Pitchers & catchers report to spring training in a month. Soon spring will start to bloom and with it the hope that yes, this will be our year. Yet my brain will kick me and say, "Come on, get real!" Then it goes into a "well, maybe..." I've always known that being a Cubs fan was something special. Something only the strongest can endure with hope intact (witness the bitterness of famed Cubs fan George Will). Today I found out that it is an illness as well.

WBEZ's Eight Forty-Eight had an interview with Cubs fan, Dan Gordon, who has edited a book of essays called, Your Brain on Cubs:

A group of today’s leading science writers and neuroscientists explore here the ways that our brain functions when we participate in sports as fans, athletes, and coaches, taking baseball as the quintessential sport for all three perspectives. The contributors tackle such questions as: How does a player hit a ninety-mile-per-hour fastball when he barely has time to visually register it? Why do fans remain devotedly loyal year after year? And what allows them to believe in superstitions, such as a curse? Other topics investigated in the book include how a ballplayer’s brain changes as he gains experience and expertise, why there are a higher percentage of left-handers in the major leagues compared to the general population, and the ethical implications of neurological performance enhancement.

See...it's all neurobiology people! It's in my neurons! In my wiring! I can't be helped!! Does this mean that someone out there might find a cure for this? I hope the hell not.

Technorati tags: Chicago Cubs, WBEZ, neurobiology, baseball, book

Labels: Books, sports