Jocelyn and I went to Chicago for the weekend with her dad and sisters. We stayed at The Drake hotel right next to the John Hancock building. The hotel was VERY nice. We checked in on Saturday night and then went up to the executive lounge and had a couple cocktails while we waited for Jocelyn’s dad to arrive. I have to say that this was probably the best time I’ve ever had waiting for someone. The executive lounge overlooks Lake Michigan and also has free drinks and hors d’oeuvres so I could have actually waited all weekend if I had to. After Jocelyn’s dad arrived we had a fabulous dinner at The Cape Cod in The Drake. Delicious seafood. I quelled my oyster craving which I’ve had since I was out East. Oysters, and surf and turf, need I say more. After dinner we headed upstairs to one of their fancy lounges and had a couple drinks and listened to the piano and bass players. They were good and we got a seat right next to them so it just made it that much better. From there we headed down to yet another bar in the hotel. There we pretty much conversed the night away until we decided to call it a night.

Getting up for our Sunday morning festivities wasn’t the easiest thing in the world due to our schmoozing into the early morning. I finally managed to get going and we headed to Soldier Field to watch the Bears vs. Washington. The new Soldier Field is actually very nice. It took a while to get to our seats due to the lack of signage (or maybe the overabundance of hangover) but once we got there I was quite impressed with the place. I don’t want to confuse anyone here because the place doesn’t compare to Lambeau field and the team doesn’t compare to the Packers, now with that said – it was a good time. The Bears won on a last second field goal and all the Bears fans were happy with their mediocre team. When the game was over we headed back to the hotel and relaxed for about 15 minutes and hopped in a cab to the United Center. We watched the Blackhawks vs. New Jersey. The game ended up in a 2 – 2 tie and from what I heard there were a lot of fights. I wouldn’t know because I missed half of the game. I was in the lobby most of the time lying down on the couch. Once again I don’t know if this exhaustion came from the schmoozing the night before or the footlong Chicago dog I ate at the game that had somewhere around 30 jalapenos on it, and of course I had to eat them all and drink any little bit of juice that ended up in the container. Overall though the day was TONS of fun, I have to thank Jocelyn’s dad again for it all. Monday we woke up and checked out. We walked around Michigan Ave for a little bit and then ate at Ditka’s Chop Shop. I had the “Fridge” burger which was tasty. After that we got the car and headed home. Back home safe and sound in the Badger State where I belong.