Greetings from Chicago

So I’m at my fancy Chicago hotel where internet service costs $13+ per day. On Saturday afternoon, I was talking to my wife on the phone about the day. I tell her that I am waiting in line to talk to the hotel staff about a problem I am having with my room. Her response: "Did you stuff up the toilet?" I love my wife!

For the record, my toilet was fine unlike other trips I have taken over the years. Apparently, my upstairs neighbor decided to hang a shirt on one of the sprinkler heads. Not a good idea. When I returned to my room on Friday night, I noticed that the entryway was wet. The hotel’s assistant manager called me about a half hour later to see if I noticed the problem and offered to move me to a new room. Since it was already after 10:00pm, I had unpacked and it really didn’t bother me (as long as I didn’t walk barefoot or in socks to the closet), I decided to stay. The assistant manager said that housekeeping staff and/or maintenance would take care of everything the next morning.

When I stopped by my room after lunch on Saturday, I noticed that although my room had been cleaned, the carpet was still wet. That’s when I went to the front desk. When I returned to my room again even later in the afternoon, I found that the hotel brought me a fan. However, they didn’t actually plug in the fan and the nearest outlet was no where near the entryway. I called the assistant manager again asking for an extension cord, and he said that he would handle it, which the hotel finally did at least two hours later. The fan is currently running, as it did all night, and the area is slowly drying out. For Friday’s inconvenience, the hotel "comped" my room for a night. The free hotel room serves as justification for me to pay $13 for internet service, which is why I am sharing my story with you today!