Maybe he thought the Red Cross was a target?Back on whatever day it was that Cubs’ tickets went on sale, I fought through the Internet labyrinth and bought tickets to several games. I was particularly happy with the tickets I got for one game in particular. Lovely upper deck box seats for a September showdown between the Cubs and their monotoothed idiot cousins from St. Louis. Oh, it was going to be great.

You just knew that the Cubs and Cardinals would be in the thick of a tight pennant race and that Friday, September 16 was going to be a big day. It was going to be great!

Now? Not so friggin’ much. There’s a good chance that the Cardinals will be trying to clinch the NL Central tomorrow in my presence. Unless they win tonight and the Astros lose to the Marlins, the game will have some sort of postseason implications for only one team.

There are of course a whole host of options:

1) The Cubs could sack it up and win not only tonight behind Mark Prior, but tomorrow behind the man who leases the Cards with an option to buy, Glendon Rusch. Sure, like that’s going to happen.

2) I could sell my tickets. I can’t do this for several reasons. First, who’s going to buy them? A Cardinals’ fan, that’s who. And I’ll be damned if I’m going to be responsible for letting two more of them into the park. They’re going to be overrunning the place anyway, they won’t be doing it in my seat.

3) I could just not go. I could “vote with my feet” so to speak. I don’t go and that means several beers don’t get sold that would if I’d gone, a couple hot dogs, maybe one of those hilarious “boxing Cubs” doll things and those beads! Oh, how can you resist the beads!

Was any of that out loud?

Screw it, I was dumb enough to spend $76 on those tickets back in February or March or whenever the hell I was dumb enough to buy them.

Besides, I already made plans that cannot be broken. One of our intrepid readers, Kevin Kaduk, has spent the summer living in the Wrigley area, going to games, chasing Lincoln Park trixies around town and going to Cubs’ games. He’s doing “research” for a book he’s being paid to write about living in Wrigleyville. I’m meeting up with him before the game for a big interview so that I can be in the book. I figure the Cubs’ abysmal season has already taken a hose to his plans to write a bestseller, how can I pile on by blowing him off and denying him the chance to put a couple of my hackneyed thoughts into print that people are actually expected to pay for? I can’t.

So, I soldier on.

Besides, you know how WGN loves to get shots of celebrities at the games? They’re going to have a field day on Friday. You know who’s going to be sitting in the seat next to me?

Spanish-yes.com heartthrob Kelly Dwyer, that’s who. I know girls, try to contain yourselves.

Wait, does that mean I’m responsible for bringing in an extra Cardinals fan? Oh, I deserve to be flogged for this.

But I’m bigger than him, so I can keep his Card fan boy crap to a minimum. I think.

Here’s what I’d do if I were the Cubs. If the Cubs win tonight they should run out on the field after the game like they won the pennant. Start jumping up and down, have the PA play the theme from 2001 or whatever gay thing they played in 2003 and go nuts.

Then if they win again tomorrow, do the same thing. Only this time, start spraying each other with champagne. Sure it’s dumb. Sure it’s immature. Sure it’s childish. But you’d have to admit it’d be funny.

Remember when we complained that Major League Baseball didn’t schedule any late season games between the Cubs and Cardinals last year? Well, we’ve got them now.

Whoop de damn do.

The good news. I finally get a chance to unfurl this banner I’ve been saving since the Cardinals started to bury the division back in…well, May.

DK 57, my ass!  Fuck off!

Also, the Hank White Fan Club has issued a statement regarding the allegations that Hank had Cincinnati Reds’ pitcher Matt Belisle hit Michael Barrett in the head last night in an effort to get more playing time for our hero.

Hank’s alibi is iron clad. Really.