Game day habits

Gerald Kowalczyk

@gkowalczyk_cpa

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I don’t have season tickets to anything. I have a Ventra card, a Metra pass, and a bad habit of saying yes when someone texts, “You around for the game?” This is where I actually end up, after the 7:04 out of Brookfield and a short negotiation with my better judgment. Nothing exhaustive. Just the places that keep getting my money, my voice, and occasionally my dignity. Some are temples, some are bars, some are both. All of them are better than watching on my phone at the kitchen table. Barely.

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Game day habits — 4 items
Name	Type	Primary sport	Neighborhood	Best game vibe	Typical spend	Crowd	My take	Address	City
1Wrigley Field	Ballpark	Baseball	Wrigleyville / Lakeview	Sunny summer day, random Tuesday, Cubs somehow still drawing 35,000	$70–$100 with a couple beers and a dog	Tourists, lifers, and people pretending they remember Sandberg	The one place I don’t mind paying $14 to be mildly disappointed. Feels like church, if church sold Old Style.	1060 W Addison St, Chicago, IL 60613	Chicago
2Rate Field	Ballpark	Baseball	Bridgeport / Armour Square	Chilly April night with 14,000 people and surprisingly easy beer lines	$60–$90 if you don’t go wild on merch	South Siders, diehards, and people who still call it Comiskey out of principle	Feels like the ballpark version of my personality: better than it looks on paper, occasionally fun, usually half full.	333 W 35th St, Chicago, IL 60616	Chicago
3United Center	Arena	Basketball / Hockey	Near West Side	Bulls on a random Wednesday that somehow turns into a one-possession game	$90–$130 including parking or a rideshare tax on your soul	Suburban families, jersey archivists, and people still chasing ’90s nostalgia	I come for the anthem and stay because I already paid for parking. Still the cleanest adrenaline hit in town.	1901 W Madison St, Chicago, IL 60612	Chicago
4Theory	Sports bar	Football / basketball (TV rotation)	River North	Packed Sunday slate when every TV has a different form of heartbreak on it	$60–$100 including food you pretend is “just snacks”	Transplants, F1 and college fans, and people who own more than one team-specific hoodie	Where you go when your team isn’t from here but your anxiety definitely is. Too nice for how much yelling happens.	9 W Hubbard St, Chicago, IL 60654	Chicago