Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts
Monday, November 1, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
The Auburn Football Family
Today we're gonna see Auburn (hopefully) kick some LSU Tiger butt. Because the wife is new faculty and was hired in the spring, we weren't able to get on the faculty ticket list. And, because of other commitments (notably Kentucky Colonel Day at Churchill Downs), this is the last game we'll be able to attend this season. (And yes, both the wife and I are colonels. Don't ask how.)
Because we don't know our situation for next year, this could actually be the last game we see for awhile. And I have to say, while I didn't enjoy football in high school or college, I am surprised by how much of a college football convert I have become.
I didn't get it before. I didn't understand that in places like the rural South, your college team is all you have. You don't have professional sports teams readily nearby (name a top tier professional sports team in Mississippi or Alabama. Go ahead. I'll wait.), so there is nothing of that sort to identify with. In Connecticut, you were either a Yankee fan or a Red Sox fan. College football? I don't think so. Patriots, Jets, or Giants. Or if you lived in upstate NY, the Bills (shudder).
But down here, all you have is your school. The school you may have gone to, or not (from what I understand, the vast majority of 'bama fans never went there. Infer what you will about the level of class)And it's the place you stay loyal to because, despite the vast sums of $ that are available to teams in the BCS system, they, unlike professional sports teams, aren't going to leave your town. They are a part of the community. They are loyal to the alumni, faculty, students, and fans who flock to the campus every Saturday (regardless of where the team is playing. Auburn travels well. Nebraska and Clemson as well), and stake out there spots, and welcome other fans (who support their team or not) in an open, friendly, gregarious nature. The college isn't the Yankees or the Red Sox, able to shell out over $200 million a year in salaries in an openly disgusting manner in the middle of the recession while raping working families for $50/tix to seat in the nosebleeds. (An aside, sometimes the Yankees make it really hard to root for them.) And yes, while some of the tickets aren't cheap, there really isn't anything like being in a stadium with 85,000 other people.
Here at Auburn, the senior level staff and those associated with the school talk about the Auburn family, how everyone is welcome and how we all look out for one another. And despite being the Yankee I am, I have felt welcome from the very moment we crossed the state line 3.5 months ago. In a strange way, those 85,000 people have become my family. And regardless of how long we stay, (or don't) I will always be an Auburn Tiger.
War Eagle
Because we don't know our situation for next year, this could actually be the last game we see for awhile. And I have to say, while I didn't enjoy football in high school or college, I am surprised by how much of a college football convert I have become.
I didn't get it before. I didn't understand that in places like the rural South, your college team is all you have. You don't have professional sports teams readily nearby (name a top tier professional sports team in Mississippi or Alabama. Go ahead. I'll wait.), so there is nothing of that sort to identify with. In Connecticut, you were either a Yankee fan or a Red Sox fan. College football? I don't think so. Patriots, Jets, or Giants. Or if you lived in upstate NY, the Bills (shudder).
But down here, all you have is your school. The school you may have gone to, or not (from what I understand, the vast majority of 'bama fans never went there. Infer what you will about the level of class)And it's the place you stay loyal to because, despite the vast sums of $ that are available to teams in the BCS system, they, unlike professional sports teams, aren't going to leave your town. They are a part of the community. They are loyal to the alumni, faculty, students, and fans who flock to the campus every Saturday (regardless of where the team is playing. Auburn travels well. Nebraska and Clemson as well), and stake out there spots, and welcome other fans (who support their team or not) in an open, friendly, gregarious nature. The college isn't the Yankees or the Red Sox, able to shell out over $200 million a year in salaries in an openly disgusting manner in the middle of the recession while raping working families for $50/tix to seat in the nosebleeds. (An aside, sometimes the Yankees make it really hard to root for them.) And yes, while some of the tickets aren't cheap, there really isn't anything like being in a stadium with 85,000 other people.
Here at Auburn, the senior level staff and those associated with the school talk about the Auburn family, how everyone is welcome and how we all look out for one another. And despite being the Yankee I am, I have felt welcome from the very moment we crossed the state line 3.5 months ago. In a strange way, those 85,000 people have become my family. And regardless of how long we stay, (or don't) I will always be an Auburn Tiger.
War Eagle
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Move story, Part 2
We got up pretty early to eat breakfast, clean up the room from the pets, and tried to hit the road before 8 to get through the nightmare traffic that is Atlanta, GA. And it all went reasonably according to plan. Before we hit it, I took Domino out for a walk where I ran into a very spry 83 y/o man walking his bichon frise. We had a nice chat, and he told me great things about the place we were going. Considering I hadn't visited Auburn yet, I was nervous. The man's easy going nature and good words made we feel a lot better about our future home.
We hit the road and enjoyed a nearly traffic free drive all the way to the outskirts of Atlanta where the road widened and traffic volume got heavy. We were never stopped dead in our tracks, nor were we slowed down all that much, but I stuck to 1 lane for the most part. Like most metro areas, Atlanta has highway signs giving up to date traffic info and travel times which was helpful because our original plan was straight down I-85 through the heart of Atlanta. The signs said heavy delays, so the beltway became our route.
On the southern side of Atlanta, we stopped for lunch and got ready for the final push. At lunch, we ended up speaking to another nice stranger who asked if I was a cyclist (I was wearing my Fat Cyclist t-shirt). He then went on to start telling us about the bike trail that goes from Atlanta all the way to Birmingham. In the back of my mind, I started planning a fall weekend cycling/camping getaway.
Back on the road, we cruised over the state line and arrived in our new home state. 30 miles more down the road and we hit Opelika (pronounced Opa-like-uh), Auburn's sister-town. Then we got off at our exit and Tina led the way through the center of town. It was something, let me tell you, driving a 26' truck through the center of town along the edge of the university until we hit Toomer's Corner, the exact center of town where a big orange paw print is painted on the intersection. A couple more turns onto the beltway of Auburn where I sub-division is located, down the access road, and into out new little neighborhood where we pulled up to our new house (pics soon).
The LL was (to my surprise) waiting for us, and in we walked to the place we (our family) would spending the next year of our lives.
We hit the road and enjoyed a nearly traffic free drive all the way to the outskirts of Atlanta where the road widened and traffic volume got heavy. We were never stopped dead in our tracks, nor were we slowed down all that much, but I stuck to 1 lane for the most part. Like most metro areas, Atlanta has highway signs giving up to date traffic info and travel times which was helpful because our original plan was straight down I-85 through the heart of Atlanta. The signs said heavy delays, so the beltway became our route.
On the southern side of Atlanta, we stopped for lunch and got ready for the final push. At lunch, we ended up speaking to another nice stranger who asked if I was a cyclist (I was wearing my Fat Cyclist t-shirt). He then went on to start telling us about the bike trail that goes from Atlanta all the way to Birmingham. In the back of my mind, I started planning a fall weekend cycling/camping getaway.
Back on the road, we cruised over the state line and arrived in our new home state. 30 miles more down the road and we hit Opelika (pronounced Opa-like-uh), Auburn's sister-town. Then we got off at our exit and Tina led the way through the center of town. It was something, let me tell you, driving a 26' truck through the center of town along the edge of the university until we hit Toomer's Corner, the exact center of town where a big orange paw print is painted on the intersection. A couple more turns onto the beltway of Auburn where I sub-division is located, down the access road, and into out new little neighborhood where we pulled up to our new house (pics soon).
The LL was (to my surprise) waiting for us, and in we walked to the place we (our family) would spending the next year of our lives.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
T minus 1 week and counting
Yowzer. It's really here. I cannot believe it. It's really here.
This is the last week I am here at the office and I have a boatload of stuff to get ready before we ship out. Additionally, people are really starting to demand our time and attention, and we still have a lot of packing to do (read, all packing because we haven't done any yet. Why are waiting? I don't know.)
I also am starting to feel the absolute reality of things. The last time I visited my grandfather in Jersey was a week and a half ago. When we left I told him we would see him again at Christmas. I saw both doubt and hope in his eyes; hope that he would make it to Christmas, and doubt that he would. I am making another trip to see him tomorrow after work for what I hope won't be the last time I see him.
We saw my parents for the last time before we move this past weekend. That was a little tough. When we were leaving my mother, crying and putting on a brave face, said "This is nothing. We lived in Singapore and you were here." I asked, "So, why are you crying?" She replied, "Because your father is crying." To which he replied, "No I'm not. It's fricking hot out here. I am sweating!"
This is crunch time. This is the time to make lists, execute, cross it off and get shit done. I hope I don't falter on anything too major.
This is the last week I am here at the office and I have a boatload of stuff to get ready before we ship out. Additionally, people are really starting to demand our time and attention, and we still have a lot of packing to do (read, all packing because we haven't done any yet. Why are waiting? I don't know.)
I also am starting to feel the absolute reality of things. The last time I visited my grandfather in Jersey was a week and a half ago. When we left I told him we would see him again at Christmas. I saw both doubt and hope in his eyes; hope that he would make it to Christmas, and doubt that he would. I am making another trip to see him tomorrow after work for what I hope won't be the last time I see him.
We saw my parents for the last time before we move this past weekend. That was a little tough. When we were leaving my mother, crying and putting on a brave face, said "This is nothing. We lived in Singapore and you were here." I asked, "So, why are you crying?" She replied, "Because your father is crying." To which he replied, "No I'm not. It's fricking hot out here. I am sweating!"
This is crunch time. This is the time to make lists, execute, cross it off and get shit done. I hope I don't falter on anything too major.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Countdown: 16 days
It's starting to get scary!
Not really scary, but I think you know what I mean. 3 months ago when the wife got the job, it was something that was going to happen, but one that I didn't have to deal with immediately. Now, it's right around the corner.
Friends and coworkers are starting to ask if I am nervous or excited. Neighbors are saying things like, "Hope you like this weather, 'cause its gonna be a lot hotter down there!" (Jeez, thanks. Sheesh) And we are having going-away parties thrown for us. We had our first one Sunday, and as a pre-moving father-son bonding time / moment, I joined my father for a round of golf on Friday, followed by a "here's where everything is in case I die while you're in Alabama" talk. That was fun.
16 days of getting through work and worrying about packing. I just wish it here already so that we could be done with it, because I don't feel settled. And as a Leo, I need to feel "settled".
I'll just hang in there.
Not really scary, but I think you know what I mean. 3 months ago when the wife got the job, it was something that was going to happen, but one that I didn't have to deal with immediately. Now, it's right around the corner.
Friends and coworkers are starting to ask if I am nervous or excited. Neighbors are saying things like, "Hope you like this weather, 'cause its gonna be a lot hotter down there!" (Jeez, thanks. Sheesh) And we are having going-away parties thrown for us. We had our first one Sunday, and as a pre-moving father-son bonding time / moment, I joined my father for a round of golf on Friday, followed by a "here's where everything is in case I die while you're in Alabama" talk. That was fun.
16 days of getting through work and worrying about packing. I just wish it here already so that we could be done with it, because I don't feel settled. And as a Leo, I need to feel "settled".
I'll just hang in there.
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