THE GENIUS OF A COACH + THE HEART OF A LOVER

It's been years since we last sent a team to the Super Bowl. And decades since a World Series or NBA title game. Still, Chicago sends hundreds of teams out every day of the year. Teams of smart, broad-shouldered players whose eyes are on far bigger prizes than championships.

From day one, the new mayor will need to deploy these teams with the genius of a coach plus the heart of a lover. Hundreds of miles of the nation's finest streets, boulevards, parks and shorelines deserve not one whit less. Like any world-class city, Chicago is a sprawling living organism; and these are among its pumping arteries. The next physician-mayor will have to keep them clean and clear so the organism's farthest extremities can remain hearty and healthy.

Ever watch one of these city crews in action....? No crowds to cheer them on, but they operate with some of the same sweet execution of a Bears pass or a Cubs double-play. Cynics scoff at "cushy city jobs," but let them put their backs into these avalanches of snow in the winter and floods in the summer. Let them belt-up as they climb towers and down tunnels. Let them sweat 12-hour blue collar days so white collared bankers and executives can reach their desks unscathed.

It's human nature to take the good stuff for granted. Until they're not there anymore. Parents...spouses.... jobs... homes...and the spectacle of a beautiful functioning metropolis. Kids are blessed with the innocence to see castles in snow storms and magic lakes in rain storms. I'm just old enough to still see them myself. However, mayors must be made of tougher stuff.

Mr or Madam -- no one has to remind you of this. You wouldn't be running without understanding such un-cheered, taken-for-granted imperatives. It's we who have to tell ourselves. That great cities don't just happen. That grand lake shores, flowered boulevards, and lush parks aren't a matter of luck. And that good government isn't simply a cynical punch-line over drinks. They do exist. Because faceless, nameless teams of laborers grunt life into them every new day.

So welcome Mr or Madam Mayor. Look around at the proud heritage of the last one, and say to yourself: "I'm going to stand on the shoulders of his city crews so that I can see even higher and farther. The people who elected me deserve it...!"