approved

Study to show yourself approved,
a workman who need not be ashamed,
rightly dividing the word of truth.
—2 Tim. 2:15

Without even studying anything, I got official approval for my upcoming vacation in the States. My approximate travel dates will be August 9 to August 23; I'm flying standby, space available, so these dates might change rather suddenly.

The above ticket comes courtesy of a cousin who works for a major US-based airline; she got me a "buddy pass" that, alas, wasn't free, but was several hundred dollars cheaper than anything I could see on Kayak.com.

Regarding my October trip: the selfsame Kayak.com showed me that round-trip tickets to France are way the hell cheaper than tickets to the east coast of the US: instead of starting at $1280, tickets to Paris, Charles de Gaulle Airport, start around $650. Alas, those lowest prices are for China-run airlines, all of which have been given very low customer ratings. At the $900 range are tickets for flights by British Airways and Korean Air, two airlines I trust more than the poorly rated China Eastern (despite its being operated by Air France). Should I get a ticket with China Eastern? I'll ponder this. Meanwhile, feel free to leave my ass a comment.