See how much sense I make as the Nyquil kicks in

So I'm back from my business trip. To sum it up: I ate too much, I caught a cold, and the hotel room was very nice. There are also a lot of toll roads around the Chicago area, if you were wondering.

The first night we ate at Ditka's and I had a marinated chipotle skirt steak and an iced tea. The guys ordered huge steaks and martinis and the cherry cobbler. I was still trying to be good. Then the next night we ate at Fuddrucker's and I gave up all pretenses of goodness as I spilled liquid cheese on my pants. Then the last night we ate at a German restaurant and I enjoyed some wienerschniztel with a fried egg on top, as well as Bitches' Brew by Dogfish Head.

On the first night I awoke in the huge bed -- through the French doors of my suite -- around midnight with a sore throat. Since then I've been downing orange juice, cough syrup, and assorted lozenges and trying not to breathe on people or things. So that's been fun.

A final noteworthy mention is this is the first time I've ever flown without checking a bag. (It was also my first full body scan in the O'Hare airport. Whoo hoo!) The Tom Binh Tri-Star bag worked perfectly and I was especially impressed by the packing cubes. I can see it getting a bit heavy over time, but with the backpack strap option or the Absolute Strap option it's not too hard to go back and forth between carrying methods.