Chicago Fire

Today is the 136th anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire.

My father drove the family down the street where the fire started, allegedly in Mrs. O'Leary's barn after her alleged cow kicked over an alleged lantern. That was many years ago and a building on the suspect corner had just been demolished. Wonderful sight for a kid of large imagination - brick rubble on the site of the beginning of the near destruction of a city. The fire was less than 100 years in the past then but I'm sure I didn't think Mrs. O'Leary's barn was made of brick.

Glad to see that someone with equal imagination and appreciation of history has named a soccer team the Chicago Fire.

Nearly everybody knows the Los Angeles Lakers (I bounce from sport to sport often, usually due to boredom) were once based in Minnesota. The Great Lakers, though, began dribbling in Chicago - at least according to my father. He should know. His 1926 championship high school team beat them in a charity exhibition game.

It's only fitting Phil Jackson coach the Lakers. He came from the Chicago Bulls, after all. (I used to love to hear the announcer's call "Pippen to Paxson to Jordan - two points!")

You know where I'm going, don't you? We ain't talkin' about da Bears today.

Here comes the phrase I've been saying my entire life. I learned it from my father. He was too young to say it the last time "next year" came around. He was only a few days older than seven months the last time the Chicago Cubs won the World series.

I hoped against hope that my Cubbies could do it again in 1989, the year Dad died. My prayers that season took on a "Win one for the Gipper" tone. Guess you're not supposed to ask a deity to help your baseball team.

Excitement mounted in a corner of my house and a corner of my brain during the race for the playoffs. When the Cubs secured a spot in post-season, an anti-climax settled over my TV and my computer. I knew we'd never make it past Game 4. I doubted, in fact, if we could go that long. Seems I was right.

Chicago loves to break records. She loves to be first at anything possible. She's proud of the Home Insurance Building, that 10-story monolith that became the first skyscraper. (Guess the sky was closer then.) Later she was proud of the Prudential Building, the Equitable Building, the Hancock Building, and Sear's Tower. (Thank you, Sears, for a building not paid for by an insurance company!)

So why would the Cubs give up a losing streak at 99 years? Go for the big one! Make it 100!

Guess they will. Hope it ends there. It's a round number and an honest record.

WAIT 'TIL NEXT YEAR!