cross-town classic

this weekend chicago is gearing up for the cross-town classic, battle of the #1's, the redline rivalry.... the cubs vs. the white sox

to set up this great series and rivarly, here's a little history of the 2 great major league baseball teams of chicago.

the chicago cubs: in 1876, the chicago white stockings (as they were originally known) became one of the 8 charter members of the national league. they win the inaugural national league championship with a 52-14 record. after that, they kind of sucked until 1880 when they won the NL championship again (and they do for 3 straight years). those pesky boston red stockings took away the potential 4th straight championship. they have up and down years, trying to change things up a bit by changing their name to the colts in 1894. the sole highlight of a disappointing 1897 season was a game against louisville where the colts put up 36 runs! in 1902, the chicago daily news referred to the team as the "cubs" because of all young players on the team. the young team improves and goes all the way to the world series in 1906. who do they play? their now rivel, the white sox (see below); the event seemingly put the whole city on hold for a week. the white sox take the series though. the cubs get their revenge as they take the 1907 world series, holding their opponents the detroit tigers to 3 runs combined. 1908 is the same world series show down: the cubs vs. the detroit tigers. the cubs win indeed, and become the first team to win back-to-back world series. but as we all now know (or you do as of reading this post), that was the last world series the cubs have won. legend has it, there is a curse on the cubs, placed on the team by billy sianis who was kicked out of the world series game in 1945 because of his pet goat. despite the cubs' drastically different seasons, their fans are full of optimism and wrigley field is packed each baseball season. the talk on the town is 2008 (the 100 year anniversary of the last world series win) is the year for the cubs. we shall see!


the white sox: in 1900, charles comiskey moved the st. paul saints minor league to chicago. the cubs owner, wanting to preserve the fan base of his already established team, filed suit against comiskey. after a battle, it was decide that comiskey could move his team to chicago on 2 conditions: 1) he could not use 'chicago' in the team name and 2) the team had to play south of 35th street. so the team became the white stockings (the original name of the cubs from 1876-1889) and set up camp on the south side, thus pitting northside cubs and southside sox fans against each other for the past 100+ years. during their first few years, the white sox had some hitting problems and were dubbed "the hitless wonders". but as mentioned above, the white sox did take the 1906 world series. in 1915, the white sox purchased the contract of shoeless joe jackson and along with him a few record hitting seasons. then a dark cloud settled over the sox in the 1919 season. 8 players lead by ex-underworld street brawler chick gandil and including shoeless joe attempted to throw the world series. the plot became obvious and a criminal investigation ended with the 8 players (later known as the black sox) on trial. in a bizarre turn, all confessions disappeared and the players were acquitted. however, the newly appointed baseball commissioner forever banished the 8 from the game of baseball. after some disappointing seasons, the sox renewed their enthusiasm in 1959 and earned the name "go-go" sox. the 1960s saw an intense rivalry with the new york yankees and the sox were almost sold to milwaukee. in 1984, the sox win the longest game in history: 2 days, 25 innings. in 1988, the sox were threatened to move down to florida, but the fans of chicago held "save our sox" rallies in front of the state capital. it came down to the deadline, but the funds were raised and the sox were destined to stay in chicago. in the late 90s through mid-2000s, the sox would finish 2nd or 3rd in the AL. then in 2005, the season started our normally, but the sox go all the way to the world series against the boston red sox and end up taking the series in a 3 game sweep. this was the team's first series since 1917.



between 1903 and 1997, the cubs and white sox occasionally met in a 'city series' or single charity games called the 'crosstown classic' or the 'red line series'. because these games did not count toward any team ranking in their respective leagues, they only served to provide bragging rights.

then interleague play began in 1997, and the cubs and white sox have routinuely played each other 6 times a year (1 3-game series at each ball park). in the 10 years, 60 games have been played. 30 won by the cubs, 30 won by the white sox. naturally, the heightened excitement and rivalry has led to some, shall we say, disagreement among fans and players.


this 2008 meeting will be even more intense. the cubs are #1 in the NL, the white sox are #1 in the AL.

as an impartial outsider (a southerner), i have the option of cheering for both teams. they're both talented, both full of history, both have die-hard fans, great parks (though to me, the white sox park is more like turner field in atlanta, while wrigley has the feel of an old classic stadium).

i have been to 3 white sox games, and 2 cubs games. i live on the north side. i work in the south loop. i live off the red line. if you made me choose, it would be tough, but i guess i'll have to route, route, route for the cubbies!


go cubs go!

managerish

managerish (n): a language devised by middle-managers for the purpose of sounding more intellectual and important than they really are.

examples:
"response point-by-point via return email"
"people culture"
"anemic addressment"
"trend patterns"
"manually pattern"
"granular level"
"feature function capabilities"
"business strategy of cost optimization"
"repository for catching observations"
"team member synergies"
"manual workaround process"
"manualized processes"
"granularity"
"low hanging fruit"
"home-run!"
"fully crystallized"

note: this blog will be updated as middle-managers continue to introduce me to this language
another note: to help you determine if you're working with someone speaking managerish; they love to print out 10 page documents, highlight one sentence, hand it to you, and ask you to explain the highlighted part.

band party, softball, books, ribs, and face paint

that in one sentence summed up my weekend.

i joined this group called the chicago sport and social club when i signed up to play softball and kickball for the summer. kickball is NOT as much fun as it was when you are kids. the guys try to show off and pitch the ball so fast that you either a) air kick or b) kick an easy-out pop fly in the in-field. the girls join to meet guys, so girls outnumbered guys 2-1. not that i mind girls; i joined to meet people. but the girls on my team are not competitive; 1 girl actually watched the ball as it sailed over her head... she didn't even run! our team name is 'take out the catcher'; a name cleverly devised after we won the first game by 1 point when one of the guys ran into the catcher of the other team when she wouldn't move away from the plate.

softball IS fun! it's slow pitch, so you can easily look like a dork by swinging too fast. people with skills join softball, so there are only 3 girls on my team. the weird thing is that 4 people including myself lived in alabama. the softball team name is 'there's no crying in softball', a lil tribute to a great line from 'a league of their own.' we have a good team, won all games but 1 and are in first place. i did strike out once and totally pulled a buehrle (white sox player who let a space heater have it).

anyway, long background to the start of my weekend. the chicago sport and social club puts on social events in addition to sports events. this weekend they put on a band party (yes band party) on the fake boat at the north avenue beach. the band was a really rad 80's cover band, sixteen candles. it was a beautiful night, breezy and in the 70's.

the next morning, margaret and i got up bright and early to be at the softball fields for a 9am game. unfortunately, not enough players for the other team showed up so they had to forfeit. but we wanted to play! so we gave them 2 of our players and played a 9 on 8 game. we creamed 'em. afterwards, most of the team went out for unlimited brunch and $1 mimosas at this place in lincoln park.

i decided to skip kickball and take margaret to one of my favorite places in the city: printer's row. we took the 'L' there; i think she's getting used to it. there was a huge book fair this weekend, and all these booths were set up selling rare and used books, magazines, maps, and a few VHS tapes. i didn't get any. it was very crowded this past weekend, but normally, the place is quiet and there is a nice square with benches and a fountain where you can sit in peace and think for hours (if of course, that is what you wanted to do for hours).

ok, by this time we were hungry. so we headed up north to the lincoln, damen, irving park intersection (one of those crazy 6 way intersections i still haven't quite figured out) for ribfest chicago. yes my friends, a street of meat. and fried candy bars, root beer, regular beer, watermelon, and hummus (that's not normally included i don't think). i don't think the participating food vendors had to submit portfolios of meat before joining the ribfest line-up. we learned quickly that if there's no one standing in line for the food, it's probably not that good. we did try some awesome root beer and key lime pie. whenever chicago does a festival, there's always at least 2 stages with band line-ups. i only paid attention to one band, skybox, and i quite liked them.

ribfest, complete with tornado watch, ended in early evening (well that's when we left). i thought i would be up for dinner or drinks at the top of the john hancock building, but i passed out. it was a good day.

sunday was another early day. in order to get involved with this new church i'm trying out, i volunteered to help with this kids carnival they put on in wicker park. i signed margaret and myself up to run the face painting table. we were a huge success! non-stop face painting from 9:30am-12:30pm. margaret made a little girl cry when she realized she was not getting a pink unicorn but instead a pink blob with a purple line sticking out the top. kids have crazy imaginations; i got asked to paint a red bear, a submarine, a white horse with purple spots, a leopard (really?), and one girl asked me to write "killer" on her arm. i didn't question, just painted. we were supposed to paint until 3pm, but i guess the rain wasn't done unleashing its fury on chicago and we got completely drenched. another good day though.

having margaret in town is a lot of fun. we realized we must be on the same brainwave occasionally because we say the exact same thing at the exact same time often. it's fun.

a day in the life at the new job

get to work at 8am (with 1 coffee in hand)

review data analysis portion of new project, defining fields, objectives, scope, identifying contacts and setting up meetings 8:30am-4:30pm

determine that you are looking at the wrong information and your day was pretty much a waste of time 4:30pm

this has happened to me more than once! arg.

the new job is getting better though. i have a new rowmate who is talkative and has a nice laugh. we have also had 2 other new people start this week which meant their assigned 'buddies' brought in donuts, cookies, cinnamon rolls from anne sathers (yum!). this department likes to eat!

me-me

day 1 - my little sister, margaret, wanted to come live with me for the summer. she lived with lea in new york last summer and wanted to take advantage of my new town this year. we met up in new york over memorial day weekend and she was going to fly standby on airtran U (for college kids) back to chicago. we get to the airport on tuesday and there are no flights to chicago! so instead, she hopped a plan back to atlanta (sad) in hopes of making it to chicago within the next few days. what airtran doesn't tell you (or at least emphasize) is that you can fly standby for $69 per segment and you cannot check luggage. so i had to take margaret's luggage with me to chicago and sent her to atlanta.

in atlanta, margaret learns the people in new york lie and there really are flights to chicago that day. multiple! so she gets another standby ticket and gets on a plane to the midwest. i however am at the airport, on the runway, in the air, at my destination airport for 10+ hours on tuesday. so margaret makes it from nyc to atl to chi before i'm halfway through my flight.

but she made it! and i did too! we took the elevated orange line into the city and margaret commented on how it's kind of scary to ride on elevated tracks. i said 'oh these have been around forever and nothing happens.'

day 2, 10am - green line derailment

e-man

i talked to my nephew today for a good 5 minutes. he's only 2, so i couldn't understand everything he said. if i was quiet (because i can't talk in loud 2-yr-old-speak in the office) for even a second, he would say 'you here? you here re-re?'

i asked him if he wanted me to come over and play, to which he replied 'oooohhh yeeeeeeeah!!!'

he's so amazing. a little person who i can absolutely and honestly love with no reservation. unconditional love. in those moments, i get sense of why God made us. who wouldn't want to love fully and completely? it's an amazing feeling.

tulip days

chicago has a love affair with beauty, i think. for a little over a month, the city welcomed spring by covering every pot or patch of dirt in tulips. and not even just the places the tourists see. all colors were appropriate: white, yellow, hot pink, purple, red... one of my favorite things to do was walk home from work a different route every day and look at all the pretty flowers. when i visited chicago in 2004, the landscaping of the city was one thing that stuck out in my mind. i could tell they cared about making the city look beautiful for residents and tourists and anyone who would appreciate it.

they also invited chicago architects to create kinetic art displays for michigan avenue.

moving, part II

i never lived in a high-rise before. i got a really good deal (well it will be good when my condo in atlanta sells and i won't have to pay the mortgage). i like high-rise living a lot; i have a great view, doorman, taxi-caller. real in-town living. there are a few bad things about high-rise living: getting all the way out the door and realize you forget something, not knowing if people in other high-rises can see you, and in chicago, the wind. i think i've gotten used to it by now, but i live close to the lake and when the wind is blowing, it screeches and howls by my windows. the first night i heard it, i kept getting up to check the windows to make sure they wouldn't get sucked out. still intact, so no worries.



my view


my neighborhood is mixed with high-rises, graystones, big sidewalks, old trees, and flowers. a few streets over is old town. old town is great. i love it. it's home to second city (famous improv comedy theatre), a few good mexican restaurants, fleet feet sports (they watch you run and pick out shoes for you), a spice store, an oil store, a chocolate store, the twisted sister bakery, a 24 hour starbucks, a few delicious italian restaurants, to name a few things. north of my neighborhood is lincoln park. it's huge, first of all, and there is a lot more to do than go for a stroll. a free zoo, the lincoln park conservatory, a lake where you can paddle around in a giant swan (or row). i also joined the chicago sport & social club and play softball at the fields.


i know 1 person who moved up here from atlanta last year. she's been great, inviting me out places and introducing me to her friends. i also have gotten to hang out with my cousins a few times. suprisingly few of the people at work live in the city, so i don't really think i'll be making life long friends there. that and apparently people stay in my department for 2 years or less before moving on.


i'm still not used to the weather. in atlanta, i'd be in flip-flops and shorts by may. in chicago, i still wear a jacket to work and some days wish i had a scarf and gloves. have only brought out the flip-flops once and regretted it by the end of the night.


all-in-all, the moving process was a success. i think i managed to move quite cheaply too. i like the city and neighborhood and the lake. i'm sure come warm weather, i'll love all those things too.

moving, part I

i mentioned to my friend erin (who's moving to london today) that she should start a blog to keep everyone up to date on her big move. a great idea, no? i realized i should do the same to keep everyone abreast of my move and new life in chicago. hence, i'm backtracking to march 2008.


a quick summary:

• packed up most of my 1 bedroom condo in atlanta with the help of some friends and family
• hit the road in a bright yellow penske truck with my friend kimberly
• stopped in nashville to visit janna p.
• spent a long day traveling through tennessee, kentucky (lots of distilleries), indiana (very long state, doesn't have celery), and into illinois
• chicago welcomed me with cold temperatures and snow and traffic
• kimberly and i got to my new place and had approximately 1 hour to unload the whole truck and get everything up to the 26th floor or they would lock us out
• finished in just enough time and ended the day with giordano's deep dish pizza (yum)

kimberly hung out for the cold weekend and i'm sure was happy to head back to warmer weather.

since moving day, i started work in downtown chicago (aka the loop). i ride the cta bus or take the red line to work and since it's warmed up to the 50s & 60s i walk home. not having a car has been mostly great. i don't get stuck in traffic, i walk slowly through the neighborhoods and soak everything in, and have basically built in exercise to getting where i need to go. the down side: when it rains. everyone wears rain boots which is smart. i need to get some. also umbrellas do no good here. i've had mine flipped inside out by the wind too many times to count.

work started slow (really slow) and i became dependent on coffee. in a one-block radius from my office, there is a cafeteria, a corner bakery, 2 starbucks, and 2 dunkin donuts, so temptation was present. i decided to kick the habit when i added up all the $1-2 charges for coffees and was shocked at what i spent in my first month. living here is expensive!

so my atlanta colleagues would be very impressed with me; i make it to work around 8am every day. this is a significant improvement from my usual 9:30-10am (sometimes 10:30am) arrival times in atlanta.

making acquaintances has been easy. i meet new people practically every day. my accent gives me away to being new to the city, but that makes starting conversation easy. everyone has their opinion of the best restaurants, neighborhoods, and summertime offerings.

making friends is a slow process. a note to all who move: be prepared to not like your city for the first 6 months or so. i heard that and thought i believed it, but being here for almost 2 months has made me accept it. i am excited about what the next 6 months to a year will bring. who will i know? what will my favorite hang-out be? how well will i be able to traverse the 6 street intersections?

i hope i don't give anyone i've talked to the wrong impression about my move, because i feel like i've come across a little down about it. i got what i wanted: living in chicago! and i am thrilled that this move has put atlanta back in a special place in my heart. i love the south. love atlanta. love midtown. who knows, i might end up back there; but for now i know i'm supposed to be in chicago and am going to enjoy it!