#Nophone day five: “There, there. We still love you.”

Just a day after we’d fallen off the wagon, Skype gave us a big hug.

“There, there,” they said (I’m paraphrasing). “We still love you.”

Aw, shucks.

And you know what? I feel a little better about this whole #Nophone project. After all, I managed to stay off the phone all day today.

It was a lot easier. We drove from Louisville to Chicago this morning. The roads are not the greatest — they’re not well-maintained and trucks seem to outnumber cars. You can’t take a call, let alone make one.

Then, when we arrived in Chicago, no time for phoning. We headed straight for Hot Dougs, the famous hot dog joint, and fed the kids. Then we grabbed a takeout pizza from Pequod’s. Deep dish, of course. (It was our culinary tour of the Windy City. Hungry kids will make you do that.)

We spent the rest of the afternoon in traffic, headed toward our hotel out at O’Hare. Where did all these people come from?

I don’t have any profound thoughts about why people make phone calls today.

I am tired. The hotel we’re staying in, a Candlewood Suites property, is less than a mile from the airport. In fact, I think you can see the runway from here. It feels like it’s about 130 degrees outside. I turned up the air conditioning and am going to watch Michael Phelps win another gold medal.

Tomorrow I’m in all-day meeting in Chicago. I’m visiting with a certain airline that recently went through a merger. They’ve been very nice to me, and I’m sure everything will go just fine. They may even like the story I write.

By the way, if you’re still reading this, and have any questions you want me to ask this certain airline, please email me. (No need to tell me what you think of the #Nophone project — I read the comments.)

Oh, and I think my iPhone will run out of battery before I’m tempted to make a call. Battery life, that’s another pet peeve of mine. Please don’t get me started …

  • y_p_w

    There are several battery boosters on the market. The type I was thinking of getting was one that charged from a single AA battery, although that’s not compatible with any of the newer smartphones that need 5V.

    There are also several specific iPhone battery boosters. Some use a Li-ion battery, while a few hold AA batteries, which can be disposable or rechargeable. A few plug in with a short cable while others actually serve as a case (so it won’t work if you’ve got your own case already).
    As for Hot Doug’s, I’m guessing that you missed the Friday-Saturday special – fries cooked in duck fat. And do they still have the foie gras dog?

  • y_p_w

    So did you try any of the exotic stuff at Hot Doug’s? I checked their specials, and they had kangaroo and the foie gras dog. It’s not Top Dog, but what it?

    And I love the Candlewood Suites concept. I stayed in one near Miami Airport a few years ago. I liked the honor pantry where you put cash in an envelope, as well as the laundry that’s included with the room. I also liked the kitchen, where I could cook (or warm up) my meals. I didn’t take advantage of the video library though.

    Of course nobody changed my sheets for the whole week (I understand it’s once a week) but that’s just like home. I think I also missed out with their weekly ice cream social.

  • http://elliott.org Christopher Elliott

    We didn’t try the exotic stuff, but I was tempted to. Maybe next time. Yes, Candlewood doesn’t change the sheets every day. I think you have to request it. This property is pretty nice. We’ll see if we can hit the ice cream social this weekend.