Party with Latin American Idol’s Gabriel Suarez

We partied last weekend with Gabriel Suarez, a hottie Chilean contestant on the first season of Latin American Idol. He made a special appearance at our friends’ wedding reception in Santiago, Chile, sang three songs while the bride swooned, and then danced with us until dawn.

(Gabriel Suárez of Latin American Idol Season 1 on far right)

Wedding tip: Chilean brides-to-be, he rocked the reception crowd in the ballroom at the Hotel Plaza San Francisco. “Gabriel es el mejor,” beamed the groom’s sister as she led him to him the dance floor. He even brought along an entourage of hottie helpers that were willing to grind with the grandmas.

His Clips

In case you missed this hot Chilean cantor on the first season of Latin American Idol, you can catch his clips on YouTube. Here is a run down of his songs on the show:

Gabriel Suárez - Eliminated (10/12/2006)

1. “Hasta Ayer” (Marc Anthony) - First Workshop
2. “No Me Conoces” (Marc Anthony) - First Concert
3. “El Hombre Del Piano” (Ana Belén) - Second Concert
4. “La Copa Rota” (Vicente Fernández) - Third Concert
5. “Cálido Y Frío” (Franco De Vita) - Fourth Concert - Bottom 2 (09/21/2006)
6. “No Renunciaré” (Lolita Flores) - Fifth Concert
7. “Carito” (Carlos Vives) - Sixth Concert
8. “La Camisa Negra” (Juanes) - Sixth Concert
9. “En La Ciudad De La Furia” (Soda Stereo) - Seventh Concert
10. “Lamento Boliviano” (Los Enanitos Verdes) - Seventh Concert

Even though he didn’t win the Idol competition, Senor Suárez has a very bright future as a wedding singer.

Avoid United’s $25 fee for Second a Bag

I’ve heard the reports but wanted to hear it from United Airlines directly. As a frequent flier, I rarely check luggage, but when I do it’s usually two pieces. Paying an extra 25 bucks each trip — for about 10 trips a year — could make a dent in my travel budget.

I got United’s customer service on the phone, and the American English-speaking agent confirmed that it’s true: United will charge passengers on domestic flights (meaning the US and Canada) $25 for a second bag for each leg of a trip. In other words, checking two bags on both the outbound and return flight will incur the fee twice, for a total of $50. The fee goes into effect May 5th, and bags are limited to 50 pounds each.  You may think twice about bringing t-shirts in every color on your next vacation in Hawaii.

Hungry for revenue, the other major airlines will most likely follow.  The less-for-more approach seems to be an increasing trend.  I understand that major airlines are staring down sky-high fuel prices, but can’t they tack on a few bucks to the fare to cover it?  The same logic applies to the “buy on board” program.  Why not just add $5 to the ticket price and make sure there are enough turkey sandwiches to go around?

However, travelers are not entirely vulnerable to these nickel-and-dime tactics. There are several possible ways to skirt the fee.

1. Pack more in one bag without exceeding the 50-pound weight limit;
2. Pack more carry-on luggage;
3. Have a fellow elite traveler check the second bag (this would violate airport security rules);
4. Have a fellow traveler whose bag is under weight pack more in their bag (this would also violate airport security rules);
5. Bring a bag that exceeds carry-on limits to the gate and check it there;
6. Book a refundable ticket (the limit is only on non-refundable tickets).

But my favorite way to skirt the fee is to become a frequent flier member. A second bag will remain free for elite members of United’s MileagePlus program, meaning people who fly 25,000 miles per year or more. Consolidating air travel onto one airline has many benefits, and a free second bag is now the newest on the list.

LinkedIn 3rd Level Introduction

My friend, Julian, recently pinged and asked me to make a third-level introduction on LinkedIn.

A what?

A third-level introduction is basically introducing a friend to a friend-of-a-friend. But it’s not as easy at it sounds. Julian is in my LinkedIn network and wanted to meet someone outside of my network and who is connected to me by another guy in my network. Still following? I was confused so I drew a map:

I’ll be honest. If Julian wasn’t such a dear friend, I wouldn’t have bothered. Turns out that there is no convenient way to make a third-level intro on LinkedIn–no quick clicks to get the job done. This involved time, communication and follow-up. Here’s what I did:

Step 1: Figure out who my friend wants to meet

Turns out Julian wanted to meet Novak, who is a friend of a friend, or a second-level connection. Novak was not in my network so I couldn’t contact him directly. More investigation needed.

Step 2: Contact the middleman

So I contacted Nic, the person Novak and I have in common. Nic is in my network so I could contact him directly through the LinkedIn site. I asked Nic if he would be willing to make an introduction to his contact, Novak.

Step 3: The middleman contacts the target

Nic contacted Novak and asked if Novak would be willing to contact me. Since Nic and Novak are in the same network, this was done through the LinkedIn site–like how I contacted Nic.

Step 4: Target agrees to meet me

Novak replies back to Nic that he agrees to meet me. He gives his email address to Nic to give to me.

Step 5: Middleman replies to me with the good news

Nic replies to me that Novak is willing to meet and forwards Novak’s email address.

Step 6: Second-level contact made

I make direct contact with Novak, a second-level contact. I tell him about my friend, Julian, who wants to meet him.

Step 7: Go ahead

Novak replies back that he is willing to meet Julian, a third-level contact.

Step 8: The final connection

I reply to Novak and copy Julian so that they are now connected. Novak and Julian chat about their common interests.

Third-level communication totally sucks, but my job is done. All of this only took about four hours of my time spread over three weeks. Any better ideas out there of how to do this?