The Book Signing

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Let me just say it up front, our family is full of Chicago Cub fans. For generations. Tom has a brick at Wrigley Field, we have a W flag, our grand kids know the names and stats for the players, etc. Those kind of fans.

So, when I noticed that David Ross, the recently retired catcher, was signing his new book, Teammate, at a nearby Barnes and Noble, the event got a spot in our calendar for last Thursday, our set-aside family night for 40 plus years.

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Turns out it was a two-part deal. I needed to stop by the store in the morning to buy the book, pick up a ticket for the signing and then return later that evening. I thought it would take just a few minutes for that first part. Wrong. More like 105 minutes.  The line snaked all around the mall just to get a ticket. I was already committed, so settled in.

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The long line.

Funny how these lines work but at the end of the wait, I knew parts of the life story of my little section of the fans. The story of the four-year-old IVF twins, the son who was moving away and taking the only grandchildren with him, the tennis player who would now be late for a match. Like women at the well, our chit chat revealed a lot.

Community can form anywhere.

Tom and I both returned in the evening and even though he now had a number and a time to show up, the line looked about the same. Fortunately, it was a lovely evening and they were passing out free Cubs chocolate