My kind of town
I went to Chicago yesterday to meet up with one of my friends from high school and some of his friends from Washington DC. As I always do when I go there, I had a great time and I always end up wondering why I don't go more often.
I had spent most of my near quarter-century on this planet some thirty miles from the Sears Tower, but I had never gone until yesterday. It was $9.95 plus tax (which was 10% -- it would have been nice if they just said it was $11 and get the ripping off out of the way at once) for waiting in line about 45 minutes with a number of Ohio State and Philadelphia Eagles fans, riding 112 stories up (the line forms two stories underground) at about 18 miles an hour to... a great view. It was a nice clear, sunny day, so you could see to the four states they claimed you could, including Michigan across the lake. It was fun pointing out the landmarks (my friend lamented the demolition of Meigs Field, and I tend to agree with him; it looked particularly depressing from that height) The information they had about the city was interesting too. Though I still wish it wasn't $11, it was a memorable experience and one I'd recommend if you're in Chicago on a beautiful day.
On the way to Edwardo's Pizza (which I also recommend, though I have yet to have a pizza in Chicago I wouldn't), I learned the Cubs had eliminated themselves from playoff contention, which bummed me out, but I was having too much fun to care about it too much... then. I'm currently missing the "Wild Ride: 2004 Cubs" special WGN-TV is airing because I can't handle seeing it. How can a team that some picked to make it and win the World Series go at best 3-7 in their last ten games? How can they fail to win series against teams who were virtually eliminated from contention in early August? How can they not make clutch hits and go into a team wide slump at exactly the wrong time? Sure they have back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since I've been alive, but still... this team was five outs from the World Series last year. Dammit. Well, go Red Sox.
On a completely different note, my mother sent me out for milk for her macaroni and cheese. While I was there a boy started crying loudly (I'm guessing because his mother wouldn't buy him candy or something), and the mother half-dragged him out of line and out the door to spank him. I'm willing to bet that part of the reason many kids from urban areas grow up angry is due to how their parents treat them when they were younger. It's accepted in urban neighborhoods that if a child acts out in a store, you yell at him to stop crying, and when he doesn't (which logically one wouldn't or shouldn't expect him to) you spank him, either in the store or when you get out of public view. No wonder so many of these kids -- and I'll admit it, us -- grow up angry.
I had spent most of my near quarter-century on this planet some thirty miles from the Sears Tower, but I had never gone until yesterday. It was $9.95 plus tax (which was 10% -- it would have been nice if they just said it was $11 and get the ripping off out of the way at once) for waiting in line about 45 minutes with a number of Ohio State and Philadelphia Eagles fans, riding 112 stories up (the line forms two stories underground) at about 18 miles an hour to... a great view. It was a nice clear, sunny day, so you could see to the four states they claimed you could, including Michigan across the lake. It was fun pointing out the landmarks (my friend lamented the demolition of Meigs Field, and I tend to agree with him; it looked particularly depressing from that height) The information they had about the city was interesting too. Though I still wish it wasn't $11, it was a memorable experience and one I'd recommend if you're in Chicago on a beautiful day.
On the way to Edwardo's Pizza (which I also recommend, though I have yet to have a pizza in Chicago I wouldn't), I learned the Cubs had eliminated themselves from playoff contention, which bummed me out, but I was having too much fun to care about it too much... then. I'm currently missing the "Wild Ride: 2004 Cubs" special WGN-TV is airing because I can't handle seeing it. How can a team that some picked to make it and win the World Series go at best 3-7 in their last ten games? How can they fail to win series against teams who were virtually eliminated from contention in early August? How can they not make clutch hits and go into a team wide slump at exactly the wrong time? Sure they have back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since I've been alive, but still... this team was five outs from the World Series last year. Dammit. Well, go Red Sox.
On a completely different note, my mother sent me out for milk for her macaroni and cheese. While I was there a boy started crying loudly (I'm guessing because his mother wouldn't buy him candy or something), and the mother half-dragged him out of line and out the door to spank him. I'm willing to bet that part of the reason many kids from urban areas grow up angry is due to how their parents treat them when they were younger. It's accepted in urban neighborhoods that if a child acts out in a store, you yell at him to stop crying, and when he doesn't (which logically one wouldn't or shouldn't expect him to) you spank him, either in the store or when you get out of public view. No wonder so many of these kids -- and I'll admit it, us -- grow up angry.