Uga VII

My poor husband. I think he feels dooped. 10 years ago he meets this cute, athletic chick and he dreams of a lifetime of sporty bliss. I don't think anyone is to blame here. I just think he made some assumptions and I have changed a bit and now he's dooped.

My honey...he loves sporting events of any kind. Of course he's partial to college basketball and college football, but he would attend any of them if he had tickets.

Not I...I love sports. I love to be active. I love to cheer on MY team. The difference is its not MY team unless I know someone playing or coaching on the team.

So, every Fall and Winter, my husband celebrates Kentucky Football and Basketball by himself. I try my best to get behind the Big Blue, and there are elements I love about going to the games, but I'm just not built that way...I have to know who I'm cheering for...No connection...No Cheer!

So, he had four tickets to the Kentucky @ Georgia game. He tried everything he could to find someone to go to the game, but to no avail. In the end, it was me and him on a roadtrip to Athens, GA. I can't tell you the last time we spent the WHOLE day together...no friends...no kids...no family. Just us.

It was a great time. He even let me stop and buy some new furry boots that kept my feet toasty warm. We grabbed some pizza at the Mellow Mushroom, watched a couple of games on tv, and then headed to Sanford Stadium at UGA for the game.

The part of going to games that I love are the peripherals...the things that go on AROUND the team. Here are my favorites from yesterday's game:

• Southern fans (particularly the girls) dress up for the games. I saw more black and red dresses and heels on our walk to the stadium. I don't know how they do it because it was freezing, but they sure looked cute.

• UGA stadium is right in the middle of campus, so the tailgating happens right on campus...what a mess! But the college kids (yes they're kids now) seem to really dig the atmosphere.


• In the pre-game ceremony, a single trumpet player stood in the upper deck (a couple rows from us) and started the band as they played "Glory, glory, halelujah". We all know how much I LOVE the band!


• During the halftime ceremony, they honored one of the former coaches, Vince Dooley, by letting him direct the band. Man...how I wished I was that guy. He was flapping his arms in the air while the drum and brass played with gusto. I have to admit, I was super jealous of that guy.


• UGA: Man this was the thing I was most looking forward to. UGA's mascot is a bulldog and Uga is its' name. Unfortunately, Uga VII died unexpectedly so for the first time in the school's history, there was no live bulldog at the game. And leave it to me to get a little teary during the video montage of Uga VII...reminded me of my Rosa Pearle.

In the end, I was a little cold, but extremely happy to have purchased my new warm boots, Isotoner gloves, and Snuggie. They kept me so toasty warm with the exception of my nose. And, even better...the Cats won! 1st time in 32 years they have beat Georgia. Man, my hubby was one happy guy.