What were your best and worst consumer experiences this week?

Which consumer happenings cheered you recently and which ones made you want to scream or weep?

Here are my best and worst consumer experiences this week:

My best: Buying plants and planting my garden

We finally had a nice day in the Seattle area – 70 degrees.

I planted the seedlings I bought for my garden: tomatoes, yellow zucchini, cucumbers, and potatoes.

Tomorrow I’ll plant carrot, kale, and bush bean seeds.

I’m looking forward to tasty organic vegetables. With the help of a friend, I built a raised bed garden last year. It turned out well.

My worst: Trying to use my airline miles

This week, I worked on getting an airline ticket for a trip later this year.

I’m in an airlines mileage program for each of my two credit cards, which are issued by two different credit unions. Even though the same company manages the two rewards programs, I wasn’t able to get the company to combine the points from each credit card so I could get $100 off on a ticket.

And, of course, I can’t add points from either of the cards to my American Airline miles.

It was a frustrating experience.

And, ironically, I pay $25 a year for the “privilege” of being in one of the rewards programs. I’ve been in it for a couple of years. It looks like I’ll be in it for three years before I can get $100 off on a ticket. That means my $100 off will actually be $25.

Then again, I’ll need to be careful because the points expire in three years.

Maybe I need to do what a friend of mine does. She charges everything she buys on a credit card, even groceries. That way she accumulates lots of airline miles. Then she pays off her credit card each month.