoot an accidental rocket at themselves, and such a dumb action really doesn't deserve coverage?

Points to ponder people.  Insurance is a funny business.