Chicago

A coworker and I arrived in Chicago last night, we're doing health screenings, fitness demos, and presentations in the Sears tower for one of our company's clients (jeesh it sounds like I have a higher-profile job than I do when I say it that way :)) today and tomorrow....Last night was fine, we got free popcorn at Garretts (which is DELICIOUS) with a coupon we had in a tourist-y pamphlet, and we snacked on that while we walked to find a place to eat. Shannon wanted Bennigans, which I've had before and isn't really "Chicago-ey," but I had it again because I don't make decisions anyways :) haha. It was good...but...our company only gives us $10 for dinner, $5 for lunch, and $5 for breakfast, so the dinner ended up COSTING me money - in fact, this trip will, overall, cost me more money than I'd spend being at home. Which really makes me mad, but what can ya do...So then we walked a lot and shopped on Michigan Ave...and got ice cream sundaes at Ghirrardelli (which is really expensive, and yes, more money than I should spend, but really really delicious also and...we had $1 off coupons so we thought we should go ahead and try it...it still costs $8 for an ice cream, with the coupon. ooouch...but yuuuum)...it rained on us but we had a good time.
I'm getting very nervous about money, so I decided I'm going to have a Starbucks latte with dry cereal and fruit I brought from home for breakfast, then try to snack through the day and have one $15 meal instead of one 10 and one 5. But I had to email my boss to see if that's acceptable...if not, I'll figure out a new bargain plan :)
So we walked a lot, which was great, and then turned on a movie on the laptop while we fell asleep. There was construction super early this morning, and I didn't sleep much last night.... I got up early to take a shower....and had COLD WATER. Icy cold shower. I called downstairs and told the front desk...they said, "our engineer will be in at 9, he'll call you"...um, I had to be at work by 9, but thanks anyways. Then, the blow dryer wouldn't work. So there I was, cold with wet hair, and nothing to do about it. I called downstairs. It took them so long to get a blow dryer up here, we had to leave right when it came. Wet head. Bags under eyes. Really mad. = ATTRACTIVE! ha
(Side note, the hot water, of course, started working just before we had to leave for work...)
We got our boxes from downstairs and the doorman hailed a cab. (Two more dollars out of my pocket to tip the man who we kept jipping last night when he helped us so much!)...Took a cab to Sears tower.... For some reason, we weren't checked into the system like we were supposed to be, so it took a good 25 extra minutes, with all of our boxes, coffee, etc..trying to get into this building. We finally got in, and the people who were supposed to meet us downstairs did not...So we found it ourselves (we definitely had the floor wrong - we both thought it was 14, it was 37...ha)...
We got upstairs and frantically started putting things together, as people started arriving and impatiently waiting for us. Shannon informed me that she hadn't cut the resistance bands for her workout demo. Ummm when would we have time for that? We didn't. So between blood pressure taking and BMI/body fat checking, I started cutting bands. Frantically, of course. Probly had too much espresso in me, too :)
I was scheduled to do a presentation at 1:30, and a computer tech had set up the projector for me in the morning-- it had worked just fine at the time....well, when it was time for my presentation, the projector wouldn't work, and no one could figure out why. So we waited for a new projector... the presentation started 20 minutes late and some people left, Oi! -but that's okay, I made it just over 10 minutes long, when it was supposed to be 20-25 with time for questions the extra 5 mins... :)

Soooo now today we will see where we'll eat, I'm thinking maybe Potbelly's cuz a sandwich shouldn't be too expensive, and maybe I can get one big enough I can save half for later :)...too bad we don't have a refrigerator in this room...but it'd probably be broken if there was one anyhow... Maybe a smoothie for lunch, sandwich for dinner? That'd be $15 total in Chicago, right?

;)

Shannon is running outside right now, on very little food --- I am snacking while sitting in a comfortable chair in our hotel room :) I'd pass out if I tried to walk somewhere this hungry.

On the up-side of everything (well, one of the upsides, there are a few of course), I get to see an old roommate from college soon!! Stephy is going to come down into the city to hang out a bit :) (Yaaaay!!!)
Yep, my very fashionable, cute, always dressed up roommate will be here soon and I still have wet hair and I'm wearing our work warm-up suit...and I don't feel like making any effort to change that situation :)

Hope everyone is having a fabulous day and I hope the weather is nice wherever you are :)