How to Survive In Alabama by James Webb

In Alabama there are few people who won’t pay attention to football and that is why anyone in the great state of Alabama that love football love to tailgating. In order to live in Alabama you must master the craft of tailgating. The art of tailgating has few questions to ask yourself when doing the tailgating. Anyone knows that tailgating you must either tailgate before the game or through the game and will you have a large group of guest that will come or small group of close friends. These two questions are the first to ask before all other actions in tailgating take place.

When you have decided to tailgate before the game and not through the game you have chosen right and I didn’t mean to confuse the reader by posing the trick question but the question is to weed out the weak. Let me explain a true Alabamian would tailgate before sed game and go to watch the game because why eat and not go watch football, your in Alabama where football is life. Now that you know you must tailgate before and go to the game you can realize your guest list is the only real importance.

First you want a small group of pals that way you won’t have much to bring to your tent, you have to have shade. The tailgate party needs a shaded area you are in Alabama where the heat has humidity. In the small group you will need a main course, finger foods, and chips there isn’t much to food prep in a small group. A good choice of food would be burgers, chicken fingers and golden flake potatoe chips, golden flake chips are key in that there is a factory here in Alabama. The burgers are big and there needs to be all the fixin’ that goes with a burger: lettuce, tomato, sliced onions, pickles, and cheese. Beverages to be consumed at your tailgate should be soft drinks, water, or beer if your guests are of proper age. Now that everyone has filled their guts with food and drink they need to have some kind of entertainment before the game.

If your guests have children then bring a football kids don’t need much to entertain them. As for adults and teenagers you will need a radio that needs no power outlet to run it. Tune the radio to a rock station, plenty of stations play rock and everybody loves rock and roll. If your guest are smiling, dancing and eating then you are doing good so far, but the hard part of tailgating is about to come.

Maintain, maintain, maintain your tailgate this can not be more crucial to your awesome tailgate party. The trash can at your tailgate need to be bagged when the trash is above the rim of the can or it becomes stinky. It is a smelly job but you as the host must perform this vital task of bagging trash. The food will be eaten up and the serving plates will sit on the table until you the host pick them up and put them away. Just as a small note don’t bring the fine china plates; any cheap dixie plates from a grocery store will suffice. When the plates are cleaned from the guest gobbling up your good cooking and you must be a good cook in Alabama, take the serving plates and throw them away. When your guest realize that the food is gone and the game time is coming up soon the guest automatically know that the tailgate is about over.

The guest at your tailgate should communicate that the tailgate was fun, the food good and they are heading to the game. Good guests have eaten, keep the area clean, and are going to the game. You might have a problem getting guest if you are new to the state, but don’t worry tailgate in good time don’t expect to be able to tailgate within the first six months of living in Alabama. A tailgater needs friends to come and how can someone have a good set of friends to come to your tailgate within a few months, but if you have a group of guest that you know then go ahead by all means tailgate.

Since you know how your tailgate should go the list of items you will most likely need is this

• Table
• Chairs with cup holders built in
• Tent
• Dixie plates, cups, and napkins
• Food
• Play football
• Trash can
• Radio or TV if you want to bring a generator
• Grill

A good way to survive in Alabama is to tailgate and in turn your guest will see that you understand football and understanding tailgating before a football game means you’re an Alabamian. This suggestion of tailgating is to help those who might want to better adapt to your new life while in Alabama. Tailgating is fun for all and you will be the host of something everyone can respect in Alabama.