Dear Life,

Dear Chicago Cubs,

Until I met you I had NEVER understood how people could get SO wrapped up in a team that it affects their moods.  And this means a lot coming from me… I grew up in a home with people OBSESSED with the Red Sox.  Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always “liked” the Red Sox.  I still cheer for them and hope they do well.  I just never understood the obsession, no matter how I tried.  Then I moved to Chicago and got introduced to YOU.  And my entire life changed.

For the first year or so I just said “now I cheer for both teams… not just the Red Sox”.  Then last year I stopped pretending.  The truth is (sorry family) I don’t even care a little bit about the Red Sox or any of their games.  I of course still HATE the yankees(but that’s just being a good American… all Americans should hate the yankees and the cowboys) and hope the Red Sox win, but it’s mostly for my family’s happiness.  However when I started cheering for you I began to understand the pure joy, happiness, frustration, and devastation only real fans can “enjoy”.

From spring training all the way to the playoffs, my happiness revolves around one thing: how are my Cubbies playing?!?!  How did this happen?!?!, you may ask.  Well I’ll tell you how my intense love for you came about. 

1.  I love the city of Chicago more than I can express with words.  Anyone who knows me knows that.  I keep saying I’ll have to eventually move to NYC b/c I’m in the fashion industry, but truth be told… I’d be more than happy to stay in Chicago forever.  I love it that much.  Sure the winter can be a pain.  But everyone is so nice here during that time, so I love it anyway.  Then the summertime comes.  One of my friends once said something SO true “the best thing about summer in Chicago is that it makes you forget all about winter in Chicago.”   The summers here are SO ridiculously fun and awesome and the CUBS have a lot to do with that.

2. Wrigley Field.  This deserves it’s own letter, which I will write soon, so I won’t go into too much detail.  I’ll just say my first time here reminded me of what baseball is suppossed to be.  What it used to be when I was young, and even when my parents were young!  There’s no “cover” for the field (really Brewers?!?!  You should be ashamed of that stadium!) if it rains or isn’t too warm.  There’s no sushi bar (Seatle… sushi?  At a baseball game?… you suck).  There’s no fancy high-tech no stadium with all the amenities (yeah I’m talking to you new yankees stadium).  And before anyone even TRIES to say “you’re just jealous”… that is the most UNTRUE statement ever.  I could not possibly be more proud that my team place in one of the oldest stadiums in the United States.  At Wrigley it’s all about the game (ok and the beer), the excitement, the TEAM.  It’s not just going to a baseball game, it’s having a experience.  And it’s awesome.

3. I live SO close to Wrigley on the north side (5 blocks!) and everyone on this side of town just loves the Cubbies so much, it’s hard not to join in.  They are a loveable team (unless of course you like the much-less loved in Chicago, the White Sox or the Cardinals). 

4. I met Ryan Dempster and Soriano and both are just so nice.  Dempster turned red when I said something along the lines of “ohhh my gosh I can’t believe I’m putting cuff links on ryan dempster”.  Awww.  Plus Theriot and Fontenot (who I’m gonna need to meet me so he can just go ahead and start falling in love with me!) live around me and frequent a pub/bar around the corner from my house!  How can I not love a team who lives kinda near me and who are so down-to earth?

5. The Go Cubs Go song that is played at the end of every home game the Cubbies win.  This song makes me happier than you can imagine.  I of course know all the words, who it’s buy, and have it on my ipod.  I could be in the worst mood but when this song comes on I get immediately giddy!  Just watching the games on TV and seeing them sing the song makes me happy.  I would NEVER even contemplate leaving a game early, even if we were losing by 20, just IN CASE we came back and I would end up missing singing this song. 

Bottom line is, I am now a ridiculously huge Cubs fan.  I live and breathe for this team and bleed Cubby blue.  Last year I was so happy all year cause we were so awesome then, in true Cubbies fashion, they choked.  And I “got” to experience the soul-crushing event.  I now know how my family felt for years when The Red Sox always blew it.  I literally could not watch baseball or even listen to anything about it for months.  I was completely devastated.  I couldn’t even listen to the Go Cubs Go song on my ipod… a TRUE sign of depression.  But by the time spring training came around my devastation had subsided and I was ready to BELIEVE again.  And I do… I completely believe in you.  Even though you haven’t been having the best season, I BELIEVE and I always will regardless of your lack of world series wins, your history of choking, and even if you have the worst record that year.  Does that make me stupid? Ignorant?  Hopeless? A fool? NO… it makes me a TRUE FAN.

I love you my Cubbies, you’ve taught me what it means to be a completely obsessed fan and I will be forever grateful… or at least until you completely rip my heart out again.

With as much love as my heart can hold,

Jessica “voted hottest cubs fan of the week 7/5/09″  (true story, I have the e-mail, don’t worry about it)