Acknowledgements.
During my junior year at IU, I took a creative non-fiction class with professor Alyce Miller. The writing portion of the class consisted of three long pieces along with several short pieces of two pages or less. As it happened, I wrote quite a few pieces on sports, including at least two on my experience as a Cubs fan. I was getting good grades on these pieces, but not much feedback, and after my third or fourth vague grading, I asked Alyce what she thought of my stories.
"They're good, well written. I just don't really get them."
"What do you mean you don't get them?" I asked.
"I just don't get sports."
"Oh," I said, and I decided to write her a book so that she would.
Alyce was one of four great writing teachers in Bloomington, so a big thanks to her and the other three: Loyal Miles, Manny Martinez, and Tony Ardizzone. I would also like to thank all of my classmates from those classes, particularly Clint Litton and J.P. Benitez.
Additional thanks to J.P. for offering me a column at the IDS for my senior year. After loving the experience sophomore year and then not getting a chance from the editors to reprise, I was probably going to just enjoy the film reviewing and leave it at that. So big props to J.P. for giving me that opportunity, and thanks to the other editors, writers, and teachers I worked with at the paper.
Huge thanks to Jim Poyser for my first professional writing gig, and a big thanks to the staff at NUVO, especially Steve Hammer, David Hoppe, and Rita Kohn.
To everyone who read sections when I was desperate for readers, namely Dad, Ric, Josh, Heather, and Sylvie (particularly note-worthy for being both a non-sports fan and a non-factor character-wise in the book...) (...and also for the epic conversation concerning "cross-marriages," be they over Jewish-Christian or Bears-Packers lines, a key springboard to much of the book's inspiration.)
To Rick Telander, for supporting my career and being extraordinarily helpful and useful over the years.
To Rick Reilly and Steve Chapman for encouraging letters.
To Stu Courtney for taking time out of his day in May of 2005 to speak with me.
To Abe Peck, Josh Karp, and Kevin Kaduk for, like Telander, being helpful and useful.
And, along with the Ricks, to Leonard Pitts, Bill Simmons, Hunter Thompson, Scoop Jackson, Roger Ebert, Frank DeFord, Nick Hornby, and Mike Royko.
That's for the writing.
Here's for the life:
This keylog goes to North Star Camp, to Lou and Renee, to my parents for sending me here, to Cabin I-6 for another great week, and to Mike, Dan, Frost, Ari, Heldman, Shlensky, Robby, Blumberg, Weiss, Glick, Jake, Marc, Byron, Hamer, Cousins, A.J., Shmerling, JR, BG, Mandy, Mike Storms, Leb & Sue, Hitch & Corrie, Don & Kandy, Jeff & Kim, Tom & Karen, Doug, and Brad.
Thanks to the Gang--Luke, Josh, Rota, Ric, Sven, Heather, Avi, and Ben--for the many years of wonderful friendship and entertaining conversation on various topics of interest and for the late night BK runs.
Thanks to Bon and Don for the hospitality, breakfasts, and for taking us to the Cubs spring games.
Thanks to everyone who put us up on the trip:
To Meghan, for coming with me on the road trip.
And to Mom, Dad, MJ, Nana, Papa, and Killarney, for, among everything else: Sunday night dinners, Saturday C.J.'s, chess, Godfather, Lebowski, Marx Brothers, Wire, bad puns, straw shooting, Snack Wells, Dusty, Tecmo, the Nana high five, and the guy who sells a lot of salt.