Well, that's not entirely true. I do get a free bottle of water when I check into the Holiday Inn. With that in mind, why wouldn't I come back? Clearly I am valued.

I can't say that these rewards programs are a complete failure. There are many times that we try to stay with a particular chain in hopes of finally reaching that next level. You know, the level where you actually feel good about being a customer. After all, isn't that all we ever really want as a customer; to feel good about our experience when we leave.

However, I recently abandoned all of my loyal principles and decided that I just needed an inexpensive room in which to crash before an early morning flight. I wasn't looking for frills. I didn't need a free bottle of water. I just needed a clean place to rest and a quick shower. So, I finally did it. I went to Priceline.com and named my own price.

The service allowed me to choose the area of town in which I wanted to stay and to set a minimum standard for the type of hotel in which I would stay based on a system of stars. Beyond that, whatever deal they found would be my sentence for the evening.

Much to my surprise, I ended up with a room at a very nice Hyatt Place hotel for a rate that was beyond reasonable. When I arrived at the hotel, I was thrilled. My room was spacious and comfortable. The amenities were wonderful and they even offered free Wi-fi. I was a happy customer. Moreover, as I often find myself in need of a room near Columbus, I was prepared to have a new favorite place to stay.

Best of all, we are proud members of the Hyatt Rewards program. We are loyal customers who frequent their hotels in our travels.

The next morning I approached the front desk to check-out with one very simple request. I asked the gentleman behind the counter if he could please apply my customer reward number to my stay as I checked out. It sounded simple. I am a loyal customer. Their program supposedly strives to reward customer loyalty.

Alas, my request was denied.

"I'm sorry, but since you booked through a third-party provider, you didn't pay for the room so we are unable to credit you with reward points."

Wait a minute. I had just stayed in the hotel as if I were a customer. And I was fairly certain I was being charged for the privilege.

I said to the gentleman, "So you're telling me that I'm not being charged for my stay?"

He said, "Well no, of course not, you already paid for it when you booked the room."

"Oh, so then I am the customer." I responded.

"Well, no," he countered, "Not according to our policy. It says the third-party provider is the customer."

"Would they have booked a room here last night if I hadn't initiated the request?" I prodded.

"I guess not," he continued, "But just look at it this way, you saved a lot more money than you would have if you had called us directly."

"Oh, I see. So as a loyal customer you would charge me more if I called you to book my room? But since I didn't so that I could save money, I can no longer be rewarded for being a loyal customer. Do you see where I'm headed with this?" I asked.

He responded, "Well, it's not really my policy, it's theirs."

"Fair enough." I conceded. "So don't you think you should probably share with them, that because of their policy a very loyal customer who had just experienced a great stay in your hotel and was looking forward to staying with you again soon is now leaving very unhappy."

"I can, but it won't do any good." he said with honesty. "It's just the way it is. We've been through this before."

At that point I decided it was time let go of my little chew toy and move on. After all, how can one possibly begin to argue when they've just effectively been told, "We know and we don't really care."

To recap, in order to receive the best rates at a Hyatt hotel, I must book them indirectly because even though I am a loyal customer, I will be charged more if I simply call them to book a room. Yet, if I don't pay more for the privilege of staying with them, I can not receive rewards points for my loyalty.

And while apparently numerous customers have expressed frustration over this insane policy, Hyatt would rather have them leave unhappy than to alter their policy.

To give credit where it's due, their loyalty policy is clearly working. It does inspire loyalty...just not to the Hyatt.

-The weather committee gets an A+ for planning! I'm not having any trouble adjusting to temperatures in the 60's.

-The media room planners also get high marks this year. Our thanks for a much improved and smoother registration process, as well as a larger media room better equipped with ample internet connections. It has made coverage of the event much easier!

-Congratulations again to Rob Joslin of Sidney, Ohio who is presiding over the meetings here as ASA President. So many Buckeyes are making a difference in agriculture!

-Kudos to our friends at John Deere for once again bringing the hype and the crowds to their display! The unveiling of the much-anticipated Foose 4020 did not disappoint! You can check out all of the pictures by visiting ABN Radio's Facebook page and viewing the Commodity Classic photo album.

-Special thanks to Gene Hemphill and New Holland for this evening's media reception and welcome event for new NAFB Executive Director Mark Vail. We so appreciate the chance to get together with our fellow ag reporters, and especially loved the great room set-up and extra space this year.

-And, of course, our sincere appreciation to John Deere, Leist Mercantile, the Ohio Soybean Council and the Ohio Corn Growers Association for making our coverage of this year's event possible!

On that note, time for this farm broadcaster to call it a night as we have another busy day ahead at Commodity Classic!

No one was looking forward to gathering this morning because we knew it meant leaving the resort as it was our last day on the island. Fortunately, we had a lot to look forward to beginning with lunch and a visit to the Maui Ocean Center. We were amazed to see some of the most amazing and unique fish we've ever laid eyes on. I'm fairly certain we saw some things you won't see back in Ohio!

There was a small pool full of starfish and other creatures that you could even touch! We also walked through a tunnel that took us into the aquarium surrounded by sharks and stingrays. I have some pictures posted on ABN Radio's Facebook page for you to enjoy.

From there we traveled into the Iao Valley, which is far from the beaches into an area that is much more like a rainforest with lots of vegetation. The deep valley of 'Iao features the 'Iao Needle, a natural rock pinnacle that rises 2,250 feet to preside over the 'Iao stream and surrounded by the walls of the Pu'u Kukui Crater.

Those more adventurous group members (including me!) climbed the path up the side of the mountains and ascended nearly 100 stairs to the scenic overlook. Once there, we formed the human O-H-I-O while our travel companions below took pictures. Yes, our Buckeye Spirit is truly present everywhere we go! I'll have pictures of our O-H-I-O posted to Facebook soon.

As we left the Valley, we stopped at Kepaniwai Park's Heritage Gardens which are a showcase for Maui's diverse heritage with ethnic houses and gardens representing the Hawaiian, Portuguese, Japanese, Caucasian and Filipino cultures.

As you can imagine, after that climb up the mountainside, we had worked up quite an appetite. That was not a problem because our final stop was for our last group dinner, and trust me when I say that no one went away hungry! It also gave us a chance to celebrate another birthday of one of our travel companions!

And now, I sit at the airport finding it difficult to believe our first-ever Hawaiian AgVenture is drawing to a close. I can not put into words how neat this experience has been or how grateful I am to our travel companions for a wonderful trip. They were truly the best!

I would also be remiss if I didn't acknowledge Dave Lien and all of the folks at Holiday Vacations who did a stellar job from start to finish in planning our trip. We hope to travel with Holiday again in the future!

With so much to choose from, some of our travel companions began the day with a walk down to the local shopping area to enjoy breakfast and check out the shops. One of our couples took a helicopter ride to a neighboring island and saw beautiful waterfalls. Another traveler took surfing lessons for the first time. Some preferred to "hang loose" near the beach and pools. And, many in the group opted for a whale watching excursion.

Over the course of our trip, we've noticed a lot of whale activity in the waters off the coast of Maui. With mating season in full swing, there are plenty of whales in the area and February is actually a peak time to see them. And, the whales did not disappoint. As a matter of fact, one mother and calf swam up to our boat and decided to hang out for awhile. Everyone enjoyed watching the two of them breach, spout and play all around the boat.

We were fortunate to see many different pods of whales and even a few dolphins turning flips as we headed back to the harbor.

This evening, many in our group dressed up in Hawaiian attire as we attended a traditional island luau. Everyone received a floral lei to begin the experience. From there, we took some more group photos before heading to the party. As you might expect, we were treated to a feast of Hawaiian fare including pork, chicken, fish and more. My favorite was probably the chocolate macadamia nut pie they offered for dessert!

There was lots of music and dancing as a wonderful show took place after our dinner. The highlight was a fire dancer who twirled flaming batons while doing all sorts of dance moves. We all agreed that the young man performing should be auditioning to be the next drum major at Ohio State because he was very talented!

It's hard to believe this was the last full day of our vacation. Tomorrow we will check out of our hotel and enjoy seeing marine life at an Aquarium. We'll also have another group dinner before heading to the airport late in the evening. No doubt it will be difficult to say "Aloha" to Maui!

I uploaded pictures from our whale watching excursion and our Hawaiian luau to ABN Radio's Facebook page. You'll find pictures of the largest banyan tree in the United States while you're there!

We began our morning at Monsanto Hawaii. Our first speaker was the Executive Director of the Hawaii Farm Bureau who educated us about the very diverse agriculture of Hawaii and the challenges facing the various industries. Just as in Ohio, the state's Farm Bureau is hard at work trying to educate consumers and lobby the state's legislature in support of Hawaii's farmers. Incidentally, there are 11 county Farm Bureaus in the state of Hawaii.

Our next speaker was from Hawaii Commercial and Sugar Company. The company has roughly 34,000 acres of sugar production on the island of Maui. However, they are facing significant and difficult challenges from environmentalists involving disputes over diverted water. Water is an obvious necessity for agricultural production, yet in the islands the rainfall is sporadic, so there are certain times of the year where water is plentiful and others when the island is in drought making water availability a significant issue.

HC&S has diverted water for more than 100 years to irrigate its cane fields, but a three-year drought and restrictions on the amount of water it can take has left it short and contributed to mounting losses.

HC&S reported losses of $13 million in 2008 and an estimated $30 million in 2009. The drought and water restrictions have caused sugar cane production at HC&S to fall from 200,000 tons six years ago to 127,000 tons in 2009.

Of course, we also heard from three different presenters from Monsanto who shared how testing of corn plots is conducted at the Hawaii research facility. It's amazing to think that what these scientists and researchers are doing today may be what ends up in our Ohio fields years down the road. It's like getting a glimpse into the future.

We were also stunned to learn that each field must be assigned a monitor. These monitors act as human scarecrows walking the plots, watching for birds and clanging a noisemaker that will protect the plots from birds. One species of bird, in particular, likes to swoop in and work their way right down the rows removing all the seeds. Certain laws restrict what can be done about these nuisance birds, thus creating the need for these human scarecrows who must spend their days in the hot sunshine protecting the fields.

As a side note, my family also received some exciting news in the form of a phone call that came while we were visiting Monsanto. The group cheered as we learned that my brand new nephew has arrived! Needless to say, I'll never forget receiving that news while in Maui!

From there we boarded the bus and made our way to the Surfing Goat Dairy Farm where we saw another fascinating aspect of Hawaiian agriculture. Of course, with cattle dairy farms disappearing from the islands, the goat dairy is one of the few places to get freshly made cheese and dairy products. And, the farm is suitably named for the goats who like to play on surf boards!

While there, the farm's owner Tom, treated us to an amazing feast of salad, sausage, steak, chicken, sweet corn, bread and more! We also celebrated the birthday of one of our travel companions as we surprised him with a cake and candles. Happy Birthday David!

Our final stop was at the Ali'i Kula Lavender Farm. This 10.5 acre farm showcases over 45 varieties of lavender, olive trees and native Hawaiian Gardens. Situated at 4,000 feet elevation on the slopes of Haleakala Crater, the farm offers breathtaking views. We learned that while many may just think of lavender as a pretty flower, it actually offers much. It repels mosquitos and other insects, acts as a natural disinfectant and antiseptic, can reduce symptoms of congestion and headaches and can help heal cuts, scrapes and burns.

As you can imagine, our group was tired as we ventured back toward our resort. Yet that didn't stop the conversation on the bus, which erupted into an improv as everyone began taking turns telling jokes!

This evening some are opting for quiet nights on the shores of the beach or in their rooms. Others are going to dinner in one of the nearby restaurants. Tomorrow is a free day in Maui, but the majority of our group has decided to take a whale watching excursion in the late morning. In the evening, we will celebrate our trip with a traditional island luau!

With all of the beautiful gardens, I took lots of pictures today which you can enjoy by visiting ABN Radio's Facebook page and becoming a fan.

While the big island of Hawaii was full of rock formations, lava flows and black sand beaches, Maui boasts the more traditional sandy beaches that you might expect to see when visiting paradise. As we flew into the island we immediately noticed the large fields of sugarcane. As we rode on the bus we learned that there are 34,000 acres of sugarcane on the island.

We were also fortunate to see many whales breeching and spouting as we drove along the coastline. Later in the trip, many of our travel companions will be enjoying a whale watching voyage.

When we arrived in Lahaina we visited the shops in the harbor and everyone enjoyed lunch along the water. Many members of the group dined at Bubba Gump's Shrimp Shack. We stopped briefly at another shopping center before making our way to our hotel in Kaanapali Beach where everyone enjoyed the remainder of the afternoon and evening on their own.

Some hit the beach to soak up the sunshine, while others explored the area. One of the big hits, at least for me, was the discovery of penguins in our hotel lobby! I will have penguin pictures and more posted for you on ABN Radio's Facebook page. Be sure to check out both albums as I had to add a second one today because I exceeded the number of pictures allowed in the first! Hopefully you are enjoying the stories and highlights and maybe you'll consider joining us on our next AgVenture!

Our first stop was a visit to Kona Joe’s coffee plantation. This 20 acre plantation grows coffee plants in a way that is completely unique to their operation utilizing a trellis system similar to what grape producers would use when growing grapes for wine. This gives the coffee a flavor all its own.

After the coffee cherries (beans) are hand-picked, they go through a drying process before being brought into the factory. Once in the factory, they are sorted by size and roasted. Both the size of the bean and the length of time in the roaster determine the ultimate flavor of the coffee.

As you can imagine, everyone enjoyed the tour and many purchased their own Kona Joe’s gift packs to enjoy when they get back home.

Upon leaving the plantation, we drove back into town for a lunch and ice cream stop at a small shopping center where our travel companions had a variety of options for their meal.

Our afternoon bus ride took us back through the amazing lava flows, winding around phenomenal cinder cones as we made our way to the Kahua Ranch. This ranch is the 25th largest in the country, and is home to 3,500 head of Angus, Herford, Charolais and Wagyu beef cattle and 500 sheep.

Farming in Hawaii presents an unbelievable set of challenges. For these ranchers, you can’t just load up your stock and take them into town when it’s time. There are no stockyards or processing facilities on the island meaning that cattle are shipped or flown off the island. However, due to certain laws, they can’t be shipped directly from Hawaii to the mainland, so they must pass through Canada en route to the United States. When flown, they can load up to 50,000 pounds of cattle onto each plane.

Additionally, while the climate is temperate, there are drastic changes in rainfall across short spans of the island. So the Kahua Ranch can literally experience plentiful rainfall and a drought at the same time, thus making management of land and resources especially important.

We completed our day with a return trip to the hotel. Along the way, we noticed whales jumping and spouting in the water so our bus driver pulled off to let us watch. Later many in our group gathered for a spontaneous supper on the hotel patio. Some also gathered in the evening on the balconies over the water to look for mantay rays. Unfortunately, the waters were very choppy last night, so none were spotted.

Today we are off to the airport as we head to Maui – the final island of our AgVenture!

Upon arriving in Hawaii, we met our bus driver Derrick. He turned out to be amazing! Not only did he know everything about the area, but he kept us laughing the whole time. When he wasn't cracking jokes, he was trying to convince Japanese tourists to board our bus by mistake as a prank!

Our first stop was the Mauna Loa macademia nut plantation. This 2,500 acres plantation also houses a factory where the nuts are dried, processed and turned into hundreds of different macademia nut treats! The group enjoyed samples of the different products and bought all sorts of things to bring home from the gift shop. Many also enjoyed macademia nut ice cream!

We were fortunate to be running ahead of schedule, which allowed us an unplanned stop at a breathtaking orchid garden and shop. Inside we saw thousands of orchids, including one from Japan that was for sale for a mere $20,000! We also saw an orchid called the Big Stinky, which proved to be a big hit as way to prank members of our group. Yes, they told me it would smell like chocolate and I fell for it. Believe me, it didn't smell anything like chocolate and instead smelled like something I'd expect to smell at the cattle ranch today!

In the only disappointment of the trip for me, we went to the Volcano Golf Country Club for lunch. Lunch was fantastic, but the disappointment came when I learned I would not be playing 18 holes, or even any holes, while I was there. By the way, we had macademia nut pie for dessert - think pecan pie with macedemia nuts - yummy!

After lunch we ventured into Volcano National Park. The scenery along the journey was simply breathtaking. We were in awe of nature's work in the islands. The dark lava flows, black sand and different terrains formed by the lava flows were amazing. Everyone enjoyed seeing the expansive craters and active volcanos. We even went underground into a lava tube (where the group tried to leave me with some Japanese tourists....but that's another story). Everyone took lots of pictures, and had plenty of time to tour the museum and gift shop.

The beaches in the this area of the island are not the white sandy beaches you expect in Hawaii. As a matter of fact, they are black sand from the lava flows. We visited one of the black sand beaches and walked along the shore. We were fortunate to get to see one of the many sea turtles lounging waterside as we passed by.

Our next stop was the southernmost bakery in the United States! This bakery offered up Hawaiian breads, Portugeese sweet breads and all sorts of goodies. And, of course, ice cream!

We arrived at our resort around 6 p.m. with plenty of time for everyone to relax. As it happened, everyone wound up downstairs and a spontaneous group supper kind of took place. Our group is simply wonderful and everyone gets along so well, that even after spending hours together on the bus today, everyone enjoys gathering for meals as well. We worked in a couple of impromptu table tennis games, some took walks along the beach, a few scouted for manna rays (like sting rays without the sting) and some enjoyed the fruity Hawaiian drinks at the ocean side bar.

All in all, it was another great day in paradise! Pictures are posted at ABN Radio's Facebook page, so become a fan and check them out!