Topics: A track by track review of ‘Red Light Fever’ from Darkness frontman Hot Leg. Listener emails, requests and a toast to Nick in Australia for the beer fund donation. Another toast to all of the donations for my SXSW fund. A Nashville Pussy show review. Music by: Ginger Hot Leg Nash...

 Know how you can save? The Penny Pincher's Passport to Luxury Travel by Joel L. Widzer (Travelers' Tales, 2008) is in its third edition. Subtitled The Art of Cultivating Preferred Customer Status, the book focuses on building relationships with airlines, hotels and car-rental agencies and turn...

Downgraded: Celebrities’ secrets Celebrities! They’re just like us! Except they check into hotels under made-up pseudonyms. “Bruce and Jasmine Pilaf”? That would be Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. “Mr Donkey Ass”? Johnny Depp. “Arnold Schwarzenegger” ? T...

Paul is being cheated by Advantage Rent-A-Car in one of the most transparent, odious scams we've seen a rental car company try to pull. After a thief damaged his rental on a recent trip, Advantage says because the car was in the shop for 49 hours, he owes them 22 days worth of rent. "I asked how the...

Frum Punk is coming for a visit to Brooklyn and needs a good deal on a rental car... Leave a comment here or on his blog. Tizku LiMitzvot....

USAA is like a unicorn in a pack of walruses: a financial services company that truly cares about its customers and really helps them out. Not as some kind of lucky exception, but as a matter of policy. Reader "Mary Marsala With Fries'" story, about how USAA opened up several cans of whoop-ass on an...

Use Godaddy Promo Code ZINE3 for $6.95 .com Domains or renewals, Buy 5 domains for Free Private Registration. Use Godaddy Coupon Code ZINE1 for 10% Off Any Order. For more online promo codes, visit WebPromoCode.com.It’s been three years for The Scene Zine on the podcast front, and we celebrate...

Reader Phil writes: I know rent a car companies often run out of some car types and then give you whatever they have left, or a free upgrade. Is there a best time of day to schedule a pickup so we can maximize our odds of an upgrade? This is really, really, hard to predict, Phil. Of course, it’...

Upgraded: Frequent flyer legislation Downgraded: The value of your miles Frequent flyer programs can be a byzantine maze. Above all, nearly everyone is cranky about being able to cash in their frequent flyer miles. I just tried winnowing down the uncomfortably large kitty of points for some Caribbea...

Rental car add-on fees are already out of hand. But leave it to a Dollar Rent A Car franchisee in New Hampshire to kick it up a notch: Some rental car locations are charging an extra fee to consumers who return their cars with a full tank. This “top-off fee” is being charged even if cons...