I had mixed emotions about the move. When I visited Alleman that winter I had a great experience and I really liked it. I can remember telling my classmates at St. Thomas how excited I was as the majority would be going to school together at Peoria Notre Dame. However, I was also wanting to be with the kids that I had always gone to school with and with the girls I was used to playing against in soccer and basketball.
My dad was living in Davenport, IA...in a duplex. It was nice. We would be moving the next month to our new house. But the biggest day was the next day....first day of camp. I remember getting everything laid out for the morning. I was very nervous! I was a shy and timid kid...I didn't adapt well to change. This was a huge change. But I rolled with the punches and took it on the best I could. I thought as long as I have my parents there everything is going to be fine.
I woke up pretty early. I had a good breakfast. My dad and I talked basketball like we always did. We talked about our 8th grade season at St.Thomas and the memories we had made. He had coached that year. I would be playing with some of those girls at Alleman that we had played at our Diocesan Tournament. We had beat on of the teams early on and had lost to the other school in the championship game. That tournament is a whole other blog. Anyways, I was quite nervous about how they would take me in. I think that would be any 14 year olds fear that is new.
The plan was to get to the gym early to get familiar with the enivroment. Perhaps get a chance to talk to some of the girls and the coaches....warm up a little. I guess to take some of those jitters away. We had left in plenty of time. We were going to take I74 bridge, but as we approached there was a long line to get onto the ramp....the line was not moving due to construction that was not going on the day before. Where the duplex was located that would have been the fastest way to the high school. But not in a panic my dad turned around and headed to the Arsenal Bridge. The Arsenal has barges that come and go. As we were approaching the bridge traffic was moving. That was a huge relief for me. We had to go down the block to turn around to get to the bridge because of a one way....as we made our way onto the bridge....traffic was slowing down...eventually to a complete stop. Yes you guessed right....a barge. REALLY!!! My dad couldn't believe it. Since there were no cars coming from the other direction he reversed the car and headed to our last option...the Centennial Bridge.
At this point while traveling to the bridge I was becoming more and more anxious time was slipping. We had ten minutes to get there...on time! At this time the Centennial had tows so traffic at this time in the morning was a little jammed. People trying to get to work etc. The whole time my dad was reassuring me that everything was going to be okay. But I was ready to throw up. I remember driving thru Rock Island which was all very new (but very familiar today) listening to The Beatles. (They were my favorite band at this time.) The song "Fool on the Hill" was playing.....I can remember feeling so sad and scared. Everytime I hear that song today I can feel that same feeling. Was I the fool? I don't know.
We sat in the front of the school for a minute. I did not want to go in there. You couldn't pay me! Some how I got enough courage to get out of the car....walked to the gym doors with my dad by my side. The doors were open becaue it was so hot...I could see all the girls sitting on the floor while the coach was talking to them. I wanted to turn back and go home...home to Peoria. At this point I did not want to move. I wanted to play with my girls...the girls from the other Catholic schools that I had wanted to play with in high school. An example of how chaotic and panicked I felt was like The Beatles song "A Day in the Life" when the orchestra goes crazy. That is the best decription I can give. Listening to that part makes your heart race...well mine does anyway.
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