erika, HAH. Some of the touristy-famous places are in iffy neighborhood. Like the Babe Ruth museum.

I know the station does simulcasting over the web (I don't know about podcasting. Oh, they do for select stuff: [link] ) You'd probably like this show. It's pretty much random stories from around the area. It runs at 7 pm eastern on friday on WYPR .

So I have an etiquette question.

What do you do when you get invited to a big party at someone's house, and when you check the Evite for the directions, you realize that at the bottom it says, "$10 at the door".

t is boggled

Erm, unless you really really really want to go, you decline respectfully. And make appropriately aghast faces as you click the submit button.

What do you do when you get invited to a big party at someone's house, and when you check the Evite for the directions, you realize that at the bottom it says, "$10 at the door".

You realize you've been invited to an impromptu restaurant/club opening and decide you're not in the mood to patronize a commercial establishment.

Either you go and pay, or you don't go. Cash parties happen.

Cash parties happen.

Really? I'll admit that I'm rather unpartied. I'm familiar with cover at clubs or bars or whatever. And I've been to one where the hostess decided at the last minute to raise money for charity, but that was fairly good natured amongst close friends sorta thing (her sister had recently required the services of a womens shelter, and the "fee" was to support its mission) but... I dunno. I suspect it is a remnant of my midwestern roots, wherein you do not mix money and hosting. Hell, you don't mix money and ANYTHING.

And yet, I do not blink at the idea of potluck or byob. That was a staple of my upbringing, and I have to do a momentary adjustment when I'm NOT bringing a bottle or a dish. So I really can't point or anything.

I have no idea what's happening in this instance, but I've seen them where it's a matter of covering equipment rentals, or DJ costs, or whatever. No big deal in my book -- $10 or a bottle of wine or flowers or whatever.

You are right (given I'd spend more that $10 on a potluck) but like I said, something in me thinks asking for $ in an invite is gauche. Yet asking for contributions or a freaking dish , doesn't. I contain multitudes of contradictions.

Huh, I just saw an ad for an A&E series about some local (I think-the reporting was local, it's been a while since I read/heard it) dudes who went around just doing good things for random people- artificial limbs, buying gas, etc. Random 1.

Different (sort of) kind of reality tv. I don't know if they'd had cameras all along or not.

Has anyone here ever used Expedia to buy tickets? Ten days ago, I bought my ticket to NY on American Airlines via Expedia, and the service charge (charged by expedia) has shown up on my credit card statement, but the actual ticket (charged by AA) has not. My big worry is that in the meantime, I got a new credit card, so I am worried that when AA try to actually charge me for my ticket, it won't go through and I will be screwed.

My itinerary on Expedia is confirming the ticket purchase by AA, but where's the charge?