The February Issue Of Chicago Magazine

I perused the February issue of Chicago Magazine the other day. The cover story is "Best New Bars," and as usual, I was not overly impressed with their choices. Of the 10 new bars, only one really appealed to me, the tenth out of ten, which is Monochrome Brewing, located in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood. From the description, it sounds like a nice, laid-back place popular with families and beer drinkers, where everyone feels at home. Most of the other choices seemed to feature cocktails I would not drink in a million years, served by bartenders dressed like the guy in the cover photo. And no doubt expensive as hell. On the other hand, I did enjoy an article by Rich Cohen titled Unlovable Losers. Cohen laments the fact that all of Chicago's sports teams stink these days, which reminds him of a similar situation in 1981, when he was 12. The only winning team that year was the Chicago Sting, a pro soccer team that no longer exists. Every other team in the city was horrible. But just two years later a golden age for sports in Chicago began: the White Sox won their division in 1983, the Cubs won theirs in 1984, the Bears were gearing up for a blowout Super Bowl win a few years later, and Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen were about to lead the Chicago Bulls on their run of six titles in eight years. The message: Chicago sports fans should not lose hope. Better times are coming. Perhaps I should get my bets down on a White Sox - Cubs World series this year. Or perhaps not.