For the time being, I live in a small northern Minnesota lake comunity on the Canadian border. This town has just one major employer, a paper mill. If you speak with the locals, they will tell you this is God's country and everyone wants to live here. Anyway, the community has been trying to come up with ways to not be so dependent on this single employer and naturally the first idea suggested is improving tourism.

The city leaders go off and arrange for special events and promotions in order to lure in the tourist dollars. This is great until you discover the local merchants have raised their prices in effort to gouge the visitors to our community. $6.00 for a gallon of milk? That is what one store is charging while some gas stations are charging as high as $3.49 for unleaded fuel (87 octane). Top this off with the fact that locals are screaming about all those rotten out of towners mucking up the lake and making them have to wait in line at the US-Canada border crossing. I even saw a man with California plates have his tires slashed because he failed to stop at a stop sign. When confronted by the local, the man was so embarassed and explained how he was looking for an address and must have missed it. The man who stopped at the Post Office for directions & came out to find 2 of his tires slashed and the local laughing at him and giving him the finger. When the police finally arrived, they told the man there was nothing they could for him (even though Iw as willing to be a witness) as he was from out of town and no judge would ever believe him as the only thing which comes from California are 'Fruits and Nuts'. That man had planned to spend two weeks in this community but instead pulled out of town shortly after getting his tires fixed.

I have seen this type of behavior all over the world. How many times have you visited a place and leave saying to yourself or others that those were some of the rudest people I have ever encountered? This type of behavior may be easier to get away with in larger areas but in small communities it pays to not look for an out of state plate and try and suck every dollar you can out of them.

I just discovered this company was still in business and their business practices have not yet improved. After checking with the better business bureau, this company has lost their right to use the Better Business Bureau logo or declare themselves a member in good standing.

Here is my story:

4 years, my wife and I were moving from California to nothern Minnesota, we had our hands full with a new baby and did not have the time to call and meet with sales people. We went to an online site, Movingcosts.com and let them do the foot work for us. A few days went by and Movingcosts.com came back with A American Moving. On the surface no reason to be concerned, the price was great and the contracted outlined what was required of each and every party. Movingcosts.com recommended a 3rd party insurance company if we wanted to insure our shipment (which we did)

The night before our scheduled move date, I received a call from the driver who was clearly intoxicated informing me that he was in las Vegas and wanted to know if he could delay the pick up one day. He explained that this was his first trip ever to Las Vegas and kind of went overboard. We had built in a 2 day buffer just for things like this so it was no big deal and fully understood how things like this could happened.

The driver arrived 2 days later and things started off well. Inventory lists were being completed and everything was being tagged as it should be. We had put our 2 cats in the master bathroom and put a note on the door stating not to open the door and use the guest bathroom in the hall. Just as things were finishing up, a neighbor came by with our cats and said they were in his back yard. He further stated we might want to go in the yard and get our window screen. When we opened the master bathroom, we discovered that someone had obviously used and not only opened the window to vent but had over-flowed the toliet. After cleaning that mess, the driver indicated that he was ready to go and would be at our new place in about 10 days as agreed.

10 days later, A American arrives in a smaller truck and 2 different drivers. When I questioned it, I was told the other driver was fired upon his return to Chicago due to his antics in Las Vegas (we never said anything). Theguys began to unload the truck and the very first thing off the truck was an RCA 48" big screen. Odd, we own a Sony 60". I immediately called A American and spoke with Chuck (Manager) who stated he thought their was a screw-up and wanted me to call back when everythign was done with a list of any other issues.

4 hours later, we were missing 2 beds & their frames. We had a box springs though. However, the box springs for the King size were not ours (plus each side was a different pattern), Hutch was damaged, items were missing, and to top it off we had extra furniture. I called Chuck and gave him a list of about 20 items which were missing and was told they would deliver them in 3 to 4 days. 2 weeks went by and A American never came back out. I called Chuck and found he had put in an order not to take my calls. I finally decided to call the Better Business Bureau who contacted A American and got them to at least talk to me. 3 days later, A American was at my house with 1 King Size Mattress and my Sony 60" TV. I asked about the damage and missing items and was told to contact the insurance company.

I called Executive Insurance and started to work a claim for close to $4,000. By the time things were done, Executive paid me $2,500 of the $3,000 claim which they approved. The reason I was paid only $2500 was A American was responsible to pay $500 according to their contract. I never saw my money but received a number of letters calling me names and telling me that they owed me nothing.

I complained to the Better Business Bureau who after several letters and attempts to resolve the issue washed their hands of the situation and advised me to seek legal counsel. I further filed complaints with the Illinois & Minnesota Attorney General Office and the Minnesota Department of Transportation. MN DOT responded several months later and stated A American did not have authorization to do business in Minnesota to their failure to respond to my complaint.

Nearly a year after my move, I received a letter from a gentleman who was one of the movers who assisted in the delivery. The letter stated he was going through the 12 step program and wated to come clean about A American Moving. The gentleman stated that Chuck and Mr. Richard Davenport (owner) tended to pick and choose items off the trucks and then claim they were lost. He further stated that the only reason I got my TV was because I made such a pain in the ass of myself.

My family is looking again at moving again in the newar future and I still will need a professional mover to help with some things but this time I will research the moving company in ways they never dreamed existed and will make sure that every single item which goes on the truck comes off at our new address without damage.

I am not writing this to tell you who to do business with but do recommend that before you choose a professional mover that you spend a little time and research them. According to what I have learned, A American Moving has had over 2 dozen complaints filed against them within 3 years. If you find yourself being refered to this company, you may want to use caution and ask if there is someone else you can do business with.

Prior to a family crisis (see US Airways- One cold-hearted airline for more details), my wife and I spent 5 fun-filled days in Paris and learned a few things that might help make Paris more enjoyable for others.

1. Watch those travel shows on Travel Channel or PBS in order to get an idea of what you might want to see or do while in Paris but don't plan your trip based on their opinions. Keep in mind these shows are more or less paid endorsements. Use these shows strictly as a guideline.
2. Do not waste your money on Paris guide books. Check them out from the library if you wish but otherwise these are nothing but a waste of money.
3. Purchase a musuem pass (http://www.parismuseumpass.com/en/home.php) . My wife and I purchased a 6 day Pass for 60 Euros each (2 day passes sell for 30 euro and 4 day passes sell for 45 euro) and the pass paid for itself after the second day.
   
4. Plan out each day of your trip before going. Know where you want to go and how to get there (you can find Paris transit maps online). By planning ahead, my wife and I were able to see as many as 6 different places in a single day. By planning ahead, you can determine if it is cost effective to buy a transit pass for a series of days or pay as you go. In our case, we found it better to pay as we went. A 2 day transit pass is 14 euro while a single ticket is 1.40 so you would need to make 10 one way trips to pay for itself. BTW, you may need to take 3 or 4 trains in order to get somewhere. This is counted as a single trip ($1.40) not as 3 or 4 separate trips.
5. Street vendors bargin! Don't be so quick to shell out 15 euro for a plastic Eifel Tower that lights up when you maybe able to get it for just 1 euro. If you want trinkets such as this or key chains, visit the Eifel Tower within an hour or two of closing and you will be amazed how quickly these guys will bargin. I watched one guy shell out 33 euro for 2 plastic Eifel Towers and 3 key chains and tell his wife what a great deal he got. 15 minutes later they wactched me get 4 of those same Eifel Towers and 20 key chains for 10 euro. I do not have to tell you that some of the four letter words coming from his wife's mouth after that leads me to believe he spent that night sleeping in the lobby of their hotel.
6. Do not waste your time on fancy dinners in Paris. Dinner is over-priced and not worth it as the portions are rather small. Want a good meal, wait until you get home to celebrate your success trip. If you stay in a western hotel such as Hilton, be sure and join there Hilton Honors program before you go. you may even want to consider applying for a Hilton Honors credit card from either Citi or American Express as you will get automatically upgraded to Silver status and receive up to 20,000 Hilton honor Points. Many western hotels have executive lounges open to their club members. These lounges tend to serve free food and beverages all day long.
   
7. Think! If you plan on visiting the Louvre, visit the less popular wings first. Items such as the Crown Jewels, Mona Lisa, and Venus De Milo are all in general area. If you go on a evening which the museum is open late (Wed and Fri), visit these areas just before closing as you will have a better chance of seeing the items up close as the tour buses and school kids have long departed.
8. Keep your hands on your wallets (or keep them at least in your front pocket). Women, leave your purse in the safe at the hotel. Museums are great places to get those items lifted. With the massive crowds, you will find yourself being bumped and pushed around. After a while you start to think nothing of it and by then it could be to late. Stay away from packed transit cars. IN Paris, trains run every 3 to 4 minutes so why pack yourself into a car like sardines when you can wait 3 more minutes and have some breathing room.
9. There is three types of food service in France, Table Service, Self-Service, and Take Away. Table Service is just that, you come in and sit down and they serve you and charge you a premium forhaving to kiss your behind and serve you. Self-Service is much like a fast food places in the states. You order your food, they give it you and you stand at a table and eat. Lastly, we have Take Away, you order and get your food and get out! Even if you see chairs and tables outside, do not sit down! You will have an angry shop keep coming out to tell you that you are not welcome.
10. Everything you have ever heard about the French is true. They are rude! They dislike Americans. They love your money and will be more than happy to accept it from you but as for you, your scum!