Chicago Style Winter

It has been suggested by a good friend that I am "meteorologically insatiable." Alas, I have no defense.

The writer in me strives to avoid the cliche and of late, winter has been done. However, last weekend I weathered a tremendous blow in Chicago and sensed there is a story here.

"They don't call it the Windy City for nothing," said an ESPN announcer, as reported by the Chicago Tribune a few years ago. The nickname refers not to lake breezes but to Chicago's long-winded politicians. The story dates back to the 1870s, when Chicago, Cincinnati and St. Louis all "vociferously claimed the right to be called the greatest city of the Midwest."

A tornado struck Chicago on May 6, 1876 and as legend goes, the Cincinnati Enquirer coined the term "That Windy City" in its headline a few days later.  "They used the term for windy speakers who were full of wind, and there was a wind-storm in Chicago," observed the Trib. "It's both at once."

That's the scoop. Here are the pics.