I recently saw you on TV and you said that even infrequent flyers could earn a lot of miles. Please explain.

Jim,

It seems that air miles have become this nation's defacto second currency, and it is very true that you can earn air miles without ever leaving the ground. In fact, one recent statistic states that approximately 48% of all air miles are earned on the ground. Miles can be earned by sending flowers, gambling in Las Vegas, talking on the phone, buying groceries with your credit card, financing a home, investing in stocks, and more.

Some ways to earn miles on the ground include:

Credit cards. Sign up for an affinity card. This is a quick path to air miles. If your airline offers a card, then it's a good idea to sign up with them. Most airlines offer affinity cards; some of the bigger ones are: United's Mileage Plus Visa, 1-800-438-9494; American Airlines' Citibank Mastercard, 1-800-359-4444; and Delta's Skymiles Card, 1-800-759-6453. If you are an infrequent flyer and would like to keep your options open, I recommend that you use the American Express card (800-297-3276) or the Diners Club card (800-234-6377). Both of these cards allow you to transfer miles to a broad range of airlines, thus allowing you the flexibility to fly on the airline that offers you the best deal when you need it. Remember to be careful with your spending and don't buy something just for the miles.

Hotels and car rental companies offer miles and most of these programs allow you to transfer your miles to a number of airlines.

Open a brokerage account. Charles Schwab, Waterhouse Securities, and E-Trade are among the brokerage companies that offer miles for trades and account transfers.

Talk on the phone. Both MCI and Sprint offer miles programs for signing up with their service and reward miles based on your speaking habits.

Buy a home. Countywide Home Loans (800-852-9744) and North American Mortgage Co. (800-500-6262) offer programs rewarding miles based on the amount of your mortgage.

Dine out. Most Airline Frequent Flyer programs offer the opportunity to earn miles when you dine at selected restaurants. Contact your airline's program for specific details. Additionally, one consumer food company is offering a program to earn miles when you eat at home. Healthy Choice Frozen Foods is offering 500 miles for every 10 UPC labels you submit through the end of this year. Go to http://www.healthychoice.com for details.

Book your flight online. Many of the airlines with Web sites are offering special bonuses when you book your flight online. These bonuses usually range from 500 to 1000 miles.

Finally, after earning all of those valuable miles, don't lose them by letting them expire. Be sure to stay abreast of your program's rules regarding miles expiration. If you have miles that will expire soon, trade them in for a voucher or a ticket; you'll have up to two years to use it.

Good luck and have fun!
Joel