How to earn points at every step when traveling for work

• February 24, 2023

Travelers often use loyalty program numbers to earn airline miles or hotel points when booking personal travel. However, if you travel for work and someone else books your reservation, it’s easy to overlook or simply forget this step — potentially leaving thousands of points on the table.

And those points could be worth quite a bit. Total spending on global business travel reached $697 billion in 2021, according to the Global Business Travel Association, and that’s expected to grow as the industry recovers from COVID-19 pandemic lows.

So, if you’ve got a work trip coming up and your company is paying for your travel expenses, don’t sleep on all the potential ways to earn points. Here are some tips to consider to ensure that you’re not missing out on any extra rewards.

1. Add the reservation code to your airline and hotel loyalty program accounts

When booking your own travel, including your frequent flyer number or loyalty program number on your reservation is a relatively straightforward process. But if someone else is arranging your travel or if you book your trip on your employer’s travel portal, you may not have the option to add those loyalty programs.

To get around this, once your flight and hotel are booked, gather your airline and hotel reservation confirmations and look for the reservation code that corresponds to your flight and hotel. Then, log into your airline and hotel loyalty programs and manually add those reservations to your accounts.

Sometimes, the reservation code from your company’s travel portal won’t match the type of reservation code that the airline or hotel accepts online. In this case, you may need to call the airline or hotel and ask them to manually add your reservation to your account.

And while you’re at it, make sure your Known Traveler Number also appears on your flight reservation if you have TSA PreCheck. If the TSA PreCheck indicator doesn’t show on your boarding pass, you won’t be allowed to enter the TSA PreCheck lines.

2. Use a credit card that earns miles or points for expenses

If you purchase any extras, such as Wi-Fi, bags or food during your flight, make sure to use a credit card that earns extra points for travel purchases. When you check into your hotel and need to provide a credit card, similarly use a card that earns bonus points on travel.

Then, during your hotel stay, charge all your expenses to your room so that you earn points with your credit card and also with the hotel. The number of hotel points you earn will depend on your hotel elite status.

For example, if you are staying at a Hilton hotel, and you have Diamond status and incur a $500 hotel bill, you can earn 10,000 Hilton points since Diamond members earn 20 points per $1 during the stay. If you charge that hotel stay to a card that earns extra points for travel purchases, you will also earn rewards.

However, note that the hotel rate must be eligible to earn points. Some work trips are part of a group rate that may exclude loyalty point earnings.

In addition to your flights and accommodations, you may incur other expenses like taxis, food and gas on a work trip. Again, use a credit card that earns bonus points in these categories.

If you don’t get reimbursed for your work trip

If your employer pays for your work trip using the company or corporate credit card, you may not be able to reap all the benefits of earning points. So while you may not be able to earn those extra points, you’ll still earn miles for your flight and points for your hotel stay.

3. Choose an airline or hotel you already have status with

You may have a lot of airline and hotel options when booking a work trip, especially if you’re headed to a popular destination.

If you have elite status with one airline or hotel, make sure to book travel with those companies because you may be able to extract even more value from these trips. You can earn additional hotel points if you have status, and you also may get other perks available at your status level, including free room upgrades, early check-in and late checkout.

Those with airline status may benefit from free seat upgrades, additional baggage allowance and higher mileage earning rates.

For example, if you have United Silver status and you’re booked on a United flight, you’ll be able to select a free Economy Plus seat at check-in and get 70 pounds of checked baggage free, even when flying economy. If you’re lucky, you may score a first class upgrade.

Maximize your points on company expenses

If your company is paying for a work trip, take every opportunity to earn points. You might be surprised at just how much you can earn, especially with inflation. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, flight prices are up more than 26% year over year, so your trip to an annual conference might be more expensive than it was last year.

After all, someone should get the rewards for paying extra for travel this year — why not you?

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​ Orange County Register 

OC’s Top 5 home sales of 2022 include Heather Dubrow’s $55 million manse

• February 24, 2023

Last year amid a cooling housing market, “The Real Housewives of Orange County” star Heather Dubrow quietly sold her palatial Newport Coast mansion.

The $55 million off-market deal ended 2022 as Orange County’s most expensive home sale, followed by other waterfront properties starting from $28.825 million. Those big-ticket deals closed out a year that started looking like it might repeat 2021’s record-setting pace but fell short as mortgage rates more than doubled from the historic low.

“Yes, demand slowed, but there are still sophisticated buyers that understand value,” said Tim Smith of Coldwell Banker Realty, who “had three of our best sales last year from July through December,” including a $43.5 million Laguna Beach home in August.

And people have continued to pay big prices while shopping for deals among O.C.’s low inventory, which agents interviewed for this story agree is undervalued relative to other major metropolitan areas.

“Orange County has always been a destination, but not it’s really become a major destination where people with money who can afford to live here or have a second home here want to be here as opposed to say L.A. or New York,” said John Stanaland of Douglas Elliman Real Estate who was with Villa Real Estate when he closed on $29.888 million Laguna Beach home in February. “We’re an ‘it’ destination now.”

With L.A.’s Measure ULA “mansion tax” approaching April 1, agents have seen an upsurge in interested buyers to O.C. The one-time transfer tax of 4% on properties sold from $5 million to shy of $10 million and 5.5% on deals of $10 million and above aims to increase affordable housing and reduce homelessness.

“A lot of the high net-worth individuals we sell houses to find the market and lifestyle and just everything about Orange County extremely appealing.” said Josh Altman, co-founder of The Altman Brothers at Douglas Elliman Real Estate and star of Bravo’s “Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles.”

Off-market showings make up more than half of all showings for The Altman Brothers which officially expanded into Orange County in 2020. The team has a 15-year lease on the Old West Bank building in Corona del Mar, which is in the process of converting into the Altman Brothers’ O.C. flagship, set to open this summer.

“There are tons of buyers sitting on the sidelines just waiting for a deal,” Altman said. “I get emails by the hour — Do you have this? Do you have that? There’s not a lot. And look, we specialize in a lot of different areas out there, but waterfront properties? It’s near impossible to find what you want. It’s such a micro market with not a lot of inventory and not a lot of wealth, it’s going to continue going upward.”

Here are O.C.’s five most expensive home sales of 2022:

The 22,000-square-foot home known to “Real Housewives of Orange County” fans as “Chateau Dubrow” sold off-market for $55 million, making it Orange County’s most expensive sale of 2022. (Google Earth)

$55 million: Newport Coast

Home: “Real Housewife” Heather Dubrow and her husband, “Botched” surgeon Terry, built the 22,000-square-foot French chateau-style mansion on a nearly three-quarter-acre lot. It’s over-the-top luxurious, right down to a doorbell in the walk-in closet for Champagne service and twin offices with hidden bars.

Other highlights include a temperature-controlled wine wall the housewife kept well-stocked with Champagne, as well as a mirrored gym, a 21-seat movie theater and a backyard terrace featuring a pool and spa.

List price: Off-market sale on Oct. 20

Sold by: “Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles” siblings Josh and Matt Altman of The Altman Brothers at Douglas Elliman Real Estate represented the couple.

C.J. Light Associates designed this 4,981-square-foot Laguna Beach home across the street from Emerald Bay Beach. It sold for $43.5 million. (Photo by Toby Ponnay)

$43.5 million: Laguna Beach

Home: This 4,981-square-foot spec home’s claim to fame is that it’s the most expensive new construction in Orange County per square foot.

At $8,733 per square foot, this C.J. Light Associates creation has all the luxurious amenities one could want in an Emerald Bay Beach-front home, and then some. it boasts “a wellness center” with an outdoor shower, in-ground spa and Nordic infrared sauna, an open-air spa bathroom in the primary suite and a built-in catering station in the four-car garage. The beach is accessible by foot only to residents of the guard-gated community.

List price: $48.995 million; sold Aug. 12

Sold by: Tim Smith of Coldwell Banker Realty held the listing. Tad Baltzer of Triibe Real Estate represented the buyer

An aerial view of the Monarch Bay home that sold for $33 million, making it one of Orange County’s most expensive sales of 2022. (Photo by PreviewFirst)

$33 million: Dana Point

Home: Retired showbiz investor Gordon “Gordy” Crawford purchased this newly remodeled four-bedroom, 7,700-square-foot Monarch Bay house in guard-gated Monarch Bay.

The blufftop house wraps around an inner courtyard with a pool and spa and a covered built-in barbecue area. Disappearing glass walls frame unobstructed coastline and ocean views that co-listing agent Phil Immel of The Immel Team at Pacific Sotheby’s International Realty likened to standing on the bow of a ship.

“It’s pure oceanfront and sits out further on the point than any other house,” he said.

List price: $35 million; sold March 22

Listed by: Phil and Ryan Immel, the father-son team at The Immel Team of Pacific Sotheby’s International Realty, represented the seller. Samantha Nugent and Todd Davis of Compass represented the buyer.

The workout area is visible through the outdoor glass terrace and the transparent underwater wall of the infinity-edge pool. (Photo by The Luxury Level)

$29.888 million: Laguna Beach

Home: Within this home’s 8,140 square feet of living space is a workout area that sits beneath the outdoor glass terrace, offering a glimpse into the infinity-edge pool through a transparent underwater wall.

Glass, as it turns out, is a prominent feature of this property in upscale Montage Ocean Estates. So do quality materials such as an ocean-inspired mahogany ceiling in the living room, a custom wooden tub in the primary bathroom and illuminated onyx countertops in the kitchen.

List price: $30.888 million; sold Feb. 9

Sold by:  John Stanaland and Logan Montgomery, formerly of Villa Real Estate and now with Douglas Elliman Real Estate, held the listing. Allen McMurtray of EJM Realty Group represented the buyer.

The view from the loggia of this 11,613-square-foot Crystal Cove home that sold for $28.825 million in 2022, the same year it was completed. (Photo by Tyler Bowman / Bowman Group Media)

$28.825 million: Newport Coast

Home: This five-bedroom, 11,613-square-foot home with 10 bathrooms has all the amenities you’d expect to find in a new structure of this caliber, including what the listing calls “indulgent luxury entertaining” at the basement level.

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Features include an exotic car display, open game room and wet bar with a 336-bottle climate-controlled wine room. There’s a gym with extras like a massage room, sauna and steam shower.

Elsewhere vanishing glass walls extend the indoors out to where ocean views create a backdrop on this three-quarter-acre-plus lot. The grounds feature a saltwater infinity pool and spa, an outdoor kitchen with top-of-the-line appliances, a gas fire pit, and a courtyard with a fireplace and fountain.

List price: $34.9 million; sold Sept. 29

Sold by: John Cain of Pacific Sotheby’s International Realty handled both sides of the deal.

​ Orange County Register 

Storm leads to closure of 5 Freeway at the Grapevine

• February 24, 2023

The 5 Freeway through the Tejon Pass — known as the Grapevine — was shut down just after midnight on Friday, Feb. 24, because of snow and poor visibility creating hazardous driving conditions.

The 5 was closed between Parker and Grapevine roads, said Officer Adriaan Garcia, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol.

“It looks like a blizzard here now,” Garcia said.

CHP and Caltrans officials said it was unclear when the Grapevine would reopen.

Southern California coast battered by rain, wind

“We do have snow plows our there plowing and spreading sand,” said Marc Bischoff, a Caltrans spokesman.

🚨TRAVEL ADVISORY🚨

❄OPERATION SNOWFLAKE❄@CHPFortTejon & Caltrans have CLOSED I-5 through the Tejon Pass from a Grapevine Rd to Parker Rd. Closure duration unknown. US 101 is the alternate route. Limit your non-essential travel! See closures at https://t.co/cxZ0jW7S5n. pic.twitter.com/ZhY2R8ruto

— Caltrans District 7 (@CaltransDist7) February 24, 2023

Said Eric Menjivar, another Caltrans spokesman: “We’re advising motorists to reduce non-essential travel. And if they need to travel, we are advising (them) to use U.S. Route 101.”

State Route 58 is not an option because a portion of it is closed, while State Route 14 is open but hit hard with snow, Bischoff said.

Caltrans recommends avoiding the 14; the agency was spreading cinder and sand on the roadway to combat the weather.

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​ Orange County Register 

USC men’s basketball at Utah: What you need to know

• February 24, 2023

USC at Utah

When: 5 p.m. Saturday

Where: Jon M. Huntsman Center, Salt Lake City, Utah

TV/Radio: ESPNU/AM 790

Records: USC 20-8, 12-5 in Pac-12; Utah 17-12, 10-8

Last matchup: USC put away the Utes 71-56 at the Galen Center. It was one of USC’s most well-balanced offensive nights of the year, with each starter scoring at least eight points and Reese Dixon-Waters adding 11 off the bench. The Trojans’ defense never gave the Utes a chance to stage a comeback, holding Utah to 34.4% shooting from the floor.

USC latest result: The Trojans started off their mountain road trip with an easy 84-65 win over Colorado, taking a 13-point lead into halftime and never looking back. The Trojans had four starters in double digits and big man Joshua Morgan added eight in his first start since his ankle sprain earlier in the month. It was USC’s 20th win of the season, marking a program-record fourth consecutive 20-win season for the Trojans.

Utah latest result: The Utes staged a second-half comeback, but it wasn’t enough to top UCLA as Jaime Jaquez scored 17 second-half points in a 78-71 victory. The Utes struggled with 12 turnovers while without starting point guard Rollie Worster (ankle), whose status remains uncertain for the USC game.

Matchup to watch: Morgan vs. Branden Carlson. Carlson scored 21 points on 8-for-12 shooting the last time these teams played, including 3 for 5 on 3-pointers. USC will rely on Morgan to slow down the Utah center and prevent him from tilting the game in the Utes’ favor.

USC trend to watch: The Trojans currently sit in third place in the Pac-12. With a win over fifth-place Utah, USC would guarantee itself no worse than a fourth-place finish and clinch a first-round bye in the Pac-12 tournament.

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March résumé check: USC added a Quadrant 1 victory over Colorado on Thursday, improving its record in such games to 2-5. It’s a tough mark, but USC has the chance to improve it again Saturday against the Utes, another Quad 1 opportunity. Having moved up six spots to No. 49 in the NET rankings, USC is projected to be a play-in team in the NCAA tournament by ESPN. CBS has the Trojans as an 11-seed playing Northwestern in Sacramento in the West bracket.

​ Orange County Register 

Sparks re-sign Nneka Ogwumike, their ‘top free agency priority’

• February 24, 2023

LOS ANGELES — Seven-time All-Star and 2016 WNBA MVP Nneka Ogwumike has re-signed with the Sparks, the team announced Friday.

The 6-foot-2 forward, who was an unrestricted free agent, returns for her 12th season in the league, all in Los Angeles after the Sparks drafted her No. 1 overall in 2012.

“I started in Los Angeles as a wide-eyed rookie hopeful to last and to lead in a city and with a franchise defined by its legends and legacy,” said Ogwumike said via a press release. “Over the last 11 years, with champions and with challenges, my veteran vision remains clear and committed to what it truly means to play in this league, in THIS city, for 12 seasons, repping that iconic purple & gold.”

Ogwumike, 32, also serves as president of the WNBPA, representing the league’s 144 players in contract negotiations, grievances, and social actions.

The Sparks front office and coaching staff were steadfast in their pursuit of re-signing Ogwumike, which came two days after her younger sister Chiney re-signed with the Sparks.

“Re-signing Nneka was the top priority of 2023 free agency for the Los Angeles Sparks,” Sparks CAO & GM Karen Bryant said in the team’s statement. “Nneka is deeply ingrained in the rich history of the Sparks and is both an elite basketball player and a trailblazer for our league and beyond. We’re thrilled to continue our partnership with her as she continues adding to her storied legacy.”

“Nneka is an extraordinary person and teammate,” Sparks head coach Curt Miller added. “Not only is she a top-level leader for the Sparks, but she is a leader for the entire league. Her work ethic and dedication to her craft is exceptional. She’s coming off another All-WNBA season and continues to add levels to her game. I couldn’t be more excited to coach Nneka.”

The former WNBA Rookie of the Year was a key member of the Sparks’ 2016 WNBA championship team. Since winning that title, she has remained one of the most efficient players in the league.

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Last season, Ogwumike started and played in 34 of 36 games, averaging 18.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.6 steals in 34.1 minutes per game.

Ogwumike also cemented her legacy in Los Angeles last season by eclipsing 5,000 career points, joining Sparks legends Lisa Leslie and Candace Parker as the only players in franchise history to do so. She was also named to the ‘The W25’, recognizing her as one of the 25 greatest players to ever play in the league.

​ Orange County Register 

Southern California coast battered by rain, wind

• February 24, 2023

Southern California’s beaches will look a little different this weekend — with high waves, rip currents and possibly even water spouts.

It was shaping up to be a remarkably cold and wet day along the coast on Friday, Feb. 24, as it is caught up in the winter storm moving through the region.

Southern California coast battered by rain, wind

The National Weather Service forecasts wind gusts of 40-plus mph, and waves up to seven feet tall today through Saturday, Feb. 25. Strong rip currents and very high surf are expected as well, with a small chance for water spouts. A possible water spout was spotted in Dana Point on Thursday.

Temperatures were mostly in the low 40s and mid-50s.

In Newport Beach on Friday, lifeguards reported three-foot surf and strong rip currents.

“The bulk of the activity occurring today so far has been up north in Los Angeles and Ventura (counties),” said Elizabeth Schenk, a National Weather Service forecaster. “We’re going to see shower activity increase through this afternoon, and then the heaviest activity will hold off until late tonight and early tomorrow.”

The biggest impact of the weather along local beaches will be gusty winds and heavy rain with potential thunderstorms sprinkled in.

The National Weather Service has a bit of advice for anyone thinking of taking a boat out today — don’t.

“This is going to be very hazardous for all marine craft,” Schenk said.

​ Orange County Register 

Here’s how the earthquakes in Asia compare to California

• February 24, 2023

Fault facts

A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck in the southeastern Turkish province of Hatay Monday, just two weeks after a deadly 7.7 earthquake struck southeastern Turkey and northern Syria on Feb. 6. Today we look at devastating earthquakes around the globe.

To date, some 47,000 fatalities have been recorded in Syria and Turkey, with the death toll still expected to rise.

The Ring of Fire, also called the Circum-Pacific belt, is the zone of earthquakes surrounding the Pacific Ocean — and about 90% of the world’s earthquakes occur here.

The next most seismic region (5%-6% of earthquakes) is the Alpide belt, which extends from the Mediterranean region eastward through Turkey, Iran and northern India.

Earthquake size is measured over an extremely broad range of scales that can be difficult to articulate and equally difficult to envision. Measured by its seismic moment, a magnitude-9 earthquake is 1,000 times bigger than a magnitude-7 earthquake and 1 million times bigger than a magnitude-5.

Some fault line facts from the USGSThe San Andreas Fault is not a single, continuous fault, but rather is actually a fault zone made up of many segments. Movement may occur along any of the many fault segments along the zone at any time. The San Andreas Fault system is more than 800 miles long — and in some spots is as much as 10 miles deep.

The average rate of motion across the San Andreas fault zone during the past 3 million years is 2 inches per year. This is about the same rate at which your fingernails grow. Assuming this rate continues, scientists project that Los Angeles and San Francisco will be adjacent to one another in approximately 15 million years.

The earliest reported earthquake in California was felt in 1769 by the exploring expedition of Gaspar de Portola while the group was camping about 30 miles southeast of Los Angeles.

The epicenter of an earthquake is the location directly above the hypocenter on the surface of the earth.

The hypocenter of an earthquake is the location beneath the earth’s surface where the rupture of the fault begins.

Whole lot of shakingIt is estimated that there are 500,000 detectable earthquakes in the world each year. About 100,000 of those can be felt. and 100 of them cause damage.

Each year, Southern California has about 10,000 earthquakes. Most of them are so small that they are not felt. Only several hundred are greater than magnitude 3.0 and only about 15 to 20 are greater than magnitude 4.0. If there is a large earthquake, however, the aftershock sequence will produce many more earthquakes of all magnitudes for many months.

The world’s deadliest recorded earthquake occurred in 1556 in central China. It struck a region where most people lived in caves carved from soft rock. These dwellings collapsed during the earthquake, killing an estimated 830,000 people. In 1976, another deadly earthquake struck in Tangshan, China, where more than 250,000 people were killed.

Florida and North Dakota have the smallest number of earthquakes in the U.S. Alaska is the most earthquake-prone state and experiences a magnitude-7 earthquake almost every year, and a magnitude-8 or greater earthquake on average every 14 years.

Sources: California Department of Insurance, California Earthquake Authority, USGS, Southern California Earthquake Center, ShakeOut.org, California Department of Conservation

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​ Orange County Register 

6 healthy strategies to help with emotional eating

• February 24, 2023

Emotional eating is the act of eating as a way to cope with feelings, provide emotional comfort or stress relief, not just to satisfy physical hunger. Emotional eating and other unhealthy eating behaviors resulting from stress are relatively common, but also quite complex. Unfortunately, emotional eating can lead to undesirable consequences including poor diet quality, negative feelings and unintentional weight gain. Breaking emotional eating patterns involves learning healthy coping skills to deal with unpleasant feelings and stress. Extreme and restrictive diets are not the answer to emotional eating.

According to the American Psychological Association, 27 percent of adults report eating to manage stress and about one-third of those who report overeating or eating unhealthy foods due to stress describe this behavior as a habit. Food can serve as a distraction or reward for dealing with stress. Emotional eating can result from boredom, sadness and other feelings.

Emotional eating is often associated with consumption of hyper-palatable energy-dense foods. Hyper-palatable foods have a specific combination of fat, sugar, sodium and carbohydrates that make them both enjoyable to eat as well as calorically dense. The typical American diet is full of examples of hyper-palatable foods such as potato chips, hot dogs, pizza, ice cream and brownies.

Unfortunately, emotional eating can be a vicious cycle. Overeating hyper-palatable and calorie-dense foods and excess eating when not physically hungry can result in unintended weight gain. Weight gain can lead to food restriction and dieting, which results in additional emotional burden and negative feelings. Half of adults report that emotional eating leads to disappointment and feeling bad about their bodies.

While some folks believe that a diet is the first step to tackling emotional eating, the best success will likely come from a multi-pronged approach. Here are some strategies to help with emotional eating:

Seek the support you need. Whether it’s a therapist, friend, family member or a support group, lean on others who can listen openly and offer the support you need.

Practice healthy stress management techniques. Stress can be a significant contributor to emotional eating. Activities such as meditation, deep breathing, yoga, journaling or taking a walk can help tame stress.

Create a balanced meal plan. Plan meals using nutrient-rich ingredients like fish and lean poultry, whole grains, beans, fruit and vegetables. Avoid skipping meals or waiting too long in between meals.

Use mindful eating strategies. Avoid eating while watching screens. Serve meals and snacks on plates, eat slowly and engage your senses to enhance mindfulness of eating habits.

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Swap out hyper-palatable foods for more whole foods. Hyper-palatable foods are highly associated with excess calorie consumption. Instead, opt for lower-calorie foods that are surprisingly satisfying such as leafy greens and other vegetables, berries, low-fat dairy products, egg whites, fish, high-fiber whole grains and broth-based soups.

Be patient and remember that changing habits takes time. Emotional eating habits often develop over long periods of time, possibly stemming from adolescence or even earlier. Stopping the cycle of emotional eating will require forming new, healthy strategies for dealing with stress and emotions.

LeeAnn Weintraub, MPH, RD is a registered dietitian, providing nutrition counseling and consulting to individuals, families and organizations. She can be reached by email at [email protected].

​ Orange County Register