Jeannie was a lovely host. She contacted me before I ever arrived with great advice about getting to her place from the airport, and she met me at the train station to walk me to her house. She set me up with an extremely comfortable room that even had a desk and a space heater (in addition to central heat), offered extra blankets, and toured me through everything I might possibly need or want in her kitchen.

I came to Chicago to go to a conference, so I was often very busy, and Jeannie seemed really comfortable letting me come and go on my own schedule as needed but also being around when I was feeling social. My last night, when I was wiped out from the conference and came back early, we had a lovely dinner at her house and talked about her travels, writing, books, and other shared interests.

Jeannie's house is about 2.5 blocks from an L station on a line that goes straight to O'Hare -- you're about 20 minutes from the airport and 20 minutes from downtown. Her neighborhood is quiet and safe, the walk to the L is easy, and there are a couple of small, cozy restaurants nearby as well as a Walgreens for picking up necessities. As for Jeannie's house -- it's just gorgeous and impeccably clean, and as a master gardener, she has filled it with beautiful plants and flowers. She sent me home with a cutting from one of her plants.

I can't recommend her highly enough. She is understanding, flexible, and really the perfect host!