Disabled on fixed income, looking to accrue Qantas points for travel.

[Newb]

Hi, I'm a chronically disabled person who spends their spare time building playing with hobby development tools for VR systems when I'm not trying to survive my illness. I'm going back to school in February again and so I've had to make some purchases such as a phone(comms/vr) and tablet(art/classwork), I'm over 30 now so I've been forced to get health insurance too. Being disabled means that I'm kinda on the fringes of society so I don't have lots of experience with flying or credit cards or points programs, they aren't for people like me.

These are expenses I can't avoid so I've elected to try and get something back for them, I don't mess with credit cards and I've never used rewards programs before unless you count the "Nvidia rebate program" that is currently winding down for another long sleep but it DID help me save for a trip to Japan last year and it DID fly a girlfriend over to spend time with me at the beginning of November so I'm not upset but I do need something new to do with my energy.

I was able to save enough money to get buy a ticket to Japan for mid May next year and saved 3k spending money, I'm expecting to save another 1-2k before I go. I've recently signed up for a Vodafone plan that gave me 20k points(needed Note 9 for Gear VR for school), I also got forced to get healthcare due to loading fees and wanting physio so I got Qantas insurance for the 8.5k points. I will definitely be taking advantage of the insurance as soon as the waiting period is over as I have numerous health concerns that insurance will help address.

I'm looking at buying a Fit-Bit that will net me 1000 points if I get the coughty model that can't do I everything I need(something that can handle backstroke + work with Qantas Wellness is what I need) or another fitness tracker through David Jones to grab the 10x point bonus, I will also be needing a ceiling mount, that will give me 200 points via the 2x bonus at Krogan. I'm buying a Galaxy Watch(more development cough) for school this will get me 1920 points.

I'll be at about 32000ish points before I spent anything on my bills and expenses each month, hopefully the bills I'm paying can further add to that. I'm planning on getting an extra 20000 points by loading 2k from my cash savings onto a Qantas debit card so I can use that to make purchases seeing as disabled people don't qualify for credit cards. 52k points + whatever I earn over 5 months before I go to Japan + What is earnt from spending off the Qantas debit card should be enough to contribute to a status run in another six months time, right?

I'd like to spend 3-6k on status runs each year as a hobby and structure most of my costs in such a way that I'll earn points, does anyone have any advice on how I can make the most of this?

Does anyone have any tips or suggestions about structuring your financials so that you can reap the most points possible? I have a family member who can sign up for Flyer miles and get a credit card in their name for me that I can load my savings on if moving to a CC card is what it takes to make the most of this. Does anyone have any advice working with QP to maximize earnings? I'm no high flyer, I live very frugally outside of my electronic habits but I do make some high-end purchases of electronics each year, I'm looking at spending 2000 dollars on a graphics card right now and I've just bought a Samsung QLED 55" so there has to be some way to structure even my coughty finances in such a way that I can get QPoints, right?

 

[sjk]

I can certainly relate to the hobby, but what would be the particular point of the status runs? 3k-6k a year would go a long way on travel in Japan...

 

[kermatu]

52k points + whatever I earn over 5 months before I go to Japan + What is earnt from spending off the Qantas debit card should be enough to contribute to a status run in another six months time, right?

Thanks for the detailed post, and welcome to AFF. Hopefully some people here can help you out.

Lots of different elements in your post, and it seems you have done plenty of research into ways to earn points. But I just wanted to note you can't use points for a status run, as any flights taken on points will not earn status credits or more FF points.

If all you meant was the points earned should be enough for another trip in a few months' time - yes it should. But be aware it can be hard to find seats available for points-only bookings and you often need to do it well in advance of any travel (depending on where you want to go).

There's lots of info on this site, and it can often be more helpful to ask specific questions in relevant threads.

 

[Newb]

I can certainly relate to the hobby, but what would be the particular point of the status runs? 3k-6k a year would go a long way on travel in Japan...

I've got a decent trip planned for Japan but I'll be coming back to Australia and saving for another trip like that would take a long time. This way when I return I get to visit a bunch of places for a day, night or afternoon and then move on quickly while accruing the max points possible so I can qualify for silver then gold status. I can use the miles to get to Japan or India when I want to actually stay somewhere and take advantage of silver/gold status. I'm hoping I can get to lifetime gold before I'm 40 because I honestly wouldn't mind piss-farting around with my mobile dev tools in airport lounges in between day trips to check out something cool out in the local area before heading to the next destination if I'm not doing an overnight.

I thought spending 2k per status run for 2 status runs a year and then using the miles and status accrued along with the points accrued from normal my bills/expenses/costs might make it possible to have cheapie 7 day trips once a year with 2kish allocated for spending money. Status runs from business class would be lightning tours for a guy like me, it's not like I can save loads and loads of money for regular trips frequently, status runs in themselves would qualify for a holiday for me if business class is as comfortable as it looks. That would see me travelling 3 times per year, staying in one place once a year and hitting a whole bunch for a day each twice a year.

They ain't gonna feed me in business class or something? How about the lounges?

 

[juddles]

...... I'm hoping I can get to lifetime gold before I'm 40 .....
I thought spending 2k per status run for 2 status runs a year ....

So $4000 per year for what, 8 years max? So $32,000 total spend to attempt 14,000 SC. So per $1000 spend you need to get 437 SC. That may be a bit of a hard goal.

 

[Newb]

So $4000 per year for what, 8 years max? So $32,000 total spend to attempt 14,000 SC. So per $1000 spend you need to get 437 SC. That may be a bit of a hard goal.

I was able to together an example status run on business class for 2200 SC on my first try that would hit silver status in one flight with 6 overnight stays in 6 cities, 3 international, 100 SC off gold status during a double point promotion. Two runs during double points per year would net 800 SC per year, gaining and retaining gold membership to use in the mean-time until I obtain it for life, assuming I don't take three status runs a year and spend my miles exclusively on accommodation/experiences during these trips while buying the trips on a something like a Qantas debit/credit card would net something like 1200 SC per year if I only traveled during double points promotions and spend roughly 6600 AUD per year on flights. This isn't even tallying up all the miles I'd be able to redeem on these status runs to do cough or what I could do with those during the runs, I'll be accumulating those all year round even when I'm not flying.

That's 9600 points over 8 years, 14,400 in 12 which would give me gold status for life by age 43ish, I could hit that doing 3 status runs per year, using miles during one of them for real vacation staying in nice places and having experiences. I've seen cheaper mileage runs posted elsewhere, it looks like I could even hit platinum status in the first year of status runs if I planned carefully to hit 1400 SC instead of only 1200 SC and held it most of the time I'm doing this with gold being what I end up with for life by the end of it. I missed three double points promotions this year that would've stacked with silver/gold/platinum level multipliers.

Hitting silver gets a 50% boost to SC, gold 75% and platinum gives you a 100% boost, this would rapidly increase the rate at which I earn SC making it possible to hit 14000 SC sooner. I'd earn 800 during a promotion, get another 800 next promotion + 50% = 1200 + 800 = 2000 status credit one year with two runs which would earn 8000 flyer miles or another 50 status credits. Still how things start to compound if they used right?

Edit: Well aware of the difference, just mixed up the words while typing quickly is all.

 

[juddles]

Newb, be careful here - status and points are two different beasts. The things that earn status (and Life Time Gold) are Status Credits (SC), not "points". points are something that when earned can be used to redeem flights, etc, but have no impact on status. I am understanding by "double point promotion" you actually mean "double status credit promotion" ? There are also such things as "double point promotions", but these do not help in your status climb.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

At the risk of generalising paying for status is more useful to those who have a lot of work travel in economy.

Yes if one has status with QFF it is easier to get redemption in the pointy end. However for a non-frequent traveller better bang for buck will more easily be realised with other strategies to gain enough points for J redemption, buying discount J on other airlines etc.

 

[Newb]

At the risk of generalising paying for status is more useful to those who have a lot of work travel in economy.

Yes if one has status with QFF it is easier to get redemption in the pointy end. However for a non-frequent traveller better bang for buck will more easily be realised with other strategies to gain enough points for J redemption, buying discount J on other airlines etc.

How much value can one extract from platinum one membership? It seems like there is loads of perks with higher membership levels, including direct awarding of QP once you hit a certain SC level per year. 3x 400 SC runs in a year during promotions would see you hit silver status on your first flight, platinum on the second and platinum one on the third after multipliers are applied, you'd be able to hold that status with two status runs a year.

Qantas International First Lounge, Sydney

Free access to stuff like this is what I'm aiming to obtain, it would be completely unaffordable for me to pay for ANY of the services they're offering freely in these lounges to anyone with status and even the coughties economy ticket for like 6k per year but I get flights with them and miles to spend on activities and accommodation. I've got the spare time to slowly build up funds and then jump on deals for flights because I can't work anymore, nothing hard about boarding and riding business class and eating in first class lounges for miles to spend on my stopovers whenever deals come up.

I'm seeing single room accomodation in NZ for 10k QP and capsules in Tokyo for 7000 QP, looks like this will be easier than I thought. That example trip I mentioned would earn 12900 QP, more every time it was repeated because of accumulated SC. I have no shame living on cheap food in cheap rooms and doing cheap things for thrills using QP if I'm being pampered in business class seats and 1st class lounges the entire way, keeping me steeped in luxury beyond my wildest (sustainable) dreams in between stays in places that tbh are better than my own room sooooooo... I'm not seeing any downsides here.

I can carry mobile gaming and dev gear with me, what difference does it make if I'm gaming/hobby devving on the couch/computer chair or business class above the center of Australia or the Pacific Ocean to me? Especially if I'm in and out of VR all the time, it'll go quick.

I can quite literally pay for all or some of my accommodation with QP accrued flying status runs and eat the majority of my meals, drink the majority of my booze(not a big drinker but I'd like to try some nice stuff again) in lounges/on planes for free with only things like snacks, taxis and activities costing me money beyond the flights and those are all discretionary and controllable.

 

[Pushka]

Welcome to AFF. I’m a little confused as to how you will be able to accumulate status when you are looking to use points for bookings. To get status costs quite some thousands. P1 for us is completely unattainable and partner travels on Qantas every week. And status doesn’t buy hotel accommodation. J class internationally is freaking expensive. Good luck though as I’m certainly no expert.

 

[sjk]

Hitting silver gets a 50% boost to SC, gold 75% and platinum gives you a 100% boost, this would rapidly increase the rate at which I earn SC making it possible to hit 14000 SC sooner. I'd earn 800 during a promotion, get another 800 next promotion + 50% = 1200 + 800 = 2000 status credit one year with two runs which would earn 8000 flyer miles or another 50 status credits. Still how things start to compound if they used right?

That part's just wrong, so you might need to redo your calculations accordingly.

One problem with making ten-year plans is that the rules can suddenly change. This time five years ago I earned 300 SCs in a day under a 50% SC promo using a JASA ticket purchased using relatively few points in net terms and a modest cash fee. I already had LTG by the time that particular lark disappeared, but any plans premised solely on that status quo continuing would have suddenly been rendered unachievable.

And things can also change on the other side, with benefits gradually disappearing in real terms.

I would at least give serious thought to what else that money could be spent on. If you enjoy the flying and arbitraging aspects in particular, then it's worth looking beyond the QF/Australia fishbowl to see what can be achieved with purchased miles through other programs. The sums all become more interesting once you have more to compare.

Fully aware that I myself have flown more than enough to become jaded and that I won't be seeing things through the same lens as you. But to me your current sums don't add up from a cost effectiveness perspective.

 

[lovetravellingoz]

I think Newb that you may be not calculating correctly how quickly SCs can be earnt and are also confusing Points (miles) and SC earn.


Maybe post up a list of the flights that you are thinking of purchasing and what you believe SC will be for them? The regular SC-hunters will then be able to advise if you are correct or not.

 

[mannej]

The status bonus applies to points earned, not SC’s so that needs to be reconsidered.

 

[sudoer]

I'm a chronically disabled person ... trying to survive my illness.

I'm hoping I can get to lifetime gold before I'm 40

Have you considered the effect status running will have on your health?

Runs often involve long layovers at weird times of the day, moving back and forward between timezone, and all the other stress that comes with flying. Given the way you have described your own condition, it doesn't sound advisable.

 

[RichardMEL]

First of all, I empathise with your situation of a chronic disease/disability and fixed income. This is very difficult. I admire you for heading back to school and having other goals as you stated.

How much value can one extract from platinum one membership? It seems like there is loads of perks with higher membership levels, including direct awarding of QP once you hit a certain SC level per year. 3x 400 SC runs in a year during promotions would see you hit silver status on your first flight, platinum on the second and platinum one on the third after multipliers are applied, you'd be able to hold that status with two status runs a year.

I'm very sorry but this is incorrect.

3x 400 SC is 1200, which is not even enough to attain Platinum (but would renew). Even with a Double Status Credits (DSC) promotion, you would only accrue up to 2400 SC, which is still 1200 short of the 3600 required for Platinum One Status.

As advised by others I think you are confusing the "Status Bonus" of 50/75/100% bonus which applies to BASE POINTS for a flight with the Status Crediit earn for a flight (which is based on the fare groupping).

And honestly, I am confused by your goals here in the situation. You say you have a fixed, and I will assume relatively low, income with expenses related to schooling, your disability and so on and that you want to visit Japan next year. Looking towards lifteimt status at 10+ years seems to me at this point to be relatively unimportant in terms of what you seem to be trying to achieve with your resources.

Let's not forget that QF can, and possibly will, change the program terms at any time and either change the goalposts or remove the lifetime benefit totally.

I don't in any way want to seem rude or come across as being condescending here, as I may misunderstand on some level your posts so far, but I am not sure what you hope to gain. If you want extra points earn based on your spending for school and stuff in order to either attain reward travel to Japan (or other places) (or at least assist with "paying" for travel) then things like Credit Card sign on bonuses are your friends, but since the RBA changes even these come with hefty spend requirements (eg: Spend $4k in 3 months to receive 70,000 points).

If your aim is purely status for the sake of status.. I question that tbh. What is the reason? If your travel is ONLY to get the SC's to get travel rather than use that status earned to assist with more frequent future travel, then I would question the value/benefit of this. While a end goal of Lifetime Gold (LTG) is reasonable, and many of us have attained it, it still relies on a fair deal of travel to achieve, and once one has it, benefit is only realised when used during travel (yes, access to the Club, extra bag allowance and so on are very handy as are benefits on partner carriers, which vary). Given that LTG would be a VERY long way off for you it perhaps shouldn't come into calculations at this point? Your situation, or QF's program T&C could change at any time.

First, remember that the Status Bonus doesn't apply to Status Credit (SC) accural and there is no multiplier there (with the exception of Bonus Status Credits promotions, eg: DSC or +50%). More and more these promotions do not assist in achieveing various milestones within the QFF elite system, such as Loyalty Bonus rewards every 500 SC and the Platinum Bonus Reward Option at 2400 SC, but they do currently apply to all levels of elite status earn.

You may need to recalculate based on this information and again consider your budget, goals, travel needs and what's realistic.

my two cents again with no offence or slight intended at all.

 

[Newb]

First of all, I empathise with your situation of a chronic disease/disability and fixed income. This is very difficult. I admire you for heading back to school and having other goals as you stated.



I'm very sorry but this is incorrect.

3x 400 SC is 1200, which is not even enough to attain Platinum (but would renew). Even with a Double Status Credits (DSC) promotion, you would only accrue up to 2400 SC, which is still 1200 short of the 3600 required for Platinum One Status.

As advised by others I think you are confusing the "Status Bonus" of 50/75/100% bonus which applies to BASE POINTS for a flight with the Status Crediit earn for a flight (which is based on the fare groupping).

And honestly, I am confused by your goals here in the situation. You say you have a fixed, and I will assume relatively low, income with expenses related to schooling, your disability and so on and that you want to visit Japan next year. Looking towards lifteimt status at 10+ years seems to me at this point to be relatively unimportant in terms of what you seem to be trying to achieve with your resources.

Let's not forget that QF can, and possibly will, change the program terms at any time and either change the goalposts or remove the lifetime benefit totally.

I don't in any way want to seem rude or come across as being condescending here, as I may misunderstand on some level your posts so far, but I am not sure what you hope to gain. If you want extra points earn based on your spending for school and stuff in order to either attain reward travel to Japan (or other places) (or at least assist with "paying" for travel) then things like Credit Card sign on bonuses are your friends, but since the RBA changes even these come with hefty spend requirements (eg: Spend $4k in 3 months to receive 70,000 points).

If your aim is purely status for the sake of status.. I question that tbh. What is the reason? If your travel is ONLY to get the SC's to get travel rather than use that status earned to assist with more frequent future travel, then I would question the value/benefit of this. While a end goal of Lifetime Gold (LTG) is reasonable, and many of us have attained it, it still relies on a fair deal of travel to achieve, and once one has it, benefit is only realised when used during travel (yes, access to the Club, extra bag allowance and so on are very handy as are benefits on partner carriers, which vary). Given that LTG would be a VERY long way off for you it perhaps shouldn't come into calculations at this point? Your situation, or QF's program T&C could change at any time.

First, remember that the Status Bonus doesn't apply to Status Credit (SC) accural and there is no multiplier there (with the exception of Bonus Status Credits promotions, eg: DSC or +50%). More and more these promotions do not assist in achieveing various milestones within the QFF elite system, such as Loyalty Bonus rewards every 500 SC and the Platinum Bonus Reward Option at 2400 SC, but they do currently apply to all levels of elite status earn.

You may need to recalculate based on this information and again consider your budget, goals, travel needs and what's realistic.

my two cents again with no offence or slight intended at all.

Fair enough, I thought the bonus applied to QP and SC but it seems like 1400 points is achievable in a year using promotions even with a multiplier on SC. I'm not too worried about the effects on my health, waiting in queues and sitting in small rooms while using electronics to pass the time is all I do most of the time, why not do it while going somewhere?

I thought keeping my eye out for the cheapest fares earning the most QP and SC would be fairly easy with someone who usually has no obligations and no responsibilities beyond looking after themselves, there is absolutely no reason I can't loiter at an airport waiting for last minute deals to snap up as long as I'm back within two weeks or simply don't leave the country.

 

[Glider_]

Hi and welcome to AFF. It looks like you've done a fair bit of research and formulated a plan with lots of details before posting- kudos to you, many people don't and as a result they don't receive the kind of detailed and helpful replies you have. You'll find that most people use frequent flyer schemes differently and find value in different methods that suit their circumstances, and they'll have detailed knowledge about how they use it but perhaps not much knowledge about other facets that other people find lucrative. That's why this is such a great forum for asking questions.

I appreciate that your current plan is focussed on gaining QF status and treating status runs as mini holidays, in preparation for 'real' holidays earned through them. But as others have already pointed out, you may need to rethink this now that you have some clarification of the earn rates and costs associated.

In my opinion, it might be helpful to reassess your goals and reasons for your goals. And think bigger picture (global). You have a strong emphasis on obtaining LTG status with Qantas. But is status REALLY what you want, or is it the perks that come with status? And does it have to be Qantas? You may find your core goals may be obtained in several different ways with a variety of different airlines...

If you are wanting to get into the points game for a very worthwhile hobby (the hobby being spending bulk time finding the best value in the system AND travelling the world in style), you should at least consider other ways to achieve a similar outcome. I think you may want to reconsider your quest for LTG with QF in light of new information and ideas. For me, QF LTG isn't a worthwhile endeavour. For you maybe it is, but maybe it isn't.

For me, I find best value in purchasing points through foreign frequent flyer schemes (look up Lifemiles and AAdvantage), and keeping a keen eye on the premium flight deals forums on this site and flyertalk.com, and be prepared to use cheap low cost carrier flights to position yourself to take advantage of deals from other countries. Your planned $4kpa in status run flights may be better spent on buying points for redemptions, and/or buying cheap premium deals and crediting the points they earn to your chosen scheme for future use. If you also funnel your daily spending through cards that earn points in your favourite schemes for accommodation redemptions you may be able to achieve the same thing or better as your original plan, more easily and for less money.

Importantly, IMO when you fly premium classes (whether paid or redemption), you don't need status as you are afforded the perks as part of the ticket anyway. So if you intend to fly only business or first, you could be wasting money aiming for status. The only advantage of having status if you don't fly economy is being able to book seats earlier for certain airlines and routes. This can be very helpful for QF redemptions but there are so many other carriers and schemes that aren't so restrictive to need special help to bag a seat.

 

[get me outta here]

@Newb, if you put your city / location in your profile we could help you find an AFF get together to attend as there's lots of good info to be gleaned there from the frequent flyers on here.

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

I just want to say, please don't bankrupt yourself in this Odyssey.
You say you have the planned or budgeted or forseen or real income, but it's too easy to go into hock.
This flying thing is very Addictive as you can tell.

 

[Newb]

I just want to say, please don't bankrupt yourself in this Odyssey.
You say you have the planned or budgeted or forseen or real income, but it's too easy to go into hock.
This flying thing is very Addictive as you can tell.

I'm not offended or angry, I don't think anyone is talking down to me or making fun of me but I think you might be underestimating my capabilities when it comes to working with systems on limited resources.

I'm a disabled person but I'm also a techie with better hardware than virtually all of you and if any of you do have better hardware, I can virtually garuntee you didn't buy it on under 13k per year while studying with long periods of confinement to hospitals or your bedroom in between waits in government medical or welfare offices trying to get treatment for a chronic illness.

I've lost 10kg in the past year using my VR for light to moderate cardio 30-90 mins(@ 2k per eye, 90fps solid) and stopped myself blowing up into a blob even when I had long periods where I couldn't leave the house for anything other than medical treatment without having to diet at all(i was eating krispy kreme 3 times per week for about 15 bucks for 3 big packs of donuts to share with the household using discount codes until I found out my cholesterol was killing me but it was what I did instead of buying two bottles of whiskey/gin/vodka/good wine a week to share with friends/family) and improved my cardiovascular health and mental health at the same time.

I have a Vive Pro(business class VR HMD), a Samsung 55" 2018 model 4K QLED, 3 1070ti and a 1080ti along with a gaming rig paid for by a 760x2 + 8350fx traded up to a 1080 traded up to a 1700x + 1080ti AND an i7 6600k + 3x 1070ti while using the Nvidia "Token Rebate" Program. My computer is in the top 1% of steam users and I did all of that with the Nvidia rebate program and interest-free loans + saving for lump sums pre-payments by the fortnight and spending the rest on repayments, it allowed me to rapidly pay off interest free loans with my regular fixed income + the Nvidia rebates to buy upgrades and start building up flippable resources I use for liquidity when needed to ensure I don't end up paying the 6.50 fee monthly fee longer than I need to.

I'm paying my phone/tablet bill with a lump sum in advance and using the six months off paying bills to take out an interest free loan for a 2080ti which I will pay off while I save for Japan using Nvidia Rebate Tokens + the minimum repayment from my pension each month onto of what my carer will be paying back from the lump sum I pay off one of their bills.

If I had've put all of those purchases through the QP program, I'd have a free trip + accommodation already. I've got 6 nights accommodation worth of points sitting there already and I've yet to pay a bill with their debit card which I've applied for, also considered loading the cash I'd put onto that debit card onto a Qantas CC card in my carer's name(with their permission, they said yes already) to use to get extra points. I fixed their credit rating with the cough I've been doing by structuring my purchases in such a way they ended up with all of their bills paid on time and I ended up with parts, effectively acting as a two way interest free loan for 6.50 per month for me + minimum repayment per month for both of us each.

If I save 500 dollars, pay it off a bill, have them take out an interest free loan for 1000 dollars, pay the minimum back on it until the 500 is paid off while I also pay it off with my pension whenever I have spare money at the end of a fortnight + rebate tokens, the principal is gone before I ever see interest and usually in under 3 to 6 months. It's how I bought all my cough off one interest free money card they had for Harvey Norman before they stopped working full-time, the constant buying/repaying actually let her increase the credit limit.

Over the last year and a half, I went from a coughbox computer to flying a girl in a similiar situation to me over from the States, I met in VR for a 3 month long internal holiday travelling up and down the great ocean road and sightseeing within victoria in between sessions gaming in VR together on better hardware than most employed people, I went back to school for the first time in years midyear and I had a better PCs than the 3D art college I attended, you would've needed four of them to match the performance of my both my primary VR/Entertainment rig(27" 3D monitor, 55" Samsung QLED 2018 model, Sony Trinitron CRT 55" connected to Xbox OG, Wii, PS2, Saturn, Dreamcast, PS1 and 64 via VCR+DVD+Roku(actually an off market Raspberry PI in a case I bought but ey) with Logitech(affordable and cheap) + CH products (durable as cough and repairable) wheel, sticks, pedals and throttles for VR racing and flight simulation in my bedroom and my render farm/second VR rig in the spare/storage room for local multiplayer.

Getting into the nitty gritty of the "Nvidia Rebate Token" program actually helped improve my health because it gave me something constructive to think about, goals to work at and improve on and it paid off in a big way for me. I think status running as a hobby would be similarly enjoyable for me and it would help improve my health by giving me another constructive, rewarding thing to work on when I'm confined to the house or have time to waste when I'm well enough to attend school.

I have no worries whatsoever about my health being a factor because if I pay for insurance, it's not my problem if I get hurt, injured or sick and I'll get better treatment than I received from the government for like 350 bucks a year for a friend and I that would be valid whenever I have a ticket on me. In the worst case scenario, should I die on the plane, at my destination or at an airport, everything is paid for and there is 3 million liability insurance to cover any problems caused by my passing and I will have seen more of the world than I ever would otherwise.

I had a life before my illness and I want some of it back, I think status running could be a great hobby for a person who would otherwise be restricted from travelling regularly to destinations they've never been to in a level of luxury that they haven't experienced since before they got sick. I can live on ramen(i can take a break from clean living on holiday!!!) and katsu bowls(yum) in Japan, 7/11 sells better sushi than I can afford to buy in Australia on a regular basis for less than I pay here even taking into account the exchange rate and I can eat the rest of my meals in business class seats and first class lounges while I check out other places for day and a night between legs of trips.

I mean, damn, I saw one company does 600 dollar yearly passes with unlimited access or complimentary meal coupons that is valid with dirt cheap flights in regions that have those lounges would be more than worth it for me. What is stopping me from spending 100-150 bucks a fortnight on cheap as hell flights to other cities in Australia and using that to eat high quality food in beautiful surroundings while I do my homework/course work remotely, racking up QP and SC every god-damned(^_^) payweek?

It would cost me more money to eat those meals in my own city and stay at a hotel than it would to pay for a flight once a fortnight and stay overnight in another city with either a yearly pass or a gold/plat status. I did half of my coursework from home in my last certificate, I see no reason I can't study online while doing this nor any reason why I can't do my usual online volunteer work from a computer in a QP bought hotel room vs my bedroom. I'm designing a molle rig for an NUC and a EGPU with integrated PSU so I can take a 1070(trading a 1070ti for the EGPU) and Skull Canyon NUC(buying second hand through ebay for QP) on the road so I can do pretty hardcore 3D rendering/VR work from business lounges and hotel rooms anywhere in Australia.

I don't owe any money and I don't have any outstanding debts, everything I possess is mine and in the clear so I can trade/sell it for liquidity when I need it. I don't go out spending heaps on fancy food or booze or smokes, I don't take drugs and I don't have any regular of expenses beyond food, clothing and contributing toward utility bills, I can get to class fairly cheaply(i pack/make my own lunches using materials bought from the stores that supply sushi sushi, tea i brew myself + get lifts from a mate on his way afternoon shift/PT home when I'm well enough and study from home whenever I'm capable when I'm not well enough) and my main hobbies are all digital thus as cheap as I want them to be or even slightly above self-sustainable without further inputs of funds in the sense that I've paid far under market rate for my hardware and usually sell it for more than what I paid because of patience and having nothing better to do than wait in queues for medical treatment in small rooms checking gumtree or spending time in a small room(my bedroom or the spare room) refurbishing cough I've bought second-hand while I'm confined to the house during flareups.

The same patience I applied to learning how to refurb g-cards and retro consoles can be applied to learning how these systems work to exploit them for maximum value(subjective), spending my down time working with old consoles and PCs has resulted in having all of my entertainment needs met for free, I have every console and handheld(and every game ever made for them including beta and unreleased titles) I ever wanted as a child and one of the best VR rigs on the planet with a limited income, I view all my content for free at the highest possible resolution and quality whether it be 2D, 3D or VR with a chronic disability and extremely limited finances(under 13k per year, 1/3rd of which is reserves for living expenses) through careful budgeting, buying, spending, trading and doing maintenance + repair myself.

Is there anyone here who can help a person like me learn the ropes so I can spend less time in small rooms and more time out in the world where I belong? This is probably the only way I can afford to have a life like a normal person, all I ever do is wait, repair and study, I wanna wait, repair and study on the way to somewhere I've never been before and I think this can make it happen.

I got 200gb of mobile data for my tablet p/m and 80gb for my phone and smartwatch, I should be able to study quite easily on the go in business class lounges + on planes + in QP hotel rooms when I pair that with wifi rather than studying at home or spending time taking trains to classes. Looking at the numbers, it would cost me less money to live in QP hotel rooms while, study and do repairs on g-cards/consoles out of business class lounges and their meeting rooms and eat complimentary food while studying online and constantly mile running than it would for a room or a place of my own closer to my university each month when you take food, transport, fixed internet connection, utility and rent costs into consideration as my entertainment costs are self-sustaining and extremely high-end luxury level already.

I used to work for Telstra and when I left after I got ill I knew their internal rules so well that I am able to get them to virtually pay me for having a phonebill or recieving devices from them by lodging the right complaints in the right way whenever I have service disruptions or anything that is legitimately a concern/complaint under their internal rules, I've given them less than 100 dollars (after refunds, bill credits for complaining about outages/disruptions/bugs on their apps) a year since I became medically unfit to work and they've given me 6 phones and a tablet and as much data(I use my phone for quick downloads and get them to remove the charges with complaints later down the track whenever I have a valid reason to complain) as I could justify using so far.

You'd be surprised what an expired C-number, knowledge of where call centers are located and whether they work direct or are a third party and a friendly demeanor can accomplish if you know the rules. Call center workers actually have discretion for customer service purposes and if you tick all the right boxes in their procedural checklist and make them feel good/helpful/laugh, they can more or less make certain bills nearly free over time without breaking the law or lying or even violating company police or working against their KPIs, you just have to know how to use lump sum payments, bill extensions, customer service experience/account saving rules and billshock rules to make it look like you're paying when long-term they are refunding almost or more than what you gave them across the entire life of the contract each year.

If you only want the data/calls of a plan and don't want the device or the accessories or free junk you get with a plan, you can even hock it and use the money for a lump sum payment then use the complaint refund strategy to stretch that money out as long as possible like I have been doing for years. I've made money back for my bills selling the bloody boxes, accessories and materials separately that you don't have to return under Australian law if your phone is damaged while insured and replaced or repaired.

I've done the same thing for friends and family before but that is a little riskier because you're relying on them not to cough up too badly while on the phone if they ever call in if you sell them the sim + device and handle the bill for them. You get bundle discounts that further make this sort of cough more affordable month to month and further reduce your total outlay when refunds/replacements are taken into consideration.

There is absolutely no reason you can't buy say three devices on 3 plans, bundle them for discounts + extra welcome accessories + welcome credits, sell two of them + all accessories + boxes + bonus cough, keep one and hand the sims off to your family and use the lump sum to pay your bills off in advance with the valid complaint/billshock strategies I use, I've done it three times.

I want to apply this legal and legitimate optimization of customer service rules while taking advantage of bundles and stacked rewards with the airlines and hotel systems, QP and SC like I do with goods and services sold by utility companies, can anyone help? So far all my entertainment and communication needs are self-sustaining or nearly free over the long-term, surely I can stack this with QP and SC to get hotels and experiences for free?

Helps when you used to be a systems trainer for billing, level 2 tech support and outbound sales after working in all of those departments and are able to guide them through the process and were able to directly link them to intranet-only Telstra wiki articles(they changed it not too long ago! coughs) I'd saved the addresses for on the internal wiki on my work phone for easy reference in a note to speed up systems access as well as directly dial into departments bypassing the IVR using a ream of direct numbers I had on printer paper for doing warm transfers when I was on the phones.

Travelling like that would also mean I'd constantly be covered by their multi-pass travel insurance and I could go for a cheaper monthly insurance plan and still get all the chiro, physio, dental, renal treatments I need because if I get sick, hurt or injured or killed while in possession of a ticket I would be covered by the 360 dollar yearly plan with my elite level comprehensive extras costing 100 dollar monthly with the disability insurance scheme/pensioner's card for excess/regular/backup access to hospital system.