Hi, Friends!

I haven’t posted a new entry in about 8 weeks. I’m sorry for the absence, I honestly got a little lazy and in my own head a bit. I had this schedule laid out that would have added a new post every week but around the end of April, things started to fall off. I have a bad habit of giving up when things don’t go exactly as planned or if I don’t good at something right away.

When I started this, I said I was going to do it for me so I didn’t want to force it. I didn’t want to force a post or some other form of content just for the simple fact of posting it. So I didn’t do anything. Well that's not true, I did some cool things. Before adding anything new, I wanted to fill you in on the last 8 weeks so you’re all caught up. Actually, a lot has gone down so I will break this up into two posts!

Chicago

I had the opportunity to spend a few nights in Chicago for work. We went to exhibit our products at a pharmaceutical trade show, CPhI. This was an opportunity for my company to start long-term strategic relationships with pharmaceutical distributors around the world. I have been to my fair share of vape trade shows when I worked for The Drip Club but this was very different. Vape showrooms are filled with vapor by the end of the day and music is constantly blaring, it's really difficult to have productive conversations.

This room had no music with very professional people, it was a refreshing change of pace. The show’s success is still to be determined as these types of leads take a lot of time to cultivate but should pay out soon enough. It's exciting to talk to people from all walks of life. I’m currently speaking to clients in Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Mexico, Central America, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Poland, Dominican Republic and more! It's really cool, I would love to visit any of these places at some point, just putting THAT into the universe.

We had dinner at some cool places and experienced what we could in the small amount of free time we had. The main touristy thing was walking through Millennium Park and The Bean. There were Tulips everywhere around Chicago, scattered all over Millennium Park and even on the sides of the freeway. I have never seen the Park or The Bean at night and it was really cool. The lights of the city reflected beautifully on The Bean and it was much less crowded so perfect photo ops with no random people messing with the shot.

The first night we ate at Au Cheval. Super cute, looked like a hole in the wall, its very small with limited seating. I recommend calling ahead for a reservation, we took a chance and waiting for a table. He said it would be almost an hour but we only ended up waiting for 15 minutes but I think we lucked out and someone left so we got their table. I ordered the “Single Cheeseburger with Fries”, it was really good. We also ordered “General Jane’s Honey-Fried Chicken with Chili, Sesame Seeds & Cilantro.” It was a good balance of sweet and spicy chicken. I also ordered a Root Beer which was on draft and fresh from their bar, very refreshing and not overly sweet. As a non-drinker, I’m always looking for fun non-alcoholic beverages and this was a good one. I highly recommend this restaurant.

The second night we ate at South Branch, a restaurant on The Riverwalk. It was cold while we were there so we didn’t get to enjoy this properly. The Riverwalk is a 1.25-mile pedestrian walkway, which runs along the south bank of the Chicago River. There are restaurants and various other establishments along it. Most places look to have really cool patio areas but everything was closed because it was freezing, raining and windy. The restaurant had a nice vibe and the food was decent, your typical American bar food so nothing too out of the ordinary.

I ordered the “Sante Fe Chicken wrap and fries”, adobo grilled chicken, romaine, tomatoes, avocado, black bean corn relish, pepper jack, tortilla strips, chipotle dressing, it was alright. There was too much lettuce and carrots or something mixed in and I wasn’t really feeling all of that, it sounds better then it was. We also ordered “The Buffalo Rolls”, Pulled chicken, gorgonzola, crispy wonton, buffalo sauce, bleu cheese dressing. I went with Ranch in place of Blue Cheese, these were delicious. This would be fun to hang out and enjoy the patio when the weather is nice. We walked along the river for a bit and then headed back to the Airbnb.

The final night we went to Cherry Circle Room. Cherry Circle Room is the reinvention of the iconic restaurant of the same name that has serviced the Chicago Athletic Association for many years. When you walk in off the street, you will go through another restaurant and bar area. You will walk through these doors into a dark room with swell curves and swank wood panels of dark cherry wood circles. It's a farm to table restaurant with a rustic yet refined menu that includes steaks, pork shoulder, and duck breast. I ordered the “8 oz. Chateaubriand” (Chateaubriand steak is a meat dish cooked with a thick cut from the tenderloin filet) with Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Brussel Sprouts Slaw, and Kabocha Squash. All very good, all of these sides were cold except for the Garlic Mashed Potatoes, which was unexpected but still delightful. I also ordered the Chocolate Cake for dessert, it was rich but good. The restaurant overall was very good and the experience was nice. Its very dark in there and be sure to make a reservation, it's a small room with limited seats.

The morning we left, we went to Delia’s Kitchen for breakfast. It was on the way to the airport when we were flying home. They offer freshly prepared breakfast and lunch dishes from their unique European and American menu. I was simple and ordered two over-easy eggs with bacon, toast and hash browns. Wendy ordered the Eggs Benedict and we split one pancake (the waitress said they were known for their pancakes and they were featured on TV). This was the best pancake I've ever had, it was so sweet. I didn’t even put maple syrup on it, it was sweet enough on its own. Highly recommend this cute little breakfast spot.

That was Chicago, other than working very hard we pretty much just ate a ton. Around the time I left, Avengers End Game had come out in theaters and everyone was talking about this movie. I was one of the few in the world that hadn’t seen a single Marvel movie. Jeremy suggested we watch them all, all 22 of them.

I’ll go over the movie marathon, my trip to Kentucky and my plans for the summer in “Life Update: Part 2”, stay tuned. :)