Next stop....Atlanta?

So in case you have been in a hole the past week, let me update you. After a quick 5+ hour drive up the scenic 5 freeway, we arrived at Tracy's around 12:30 am Saturday morning. After saying hello and chatting for a bit we all crashed--Me in the bed, Jeff on the air mattress and Matt on the couch. In the morning, we all awoke and enjoyed a lovely breakfast courtesy of Tracy and Nate and chatted about the upcoming day. Ben met up with us a couple hours later and then around 1:00 pm we headed down to the HP Pavilion for UCLA vs. Kansas. After navigating the streets of San Jose we parked our car and proceeded to unload the essentials: beer, vodka, chips, sunflower seeds, chairs, ice and a football. Perfect weather and for the next few hours soaked in the sun and enjoyed some good ole' fashioned tailgating. A couple more of my UCLA buddies met up with us in the parking lot as well as some of Ben's Kansas friends. Around 3:45, we packed up and walked into the game.

Long story short, UCLA played a flawless game and pounded the Jay hawks for a sweet Elite 8 victory. What a great game and such an awesome experience. Once i figure out how to post pictures I will post some of the celebrations. After the game, all 6 of us ran down to the bottom level and proceeded to watch the Bruins cut down the nets as well as slap hands to Afflalo and Mata as they walked into the tunnel. With our spirits high and voices sore, we slowly left the building already talking of how we were going to make a trip to Atlanta work.

We then met up with Tracy, Pete, Nate and Grace for some post game refreshments at Pedro's. I think one of the more memorable quotes was Pete's "Wow. I've never hung out with this many guys before!!". Keep in mind, there was a total of 8 guys at the table! Mexican food never tasted so good. There was lots of laughs and some quality pictures taken. Thanks to my family for being so gosh darn cool. Later that evening, after the Old Pro ended up being empty, Tracy took control and took us to Blue Chalk, a fun little nightclub/bar in San Jose. Again more laughs and quality memories--watching from above as Ben, Jeff and Matt picked up girls on the dance floor, seeing Tracy ruin Jeff's game with the acknowledgment that she knew the girl that Jeff was dancing with from work etc. So much fun. After that we headed home and crashed.

With Spring Break almost over, I head out to Las Vegas tomorrow for a weekend with Jeff and Steve in the City of Sin. I can only imagine what kind of stories I will come back with. On Saturday the Bruins play the Florida Gators in the Final Four in Atlanta. Sadly I will be watching this game from a sports book in Vegas. However, a Bruin victory sets in motion a string of events--fly from Las Vegas to Nashville, TN Sunday afternoon with Jeff. After meeting up with Ben in Nashville around 9:15pm, drive the 3 hours to Atlanta and crash with Matt in his hotel. Monday will be a mixture of seeing the sights of Atlanta and then getting to the Georgia Dome, the sight of the NCAA championship, early so we can try and scalp tickets. (Yes that is correct. I AM flying to Atlanta WITHOUT tickets to the game). With any luck, tickets will be purchased and I will be inside the Georgia Dome to watch the Bruins win their 100th NCAA National Championship and record 12th NCAA Basketball Championship. How awesome would that be?!! I can't wait.