This is a tale of two very different weekends. Originally, it was planned to be a single weekend, but plans changed. Victoria and I have finally gotten to the point where one of us can handle both kids solo. This has allowed us to resume weekends to ourselves.
My originally planned weekend was on 12/20. I booked the Sleep Inn in Oregon, WI. I was planning on spending the weekend to myself and relaxing. Seasonal illnesses had another plan for me. Littler Dude came down with the flu.
Little Dude was still healthy, so I pivoted and took him to the hotel. I would have lost my money anyway by canceling the day of, so it was a no-brainer to take him. Hopefully, both he and I would stay healthy. Victoria also got sick earlier, so she may have had what Littler Dude had. To further avoid exposure, I picked up Little Dude from daycare, and we headed straight to the hotel.
We stopped at Piggly Wiggly first for snacks.
Little Dude enjoyed riding on the side of the cart.
I asked him where he wanted to get supper. He said Culver's. That was perfect since Culver's is across the road from the hotel. It was a Friday night fish fry for me.
After that, we crossed the street and made it to our hotel room. The two-queen-bed room was the cheapest, so I booked it. It worked out great for this pivot weekend.
I joined Choice Hotels' rewards program. I was told I could pick two items from their store. I got a honey ham stick. Little Dude wanted ice cream.
Outside was definitely chilly. This would be a good weekend to hole up.
I made sure to bring the iPad so Little Dude could watch his shows.
When it was bedtime, I used the bathroom light as a nightlight. Little Dude asked for it and didn't want to sleep in the dark fully.
We both got a decent night's sleep. The next morning was a little brighter.
We went downstairs for breakfast. As we sat down, the news was talking about how bad the flu was getting. We were definitely living it.
The breakfast was really good! The omelet was flavorful, and the potatoes were crispy.
A while after breakfast, Little Dude wanted a snack. I got a water cup and filled it with popcorn.
I also grabbed some plates and napkins from the breakfast area for later.
Little Dude had a good time playing with his cars on the bed.
While he was doing that, I got an energy drink and worked on a few things on my laptop.
It was soon lunchtime. I ordered Pizza Pit. It was nice getting the food delivered right to our room.
The plates came in handy.
The room fridge wasn't big enough to fit the pizza box flat. I removed two of the shelves and turned the pizza box diagonally. It then fit.
Overall, our room had decent internet speeds. Basically, 80 Mbps up and down makes working on things and streaming much easier. We also checked out the pool, and Little Dude had a great time swimming.
Little Dude and I checked out of the hotel and then went to church. The reason I chose the Sleep Inn was that it's just down the road from People's UMC, where we go to church. It was a quick drive there.
After that, we went home and eventually celebrated Christmas later in the week. Littler Dude was feeling better, and Victoria still seemed healthy. Little Dude and I were also healthy, so the mission was accomplished that weekend.
Since everyone was now healthy, I could have a weekend to myself the following weekend. I booked the Sleep Inn again. On Friday, I left and checked in.
The weekend before, I was on the second floor. This weekend I was on the third floor. I booked the two-queen bedroom again so I could compare experiences. One thing I first noticed was that this room lacked a lamp by the bed.
Additionally, the wifi wasn't as strong in the room. The speeds were still acceptable, but significantly slower than the week before. 30 Mbps down was more than half as slow as last week. 4 Mbs up was 20x slower. Effectively speaking, it didn't make a difference. It's something interesting to note how different rooms have different wifi speeds.
For this week, I brought my Mac Mini desktop setup. I made sure to pack it very carefully in the suitcase.
I then set it up on the desk. This would let me work on things and play around with some of the ideas I had.
I also brought a cooler with my typical road trip snacks of jerky, Chex Mix, and energy drinks.
It was dreary outside, so it was another good weekend to hole up.
I tested the internet again to see if it was any faster. It did speed up a bit. I have a feeling speeds also depend on how many other people are using it. I'm guessing a lot of people are streaming.
The night before, I had jerky and Chex Mix for supper. For lunch, I ordered Pizza Pit again. Now, I hadn't planned to leave the room until I got a call from the front desk. "Your food is here. Come down and get it."
I was then confused. I asked if they could deliver it to the room. She refused, so I went to the lobby. I then asked why it couldn't be delivered to my room, since literally the week before it was. She then checked with her manager, and I found out it could have been delivered to my room.
I took my food to my room. When I tried to open the door, neither key worked. I had to go back down and get that fixed. After that, I was finally in my room. I enjoyed some gyros, onion rings, and fried mushrooms for both lunch and dinner.
I went back to working on things and eventually went to bed. The next morning, it was very foggy and gloomy.
I got my things together and checked out. I then ate breakfast before I went to church. The breakfast was just as good as last time, so it hit the spot.
I went to church and then came home. I will say, even with the hiccups, it was a relaxing and productive weekend. It is kind of crazy the different experiences you can have at the same hotel, merely a week apart.
Now, you might ask what I was working on with my Mac Mini. I have been leaning heavily into AI. I experimented with AI. I deep dived into things for extended amounts of time, uninterrupted. I don't have that ability at home, so it was nice to do.
The Sleep Inn is a decent place for a weekend away. It's close enough to Belleville and super close to the church. That alone cuts down a lot of travel overhead. The internet is good enough to be productive. I know I had a few hiccups on the second visit, but the positives outweighed those. I'll definitely keep this place in mind for a future weekend to myself. It also works for an emergency getaway when another wave of sickness comes around.