[Perry] Perrypocalypse 2015

Another year and another random visit to the Moores later (did you see what I did there? *nudgenudgewinkwink, the Moores).

Ahem, anyway.

Adventure! Sightseeing! Pictures!

Let’s begin.

The Chicago-ing

For various reasons, we decided to meet up in Chicago this year. I flew into Midway and the Moores drove in from the Manor, parking at the hotel and taking the train into the city.

I also took the train into the city.

We met and greetings were exchanged as if we were sorta kinda friends who maybe knew each other, and then? Adventure!

Museum of Science and Industry

The first day was devoted to the Museum of Science and Industry and the Willis Tower’s Skydeck.

The Museum was pretty cool. The inside looked a little…madcap? Is that a good word to use here? I think that’s a good word to use here.

If you’ve never been, think of it as like…an interactive learning experience, of sorts. Lots of little exhibits and interactive displays to show how things like tornados and tsunamis work, as well as others devoted to explaining Bernoulli’s principle and how tractors work.

The highlight? Was easily the mirror maze that they built that was supposed to somehow explain or highlight the whole divine ratio thing and how you can find patterns in nature that reflect the logic of numbers…or something.

To be honest, I just thought that maze was damned cool, and probably would have had a better time of it if I’d managed to go in there with just the Moores and if the mirrors didn’t have fingerprint smudge marks all over them at kid height level haha.

But it was still pretty interesting to check out.

Skydeck

Took the bus back into the city and wandered through the downtown core (apparently called “The Loop”) till we made our way to the Willis Tower.

Whereupon we found a HUGE line of people wanting to take the elevator up. Luckily, we had a “citypass” that allowed us to skip virtually ALL the lines. Like, potentially 1.5-2 HOURS worth of lines we skipped. Just strolled past them, like those snooty folk that we all hate haha. But it was totally worth it.

There’s an observation deck up there where you can look out on the city, as well as stand on a glass floor and such.

Apparently? There was some sort of Groupon deal going on for the weekend cause everyone and their mothers were there at that time.

There was actually enough of a crowd that we didn’t end up getting to stand on the glass floor area…but alas. The view was spectacular anyway.

Downtown Chicago

Fun fact?

For some reason, the entire downtown core of Chicago seems to just…CLOSE after 5PM on a Sunday night.

I know what you’re thinking.

“Well, Perry? Maybe they don’t get enough business there so they just close the restaurants and such. It’s not a big deal.”

Oh, it IS a big deal.

When I say everything? I mean…fucking everything.

Restaurants? Closed.

Convenience stores? Closed.

McDonalds and other fast food joints? CLOSED.

STARBUCKS. CLOSED.

Holy hell, we were starving, looking for somewhere to eat.

Closed, closed, closed.

Got Tami to consult Senor Google for a nearby place to eat?

NOTHING. Just a blank square swathe of city, with the nearest pinpoints of nearby restaurants being like eight-nine blocks away in every direction.

It was honestly one of the weirdest damned things I’ve seen in a major city.

Shedd Aquarium

Day two started off with the Shedd Aquarium, which was suitably awesome.

I will admit to an ulterior motive on this trip.

I’m…a giant Harry Dresden junky? So one of my goals was to visit as many “Dresden” landmarks as I could.

So yes, I was totally gung-ho for the aquarium. I mean, this was where Nicky and the Nickleheads pulled a fast one and made off with Ivy! I saw the dolphins that warned Harry of danger! And I took a picture of them! They’re practically celebrities, guys.

But cool fish, all around.

I was a tiny bit spoiled by the fact that I’d popped my aquarium cherry just a month prior. Some friends had come to my town and we took the opportunity to check out the aquarium downtown, something I’d never bothered to check out before.

So SOME of the awe and wonder was a little absent, but it was still really cool.

I think my favorite was down in the basement, where there weren’t many people around? They had this big tank with simulated waves to sound like the crashing ocean.

Twas quite lovely.

Adler Planetarium

Not part of the Dresden-verse but still pretty cool.

Space…I love space.

Not really too much to say about this one. There were space-y things. Two curved dome theater shows that nearly put me to sleep (shush, they were dark and soothing).

It wasn’t as…science-y as I was half hoping it to be, to tell the truth. I was expecting it to be a little more geared toward adults? But most of it seemed to be geared toward the younger crowd and I didn’t really learn much in the way of new things.

Basically, if you’ve even a passing fondness for space, there wasn’t much that this place would impart.

But the cool part? There was an observatory thing outside that we got to go to and look through a telescope with specialized filters that let us look directly at the surface of the sun.

Could see the sunspots and the little…flare thingies? That rise up from the surface in slow arcing waves?

That was super cool.

Field Museum

Oh yeah. I did a thing.

You see that beauty?

Fucking Sue.

SUE!! Yeah, THAT Sue. The Sue that Harry reanimates and rampages around downtown Chicago during the plague of necromancers?

I TOOK A PICTURE WITH HER.

She seemed pretty cool. Named after the woman who discovered her, she’s (gender is unknown, but I’m calling her she) apparently the most complete T-Rex skeleton ever discovered.

There was more, some really, REALLY cool looking exhibits at the Field museum that I totally, TOTALLY want to go back to? But we were old, tired, and just…completely exhausted from walking around so much the past day and a half so we called it after about an hour and half in there.

We did still manage to check out some really cool exhibits there, especially the taxidermy-d animals of the natural world sorta thing.

Soldier Field

We didn’t actually go to it, but on the way out of the Field Museum, I did manage to get a bit of a picture with the outside of Soldier Field, where Harry dueled Duke Paolo Ortega of the red court of vampires.

Excite!

…yes, I AM a geek =D.

Moore Manor

Drove back to Wisconsin after that.

First view of the carlashes. The CARLASHES guys. What the shit?

And Ollieollieollie!

Yes, that’s his name. Ollie is his short name.

I know this, because EVERY time Tami calls for her cat? That’s what she says.

“Ollieollieollie!”

Cute XD.

Things that were done at Moore Manor

In no particular order?

Shotgunned the third season of Hannibal: It was…alright? But I felt it was a relatively weak ending to a strong, STRONG first two seasons.

Watching of miscellaneous things: Predestination. An episode of Teen Titans with a stupidly catchy song. Couple first episodes of shows, to see if we want to add them to our together watching agenda.

Baking: Tami made little cranberry snacky things! And I totally helped…hey, stop laughing. I swear, it’s true. Tami, tell em I helped =/.

Ukelele plonking: Now with 67% more cowboy hats.

Playing with Ollieollieollie: Lol. Quite amusing.

Walking Olliolliollie: Who the hell walks a cat? XD.

Board games!: A round of the Firefly board game (pretty fun), two rounds of Dixit (Ollie played too), and couple rounds of Nines (I HATE THIS GAME and so totally want to play it again).

Lounging in the soul-hugging chair of DOOM while Ollieollieollie napped on the ottoman by my feet: Why won’t you cuddle in my lap, you stupid cat? ><

Cooking!: Of a korean spicy soft tofu soup dish that turned out swimmingly! Alas, I neglected to take a picture of my success, so you’ll have to use your imaginations.

Escape Room

There are a few of these in Toronto, but I’ve never actually attended any before.

I think that definitely has to change.

This place? Was just…so much freaking fun.

I could have wished that the puzzles involved were just a tiny bit harder? But it was still a LOT of fun to wander around and try to decipher the clues together and figure out a way out.

I was a little skeptical as I walked in, as the ‘lobby’ area looked pretty unassuming and all? But once we got in there and started working on it?

Guys, SO much fun.

Something we talked about that they could have done a little better? Would be to have added just a little more atmosphere. Maybe add in a hint of a storyline, maybe make the room look a little more…normal instead of an obvious “this is a puzzle room” sort of vibe?

But otherwise, hot damn, didn’t realize how much fun it would be to go through one of these.