The day after Christmas in Shreveport was grey and rainy, with occasional thunder. It was cold, too, with temperatures in the low 40’s. In other words, it was cold enough to be miserable but not cold enough for the rain to become snow…not even close. It was under those conditions that my sweet mother-in-law boldly strode into Independence Stadium to watch the Missouri Tigers play the North Carolina Tar Heels in the Independence Bowl.
Unfortunately, there were too few intrepid souls to make the stadium look presentable on TV. There were 30,000 or so people who had tickets to the game, but decided the weather was just too ridiculous to suffer it willingly.
The truth is, she knew she would have a roof over her head, so the rain wasn’t a factor. So, she bundled up and sat in the cold with her daughter for as long as she could take it. 
That was, by the way, slightly more than three quarters of football. She said this was her first time to ever set foot in the stadium. As much time as I’ve spent there, that little piece of news shocks me just a little. I’ve seen rain, snow, ice, mud, slop and summer swelter there. The key is to dress appropriately.
It was a disappointing day for the Independence Bowl, there’s no getting around it. But I think it was a good day for my wife and her mother. Christmas is behind us. Ours was terrific. The kids came home and we all got together, along with my father, for a low-key but happy day. But everybody’s gone now, so the game was a welcome distraction. It got us out of the house. I just wish the weather had been a little better.
Monday, December 26, 2011
Shivering in the Stadium
Monday, December 28, 2009
Getting Good at Surviving the Cold
Another late December and once again I hauled the women out to a bowl game.
As we sat in Independence Stadium watching the Georgia Bulldogs dismantle Texas A&M, we agreed that last year at the Music City Bowl, we were much more uncomfortable. There were many differences this time around. We were much lower in this stadium than we were in Nashville, which meant we were not subjected to a lot of wind. Also, instead of traveling across several states, we just went across town. That meant we felt no real obligation to hang around any longer than we really wanted to. So, once the Aggies had no prayer of mounting a comeback, we joined the rest of the locals in hitting the highway.
Another difference: my daughter had company.
Happy Couple II was preposterously underdressed for the occasion. I know when you're young and involved in a long-term relationship, there is a certain romance in the idea of "keeping each other warm," but proper clothing can't hurt.
Let's put it this way: after one possession in the fourth quarter, we suggested leaving and no one objected.
I've attended 33 Independence Bowls now (but who's counting?) and this one appears to have drawn one of the three or four largest crowds ever to the stadium.
LSU has played here twice and packed the place. It would be difficult to pinpoint a larger crowd from among any of the other games. This is all the more remarkable because kick-off was at 4:00 on a weekday.
By the time the game finished, the place was almost empty, though. We all had enough sense to come in from the cold.
Friday, November 28, 2008
The Tide is High
(Birmingham, AL) - As promised, the weather has been bleak at best. There was never a moment in our seven-hour drive to Tuscaloosa, and on to Brimingham, when it wasn't raining. I'm sick of being wet.
I expected to check into our hotel before we went on to official business at the University of Alabama, but that didn't work out for me. We were invited to a "casual dinner" at a yacht club in Tuscaloosa. As we sat around a Chicken Wing Place watching LSU lose to Arkansas, I sent a text message to our host asking for a clarification on "casual." That meant "no tie," I soon found out. Since I was in blue jeans, tennis shoes and a damp Polo shirt, I figured I needed to change. So, off I ran to the rent car to get my bags.
I have to admit I felt pretty silly carrying two suitcases into the men's room of the Chicken Wing Place, but a man's got to do what a man's got to do. As I walked in, I was greeted with curious stares from the wait staff and a hostess. I just said, "Hi, kids! Daddy's home!" Only one laughed. It was the smart one, to be sure. I did my best Clark Kent impersonation in a bathroom stall and emerged slightly wrinkled but reassuringly dry. Appropriately attired in slacks and blazers, off we went into the drizzly Alabama night.
This was one of those "I can't believe I'm invited to this party" moments for me. I sat at a table with the Alabama Athletic Director and representatives from the Sugar and Orange Bowls. I sort of felt like the little step brother being allowed to sit at the big boys' table. Everyone was kind and gracious and the conversation flowed well. I was one of the two youngest men at the table, so I sat all "gee whiz"-like and listened to stories mostly about Bear Bryant, which is what you would expect at Alabama.
The unspoken awkwardness came from the obvious: we are here representing a bowl game which needs Alabama's opponent to win. Yes, Traveling Companion and I are here to gladhand Auburn. That didn't stop the Crimson Tide people from being warm hosts. They even had a gift with my name on it. I'm waiting until tomorrow to open it. Maybe Christmas will come early.
Maybe the rain will stop, too. Otherwise, the rising tide you see will not be a football team, but a flash flood.
