Windy Chicago

I  loved Chicago. It is probably one of the neatest cities I have visited in a long time. Yes getting a dress for Crystal was pretty neat, but I will leave that for her to share about. Here is my top 5 things about Chicago!

5. Did you know that Chicago almost burnt down in 1871. You can read the story below, but this is one of the only remaining buildings from "Old Chicago". This was there water station at the time.

4. Navy Pier is pretty cool. Its is definitely a tourist attraction with the bars and shops along the pier, but it was just a neat place to hang out. I loved being able to look back and see there massive buildings with the sailboats coming into dock. The ferris wheel was pretty neat too.

3. When we were there October had just begun. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and because of that the top of all the buildings are pink for the whole month. It was pretty neat to see them lit up like that. The city also has the most amazing architecture. It was super neat to see a really old style building next to the slick and sleek office towers. Some of the buildings along Michigan Ave (which has amazing shopping minus the 10% sales tax) reminded me of the cool historic churches in NYC.

2. Chicago has a ton of bridges. Mom read that Chicago has every kind of bridge possible: train bridges, walking bridges, draw bridges, triangle bridges and so much more! This was a really neat bridge by the hotel.

1. There is pop art and sculptures everywhere! This one was by far my favorite, it is huge Marylin Monroe. She was put there in September and will stay for 1 year. Each year a new sculpture is put there. I am not sure of her exact dimensions, but as we drove by grown men would only come half way up her leg! There were so many more or random sculptures and images spread around town. Remember the infamous Chicago cows of the 90's?

Hotel Tour: Fairmont Chicago

This last weekend we were in Chicago to buy Crystal a wedding dress. It was great to meet one of the other bridesmaids Dana, and also meet Jon's mom Debbie.

While there I took advantage of my Delta hotel discounts and we stayed at the Chicago Fairmont!

When you walk into the hotel you are greated by this magnificent registration desk. I loved the light details that extended from the wall right onto the floor.

We had 2 rooms for this trip, and having them adjoining made for a great way to socialize and visit with each other.

The bathrooms may not be the crazy shower of last weekend, but there were lots of mirrors and lights which was great.

And although we did not have a view of the Pier or Millenium Park, the downtown view really was great to see what Chicago was all about.

Better Luck Next Time

This picture surfaced yesterday in the midst of the NHL playoffs going on. As a huge hockey fan, and a hater of the Vancouver Cancucks I could not be happier.

For those of you that are not up to date of the NHL Playoffs Vancouver is in a best of 7 games series with Chicago right now. Luongo, Vancouver's goalie, usually is a great player but last night he let in 6 goals on only 28 shots. Not a good night for the netminder.

And Vince, I always liked you, but you just took a big step up in my books!

Two Great Teams

Last night my friend Shaun and I headed out to the hockey game in Edmonton. I am a true hockey fan. I can compete with lots of guys as far as stats, and team info. I can tell you who is leading in the standings, leading in the points division, and who is sitting in 3rd place in the rookie scoring this year (Yes, it is Edmonton Oiler, 1st overall pick Taylor Hall!)

I especially wanted to go to the game last night as it was my 2 favorite teams playing. Obviously the Edmonton Oilers were the home team, and although they are not having a great season, it is still exciting to watch them play as they get their new young team going. The visitors last night were the Chicago Blackhawks, and current Stanley Cup Champions.

Now it was not the cup win last year of the Blackhawks made me a fan. In fact since about grade 2 I have been a Chicago fan. I was home alone with my sister one day, and the phone rang. We were taught from a young age how to take a proper message and to answer the phone even if our parents were out of the house. This particular call was from a man in Chigaco named Brent, and he wanted to talk to my dad about buying some Angus cows. I took the message just as I had been taught and told the man my dad would call him back that evening.

Later that evening when my dad got home, I gave him the message and my dad started to laugh. He asked me if I knew who this Brent man was. I replied no, why would I know of anyone who lived in Chicago? As it turned out that man was actually Brent Sutter, and he was playing for the Chicago Blackhawks! I was so excited that I had talked to a real NHL player that instantly I became a huge fan (behind the Oilers of course!). I went to school the next day and bragged to all the kids in my class. That Christmas I got a Brent Sutter hockey card, and I still have it to this day.

About 15 years later, I had another run in with the Blackhawks. I was staying at the Westin Hotel in Calgary doing a site tour for work. I noticed a lot of guys walking around the hotel that looked very familiar. I asked my hotel contact if they had lots of sports teams that stayed there, and if the Chicago Blackhawks were there at that time? She confirmed that yes the team was in house. Later that evening we were in the lounge having some drinks, as were some of the player. Long story short we ended up having drinks with a couple of the players, names I will keep to myself, but it was a really fun night to get to hear all about their life on the road!

I will forever be an Oilers fan, but the Blackhawks will have a soft spot in my heart as well.

49 Years in the Making

Well I have to say Congrats to the Chiacago Blackhawks. Tonight they won the Stanley Cup with a 4-3 win in overtime agains the Philidelphia Flyers.

It was a great game, and although I am bias, I really do think that Chicago deserved to win. They dominated at home, and were the first team to win on the road. A huge advantage in this series.

Before this series started I predicted that Chicago would win in 6 games, and looks like I was right.

Now people may say that I am a band wagon jumper, however, I have been a Chicago fan since grade 1. My parents were managing McDougall Cattle Station at the time. It was an Angus and Simmental operation.

One day we got a phone call from a guy that was interested in buying some Red Angus cows. Neither mom or dad were home, so I answered the phone, took a message and told the man that my parents would call him back.

Later that night, I told my parents the message and my dad asked me if I knew who the man was that called. I said that his name was Brent Sutter and he said that be lived in Illinois. My dad informed me that Brent Sutter was a hockey player in the NHL and played for the Chicago Blackhawks!

From that moment on Brent became one of my favorite players. Because he played for the Hawks, they naturally became my favorite team, next to the Edmonton Oilers...

Then again last year I had a run in with some Chicago Blackhawks. I was in Calgary at the Westin Hotel on a tour for work. I was looking at the hotel to potentially hold a conference there. While we were walking through the hotel I seen several men who looked familar, but I couldn't put my finger on it. I asked the hotel rep if they got many sports teams staying at the hotel, and she replyed with a "Yes, we actually have one in house right now!". I then knew that it was in fact the Hawks that I was recognizing!

Later that night as I we meeting the hotel rep for drinks, a few of the players were in the lounge as well. We got talking with them and had a really fun night having a few drinks and laughs. They found out that I was staying at the hotel alone, and invited me to have breakfast with them before they left for their morning skate the next day.

Because of Ladd, Kane, Toewes and Byfuglien, my love of the team became even stronger. They have been an easy team to cheer for in the playoffs. Especially since Edmonton has not made it the last couple of years!

So Congrats to the Chicago Blackhawks on another sucessful year. It has been 49 years since you last one the Stanley Cup, so enjoy it!