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Costco Shopping – March 3, 2021 – Tires

Posted by: John | March 3, 2021

5th Costco Shopping in 2021 – $554.55 today / $1047.31 this year

I ordered 4 tires for my 2017 Miata from the Costco website. There was a $150 saving on 4 Bridgestone tires. This sale is still going on through April 4, 2021. The money you save on this one purchase will pay for your Costco membership for almost 3 years.

The $150 saving is a real deal. Let me show you.

The tire price is very competitive that the price is almost universal. If you shop around, you will find out that tire cost is almost identical everywhere you shop. For my Miata, I checked prices from 3 stores including Costco, and the tire was $146 each at all three stores. But the out the door price of the four tires varied from $554.55 to $730.26. Costco had the lowest price, of course.

Plus, Costco will give you guaranteed service and you will not get scammed. Some tire stores are shady, you know. Also, Costco covers all their tires with 5 years Road Hazard Warranty.

Costco only sells quality tires. So, I ordered the cheapest tires available from Costco, which is still fancy. They will ship the tires to my local Costco warehouse. I am on schedule for installation in 10 days.

My Costco shopping philosophy

My Costco shopping philosophy hasn’t changed since my early days of Costco shopping. I don’t shop at Costco to save the last penny. I shop at Costco to buy high-quality products, so I enjoy an elevated lifestyle. I could buy low-quality tires for $300. But, if I’m in that kind of financial situation, I will not have a weekend convertible. Now I have a fancy set of tires. I will enjoy my sweet ride.

Below is a price comparison from 3 stores.

4 Tires, installation, & tax: Bridgestone Potenza RE980 AS 205/45R17
Costco – $554.55
– A single tire with no discount: $145.99
– $70.00 Bridgestone savings + $80 Costco savings
bigbrandtire.com – $730.26
– A single tire with no discount: $145.99
americastire.com – $651.91
– A single tire with no discount: $146.00
– $70 Bridgestone savings applied.

Costco Tire shopping — Costco shoping – March 3, 2021

Costco tire ordering process

Go to Costco.com and log in as a member.
Now, go to tires.costco.com and find your tire.
– Tire finder will find tires for you. But please know your tire size(s) so you can make sure you are buying the correct tires.
Complete your shopping (make a payment).
After shopping, schedule an appointment at costcotireappointments.com
– Costco.com login doesn’t work here. You need a separate login for this website. Create a membership if you are new.
– The website will walk you through the process. It’s straightforward.
You are set. You can cancel or change your appointment date from the website. They will remind us when the appointment date is coming near.

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Please be safe. Talk to you soon.

Costco Coupons, Member-Only Savings, March 2021

Posted by: John | March 3, 2021

| No Comments

| Costco Coupons

Costco Member-Only Savings, March 10, 2021 – April 4, 2021.

View Costco coupon book from below gallery or view from Costco website available during the sales period (March 10, 2021 – April 4, 2021).

Set of 4 Bridgestone tires are $150 off. Oh, the $150 discount is available right now. This is great timing. I need 4 tires for my Miata. I’m going to order them right now. I don’t need to shop around. I know I’m getting the best deal and now I don’t have to settle for super cheap tires.

My Costco shopping list is short this month. Maybe I’ll get a jar of Jelly Belly.

Photo Restore Service – Now Available Directly

Posted by: John | March 1, 2021

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| Costco Blog

As I reported earlier, Costco had shut down all photo departments at Costco warehouse locations. With that, they had discontinued some services such as photo restoration.

PhotoRepairPro.com was an exclusive photo restoration service provider for Costco for 10 years. They are now available directly.

Their services include restoration, retouching, and recreation.

Visit their website to find out more – www.photorepairpro.com

Press release:

PhotoRepairPro.com launches Warehouse Club Photo Restoration Service from Hollywood Photo Studio. (February 19, 2021)

January & February 2021

Posted by: John | February 28, 2021

| No Comments

| Personal

Caetano Veloso Menino Deus
I don’t know the language – I just like the song
My music seems mellow because I am here at night or when I relax. Also, I am old – 13 years older than when I started this blog in 2008.

Personal update

January and February are the fastest months of the year. I just put away my Christmas coffee mug, and I saw Jasmine blossoms in my front yard. So I reluctantly took down Christmas decorations and tossed them in the living room. They are still lying in the living room.

It’s been 11 months since the pandemic lockdown started. I live alone, so the lockdown doesn’t affect my situation logistically. I am more isolated that I rarely use my vocal cord. The pandemic hurt me financially because I was helping people. I still send money to my relative, but I send considerably less amount now. After being very careful, I was able to meet my financial goal for 2020. My goal is to maximize contribution to my 401K & HSA account ($30k total).

I quit cable TV last year. Now I pay $37.49 a month for 3 TV streaming providers. They are…

Hulu (no ads) – $11:99
Philo – $20
Locast – $5.50. I don’t get any local TV off HD antenna.

$37.49 still seems too expensive to me.

Christmas is coming to Costco in 6 months.

See you in March. 🙂

Costco raises minimum wage to $16

Posted by: John | February 28, 2021

| No Comments

| Costco in the News

Costco raises its minimum wage above rivals like Amazon, Target and Best Buy

Costco has around 180,000 US employees, and 90% of them work hourly. It will hike its minimum wage to $16 beginning next week…

‘I will continue happily shopping there forever’: Costco customers react to retailer’s new $16 minimum wage

Some 180,000 U.S.-based Costco employees will begin earning a minimum of $16 an hour starting next week, the membership warehouse retailer’s CEO announced Thursday

ssa.gov – US Social Security website

Posted by: John | February 20, 2021

| 2 Comments

| Personal

This blog post is for US residents only.

ssa.gov is a US government social security website. It shows how much you made in the past and shows how much social security benefit you will receive when you retire.

Depends on how long you live and how much you made in the past, you might receive well over $100k. It is very important that you have the access to your own social security data. Knowledge is power. This website provides me with a vital piece of information pertaining to my retirement.

I strongly recommend everyone to register at ssa.gov. I hope this will give you a fresh outlook on your retirement and financing.

In the past, it was absolutely impossible for me to register at ssa.gov. They would ask security questions that were impossible to answer. So, I gave up on registration.

Then, they recently updated their website with the new registration process. Finally, I could register on the website. Now I have a better feel for my retirement. I can check and make sure there are no errors in my records. Also, I will know if somebody uses my social security number to get a job – or even worse (I cannot think of any specific scenarios – but I am sure there are nightmare stories).

I think I will retire at 70 years old. But if I can, I would like to retire sooner and work part-time doing office work. I enjoy office work. Everything about office work is sexy and exciting. I enjoy dressing up for work. I enjoy waking up early when I feel sleepy and miserable. I feel alive doing all that, and it’s so much fun. Life is fun. I hope you feel that way, too.

Rip Van Wafels, Healthier Cookies, at Costco

Posted by: John | February 19, 2021

| 2 Comments

| Costco Product Review, Food, Household, Pet

Cookies with low sugar, high fiber, low calories

Rip Van Wafles is coming to Costco on February 22. 2021 – to Los Angeles, Hawaii, Virginia, PA, NY, Maryland, DC, NJ, MA, CT, NH, and DE.

They are European-style cookies (stroopwafel – means “syrup waffle”). They are thin waffle cookies with caramel filling inside. It’s a tasty snack. I tasted it myself, and I liked it. It’s got super low sugar content – about 80% less than regular cookies.

They have higher fiber contents than popular granola bars. So, they are popular in the fitness community. You can check out Amazon reviews. People love them. Now you can get them cheaper at Costco.

They go well with coffee as well. If you like sweet cookies and if you watch your weight, check this out.

Costco Citi Credit Card Reward 2021

Posted by: John | February 15, 2021

| No Comments

| Costco Blog, Reward Certificate

I received my Citi credit card reward certificate via email. I received it via email because I signed up for paperless statements. Some of you may receive the certificates in paper form via USPS mail.

They distribute Citi reward certificates after your February statements are closed. You should receive yours by March.

I also found the certificate on the Citi Credit Card mobile APP.

My reward certificate amount for this year is considerably less than usual because:

I spent less money last year – I gave away over $10,000.00 last year because of the pandemic. People around me were running out of money.
I’ve been using Fidelity Reward Visa Card along with Costco Citi Visa. If you have Fidelity for your retirement, check out their reward credit card. It’s pretty good.

If you have issues or questions regarding Costco Citi Credit Card Reward Certificate, please visit your Citi credit card web account.

Redeeming is easy! Simply print or present this email at any U.S. Costco warehouse, including Puerto Rico, on or before December 31, 2021, to redeem your certificate for merchandise or cash. You can also present your certificate via the Citi Mobile® App.

For details about your credit card reward certificate, go to your Rewards Details page in the Citi Mobile App, Citi® Online, or call us at 1-877-419-4002 (TTY/TDD: 1-866-210-0617 for hearing and speech impaired services only).

Costco Citi Credit Card Reward Certificate 2021

Costco Citi Credit Card Reward Certificate - mobile APP 2021 — Citi APP

Costco Citi Credit Card Reward Certificate 2020

Costco Citi Visa Reward Certificate 2019 — Costco Citi Credit Card Reward Certificate 2019

Costco Citi Credit Card Reward Certificate 2018

Redemption Terms and Conditions

For full details see the Costco Cash Rewards Program Terms.
Annual credit card reward certificate is redeemable through December of the year issued in a single transaction at any U.S. Costco warehouse, including Puerto Rico, for merchandise or cash.
Request for cash may be fulfilled in an alternative form (e.g a check or electronic transfer), at Costco’s discretion.
Only the primary cardmember is eligible to receive the annual credit card reward certificate; however, you or anyone you authorize may redeem the certificate as long as you or the authorized individual has a valid Costco membership.
Should you choose to redeem only a portion of the credit card reward certificate for merchandise, you will receive the remaining balance in cash or alternative form (e.g. check or electronic transfer), at Costco’s discretion.
You must have a valid Costco membership at the time of redemption.

Costco Hot Dog During The Pandemic

Posted by: John | February 13, 2021

| No Comments

| Costco Blog, Pandemic 2020

I am listening: Jane Morgan – Fascination (1957)
She’s still alive (96 yrs old). Got her Walk of Fame Star in 2011 (vid)

Thank you for the hot dog donation.

First, at the Costco food court, customers are not allowed to access the drinks & condiments stations. Instead, a Costco employee was there to hand out the condiments. She handed me containers of catchup and mustard. I asked if there were onion and relish. She said no. Straws were not available as well. But now we have lids with narrow openings, kind of like a baby sippy cup, that we can drink soda without a straw. The new lid worked out pretty well. It’s a brilliant idea to adapt to the new Covid world.

All orders were to-go only. They took away all the tables from the food court. So, you either eat in the car or take the food home.

I’ve been craving Costco hot dogs for a long time. So, today I bought a pack of Costco Dinner Franks and the buns. Now I can enjoy Costco hotdog at home. I made two hot dogs so far. They were excellent. I think it’s a little odd that a pack of Costco Dinner Franks contains 14 wieners when most buns come in 12.

Lastly: The Costco food court now requires a membership card to make a purchase. I also noticed that my food court receipt now shows my membership number. Some warehouses have food courts located outdoor by the parking lot that non-members could purchase food without the membership. Now non-members cannot enjoy Costco food court anymore. I have mixed feelings about this. A lot of poor people used Costco food court without the membership. Yes, the food court is for the members only. But they are poor people. I know how it feels. It makes me want to cry.

#costcohotdog

I am still here, just busy

Posted by: John | February 10, 2021

| No Comments

| Computer

Hi, I am well and doing good. I’ve been busy last 10 days. One thing after another… with some boring stuff.

My computer was dying, so I had to rebuild one fast. I’ve been building computers since the 90s. I built my current computer 9 years ago. I usually run my computer 24 hours a day, and this machine didn’t let me down. It was with me every day from a government-subsidized apartment to a three-bedroom house. It broke down a few times, but I found quick fixes to keep it running. You can see a wire holding a fan (picture).

Officially killing my computer was bittersweet. There was a weird connection between me and my computer. As I opened the computer, I could feel the joy and happiness of the time I was building this machine. I was poor, but I was happier. Everything was more exciting and more fun 9 years ago. I had to watch every penny, but DANG, it was so much fun.

Building a computer is a straightforward process. High school kids build computers for fun. But there is a possibility of something going wrong. I was lucky this time. My new computer was up and running in 4 hours. I like this computer. It’s very good and fast. I look forward to getting older with this computer.

I kept the case, so the computer looks the same from the outside.

Now I need to catch up on some Costco blogs. I will regroup and get back to you soon. Please take care.