Chicago is trying really hard right now to look more impressive than Los Angeles. In my humble opinion this should not be a particularly difficult thing to do. My family went on a California vacation many years ago. We started out in San Diego and then traveled north until we reached my mom’s sister’s place in San Jose. That meant we stopped in places like Morro Bay and Monterey. We also spent some time in San Francisco. Of course we also went through Los Angeles. What do I remember of L.A.? Sitting in traffic is what I remember of the City of Angels. Sitting and sitting and sitting and sitting and sitting.

Apparently the Olympic committee visited Los Angeles as they are also being considered for the 2016 summer Olympics. What they found was a city so completely indifferent these committee members might as well have been just another bunch of tourists there to look that Hollywood Walk of Fame or the handprints in Mann’s Chinese Theater. This is not the case here in Chicago.

In Chicago we tend to try harder. We have been slapped with the moniker of “Second City” for pretty much our entire existence. Of course there was also a time when we were known as the filthiest and most-corrupt city in the country but that was a long time ago and Al Capone is long dead. We are now the city of Michael Jordan and Mike Ditka and the Fridge (we tried last year to make it the city of Urlacher and Rex but that failed rather miserably and publicly). We are a city with fantastic restaurants and a World Series Champion baseball team.

I, personally, have mixed feelings about hosting the Olympics. It is going to necessitate building a number of venues such as something called a “collapsible stadium” to host some events. Essentially this would be a stadium with stands and a field but no amenities and souvenirs and such would be sold outside of it. When the Olympics were over this stadium could be easily taken down. Somehow this all seems like a recipe for disaster to me, especially when you consider the notorious Chicago corruption when it comes to contractors in the construction industry. Not that there is anything wrong with you contractors or teamsters and please keep your baseball bats away from my knees, thank you.

So, that means for years we would have to put up with all kinds of construction and things going on to attempt to beautify the city. Then, when the games came, it would be a nightmare of security and closed streets and marathons and people from around the world roaming the city looking lost and hanging out at Buddy Guy’s. Not that I mind this as I firmly feel Chicago is as much of a world class city as Paris or London or New York but I prefer this kind of thing in manageable dribs and drabs and not the massive crush that comes with an Olympics. Finding parking in the city already sucks now imagine competing with everyone coming down to view the Decathlon and you have some idea of what I am talking about.

Still, the city is showing an enthusiasm that is almost cute. We have buildings with lights turned on in strategic ways to spell out the year 2016. We have special buses to take these people around the city. The Mayor, recently the winner of the latest election, is bending over backwards to appeal to these people for games he may not even be around to see.

Of course we also had to take a break just yesterday to have Jennifer Hudson day. You know her, she just won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in “Dreamgirls” and she was kicked off of American Idol. Now she has some portion of some street downtown named after her. Of course, if you travel in downtown Chicago you know we have a street named after anyone and everyone who might have passed through this city at some point. Also at some point, this honor might lose some of its charm if we don’t slow down with the street naming.

I don’t know if this is a kind of hometown, warm and fuzzy thing the Olympic Committee will find charming or if it makes us look like rubes. It should drive home the fact that we take care of our own, love our own and celebrate our own because we often go for years around here without much to celebrate. It is one of the coldest and snowiest winters we have had in a long time and we are still celebrating a win for a Supporting Actress who once called Chicago home but now lives in Los Angeles, which is a city that doesn’t care about the Olympics. Somehow this all seems to tie together.

I do hope the committee has a chance to look at the baseball stadium where thee 2005 Champs make their home. I hope the avoid the crumbling relic that squats on the north side like some kind of hideous infected wart and people get all weepy over for reasons I cannot fathom. I hope they see Navy Pier with the rides actually moving because it is a rather eerie and depressing place to go there when everything is shut down. I hope they get to do some shopping on the Magnificent Mile but also realize we have some quality shopping outside of downtown as well. I hope they sample just some of the fantastic restaurants in this city. New York can stuff all of its fancy restaurants because I have eaten and some of them and none of them can hold a candle to the food you can find here. I prefer my omelets the way they make them here, thank you, and we do New York style pizza better than New York. Try our barbecued ribs or Italian beef.

I hope they see some of the cool cultural stuff here too. We have a world-renowned symphony, for example. The Lyric Opera House is one of the finest in the world. The Field Museum has some great exhibits but travel out of downtown a few miles and check out the Museum of Science and Industry. Spend some time looking down on the Mag Mile by going to the observatory at the John Hancock Building. See the Sears Tower as well just because it is one hell of an impressive building and is still the tallest in this country.

During the summer we have great beaches. Yes, it is not snowy and bitterly cold here all year around. It amazes me that people actually think it is constantly freezing cold here all the time. I love the look of amazement that crosses the face of someone from the south or California when I tell them that in July the temperature here gets into the triple digits. We even have a regular beach volleyball event here where Olympic medalists come and play.

Chicago is a great town. It is a town that probably deserves to host the world and show off a bit. Just don’t be too surprised of too many of the actual residents here tell you to keep it down while they try to sleep. We’re a working class town, people, and we gotta get up in the morning.

Bryan W. Alaspa’s novel Dust is available in print and eBook format at his website www.bryanalaspa.com and www.amazon.com.