One of the best events in the world, in a very interestingly, fun city, with the four number 1 teams in the country - let's get after it. As always, all times listed in the time zone in which they occur.
Thursday, April 3
Time unknown - Tony leaves for Austin, and eventually arrives!
Friday, April 4
05:27 (E.D.T) - Pepster leaves for FLL.
05:50 - Sinical arrives at DCA after a morning that includes putting on the same shirt backwards. Twice.
06:05 - Delta agent at the Sky Club in DCA is first person today to ask what Sinickal's shirt means.
06:09 - Sinickal has a bourbon and soda at the bar in the Sky Club with a guy on his way to Tulum. Guy says it's OK for him to drink since he was awake at 1:30 am and has already had a flight from Dulles canceled that morning.
6:27 - Pepster spills his drink on his shirt as he is exiting his car at the airport. This is only being listed here in case it becomes some sort of theme or we can look back on this as an omen of sorts. At least he hadn't checked his bag yet so he could change. Bye-bye "Eric B. and Rakim 1988" shirt.
6:29 - Kev-O walking by Sinickal's first class seat to the steerage section of the boat. Kev-O has to get his Delta numbers up as this is becoming a yearly tradition and he was only one slot behind Sinickal for upgrades this year.
6:31 - Guy from the Delta Sky Club ends up in a seat next to Sinickal. He kept tapping to get Sinickal to take out his earbuds so that he could talk his ear off about nothing.
06:38 - Pepster sees the world's skinniest bachelorette party. Five of the young ladies have pink/purple wigs; one has a tiara. They collectively weigh 321 pounds. Not skinny-shaming, just noticing. I would have thought they were going to Nashville, but they were at the gate for a flight to Las Vegas.
06:59 - Kev-O has boarded the plane and the guy in the aisle seat in his row is watching Fox News and just blurted out loud, "Go get 'em Trump," like he was watching Alabama play and Trump had a third-and-7.
07:14 - Pepster boards and passes two rows of guys all decked out in Florida gear, and they are clearly travelling together. Much larger man, not with them on the aisle. He tells them he is not going to the Final Four, but the flight to San Antonio was the closest he could get to Houston after his original flight got canceled. He then starts giving them the business about rooting for Florida. Turns out he played for Florida State. I cannot confirm whether he was on the 2020 National Championship team or not.
07:38 - Pepster wheels up to San Antonio.
09:22 - Flight from Atlanta to Austin delayed. So, Sinickal and Kev-O jump on some work calls in Atlanta Terminal A.
09:22 (C.D.T.) - Pepster lands early!
09:35 - After deplaning, Pepster walks past a gate in which the San Antonio Fire Department EMTs are tending to a woman. I don't think she is going to San Diego as originally planned. But, she did look OK from my perspective, so hopefully they were able to take care of her!
11:08 (E.D.T.) - 40-something Duke Frat Bro next to Sinickal on the flight to Austin won't stop coughing.
10:14 (C.D.T.) - Pepster enters Wild Barley Kitchen and Brewery, a breakfast spot that makes its own beer!
10:17 - Starting light - a Tripel Knot Triple
11:50 - Call Uber to get closer to the AirBnB. Idle Beer Hall it is.
11:59 - Uber driver - Brandon - asks if Pepster is coach in town for the Final Four. Pepster explains to him the situation where we created a school so we can walk around the Final Four talking ball with other coaches here for the NABC. He laughs and then asks what we named it. After Pepster told him "Southwestern Central," he responds with, "Where is it located? Damn, you just told me it was fake!"
12:08 - Pepster arrives at the destination and Brandon says, "Have a good day Coach!"
12:08:30 - Pepster walks into Idle Beer Hall.
12:11 - Pepster, asks the bartender what he recommends. He says that the Dad Bod light lager is really good. Pepster says, "I already have one of those!" Manager, who was sitting at the other end of the bar drinking a beer, does a spittake.
12:13 - Pepster drinks his beer, opens up his computer to do some work while he waits for the rest of the crew.
12:21 - Sinickal and Kev-O arrive in Austin. Delta airlines is handing out free Final Four hats. Sinickal approved.
12:35 - Tony who has been in Austin already for other purposes, picks up Sinickal and Kev-O at the airport. Off to San Antonio and to meet Pepster.
14:03 - WE ARE WHOLE!
14:51 - Kev-O tells a story about how he ended up playing in a 3-v-3 tournament in Vegas during the 2017 Final Four. Tony asks, "Weren't you a little old for college?
14:56 - Silas relays the story of the time he ended up in Des Moines, Iowa at the Marriott and the Convention Center was hosting the Iowa Pork Queen Competition. Kev-O, "The noun or the verb?"
15:27 - Discussing foreign basketball players in the NBA and Jaime Jacquez, Jr. of the Miami Heat came up as the best Mexican player. Kev-O then discusses whether Edward Navarro of Oklahoma was any better. Pepster goes, "You mean Eduardo Najera?"
15:38 - Baseball conversation ensues, and this line came up from Pepster: "Trevor Bauer is a less articulate Curt Schilling." Sinickal adds, "And a more articulate John Rocker!"
16:21 - Blondequito. That is all.
16:32 - Enter house. It is really nice. Five bedrooms, three baths, weird setup to the kitchen, but at least we won't really need it (except the refrigerator!). The 5th bedroom - the one that is unused - has 2 sets of bunkbeds!
17:12 - Stumble on to Harlem Nights. We must watch. It's the pinky toe scene!
17:29 - See the announcement that Julio Jones retired. Sinickal says, "I don't know. If you look outside Julio Jones is open.
18:21 - To Riverwalk.
18:33 - Woman wearing a black t-shirt with the word "Cougar" on it, and nothing else. Not sure if she even knows Houston is in the Final Four.
18:57 - Found the Auburn home bar on the Riverwalk. The trees on the property are tp'd. Sinical asks one of the kids standing by the trees if he is worried about someone coming and poisoning the tree.
19:10 - Into Agave Bar for dinner. You guessed it "Tex-Mex."
19:15 - Liz, who Sinickal and Tony know through work, and who happened to have given a speech at a conference in San Antonio this morning, joins us at Agave Bar.
20:07 - South Carolina wins 74-57.
20:15 - Straight up pouring outside. OK, well have another round.
20:24 - Venture out of Agave Bar walk around some of the Riverwalk before going topside.
20:45 - See Club Sirius, has tvs on, and the bouncer says, "No cover!" We're in.
20:46 - We might have made a mistake. Everything is fine, but definitely not our crowd. And, for a really small place, it looks like they are setting up for a birthday party which will take up virtually the whole bar. OK, just one.
21:18 - Enter Dick's, but upstairs, not the downstairs entrance by the River Walk. Much more serene upstairs and it seems as if the people at the bar are regulars, as they are very comfortable talking smack to the bartendress.
21:30 - One particular regular notices the bartender yawning and yells at her to "Go home if you want to sleep!"
21:31 - "I wish I could!"
21:32 - "I am only yawning because you people up here are so f'in boring. I want to be working downstairs instead of this fuckin' retirement home!" She told him!
21:48 - To Yardhouse and to watch the end of the UConn-UCLA game. Ah, it's over. It's in the third quarter.
23:40 - Walking back to the car and see some Auburn people which leads to the conversation in which we decide there might be some redeemable areas in Alabama. Tony goes, "It's called Atlanta!"
23:48 - C'mon Kayleigh get out of the way, Kev-O yells to a young girl who just starts walking out in front of our car and right behind a Kia Sorrento backing into the spot ahead of us. Kevin insists her name is spelled K-a-y-l-e-i-g-h, since he "knows his people! Now, we were inside the car so she heard none of this conversation, but still.
23:49 - Circle K for supplies as grocery stores are closed. Have you ever spent $99 at Circle K without getting gas?
23:50 - Young lady opens up the door, and barely utters to the clerk, "Public bathroom?" He tells her back to the right and Kev-O and Pepster just hopes she made it.
23:52 - Back home for the night. Eat snacks, drink water, go to bed.
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