J. Becker & Co, So, that was a 4 day weekend.

So, that was a 4 day weekend.

Another thrilling narrative courtesy of J. Becker & Co:

Friday

3:00am: Begin drive to O’Hare Airport after finishing my section of The Torch
4:30am: Arrive at O’Hare Airport. Still have to wait in security line, despite the absurd hour. Attempt to sleep. Fail. Listen to stupid people talk. Record my reaction to this conversation here.
7:30am: Board plane
8:05am: Flight leaves. I probably get in 30 minutes of decent sleep.
10:00am: Arrive at Little Rock Airport.
10:30am: The other two members of my party arrive at the airport. We get a rental car and drive to Hot Springs
12:00pm: We arrive at Oaklawn. We find our reserved seats and meet another member from our party who goes by the name “Silver Fox.”
12:30pm: The rest of the group arrives. There are about 8 or 9 of us in total at this point. Two more will be arriving later in the day.
1:05pm: The first race of the day begins. Also, I have my first beer of the day.=
5:00pm: The races end for the day. I came out about even.
5:15pm: We go to the “Crosswalk Bar” across the street from Oaklawn. We have one beer.
5:45pm: We go somewhere else for pizza. There is a horrible band comprised of two old people. Horrible.
8:00pm: We finally make it back to our condo. This is my first time there. I call girlfriend.
8:30pm: For the first time in nearly 32 hours, I SLEEP

Saturday

6:15am: Wake up. Attempt to take a shower. Fail. (Some kind of button that I had to press to get it to work right) Got dressed.
6:45am: Depart with group to go to the track to see Moojab, a potential horse for the Kentucky Derby, do his morning workout. I got to meet his trainer, Dan Peitz, who sat with us both days at the track.
7:00am: Breakfast at the track cafe, consisting of biscuits and gravy, bacon, hash browns, eggs, and a big cup of coffee.
8:10am: Arrived at some state-park golf course to play golf for the first time in 10 years or so. Fortunately, we were playing a scramble, so I almost never had to play my own shots.
11:00am: We return to the condo for a quick lunch. Honey-baked ham sandwiches.
12:15pm: Back to the track! We have our seats in the same place we were yesterday. The horrible “all you can eat” buffet also appeared to be the same as the day before.
1:00pm-5:00pm: More horse racing. I came out slightly ahead, and the group pooled some big money together and won the late daily double. And there was much rejoicing.
5:15pm: Head to the “Longshot Bar,” (which is right next to the Crosswalk) for a beer.
6:00pm: Return to the condo for a delicious steak dinner. Hang out and watch football.
10:00pm: Begin a night of odd bar hopping. First one has young people, but they may be from the cast of Jersey Shore. Second one has old people. Odd experiences all around.
12:30am: Return to condo and hang out
2:00am: Out.

Sunday

9:15am: Wake up, shower, pack
10:00am: Leave condo
11:00am: Get a bath at the Arlington Hotel, downtown Hot Springs.
12:00pm: Eat a pulled pork sandwich at a place called the “Whole Hog Cafe.” Pretty good, but none of their sauces were worth writing home about.
12:45pm: Rendevous with other part of group that went golfing instead. Drive back to Little Rock
2:00pm: Arrive at Little Rock airport. Check in for flight. Attempt to watch football game in bar, but they have a “policy against changing stations.” ok… We go through security and find a better bar.
3:30pm: Flight leaves for Chicago
5:15pm: Land at O’Hare
5:45pm: Realize that it’s Sunday, I have the next day off, and you can’t buy beer in Indiana on Sunday. Take care of that problem in Illinois.
7:00pm: Rendevous with some friends at Chipotle in Merrillville.
7:30pm: Arrive at Valpo
8:30pm: Reunited with girlfriend, go party hopping for the remainder of the evening

Monday

And… That’s that. Guess I have some school tomorrow or something.