Not dead yet, just cheap

We'll bet you thought this was a dead blog. Not yet, anyway -- just out of town and without time to post for a few days.

We're a little late to the game, but this Priceline and Hotwire thing is a good deal. We booked a couple of hotels in Florida on the cheap, and we were playing without a net. It wasn't just us, but the family too. If these had been bedbug-infested, hooker-filled hellholes, we would have gotten it from all sides.

Turns out, they were pretty nice places, not 5-star resorts but clean, quiet and comfy brand-name places at $50 a night instead of $100. Who knew? A lot of people other than us, we guess, but we're onto it now. And when we do get the hooker-filled hellhole, we'll hope there are no bedbugs -- and no family along for the ride. Hookers charge extra for that.

OH, YEAH: I learned what little I know about Priceline and Hotwire at betterbidding.com. There's a database of successful bids and buys for both sites there that helps you plan your strategy.