My kind of town, Chicago is...

I hope you let us know soon, JPB. (Don't forget that sozobe's hamster is in Walter's care. Sozobe may be worried right now.)

Chapter One

I drove to the train station to gather up Walter and CI for our tour of the north shore and the Botanic Gardens. The train arrived, the train left, Walter and CI weren't there. I called CI - his phone was off. I called joe making sure he had my cell # in case they called him. I thought they might have gotten off at the Deerfield station (the next stop on the line) so I drove there, parked, and searched around the station -- nope. Thinking they might have jumped in a cab at Deerfield to go back to the original stop, I headed back towards Lake Cook Rd.

My phone rang just as I was pulling back into the original station. It was Walter -- they had missed their stop and were stranded in Lake City. Lake City? Do you mean Lake Forest? Yes, Yes, Lake Forest. Stay put, I'll drive up and get you.

By this time it was approaching rush hour and the afternoon traffic was building. It took me about 20 minutes to get to the Lake Forest Station. I drove around the station and the parking lots. I eventually parked the car and went inside looking for them -- nope. I tried calling the number that Walter had used -- no can do. I tried calling CI -- phone is still off. What to do? What to do? Maybe Lake City wasn't Lake Forest afterall, but there is nothing else remotely similar in name to Lake City on the train line. The only thing I could do was wait for them to call me back. Imagining that they might have gotten on a southbound train, I drove back towards Deerfield. I stopped for gas. I went back to Lake Forest, went back inside the train station, spoke to a man who I'd seen there the first time. Had he seen two men looking lost? No he hadn't. Still no word from the guys, I decided to go home and wait.

Walter called as I was leaving the station. Well? Well what -- where are you? Where are you -- we are at the train station! No you're not -- I'm at the train station!! Yes we are -- I am at one tower and CI is at the other tower looking for you!!! Huh -- Towers? There are no towers at the Lake Forest train station -- I am at the Lake Forest station and there are no towers in sight!!!! Yes, there are -- I am looking across at Williams Sonoma!!!! Walter, are you in downtown Lake Forest? YES! YES! Lake Forest!!! Walter, you were on the wrong train. Oh -- no wonder we missed our stop

Chapter Two

Walter, CI, and I had a good laugh (at their expense) and a nice tour of the Botanic Gardens. It was the perfect spot to relax and de-stress. We only managed to see about one-fourth of it because, ah, time was running short and it was time to head south to meet joe for dinner.

The trip down Sheridan Rd is lovely and we had time to stop at the B'hai Temple in Wilmette and do a quick drive through of the Northwestern campus. We parked near the blues club we planned on going to after dinner and found a nice restaurant two doors away from the club. I called joe to let him know where we were. He was on the train and would be there in five minutes.

We ordered appetizers. The first appetizer arrived -- no joe. Eventually my phone rang -- just where are you guys? Right next door to Bill's Blues. Yeah, but exactly where are you? I gave him the address, 1033 Davis St - right next door to Bills Blues. Bill's Blues is on Davis?? whoo-boy! The second appetizer arrived, joe arrived. I was still laughing when he got there. At least I took the right train! he said.

We had a nice dinner and went next door to hear Lurrie Bell. Um... maybe that's chapter three, but let's just say that over an hour later the crowd had swelled to six and he decided to begin his set. It doesn't matter -- the music was good, CI shook his hand, got an autographed CD, and had a big smile on his face all night. We stayed for most of the second set (with maybe twenty other patrons by the time we left) and, rather than take the chance of putting any of them back on public transit, I delivered them safely to their front doors.

All-in-all, we had a great time and a bunch of laughs.

Great story, JPB!

Sozobe would like someone to post a photo of "Penny the Hamster". Is that possible?

will be submitting bill for dry-cleaning ! mrs h and i laughed so much , we wet ourselves !
hbg

who knows where they'll wind up if left to their own devices ?

It was indeed a very funny story, hamburger. But we all respect Walter and C.I. for being such fearless travelers!

That C.I. M.I.A. thing rings of De Ja Vu. Perhaps you should strap a personal G.P.S. to his wrist... or at least talk him into leaving his Cell on when he's out and about. :wink:

I'm sure Walter will be thrilled to cover your cleaning bills, hbg. And, yes, CI is now officially tethered to his cell phone. I added a vibration to his ring tone to improve the odds of getting through.

Brunch this morning was fun. It was great meeting Swimpy (she's terrific, of course) and always good to see Gargamel.

I'll let those at the game discuss their day at Wriggly, but I'm sure the shenanigans on the field provided some fun for the fans.

The game was great, but the company was better. JPB and Joe were such great hosts. And I finally got to meet those Abuzz and A2K legends, cicerone imposter and Walter Hinteler. And I can't forget the adorable Gargamel. (Oops, I've blown his cover. He is adorable, though.)
I've got some pictures I can post if the subjects are OK with it.

this doesn't bode well for the New York - Boston - New York trip

~~~~~~

C'mon Swimpy - I know you've got stories.

~~~~~~

how's Penny doing?

Well, the Cubs lost, but we managed to witness a classic hat-kicking tirade by manager Lou Piniella, which was worth the price of admission:



No, the fans weren't yelling "boo!" -- they were yelling "Lou!"

And it was a tremendous treat to meet Swimpy, who is just as nice in person as she is on A2K.



I never have any objection to posting photos of me. I look fantastic!

You won't get an argument from me. I took a look at them. Everyone looks fabulous. Gargamel's bears a stricking resemblance to Conan O'Brien, although I didn't notice that he did in person.

Joe's got that Chicago voice. It's great.

Walter (please pronunce it right) looks just like his avatar. He's charming and very funny.

C.I. is the Energizer Bunny.

JPB is tall and gorgeous. I hate her. (No I don't :wink: )

This is the second time I've met people from A2K and each time it amazes me how easy it is. We already know each other so well.

I happen to know; none of those folks object to pictures... so please share.

Except Walter of course; he's very stealthy.

Since the same shot is on the Cubs fan site, I'll post this one. Can you spot the Atookians?

I know 3 of them well... are you wearing the B?
(Tak in the HOT hat is too cool.)

The hat was appropriate. It was very hot, indeed. Yes that's me with the "B" for Braves, who BTW won the game. Not that I'm gloating or anything.

Reading along. With considerable interest. And amusement.

What, Walter's not found a cybercafe yet? Or he won't post until he's got 100 photos lined up?

Anyway, good morning all from the sunny UK.

That's a great photo. I'm quite surprised at Swimpy's appearance. She looks a bit more "Hollywood" than Iowa.

She must have been born somewhere else and then moved to Iowa. I know what Iowa people look like.

Thanks darlin, wish I was there to meet you. Actually; right now… I'm feeling like a cheap, dumbass for not being there. I am poor these days, but some things you just don't get more than one opportunity to experience...
Glad ya'll are having fun!