And the Odyssey Continues

Once all the problems of the Great Purse Meltdown 2006 were resolved, we were supposed to get on Highway A from Highway B. And it was going to be as easy as that. Right?

No.

We missed it. Completely. We wound up somewhere on the northside of Chicago with Alex's dying cell phone and a one way ticket to rush hour traffic. And why were we stuck? And lost?

Because Mapquest sucks, y'all. Highway A doesn't intersect with Highway B. No, it intersects with Highway C. Which eventually turns into Highway A, but how were we supposed to know that? Without a clearly marked map? We couldn't!

Now, part of this is our fault and one reason why I had previously mentioned that we are forgetful and navigationally impaired and also poor time managers. We didn't have a map with us. In my defense, the car was map-free because my atlas had died a wet and violent death when the old Sentra got totaled. And yes, I know. We should have bought a map BEFORE we got to the city. And I'm not sure why neither one of us had thought to purchase a map before our very first road trip together, but we didn't. But then again, I'm the girl who left her PURSE at home, so we're really lucky that I remembered to put on undewear that morning.

The sad part is that all we wanted to do was get here:


Yes, IKEA. Not the hotel. Not a place to eat. Not somewhere scenic. Not somewhere only found in Chicago. IKEA.

After stopping to get directions from two highly unhelpful people, buying a map, turning around at least 3 times, and a pow wow in a Target parking lot in which I loudly proclaimed, "We are going to get to that IKEA and we are going to LOVE it, dammit," we finally saw it. We still couldn't get to it's beautiful blue wondrous location, but we could SEE it. So we turned around one more time and finally, finally, finally pulled into the most beautiful parking lot of all time. At this point, I was highly exhausted and I wound up following Alex around while he picked up every single utensil EVER MADE. My boyfriend, he loves the kitchen stuff. I vaguley remember buying a TV stand (and by "I," I mean "Alex" since I was checkcard free at this point) before we wandered into the parking lot for the slightly confusing and slightly long drive to the hotel.







So after some "famous" stuffed Chicago pizza, it was time for this birthday girl to go to sleep.

The next morning? Jamba Juice!



I've wanted to go to Jamba Juice since I was a wee teenager and began reading US Weekly and People Magazine. All the celebrities drink Jamba Juice! There's a SNL skit about it! I had to go! (And I even said, "No boost," just like Amy Poehler in the skit. Only it wasn't nearly as awesome.)

And it tasted just like Smoothie King from back home and I realized that, once again, all that glitters is not gold. (Much like how my pretty, pretty ring is fake, fake, fake!) Amd with that...we began Day 2 of Chicago.



Ok, for reals this time, tomorrow: Trains! Angry busy drivers! Endless amounts of walking! And lots and lots of pictures of buildings!