Let's Play Ball!

Today I got to take part in the infamous Chicago Cubs Opening Day! Cubs vs. Brewers. What a fun experience! Chicago fans (maybe just Cubs fans) are one of a kind!!

The game started at 1:20pm, so I got to leave work at 11:30 to meet up w/ the rep for a quick lunch before the game. I think the majority of the agency was also going to the game b/c no one's heart was really at work today. For me, it was just nice to get a quick jump start on the weekend. :) We took the Red Line straight up to the Addison stop and tried to meet up w/ Dave Nordahl (Blender rep) at Casey Moran's. But it was wayyyy too jam packed, so we just went inside the stadium to get a hot dog. The stadium is really really small, compared to where the TX Rangers play. Even though the forecast said 65 degrees, it was still freezing cold. I was pretty much in a miserable state of shivering (from the cold) for the entire duration of the game. Our section of the seats (Section 127, Row 7) never got any sun. The beers I drank were like icicles going down my throat. Not enjoyable.

Here are some things that I learned about Chicago Cubs fans:

1. Over 85% of the fans in the stadium had some kind of "Cubs" regalia, be it a baseball cap, a t-shirt, a blanket or even a necklace. Lisa Silvers (LHJ rep) gave me a "Chicago" themed basket when I first moved here, and in it was a pink Cubs hat. I wore that to the game, but little did I know that I was going to be the biggest gameday fashion faux-pas. Apparently, only the really prissy girls wear the pink Cubs hat, usually w/ some matching pink shirt or hoodie of sorts.
2. The fans are super loyal, even though the team isn't, well, good. The game went beyond the 12th inning, and yet there are sooo many people who stayed in the freezing cold to finish watching the game.
3. While they are loyal, they can boo their own team in the same breath that they were cheering for their team. "C'mon!! Please hit something, I'm freezing cold, and I want to leave."
4. I've never been around so many drunk people before. Even though I went to UT Austin for college and frequented the Sixth street, the drunkenness of the Cubs stadium is nothing like I've ever seen before. It's like one huge party, everyone's drunk together and act stupid together. Not me, of course! :)
5. The stadium stops serving alcohol after the 7th inning, so the aforementioned drunk people get very antsy as the game goes into the extra innings. They'd boo the players to get them to finish the game quickly so that they reach for the next beer (at a nearby bar).
6. The after parties are where the real fun starts!

When it's all said and done, the Cubs lost the game to the Brewers. But judging by the energy level of the crowd leaving, one would never think the Cubs lost. I myself went to the after party at Schubas Tavern (it's tradition, supposedly), a lot of OMD'ers were there, including most of the JCPenney team. My AMD basically flew back from a client meeting in Dallas directly to the after party at Schuba's. Lots of free booze consumed by everyone. Schuba's has the best Mac & Cheese I've ever tasted.

I finally got on the Red Line heading back down to Bridgeport at around 9:30pm.