Alright, so I am now in a hotel lounge in Regina: From Vegas to Halifax to Chicago to Toronto to Regina…my criss-cross North America tour. I’ll be entertaining another corporate group this evening which is always hit and miss (except with Frito Lay, who remain the most fun company I have ever worked with. There, I said it again) Anyway tonight: Insurerers in Regina!…so you can see why I’d like to take a few minutes to think back to Chicago…

For those who haven’t been to Chicago you really should go. For one, it’s not a long flight from Toronto. Also, the architecture alone is worth going for the walk. And mostly because the magnificent mile and Art Institvte (yes, it’s spelled with a “v”. Get some class people!) are one-of-kind things that can’t be experienced anywhere else.

Of course, in order to GET to all of this you have to be in the actual CITY of Chicago. So I would suggest you book a hotel IN the city. I was there to entertain a group and therefore stayed at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare, which is a sort of self-contained death star near the airport, but NOWHERE near the city. The lobby of the hotel is like a space station complete with pod-like elevators with fluorescent lights on the bottom. Essentially it’s like being given a ride to your room by the cast of Fast and Furious.

The bar at the Hyatt Regency (I think it is called the “Red Bar” but I’ve been so many places lately that might be in Vegas) is also futuristic with lots of projection images as opposed to actual tv screens. Prices of drinks here also seem to take into consideration 4 or 5 years of inflation. It was there that I watched the majestic Montreal Canadiens win game 6 of their series with the Washington Capitals. I can safely say that I was the only one in the bar cheering for the Habs but rest assured Canadien fans I made sure my presence was known after each Halak save. I also stopped the misguided baseball fans from switching the channel to a useless game between two teams I forget.

My actual show in Chicago was for a Canadian based software company that provides restaurants with ordering systems. Being a “veteran” of the restaurant industry myself, it was easy to think back to those days, recall some of the fun times and realize that these mostly male salespeople probably wouldn’t find any of that funny. So I talked about some other things, found a kindred Irish spirit named “Rory” in the crowd, and left the room smiling and a few even laughing out loud. Sorry “lol”.

Tuesday I decided to replicate “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” by not doing anything productive and strolling around Chicago. Of course I didn’t have a best friend and girlfriend with me…or a Ferrari…or a school Prinicipal chasing me the whole day. So I guess it wasn’t exactly the same. But I did go to the Art Institvte the same as they do in the movie, I almost went to the Sears Tower (which is now called the Willis tower btw) then realized that the next day I would be flying OVER Chicago and so get an even better view than the tower afforded without paying additional funds and being surrounded by tourists. And I even got the opportunity to go to Wrigley Field for a Cubs game at night!

Wrigley is a magical old ballpark full of (mostly losing) history. It’s easy to see why people flock there to see a game on a sunny afternoon. The surrounding businesses have even built grandstands on their rooftops to get a look a the game from there…however on the particular night I went it was bloody freezing and I actually consumed more hot chocolate than beer (and I don’t even particularly like chocolate).

However, it did provide a spontaneous humour highlight when the hot chocolate vendor, who happened to be a large black man was walking away from me and I yelled across the row “Hot Chocolate!” to get his attention. On the streets of Chicago those are probably fighting words. Thankfully, he was ok with it.

I also got to experience Chicago Deep Dish pizza at the birthplace of Deep Dish Pizza “Numero Uno”. It’s sort of like regular pizza but waaaay more filling. Sort of like the city of Chicago itself: you’ll never finish it in one sitting.

Last night, back in Toronto mainly to visit my accountant’s office and calculate my tax payment, I gathered with some good friends at Hoops Sports Bar to watch the Montreal Canadiens play game 7 against the Washington Capitals. Unbelievably, the Habs pulled off the major upset and this time I wasn’t the only one cheering for them!!!

So, as I get ready to embark on the downtown core of Regina (I wonder where the Art Institvte is here?) I’m looking forward to getting back home to Montreal in time for some real playoff action. To all you Montreal hockey fans out there, it’s a good time to be alive. To the rest of you, go fu..I mean go have fun.