Rock Chalk Jayhawk

Does it count if my travel blog includes trips to places I used to call home? I hope so, because I'm writing about Lawrence anyway.

A couple weeks ago, I made my annual trip back to Lawrence, Kansas to catch a basketball game in one of the most incredible venues known to man, Allen Field House. Go ahead, roll your eyes... not another freakish Kansas fan, right? Well, you're sort of right. If you've never been there, you won't be able to fully understand it, so I'll try to break it down.

Allen Field House is about two things: tradition and the love of basketball.

Students camp out on air mattresses and sleeping bags for days waiting to get good seats, and during the games the crowd cheers so loud that your ears will ring when you leave. You will inevitably leave with newspaper confetti stuck to you because the student body has a tradition of "making it rain" during the team intro by shredding up pieces of the Daily Kansan newspaper and tossing it in the air when each player's name is called. The newspaper confetti covers the entire floor of the student section, and the University doesn't care one bit. Why? Because it's tradition. Makes me wonder how many of my tuition dollars contributed to confetti cleanup.

Allen Field House is one of those places that brings chills down your spine. Hearing the Rock Chalk chant, which admittedly sounds like a bunch of chanting monks, will make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. And as an alum, hearing the Field House sing the alma mater gets me misty every time. Not to mention, the Jayhawk on the basketball court is bigger than the one of the football field.

And then before the game, the place erupts into love and madness. This year's intro goes something like this:

This year, KU got booted from the no. 1 ranking the Tuesday prior to my trip. Thanks a lot, K-State. Nevertheless, the boys showed up to play against Colorado, and ended up winning by a large margin, which of course I don't remember. We were in good company at the game too. A bunch of players from the 2003 team (where we lost the National Championship to Syracuse), and the 2008 team (where Mario Chalmers sunk a last minute three to put us into overtime for the championship win) were at the game cheering on the newest class of Jayhawk greats. Wayne Simean, Jeff Graves, Aaron Miles, Cole Aldrich, Sherron Collins, Mario Chalmers and Xavier Henry all spent their afternoons in the Field House.

After the game, I headed to Free State Brewery to dine on some delicious local eats and drink a few of the fine brews they have to offer, because "without beer, things do not seem to go as well..." I'd have to agree with that statement.

I also tried to hit up all my other favorite stops on Mass St., but there's never enough time. I was just happy to be surrounded by hippies and basketball all weekend. It was heaven.

Gone Skiin'

After barely making it out of Chicago before Snowpocalypse 2011 hit, I successfully survived my first skiing experience since high school in Lake Tahoe.

I grew up learning to ski on the glorious slopes the Midwest has to offer, and spent a couple weeks in Colorado as a kid enrolled in ski school. Other than that, I hadn't done a ton of skiing, so I expected to be a total mess on the slopes. Turns out, I picked it up pretty quickly and ended up making it down some black diamonds before the trip was over!

The majority of my time was spent at Heavenly in South Lake Tahoe. My first day went something like this:

Day two I graduated to blues and explored different slopes Heavenly had to offer. My favorite slope was the Galaxy, which I later learned is where Sonny Bono died. Of course I'd have more fun frolicking in the face of death... The view of the lake and surrounding mountains made just about every run a scenic adventure.

Day four included a side trip to Kirkwood, which is more of a the local option when it comes to ski resorts in the area. We were there on a Saturday, and it was hardly crowded. Kirkwood got some 25 feet of snow in the last month, but it started to get pretty mushy toward the afternoon. Except at the top... where it was soooo cold and windy. It was miserable, and made even the brutal days of the Chicago winters seem tropic. 

After three days trying to keep up with a girl who grew up skiing the Austrian Alps, I mustered up enough courage to make it down a black diamond at Kirkwood. All smiles at the top! (Insert helmet joke here).

My reality check came when I arrived in Chicago after five great days of skiing, warm weather, good company of friends old and new (even some B-towners), hot alcoholic beverages, and a little gambling. I practically needed to snow shoe my way to find my car back in Chicago. It still hasn't moved... and I don't think it's going to until April. Yuck.

I can't wait until Skip Trip 2012!