God and Football

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At the request of several Singaporean (and Singapore-based) friends, I've decided to write about my adventures here in Alabammy for interested parties. I figure this is just as much a cultural experience as anywhere abroad I've lived, and deserves equal attention. So here goes...

I arrived in Alabama late at night, but kindly greeted at the airport by one of the grad students in my lab. I never like arriving in a new place after dark because it always feels less welcoming than friendly sunshine, and my arrival into Tuscaloosa wasn’t really eased by the billboard I saw warning against the ill effects of crystal meth on my appearance…hmmm…they need billboards to remind people here of that?

Luckily, the next days were bright and sunny, and my first two weeks in Alabama have been filled with friendly folks and very little crystal meth.

Some first thoughts on Alabama:

I was expecting Tuscaloosa to be a tiny tiny town (having read that it’s home to only 100,000 people) with cute country roads and a Santa Barbara-like feel. It is, in actuality, a medium-sized town full of strip malls, chain restaurants and stores, and big highways to accommodate everyone’s American-made trucks. There are a few neighborhoods with cute homes and nice sidewalks, and I enjoy riding my bike around those 6 square blocks. On my 2nd day in town I was reminded by my friend Alissa that the town we grew up in (yes, there’s actually someone from Everett who lives here!) was about the same size. So, if you’re from the Pacific Northwest, Tuscaloosa is sort of like Everett with a big party school at its center.

On my first weekend here I had two separate people say to me that the most important things here are “God and football” and from the looks of things, they aren’t kidding. There are churches everywhere (and, amazingly, an Islamic center and I’m told there’s also a Jewish community), and during Alabama’s homecoming weekend I experienced the craziest college football spectacle I’ve ever seen. Firstly, the fact that “homecoming” is an event at a UNIVERSITY (not a high school) at all is amazing to me. They actually have a homecoming queen. And a parade, and crazy tailgating. Tailgaiting--for my non-American friends--is where people get together before a sporting event and basically eat, drink, and get psyched for the game. It can be as simple as having a barbeque in your own yard or as complex as driving your mammoth RV to an away game and setting up camp with televisions to watch pre-game shows, drink beer, and eat more food than I had in a month at the SAFE project. But I digress...

I was driving around in the middle of the day on homecoming Saturday, and I figured the game was about to start because the streets were packed with crimson and houndstooth-clad fans of all ages, including young women in dresses (for a football game?!), but someone pointed out that the game would not start until 6 pm. Wow. You would not have seen even a groundskeeper near the stadium that many hours before a U. Chicago football game… Given the attitude towards both God and football, I’m tempted to ask people if their attitude towards the latter would qualify as “worship of a false idol” but I’m afraid that I would irritate someone who owns a gun and knows how to use it…

I have managed to learn my way around fairly well, and I can get everywhere I need to go on my bike. The campus is gorgeous, and everyone I’ve met has been super friendly. I’ve enjoyed hearing people say “y’all” and (one of my favorites) “might could.” Ah, southern vernacular. I’ll try to note down any new phrases I learn and once I get a working camera, I’ll post photos of the best sights around town. This weekend I’m getting my first visitor: Mikey and Allison! So next week’s entry will include lots of doggie-filled adventures, I’m sure.

I hope you are all well—please feel free to email me any questions about life south of the Mason-Dixon!

xoxo

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