Motel Madness: Manhattan/Mohegan

OK, not quite a motel, in fact nothing like it, when I spent Friday night in the city because yet another hurricane had screwed with my schedule.

This time, Ike struck late Friday night, so I worked late overseeing our coverage and had to get back into the office by 7 a.m., which meant a nearly impossible turnaround if I had to ride the train home and back. So my boss offered a hotel, and I didn't waste any time arguing.

The place was called the Muse Hotel, about a block from work. The second I walked into the room, I felt guilty. First of all, guilty that my employer was putting me up in a 17th floor room with a fleeting glimpse of Times Square, two flat-screen TVs, a minibar (Heineken for $7.50), a whirlpool bath, a leather couch and cute little square bars of soap. And doubly guilty because I should have been sharing such a cool experience with Liz.

Maybe someday, when we have $400 to burn without the hope of work reimbursing me.

The other motel experience, which was closer to a true motel, thankfully was shared with Liz. On a whim Sunday we decided to run up to the Mohegan Sun casino for a little spontaneous fun. It's about a hour drive, and we got a cheapo hotel for $80 that offered a shuttle van to the casino.

It was our first trip to one of Connecticut's two Indian casinos, but not as eventful as it sounds. We stuffed our bellies at the casino buffet and I lost $90 at blackjack. I think I would have had better luck had I moved to the poker room, but Liz wasn't really enjoying the gambling scene so we just headed back to the hotel.

To quote that old Third Eye Blind song, I guess we lead a "semi-charmed kinda life, baby." Not really all that glamorous, but at least a little excitement on the weekends to get us through our work week.