I was on my own with the Ultimate Sports Baby today, so I decided to go to the Chicago Wolves game. First, it was the only game in town. Second, the Ultimate Sports Baby has not attended a game at Allstate Arena yet – the only remaining professional sports venue he has not attended a game in Chicagoland.
Beg, Borrow and Deal
Under normal circumstances I would have parked in the Target parking lot across from the arena for free. However, today I did not feel like lugging the stroller from the …

For the past two seasons, I have attended the Chicago Fire home opener. This year was no exception especially since the game was on a Saturday afternoon. Under normal circumstances I would bring the Ultimate Sports Baby with me to an afternoon game, but the temperature was in the 30’s which is too cold for him to attend.

Pre Game Dining
Since I did not have the Ultimate Sports Baby, I decided to go to one of the bars around Toyota Park. I ended up at The Krash Inc. located at 7122 …

Today was upset Sunday at the United Center. After VCU’s dismantling of Purdue there was no way I thought Florida St. would do the same thing to Notre Dame. But, Florida St. did defeating Notre Dame 71-57 to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1993.
The next game between VCU and Florida St. is the first time a #11 and #10 seed have played each other in the NCAA Tournament.
Post Game Dining
By the time the game was over, Nicole was back at home and getting ready for …

To my surprise the NCAA Tournament Round 3 was not scheduled to begin until 6:10 pm. Most first Sundays for the NCAA Tournament are schedule as afternoon affairs, but today was a change to the norm which definitely worked in my favor as my babysitter could not come over until later Sunday afternoon.
Pre Game Dining
As soon as the babysitter arrived, I left the house as Nicole was still working on her dissertation on Northwestern’s campus. I went to Billy Goat Tavern for a pre-game burger and beer.
Beg, Borrow and Deal
Most …

I wanted to attend the first round NIT game Northwestern hosted on Thursday night but was unable. Instead, Northwestern surprisingly won that game and was scheduled to host Alabama on Sunday. Game time was 2 pm – meaning I would be able to attend the women’s NIT game before heading to the United Center for the 6:10 pm tip of the Men’s NCAA Tournament.
Pre Game Dining
Nicole needed to work on her dissertation all day so my plan was to bring the Ultimate Sports Baby to the WNIT game. Before the …

The last game of the day was definitely the best game. VCU trounced Georgetown 74-56. VCU was the controversial entry to the NCAA Tournament but proved they belong with this blowout. This was the third year in a row that Georgetown lost to a #10 seed or higher in the first round.

As I exited the arena, I began asking for extra tickets from the Purdue fans that were lined up at the gate to enter the arena. As I asked for extra tickets one young man said he had an extra and handed me the ticket. Since he was young, I was 1) surprised he had an extra ticket and 2) that he was giving it away for free. Turns out he worked for somebody at the Chicago Board of Trade who gave him the tickets. So he to giveaway the …

The second game of the session was more exciting than the first as Florida St. defeated Texas A&M 57-50 to advance in the tournament for the first time since 1998.
The last time I attended the NCAA Tournament at the United Center was in 2002. That day, we had at least two hours in between sessions so my friend and I walked over to Cheli’s Chili Bar to hang out. However, for some reason there was no time in between sessions this year. In fact, not only was there no time, …

I had waited for this weekend for awhile. I had two days where I could get out of the house, without Dylan, for the NCAA Tournament. The first game on Friday was scheduled for 12:40 pm so I left the house as soon as I could to get down for the first game.
Beg, Borrow and Deal
I walked in front of Gate 3 and found a family who had an extra ticket. I offered $20 for the $80 face value ticket and held firm on my price point. I told them …

I had waited for this moment ever since I started at Northwestern as a freshman in the fall of 1994 – an NIT game at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The last time Northwestern hosted an NIT game was in 1994. I was a senior in high school living in San Francisco at the time. Thus, I had to attend Wednesday night’s game!
Beg, Borrow and Deal
I went with a friend so we needed to buy two tickets. I was unsure how the secondary ticket market would work for this game since tickets just …