Hi family!
I just thought I'd give you an update about what the NC cousins are doing down here. October came with a couple weekends for tailgating opportunities. The whole Garvey family came up to Chapel Hill to visit me and go to the UNC/Clemson football game. Annie and Molly came up late in the evening on a Friday, which we spent going to dinner downtown on Franklin Street (the main strip on campus/downtown... where all the bonfires and parties were after the 2009 NCAA championship if you followed that) and preparing for the next days festivities. Our waiter at dinner, Chuck (?), was a friendly guy, who we invited to our tailgate. Too bad he had to work the next morning. We had plans to get a drink at Spanky's, his restaurant, in the morning, but we never made it... Anywhoo, the next morning, Annie, Molly, and I woke up around 8 to begin the day of tailgating! Annie came prepared with Mac and Cheese, homemade pimento cheese dip, and 7 layer Mexican dip. I provided the booze, and Molly provided her entertaining personality :)
Mom and Dad drove up from Charlotte and got in about 10:30AM. They came with more food -- Carolina BBQ, brats, candy, and more drinks. Mom was a big proponent of Flip Cup (no surprise there-- see picture to the left). My grad school friends played Molly's high school friends that are undergrads at UNC. Grad students won!
Mom and Dad decided to dress neutrally for the day, as they did not want to pick sides between Molly and myself. Neither of us really cared who they supported, particularly me as I'm not as into UNC athletics as a grad student. Dad did switch between a Clemson and Carolina hat about every 15 minutes, though.
After a morning and afternoon full of drinking and eating, it was finally time for the 3:30 game. I got Annie and Molly student guest passes, so they sat in the student section with me. We left a little after halftime though, as it was extremely hot! We met up with my parents, who did not go to the game but chose to walk around campus for a bit. The 5 of us went to an Irish Pub, Kildares, on Franklin Street again before everyone left for Charlotte. Oh, and UNC won!
A couple weekends later, Annie, Molly, and I found ourselves at another Clemson football game. This time, we were actually in Clemson, SC, for the Clemson/GA Tech game. Annie and I drove together from Charlotte on a Saturday morning, leaving about 7 AM (!). After a slight detour to Georgia (not kidding) and some turmoil in the car (I won't tell you who was supposed to be in charge of directions, as it is still a point of dispute...), we made it to Molly's cute house. After a quick tour and change of clothes, we were ready for another day of tailgating. Molly took us to her favorite fraternity house where she and her roommates were hosting a tailgate with one of her roommate's parents. The picture below is of me, looking a little nervous, in the frat house. Apparently no one lives there anymore, but the frat still uses it on game days....
Annie, again, came prepared with pimento cheese dip and beer, and Molly made pimento cheese sandwiches. I was the one to provide the entertaining personality this time. We spent the morning eating, drinking and playing cornhole. It was fun to experience the atmosphere on game day in Clemson. Orange was everywhere! As well as Tiger tails and paws.
We went to the game until halftime (Clemson ended up winning!), then made our way back to the tailgate area. Down the street, the parking lot of a restaurant/bar was cleared out of cars and filled with tents and tailgaters. This is one of Molly's main spots on game days. We met some of her friends and saw some interesting characters. We went back to Molly's house around 10 that night. Annie and I were especially exhausted, but it was a great day! Molly and her roommates were excellent hosts.
