connecticut trip

my boss asked me to go to hartford to work pregame receptions for the big east women's basketball tournament and i gladly accepted. i'm a college hoops fanatic and i was excited to get out of the city for awhile. i had a quick and easy flight in, got a rental car and drove - a bit aimlessly - to my hotel. i slept so well that night, it was so nice to have peace and quiet and time to myself. the next day i met staff from athletics at the arena to decorate our room and go over everything. after that i had time to kill so i decided to go for, go on a short drive to get the burger i've been dreaming of ever since i saw it on man vs food. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSoivxhC8Og steamed cheeseburger with a slab of steamed cheese. unreal. i made it there in a crappy little rainstorm and just stared at the sign for a second, couldn't believe i was finally getting to try it! it was a bit crowded but i made my order - cheeseburger with my favorite toppings and cheesy home fries which are basically really thick fries, almost like potato wedges. it was sooo good and i inhaled it. total bucket list moment. after that it was time for the game, we had a huge turnout at our pregame reception and the girls won their game. i stayed for awhile to watch the notre dame/louisville game but i just really can't stand ND fans so i left to go to my hotel to work on homework. the next day i woke up and got right to work, i had a paper due the next day and still had a lot of work. after working for several hours i ventured out into sunny hartford and explored a bit. i grabbed lunch at woody's, the hotdog place featured on man vs food. all of their hotdogs are a foot long and they have all different kinds but i got one with cheese, brown mustard and chopped onion with fries. i LOVED it! quite possibly more than the burger from the day before. they grill the bun which made it buttery and crisp and the fries were perfect. junk food heaven! after that i ran some errands and then it was time for the pregame reception and game vs notre dame. our girls did pretty well, had the lead for awhile but in the end, they lost. and nothing tastes more sour than a loss to stupid notre dame. i was super bummed but almost glad they didn't go to the championship vs connecticut because uconn just KILLS everyone, they're seriously like a professional basketball team...it's never pretty. i went home and worked on my paper for several hours and crashed. the next day i started my long day of travel and everything went smoothly and i was home in time for class and felt pretty good about my paper.

i was really glad i had the chance to go to support our women and connect with our alumni in the area but i was definitely ready to go home. hartford aint got nothing on chi town!