Spring Break Get-Away...Nebraska!

I suppose my idea of an awesome spring break is quite different, or at least satisfied much easier than the stereotypical theme of a college student. This stereotype would certainly do whatever they could to get to the sandy beaches to lay on the sand and probably drink the week away. Me, on the other hand, I made a lot of memories without having to go to the warm beaches of Florida. Certainly I'm not discounting that destination - I went to Destin for spring break my senior year of high school, one of my most memorable trips ever, (and I wouldn't mind going back). This spring break was, like I said, different.

Grand Island...Nebraska. I kept telling people I was going to Grand Island and they would react, "Wow, that sounds...grand!" "Nebraska," I would say. To which they would respond with a considerably smaller amount of enthusiasm. I was so excited though. I was going to spend the week with my good friend, Brian Golka, and his family.

I was privileged with the rare opportunity of stepping into the everyday life of the Golkas. It began with lunch at Mongolian Grill where Brian and his friends from high school ate often. Just watching the guys cook was an experience in itself! After lunch, we visited his high school, Grand Island Central Catholic. We paid a visit to one of his favorite teachers who, welcomed me with a warm hug just like I was one of the guys. By the end of our conversation, she told me she wished I would have gone to high school there. I told her I would have, but the commute from Denver just would have been too much.

Later that evening, we went to the very first game in history for a brand new franchise in Grand Island - the Nebraska Danger! I didn't realize at first how big of a deal this was to the town because, being from Denver, arena football is like the minor leagues for me. But to a town like GI, well it's their only professional sports team. And what an event it was! It seemed like the whole town was involved in all of the between-quarter/halftime entertainment. They even had people doing stuff between timeouts. I was there to witness the very first win for the Danger. 70-59. Fan for life!

Finally, the main event of the week. A Golka family tradition. High school basketball. Three days. Eighteen games. I will admit, I am not a huge basketball fan, so when Brian told me what the plans for the week were I wasn't jumping out of my seat for this much basketball. However, actually being there reminded me of how much I miss the atmosphere of high school sports. The bands, the crowd, the true passion and love of the game in the players. Not to mention, not as many crazed drunk fans at high school sporting events as there are at professional games. By the end of the tournament, I wished there was another day to go.

The week came to an end, as abruptly as it has started. The Golkas were awesome. Shout out to Mrs. Golka whom I have been told is a religious follower (no pun intended as she works at a church) of my online life story. To John and Brianna, thanks for putting up with an extra for the week. It was such a pleasure getting to spend the week with such an awesome family!

Whoa! Almost forgot about the washing machine, junkyard "Office Space" reinactment. No need to write anymore...just check out the videos!