‘Punky Brewster’ star leans into home
By Jae-Ha Kim
The last Hollywood event that “Punky Brewster” actress Jasika Nicole attended was the 2020 Golden Globes. But Nicole said she doesn’t feel secluded at home.
“I feel very fortunate that (my spouse and I) have made such a lovely, comfortable home for ourselves,” said the Los Angeles-based actress, whose work includes “The Good Doctor,” “Scandal” and “Law & Order: Criminal Intent.”
“It has been a particularly big blessing during this pandemic, because my partner and I have our own spaces to work in, so we don’t feel like we are always underfoot and in the way of each other. Plus, we have outdoor spaces, so we don’t always feel so cooped up. Unexpectedly, the pandemic made us rediscover our home and appreciate it for new reasons.”
Nicole stays in touch with her fans on Instagram (@jasikaistrycurious).
Q: This pandemic has made everyone think differently about how we spend our vacation time. What have you been doing?
A: We haven’t taken that many road trips because we just feel safer at home. But we did stay at an Airbnb in Joshua Tree in January of 2021, which was really nice, if for nothing but the change of scenery. We did little aside from soak in the hot tub under the stars, cook food and read, and — of course — do a little exploring in Joshua Tree National Park, which is a favorite of ours. It actually snowed while we were there, which made the scenery look even more magical than it normally does. But I was still excited to come home when it was time to leave.
Q: How do you feel about not being able to just hop on a plane and get to your next location for a film or other projects?
A: Being unable to travel for work doesn’t bother me at all, because it is not my favorite part of my job. The year before the pandemic hit, I was working on a show that filmed in Vancouver and was on a plane at least four times a month, sometimes more, for the better part of a year. I am always thankful to be working on projects that I love, but traveling back and forth so often is exhausting. I crave stability in my work life and am always thankful when my work keeps me in the city where I live. I am much more excited about traveling for fun than for work!
Q: What was the first trip you took as a child?
A: To Florida with my dad and cousins. I remember very little about that trip aside from having a good time. According to my dad, the trip was a bit of a disaster. It was just him and three little kids on a 10-hour-plus road trip to a place none of us had been to before. I brought back a bunch of crabs I found on the beach and was shocked when they all died on the way home, and I think the car broke down at some point during our trip. I remember being with my dad, who I have always adored and been very close to. He could make any place feel like Disney World.
Q: What are your five favorite cities?
A: New York City, Amsterdam, the Bay Area, New Orleans, Paris.
Q: Where would you like to go that you have never been to before?
A: Tokyo, Japan, Singapore, Nigeria, the Seychelles and Bali.
For more from the reporter, visit www.jae hakim.com.
A: Hotels.com should have helped you with a refund. After all, Europe was closed to Americans at the time you were supposed to visit. And if the hotel and the booking site couldn’t assist you, then your credit card should have been able to help with a chargeback. It didn’t.
What’s going on here? First, your case is one of hundreds of thousands of refund requests. It took weeks and often months for travel companies to sift through all of them. Yours was also a complicated case, because you paid for part of the hotel with a Hotels.com gift card. It looks as if you pushed forward with a credit card dispute relatively soon after your cancellation. I understand that you wanted your money back, but once you initiate a chargeback, it limits some of your other options.
One of the options would have been a brief, polite email to a Hotels. com executive. I list all of them on my consumer advocacy site at www. elliott.org/company-contacts/expedia (Expedia owns Hotels.com).
Ultimately, the problem was the type of hotel room you booked: a prepaid, nonrefundable reservation. When you agree to one of those, you’re saying that come hell or high water, you’ll be there. And if you aren’t, the hotel can keep your money.
Travel insurance might have helped you recover some of your losses. But I think Hotels.com could have done better too. I’ve heard from other travelers who said Hotels.com took good care of them during the pandemic by pushing for refunds or vouchers. It doesn’t seem fair to make you eat that $592. I also think Chase Sapphire could have fought harder for you during the dispute. Those pricey credit cards advertise themselves as the traveler’s best friend, but they don’t always come through for you when you need them.
After months of back and forth, I contacted Hotels.com on your behalf. The company refunded all of your money.
Christopher Elliott is the chief advocacy officer of Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organization that helps consumers resolve their problems. Elliott’s latest book is “How To Be The World’s Smartest Traveler” (National Geographic). Contact him at elliott.org/ help or chris@elliott.org.