Signs of spring in Chicago

You know spring has come to Chicago (finally!!!) when...

• The neighborhood Lions Club (or Elks Club or Masons) have all-you-can-eat pancake breakfasts in the local schools.
  
• Girl Scouts (and their mothers) set up card tables outside the usual Saturday errand locales, i.e. the bank, the dry cleaner, the grocery store, etc. Two boxes of Thin Mints are chilling nicely in my freezer. Yum!!
• Baseball can be heard (on the radio, at least)! And pools are aplenty for March Madness college basketball.
• Random strangers will compliment me. The other day while at lunch at Subway, a complete stranger stopped on his way out the door and said, "I just couldn't leave without telling you that you are beautiful."
• Women under 30 years old will see the thermometer creep above 40 degrees F and immediately whip out the flip flops, tank tops and short skirts.
  

How many days till Opening Day???

Micah Hoffpauir takes a huge cut in front of a hot & sweaty crowd in Mesa during Chicago Cubs Spring Training 2009. It was 88 degrees F and a lovely blue sky.



In uniform, the players all tend to look alike (sort of), but this is Sam Fuld signing autographs after a game. Sam had a short call-up to the major leagues two years ago but true Cub fans will remember him for a great play in right field where he crashed into the ivy-covered wall, made the catch and then doubled the runner off first! Fabulous!



The team bursts out of the dugout and the game begins! Can summer be far behind? (Sorry for the thru-the-fence view).




First baseman Derrek Lee is 6-feet-5 inches tall. Aaron Miles, our newest infielder, is.....not.



Manager Lou Piniella (from left), first base coach Matt Sinatro, and bench coach Alan Trammel chill out during the early innings during a Spring Training game. General Manager Jim Hendry (first row behind the wall) is, as usual, on his cell phone, no doubt working on another trade.



Sam Fuld (again) in mid-bubble with one of our many new Cubs faces. So new that I'm not sure who it is?!!?


Outfielder Reed Johnson has been given the nickname "Gumby" because of his tremendous flexibility and athletic prowess. No one wants to stretch out with him. Who gave him that name? Okay, it was me.



Spring Training's a great time to get autographs, even if it's name from a household name. Someone once told me that you take a player's uniform number, subtract it from 100 and that's the percent chance he has of making the team...Well, it was nice of them to sign anyway.



The bright sun and the high blue Arizona sky make for perfect weather to warm up before the crowds arrive.




Early in Spring Training, it's not uncommon to see a lineup where you hardly recognize any players' names. Not today for the Cubs as Alfonso Soriano leads off a team with many familiar faces.