The Fredösphere

The Chicago trip was a complete success.  We experienced no inconvenience around Gary, Indiana, which is one of the great traffic snarlers, not to mention tops in stench and eyesore production.

Remarkably, we never found OGIC, even though I approached every woman who appeared to be between 15 and 75 years of age, asking "are you OGIC?"  Fathers of some of the teenage girls I asked seemed to take offense for some reason.  I guess I just need someone to explain to me the rules of dealing with people.  For example, I used to carry battery-powered hair clippers because I noticed some guys don't keep the backs of their necks shaved properly.  It turns out "the rules" say you shouldn't try to give strangers hair cuts without permission.  Sheesh, it's amazing how much some people can get bent out of shape.  I guess everyone  received an instruction manual in the mail that tells them what is and is not allowed in public.  I wish they would remember to send me a copy.

A quick word in favor of the Art Institute:  I forgot how thick the place is with great paintings.  Wow.  Double wow.

Finally, I have to mention Chicago's most remarkable treasure:  the Fairy Castle of Colleen Moore.  This over-the-top obsession of a silent film starlet now resides in the Museum of Science and Industry.  The tiny chandeliers have real diamonds in them, the staircase is not up to code, the main floor lacks a bathroom, and a side table holds a gun that really shoots, but is only as long as your fingernail.  Royal Doulton once made two sets of tiny china plates stamped with a royal crest; one set was made for the Queen of England's doll house; the other for the superbly well connected Colleen Moore.

At one point the wifeösphere missed a part of the narration that describes the castle, so I explained to her that the chapel contains a sliver of the True Cross that the pope gave to Clare Booth Luce.  (No joke.)  I observed, "this is getting really decadent," and a woman standing next to me agreed emphatically.  See!  Someone in the world thinks the same way I do.