Back home...

We’re back from Chicago – I didn’t have much time to write or post anything while we were there, so I apologize to my multitude of loyal fans (or maybe just one fan? Mom, is that you?) who’ve no doubt been waiting anxiously to hear all about my trip. (What? No? No one has been waiting with bated breath to hear what I did in Chicago? Well, good… now I don’t feel so bad for not posting anything… :))

We stayed at the Hotel Monaco this time, which was just down the block from where we usually stay. The hotel was a bit less run-of-the-mill than a typical chain hotel, and dad and I decided we really liked it. Mom and Rick weren’t as sure, because they’re much more boring and much less fun than dad and I. (Or maybe they’re much more traditional and much less bizarre?? Well, whatever… :)) I should’ve taken some pictures of the hotel, but mom and dad probably have some I can post later. The rooms had fun light green and yellow striped wallpaper, a satin-lined TV armoire, and a minibar full of unusual goodies – like organic chocolate bars, stuffed goldfish, and a toothbrush (presumably in case you eat too much of the minibar chocolate and can’t make it ten feet into the bathroom to find your OWN toothbrush…). What I really liked about the hotel were the little details – every room was stocked with an umbrella (which would end up coming in handy)… the hotel robes were in animal prints (we got a zebra and a giraffe)… and the nightly turndown service included cool candy on the pillows – like flavored Tootsie rolls and Ghirardelli chocolate. Plus the doormen wore these crazy Hawaiian shirts and purple slacks, so I half expected to be offered a mai tai every time I returned to the hotel. The only disappointment was that our rooms were on the wrong side of the hotel – meaning the only view we had was of the Morton’s restaurant next door. And if we’d had a room on the OTHER side of the hotel, we not only would’ve had a view of the river, but we would’ve had really cool window seats to hang out on. I was really hoping for a window seat room…

Anyway... we had a busy few days, hanging out with Eric, helping him pick out a computer desk (it’s not on the floor anymore! Yea! :)), walking around Lincoln Park, visiting the zoo and the Chicago history museum, and driving out to Schaumberg to shop at a huge, crazy M.C. Escher mall (seriously – the stairs were all over the place and it seemed like there were about five different levels in a three-story building…). But the most interesting part of our visit was the day of unexpected severe thunderstorms – we were hanging out in Eric’s condo Thursday afternoon, and around three o’clock, I noticed the sky getting darker. So I went out on the balcony, and actually watched a line of dark clouds rolling into the city – as the clouds reached streets and buildings, it was as if the streets themselves exploded with whipping winds and torrential rains.

We waited out the storm at Eric’s place, and after a while, Rick noticed the forecast on the Weather channel was predicting another line of storms. We decided to walk to a place a couple blocks away to get some dinner, thinking we could make it before the storms arrived, and eat while it was raining. And we did make it to the restaurant before the storm arrived – but while we were there, the rain started up again, along with the crazy wind and lots of thunder and lightning. And part of the restaurant’s ceiling began to leak – fortunately no one was sitting at the table where the water began to fall. And then I heard a rushing noise coming from the back door of the restaurant , a few feet from our table. I looked over and realized water was now pouring down the door, forming a little mini waterfall. It sort of felt like we were on a sinking ship, and I was hoping no one would open that door – because if they did, I was certain a wall of water would rush into the dining room, saturating my lovely mushroom risotto and sending all of us diners out into the street on a rogue wave…

And for some reason, we decided to walk back to Eric’s place before the rain had completely stopped – so the five of us sloshed down the sidewalk as quickly as we could (this is where I realized that hotel umbrella was a really good idea), fervently hoping the conspicuous skyscrapers in the near distance would provide the lightning strikes enough incentive to stay away from us. That was a rather nerve-wracking stroll through the neighborhood… But later on, safe back in Eric’s condo, Eric and Rick and I hung out on the couch and watched a movie. And in the couple hours we were there, we saw lightning hit the Sears Tower at least fifteen times. And even for someone who hates lightning as much as I do, that was SO COOL…

Some pictures:

View of downtown near the Lincoln Park Zoo...

Some rather surprised-looking camels...

Eric's rhino friend, aptly-named Stinky. Okay, actually, WE named him Stinky. But trust me, he is quite aptly-named...

Some kind of wild dog...

It's always best to let sleeping lions lie...

An upside-down swimming seal...

Eric's spiral stairs...

Eric's street...

The leaking door on the Titanic... er, at the restaurant where we ate dinner...

I stood out on Eric's balcony for the longest time, because there was so much lightning in the distance I thought maybe I could catch some on film. But all I could get were some blurry downtown pictures...

The storm aftermath...

Uprooted tree and mangled fence...