I’m no football fan, so when today arrived all rainy and cold I was ready to bail and spend the day on the couch with my book.
Instead we bundled ourselves into the car (I stashed my book into my backpack though) and we drove downtown where the real fans of Florida State and University of West Virginia were headed to see this bowl game. I enjoy football for the people-watching, the overspending on concession items and the side stepping of vomit on the ladies’ room floor in the 4th quarter.
The free enterprise system was flourishing as people in the neighborhoods surrounding the stadium were turning their front, or vacant yards into car parks. A few were offering home cooked food a la tailgating, which of course, we hadn’t planned out for ourselves. A sliced apple, a diet Pepsi and granola bars weren’t going to take five people through the day (we don’t like to plan ahead, I guess). We chose the bargain car park at $20/car (bypassing those in the $30-35 range) and found ourselves killing time in our parked car, hoping the rain would stop. For a while we watched people come and go from the house across the street: obviously something was going on inside. We figured they had food by the looks of things, so we went over and sure enough they were running a “tailgate” party. We were invited inside for some brisket, pasta salad, baked beans and grilled hot dogs. No real charge, just pay whatever, they told us, so we did. The house belonged to their friend, we were told; no one seemed to actually live there but it was a nice set-up for game day – running the car park and “tailgate” party along with a lively card game and music, everyone was upbeat on a chilly and drizzly New Year’s Day. Still it was fun and by the time we finished eating the rain had stopped and we were fortified enough to trudge the several blocks over to the stadium.
(Note: the layout of the rest of this post is not how it appeared in compose mode, and I’m done trying to figure it out. The pictures are not where I placed them, the text format is wonky – I have no idea.)
We were bundled up in all manner of parkas and hoodies and windbreakers and scarves. Wimpy Floridians now, 50
degrees and overcast is winter for us, end of story. But by the third
quarter, it was sunshine and blue sky so I felt uplifted
and even stripped off one of my many layers for a bit.
quarter, it was sunshine and blue sky so I felt uplifted
and even stripped off one of my many layers for a bit.
Still, there was one FSU fan who was undaunted by the
weather and stood, buck naked from the waist up both in the damp and gloomy first quarter, and the more seasonal
Florida-like second half.
The gentleman in the red sweatshirt and cap (shown seated for this moment) managed to stand up in front of us practically the entire game. He appears pretty relaxed in this picture but don’t let that fool you. He had no compunction about standing up even though there was no one in front of him on their feet. I looked at the back of him a lot.
(weather still cold)
Finally, I uploaded a photo to Facebook during the game and mistakenly referred to Mr. No Shirt as a Gator fan. A Gator fan. (The Seminoles were playing.) That’s like calling a Spartan a Wolverine. Hey, I’m from Michigan and besides, I don’t know from football (nor do I care). I was only there for something to do that didn’t require a couch and a reading light, or involve the beach in some way. A girl needs a little diversion every now and then.
(Someone’s little guy who clearly knew I was taking his picture. This was snapped during the warmest five minutes of the day.)
