* The Jen Network *
©Lucky Bast III
"Why is every building on this block called Union Station?!?!?!" | ||
 | Yeesh. If ya wanna know so badly, then you shoulda BEEN there! Well, actually - there were supposedly over 70,000 people there (not all at once) so, heck. Maybe you WERE there! | |
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Okay so I get up the next morning and manage to pack and get outta the room before check-out. I get a bag of ice at the McDonald's so that the meat won't spoil. It is now Thursday morning. I have to pick up Sarabi and Milamber at the Chicago Union Station at 2.30p and then we get to drive to the Hyatt to check-in by 4, then get to Pre-con badge pick-up immediately after. Sounds easy? Well, lemme say that I have NEVER driven INSIDE Chicago before. It was me and Mapquest, plus a little logic, baybeee! I managed to make it to South Canal Street despite that. And while not everything is NAMED Union Station, almost everything had union station in its name. How am I supposed to tell the actual train station apart from the "Union Station Multiplex"? Sigh. But I did, only because I followed the people with suitcases and saw the "Passenger Pickup Only" signs being ignored by the purring taxis. I guess technically they were waiting for passengers, but come ON. Well, I parked in the Union Station Self Park and walked over to the actual Union Station. It was just about half past noon as I walked in the doors and was greeted by a monitor that said that the train from St. Louis was running late, due in at 3. Yay. I can't tell you how I spent that time. Really, I can't. I don't remember! I walked around. I sat in the ticketed passengers only area and got annoyed at the guy who broke out his guitar while I was sitting next to him listening to a walkman. I borrowed a piece of tape from a car rental stand. I was stalked by the owner of a News stand who apparently thought it unusual for a young white female of large size to walk around while "waiting for a train" and not buy anything. I then shook my head in disbelief in another news stand when no one said anything about the large suitcase that was left unattended in the middle of the room. I got myself some so-so chicken fried rice. I bought a birthday card for MPoetess. Somehow that passed the time until the train came in - surprisingly at 3pm. Sarabi and Milamber were actually on it, so that was one fear gone. And then we didn't miss each other, so all was good so far. Then I noticed that all of the weight I'd gained had apparently come from Milamber who was having trouble keeping his pants on, and not in the good/bad way. He somehow had lost a TON of weight! Yowza! Well, we got outta there and managed to fit all the luggage into the car. 20 dollars in parking fees later, we hit the highway for Rosemont, where the Hyatt O'Hare technically lives. We made it just in time to catch our reservation (another fear) but had to pay 40$ for parking for the entire stay. Not really bad, but we only left twice. Sigh. And then they hadn't put the fridge in our room, so I called and then Sarabi called and finally Sarabi and I went to get luggage while Milamber waited for them to bring us a fridge. We managed to bring 80% back but there was still no fridge. So we sent Milamber off to get the rest and FINALLY were greeted with a microfridge being hefted by a single woman. (Well, I guess she could have been married, but she was alone when we met her.) So Milamber comes back and he's ticked becuase the water bottles had broken from their packing and had fallen out all over the floor. We went with him to pick them up and then fawned all over him until he wasn't so pissy. ^__^ But that didn't last too long. We had to hot-foot it over to the Convention center to get our con badges and we found a rather long line waiting for us. We sat for about 20 minutes before suddenly a cheer went up. Apparently they were about to open the doors - they were running late. Sigh. Fine. Well, we stand and they start shouting instructions, at which point I turn to Sarabi and say "you have your ID with you, right?" She blanches. Milamber sighs. "No, you left your purse in the room. Here." He hands her his things and sighs again. "I'll go get it." Waaaah! We stay in the line, but it moves faster than Milamber and we end up stepping outta the line to wait for him. He comes back and is even more upset to see that we're out of line. O_o? We get back in line and the speed comes to a screeching halt. We end up waiting in line for an hour? Two? listening to OTHER people whine and ask us if they can get ahead of us seeing as how they've been waiting EVER so long. GRRRRR. Oh and I loved the one who came up and asked us why we hadn't "moved in the past half an hour, could you move? We're stuck." Or the ones who tried to form ANOTHER line and bypass everyone else. Sigh. | ||
 We spend the rest of the night making up a schedule of things to see and do, and just catching up on old times. | We finally get our stuff and get back to the room whereupon we forget about the food we already have and order room service. I had some sorta berry-lemon sherbet thing that was HUGE and delicious. | |
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Part Three: to Cosplay or not to cosplay. And porn. Did I mention the porn? Part Two: This *is* Part Two. Baka. Part One: Well, it all started okay | ||