Heat pumps have the advantage of replacing air at the same time they heat it. The problem in the Chicago area is that when it gets below zero, they are not as effective, and you do need some backup system.

It's probably, in the Chicago area, close to 90 percent of the homes using natural gas. The reason being, quite frankly, natural gas has been the most affordable and available heating sources over the past 30 years.

Essentially, it's a different way to heat your home with natural gas or electricity. You still have to use one of those to heat the water.

I give you Chicago. It is not London and Harvard. It is not Paris and buttermilk. It is American in every chitling and sparerib. It is alive from snout to tail.

We are expecting big groups from California and Chicago. They use this time to reconnect with their roots and listen to good music.

I'm excited. I heard (Greg) Maddux talk about him when I was in Chicago all the time. He's a pitcher's pitching coach. I talked to him for 45 minutes. He's a little spark plug.