Ducks & Lobsters & Parents, Oh My!

It's only Tuesday, but I always have a rough time getting back into the swing of things after being gone for a few days. I made the trek to the homeland this past weekend. Airtran had a sale with ridiculously low prices and I couldn't resist the chance for a cheap trip home.

I managed to weasle out of work early on Thursday and headed to Midway in time to grab one of my favorite burgers in Illinois and a flight to Logan. After landing in Boston and being picked up by the Jen & Pinot limo service, we finally arrived at the hotel and got some much needed rest in anticipation of a busy "vacation."

Friday involved an all day excursion with the 'rents, but we planned activities to keep them busy. After lunch at the Parker House(try the rolls), we headed over to the Museum of Science for a Duck Tour. These tours cover land and water. It is a WWII craft that takes you around the city and then makes its way into the Charles River for a nice little cruise. I'm from Boston and had never taken one before. It's more a tourist thing and you need someone that is not a local to use as an excuse. Thanks to Jen for providing the way.

Dinner was at Anthony's Pier 4 with a great view of the water. Living in Chicago makes you appreciate good seafood when it is presented. The lobster on the east coast is just so much better than the midwest. Of course, they have the advantage of being next to the ocean. Lobsters don't exactly grow in the lake.

On Saturday I subjected Jen not only to dinner at my parents. It turned out to be pizza from Christo's with a special appearance from The Nana. After pizza and birthday cake, we made our escape to Timber Lanes for some much deserved candlepin. While it's a New England staple, it is pretty hard to find outside the original 6.

Much time was also spent discussing the state of the Boston 9. It was agreed that they were crazy for ever trading away Doug Mirabelli. Of course he was reacquired yesterday and landed 15 minutes before the game. Due to our crack police force and tinted windows, he was able to change in a squad car as he was whisked to Fenway to take part in the return of Judas and his Evil Empire.

Back to the trip...

On sunday we met up with my sister and hung around the city and enjoyed the sun. I enjoyed it to the tune of a rather red back of my neck. We searched out and found the bronze ducks from Make Way For Ducklings and posed with them before heading back to the hotel to catch a shuttle to the airport. A word of warning...If you fly Airtan out of Boston, don't plan on eating before your flight. They put us in an area past security where food options where severely limited. We settle for a frozen yogurt before getting real food when we arrived back in Chicago. Tempo never sounded so good to me.

On another bright note now that I'm back...Apparently the sale of my hotel has fallen through and we can suspend the job search once again.

Huzzah for Lane Hospitality for being tight with the purse strings!