Another tragedy is being a Cubs fan and living in the Pacific Northwest. Our nearest Stadium is Safeco, home to the American League Seattle Mariners, who only entertain the Cubbies once in blue moon for interleague play (it just so happens they hosted the Cubs this year but that is a story for another post). Kim and I did have the opportunity to see some Cubs games while we lived in the Bay and that was a always a lot of fun but something is always missing. As a Cubs fan, I have always experienced ballgames as part of the minority. This year however, I was finally able to see the Cubs as they are meant to be seen. Amongst thousands of other Cubs fans at the Cub Mecca, Wrigley Field.
Before I get into that, let me explain how this all came to be. Luckily for me, Kimberly's brother Ryan was graduating from Purdue this year on a weekend where the Cubs were hosting the Pittsburgh Pirates. "Unfortunately" for me I was unable to get off work in time for the ceremony but I was still able to meet everyone in Chicago the next day.
Chicago is a pretty awesome place I must say. It's like New York, but feels more spacious and MUCH cleaner which is ideal for someone like me. I got to the city a few hours ahead of everyone else and had a chance to walk around the Millennium Park area which was pretty cool (not including the segway riding schools which just looked ridiculous), and wandered around the city a bit which was nice. The rest of the group (Kim, Quinn, Ryan, Bob and Darlene) finally showed up and we spent some more time wandering around the city, finishing off the night searching for some delicious Chicago style pizza. Realizing that very few restaurants were still open or that it would take forever to get a seat at the ones that were, we ended up back at our hotel an hour later getting food from the attached restaurant. We didn't get pizza but as I recall it was still pretty tasty stuff.
In front of the Chicago River
Day two started with the search for breakfast (I am now realizing we didn't have the best luck finding food in Chicago), which took a bit of searching but finally worked out. After that, we found the Subway and headed for Wrigley. SWEET!
Quinn's first subway trip.
The subway was full of Cubs fans, making it fairly obvious which way to go and which train to hop onto. We arrived at the stadium, and made our way through the crowds, wandered through the underbelly of Wrigley and made our way to our seats.
While, as a Cubs fan, I should gush about the glory that is Wrigley but it feels pretty much like most stadiums feel. Except of course for the fact that you are surrounded by your fellow Cubs fans, and it's freaking WRIGLEY! The game was a nail-biter. The Pirates jumped into the lead, and as the game progressed it wasn't looking good. It turned out that the come back Cubbies were playing that day and they tied the game in the 7th! This took us into the greatest singing of 'Take me out to the ballgame' I've ever heard at a ballgame. You haven't heard this song done properly until you've heard it at Wrigley. The Cubs followed up their 7th inning heroics by taking the lead in the 8th. An uneventful 9th led to a Cubbie victory, which led to the singing of the cheesiest and greatest song for any Cubs fan to hear. Hey Chicago whaddaya say, the Cubs are gonna win today!
Bob and Ryan sporting their sweet giveaway hats.
Quinn is clearly concerned about the outcome.
Kimberly and Ryan enjoying the game.
Our little man didn't quite make it through the whole game awake, but I think he enjoyed his first baseball game, and our first game together at Wrigley. It was a pretty wonderful experience and I'm so happy I got to share it with Kimberly and Quinn.
He could rest easy knowing the Cubs were going to win.
Did I mention it was really cold?
Happy (or sleeping) Cubs Family
It's a beautiful thing to see 'Cubs Win' on the sign out front.
That night, Bob and Darlene got tickets for Kimberly, Ryan and I to go to a show at the Second City. Our seats were literally touching the stage, and we were sitting next to some fellow Cubs fans from Oregon. It's no wonder SNL recruits heavily from this cast and I strongly recommend going to a show if you are in Chicago. The show was hilarious and it was a great end to a great day.
In conclusion, Chicago was awesome!!
Thanks Bob and Darlene for such an amazing trip. Go Cubs!!
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