The nice thing about parking at Howard is there are no transfers whatsoever. I live very close to the Western stop on the Brown Line and it's a really nice neighborhood with a lot of street parking. From 94, take the Peterson exit east, then take a right on 41 (lincoln avenue). You'll run right into the station just south of Lawrence (about two and a half miles). If you take the Brown, you can get off at Southport and walk (right out of the station, right on addison) or you can transfer to the red line heading north at Belmont and get off at addison. I've never had a problem with Cub fans but I've never sat in the bleachers either. As long as you are obnoxious the worst you'll get is some ribbing. There are a ton of restaurants up and down Clark St. Goose lsland has some good food and beer.