Fan: Cubs saved my life

August 25, 200719 yr

Fan: Cubs saved my life

NEIGHBOR EMBARRASSED | Game kept man up late as bullet ripped through wall above bed

August 24, 2007

BY ANNIE SWEENEY AND NORMAN PARISH Staff Reporters

On any other night, this Cubs fan would have been in bed.

Instead, Wednesday's late game had Ben Von Bruenchenhein up and in the living room of his Arlington Heights apartment about 10:15 p.m., watching Cubs star Aramis Ramirez smash a game-tying double.

That was also when a bullet ripped through his 15th floor apartment, slicing through the wall just above his bedroom pillow.

Von Bruenchenhein has little doubt what saved his life -- the Cubs.

"If it wasn't a West Coast game, I would be asleep or reading a book in bed,'' said Von Bruenchenhein, 36, who is currently reading Lucky You by Carl Hiaasen.

"The shot went between my bed and my light and my alarm clock."

Neighbor: 'I pulled the trigger'

Von Bruenchenhein has his neighbor to thank for the close call. Larz Nordstrom, who lives in the apartment next door, admitted he accidentally shot through the wall.

"I just forgot the damn thing was loaded," said Nordstrom, 82, a retired General Motors engineer who answered his door wearing only his undershorts.

"I was just taking it out of the nightstand," the former gun collector said. "I pulled the trigger. It had been sitting there for 11 years. I'm sorry. It is embarrassing as hell."

Hit right above TV

The .38-caliber bullet from the Colt traveled from the bedroom wall to the living room wall right above the television.

That's when Von Bruenchenhein heard a pop and saw a puff of dust burst from the wall -- just after the Cubs tied the game.

After finding similar damage in his bedroom -- including a pile of dust from the wall on his pillow -- he called the police. "I said something came through the apartment. It might be a bullet."

Got to watch extra-inning win

Arlington Heights police arrived minutes later -- inspecting the bullet holes and interviewing Nordstrom.

Von Bruenchenhein kept one eye on the game throughout. "The game was still two-on-two at this point," he said. The Cubs won it in extra innings -- with Von Bruenchenhein watching from his couch, too shaken to go back to bed.

"I did get to see the 4-2 victory,'' he said. "Suicide bunt. What a way to end the game."

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/baseball/cu...-cubs24.article

for once, they don't curse someone. them cubs.

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