I’m not extremely aware of taking full advantage of reward programs for brand loyalty. I get that it’s nice to get extra benefits for choosing how I spend money, but I tend to just be downright forgetful. Who has enough time and brain space to read up on this frequent flyerr reward or that credit card point system and keep track of this account number and that username and password? I find it all overwhelming.

Jonathan, with his bent for being methodical and analytical, is quite the opposite. He gets extreme enjoyment from finding the best deal: the best reward system or cash back arrangement or frequent flyer program benefits. He even keeps enough tabs on them to know how close we are to the next level up! No joke, last year he took a quick flight to a nearby airport only to turn around and come back, just because the mileage bumped him up to the next tier of status. It takes a lot of research to keep track of all the details of all the advantages of being part of this or that loyalty program! Shucks, there should be a college level course on getting the most out of your consumerism. And he could teach it!

The latest frequent flier program I’ve joined (after he suggested it, of course): the Mars Frequent Flyer Club. Yep, #nerdalert over here.

You can actually get your name on a spacecraft that actually goes to Mars, in this case InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport)! And you get points for the miles your name travels to get there! How fun is it to get 301,223,981 miles just for a one-way trip! They’ll even give you a boarding pass! These JPLers are so clever (and quirky!).

Of course I did my son’s name, I don’t really care much about my name on a spacecraft about to head out for Mars next year. But who knows, this little guy may actually go there someday. And like the good kid that he is, his father’s son if there ever was one, he’ll visit the museum there and read the plaques and find InSight and snap a selfie to send to me back here on Earth. “Look, Mom, remember when you got me my very first frequent flyer account for interplanetary travel?”

His 3-year-old reaction when I showed him his super cool boarding pass yesterday? “That’s weird.” Okay, so maybe it is a little off-the-wall, but it’s also out-of-this-world!

Go check it out and get your name on a spacecraft to Mars! Last day to submit is November 1, 2017