Living in Chicago, Fan of No One

Disclaimer: If you like Chicago sports, this article may offend you.

I lived the first 16 years of my life in a suburb of Cleveland, near Akron.

I grew up watching the Cavs play in the Coliseum with Mark Price, Larry Nance, and Brad Daughtry. I watched the Indians and Browns play in the Mistake By The Lake, Cleveland Municipal Stadium, where views were ruined by poles, and games were ruined by terrible play and players.

But I also saw the Indians in the early to mid-'90s, making the World Series in 1995 and 1997. I attended the final old Browns game and the first new Browns game. I watched as the Cavs made it to Eastern Conference Finals many times, only to get beat by Jordan and the Bulls.

In 2000, my family moved to a southwest suburb of Chicago. And my sports world was turned upside down.

In Cleveland, we never really expect too much from any of our sports teams. We love them with all of our hearts and souls, and always watch as they come up just short. The Cavs have never won a NBA Title, getting swept in '07 in their only appearance.

The Browns have never played for a Super Bowl.

And the Indians have come close, but haven't won the series since 1948—the second-longest streak behind the 99 years of the Cubs.

Here in Chicago, though, the first thought on anyone's mind is winning championships.

Let's begin with the Bulls. I grew up hating Michael Jordan. He beat the Cavs so many times, it got sad.

The Bulls won six titles in the '90s. And to this day, they begin every year the same way—thinking this is going to be the year.

They won a playoff series in 2007 for the first time since Jordan retired.  They then got bad last season, and aren't really looking any better for this year. They added Derrick Rose, but he's got a bad knee and probably will not make a huge difference.

It's so fun to listen to Bulls fans when the season comes around, like this year is going to be any different. Their best players don't want to be here, and the ones that do aren't very good. But here in Chicago, being a Bulls fan is the norm. Not too many born-and-bred Chicgaoans will tell you they're not at least a casual Bulls fan.

Everyone says, this is a football town. And I would have to agree. Just like in Cleveland, Chicago Bears fans are die hard. When training camp opens up, the lovely Olivet Nazzerene University is peppered with Bear fans.

But the fans will always live and die with the '85 Bears. It's been 23 years since "Tha Bears" won on that fateful January day. But still to this day, not a season goes by that the '85 team is not brought up for comparisons. Every year when the defense is the dominant side of the ball (every year, really, because they never have a good QB), it's always asked: Is this defense like the '85 D?

When the Bears went to the Super Bowl and got smoked by the Colts, all year they were comparing each year's defenses to each other. I've never experienced even a Super Bowl as a Browns fan, but I believe it's time to get over your 23-year-old championship, and move on to seeing how bad your team is going to be with the neck-bearded Kyle Orton at the helm.

Then there's the baseball fans. The city is split by baseball. On the South Side you have the White Sox. Their fans are brutal. When things are going good, the team is the best team in the league. When they lose, even just one game, they are the worst and something needs to be done.

It's always funny to listen to Sox fans complain about their team one day and say how bad they are because they lost 3-2 the night before. But they then turn around the next day, and talk about how great their team is when they beat that same team 3-2.

Sox fans hate the Cubs. The Sox fans hatred towards the Cubs is really not needed. It seems as if they would rather see the Cubs suffer and lose than the Sox win a game. When you walk around U.S. Cellular Field there is shirt after shirt about how they hate the Cubs. Shirts that say "World's Largest Gay Bar: Wrigley Field." Sox fans love to let everyone know they hate the Cubs.

The Cubs are a different story. They haven't won a World Series in 99 years. They are die-hard fans and would do anything for their team. However, going to a game at Wrigley Field really is not for the true baseball fan. A majority of the fans at the games at the Friendly Confines are people just looking for fun and a place to drink eight-dollar beers. There aren't too many "real" baseball fans there.

But fans do love them some Cubbies. It's so fun to walk around Wrigleyville before and after games and just see the people and the way that they act. It's been so long since a winner there, that fans are almost immune to losing.  Sure they are elated when they win, but they  generally aren't all that sad when they lose.

And every year for a Cubs fan is "The Year."

The Cubs are really the only team in the city that I would say I'm a casual fan of. They remind me a lot of the Tribe. Both teams can't seem to win the big one—and if the Cubs win it all this year, the Indians will have the longest World Series winless streak in the majors.

Cubs fans sure don't like the White Sox, but they don't despise them as the Sox fans despise the Cubs. They don't really care what the Sox do—all they really care about is themselves. There aren't shirts degrading Sox players around Wrigley. They just love their Cubbie Blue.

Living in the City of Broad Shoulders has been tough as a sports fan. I've had to watch one of my most disliked rivals win the World Series, watch the Bears make it to the Super Bowl, and watch the University of Illinois beat my beloved Buckeyes.

I will never be a White Sox, Bulls or Bears fan. I will like the Cubs, but I will remain loyal to my Ohio sports teams, and wait for a winner.