I am not a fan of the Chicago White Sox. I do not HATE the Sox, I just am not a fan. I don't care that they won the world series, I didn't watch the games, but couldn't help but know the highlights from the news and the radio. I don't care who won the World Series this year, just as I didn't care last year of all of the 40+ years previous, because the Cubs weren't playing.

I am not mad that the Sox made it, I am mad that the Cubs did not. It pisses me off every freaking year. It rarely breaks my heart anymore (ok, it was broken a few years ago), but it does piss me off.

Every-fucking-year. And you have to admit that at least the Cubs give us more years of being mathematically in the running near the end of the season than the Sox have.

But I am not going to be buying any of the newly hawked White Sox wear. I will not be all bragging about how "we" won the World Series. Because unlike about 90% of the people I know who are suddenly Sox fans but who were silent about their "favorite" team until September, I choose not to jump on the band wagon and feign allegiance to the South-Siders. It's easy to align yourself with a winner. It's much harder to keep loyal even in the relentless face of defeat. But I am a Cubs fan, win or lose....or lose....or lose.

I jumped on a band wagon once. 1985. Bears. Damn fine team. Exciting games. But I always felt like I was going to be "found out" by a real fan, someone who knew their history and the names of the second and third string players. I totally followed the Bulls during their dominance in the 1990s. The finest assemblage of players on a single team in the history, and possibly the future, of the game. Dream team? Hell yeah. I watch for as long as they played well, and lost interest around the end of Michael Jordan's career. It just wasn't fun to watch lesser players. I'd seen the best. I have no idea who plays on the Chicago soccer team, when or where they play and if they are any good at all. And I don't think I've watched 2 seconds of Chicago hockey since Lloyd Petit screamed "A SHOT AND A GOAL," for Bobby Hull (for you kids out there, that's several decades ago).

I love the Cubs. I love Wrigley Field. I loved listening to Jack Brickhouse when I was a kid, and Harry Caray when I got older, and I miss their voices; thank God for Ron Santo's radio commentary. I love Ernie and Ryene and Sammy and Dawson and Sutcliff and Williams and DeJesus and Huntley and Burt Hooton (pitched a perfect game when I was in high school, and he was super cute, so I started a fan club with just 2 members).

So...the point of this ramble is to say congratulations to the White Sox on their season, and their Championship. They obviously played a great year. They certainly gave their "fans" a great series of games. And I hope to someday be downtown watching my team of choice in their ticker-tape parade. I won't hold my breath, but I'll never stop hoping. Because for a Cubs fan, there is ALWAYS next year!

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