Q My husband and I would like to find a no-frills cabin in Minnesota to rent for a few days next summer. We would like to do some fishing, maybe some shopping and golf. If the dog could join us, that would be great. Any ideas? We are not picky about location.
A So many cabins are available for rent in Minnesota that your only problem will be choosing one from the many that suit your needs. Cascade Vacation Rentals focuses on the North Shore, an area with several golf courses and shopping spots. At the website (www.lakesuperiorren tals.com), you can pre-select for "pet-friendly," so only cabins where dogs are welcome would show up in your search. For other areas, try Vacation Rental by Owner (www.vrbo.com), where you can look by region of the state. Once you've clicked on the map to see what's available in a particular region, a list of cabins pops up. A paw print appears by rentals that allow pooches. I hope you enjoy the hunt.
KERRI WESTENBERG
THIS JUST IN
MSP app for food-to-go Feeling peckish as you await your plane at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport? Just get on your smartphone and order a French Meadow curried chicken croissant sandwich, for instance, or Chili's Too boneless buffalo wings; they'll be delivered to your gate. A free mobile app called B4 You Board lets you order food for pickup or gate delivery from Chili's Too, French Meadow Bakery & Cafe and Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery. HMSHost, the company that manages food and retail at MSP, launched the app for iPhones two weeks ago; the Android version followed late last week.
KERRI WESTENBERG
AMERICAN AIRLINES
Are frequent flier miles safe? The rocky financial situation at AMR Corp., parent company of American Airlines, has worried some members of the airline's AAdvantage frequent flier program, especially those sitting on a stash of unclaimed miles. George Hobica, founder of travel website Airfarewatchdog.com, said a Chapter 11 filing should have little impact on frequent flier miles accrued. "Miles would be protected, since they'd keep flying," Hobica said. But Edward Hasbrouck, a policy analyst with the Consumer Travel Alliance, said American has no contractual obligations to frequent flier mileage holders and it could change or eliminate its frequent flier program at any time -- bankruptcy or not.
MCCLATCHY NEWS SERVICE
NEW YORK
Investigate new 'CSI' exhibit With more than 67 million viewers a week, the "CSI" television franchise has spawned a national obsession with forensic science. Now visitors can become crime scene investigators at "CSI: The Experience," an interactive educational exhibit that opened Oct. 1 at Discovery Times Square in New York. "CSI: The Experience" challenges visitors to "listen to what the evidence is saying" and solve one of three true-to-life mysteries. There are 15 lab stations to analyze evidence -- DNA, blood spatter, fingerprint patterns, autopsy reports, toxicology -- and at the end, findings are presented in the re-created office of Gil Grissom, CSI's fabled supervisor. More information at 1-866-987-9692 or newyork.csiexhibit.com.
