On to Washington!

I'm not marching and certainly not in line for a job there.

Your fearless correspondent is taking his family to the nation's capitol to enjoy the many pleasures of museums, monuments, the national zoo and cherry blossoms.

We hope to do some serious panda watching, monument gawking and tour the big building where all of the hot gas seems to be emanating from -- the one with the big dome.

Like travelers of yore, we are taking the overnight train (The Capitol Limited) from Union Station in Chicago to Union Station in DC. Then we'll take the Metro to our suite in Arlington, Virginia, a block from the Iwo Jima memorial.

I've wanted to take the girls on this trip for ages. I've been sneaking peeks at various attractions over the 31 years I've been traveling to Washington. Since I'm a museum nut, I can't seem to get enough of those places.

We tried to get into the White House tour, but the congressional people who were supposed to wield inordinate influence and bandy about my name said that new security protocols have shut down tours for now. Apparently they are unaware of the two times I shook the hand of the chief executive when he was campaigning!

It will be great just to go there as a citizen. Nearly every time I went there, with the exception of my college graduation trip, I was covering something or getting an award. Now I will be a tourist and I can't wait.

When I'm there, I'll see what I can do to keep the world's largest economy afloat. Perhaps I can drop by Tim Geithner's office and offer my assistance. I've seen a lot of toxic debt in my time. Don't forget I'm from the South Side of Chicago where they pile it as high as mountains. Or maybe I'll see what Ben Bernanke is doing for lunch. Perhaps over a salad at the Palm we can discuss hyperinflation once the Treasury had peddled trillions to pay for the various bailouts. If I can offer my humble insights on how to avoid a Depression, I will certainly provide this service to the country I so dearly love.

I'll also snap a few pictures of the cherry blossoms.