How Do You Spell 'Misnomer'?

If you've ever visited the great city of Chicago, you know that — though quite beautiful in some parts and simply "cool" in others — it has some pretty rough patches. My parents still bear an almost irrational fear of the Windy City based on road trips there to watch the occasional Cubs or White Sox game when I was a kid. I don't believe we ever made the journey without finding ourselves lost on its infamously dangerous "south side." On one such trip, a 35mm camera had just been gifted to me for my birthday, and I was in awe of the graffiti, tattered buildings, old rail lines, etc. So I took out my camera and snapped shots through the window, only to hear my mother gasp in horror.

"You're going to get us killed!" she said. "Put that camera away!"

I complied.

We were in the portion of the city that's right along the Indiana border — probably not really in the city at all, but rather the greater area commonly referred to as "Chicagoland." I later realized that parts of the city's west side were also pretty rough... not nearly as bad as Gary, but not without the occasional bars-on-the-windows-don't-make-eye-contact hotspot.

And it's the city's west side that's been underprivileged in terms of public transportation. Awhile back the Chicago Transit Authority announced it was going to reopen a subway line there that hadn't been used in over 50 years. It was going to require extensive renovations, which would take a few months — just enough time to ask school children to "name" the line.

The results were announced yesterday.

So what "color" best defines a quentessentially urban area? When you think of a train line that runs through some pretty rough terrain, what color do you think of?

You probably guessed it.

The new line on the El will be pink.

Reason #4325 why we shouldn't have children plan cities... or make major political decisions.

(Not that they could be any worse than those currently at the helm.)