Previous versions:<\/p>\n
- \n
- 2020<\/a><\/li>\n
- 2021<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
As a certain prolific human wrecking ball and worlds fastest beta tester likes to tell me, LFG!<\/p>\n
The GIFs<\/h3>\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/giphy-3-5.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nGetting ready for the MEAB 2022 Travel Hacking as told by GIFs post.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/img_4383.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nWe started the year with most American Express business cards offering bonuses<\/a> of up to $200 per card or 20,000 Membership Rewards per card, up to 99 times. Yes, it was a huge bonus, but we had to prepare for a bunch of small talk and impatiently waiting while a phone rep adds 99 variations of your name to your account.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/inception-nickleback.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nPictured: 99 AU cards with your name on them (go ahead and count, I\u2019ll wait).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/giphy-4-9.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nMastercardgiftcard.com turned out to be a great way to hit minimum spend American Express cards for a chunk of the year, at least until they started charging cash advances<\/a>, illustrated here.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/nerd.webp\")
<\/figure>\n\nThe silent response when MEAB geeked out with the Monty Hall problem<\/a> applied to flights.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/giphy-10.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nChase drops the bonus for pay yourself back categories from 50% to 25%<\/a> on the Chase Sapphire Reserve (probably) due to massive abuse and gaming.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/hello-old-people.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nAfter Southwest\u2019s epic meltdown, we get to see their operations staff working on their computer crew optimizer<\/a> in real time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/giphy-downsized-medium.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nPlastiq announces that they\u2019re going public via the Colonnade SPAC<\/a>, and then produces a commercial outlining their 2023 business plans.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/mackenzro-gaming-mack.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nWhen a manufactured spender successfully executes an AmEx triple dip<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/giphy-2.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nAmerican Express tries to convince us that this year\u2019s Q4 referral bonus with +4x on travel and transit spend<\/a> isn\u2019t lame. We still remember the better 2021 4-for-us<\/a> and best 2020 3-for-all <\/a>variants of the offer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/giphy-3.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nDelta and Starbucks partner up, and mainstream bloggers see yet another 10 page puff piece in their future.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/you-wanna-be-me-you-cantbe-me.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nCapital One sees American Express with all the giant 250,000 point sign-up bonuses<\/a> and decides it\u2019s time to play ball. Then, American Express responds.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/giphy-2-1.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nNearside\u2019s 2.2% cashback everywhere debit card announces by email that it\u2019s shutting down<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/revive-un-dies.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nA few hours later, Nearside emails everyone and says \u201cJ\/K, J\/K, we\u2019re fine\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/hey-buffy.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nThen the next day, Nearside announces that no, it\u2019s actually dying<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/harley-quinn-the-voices.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nKroger\u2019s inner crazy-monologue sends itself a message<\/a> about wiping out fuel points accounts, and then does it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/death-dying.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nWe watch as the Unsung Hero Synchrony Rakuten<\/a> card slowly dies<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/j-lo-jennifer-lopez.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nBrex decides that it\u2019s going to focus on only large businesses and leaves everyone else high and dry.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/anime-girl.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nMarriotts in Japan welcome their most loyal guests when tourism reopened in October<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/plane-glide.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nDelta announces that they\u2019re getting rid of the CRJ-200s from their fleet<\/a>, and provides video of the final
torture-tube<\/s> flight.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/giphy-2-3.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nTravel hackers look for Lubbock on the world map for some reason<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/schitts-creek-ew.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nKroger starts replacing<\/a> US Bank gift cards with Metabank gift cards.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/milesearnandburn.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/atarip-phone.gif\")
<\/figure>\n\nSouthwest\u2019s reservation system stops taking calls due to random equipment failures<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n - 2021<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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