Sunday, November 29, 2009

Wierd local customs

We live about a 20 minute walk away from a stadium.

A stadium, for those who don't know, is a large outdoor building which accommodates up to tens of thousands of people at a time, allowing them all to sit or stand or yell simultaneously in the cold and in the dark.

Far below, a group of people huddle around water coolers and benches on fake grass. Occasionally one or more of them makes a run for it across a small field, but that is somewhat rare, and such behavior is usually stopped quickly.

This afternoon, Jonathan and I watched from the playground on the corner as some of those tens of thousands of people parked their cars nearby in order to complete their pilgrimage to the stadium. About 80% of the people were dressed in uniforms of navy, and another 10% in red, and the rest in gray or black coats and some hats.

The day was warm -- possibly 8 degrees Celsius. Most of the people had blankets. Most were smiling.

But nearly five hours later, they have not yet emerged from the stadium. The temperature has dropped to 0. Far below, the little men will break up and run occasionally, but honestly really spend most of their time huddled in packs.

Days like this, I am thankful that I am not a follower of American college football.

2 comments:

Lisa, Skye & little MC said...

As they say in Clemson, 80,000 of your closest friends can't be wrong. Of course it never gets any where near freezing here.

Alyssa said...

I was the one dressed in red, yelling myself hoarse to the disappointment of my mother with whom I was sitting (she was wearing blue). I walked in with a smile that was gone when I walked out. Luckily I dressed warmly enough that only my feet were really cold.