The most epic week of all time (full story inside)

[Chad22]

I started Tuesday off as a young excited man, anxious to embark on his first journey into the "real world". I had only gotten about four hours of sleep the night before, but that didn't matter to me. I woke up at about 4 AM so I could get to the airport by 5 and leave at 6. My first stop was in Boston, which was a nice place, but definitely way different from the small town I was used to. Next up was Washington D.C., which was a little more confusing but they had this AWESOME restaurant in the airport called "Five Guys" where I ate some of the best fries I've ever had. It wasn't until I got to Detroit that disaster hit. First of all, the place was HUGE. I seriously had to go like a mile just to get from one building there to another, and thankfully some guy in a truck offered to give me a ride. Not one of the smartest things I've ever done, but I had a schedule to make. Things then got worse when I got a text from EFD saying that he missed his flight and wouldn't be able to make it until tonight. Then to make it even worse, I looked all over the airport for TF, MG, and BF (Who I had planned on meeting just for an hour or so) and was unsuccessful in getting to meet them because the airport people made me rush to the other side of the airport to go through security. The funny thing is I actually saw TF that day, but because he had short hair and I was used to his hair being longer in pics, I didn't even realize it was him. With my spirit nearly being killed, I boarded my flight from Detroit to Chicago and arrived in Chicago an exhausted and beaten man. I didn't even have the energy to wait around for EFD for hours, so I went to the closest hotel I could find (a Holiday Inn) and just went in and layed down. It was there that I got a text from TF asking how I'd feel if he took a bus out the next morning. I wasn't sure if he was serious or not, but told him he should and the rest is history. About 9 PM or so EFD finally showed up to the hotel after I told him where I was at, and our first meeting was surprisingly nowhere near as awkward as I thought it would be. After exchanging pleasantries we went down to the hotel bar and grill and had something to eat, which was nice and a definite change of pace from the disasterous day I had. After that we went up to the hotel and called TFio and MG and talked to them for awhile before finally getting to sleep around 5 AM.

Wednesday was another exhausting day. EFD and I woke up in the morning and got a text from TF saying he was on a bus and would be there within an hour or two. We decided to take a little walk around while we waited for him, and after a few hours of him not showing up yet, we just decided to go to the airport and wait for him there. This is when things got difficult, as TF's phone wasn't working right and we only had a matter of hours to get downtown to the Billy Idol concert we had tickets for that night. Finally about 4 PM we got a text from TF saying "I'm at the hotel". which was a little strange since we weren't actually checked INTO a hotel at the time and had no idea where he was. We told him to go wait at the Holiday Inn we had stayed in the night before and took a shuttle out immediately to go find him. Meeting TF was kind of strange, because when me and EFD met it was really comfortable, but we had at least like a small bit of awkwardness. When the three of us met up on Wednesday, it was almost as if there was no awkwardness at all and it was just three friends that knew eachother forever having their first in person meeting. After that we headed back to the airport to catch a train downtown. This was the first time I had ever rode on a train, and it was definitely an exciting and fun experience...until hours had went by and we were still on it. It also got REALLY crammed in there to the point where all of us could just barely fit in the thing, though I admit it was kind of funny seeing a huge group of girls surrounding us. By the time we got off the train we barely had any time to make it to the concert, but we still had to find a hotel to put our bags in. After about an hour of unsuccesfully trying to find one in the ghetto looking area, we found a Days Inn and gave our bags to TF before rushing out the door to get another cab to the concert. Once EFD and I got to the concert we were about half an hour late, and the only seats left were in the very back. My first concert experience was kind of fun, though I think EFD enjoyed it alot more than I did. Billy Idol and Slash both did a great job and really seemed to go out of their way to put on a great show for everyone. A highlight of the show for me was this drunk guy a few aisles down dancing shirtless, swinging his shirt in the air like a cowboy swinging a rope, and dirty dancing with a lady I ASSUMED was his wife. Both horrifying and hilarious at the same time. Once we got back to the hotel we found TF sleeping and woke him up to go walking and find a place to eat. After a little searching, we found a cozy little Dunkin' Donuts and ate there before heading out to randomly roam the streets at 3 AM. It really wasn't as scary as I thought it would be, but we did run into these weird drunk guys that were hassling us. After that we pretty much just went back to the hotel and goofed off and made videos all night before heading down to get our free breakfast and make waffles ourselves. Yet another day that started out rough, but got awesome towards the end.

Thursday was alot less hectic than the past two days, which in a way made us seem almost bored at first. We attempted to rent a rental car, but ran into some problems with that and it just wasn't meant to be. TF and I also watched Jeopardy in the hotel and played along with it, which was alot more fun than it sounds. Later that night we had the feast of all feasts as we each walked off to a fast food place (I had McDonalds, EFD had KFC, and TF had Subway) and brought back about forty dollars worth of food to the hotel. After putting all of that food on the table, we took a picture and stood proudly over it, knowing that we were about to accomplish something that very few men would dare to do. After that epic meal, EFD wanted to go for a walk but I was kind of tired out. I decided to go with him and TF anyways, which led to one of the most dramatic moments of the trip when EFD was making fun of me for limping and going slow, and I proceeded to yell and tell him off in the streets of Chicago. After that awkward scene, we found a neat little old school record store and browsed around there for a bit before we found an AWESOME ice cream parlor and went in. Whatever tension we had had earlier was now gone, as the three of us sat in this old fashioned ice cream parlor enjoying some ice cream and talking about how awesome the trip was. After that we went back to the hotel and wanted to call some people, so we called Ashlee. We ended up only getting her answering machine, so we sang La Bamba for her on it and then decided to call up JACK. Talking to Jack was definitely an interesting and amazing experience between four guys that have almost a decade of history with eachother. After that we watched this hilarious King Of The Hill episode about Hank shaking hands with President Bush and went to bed.

Friday was a bit of a change of tone for the trip. Not only were we leaving Chicago itself to head to a nearby smaller town, but Joseph (DA HOME GUY as he's known on SO) was joining us. We ended up taking a train back to uptown to the airport to pick him up, and after about an hour or two of waiting, Joe had arrived. We could all tell at first that Joe was a bit more nervous about this trip than we had been, but as the weekend went on he really started to come out of his shell alot more. We took a cab to the nearby Berwyns-Lyon area and checked into the Rodeway Inn before we saw a pool outside, and TFio and I decided to go for a swim. Joe and EFD were too cowardly to join us, so they stood and watched as TF and I jumped into the pool and played around like a couple of eight year olds. After a nice little dip, we all went for a walk to this cozy little diner called the "Back In The Day Cafe". The food was good, but the atmosphere was really what made it great. After that we pretty much just spent the night walking around town until we found this huge arcade and went in to play some video games. The four of us scattered off to play various games at first, but ended the journey together when we all worked together to beat The Simpsons and Ninja Turtles games. After beating them we all stood there with a sense of pride and decided it was time to pack it in, so we headed back to the hotel to call it a night.

Saturday morning was a bit different from the rest of the trip, was it was raining. We only got a few hours of sleep, so TF and EFD decided to sleep more while I went out to get Joe and we took a walk over to Walgreens. Once we got out of there, it was now POURING rain and we rushed back to the hotel before we went into his room and had a cozy morning watching Babar and praying together for the first time. After TF and EFD finally woke up, we all headed out to the SHIMMER wrestling shows and waited in line for about two to three hours because of some problems they were having. It was kind of annoying, but totally worth it when we got in and watched one of the best wrestling shows I've ever seen in my life. It was kind of strange seeing TF sitting at a wrestling show, but even he got into it and we all had a blast. It was also on this day that I got to meet the lovely Jessie McKay and get a picture of her, a fine woman. After the show we all called for a cab to head to the 39Ten lounge for the afterparty, but ended up waiting outside for like an hour before the thing finally showed up. By the time we got to the club, it was so late and we had such a hard time getting food and everything that it was a miserable experience. The music was loud, there was no room, none of us had ever been to a place like this before, and most of the wrestlers were already leaving by the time we got there. On the brightside, Joe did finally get to meet his dream girl Portia Perez and we were all happy for him. After this we all headed back to the hotel and watched what we could even find on that cheap TV, finally deciding on an episode of Maury where he had this hilarious angry cowboy as his guest.

Sunday we headed back over to the SHIMMER tapings and watched yet another awesome day of wrestling. We decided after the show to give the after party another try, but EFD (who had been seeking some wild and exciting adventures all week) decided to go his own way and let us go. So Joe, TF and I took a cab to the after party and went in, before realizing that it wasn't nearly as bad as it was the night before. We all sat down on a couch in the corner and before you know it, we were actually having fun. We met some of the wrestler girls and took pictures with them, and then the DJ started playing some awesome disco songs as lights flashed on the dance floor. As nervous as we were about ever doing anything like this, we realized this was a once in a lifetime oppurtunity and you only live once, so TF and I proceeded to go out to the dance floor and boogy down while Joe watched from the side and video taped us. Before you know it, more people came out to the dance floor and started to dance with us as we were surrounded by dancing girls and hilarious men. We danced for about an hour and loved every second of it before realizing that Joe had gone somewhere, so TF went outside to go and look for him as I continued to dance the night away. Finally a girl got a little too close for comfort next to me and started like grinding, and while I admit it was kind of fun and different, my nervous side could take no more and I followed outside to find the others. Once I got outside I found the others and we walked around for a bit before suddenly we hear this girl yell out "HELP ME" from the corner and look over to see her being shoved against the wall in an alley and grabbed by the neck. To say this was horrifying to us was an understatement, but we knew we couldn't just leave this girl to get hurt or raped, so we rushed over to the alley and made the guy leave. By this point we were pretty much ready to leave but still not quite sure, until the guy came back and we feared he might have a gun or something, so we called for a cab. The cab ended up taking FOREVER, so we went across the street to this awesome grocery store and just randomly walked around it in the middle of the night, a dream of our's for years. Finally I got a call from the cab company, so we went back outside to go and find it, but not before we saw the alley guy being kicked out of the club by this big guy and told to "GET THE F*** OUT". After that we went back to the hotel, just experiencing the most exciting night of our lives, and found out Mr. Excitement himself EFD had spent the night eating at Dunkin' Donuts.

Monday was definitely an emotional day for all of us. As excited as we were to see our families again and sleep in our own beds, we knew that this week had been the best of our lives and we wanted it to go on forever. After eating breakfast at the hotel, we took one final cab to the airport and bid our farewells to Joe and TF before they went their seperate ways. EFD and I were on the same flight to Detroit, so we had a little bit longer with eachother and ended up sitting right close to eachother on the plane. Once we got to Detroit we walked down the airport to find our gates and said our goodbyes before we too went out seperate ways. The rest of the day was pretty much spent going through various airports and riding various planes before I got home at about 10 PM to my apartment that I didn't recognize.

In conclusion the week was rough, scary at points, thrilling, and exhausting...but I wouldn't change a single thing about it, because for the first time I got to meet my three best friends in person and spend the best week of my life with them. Once we got home and talked on MSN (which was weird) we KNEW that a second trip had to be made and planned for, so until 2011...

[Stormtracker TF]

Great storytelling, my man. Reading that brought back so many good memories of the trip, we are so doing this again next year.

You'll be hearing from my perspective soon.

[DA HOME GUY]

Here's my account of the weekend (since I had come in on Friday, a little later than the others). Hopefully Chad's retelling of it set up the thing well since there's a bit of wrestling references in this.


This past weekend was the most impactful and exciting weekend of my life for many reasons. For one, I got to talk to and hang with people that I've been speaking to for years online (including my best friend) to but that's more to come later on. First came taking a flight by myself out to Chicago, Midway airport.

Friday morning I had to wake up early to be at the airport by 10 AM. Once we boarded and got off the ground, I knew there was no turning back. I knew that I had to do this now and as the trip went on, I became more pumped up and excited for the trip and what it would entail. Last time I flew JetBlu and this time I flew Southwest. I prefer JetBlu more honestly because you got free headphones and it just felt a lot more comfortable than cramming everyone in. It was a two seat plane before, this time it was three seats which could be rather bad if anyone decided to get up and walk past you. I would of preferred a window seat but my boarding spot meant that I couldn't really be choosy. That day I had B 53, which wasn't TOO bad since there's A, B and C.

Anyways, we were ahead of schedule and actually made it to Chicago about 20-30 minutes before the arrival time. That was nice to be able to get there earlier than I expected. It was at the baggage claim that I ended up seeing and meeting my best friend Chad along with my other great friends TF and EFD. It was a little weird at first, especially that first day but once I got used to being around them, it started to get better.

What followed came going to the Rodeway Inn. The Rodeway was a nice hotel that I loved a lot because it was better than any hotel or motel I'd been to in the past. It had a swimming pool (that Chad and TF ended up swimming in later on while I filmed) and exercise equipment. I didn't explore it but there was also a nice balcony view that sounded awesome. My room itself was great with a HUGE bed and a clean looking bathroom. The only let down was that the TV only had a few channels on it so I ended up missing Smackdown but considering that a lot of the night entailed seeing neighborhoods that had their windows and doors open (such a contrast to out here where NO one in their right mind would do that). Along with exploring life in Lyons (the town the Rodeway is in). There isn't much to Lyons but just being out in a new place was fun and being able to see various things around there. Like a 50's style diner and an arcade (that even carried the classic Wrestlefest Chad and I played a match on along with Ninja Turtles and the Simpsons with all four of us beating). Just being able to ease into what the state of IL was all about with that night was great, it wouldn't of been half as great without people there to get to know and get to experience it with.

Saturday morning was a big contrast to Friday night. The others has been there quite a few more days than me so they were tired out. EFD decided to take a two hour long shower which set us back a little bit but considering it rained out there, it was probably for the better. The rain out there was crazy in the morning and it actually was weird to be around rain again. The last time I saw rain was this past spring where it was raining day after day which is unique for out here. At least there was Babar watching between Chad and I along with us being able to say a prayer together. Thankfully the rain stopped and we were able to head to the Berwyn Eagles Club. It took us a while to get there but once we did, I was amazed that I had finally made it there. After seeing pictures posted of it, it was just amazing to me that here I was standing in line at a place that was almost like a legend to me with how much I'd heard about it from the SHIMMER faithful. Having people that I only dreamed about meeting someday next to me to enjoy this, that meant the world to me. I had heard a lot about these type of weekends and I was excited but nothing could really describe the excitement of how I felt afterwards.

I'm not going to do in direct detail about everything on the shows because that would take forever and my memory is really crappy. I just know that was one of the most electric crowds I'd ever been apart of and also one of the smallest. Yet each and every fan there was on their feet and cheering. Even TF, who isn't a wrestling fan got into it by the end and it was just a sight to see. That day, I feel like I became closer to everyone involved, especially the friends that I had felt awkward in front of the day before. I felt alive, I felt like I was apart of something special and we all were.

The action itself was great. My favorite moments included a three way match with Sara Del Rey taking on Jessie McKay taking on Hamada. The fans were rocking and the wrestlers were even more rocking. I also loved Serena Deeb's return because it felt like it were a part of a special moment and the atmosphere in the arena was electric. You could look on Serena's face and tell she was moved by the entire thing, which meant all of us were moved right there with her. I also loved her and Portia Perez going back and forth. Seeing Portia in action for the first time, words can't describe how that felt. I followed her career for five years so to finally be there to see her compete was something that I couldn't even get a grip on when it was first happening. Of course she went down with what appeared to be a horrific reinjury to her back. Everyone was in silence as we wondered if this was something for the show or reality. I was convinced that she had really hurt herself and just when I let my guard down, she ended up showing it was a swerve all along and that she was fine by launching an out of nowhere attack. Joey Eastman is also a heck of a ring announcer who got us all pumped up and excited even when we were tired out by the time the second tapings rolled around. I didn't get to experience much at intermission since it was packed but having wrestlers walk around us was an experience in itself that I wasn't used to.

Unfortunately after the show, we got caught up with cab problems (NEVER take Express Cabs at night). Which delayed us going to the afterparty and by the time we got there, it was filled up with a ton of people who had taken all the tables. So we were left ordering a pizza and standing up with nowhere to sit. The pizza took about a half an hour to an hour to be done. We thankfully got somewhere to sit and eat but it was kind of a stressful point of the trip. It was really too bad because that night when I looked back, I realized that stress made me not enjoy what could of been a really good afterparty, if short. It was my own attitude to the events that happened, that caused it. I had went to the bathroom and came out to find my friends outside. Portia was about to leave, I had saw her earlier but I didn't feel like bothering her any while she was sitting with some of the other girls. So thankfully she didn't leave quite yet and I managed to talk to her briefly in the parking lot. That was a moment of itself, being able to talk to her and see that she recognized me and the shirt she sent me. I loved having my friends there to be able to be there with me. Earlier in the night, Chad had gotten a photo with Jessie McKay and while I wasn't there to see it personally because I was walking around, I felt happy to be a part of him getting to meet her. Just being there to share it with him when it came to the weekend.

After Portia left just after we caught her, we decided to head off too after the night's frustrations. A cab picked us up and we were off to the hotel room. We were all tired out after that so we decided to call it a night. Well, the others didn't since I heard they got into quite the pillow fight and TF even found himself the victim of a crossface. I simply took about half an hour to get my clothes ready for the next day of tapings and took a shower. Then I went to sleep after seeing Mario Lopez on TV and got up the next morning, ready for the next day of tapings.

I couldn't believe the next morning though. I felt nautious and sick. It might have been the pizza the night before since Chad and TF also didn't have the best of fortune after it. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to handle another set of tapings, let alone an after party. I knew I wanted to go though no matter what so I got ready to go and prayed that my stomach would settle. Once we got to the Eagles Club, we were standing in line once again. The day before, a delay had happened that caused the show to start late. Today, there was no specific delay but the doors still opened quite late. We all eventually got in though, quicker than the day before. By the time we headed in, I felt world's better. Wrestling does that to me. Sometimes I'll feel sick or after a long trip, like I don't want to go on but as soon as I sit in that seat and witness what's about to go on, I come out of it and for those moments, can enjoy what's going on.

So while wearing what became my trademark fedora hat along with the other's wearing their's (except EFD who decided he had enough and I couldn't blame him, they become uncomfortable after a while). I remember last time the tapings were going on, people spoke about burnout on Sunday but I couldn't notice any burnout. In fact, Sunday's crowd may have been slightly more hyped up than Saturdays. The action was great and intense, we were all into it again and Portia provided some great entertainment. Things were awesome that day but it did set in that after these tapings, it would be all over. Not just SHIMMER or the tapings but the trip would only have a few hours left in it before we all had to say bye. I ended up buying a Portia DVD at intermission from her and I wish I could of stood to buy more but I knew that it would be hard to carry around a bunch of merch with another taping and the afterparty to go and no bag. I'll make up for that next time.

The shows ended up wrapping up and we all went off to the afterparty. We still had cab issues but thankfully we got there, even before some of the wrestlers. After asking Neveah and Sara Del Rey (two of the wrestlers) for some help in getting there after the show, it was ironic that we ended up there before them. The only issue was music being really loud to the point that you had to yell to get your point across...I really can't yell that loudly. The wrestlers were really accessible and given the night before and how much that became stressful, I wanted no stress this time around. Portia even showed up and I talked to her for a bit and thankfully Chad and TF got to as well. There is not enough words to describe how kind and nice she was to us. I have to say that she looked very pretty in person too. She couldn't stay long because she had an early flight but just the fact she showed up and we got to talk to her made me feel good. The night itself was wild with TF and Chad deciding to dance on an empty dance floor with disco lights and a fog machine. Wouldn't you know it, everyone else rushes over when "Disco Inferno" plays, at least a DJfied version of it. So Chad and TF actually started a dance dance revolution and basically everyone started getting down including a man who was wearing a Power Rangers shirt and a Rick Astley look alike. While they danced away, I decided to take a seat on the couch and video tape. Things felt a little uncomfortable after more people started to come over so eventually I got up and moved out of the way. I decided to see who was left at the front of the club and to my amazement...NO one was left there. They were all dancing or gathered around so I went to the bathroom. When I came out, I saw some people outside including Joey Eastman. So I went out there for a bit and took a seat but eventually some of them left and Joey and someone else went inside. So I was out there alone. So I headed back in and took a seat towards the back of where the dance off was going on. I witnessed Serena and some others having a good time in front of me.

TF had enough of dancing for the time being and we decided to head outside cause it was too loud in there for us. Eventually Chad came out and told us about his story where a girl was dancing against him and grinding. I couldn't help but laugh at the inside irony of this but things turned serious when we were walking through the parking lot and witnessed a man with his arms around a woman and her yelling help me at us. This had taken us off guard but we all went over (Chad and TF in front of me admittedly since I had no idea what was going on here and was cautious). The girl wanted him gone and instead of causing a scene, he left, or at least we thought he did. We asked the girl if she was okay but she just went back inside. We basically were unsure of whether we should go back in or call it a night after that. We then decided we'd go in for a little longer until the jerk from earlier came back and went into the club. It was there that we said we better just head back to the hotel (especially after being scared when he came back that he might of had it out for us but thankfully he didn't). I'm not sure if he was at the show or just at the Lounge, I didn't recognize the guy but I hope to never seem him again my life. At least later on we saw him get kicked out by what I assume was the bouncer. Anyways the cab took a while to come so we ended up heading into a grocery store across the street. Barely anyone was in there but it was neat enough to go from a club to a grocery store. However the cab called that they were there and we JUST caught them coming back. So we went back to the hotel for the night and proceeded to discuss the nights events, along with finding out what EFD had been up to (he decided not go to the afterparty). Then it was time to call it a night as much as we hated to because we needed to be up early for the airport.


Monday morning came and it was a tough realization. Besides being tired, I knew this was it. We had one final breakfast and we took our group picture before it was time to say goodbye and time to let go. Of our group, of the weekend and of the freedom we had out there. Once inside of the airport it hit me big time the weekend I had experienced and that I had lived more in the past three days of my life than I ever had at any other point. That I had met people now that I could never forget and had become friends for life, with one memory tied onto us from this trip. My plane ended up getting delayed for a few minutes which felt like murder when I was exhausted and just wanted to get home. It even arrived here in Ontario about an hour late and I was picked up an hour after that but it was all worth it.


I learned that my best friend Chad is a kind and daring person when he lets it come out (also apparently a ladies man judging by the afterparty). Not at all that it's a bad thing, he's a lot more willing to take risks than I am and that allows me to take part in these risks also. He's also go with the flow in that he'll be up for doing something unique and something crazy. Some things I wouldn't take part in but we're more than fun to watch like swimming in the hotel swimming pool or dancing in front of a bunch of the wrestlers without what looked to be a care in the world, just fun on his mind. Someone that is a brother in Christ who I got to pray with and let out everything that we ever prayed about online, in a real presence in front of the Lord himself.

I learned that EFD is a very entertaining man. He's also very risky and outgoing when it comes down to it and had more confidence around there maybe than most of us because he's used to it. He has a lot of pep and energy once he gets out of bed and gets out there. He also has his own style which I respect about him. I felt a sense of knowing him a little better after being out there with him.

TF is someone that was a last minute addition to the trip but one of the founding glues that held us together. He was on the ball by calling the cab companies and by taking charge a lot of the time when we felt lost, guiding us to where we needed to go. He also went to wrestling shows when he wasn't a wrestling fan and had a lot of fun with them when he didn't need to. I respected him for that and he was very into getting into the shows and trip itself.

That sums up the entire trip and I know there's going to be things I forgot or didn't go into detail about but once you've gone through a weekend like that, there's no one favorite moment. There's just so many of them that are scattered throughout it, it all becomes just one epic journey. My first epic journey on my own without my family but I can tell you that it's not going to be my last.

[Chad22]

Great piece, bro. I totally forgot to include EFD's two hour shower and our epic pillow fight.

[Chad22]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-a-3GdunAY

Video I just found on Youtube of TFio and I dancing for your entertainment.

[Chad22]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck5-SpNcXiU

The PILLOW FIGHT.

[Stormtracker TF]

Originally Posted by C Doody

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-a-3GdunAY

Video I just found on Youtube of TFio and I dancing for your entertainment.

Blackmail footage.

[Stormtracker TF]

Thought I'd write up a little summary from my perspective.

Prelude – Tuesday, September 7th, 2010:

Chad, EFD and Joe had been planning this trip for months. For me, the trip to Chicago was pretty much on a whim.

A few weeks prior, Chad and me worked out things so we could meet up for an hour or two at the airport in Detroit during his flight layover here. I figured that if I couldn't go along with the guys to Chicago, I may as well get to meet up with probably my oldest online pal. Turns out, EFD was also going to be there for a little while, which made the deal even better. I made plans to be at the airport to meet them both.

Things didn't go as planned.

Turns out, thanks to security, Chad and me were stuck on different sides of the airport. Huge bummer. To make matters worse, EFD missed his first flight and ended up not making it to Detroit until way after I left, about 7PM.

While I was waiting for the bus going back home, I talked to EFD on the phone for a little bit and he suggested I actually go to Chicago some way, some how. This got my adventurous side going, and as I thought about my options, it was becoming more and more obvious to me that this crazy idea might just work out.

First thing I did when I got home was go online and buy the next Greyhound ticket to Chicago, then pack whatever I could fit into my suitcase. What seemed like an insane suggestion mere hours before was now going to become a reality.

I talked to Chad and EFD on the phone well into that night while they both goofed off in their hotel room. The anticipation of my first trek out into the world alone was quickly building now, and I found it hard to sleep when I finally made it into bed, but I managed a few hours.

Day One – Wednesday, September 8th, 2010: Welcome To The Windy City

It Is Wednesday, and after what was only a short nap, I woke up and started to get ready at roughly 5:00AM. I was out the door by 6:00AM, and by 7:00AM I was leaving behind the motor city and setting my sights on the windy city.

The bus ride, summarized; there were trees. A cornfield. More trees. Cows. Another cornfield. More cows. More cornfields. Deer. Trees. Seven entire hours of this.

And then, on the horizon, I could see the Chicago skyline. It was like an oasis in the desert. Fittingly, I was playing some Blues Brothers music on my iPod and I was now more pumped than ever to take on Chi-town with my best buds in the world.

Once I got to the bus station, I was now smack dab in the middle of the biggest city I've ever seen. As I looked around myself, I couldn't help but think about how Chicago made Detroit look like a small town in comparison. With hardly any time to take in the scenery of the incomputable concrete jungle before me, I caught the Blue Island/26th Street to South Cicero and managed to find my way to Midway airport and finally, the hotel Chad and EFD had been staying in. I already was extremely late and had a heck of a time finding the guys, since there were about six hotels in one cluster and I had no idea which ones they were staying at. It didn't help that every hotel had no record of a Chad Doody or a Clark Dorigo staying there, and my phone was deciding to crap out at the worst possible time.

After checking all six hotels with no avail, the pure adrenaline I had been running on for the past 9 hours was quickly running out. As I sat on a park bench in front of a Holiday Inn, the very real fear of being all alone in an unfamiliar city with nowhere to go began to set in. It had already been a long day, and it was about to get longer.

Finally, in the distance, I see Chad and EFD walking through the parking lot. They joked a lot with me about this afterwards, but I simply waved and walked up to them and asked where they had been. That was how we met in real life for the first time, like I had known them for years and was giving them just another greeting. I guess, well, because I HAVE known them for years? Either way, it was funny that both of them expected some huge, dramatic moment from me. It was great though, no awkwardness at all, and we all were just talking as if we had known each other in real life as long as we had online.

All of us were worn out and in a complete state of disarray, but the day had hardly just begun for us as a group.

A nice bus driver gave us a free ride back to the airport, and once we were there we took a train (known as the “L” in Chicago, we learned.) around the city and to the Riviera Theatre, where the Billy Idol concert Chad and EFD were planning on going to was being held at. The “L” reminded me a lot of the People Mover here in Detroit, but on a much, MUCH bigger scale. At first, all three of us thought it was extremely awesome, but as the train ride went on things went south again in a hurry. It became extremely crowded and noisy and nearly impossible to get on/off of. Then, once we FINALLY made it to our destination after getting lost several times, the train the doors closed on me as I was exiting the coach. I think the dude operating that train was getting back at me for laughing nonstop the whole trip at him yelling at some guy who was fooling around with the doors as they closed.

Having found the Riviera Theatre, we needed to find a hotel nearby quick so we could unload all of our luggage. We searched for a good half hour, and got nothing. Luckily, we found a cab driver who knew just where to take us and we ended up at what turned out to be our favorite hotel of the entire trip. Since the guys were already late, EFD and Chad just left the luggage with me and I checked in. I couldn’t help but breathe a massive sigh of relief knowing there was finally a place to call “home away from home” for the time being. I unpacked, took a quick shower and promptly passed out on the bed. The next thing I remember is Chad and EFD banging on the door and yelling at me to open it, which I did, albeit in a complete daze. The guys told me all about the concert experience, and then it was time for a classic Charkony evening…CHICAGO STYLE.

Since all of us were starving, finding a place to eat was the main objective at that point. We found a Dunkin’ Donuts just down the street from our hotel and had a little midnight snack there, which in its self was awesome. The night was still young, though, and having fueled up for the evening, we made our way back out onto the streets, where even more awesomeness ensued. Basically, we spent the next four hours wandering around Chicago in the middle of the night and making insane videos and/or movies for our own amusement. Things were no different once we settled (and I use that term lightly) into our hotel room for the night. Honestly, I’m surprised nobody complained at all the noise we made while being a bunch of complete fools in there. Either way, it was a ridiculously fun night. You really had to be there, I guess, but everyone will get their little taste once we get all of the videos up.

We all pretty much had passed out by 6:00AM, ending our first awesome night.

Day Two – Thursday, September 9th, 2010: The Greatest Feast That Ever Was

Our first fill day together as a group was a pretty lazy one at first. All of us slept in until way past noon, only being awaken by our crazy maid who thought it was funny to barge in of us at 8AM and stand near the window, creating a shadowy figure that horrified Chad. We got revenge on her, but more on that later.

Chad and me pretty much just sat in our beds and watched Jeopardy all afternoon and played along. Not sure where EFD was, but he said he was going to the Borders down the street to buy something. He was gone for at least a couple of hours, so Chad and me decided to go look for him there. We never did find him, but by the time we got back we found him in the hotel room sitting in his bed and listening to his iPod with his sunglasses on.

Once we were together again, we decided to each go our separate ways in hopes of creating a fast food feast unlike any other. EFD went to KFC, Chad hit up McDonalds, and I went to Subway where I created a bunch of unique sandwiches that were possibly the only of their kind. We probably spent dang near fifty bucks on what would turn into the MECCA of fast food.

We pretty much rearranged the entire hotel room so we would have a table with enough room for all of the food. Once we had it all set out and took pictures so we could remember this defining moment in our lives, oh man, it was ON. I freaking ate KFC Snackers, chicken strips from McDonalds, Chicken McNuggets, a sandwich from Subway, fries, biscuits and mashed potatoes. In a matter of mere moments, we had pretty much devoured the whole thing. Needless to say, we all were stuffed.

After a relatively tame day of rest, the three of us were getting, dare I say it…bored. So much like the night before, we headed out onto the streets of Chicago to see what we could see. This would turn out to be somewhat ill-advised considering Chad was walking like Fred Sanford thanks to an injured knee and foot, and EFD wanted to conquer the entire city of Chicago. I was waiting for this moment to happen the entire trip and here it was… Chad kinda blew up at EFD after he started poking fun at him for walking around like he was a cripple, and several moments of drama unfolded on a park bench before random onlookers, but just as quickly as it erupted it ended in true Chad/EFD fashion. We went into a classic record shop and browsed around a little bit, and all was good by the time we stumbled on this amazing little 50’s style ice cream shop on a random corner that I can’t recall. The workers there looked like they were having the time of their lives and we all enjoyed some delicious ice cream, a perfect way to cap off a night of great eating with even greater friends. The atmosphere was just awesome. We’re in the middle of a huge city in a little ice cream shop filled with friendly people, just enjoying the warm evening with our best pals. THIS is the kind of nightlife I dig the most; I can’t say I’ve ever had a cozier experience than that.

With our spirits much higher than when we set out on our walk, we went back to the hotel and tried to call some of our friends who weren’t there. Nobody had picked up at this point, but we did get Ashlee’s voicemail. Not knowing exactly what to do, we broke into song and did an impromptu version of “La Bamba” before hanging up without leaving an explanation. Classic. We ended up talking to my sister too, who got our good friend Jack’s number for us and we called him. All I can say is I’m glad we recorded that conversation because to say it was the most random thing ever would be an understatement. Look out for video of that very special moment.

We wrapped up our night of random phone calls by getting my sister to give random and crazy news commentary while we had CNN on the TV muted, which was absolutely hilarious to us. Another thing I’m really glad we filmed; you just can’t recreate stuff like that. Again, I’m surprised nobody complained about all the noise we made laughing. The laughter continued as we watched an episode of King of The Hill that was literally about shaking President George W. Bush’s hand. This at 4:00AM pretty much seemed like the funniest thing possible.

I fell asleep sometime shortly after that, and so another epic day came to a close.

Day Three – Friday, September 10th, 2010: On The Rode

I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect when I woke up on Friday, but with only 4 hours of sleep under my belt I wasn’t exactly sure about anything until I had a chance to gain my composure. One thing I knew though is that today would be the day that the fab four would finally unite for the rest of the trip.

With little time to get ready, we said goodbye to the awesome Days Inn we had been staying at for the past three days and hurried back to the closest “L” station so we could pick up our pal Joe Revilla at Midway Airport. This ride was much more pleasant than our first, and was thankfully our last.

We didn’t have to wait long for Joe since he got there early, but he didn’t notice us waiting for him at the baggage claim so I ended tipping my hat down low and sneaking up behind him and putting a hat we had bought for him on his head without him knowing. He seemed extremely confused, but instantly turned around and said “TF?!”, we all died laughing. Not exactly the best way to greet someone, but it was definitely memorable.

Before we knew it, we were back on the road again, this time to the suburban town of Lyons, where we stayed for the remainder of the trip. When we first got to the Rodeway Inn, I was a little uneasy because it was definitely older and dirtier than the pristine confines of our Days Inn room, but it wasn’t too bad at all. In fact, it was pretty cozy, and best of all… it had a POOL. Epic fun ensues. Sadly, either EFD or Joe would jump in, but at least this ensured we got the experience on film. More or less, Chad and me spent the next half hour being the fools we are and trying not to drown in the deep end.

For dinner, we hit up this really awesome 50’s themed diner called the Back In The Day Café. It reminded me, Chad and EFD of the ice cream shop we visited back in downtown Chicago, except it was a Happy Days-like burger place. The burgers by the way were DELICIOUS. Also, the bathroom was called the sleeping room and contained hilarious paintings such as one of a man with a mustache wearing a suit. We all were thoroughly amused.

Continuing our journey through Lyons/Cicero/Berwyn area, we ran into this amazing arcade. When we walked inside, it was clear to us that this was a nerd’s heaven and we all felt like we were characters on The Big Bang Theory. The four of us played games together until well after midnight when we finally beat The Simpsons and Ninja Turtles games, which was a great moment for us. Nothing like playing old school video games with your best buds, it was a perfect way to end the evening, indeed.

I don’t remember much after I got to the hotel room, except for the fact that I ended up taking some of Chad’s allergy medicine and getting EXTREMELY high to the point there are lots of things I apparently did that I cannot recall for the life of me.

Day Four – Saturday, September 11th, 2010: PANCAKE BOAT

Still under the influence of whatever drug Chad disguised as allergy medicine to get through security, I woke up to the tune of EFD yelling at me for punching him in the face. Yeah, apparently I randomly woke up and started beating him up. I have no idea why I did this, nor do I recall doing it, but I do remember dreaming that I was really angry at my brother, so that may have had something to do with it. So I’m told, Joe also thought it’d be funny to poke me with stuff to wake me up since I was out COLD, and I guess I woke up and got really mad, but again…No memory of this at all.

It was a rainy day in Chicagoland, but we didn’t let that get our spirits down. As soon as everyone was ready, we took a cab to the Berwyn Eagle Club where they would be taping a DVD for SHIMMER Women’s Wrestling. To be honest even after we were there standing in line at the doors, I wasn’t exactly sure what I was about to attend, much less whether I would like it. We waited in line for hours because of unspecified delays, but the good part was that me, Chad and EFD at least got to sneak in a bite to eat while we waited (And we saw Rick Astley and Kenny Rogers look-alikes, which amused us greatly) We had lunch at a Mr. Submarine, which is apparently a very popular chain in the Chicago area. It was my first time eating there, but I enjoyed my meal. When the doors finally opened it was a huge relief, and we quickly went in and got our seats right next to each other. It was a really small venue that only seated about 250 people, so any seat was a good one really, but we were right at the front by the barricades by the ring…So we definitely all made it on the DVD.

The first half of the show I was dead tired, but I was entertained. About three hours into the six-hour taping, I was starting to dose off every now and then and was feeling some serious burnout. The second half, though, really woke me up and I started getting into it. I never had really been a big fan of wrestling even though I used to watch it with my dad a lot, but all of my questions were answered during the last three hours of the show. Those girls work really hard and put on a great show, and I have a lot of respect for that. I really can’t wait for the DVDs to come out so we have video evidence of our crazy antics like starting a PANCAKE BOAT chant among other things, and me tipping my hat and winking at all the girls. I’m pretty sure once the DVDs go on sale I’m gonna be known as the crazy winking guy, but that was kind of my goal.

After the show we were all pretty pumped up and ready for the after party, which Joey (the announcer) falsely said was JUST DOWN THE STREET. We walked several blocks to no avail, and now it’s getting really dark outside and we’re in this really ghetto part of town by liquor store waiting for a cab that was driven by some guy that passed us by TWICE before finally getting there like an hour and a half later. Big momentum killer. We got to the club way late and walked into an atmosphere none of us were very accustomed to, an incredibly loud, dark club with lots of drinking and little space to move around. We pretty much got some pizza and high tailed it out of that joint, but not before meeting Joe’s girl Portia Perez in the parking lot, which was by far the highlight of the first afterparty.

EFD and me were particularly put off by the events of the night, but Chad and Joe both wanted to go again after the taping on Sunday was over. EFD swore up and down he wouldn’t go back, and I was leaning towards not going either, but after such a stressful night I just wanted to be able to sleep on the issue.

Mistakenly thinking our hotel was right next to this club after getting directions from somebody, we ended up walking for about an hour before giving up and taking a cab the rest of the way.

I spent the rest of the night trying to cheer up EFD who was FURIOUS about the after party, but he mostly just stayed in his bed with his sunglasses on, listening to his iPod and browsing Facebook in solitude.

Before we all hit the hay, EFD and me went on a long walk and just talked about life and stuff. Some bonding time, I guess. We went and got a snack at Dunkin’ Donuts and headed back to the hotel and sat on the balcony for a little while, just kinda relaxing under the stars after a long day. I drifted to sleep that night sometime during an episode of Maury that Chad and EFD were particularly amused by.

Day Four – Sunday, September 12th, 2010: One More Time

As hard as it was to wake up after so many days of very little sleep with probably the least I had gotten up to that point during the trip, things were looking up and I couldn’t help but feel cheery in spite of the after effects of eating bad club pizza.

Unlike the day before, the sun was shining brightly and the wait in line wasn’t nearly as long. I was a lot more into the show this time and it was just as good, if not better than the one on Saturday. We all had a good time and I even got into a Detroit vs. Chicago battle with some random fans in the crowd after Mena Libra was billed as being from Detroit. We both reigned supreme as she came out on top and I continued my chant of “DETROIT! DETROIT! DETROIT!” Victory is sweet.

After the show was over, there was another momentum killing cab wait. EFD went straight back to the hotel, but I decided to take my chances at going to the after party because, heck, you only live once and this was my last chance to redeem its image in my mind after the previous night.

Little did we know how insane the night ahead of us would be.

Despite the long wait for a cab, we actually made it there before most of the wrestlers and a lot of the fans. Me, Joe and Chad ended up hanging out there for a good while chatting and enjoying the atmosphere and chatting with the wrestlers. We got to talk to Portia again and she was really cool and nice, but had to leave early. Considering how crazy it got, can’t say I blame her for being responsible.

As the night wore on, the lights started to dim, the DJ started playing music, and then lasers brightly colored disco lights begin flashing everywhere so me and Chad decide to live it up with no regrets and break it down on the dance floor to some 70’s tunes since this was our last night in Chicago. Then, out of nowhere, all the wrestlers run onto the floor to join us and there’s this HUGE party going on. Some of the highlights include the power going out and everyone singing “Just A Friend” by Biz Markie, the dance floor going crazy when the DJ played “DJ Got Us Falling In Love” by Usher and Pitbull, and a girl dirty dancing with a terrified Chad. It was crazy, amazing, and kinda scary all at the same time. No way to put it into words in a blog.

Needing some air and a break from the increasingly wild atmosphere, I went over and sat with Joe and asked if he wanted to go outside and take a break. He agreed that it was getting a little too wild, so we both stepped out and got some fresh air. A break, though, was anything but what we ended up getting. No sooner than we get outside, Chad comes rushing out to tell us he was getting grinded on by one of the girls and we start cracking up at it. He seemed kind of confused and nervous about the whole incident, but still wanted to go back in and GET DOWN some more.

Luckily, he didn’t, because what happened next shocked all of us. We’re chatting, deciding whether to stay as things continue to get more and more wild, or head back to the hotel and see what EFD had been up to. Before we can even decide, we hear some girl screaming for help and we rush to see where it’s coming from. At first, we thought it was some kind of bad joke, but as we walked into the alley behind the club we notice some guy is choking a girl and shoving her against a wall. I don’t know if the dude thought we were in a gang or what, but the minute we went over there and told him to get out he went straight to his car and drove off furious. We asked the girl if she was ok, but she seemed kinda scared and just went back into the club.

Took us about ten minutes of just sitting there afterwards, trying to wrap our minds around the ugly situation we just broke up. Was hard to believe we might’ve just saved some girl from being raped or worse.

After that little incident, we all decided it was best to put our wild sides to bed for the night and head back to the hotel. Our cab took forever to get there and the dude actually came back, only to get kicked out by a large, ANGRY bouncer who was cussing the guy out. Felt good to see the jerk getting pushed around like he was doing to the girl, guess he got a taste of his own medicine there.

Other than that, we talked to some awesome, wise black man who was smoking a cigar, and went on a late night grocery store run which was something we always dreamed of and actually DID. In fact, we enjoyed ourselves so much that we ALMOST missed our cab back to the hotel, but I made it out just in time to flag the guy down.

When we got back to the hotel, we wondered if EFD would believe the crazy we had. He told us his story about going to Dunkin’ Donuts and getting a sandwich and sleeping, and then we told our epic tale of meeting Wrestlers, getting down at the club, and stopping a rape. Yeah, I definitely ended up choosing the more exciting route.

The later it got, the more we all knew we had to eventually say goodnight so we could get up early in the morning and head back to our respective homes. It was an emotional night and it was hard to get to sleep and accept the fact that the most exciting night of our lives was over and it was time to prepare to leave Chicago.

Day Five – Monday, September 13th, 2010: All Good Things Come To An End

An emotional night lead to an emotional morning as we all woke up and had our final breakfast of the trip. None of us wanted to leave, but we had flights and buses to catch and families waiting for us back home. After we finished up breakfast at the hotel and got the nice lady in the breakfast room to take a picture of us all together, we went back to the place where it all started, Midway Airport. We said our goodbyes at the terminal, shared hugs and well wishes to each other, and with a final tip of our trademark hats, we bid farewell.

Then, it was back on the road for me. As much as I dreaded another eight-hour bus ride, what happened as I waited for that very bus was probably the most disturbing thing that has ever happened to me.

The story goes like this.

So I’m sitting at the Greyhound station in downtown Chicago and this younger black guy walks up to me. He says hello, we exchange the usual smalltalk chit-chat, and then I decide to go wait outside for my bus. “Why?” he asks. “Because I really don’t have anything better, I guess.”

”You could stay here and talk with me.”

Now, in hindsight, this should have set off bells, whistles, sirens and red lights in its self, but me being the guy who always gives everyone the benefit of the doubt, I stay and chat with the dude for a little longer.

It’s then that he starts asking me freaking weird questions like if I “got any” while I was in Chicago, which of course I respond “no” to. “Okay,” I think. “He’s probably just being a typical perv guy who’s curious if I had a good time here.”

Then I notice the guy is freaking MASTURBATING. Pretty much paralyzed in a mixture of disgust and fear, the dude reaches out and shakes my hand before I can do anything. At that point I’m freaking out and just get the HECK out of there, only returning to wash my hands in the bathroom and sanitize myself as best I can.

What do I find when I get into the bathroom?

Said black guy jacking off in the mirror as he stares at me from the stall. Yeah, it was time for me to call security. It caused a big scene. I don’t know if they ever caught the guy, but I sincerely hope he is PAYING for being such a disgusting human being. Never a dull moment during this trip, I say…

The ride home was much like the ride there, trees, cows and cornfields in no particular order. I finally made it back about 8:30PM. Only once have I been happier to see the rugged Detroit skyline, and that was when I drove 200 miles back home during the worst blizzard in 30 years.

In the end, I feel like this trip was a big turning point for all of us. It was our first journey out into the world on our own, and I think all of us got a little bit of confidence from that. I also think that this cemented the fact that all four of us will be friends for life, through thick and thin. I think we have a bond now that we didn’t before, even if we were already close as can be. Now, it’s just on a completely different level, which is awesome. It’s such a good feeling to know that you have friends who are always gonna be there for you, and that you’re always going to be there for them.

Best week ever.

[Chad22]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnzGTXp0kEM

Hijinks in the pool.

[Chad22]

A little SHAVING action.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEkGFs2KAWo

[Stormtracker TF]

This is making me really miss you guys.

[Chad22]

Originally Posted by Stormtracker TF

This is making me really miss you guys.

Me too.

I think I need to slow down on uploading these videos for a day or two before I start depressing myself.

[Stormtracker TF]

It has come to my attention that I mentioned giving a follow about my revenge on the maid that terrorized us, but I seem to have forgotten.

More or less, on the final day whenever she would knock on the door, I'd wait until she went to the next room and steal various items from her cart while she wasn't looking. Toilet paper, tissues, shampoo, etc.

We ended up using all of it anyway, except for the bottle of shampoo which I have sitting on my desk at the moment and probably will until the end of time.

[Chad22]

Chad and EFD at Burger King
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFAe-XgNBO0

Interview with Jack Wilson
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSjlKjYKUvM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6XDrzvycQM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KmUmmSxYUw

EFD attacked by stranger in closet
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzrHYBZWdxQ

[Stormtracker TF]

The guys get a devastating message for EFD from back home in Detroit
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNcM3zgjVlI