Special People's Club Part 3

Tony's questions, my answers:

Here we go. I'll try and keep this simple. After all, your team just swept my team in MY backyard ...

Well EZ, so far this year the Sox are making it look easy (no pun intended). I remember a few other recent seasons where the Sox looked like they were going to run away from everyone and collapsed in th second half. Is this season going to be different? Why?

Yes, this season is different. I'm not too sure I can put my finger on 'why' - its that elusive intangible... The Sox really seem to be a balanced team... I think the competition is weak and luck (and the law of averages) are on the Sox side for once. I really truly believe that the Twins just can't do it again, and I think the Red Sox and Yankees are uninspired - spolied by their success. This is the year for a surprise to come out of the AL (like the Marlins do out of the NL every few years). Like it or not, the Sox are it.

During one summer in the mid-late 80's I had the opportunity to take in a game at old Comisky against the Yankees, and there were handpainted signs all over the stadium that read "Yuppie Scum Go Back to Wrigley!" It got me to wondering if the whole Northside/Southside rivalry in Chicago extends beyond baseball. Which came first - baseball rivalry or class war?

Chicago is ground zero for socialism in America. The Haymarket Riot, Pullman, Eugene Debs... its always been the 'haves' vs the 'have-nots.' But the Sox and cubs have both been so bad for so long, that I think the rivalry is less mean-spirited than the one between say, Mets and Yankees fans. Wrigley Field has only been 'the place to be' for 20 years or so... The rivalry is evident in literature, too - the high-brow prose of northsider Saul Bellow (Cub fan) versus the straight ahead southside realism of James T. Farrell. But the down and dirty went both ways, too. I think Nelson Algren was a Sox fan, but the great Mike Royko was a huge Cub fan. I dunno. Its really a unique set up here.

Chicagoans are truly among the culinarily blessed among Americans. If you had to choose one food to eat every day for the rest of your life, would it be hot dogs or deep dish?

Being a vegetarian, not much of a choice - its deep dish. Plently of good spots, but the three best are Lou Malnatis, Edwardos, and Giordanos. Uno is OK. Avoid Ginos. I do miss Chicago style Vienna beef hot dogs. Truly a unique food.. If you get one here, don't ask for ketchup. You will get your ass kicked.

During a blowout earlier this year I saw Chris Widger throwing off the mound in the bullpen. Is there any chance we'll see him in a game? He just seems like the special kind of baseball player that I'd vote for most likely to fill your batting helmet with water.

Ha! I didn't see that! I don't know much about Widger.

Ever been to a taping of Oprah or Jerry Springer? Besides the Springer show, where else do the girls "go wild" in Chicago?

It is impossible to get Oprah tickets. Springer? No thanks. Chicago is a big enough place where girls are going wild all over the place. Depends on what you are looking for, but there are pick up joints everywhere. I've always had luck around the unis - DePaul and Loyola...

Cleveland might be the rock & roll capital of the world, but the great shows are always in the Windy City. What's it like living in a top tier city? For Christ's sake, guess how many times Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds have been to Cleveland in the last 10 years? None. Been to any great rock shows lately?

Like you, I'm embarrassed to say that I haven't been to a rock show in years. The last one was the Strokes, about 3 years ago at the Aragon. It was then and there, caught in a mad mob near the stage, that I realized I was too old for this shit. I did see Fountains of Wayne/Ted Leo last year- one of the greatest double bills in recent memory (and it was FREE!). I catch Cary Hudson whenever he comes to town. But when it comes to the old favs - like Billy Corgan and Wilco - I avoid them like the plague. they're boring. I am pissed that due to Lollapalozer my team's softball playoffs have been postponed for two weeks!

How about the EL? I hear great things about public transportation in Chicago, but I hear nightmare stories about rush hour traffic.

The el is great 19th centruy technology at work. It's a big system for a big city. Its hot, crowded, late, and overpriced. That said, its generally safe and pretty much gets you where you want to go. Its no PAris Metro or London Undergorund, but its on par with any other big north American city. I've had worse luck with buses. The commuter rail (which I use) is the best. More than a dozen lines, cheap clean and on time. Plus, you can drink on the train. Hell, one line even has a 'bar car." Rock on! The traffic on the highways is nightmare, especially in the summer. And there is no way to predict it. You be stopped dead going inbound or outbound at 2 am on a wednesday... for no apparent reason. That's life in the big city.

Ever try to retrace the route of the final chase scene in The Blues Brothers?

I've been to Daley Plaza. And drove like a mutherfugger on Lower Wacker.

That's all I got. Thanks for suggesting this and> playing along. After the last four games, I wonder how much more of this I can take ... /Tony

"A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." - Mark Twain