Whenever the Cubs and White Sox get together for an interleague series, it's the big talk in the Chicago sports world. I have some great respect for the Cubs and their grand tradition, but sorry, Wrigley faithful, my heart belongs to the White Sox.

While the Cubs' championship drought currently stands at 99 years, I'm still elated at the fact that the Sox won the 2005 World Series, and thus erased an 88-year curse of their own. Well, it wasn't exactly a curse; it was merely a scandal-plagued streak perpetrated by Shoeless Joe Jackson and the 1919 Black Sox.

I still remember how it all ended, when the White Sox celebrated on the Astros' home field after they recorded the final out in Game 4. Sure, it's only been two years, but I can still see Bobby Jenks, Paul Konerko, Jermaine Dye, and the rest of the Sox spray each other with champagne in the clubhouse. And I was there for the victory parade in the Loop. A few months later, I returned to Chicago for good.

On the other hand, you have to admire the charm of the Cubs, what with that legendary ballpark whose walls are covered with ivy, and the fact that spectators can watch from the rooftops beyond the outfield bleachers. I must admit, the Cubs are everything the Sox wish they were, only with an ongoing drought that isn't likely to end anytime soon. If the Cubs need some inspiration, they should look no further than their neighbors on the South Side, or better yet, they can ask the 2004 Boston Red Sox, who were the world champions that year (but not before coming back from a 3-0 deficit to beat the Yankees in one of the most shocking baseball playoffs ever). The Red Sox, forever known as "idiots," had to wait 86 years before winning another World Series, thanks to Babe Ruth's departure to New York, where he and Lou Gehrig helped build the Yankees into the powerhouse they've become over the years.

Back to the White Sox: I'm so glad that I lived to see them win the World Series, and they owed me that much after my years as a batboy for them (I was also a ballboy for the Bulls, back when MJ and Scottie ruled the NBA). And here's a bonus: The White Sox have three farm teams in North Carolina alone (Kannapolis, Winston-Salem and Charlotte). Actually, it's two teams in the Tar Heel State, since the Charlotte team plays its home games in South Carolina, but it appears that it's coming back to Charlotte, thanks to an approval of a new uptown ballpark.

I will be watching the Windy City Series unfold over the next three nights, and I'll keep my fierce loyalty to the South Siders now and forevermore. GO WHITE SOX!!!