Teenage Mutant Backseat Dancers - 11/18 UPDATE! P25 - Leaving on a jet plane

[dawnbu40]

I'm here! We just got back after visiting Caitlin for a few days

You're off to a great start! Looking forward to more

 

[pkondz]

I'm here! We just got back after visiting Caitlin for a few days

Yes I know! And I'm looking forward to hearing all about it.
Oh, and I forgot to do it over there, so I'll do it here.

Happy Birthday!

You're off to a great start! Looking forward to more

Thanks!

 

[ougrad86]

Finally here!

Border crossings sound interesting...guess it depends on how bored they are, the kind of questions they ask.

Subway with a drive through sounds interesting but like you, I prefer to go inside, make sure they build it right. I haven't seen any with a drive through in our travels, and we eat at a lot of them - DS favorite takeout.

Mall of America sounds interesting to me, but it is just a mall. Walking it should have been a good dose of exercise. I just mainly want to go for the roller coaster to see what it is like, as I am not much into shopping. For two teenage girls, I imagine it was heaven. In something that size, there must be a store for everything. How many miles away away did you have to park, although I guess it would be quieter on a weekday.

I have travelled with my best friend. Her and her daughter, me with DH & DS. Had only a couple of minor snips, usually quickly forgotten. Although as two families we has separate hotel rooms, so that would give a bit of a break, instead of being together 24-7. Now that the kids are off to college, we might do a couple of girls only trips...cheaper to get a double room for that.

Feel for you on the bed. Tried one once at a Hampton, not too nice. DS opted to share the king bed, since he didn't like it much either.

Sounds like you are off to a good start. Looking forward to it !

 

[pkondz]

Finally here!

There you are!

Border crossings sound interesting...guess it depends on how bored they are, the kind of questions they ask.

I don't think I've ever had any issues... except for that one time in Detroit,
but it doesn't make it any less daunting.

Mall of America sounds interesting to me, but it is just a mall. Walking it should have been a good dose of exercise.

I just mainly want to go for the roller coaster to see what it is like, as I am not much into shopping.

If you really like coasters.... you'd be disappointed.
One's not too bad, but the other two are pretty tame.

For two teenage girls, I imagine it was heaven. In something that size, there must be a store for everything.

You'd think so... and you'd be wrong.
Dee loves shopping... but Elle.
Not so much.
Didn't stop them from having fun together mind you.

They both were really looking forward to going to one particular store....
And it was closed.
Gone.
Kaput.

How many miles away away did you have to park, although I guess it would be quieter on a weekday.

We've been on the weekends, too.
Parking's never a problem, they've got tons of it.
Free, too.

Feel for you on the bed. Tried one once at a Hampton, not too nice. DS opted to share the king bed, since he didn't like it much either.

I jokingly told Dee, before the trip, that all three of us would be sharing one bed.
Her reply surprised me.
She said she didn't care, except Elle would have to sleep in the middle.

Sounds like you are off to a good start. Looking forward to it !

Thanks!

 

[nowellsl]

First I see an update from TMan, then I find this report, woohoo, what a week!!

I was wondering where everyone was I though maybe you all were hiding from me!

Glad to know you're all alive and writing

Can't wait to hear about this trip. My parents took me (teenager), one of my friends (teenager), my older sister (teenager), one of her friends (teenager), and my little sister (spoiled rotten not quite teenager) from Florida to Colorado one summer Wow, you find out all kinds of things about your friends when you're stuck in a Ford LTD for days on end
Our friendship (and family) did survive, but it was a close call!

Now, I'm going back to read your pre-trip report before I catch up here! So glad to find you all again

 

[pkondz]

I was wondering where everyone was I though maybe you all were hiding from me!

Everyone run! She found us!!


Okay. Just kidding.
I can't afford to lose any readers.

Glad to know you're all alive and writing

This TR comes to you from the great beyond!
<cue spooky, yet slightly campy, music>

Can't wait to hear about this trip. My parents took me (teenager), one of my friends (teenager), my older sister (teenager), one of her friends (teenager), and my little sister (spoiled rotten not quite teenager) from Florida to Colorado one summer Wow, you find out all kinds of things about your friends when you're stuck in a Ford LTD for days on end
Our friendship (and family) did survive, but it was a close call!

Whoa.
Talk about putting a marriage (and friendships) to the test!

Now, I'm going back to read your pre-trip report before I catch up here! So glad to find you all again

And I'm glad you did too!
Feel free to post any comments on the PTR too, if you want.
I'm still replying to any posts there too.

Whoops! Almost forgot.
We may not see you for a bit since the PTR also morphed into a mini TR in its own right.

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Hi Ponzie! Thanks for the bat signal. I'm along for the ride - I love a good road trip!

 

[Riles_and_Gabe]

Yay!!! I am so glad you started the report. I am very intrigued about the drive-up Subway. As far as I know, we do not have any in Maine. That could take my laziness to a whole new level.

 

[pkondz]

Hi Ponzie! Thanks for the bat signal. I'm along for the ride - I love a good road trip!

Hi Tammie! Nice to see you again!

Yay!!! I am so glad you started the report. I am very intrigued about the drive-up Subway. As far as I know, we do not have any in Maine. That could take my laziness to a whole new level.

Thanks for coming!
That Subway was.... odd.
Who doesn't look over the fixins when ordering their sub?
But I guess you're right. It would take the laziness factor up a notch.

Now if only I can get someone to feed it to me...


hmmmmmm.....

 

[bankr63]

Another little bankr story.

The summer I was 16 I spent working for my uncle in Cleveland OH. I was primarily working on cleaning up a good size warehouse and helping on sites when needed, but I was also my uncle's unofficial chauffeur for the summer in his big ol' Cadillac.

Lunch was very interesting for this Canuckle-head. Drive through was still pretty rare up here in Canada, but my regular lunch routine generally involved driving to the bank for a drive through teller (not an ATM) for a deposit and then to McD's or similar for a drive through lunch.

I couldn't help but wonder why we didn't have these marvellous contraptions up here in the land of the ice and snow.

And I continue to marvel at the American penchant for drive through. Drive through pharmacies, banks, restaurants, coffee shops, etc. Next thing you know, they'll invent a drive through mortuary...

Ooops, too late: Drive Thru Viewing

 

[nene0182]

I happened to click on this thread and it took me to a post where people were talking about a drive thru Subway and I wondered if you had been visiting my neck of the woods. I see you did (I'm in Grand Forks,ND) we have 4 drive thru subways that I can think of. I didn't realize they were uncommon. I never go through the drive thru though.

 

[pkondz]

Another little bankr story.

The summer I was 16 I spent working for my uncle in Cleveland OH. I was primarily working on cleaning up a good size warehouse and helping on sites when needed, but I was also my uncle's unofficial chauffeur for the summer in his big ol' Cadillac.

Lunch was very interesting for this Canuckle-head. Drive through was still pretty rare up here in Canada, but my regular lunch routine generally involved driving to the bank for a drive through teller (not an ATM) for a deposit and then to McD's or similar for a drive through lunch.

I couldn't help but wonder why we didn't have these marvellous contraptions up here in the land of the ice and snow.

Now why would we want drive throughs up in Canada?
Isn't it more fun to get out of your car in sub-zero weather and button up your coat and put on your toque and mitts?
And then, after you've received your wares, you have the added bonus of maybe not having your car start and freezing to death!

How could a mere drive through compare to adventure like that???

And I continue to marvel at the American penchant for drive through. Drive through pharmacies, banks, restaurants, coffee shops, etc. Next thing you know, they'll invent a drive through mortuary...

Ooops, too late: Drive Thru Viewing

I knew you were going to post that link!
I knew it!!

I've seen that before... probably on TV.
'cause that's what everyone wants after they've passed on, right?
Complete strangers walking up and gawking at you.

"Myrtle! Fetch the chilluns! All right now squeeze together!
I wanna get this picture with alls you together with the stiff. Smile!" <click>

Thanks for the story, though!

I happened to click on this thread and it took me to a post where people were talking about a drive thru Subway and I wondered if you had been visiting my neck of the woods. I see you did (I'm in Grand Forks,ND) we have 4 drive thru subways that I can think of. I didn't realize they were uncommon. I never go through the drive thru though.

Hey! Welcome neighbor!
(See I even spelled it American style for ya.)

I wonder now if the only cars in line were possibly from out of town and just caught up in the novelty of it.

"We need to put in a drive through for all them Canadians to go through."

 

[Backstage_Gal]

And I continue to marvel at the American penchant for drive through. Drive through pharmacies, banks, restaurants, coffee shops, etc. Next thing you know, they'll invent a drive through mortuary...

Ooops, too late: Drive Thru Viewing

I think Germany was (is?) way ahead on this. I remember back in the 60's, in Bavaria where my aunt lived, there was a walk-by window (not drive-through, mind you). I found that very odd and disturbing even at my tender age. As far as I know, they don't have that in my (former) German neck of the woods. Is that behind the times?

 

[pkondz]

I think Germany was (is?) way ahead on this. I remember back in the 60's, in Bavaria where my aunt lived, there was a walk-by window (not drive-through, mind you). I found that very odd and disturbing even at my tender age. As far as I know, they don't have that in my (former) German neck of the woods. Is that behind the times?

Back in the 60s?
I'm surprised... but not shocked.
I would imagine that a lot of people there had seen plenty already
and this would be pretty tame by comparison.

When they introduce drive by embalming though, then I'm moving...
to Mars.

 

[buzz1121]

Great first chapter Pkondz!

Gotcha, you don't like coconut. But coconut water, that sounds delicious right? Or being a castaway on a deserted island with just coconuts for sustenance, good, right?

I am so looking forward to reading about the Chick-a-go meet!!

 

[Tinker'n'Fun]

.

 

[pkondz]

Great first chapter Pkondz!

Thanks Buzz!

Gotcha, you don't like coconut. But coconut water, that sounds delicious right? Or being a castaway on a deserted island with just coconuts for sustenance, good, right?

I will not eat them in a house,
I will not eat them with Mickey Mouse,
I will not eat them in a box,
I will not eat them with Br'er Fox,
I will not eat them here of there,
I will not eat them anywhere,
I do not like coconut,
I do not like them,
I do not!

I did actually see coconut water for the first time, just the other day.

A small part of me died that day.

I am so looking forward to reading about the Chick-a-go meet!!

Won't be long, Dee Dee... next chapter's almost done!

 

[Backstage_Gal]

Back in the 60s?

I know, I'm ancient!

 

[pkondz]

I know, I'm ancient!

Oh, that wasn't a comment on your age.
It was more a comment on most of the population being around who'd
either been in the war, or lived through it.

Now Nebo... that's old.
Beats me how he got a young babe like Smidgy to say yes when he begged...
er... proposed to her.

 

[pkondz]

Chicago style DISmeet

Ohboyohboyohboyohboy!!!
Big day today!
Yup!

Today, I'm meeting some good friends that I've never met before.
Nebo and Smidgy, both regular DISers who live just outside of Chicago.
And that's where we're heading today.
I asked if they'd like to meet up and they said yes!
I'm really not sure why.
I mean, Nebo's written some really great TRs over the years, so obviously I want to meet him.
But beats me why he'd want to meet me!

Ya know... I've given him a few good ribbings over the years.
Taken him to task a few times on some of his comments.

Maybe he just wants to beat me up.
He's bigger than I am, so...
He could do it.

Smidgy probably just wants to meet the doofus who keeps bugging her husband.
Maybe she just wants to shake my hand.
Or punch me in the nose.


Another DISer, Marie (aka mmeb144), who lives a couple hours drive south of Chicago,
decided that she wanted to see the bloodbath
and was driving up with her daughter, Yellowtink, for the slaughter/meet.

We PMd and phoned back and forth a bit.
I knew we had a busy day of touring Chicago on Wednesday, July 2nd,
so I was hoping to get together on the 1st.
Today! Well then it was today. Now it's then.
uhhh.... does that still make sense when I post this tomorrow after having written it yesterday?

Ha! It doesn't make sense now, so no worries!


Moving on...

Smidgy was working on the 1st, so the meet was moved to the 2nd.
Then Smidgy phoned me back to tell me to not be an idiot by cutting short our touring day.
She'd just take a few hours off and we'd meet on the 1st after all.
I told her she didn't have to do that,
that nothing she did could change the fact that I'm an idiot, but she insisted.

Never argue with a beautiful woman, fellas.
It's a losing proposition.

What?
Can you argue with a not-so-beautiful woman?
No such thing, so.... no.


And yah, yah.
All you guys out there who are going to tell me that they've argued with their wives/girlfriends/whatever and won...

No. You didn't.
She just let you think you won.


My TRs are nothing, if not educational.


So today was July 1st and we're meeting today!

July 1st is also Canada Day!
What's Canada Day, you ask?

For my American readers, who may not be familiar with it...
It's like the States' 4th of July, except it's on the 1st.

So we're celebrating Canada Day... by not being in Canada and missing it completely.

But look at it this way.
If we'd been in Canada, it would mean this trip never happened and you wouldn't be reading this wonderful, amazing TR!


WHADYA MEAN YOU WISH I'D STAYED IN CANADA???


Just for that, I'm gonna keep writing.
That'll learn ya!


I woke up early that morning at six a.m.
An ungodly hour to be up on a holiday.
And I'm not sure why I got up that early.
Yes, we had to be up early since we had a bit of a drive ahead of us,
but my alarm was set for six thirty.

It might have had something to do with the metal braces
that were running across the back of my neck, back and knees.

Ya think?????


Since I'm up... and falling back asleep on the torture rack was out of the question,
I got myself ready to go and went down to get some breakfast.

That's probably one of the bigger reasons I like staying at Country Inn & Suites.
You get a "free" hot breakfast.
I say "free" since I suppose the cost is worked into the room rate.
But since the rates aren't any more than other comparable hotels, it feels free.





You never really know for sure what you're going to get.
Sometimes it's pretty good, (scrambled eggs and bacon come to mind)
sometimes it's not so great.
When it's not, there's other stuff.
Like cereals, muffins, toast, yogurts and/or fruit.

I've always found something to eat.
(Unlike a Days Inn I once stayed at where 'Continental' breakfast consisted of a stale cello wrapped donut.... <shudder>)


Back up in the room, seven thirty rolled around and it was time to wake the gruesome twosome.

Remember when I was wondering how much of a morning person Dee was?
Well, today I was going to find out.
This is the same pair that kept me up until eleven thirty the night before.

I have no idea what time they fell asleep.


This should be fun!


I tap lightly on the door, then open it a crack.
(When is a door not a door? When it's ajar. Yeah, yeah. I know. "Oh, shut up.")

Do you have any idea how nerve wracking that is?
If one or the other was in the middle of getting dressed,
I'm sure we'd both never live it down!

I'm not going to dwell on it, but it was disconcerting.
Every. Single. Time.

So here I am worrying about, and taking great pains to avoid, embarrassing them.
And they probably couldn't care less.
Better safe than sorry, though, ya know?


I peek in the room and it's dark inside.
And very still.

With a bravado I didn't really feel, I called out:
"Rise and shine! Wakey, wakey! Eggs and bakey!"

Which wasn't really fair, since there was no bacon at this particular hotel.
But they didn't know that.


Elle sat up and mumbled, "Fifteen more minutes!" and promptly flopped back onto her face.

I had already anticipated this parry and was ready with my riposte.
"Ten more, but that's it."
I glanced over at Dee's side of the bed.
A still, vaguely teenaged size form, buried under a mass of blankets and pillows,
hadn't so much as twitched.


<sigh>

I swear, I'm not going to do this justice.
But it was the funniest thing, at least to me, that happened during the whole trip.
I know, oh yes, I already know, that this isn't going to type well.
You know (or maybe you don't... then just trust me on this) that something that can be hilarious when you recount it,
falls flat when you can't accompany it with hand gestures or voice inflexion
or even plain old exuberance.
Sometimes italics help a bit, or smiley faces but....
Well you get the idea.
Just take my word for it that I really got a kick out of this and it put a smile on my face for the rest of the trip.

Elle had just asked (begged really... or perhaps, insisted?) for more sleep time.
I had acquiesced and bequeathed her with ten more minutes of slumber,
and then I said:
"Besides, she's not awake anyway."

A small, very childlike voice plaintively drifted up from the still form that nestled under the blankets.

"I'm trying!"


Like I said, maybe you had to be there.
Maybe so... But it made my day.


The girls were up, ready, and down for breakfast by eight.
Which, frankly, astounded me.
Women take forever to get ready in the morning.
It's a maxim, isn't it?
I may have to revisit my current set of theories.

I don't remember exactly what time we were back on the road,
but it couldn't have been any later than nine in the morning.
Probably earlier.


We were on the highway in just a couple of minutes and on our way!
That is, we were on our way for about ten minutes until we hit construction traffic.

Picture this:
Four lanes of fast moving traffic.
Two more lanes merging in.
And just past that is where it all had to funnel down to one lane.

I moved over into the left-most lane and watched as the traffic merging in from the right
tried to wedge themselves into my lane.

It worked pretty well, actually.
Smoother than I thought.
Well, except for that one young lady, of course.
You know, the one who was almost certainly texting something so important,
that she was willing to risk her life and the lives of others.
Something like: "omg ash lk cn u blv lk thr gn hv a sl on swtrs lk n jul"
Translation: "Oh-ma-God, Ashley. Like, can you believe,
like they're gonna have a sale on sweaters? Like, In July?"

Nevertheless, you should have seen the look on her face
when she looked up and realized that the person in front of her wasn't moving.

I don't have to imagine it, of course.
I saw it plain as day in my rear view mirror.


I jinked the car to the right. She jerked her car to the left, onto the shoulder.
I'm still not quite sure how she managed to keep it off the guardrail.

Was it rude of me that even though she came to a stop ahead of me,
I didn't let her cut back into the lane in front of me?

I know what you're thinking.
"I would let her in. I want her in front of me... where I can keep an eye on her...
and not get rear ended by her!"
Maybe.
But I figured that she'd be more attentive now.
And I didn't want to reward her.

Gotta admit. I was glad I was driving and not Elle.
I'm not sure if she would've seen, let alone reacted in time, to texting Tessa.
I don't think she would've hit us hard enough for anyone to get hurt,
but it would've been bad enough to put the car in the shop.

At which point I'd now be typing "The End", right about here.

One last comment.
I really don't know if she was texting or not.
I do know that she was looking down.
Maybe she was fiddling with the radio.
Or eating soup.
I dunno.
Don't really care, either.
But if I was a betting man... my bet would be texting.


The traffic cleared up and we were back up to a high speed, multi-lane highway in no time.
The girls had their noses back in their movies and I drove.
I can't make it more exciting than that.

They watched TV.
I drove the car.

If this was a movie, I'd script in a car chase or alien abduction.
But this ain't Hollywood and the closest thing we had to aliens were the strange creatures in the backseat.


Around noon, we pulled into Wisconsin Dells for food and fuel.
I wasn't particularly hungry, but I did see something which twerked my curiosity button.


tweeked! tweeked!


The gas station had a convenience store attached to it as well as...
a Dunkin' Donuts.
And you're thinking, "Big deal. You've had one donut, you've had 'em all."
Well... yeah, I suppose. But none of us had ever had a donut from Dunkin' Donuts.

And no, before all you nutritionists yell at me for corrupting today's youth by letting them eat donuts for lunch...
1. We're on vacation. Calories don't count when you're on vacation. and;
2. We were gonna get real food too.

As I mentioned, I personally wasn't very hungry, but I was thirsty.
If I remember right, I think Dee grabbed some kind of Vitamin water and I grabbed a milk.
All three of us also each got a donut.

The verdict? I think Dee said hers was dry. Elle's and mine were okay.
Nothing special.
Just okay.
Still, glad we tried them.


Right across the street, there was a Subway.
I can't even begin to describe Elle's disappointment that there was no drive through to suffer through.

Elle wrote out their orders on her iPod and sent me inside to pick up the subs.
I think they were too busy relaxing to get up and go inside, themselves.
I got the girls their subs and we were back on the road again.
Next stop?
Chicago!

Now I told this story to Nebo, Smidgy, Marie and Yellowtink.
And when I did, I started by asking them a question.
The question was "What is Wisconsin known for?"
Without hesitation, all four of them said, "Cheese!"
(Give yourself two points if you thought "cheese" before you read it.)

When we got going again, suitably provisioned, I opened my milk and took a sip.
Now I don't drink milk every day, but I do drink it often enough.
What took me by surprise, was that it tasted different from the milk back home.
I knew Wisconsin was a dairy state, so I figured this was probably made here.
I took another sip.
Yup. You could really taste how different it was.
I pondered for a minute how milk in different areas of the world could taste different.
Different processing methods.
Different cattle.
Different cattle feed...

I took another sip.
Ya know. I'm not really sure if I even like Wisconsin milk.

Another sip.
Nope. Sorry. I don't really care for this.

July 1st. Canada Day!
Take a look at the expiry date on the container.


June 4th.


To my credit, I didn't immediately barf.

What I did do was pass the bottle back to Elle.
"Smell that."
<sniff> <sniff>.... "Ewwww.... gross!"
Dana: "Let me see!"
<sniff> <sniff>.... "Ewwww!! You drank that?!?!?"

I feel so much better now.
For the next three hours, as we drove to the hotel, I wondered just how sick I was going to be.

Thankfully, probably because I drank very little, I was fine.
But it's not necessarily an experiment I'd care to repeat.


Around three thirty or so in the afternoon, we arrive in the vicinity of Roselle,
which is, I guess, a suburb of Chicago.
We (okay, up to this point, mostly I) had been navigating using...
well, we call her, umm... it sounds like "Witching Betty."
But her name's an alliteration.... and it's not "Witching Wetty."

Betty's our GPS.
I probably won't talk much about Betty...
except to say that she's come a long way since we used an older model in Hawaii a few years ago.

Betty takes us to our destination and announces our arrival.
Except I don't see our hotel.
We've stopped on a side road adjacent to a parking lot.
There was a hotel connected to the parking lot,
but it was a Holiday Inn Express,
not the Country Inns & Suites we had reserved.

I'm pretty sure we're in the right area.
Hotels are like viruses.
When one goes up in a location, it spreads until the whole area is infested with bed bug havens.

I drive a little farther, hoping to spot our quarry.
No luck.
I check the GPS.
Hmmmmm....
The GPS tells me we're at 1490 Lake St.
But the hotel address is 1490 West Lake St!

I grudgingly admit that this isn't Betty's fault, since it was I who punched in the address.
I search for 1490 W Lake... and Betty doesn't understand what I want.
Typical.
She's obviously trying to understand the hidden meaning behind my request.
"He says W Lake St. But what he's really telling me is that he doesn't trust me.
He doesn't love me any more. He's having an affair with that flashy microwave! Or that hot oven!"

What GPS's have to understand is that men don't have a thought in their heads.
What comes out of our mouths is pretty much exactly what we're thinking.
No hidden meanings.

We're not that deep.


I just want to get to the hotel.


Luckily I also have one of those old fashioned things that today's kids have never seen.

A map.

I pull out the map (the kids' eyes grow big. "What is that??") and look up W Lake.

The map agrees with Betty.

Okay. Now I know I'm on the right street.... what's the number again?
Oh, right. 1490.

Maybe we're not at 1490?
We drive a little further, looking for an address.
Of course, we CAN'T FIND A FREAKING ADDRESS ON ANYTHING!
(Why do you need to see our address? Don't you have a GPS?)

Sorry.

Eventually we see 1333 on a business, followed by 1321.
Okay. So we were in the right area before.
We head back.

Maybe it's behind the Holiday Inn?

I drive around the building.
Nope.

It's time to pull out the big guns.
Go with the gusto.
Pull out all the stops.

I pull up to the Holiday Inn and go inside to ask for help.

I feel very weird about this.
Not asking directions.
Unlike 99.87% of the male population, I actually don't mind asking for directions.
But I feel strange going into a hotel and asking them for directions to another hotel.
I feel like I should book a room first or something.

I have to do this.
Or find someplace else to go ask.
But I reason that they probably have had other people, similarly lost, ask the same question.

I approach the woman at reception.
"Um. This is going to sound weird, but I've got a question about one of your competitors...
Do you know where the Country Inn & Suites is?"

The woman smiles, and...
"This is it. This was a Country Inn & Suites up until three days ago when we took it over."

oh.

Oh! Where are we going to stay now???

Then she says the magic words.
"Did you have a reservation? Because we're honouring all their reservations."

<phew!> "Yes! Yes we do!"


She can't find our reservation.

Uh, oh.

"No problem. We have plenty of rooms available. We're half empty right now."
Me, being, at the time, pessimistic, thought of it as half full.
"What room did you reserve?"
I tell her that it was a one bedroom suite.
"Yes, we have that available. What rate were you quoted?"


Now here's a problem.
Years ago, when we stayed at a Country Inn & Suites, I was asked if I was a member.
No, I wasn't.
Would you like to join? It's free.
Sure.

Years later, I get an email saying I have points.
Points? Um. Okay.
You can use points to get a free room, or use points plus cash.

I checked at the hotels we were staying at on this trip and I couldn't use them for most places....
but I could in Chicago.


So the receptionist asks, "What rate were you quoted."

Well it was $77/night plus 5,000 points per night.
How do I calculate that? I think the AAA rate was $140/night?

"Well." I stammered. "It's $77 a night plus 5,000 points."
"I can't do anything about the points." She replied. "But we'll honour the $77/night."

Sweet!

Here's our room:

Girl's area


And....
My bedroom!


Angels sang hosannas from on high.
I had a bed!
A real, non-torturous bed!
With my own pillows that I didn't have to scrounge around for!

I had to make sure I enjoyed it, since it was the last time this trip that I'd have one.

And what do two adventurous, very fit, rambunctious girls do when they arrive?

Flop on their beds and plant their noses firmly into their iPods/iPhones of course!






I let them surf/text/message/etc. for a while then reminded them that we had a DISmeet coming up.
Our meet was for five pm.
I catch Dee's eye to make sure they've got it.
I close my bedroom door so I can get changed.
Dee and I are still looking at each other.

We both burst out laughing.
The door's main feature is a big top to bottom glass pane!
Privacy? We don't need no stinkin' privacy!



Marie and Yellowtink were driving up and Chicago was an hour behind them plus a two and a half hour drive.

Obviously, she's either coming up for the pizza (understandable) or she's insane.
Judge for yourself.

We were going to meet at a pizza place called Lou Malnati's.
Arguably, along with Uno's and Gino's East, the best deep dish pizza in Chicago.
I'd tried Lou Malnati's in 2008 and fell in love.
I couldn't wait to have more!


I once discussed Lou Malnati's with a local pizza chef who'd had a tour of their kitchen.
A Lou Malnati's deep dish pizza is actually baked three times.
First they bake the buttery crust.
They then add the Wisconsin cheese. (I had some that they could use.)
And lastly, after the cheese is melted, they add on the toppings and bake it again.
mmmmmmm.... dee-lish!

I just might have to start planning another run to Chicago...
Let's see, if I don't stop for anything but gas, it'll take about twelve hours..

Oh. Sorry.
One trip at a time.


Google tells me that it should take about ten minutes to get to Lou Malnati's.
I play it safe and we leave at four thirty.
After parking and searching for the entrance, we arrive fifteen minutes early.
And everyone else is already there!



I had handed the camera to Elle to capture the moment, and I think she did a pretty good job.

Closest to the camera is Marie, beside her is Nebo.
Across from Nebo is Smidgy with Yellowtink sitting next to her.

A couple things before I move on.
Notice how Marie and her daughter are wearing matching tie dye Mickey shirts?
Smidgy is wearing a Mickey shirt too, BTW.
I love how Smidgy has her hands up as if to say, "There you are!"
or like she's ready to clap.
And nothing beats the smile spread across Marie's face or Nebo's mischievous grin!
Believe me! I was really really happy to finally meet everyone!


I remember saying hello to Marie, but I can't for the life of me remember if we shook hands, hugged, or what?

I do remember thinking before the meet, "Is it Nebo's right wrist or left wrist?"
For those of you who don't know, Nebo hurt his wrist sufficiently to warrant surgery.
He hasn't been able to type since.
I was going to say "type properly", but he never could do that, so.... :

Anyway, I wanted to see if I could find out,
but since I was on the road, I didn't have any way to check.
Why?
Because if I was going to shake his hand, I didn't want to overdo it if it was his right wrist!
I was pretty sure it was his left wrist.
In fact I was almost positive.
So I stopped worrying about it.

Here I am, shaking his hand.



Well, a hand shake just wouldn't do, so I got him on his feet and gave him a hug.

A very masculine, manly type hug, of course.
Elle didn't get the picture, but just take my word for it, okay?
Definitely manly.


I then went over to Smidgy who was already on her feet.
I got a great big hug from her.



I love that picture.
Gives me the warm fuzzy feelings.

After the greetings, we were introduced to Yellowtink and I introduced the girls.




We settled in and ordered drinks.
Obviously we're all copious drinkers.
I think Nebo and Smidgy each had one beer... maybe two?
The rest of us stuck to soft drinks or lemonade.

oooohhhh... We're such rebels.
Betcha wouldn't want to come across us in a dark alley, hunh?


I asked Nebo how his wrist was doing.
In lieu of an explanation, he held up his wrist and showed me...
his right wrist.
D'oh!
I asked if I'd hurt him and he said no...
but...
I still worry that I did.
If I did, I'm really sorry about that, buddy.


We started discussing our dining options.
Smidgy suggested starting with the combination platter.
Mozzarella sticks, cheddar cubes, breaded mushrooms and zucchini.
Served with ranch and marinara sauce.
I was going to pay for dinner, so I was happy when we decided to order two for everyone.
We also ordered two large Malnati Chicago Classic pizzas.
Lean sausage, extra cheese and vine-ripened tomato sauce on Buttercrust.
The menu said that one pizza served four, so two should be enough.
Combined with the appetizers, hopefully no one would go home hungry.

Right about then,
was when Marie realized that she was going to have to sit beside me for the next hour or so.



Doesn't she look terrified?
Wouldn't you?

If I was you and you were me, I would be scared to sit beside me, too!

There was a conversation that occurred between myself, Elle and Dee that the others,
in particular, Marie, were not aware of.
After introductions, etc. I turned to the girls and whispered,
"Doesn't Marie remind you of Dorothy?"
Dee said, "Yeaaaahhhh...."
Elle said, "No kidding!"

Dorothy is the mom who sent her daughter's and her daughter's friend's tutus with us.
Marie was Just. Like. Her.
It was uncanny.
Her face looked just like Dorothy's.
Her size was the same.
Her hair was the same.
The way she talked was the same.
Her mannerisms were the same.
I'm telling ya. It was almost spooky.

Marie? Do you have a sister or cousin that lives in Winnipeg?
I'm telling you... we're talking clone city here.


While we waited for the food to arrive, we took the opportunity to yack and take some photos.



(Real men, and, apparently, human traffickers, have mustaches.)





We sat and chatted like old friends, which, I guess, we were.
Sure, some of us had never actually spoken (Hi Marie! ),
but that sure didn't stop us!
We mostly talked about Disney, but other stuff crept in too.

Our food arrived and there was a slight lag in the conversation
as we all dove into our little slices of heaven.



Okay, maybe "little" isn't quite the right word, here.

I dive in and..... oh, man.... so good....

After a minute of pretty much ignoring everything and everyone else around me,
I look over at Elle's plate.
Elle loves pizza, but she's not a fan of tomatoes.
Sure enough, she's scraped all the tomatoes off the top of the pizza onto the side of her plate.
I shake my head sadly.
Then I notice that Dee has done the same thing!
And so has Yellowtink!

Kids these days.


Oh, those pizzas that "served four"?
Between the seven of us, we managed to eat all of one pizza... and I think one small slice of the other.
These things are soooo filling.
But soooo good.

I know Nebo and Smidgy took some home with them,
and I'm pretty sure Marie and Yellowtink did too.


We continued to talk and when the waiter came by to refill water glasses,
I surreptitiously asked him to add all the meals together and give ME the bill.

I was quite smug.
I'd pulled one over on the others.
If they thought they were paying their share, well... they could just forget it!

A while later (ten minutes maybe?) I look over and see the waiter hovering over Smidgy...
As she finishes paying the bill!!
Hey! What gives? I was going to pay for that!

Smidgy says, and quite firmly too, "No. This is our town and you're our guests."

Gee, that was really nice of them.
But you didn't have to do that!
Thanks again, by the way.

Aaaaaannnnndddd.... right about now, Nebo's going:
"If you hadn't said anything, Diane, Ponzi would've paid for it!"

Seriously, though. Thanks again. That was very nice of you.


Before we knew it, the meet was over.
Marie and Yellowtink had a long drive ahead of them,
the girls and I were a bit tired from our own drive,
and of course Nebo had to get his beauty sleep.
(Smidgy was fine. She obviously doesn't need beauty sleep.)
So... like I said, the meet was over.

Only problem was... I didn't know it!
We all got up to leave the table.
I wasn't sure if we were moving to the bar, to the lobby, what?
All I know is I checked on the terrible twos and looked up and we were alone.

I led the way out of the dining room and looked around.
Nope. No one I recognized.
We walked over to the lobby.
N'unh, unh. No one there either.
Geez, I didn't want to just leave without even saying goodbye!

We went out to the parking lot and...
There they are!

I wonder if they were wondering where we were?
We were wandering.
Wonderful.


We stood in a ragged circle for a while, no one wanting to be the first to go.
I hate goodbyes.
Who doesn't?

Well, I guess I didn't mind saying goodbye to that nasty stomach flu I had the other day.
But otherwise... nope.
Don't like 'em.

I get the feeling no one else really enjoys 'em either.

We all said goodbye and just sort of... disbanded.

Or, DISbanded, I guess.

And that was our DISmeet.


I was happy... and sad.
Happy I got to meet some people I've "known" for a while now.
And they turned out to be just as terrific as I'd thought they would.
But sad that it all had to end so soon.


How long of a drive is it to Chicago, again?....


I drove us back to the hotel
and the girls decided that they wanted to burn off some energy in the pool.
I figured I might as well soak in the hot tub for a bit.

We got to the pool and...
remember the handicap lift?
It was in use.
There was a big wheelchair parked against the wall
and a father was giving his son rides around the pool.

Put a smile on my face.

I didn't stay in the hot tub very long before I'd had enough and headed to our room.

Ahhhhh. A real bed!
This is the life!

Shortly after, the girls showed up.
We had another early morning ahead of us for what I thought
would be the longest day of the trip.

It was long.
But it wasn't the most exhausting.
That comes later.

Coming up...
We travel to Niagara Falls via Cleveland and another DISmeet!