Schmidty's Den

With every big city... comes thousands of homeless individuals living on the streets off of anything they can scavenge.  It is not a surprise that Chicago has over 125,000 homeless people in 2015.  This is a huge issue as there are many children and young adults that are literally living off of anything that they can get.  Everyday in the loop when I am out in Chicago I see the same homeless people out on the same corners.  They are literally there year round trying to panhandle and get some change to live off of. The big problem here is of course that these people are homeless, but also that many homeless adults suffer from mental diseases or face addiction challenges.  These individuals virtually receive no help.  The only help they get from others are either from people giving them cash or food, or volunteers walking around handing out blankets and tents.  It is just a terrible situation because there are homeless shelters but many of these homele...

Many people who enjoy traveling need some inspiration in order to choose their next destination.  Whether you are living on the mainland or not, I promise you that you will not regret checking out Chicago.  I am here to encourage you to travel to Chicago and have the best time of your life. The reason why Chicago is so great is because of all of the different events and destinations it has to offer throughout the year.  Chicago is in the Midwest region of the United States so you best believe that this amazing city experiences all four seasons of the year.  The reason why Chicago is so awesome is because there are many things to do year round, as well as many seasonal events to attend.  There is literally always an exceptional amount of concerts, festivals, plays, etc.. that are incredibly welcoming to tourists.  There is literally so much to do in this magnificent city that you will need more than a week to visit and experience everything! I can assure...

Although there isn't a correct team to root for in Chicago, many fans try to speculate why their team is better than every other team.  I am going to show some facts and statistics to give an accurate comparison between Chicago's two beloved baseball teams: The Chicago White Sox & The Chicago Cubs. Chicago White Sox: Current Stadium Name: Guaranteed Rate Field Stadium Location: 333 W. 35th St. Chicago, Illinois Team Colors: Black/White/Silver Established in 1893 in Iowa then moved to Chicago in 1900 First team to put player's last names on jerseys in 1960 Beat the Chicago Cubs in the 1906 World Series Fight Song:"Let's Go Go GO White Sox" Various Stats: 3 World Series Championships (1906, 1917,2005) 6 Division Titles 3 Cy Young Winners 3 MVP Winners 6 Rookie of the Year Award Winners Chicago Cubs: Current Stadium Name: Wrigley Field Stadium Location: 1060 W. Addison St. (North side of Chicago) Team Colors: White/Red/Blue Establ...

Interview With Alex Katres I have been given the opportunity to interview one of my life-long friends, Alex Katres.  Alex, originating from Greece, grew up in the Chicago-land area almost his whole life.  This individual is the biggest Bulls fan I have ever met as he loves the electricity in the arena.  The questions I am asking are in bold text as his responses are quoted under. Why do you enjoy being in Chicago? "I enjoy being in the city because you get to see different social classes all in one big area.   You also get to take a look at all of the different backgrounds of everyone walking by.  It seems that everyone is working towards a common goal on keeping the positive atmosphere alive." How do you feel about the Chicago Bulls? "Just got in trouble for benching their starters when the commissioner knew that the team was healthy.  They are definitely trying to tank the rest of this season.  They traded Niko Mirotic to the Pelicans fo...

Kanye West Throughout the years, Kanye West has been building up one of the most notorious reputations in the 2000s.  Born in June 1977, Kanye recently hit is 40 year old mark.  Many people know Kanye because of his Chicago background.  However, not too many people know realize that he was born in Atlanta, Georgia. He attended a Chicago high school where from there he started making music that is known to the whole world.  As a famous artist/producer and fashion designer, Mr. West has created a self net worth of about $147 million!  Pretty crazy to think that just one person could be worth that much money.  It just goes to show that hard work pays-off. Kanye is the perfect representation of how Chicagoans are-extremely dedicated and motivated.  Mr. West has had huge accomplishments titled to himself. Accomplishments: United States records sales-14.65 million Global record sales-32.70million 6 Albums reached Billboard's number 1 spot Over 100...

The Loop in Chicago If you have ever lived in a major city or the surrounding neighborhoods, there is a high probability that you haven't used a train system.  The Loop, also known as the L, is a set of trains that follow specific routes.  The system essentially follows a rectangular path through out the center blocks of the City of Chicago.  This rectangular system stems out in multiple directions to carry people to and from the center of Chicago from surrounding areas.  There is no question that a huge percent of people who work in the city use this train system as transportation.  The image below shows the different lines that operate within the L system. Although this system is extremely efficient, there are still some negative connotations to be attached from my personal experiences with using the L. You never know the crowd on the train. People range from individuals who work to individuals who are homeless. It is typically packed during rush...

I understand that nowadays it can be tough to find some community websites/blogs that you trust has excellent content.  With all of the jargon being thrown around the internet, it can be frustrating finding some other fantastic websites that have users sharing the same views as you.  Luckily, I have found a perfect website that anyone can blog on.  The website https://dabearsblog.com/ is for any supporting Bear's fan who still has hope. This website contains personal user's thoughts and experiences with certain information pertaining to the Chicago Bears.  Whether it's news, updates or opinions, you will find heartfelt content that you will truly enjoy.  It's great to be involved with a community of individuals who share similar thoughts as you so I would highly encourage participation. For all of you non-sport's fans out there, I have found a blog that you will truly enjoy about Chicago. This blogsite https://www.choosechicago.com/blog/ has all of...

There has ...been disappointment throughout Chicago when it comes to basketball.  Ever since a young Derrick Rose tore his ACL in the 2012 first round of playoffs, the Bulls haven't fully recovered.  There has been a lack of making excellent front office decisions that have left the players and the fans hanging the past five something years.  This season, the Bulls are currently sitting in 12th place in the Eastern Conference with an embarrassing record of 21-41.  There is no doubt that the team is still in the rebuilding process, but I truly believe the Bulls will make the playoffs next year and here's why. First off, the Bulls have the 8th pick in the 2018 draft.  Typically a top 10 picked player will have the potential to fill what the team needs.  The bulls are currently looking into a big man who plays center.  I think this would be a great move however, the Bulls need to look into getting some outside shooters.  The best 3-point shooter (N...

Throughout this blog, I am going to list five places one must see when they go to Chicago.  Granted, there are many incredible sites to see and places to be, however, this list pertains to my top five choices.  The only criteria on this list is that the locations to visit are in Chicago.  These are not in ranking order.  Without further ado... #1: Wrigley Field  Although I am a Southsider and a huge White Sox fan, attending Wrigley Field should be on everybody's bucket list.  This baseball stadium hosts the Chicago Cubs and is one of the most famous stadiums in sport's history.  The environment is electric during a Cub's game.  On top of this, there is great beer and food available inside and outside the stadium.   #2: Michigan Avenue Michigan Avenue is considered to be the most known street in Chicago right above State Street.  This prominent street is a home to numerous high-end restaurants, businesses, and five star h...

The Chicago Bears... I can not... express how disappointed I am with the Chicago Bear's front office staff.  The Bears have not won a Superbowl since 1985 when they had arguably the best NFL team ever.  Since then, the Bears have only been to the Superbowl one time in 2007.  In this Superbowl XLI the Bears were defeated by a prominent Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts 29-17.  I am not too upset about taking an L this year because the Bears weren't even projected to make it that far this year.  However, these last few years, I have been DISGUSTED with the front office administration. The current General Manger (GM), Ryan Pace and previous GM, Phil Emery, have made a set of extremely poor decisions in my opinion.  To me, it all started going down hill when they hired their Offensive Coordinator, Marc Trestman as Head Coach who had an overall record of 13-19 in two seasons.  The reason why I was extremely salty with this move was because he di...