Noise

The last time I went to the Georgia-Florida game, I was about 19 years old, maybe 20. The year was 1985, maybe 1986. I had a rocking good time. But Georgia didn't win.

But yesterday, thanks to Bruce Remler's generous offer of four tickets, the Remlers went back to Jacksonville to watch the Dawgs take on the Gators. And this time they won, as everyone north of the Florida line could probably discern from the noise coming out of Jacksonville.

That was one loud game.

Unfortunately, Georgia doesn't win the contest against Florida very often, so I was glad we were there to witness one of the victories. And the 24-20 score was just the icing on the cake of a great day.

Tailgating

Our day started out early, as we headed south down I-95, with a stop in Brunswick to pick up the fried chicken. Upon arrival in Jacksonville, Stephen immediately began scouting out parking spaces. I was a little hesitant at first. After all, I didn't know where the stadium was, and I didn't want us to park across town from it. Forward thinking, though, Stephen was anticipating the post-game traffic, and he thought it wise to put some distance between us and EverBank Field so that we wouldn't get caught in a glut of automobiles. And that's when we saw these guys on the sidewalk urging us to park in their lot.

"How far away is the stadium?" I asked.

"It's just over that viaduct," one of them replied, pointing to a car-covered bridge. "Not quite a mile."

Fair enough. But we were on the far side of a three-lane street. How would we get over to his lot?

"Don't worry," he said. "I'll stop the traffic for you." And he did. Once we pulled into his lot, we discovered we had stumbled upon the Historic Mt. Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church (established 1866). The men operating the parking lot must have been from the church's men's association. They could not have been nicer. "Here's your parking tag," our new host said. "And here's a map to the stadium." He pointed to a bus stop not ten feet away. "You can ride the shuttle from here, or you can walk down Duval Street. And if you need to use the facilities, just go through that door under the awning." He pointed toward the church. "We'll be here during the game watching your car until 9:00."

Sweet! I was planning not to drink anything all day because I fiercely avoid stadium bathrooms. But with open access to the Historic Mt. Zion AME Church (est. 1866), I could drink both of the beers Stephen had packed in the cooler for me! So we set up our lawn chairs, broke out the fried chicken, and relaxed until game time. Davis and Lawson tossed the football around and even made a few friends.

After consulting the weather forecast, we brought rain gear with us, but we realized that we wouldn't need it, so after a satisfying lunch and a trip to our squeaky clean facilities, we hoofed it to the stadium.

This was my restroom.

Isn't it nice? 

I think I had to share it with four other women.

The Fans 

EverBank Field, formerly Alltel Stadium, was huge, but easy to navigate. We quickly found our seats in the Georgia end zone and watched the Dawgs warm up. Of course, we experienced the typical stadium seating phenomenon. Staudium rows are typically somewhere around 26 seats across. As spectators arrive at the event venue, the fans in seats 1, 2, and 3 and in seats 24, 25, and 26 arrive first. Then they spend the next hour standing and sitting like jacks in the box while everyone else arrives or leaves again to visit the facilities or one of the stadium's many fine concession stands. Without fail, the fans occupying seats 12 and 13 arrive two seconds before the kickoff, stepping on everyone else's toes, dripping Coke and spilling popcorn, as they stumble to their seats in the middle of the row. 

 

 During this twisted game of musical chairs, we familiarized ourselves with our neighbors. For instance, the guy at left wouldn't stop dancing. Between each play, when music came on the loudspeaker, this guy got up to bust a move. I wondered if he thought he was on Candid Camera. Or maybe Star Search. 

And then these well fed sports fans made no bones about their opinions that Isaiah Crowell is overrated. As it turned out, Crowell's injury, resulting in Richard Samuel's moments of glory, indicated that these fellows had a good point. 

  And then when this whipper snapper....

opined that Mark Richt should be fired, this fellow....

jumped out of his seat and declared that he might be 70 years old, but he could still whip the young man's behind (he used a different word, but I try to keep this blog family friendly). Fortunately, surrounding Dawgs fans calmed him down, but the Remlers were gearing up for some exciting entertainment. Still, we were puzzled by the hot temper. After all, newspapers have been speculating about Richt's job security for a year now. It's always a topic of conversation at a Georgia game. Maybe that man was Mark Richt's father. Who knows?

 The Game

And then the game began, but only after a rendition of the "Star Spangled Banner" sung by John Oates, half of the eighties music sensation "Hall and Oates." We never learned why Hall never made it, but Oates was able to carry the tune on his own. 

Georgia received the ball first, and there ensued about a fifteen minute possession, during which the Dawgs did not score. No surprise. We've seen all that business before. But then Georgia kicked off the Florida, and a Gator caught the ball and ran it 85 yards for a touchdown! Florida's possession lasted about six seconds. Our defense got very little field time, and by the end of the first quarter, I was rethinking my stadium seats and wondering whether I should just go back to the Historic Mt. Zion AME Church (est. 1866), where I could listen to the game on the radio and at least enjoy a clean restroom. But I stayed. And during the first half, while the Dawgs did manage to keep the Gators at bay, the first and second quarters were a round of creep-zip-creep-zip. 

And what was up with Blair Walsh yesterday? Was his foot on crooked? I would understand missing the goal if he were kicking from the fifty yard line, but when he's only fifteen or twenty yards out and he still misses--twice--one has to wonder whether he ate his Wheaties yesterday morning. 

But his underperformance might have been just what Georgia needed. After all, even I know you can't win a football game three points at a time, so with slim chances of earning those fourth down field goals, the Dawgs must have realized they had to score for real. 

Enter Richard Samuel.  

Now, loyal readers know I've kept my eye Richard Samuel since the 2009 season. Newspapers touted him as the player to watch, so I did just that. Unfortunately, he's had  his ups and downs as a Bulldog. Failing to live up to his potential in 09, he warmed the bench more than the gridiron. By 2010, he had practically disappeared, and I wondered if he was still on the team. Apparently, he's improved his game this year, and I've been delighted to see him more on the offensive line. But yesterday was his day. After three years of watching him struggle on the field, I finally got to see Samuel score! And not only that, but I saw him make the touchdown that turned the game around. 

And the tension heightened. At 24-20, the Gators couldn't rely on a fourth down field goal to pull ahead again. They needed a touchdown. Georgia's defensive line played well, and all of a sudden, it was the Gators, not the Dawgs, who were creeping down the field. 

Fourth quarter was also when I discovered this interesting tradition:

 At first I wondered why people wanted to buy four tickets when they were already in the stadium. But then Stephen explained that fans do this at the opening of the fourth quarter, I suppose to signal a last minute resurgence of energy. "It used to be like magic," he said. "But now it doesn't do anything at all." 

At least until last night.

Not only did Georgia hold Florida back, but with seconds left in the game, Richard Samuel came just inches away from another touchdown. So the Dawgs let the last few seconds lapse, and then the celebration began on the field.

Even Mark Richt joined the party, although I don't know what's up with him in the photo below. He looks like he's about to slug one of his coaches. Maybe he was asking him to dance. 

There was lots of hopping in that end zone. Good for the Dawgs. Stephen and I agreed that Coach Richt probably let his team go out and have a little fun last night. I just hope that if they did, they kept their noses clean. The last thing Georgia needs right now is a player getting arrested. Waushaun Ealey did enough of that to last the team several years. I also hope the coach advised the players not to pull an A. J. Green and sell any jerseys. The Dawgs need to keep up their momentum and avoid pesky legal distractions.

Richard Samuel certainly earned some bones for the back of his helmet. And I hope his teammates bought him a beer. As for Blair Walsh, I hope someone took him to Lenscrafters.

More Photos

 

The Florida side of the stadium emptied in a hurry. 

 

Go Dawgs!

Stephen and the Member Member

Many Saturday mornings, if the weather is good, Stephen likes to go to the Wilmington Island Club to play golf in the Saturday blitz. Sometimes he plays well; other times he plays not so well. But he's pretty good. And he's made a lot of friends on the golf course.

Unfortunately, when this fall came around the club announced that its member-member tournament would be the weekend of October 8th. We already had plans to take the kids to Six Flags, so Stephen didn't sign up for the tournament. But then the club changed the date of the tournament. As it turned out the weekend of October 8th occurred during Rosh Hashanah, so out of respect for its Jewish members, the club post-poned the tournament to this weekend. Fortunately, Stephen was available on those dates. Unfortunately, all the members he knew in the club had already partnered up for the tournament. He called his golf buddies, who called their other golf buddies, to find out if anyone needed a partner.

Fortunately, Shammah Baloch's partner got a hernia. Well, it wasn't really all that fortunate for Shammah's partner, but it was fortunate for Stephen--and Shammah too, I guess. So Stephen stepped in a week or so prior to the tournament. And for his birthday, which was the Thursday prior, he bought himself two new golf clubs.

All was well.

Stephen attended the tournament dinner Thursday night, and he reported that a number of participants took advantage of the open bar. So he felt good about his chances for Friday's match. What's more, Shammah went out and bought himself and Stephen these Power Balance bracelets, which are supposed to give them, well, power and balance. Stephen was willing to try anything to give him an edge during the tournament, so he put on his bracelet before departing for the course.

When he returned home, I asked how he'd played. "Right now, we're in first place," he reported.

"Wow," I said. "That's great. What if you win?"

"I'd like that," said in his usual, understated Stephen Remler way.

"What's the first prize?" I inquired.

"A gift certificate."

"For what?" I really have to pull answers out of my husband. He's not one to toot his own horn.

"The pro shop."

"For how much?"

"A hundred fifteen dollars, I think," he answered.

Hmm. That sounded like an awful lot of golf for a hundred dollar gift certificate. "How much did you pay to enter the tournament?" I asked.

"A hundred bucks."

Okay. Perhaps he was just playing for the fun of it. And who am I to talk? I took the SAT for the same reason. And Stephen bit his tongue the whole time. So this weekend I bit mine too.

So Saturday morning, after breakfasting on a delightful ham and veggie omelet with pepper jack cheese, Stephen took off, armed with his Power Balance bracelet for the golf course (I can't say for sure, but I think he slept in it). It was a beautiful day, and I hoped he'd have a lot of fun. I expected him to return at about 4:00 or so. He didn't walk in the door until about 6:00. He was carrying a cardboard box.

"How'd you do?" I asked.

"Shammah and I won," he said, pulling a beer out of the fridge.

"You won for your flight?" I asked. "That's great."

"No," he corrected me. "We won the whole thing!" Then he opened his cardboard box and pulled out his trophy: an engraved crystal bowl with a few droplets of beer in it. Apparently at the tournament's end, the players filled the bowl with beer and asked Stephen to drink from it. He says he had only a few sips. I believe him. He prefers a frosty mug.

I thought it was great that he got a bowl along with his gift certificate. But then he pulled a wad of cash out of his pocket. As it turned out, Stephen had placed a few side bets during the weekend. And not only did he and Shammah win the tournament (with scores of 60 on Friday and 62 on Saturday), but the also won all the skins (I don't know what skins are. I suppose they're bets), and he won the closest to the hole on #11, which is a par 3.

That's one powerful bracelet! I think Stephen's golfing skills had more to do with his win, though. One thing's for sure:  he won't have to call around looking for a partner next year!

Davis and Friends in Televised Greeting to the Bishop

Davis and some of his classmates, along with some students from Saint Vincent's Academy, offered a greeting to the new Bishop Hartmayer on the day of his ordination and installation. I didn't get to see it air, but fortunately, Pam Veiock at Benedictine sent me a copy of the video. Davis is the one in the front, the first boy to speak:

Eighties Day

This week is homecoming week at Saint Peter the Apostle School. Like many other schools, SPA celebrates the event by designating costumes to each day of the week. Tomorrow is eighties day. Lawson announced that at supper tonight, giving us very little time to prepare an authentic eighties costume. Stephen still has his parachute pants in storage, and nobody knows where the family's only Members Only jacket has gotten off to. So what can we do at the last minute to help Lawson look like he popped out of my high school yearbook? We thought of a few options:

At first we thought of styling his hair like that dude from the hit new wave band A Flock of Seagulls. Unfortunately, Lawson's hair isn't long enough in the front. If it grows more overnight, we'll be set.

With his hair's current length and color, we could always spike it up and make him look like Billy Idol. I think that's a great idea, but Lawson says he doesn't think he can keep his lip curled like that all day. 

Walgreen's is still open, and I could quickly pop over and get a bottle of red hair color so Lawson could dress up as Johnny Rotten. 

But my favorite option--also the easiest to put together and most comfortable to wear--is Tom Cruise's wardrobe in the famous dance scene of Risky Business. I think everyone, especially the girls, will like that outfit!

But Lawson wants to wear his white tee shirt and a leather jacket and go as Tom Cruise in Top Gun. Fair enough, but I think he's going to get tired of having a girl hang on his shoulder all day. 

What do you think? I've uploaded a poll on the right hand side of the blog. Post your votes now!

Georgia versus Vanderbilt: Now That Was a Fun Game to Watch

For the first time in several weeks, I was able to sit down and really focus on a football game. I'm glad it was Georgia versus Vanderbilt. It showed me so much I'd never seen before. After reviewing all my notes, I wondered how I would ever compile them all into a coherent posting. Here's what I came up with:

Opening Conversation

Just before the kickoff, the conversation in the living room went like this:
Me:  "Blair Walsh is wearing black socks."
Lawson:  "So?"
Me: "Are all the players wearing black socks?"
Blair Walsh kicks the ball and the game begins.
Lawson: "Who cares what color socks they're wearing?"
Me: "I do. Black socks with silver britches makes the players look like retirees."
Lawson:  "How?"
Me: "Because they're wearing black socks!"

I think that was the moment Stephen got up and got a beer.

More about the socks later. For now, I want to make an observation about...

Coaching
Fox Sports South had a survey going on during the first half of the game:  Who has done the best coaching job in the SEC East? The choices were Will Muschamp (Florida), Steve Spurrier (South Carolina), Derek Dooley (Tennessee), James Franklin (Vanderbilt), and Mark Richt. Announcers posted the results during the third quarter, and respondents to the survey overwhelmingly chose Mark Richt. He got 81% of the votes.

Really?

After all the complaints about last year's season and all the talk since Labor Day about whether Richt should be polishing up his resume, sports fans last night still thought he's done the best coaching job in the SEC East? I find that hard to believe. Stephen made a good point. The survey took place during a Georgia-Vanderbilt game, so the only people calling in would be either Georgia or Vanderbilt fans. But still, most of the people complaining about Richt over the last twelve months have been Georgia fans. I guess most of us have changed our minds. I didn't call in a vote, but I'm not so sure I would have voted for Richt last night. Here's why:

I saw only one gutsy move last night on Georgia's part:  the wildcat play inthe first quarter (more about that later). Other than that, the only difference I saw in the Dawgs' performance was that it wasn't the Isaiah Crowell show. In fact, he sat out the whole first quarter (more on that later too), and other players got more field time. As a result, Tavarres King, Orson Charles, Marlon Brown, and even Richard Samuel got to show their stuff a little more. But other than that, the Dawgs' strategy seemed to be same ole same ole. By the fourth quarter, Georgia had just gotten sloppy, letting their score creep up three points at a time with field goals, and they really put themselves in jeopardy by allowing Vanderbilt to run 95 yards to a touchdown. And in the first quarter, Georgia had so many holes in its defense it looked like Swiss cheese. I'm not sure I'd credit Mark Richt for the best coaching job in the SEC East after that display.

But then look at James Franklin's team and all the sneaky little moves they pulled: faking a punt, passing the ball behind the back, blocking Blair Walsh's kick in the fourth quarter. Vanderbilt may not have won, but they came close, and they tried all kinds of creative plays in the process. Somebody coached them to do that. Hmm.

New Football Knowledge

I've also learned some things about football I didn't know before. For instance, right after a beautiful pass interception, preventing Vandy's score, Brandon Boykin and Aaron Murray switched places, something Lawson said was a wildcat play. The center snaps directly to the running back so he can run the ball down the field. Fair enough, but I think the wildcat play is more effective when it works. This one didn't. Stephen says it's because the offensive line isn't used to hearing Boykin call out the play; they're used to Murray. Well, if a different voice is going to confuse the offense that much, what is the point of the wildcat play? I'd like some commentary from my readers, please.

And here's a penalty I'd never heard of: substitution infraction. It's when the team has twelve members in the huddle when the huddle breaks. Twice I saw officials counting heads on the field, once counting red helmets, and the other time counting black helmets. Apparently, a team can have twelve men in a huddle, but there can only be eleven men once the huddle breaks. So that means at a point in the game each team forgot to do roll call before breaking into formation. And I can't say as I blame them. They've got enough to worry about on that field before having to stop and say, "Wait. How many men are here?" It seems to me that as long as only eleven guys are lined up before the snap, everything's chicken. Who cares when the twelfth guy runs to the sideline? But that's just me.My readership may disagree or feel inclined to clarify for me.

Football Fashion

Now back to the players' uniforms:

No.

Yes.

No. Well, not usually.

As you read above, I was taken aback by Blair Walsh's black socks. They seemed so...I don't know...so Fort Lauderdale First Methodist Church Bingo Night. But my problem wasn't so much Walsh's sock/shoe combination as it was the lack of uniformity on the team. Some players wore black socks; others wore white socks. Some players wore black socks with white shoes; others wore white socks with black shoes. It seems to me that if the Georgia Bulldogs can motivate Nike to give them brand new uniforms to wear in the season opener (although thank God those rags went back into the closet after that game), they can also inspire someone--Nike, New Balance, Reebok, somebody--to give them shoes and socks that all look alike. As the second diagram above shows, the socks should be black. But the diagram omits the shoes. I think black shoes and black socks will complement the silver britches well, but so would white shoes and white socks. But white shoes and black socks? Not so much. 

But the socks were nothing when contrasted against the pink wrist bands many (but not all)  players wore to show their support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Even Mark Richt wore the pink accessories. Now, I realize I'm skating on thin ice when I say this, but those pink wrist bands look bad with the University of Georgia uniforms. They look even worse when those wrist bands are worn on players' knees (I saw several of those too). While I admire the team's willingness to show their support of Susan Komen for the Cure, I think it's better to say that The Georgia Bulldogs are aware of breast cancer. Then let them play ball. Again, it's not just the pink wrist bands that bug me. It's the lack of uniformity. The team should make a decision to wear them or not wear them, but with only some players wearing pink in their arms, the team looks like the guys just threw outfits together at the last minute. Kind of like Natalie Portman at the Golden Globes. 

The pink/red combination has never really done anything for me.

Finally, the hair: 

See the hair flopping around at his shoulders?

No.

Same team. Same number, even. Different hair. 

We can even see Branden Smith's neck in this image. 

Yes.

The Dawgs have a bye next week. That'll give some players time to get to the barber shop.

After resting up a week, the Georgia Bulldogs will travel to Jacksonville to play the Florida Gators. Guess who'll be there also? The Remlers! I'm looking forward to that sports report!

Siblings, Six Flags, and Sports! Oh My!

The challenging part about having a great weekend is writing about it the following Monday. In fact, I found the past weekend so packed with fun that I had to take Columbus Day off and write about it on Tuesday. The Remlers took a road trip to the metro Atlanta area for a fun weekend with siblings, then took a side trip to Hawkinsville before heading back to the coast. It was a fun-filled weekend of siblings, Six Flags, sports, and shotguns.

Siblings
Dawn and Jim Taylor graciously hosted the Lawsons, Neffs, and Remlers for a dinner and sleepover at their lovely home in Lawrenceville. We played corn hole and ate hamburgers while we enjoyed catching up. We couldn't believe how much Hannah has grown up! Such a lovely young lady. And Gretchen is just as precious as ever. She and Sydney stayed up until the wee hours, then got up for more fun at 6:30. Dawn and Jim were so generous to host the gathering on the eve of their 17th anniversary, and we hope they enjoyed their romantic dinner out on Saturday.

Six Flags
Suffice it to say that we all had a great time. The weather was perfect, and while the park included sufficient rides to keep us entertained, I was especially amused by the people. For instance:

We encountered this man while standing in line for the mini mine train. It's a kiddie ride. But he chose to go on it. If you can't make out the tattoo on his head, it's a fuel gauge. It's set at almost empty. At least he chose an appropriate graphic.

This woman paid good money to have her hair done this way. And then she walked around the park like that all afternoon. Nuff said.

Okay, let's just set aside the fact that the hat looks stupid. It was eighty degrees outside. Why did she need it?

But the most amusing person I saw at Six Flags was seated two seats behind me on the Dahlonega Mine Train. I couldn't tell if he was having a good time or scared to death.

Maybe a little bit of both.

Sports (Otherwise Known as Football)
After a full day in the park, Sabra and Martin invited us to their house for pizza and a comfy place to view the Georgia game. The Dawgs beat Tennessee. That's good. I did not write down the score. I think it was 20-12. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

My opinions about the game might seem a little strange. That's because I was watching the game with Sabra. Much of the time, I had my eye on the TV, and I kept up with the score, but I was also talking to her about kittens, Weight Watchers, and knitting. Watching football with Sabra; is pretty fun, though, because it makes me feel a little better about my football naivete. For instance, I'm starting to recognize the players. I know that the offensive #1 is Isaiah Crowell while the defensive #1 is Brandon Smith. I know that #7 is Orson Charles and #22 is Richard Samuel (who actually got some more field time this week. Yea!). I think that's pretty good. Sabra, on the other hand, has sports dyslexia. During the second quarter, Aaron Murray threw a pass to someone (I think it was Isaiah Crowell, but I'm not sure), and the pass was incomplete. The official ran out into the field and gave us this signal:

And of course, we were all disappointed at the result of Murray's attempt--everyone except Sabra, who said, "I don't understand why everyone's so mad. The referee said he was safe!"

So you see why the game was so much fun. Unfortunately, because of the lively conversation, I didn't pay much attention to the third quarter, and I should have because that's when the Dawgs earned six straight penalties for holding. And they were at what, first and 54? I think that was right. Anyway, it was a crazy quarter, but I was busy trying to explain to Sabra that she should be interested in Richard Samuel because he reads. So to comment on that third quarter, I'll just quote my father:  "For two years, we thought Georgia's problem was DUI's. Now we know it's holding."

That sums it up.

Do you know what else Georgia has a problem with? Helmets and chin straps. I know. I seem to have a complex about it. But every time I watch the Dawgs play, they've got something going on with the head gear. Last year it was all about the mouth guards. They couldn't seem to leave those things alone. They're in the mouth; they're out of the mouth. In, out, in, out, until I saw one player tuck his mouth guard behind his sweaty, grimy ear. Gross. This year, for the first several games, the Dawgs had trouble keeping their helmets on. And I was glad to see that for the Tennessee game, they'd finally found their chin straps. That is, until I saw a shot of Blair Walsh chewing on his like a piece of white beef jerky. Mark Richt, if you ever happen to read my blog, will you please tell your players that they are on national television, even when they're on the sidelines? There's enough happening on the field for sports writers to point fingers at. No need to give them more fuel for ridicule while standing on the sidelines. I can see the headlines now: "Hungry Dawgs Eat Uniforms." 

And that's all I've got to say about that.

Shotguns

The next morning, the Remlers loaded up for the ride south, with a midday stop in Hawkinsville for lunch with Hugh and BB at the Steak House. During our tasty lunch, Hugh said, "I know what we can do after lunch. Let's go move a piano!"

We all thought that sounded like big fun, so we went to his house to do just that.

 

Then we all went out to the farm to help Lawson set up his science fair experiment. His topic was the difference in the spray of shot when using different chokes on the gun. That's Greek to me, but it makes sense to Lawson. He conducted the experiment. Stephen set up the targets. I took the photos. Hugh pointed his finger for clarification.

That was an especially big help. Thanks, Hugh!

We arrived home Sunday night, tired but satisfied with a fun weekend. Thank goodness for the Columbus Day holiday. We needed a day to rest up from all the fun.

My Favorite Dawgs Live in Savannah

Note: In this posting, I distinguish between two football teams in this manner:  Mississippi State will hereinafter be referred to as the bulldogs. Georgia's team, of course, will hereinafter be referred to as the Dawgs. 

The 2010 season was so dismal that I try not to think about it. So I had forgotten that the Dawgs lost to Mississippi State last year. Obviously, the bulldogs didn't forget. After pregame warmups, the bulldogs gathered on the big G in the middle of the field at Sanford Stadium. Then they jumped up and down. You would have thought they all got together and shouted a "Your mama's so fat" joke to Mark Richt.

Apparently, jumping on a G is much worse. According to Charles Odum's Associated Press article this morning, "The teams had to be separated at midfield at the end of pregame warmups. Georgia players accused the Mississippi State players of jumping on the "G" logo which stretches almost 20 yards at midfield." Well, if that's the accusation, I guess the bulldogs are guilty. But who knew such behavior would rile the Dawgs up so much?  Linebacker Christian Robinson is quoted in Odum's article as saying, "You just can't do that...You just don't jump on somebody's symbol."

Oh. Okay. I didn't realize.

After all, all kinds of other things have happened on that symbol. Players run all over it weekly. Tackle each other too. They probably spit on it. And during the 2009 season, I saw an LSU player vomit on it.

But they didn't jump. I guess there's a big difference.

Well, now I know. And it's a good thing too because according to Charles Odum's article, the Dawgs were throwing chairs in the locker room they were so angry. And that anger showed up on the field. Georgia's defense was tackling bulldogs like they were in combat. And whenever a Dawg downed a dog, he jumped up and down, punching his fists in the air, probably yelling "Woot, woot!" in victory. A couple of weeks ago, I suggested Mark Richt should invoke some Nellie Oleson. I was wrong. The Dawgs just needed someone to stand on their G. Isaiah Crowell was running down that field like somebody had put a quarter in him (even though he didn't score, but we'll give him a pass).

Some other things I liked about the game:

• The helmets stayed on. I didn't notice any lids flying yesterday (I may have missed some). Apparently the Dawgs have fixed that problem.
• Malcom Mitchell scored. I like Malcom Mitchell. I don't know anything about him, but I like the alliteration of his name. It's not as good as Vince Vance, but it's still good. By the way, whatever happened to Vince Vance?
•  Richard Samuel played. I like Richard Samuel too. True, he's not really earning any football gold medals, but in the 2009 season, I learned that he likes to read. So I have a little spot in my heart for him. He's probably the only player on this year's team who knows what a Chanticleer was. He didn't get much field time last year, so I was glad to see him carry the ball a little bit yesterday.

Next week we'll be playing Tennessee, and because the game's a night, I'll get to watch it real time. Yesterday, I had to watch on the DVR. So many thanks to one of my favorite Dawgs, Stephen Remler, for recording for me. He gets brownie points too for other reasons. See below.

So why couldn't I watch the game in real time? Because I had to take the SAT.  Numerous friends and relatives have been asking me, "Why? Why would you want to do that to yourself? Why would you volunteer to take a five hour test when you don't have to?" The answer is simple. I felt like it.

Actually, I have a more specific explanation. Davis also took the SAT yesterday, for the second time, in attempt to bring his math score up a bit. What's more, my niece, Elizabeth Dixon, recently enrolled at The University of Georgia, so apparently, her SAT score was pretty admirable. During a recent conversation, Sabra and I talked about our kids taking the SAT, applying for college, and all that goes along with it, and we wondered what we would make if we took the SAT right now.  And of course, we immediately said, in unison, "Let's find out!"
 
So we signed up. And yesterday morning, Sabra and I went down to Macon State College, pencils in hand, ready to bubble in some answers. We got some weird looks when we showed up among a crowd of teenagers, and one test administrator stopped me during a break and said, "I'm just so curious. Why are you here?" I told him. I don't think he could wrap his head around my answer.

For the past few months, Sabra, in recognition that she has a real life and better things to do, refused to study for the exam. I, however, with my type A personality, just had to brush up on my math because I wanted to score a 500 on that section (I wasn't really worried about the verbal section. I get lots of practice with those skills daily). But even after taking at least ten practice SATs and after spending hours working with tutoring videos on The Khan Academy (by the way, that's a great resource), I still could not figure out functions. Let me clarify. If I have to work a simple function, such as f(x)=2x + 2, I'm good. But when it comes to working functions on a graph, I'm lost. Not even the Khan Academy could help me figure that out. So I knew that when I took the exam, if I got a question like this:

I would have to skip it. I prayed for no problems like that. But there were several. I left a number of math bubbles blank.

On the other hand, I kicked butt on the essay and verbal sections.

SAT proctors reminded us at least five times that until we got our scores, we were not to discuss the test questions with anyone, even by e-mail, text message, phone, or smoke signals. And of course, all those reminders had the opposite effect on me. As soon as the test was over, Sabra and I got in her car and shut the doors, and I asked, "What was your essay topic?" Turns out she and I had the same topic. So did Davis (because like his mother and aunt, he throws caution to the wind and ignores SAT top secret guidelines). Davis says everybody gets the same questions; it's just that the sections are in different orders from person to person. Interesting.

Anyway, now that's over, and I will have to wait a few weeks before I can share my scores. Stay tuned.

An SAT celebration:
I was later getting home than I thought I would be, so I missed seeing Davis and Megan off as they went to the BC homecoming dance.  Fortunately, Stephen took photos for me:

But to make up for it, he cooked me dinner. When I entered the house, I found him at the stove seasoning steaks. But the steaks were only part of the meal:

 

We had surf and turf! Yum! And Clorox got to eat the parts we didn't want He was one happy cat last night. 

 

Not only that, but while I was in Macon having dinner with Sabra and Skippy at the Fish and Pig, my new favorite restaurant in Macon, which overlooks Lake Tobosofkee, Davis was at BC's homecoming game, where he caught a little BC football at halftime. Knowing I've always wanted one of those little footballs but have never caught one, Davis brought it home and gave it to me. What a sport! 

And not only that, but while I've been taking the SAT and enjoying my SAT dinner, Lawson has been in Athens watching the Dawgs sic the bulldogs. He probably got to see that terrible jumping on the G incident, which I'll have to ask him about. Lawson said he would take photos for me while in Sanford Stadium. I can't wait to see them. The weather has been gorgeous this weekend. What a great day for a football game. I'm jealous. But I can't complain. My father in-law offered the Georgia-Mississippi state tickets to me, but I opted instead to take the SAT.

Lawson and MacKenzie upon entering Sanford Stadium.

But even though I missed the game (in real time anyway), thanks to Davis, Lawson, and Stephen, I got to test my math skills and enjoy many perks of a football weekend. My favorite Dawgs are right here in Savannah on Wilmington Island.