CUBS WIN! CUBS WIN!

Just a brief pause in this travel blog to celebrate something not related to travel, or Spain, or retirement. Bigger, some might say.

The Chicago Cubs won baseball’s World Series for the first time since 1908! Just so you know, I grew up in Arkansas watching the St. Louis Cardinals on TV — on Saturday or Sunday afternoons — with my dad. They were the closest major league team, so that’s the team we saw on our TV. One great memory of my dad: Whenever a batter came up in the eighth or ninth inning and the announcer said he was “oh-for-four” or “oh-for five,” my dad would always say, “Well, he’s due.” Invariably, the batter would get a hit.

I lost interest in baseball when I wasn’t picked for a Little League team. I think that was 1960. Flash-forward to 2000 when Leslie and I moved from San Antonio to the Chicago suburbs and I landed a job with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Having a cubicle right next to Mick Hans, and working closely with Sue Pastor, I quickly became a Chicago Cubs fan. Not long-suffering like those mentioned, but a fan. And I did love my lengthy Cubs-related conversations with fellow editor John Peterson.

Today, in glorious retirement, Leslie and I spent some time on the beach here in Alicante, Spain. Yes, on Nov. 4 we were on the beach. Here I am:

Luggage space is highly limited when you’re packing for a 10-month trip over three seasons, so I only brought the cap. I wore it one day in Barcelona and was approached by someone who recognized the logo. Fist bump.

Today I wore it proudly, even though most of the other people on the beach were speaking Spanish, French, Italian or Russian. I’ll wear it again tomorrow. Proudly.

So what was the U.S. like in 1908? Teddy Roosevelt was president, Henry Ford produced the first Model T and Thomas Selfridge became the first person to be killed in an airplane crash. Grover Cleveland died and Lyndon B. Johnson was born. Mark Twain was still alive, as were Harry Houdini, Florence Nightingale and the Wright Brothers. None of them, however, saw the Cubs win that year.

So even though I am many miles from Chicago today, I’m excited about this historic win. Let’s do it again next year, guys!

Fly the W!