Chicago: Day One

The trip to Chicago was amazing. So many nutty occurrences. My plane was supposed to leave at 2:55 PM and get me to Chicago around 4:30PM. For starters, my plane was delayed for 3 hours due to weather/air traffic control issues in Chi-town. I travel standby (hella cheap!) and literally got the last seat on the airplane. Appropriately, it was in the last row.

We finally got in the air & the dude I sat next to was probably one of the funniest people I have ever met. He is a salesman for an advertising firm & was giving me tons of free stuff (pens, sharpies, poker chips that doubled as his business cards, etc) as we simultaneously perused SkyMall making funny remarks about everything. He talked to me a lot about his kids and wife. He was really proud about his family; kept showing me pictures while urging me to study for my LSAT instead of listening to him. He also gave me more recommendations of sights to see. He informed me that his dad is a volunteer on Saturdays at the Field Museum. I promised to find him and say hi. His name was Jim. His dad's name is Sam. Jim kept calling me LawGirl and the chick in front of us ThrowUpGirl - no explanation necessary.

Our flight attendant was amazing. He kept joking around with us in the back. He kept saying "This is like the cool kids table at lunch in junior high." That cracked me up. He's getting eloped this upcoming Friday. How fantastical! His name was Cahill (like Kayle). The other flight attendant resembled an old William Shatner. His name was Fred.

Well, 2 1/2 hours after take-off, which should have been the duration of the flight, we felt the plane keep going in slow circles. Strange. The Captain came on the loudspeaker and said due to weather in Chicago we were going to circle for 30 more mins. Groaning ensued. ThrowUpGirl threw up more. One girl started crying and loudly whining "Every day of this trip has been a disaster!" Jim and I laughed of course.

Nearly 20 minutes later the Captain told us we were re-routing to Minneapolis and landing there. It would take an hour. We'd figure out what to do once we landed in MN.

Landing was successful. However, there was a brief scare when we started circling again; el Capitan told us all the landing gear hadn't originally come down. It all did in the end, but only whilst we circled. Anyway, Jim, the girl next to us and I talked about all chipping in on a rental car and driving the 6-8 hours to Chicago if we couldn't fly out that night. At that point it was nearly 10 PM. The Captain came on the loudspeaker & told us we were indeed going to Chicago that night, but we had to switch airplanes.

We all de-planed and re-boarded another. Cahill was amazing on this leg of the trip. As he welcomed us on the plane he said "No offense, but I hope I never spend this much time with you people ever again." Also, he accidentally opened the bathroom door on a girl pissing. We kept teasing him. He gave us free snack boxes (a net value of $4 each! haha) and proceeded to give Jim free beers. Fred also came by and kept showing us card tricks that were obviously faulty.

Before we landed I peed and I heard Jim and Cahill pretend to try to open the door. Cahill loudly whispered "Let me get the key!" Hilarity. Regardless, the plane landed. We said our goodbyes and I proposed a Reunion Tour. I landed in Chicago at 11PM!

Unfortunately, the odyssey continued. I still had to make the 20 minute trek to Jaimie's apartment. I got into the airport shuttle and an older, thick-accented man from Jordan introduced himself as Andy. We had a great time talking about his family, Chicago, New York and California. He told me he loved his job and his customers. I noticed the clock was ticking away. It was now 11:40PM. Suspicious. I also noticed Andy's trusty GPS had stopped directing him long ago. When I pointed this out he looked confused, pulled over, re-entered the address and proceeded to continue not following the directions.

Pretty basically, Andy got us lost. We asked a cabbie how to get there. He didn't know. As a peace offering, Andy opened up his lunchbox & offered me a Rice Krispies treat. I accepted. He offered me a Capri-Sun. I declined. I imagined what onlookers might think seeing me sitting shotgun chomping on a delicious treat while this 50-something Jordanian man sipped on his Capri-Sun. I forgave him for all his wrongdoings. The moment was just that magical!

We finally got to Jaimie's apartment at 12:30AM. Andy apologized & then blamed me for giving him the wrong address - I got the street right, but the # was off (not like that changed him having no idea where the street was) - and took my number for when him and his family visit the Big Apple. "You give me wrong address, but you sweet. I have sons for you." I gave him a big hug. He made sure I got into the building safely before he drove away. Uhhh & bonus points: Andy called the next day! HAHA! He said he wanted to make sure I liked Chicago. He also screamed Jaimie's correct address into my ear like 20 times in between fits of hysterical laughter. I sure love crazies...probably because I am one.

Poor Jaimie. I apologize. Andy now has your address memorized; don't let him come over! Jaimie was amazing for waiting for me alllll day. She easily could have fallen asleep & told me to fuck off. She probably wanted to. I heart her. More on Chicago, itself, in subsequent posts. Later!