Wine Festival Fun, Poznan Visit, and Hanging With Nikki - Blog #35 (Sep. 8 - 14)

Basketball Update:

We had another exhibition game this week against a EuroCup team, Wrocław. They are a very high-profile team that is always in contention for the best team in Poland, so it was going to be a good test for us. It was a fairly back-and-forth game that got chippy in a couple of moments. We did not play our best game defensively but put up a lot of points. We ended up losing by just four points. Good thing we play them again this week as well as a Czech team on Friday at home in front of our fans. Should be a fun week!

Leadership Lesson:

I heard a quote podcast that struck me, and I figured would be good for a leadership lesson. "The heaviest weight at the gym is the front door." It is such a strong truth that can apply to any kind of daunting task. I would argue that over half the battle is showing up. A non-sports example of this is my struggle with reading. My goal for 2025 is to read twelve books for the year, one per month. Right now, I am at eight, so I am keeping pace with my goal. I have found that the most difficult part for me in completing this goal is reading the first page. As soon as I get rolling, I find myself enjoying the book and feeling productive for the time I have spent learning and reading. Once I start, the task itself is not difficult. Starting is often the most difficult part. It sounds simple, but the beginning of a new task is the most difficult part. Once you start, the rest is normally much easier.

Top 5 of the Week:

Satisfying Sounds

1. Wooden Crack of the Bat - Hearing a clean home run come off of a wooden bat is the best sound there is. Quickly followed by cheers. It is awesome.

2. Cracking Open a Can - A classic sound that anyone can identify. A crisp, concise, beautiful sound.

3. Clean Dap Up - This may be difficult for the older generation to understand, but the sound of a good dap up, cup sound is unreal. Huge pop sound that is a head turner if you are in public.

4. Basketball Swish on Chain Net - Had to take this. A regular swish sounds great, but on a chain net it is especially satisfying. Not many chain nets around these days unfortunately.

5. Striping a Golf Drive - Very similar to the number one on this list, but also an amazing sound. It is probably a better feeling than it is sound, but it is still very satisfying to hear.

What Else Did I Do This Week?

It was such an amazing week with Nikki. She was working remotely, and I had a fairly busy basketball schedule with a majority of night practices. We still found plenty of time for a night at the movies, shopping at the mall, going to Winobranie a bunch, and going on several walks in the beautiful Polish scenery. It really felt like last year for a bit which was really nice. The movie we saw in theaters was The Roses. It was really funny and entertaining. Definitely recommend watching if you can. The movie theater experience here was slightly better than in the Netherlands in my opinion. By this, I mean it is more similar to the US. Better popcorn and snacks.

Thursday, I had an earlier practice, so Nikki and I spent a lot of time at Winobranie. The energy in the center was awesome, and we both really enjoyed the festival. I also made us a dinner reservation at il Vicolo. It is one of the best restaurants in Zielona Gora, and it lived up to the hype. More on the food later. We went back into the festival to get some mini donuts that were very solid. Fun night.

Saturday morning before the game, Nikki found a really cool nature area for us to walk/hike around. We went to the highest point in ZG and walked through some gorgeous foresty trails.

Postgame, we went into the center for Winobranie one last time. We had some good street food and hung out for a few hours before making the long walk home.

Nikki flew out of Poznan on Sunday, and she wanted to check out the city of Poznan before her 2 pm flight. It was yet another awesome Polish city. Beautiful city center with colorful buildings, awesome parks, and gorgeous churches. We had some good croissants and also indulged in some pierogis. We walked around most of the city and then, headed to the airport to drop off Nikki. It felt like last year spending the week together with some added excitement because we had not seen each other in a while. A really hard goodbye per usual. :(

Cultural Difference in Poland:

A big difference between Poland and the Netherlands, at least where I am living, is the amount of biking. In the Netherlands, the country is much smaller, so everything is closer together by land area. Poland is much less densely populated than the Netherlands. Because of this, I think the Dutch people are a good amount healthier than Polish people by the look of it. Not to ruffle any feathers, but it is an interesting observation I have made, and I think it may be because of the biking culture.

Top Meal of the Week:

Our best meal this week was definitely our dinner at il Vicolo. I got pork loin with the bone, and Nikki got some salmon risotto. We also got a side of grilled veggies. It was an unreal dinner, and I think I will be back.