MEMORIAL DAY 2012

Hot, hot, hot!

We decided to walk to the Navy Pier and see what was going on there.  It was a scenic walk.















This pier was part of a master plan created in 1909. There were to be 5 such 1.5 mile long passenger and freight docks.  This is the only one that was completed. It was named the Navy Pier in 1927 as a tribute to Navy personnel who served in WWI.
















There are still plenty of passenger boats alongside the pier to take tourists for cruises. Food and gift shops are set up alongside the pier and in the building. Check out the “fashion don’t” in the right hand corner. Stripes and plaids?  How could she let him out of the house in this??? Just sayin’.




The mirrors along the pier are fun.



I did always want longer legs.



















And I guess Ross wanted a longer body?



















We walked all the way out to the end of the pier. Did I mention that besides being hot, it was also extremely windy? So glad we are not out on the lake today.









We stopped for lunch at the Billy Goat Tavern and had a cheeseborger.  This place became famous when Bill Murray, John Belushi and Dan Akroyd did a skit about it on Saturday night live. And yes, they do yell out  “cheeseborger, no fries, chips”.

The history on this place is kinda fun. The tavern was started by a Greek immigrant named William Sianis in 1934. One day a goat fell off of a passing truck (probably on its way to the stockyards) and wandered into the tavern. Sianis adopted the goat, then grew a goatee and changed the name of the tavern to the Billy Goat Tavern. He was known for his publicity stunts. Sianis had box seats to the 1945 World Series between the Chicago Cubs and the Detroit Tigers. When he brought along the goat, who was now the tavern mascot, he and the goat were ejected by then Cubs’ owner Philip Wrigley. Sianis was not happy and supposedly put a curse on the Cubs that they would never again win a pennant or play in the World Series again.

Cubs fans are serious fans. Several months ago five guys bought a goat off of Craigslist for 60 bucks, dubbed him “Wrigley”, and walked 1800 miles from Arizona to Wrigley Field. They did this to raise money for cancer…and to break the curse of the Billy Goat.

Wrigley would only walk about 5 miles each day of the 25 averaged. They would then put him in a Cubs’ flag adorned stroller and push him. They arrived at Wrigley Field yesterday. And they wouldn’t allow Wrigley in!!! Can you believe it? The guys, and Wrigley, were told the stadium had a very strict policy about goats. Well, so much for the Cubs and the World Series. But the donation given by Wrigley Field, helped the guys raise over twenty thousand dollars for cancer research.