Back at it...

        Well, it's been quite a few days since my last post, but you know what that means...Clemson Football season has officially started. I wasn't sure whether I was going to end up heading down to Clemson, as not all my friends would be in town for the game (and it was N. Texas for goodness sake). But all things considered, it was labor day weekend, all of the people from work were going to Atlanta to see UNC play-I can't let my Chapel Hill friends appear to be more loyal football fans than me, and enough friends would be heading down to make it a decent trip.
        As far as the rest of the week went, it was a bit of the same thing. Finishing up RSVP's for the Bob Griese luncheon on Thursday, working on some Extra Point Pass projects with Will and Sarah, and we FINALLY got around to finishing some good old fashioned data entry of the "enter to win" slips for the ACC championship.  For some reason Thursday and Friday seemed to go on forever this week; I think in part because the days were less eventful and more so filled with some of the same old tasks.  The week seemed to go on forever, probably because we worked all day Saturday last weekend, and didn't really feel like we had a break. 
        Like I said, I went back and forth about whether it was practical to head down to Clemson this weekend, but decided pretty last minute that there was no harm in heading down to Tiger Town, and Katy Padget SO graciously let me come stay with her...so nice to have friends with homes in Clemson.  I decided to stop by Target on Friday afternoon before leaving Charlotte and discovered that this particular Target has its own parking GARAGE, and you enter on the third floor.  Definitely not your typical Target; Hello, (semi) big city.  So, anyways I left around 5:15 and quickly realized that leaving then on Friday, on the weekend of the Clemson game and the major UNC-LSU in Atlanta, and on Labor Day weekend was a DUMB idea.  I contemplated turning around several times, but talking to good friends like Ansley Zarra and Sara Tafeen made the trip more bearable.  It's funny because they are both doing programs that are associated with the Peace Corps (Ans with Teach for America, and Sara with the Health Corps) so it's fun to listen to their different struggles as they start their commitments with the programs and schools.  But I digress...After about 45 minutes wasted in traffic, I made it to Clemson by 8, just in time to have dinner with several friends.  I figured I'd make it an early night since Saturday was guaranteed to be full, and wait for Katy to get off work and meet her at her apt.  That was until I found out that by getting off work late, Katy meant getting off at 3:00 AM instead of 10:30.  An early night turned into me having nowhere to go after spending a night with the guys downtown.  It was the first time I realized that I didn't have a home to go to in Clemson anymore, and it was QUITE a reality check.  I finally got in touch with her roommate and was able to get to sleep before Katy made it back. 

Balloons that are released at the beginning of every Clemson game...Perfect sky; fun image.

        Saturday was, of course, an awesome day in Clemson.  Katy were out Tailgating by 10:45 for the 3:30 game.  It was absolutely beautiful outside and it felt great...that is, until I got into the stadium.  I am embarrassed to say that I kept looking at the clock to see if I could make it through one quarter of the game in the extreme heat of the stadium.  I will say that I stayed long enough to see the poor ref get TAKEN OUT by players during the play that resulted in our first touchdown.  I had some mixed emotions about the play because I was excited for a touchdown, but worried about the Ref...but I think I was the only one around me that seemed concerned for a referee's health. 

Ref: laying down on the paw, where he stayed for a solid minute and a half before being escorted off via Gator

        By the end of the first quarter, I lied to the people I was sitting with, saying that I would be right back, and b-lined it for the closest tailgate with a tent.  I spent the duration of the game at Susan's tailgating with Susan and her friends and fam, Will Sartin, Adam, and towards the end Coach Brownell and his family and Coach Weineke.  After leaving that tailgate, I headed up the hill to where Channing and Trey were posted up and spent most of the rest of the night with that gang.  It was SO much fun to spend time with time with that crowd...I just felt like a care free college kid again. 
        I woke up on Sunday morning, expecting to still feel extremely full from all of the food I ate, but really all I felt was sore.  I came away from the weekend wanting someone to do a study on the typical Clemson tailgater, and the ratio of calories consumed, to calories burned by walking around all day.  After breakfast with Katy, I was set to get on the road quite early, but simply couldn't bring myself to leave the town that was an integral part of the four best years of my life, to date.  I ended up driving around all of my favorite spots for a while, but realized at some point I had to get back to my new life in Charlotte, as I had plans with family.  It was the weirdest feeling, going back to Clemson as a visitor and not as a resident.  No, I didn't cry...yes, I was on the verge.  I got back just as my parents were pulling into Charlotte.  We got to spend a good portion of the day as a big family with some of the Youngs and some of the Conrads.  Kim and John came into town as well, and John's brother Ross even stopped through on his way back from his trip to Atlanta.  It was so comfortable to just hang out with family and listen to people struggle to get a word in on all conversations...this is common among family get-togethers with several big personalities, but it makes for the most fun convos.  Mom and I got to go on a walk, and it was the first time when we had spent legitimate quality "chill" time together in a while.  After dinner with the families, my parents left, and Kim, Jon, and I headed over to Carrie's to hang out.  Branden surprised us by showing up in Charlotte last night and Bobby headed over so I got to hang with almost all of the Conrads at one time...I guess you could call me the stand in for Ryan last night.  Bobby, Carrie, Bobby's friend and I went out to the Montford area to hang out and although it was a strange crowd that night, we had fun surveying the scene and just spending time together.  I'm hoping we will have several more of these laid back, fun nights with cousins in the next couple of months. 
       
*** Stay tuned for stories about mystery animals, an Uncle Bobby semi freak out (ha!), and good eats from Monday...TO BE CONTINUED...so I don't sleep through my alarms in the AM***