Dating an Alabama Fan

Saturday is the opening day of college football season! WAR EAGLE!

While I was at Auburn, the majority of people dated other Auburn fans, it was a way of life. You would get dressed up together in your respective orange and blue, shake you orange and blue shakers, cheer the Fight song, and pass the bourbon drink back and forth. Once you graduate from college, however, you are exposed to new people and quite often, new relationships blossom.

I did the unthinkable. It might even be viewed by many Auburn fans as TREASON: I date an ALABAMA fan. GASP. I know what you are thinking: "HOW COULD YOU?" Well, John Howell is really cute, and I'm a sucker for a good looking guy! Other than the fact he went to Alabama, he's pretty much perfect! I am able to get past this little flaw in his character, until the fall that is, when it really proves problematic to the relationship.

I try to remind myself that he loves Alabama the same way in which I love Auburn. He likes to sport his crimson and white the same way that I like to buy a new orange dress every year and paste glittery AU face tats on my cheek. I do own a pair of houndstooth pumps, which I have been given much grief over by my Auburn peers, but I stand by the fact that it is a fall pattern and they also look cute with black. In the spirit of compromise, I even bought him a new "game day" shirt when I was in Destin from the Polo outlet. I had to ask two people in the store, who were wearing Alabama garb, whether or not the shirt I had in my hand was more crimson than red. What is crimson, anyway? It is an odd mating of red and maroon and I have always had a hard time distinguishing the color.

Last football season, John and I had just starting dating, and the first game of the year was also on my birthday. At this point, after reading the blog, you know I am obsessed with my birthday and can be a bit self centered about it. Anyways, I was anxious to please my new boyfriend and because it was Nick Saban's debut (eyeroll), I agreed to attend the first Alabama game instead of the Auburn game. It was not a hard bargain for John to drive, I did get pearls for my birthday that day! We had a blast. I got to meet a large number of his friends from school that I had never met before and got to indulge in Big Bad Wolf BBQ (delicious, people). I will be honest, I was looking in the sky for my eagle and wondering where the fighter jets were, and they were no where to be found. As far as the eye could see, there were houndstooth hats. *Sidenote: The Bear is Dead ;)

John did not make the trek to Auburn last season until the Auburn/Alabama game. We elected not to buy tickets, tailgate all day, and then go hang out and watch it in a bar. Not to open up old wounds, but the Tide lost for the 6th year in a row. I was quite pleased, but NOT rubbing it in John's face, like a good little girlfriend, although Jessica and I were high fiving behind his back. The group of us had to walk past Toomers corner, beautifully bathed in white tissue, and down a street to Burger King where Jackson Lilly was scheduled to collect us. While sitting on the curb, Jessica, Alana, and I innocently asked John if he would mind taking our picture. He was beginning to pout a little bit, but sulkily agreed. Little did he know, that we had already conspired to throw up six fingers on the count of three.

You would have thought we SHOT him. John proceeds to yell at me and slam my camera back into my hand. I am a few beers in at this point in the game and this is just too funny at this point. Us three girls are on the ground rolling, tickled at our cleverness. Jackson pulls up and we all pile in the car, and I think we are actually in Kyle Sullivan's truck. We cannot wait to relay the story to our Auburn friends, who absolutely love it and want to see our picture. Everyone is giving John a hard time over the fact that he is not only upset at this point, but is completely furious. He is now stating that we don't know what it feels like to never win an AL/AU game while in college, and this was his last AU/AL game while in college. I might as well not be sitting beside him for all the attention I am getting at this point. I am now mad. However, I am counting to ten and refusing to yell back at him because I think it is all very silly and I did not want our first "real" fight to over a stupid football game. Once John realized HE was the one being ignored, he became a bit concerned. He glanced over at me and poked me in the leg and said something like "Hey, why are you not talking to me?" No response on my part. "Well," John says, "I'm sorry if you're sorry." Dead serious face. I could not believe that this pompous Alabama fan (he had transitioned from boyfriend to Alabama fan)had the nerve to expect me to apologize for a game I did not play in! I think I said that, actually, and we somehow let it go, but it was ridiculous nonetheless.

I hope that this football season goes smoothly, and that John and I survive with a fully intact relationship by Christmas! For what it is worth, I enjoy the football games, but I really enjoy the social aspect of it. I like to tailgate with friends, eat hamburgers and hotdogs, and sip on a big bourbon drink or cold beer. My friends and I take lots of pictures and spend a lot of time in line at the port-a-potty. If Auburn loses, I hate it, but I am still fully up for an after party(back to my "glass half full" mentality and acceptance of things I cannot change). John, bless his heart, is a bit more intense, and I know this, and will have to work with him on that.

It is possible to maintain a "SPLIT" relationship, but I never said it was easy! Let the games begin! (Love you John)