TOP 5 THINGS I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO IN CHICAGO

5. A COOL AUTUMNAL CRISP

A part of my childhood I thought forever lost.  Louisiana has but one season, summer.  I have not felt the cool caress of autumn in 18 years. I CRAVE it.  A light nip in the air.  The trees painted in yellows, browns, and oranges. Coats to cover up your belly. Warm coffee on a cool morning. And the undeniable joy of a full college football Saturday.  

4. My kids growing up playing hockey

This hearkens back to point number 4.  Growing up in the south, there just are not a lot, if any, avenues to get into Hockey. Disney recently released the two EXCELLENT films Inside Out 1 & 2 and the main character Riley LOVES Hockey.  My daughter’s love Riley, and so now they too want to play.  Also, I’ve just always thought about my son being a football guy, but now getting to be hockey bro as well?! PUCKS ON NET BOYS! 

3. Symphony and musical theatre!

Third biggest city in the country means the ARTS are back! One of life’s greatest pleasures is getting a little high, grabbing a couple of glasses of wine and going to listen to the symphony. The rise and fall of the orchestra tantalizes the senses and massages the mind.  Now I get to listen to the Chicago Philharmonic?! Now I get to go see the greatest musicals of our time because no one skips Chicago?!  Truly, I am blessed.  Already I was about to pull the trigger on Stardew Valley concert tickets this fall, but alas it was on a college football Saturday, and football always comes first.

2. Rediscovering my MLB and NHL Fandoms

I grew up a massive Atlanta Braves fan. Somewhere around Jr High I lost the passion. Being in south Louisana for the past 18 years I have rediscovered my love of baseball through the LSU Tigers (LSU going back to Omaha by the way, fuck your school).  And it would appear I have a new love.  The Chicago Cubs.  My first game in Wrigley I went solo and witnessed a walkoff homerun as a thunderstorm rolled in.  We sang, we danced, I drank a dozen Old Styles, and just like that, I knew it was love.  On the ice, I’ve never had an NHL team to root for and there’s nothing I love more than a disastrous loser (I’m a Pelicans fan).  Winning is easy, losing is hard; teaches you how to be a fan.  Seems as if the Blackhawks are handing out free lessons and I look forward to being a part of the ride.  

1. WHITE CHRISTMAS BAYBEE

I know many will call me naive, and many will be correct.  After all, I have never lived through winter.  I have no idea how the long, dreary dark of the frost affects one mentally or physically.  I have never been forced to stay inside for multiple months on end.  I have never shoveled snow, I have never had to worry about my windshield freezing, I have never slipped on the ice.  But guess what? Ignorance is bliss, and in all of my childish naiveté the one thing I keep thinking about is WHITE CHRISTMAS.   Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye singing about snow.  Warm drinks in front of a roaring fire.  Sledding, snow ball fights, kids building snowmen.  I’ve had multiple Christmases over the past 18 years where it's been 80+ degrees.  Now, I’ll get to try and track reindeer prints on the roof.  Listening to Christmas crooners while the streetlights twinkle on the snow lined streets of the suburbs?! Perfection!