Tuscaloosa

Roll Tide

I have a confession to make:  I'm a fan of the University of Alabama. (And I'm not only referring to their football team... although I have been known to get really high blood pressure on gamedays.)  But, unlike most of the Bama fans I know, I wasn't born with crimson blood pumping through my veins.  Not figurative crimson blood, anyway.

When I first moved to Alabama from Pennsylvania in the 10th grade, one of the very first things a fellow Buckhorn student asked me was "Alabama or Auburn?"...  to which I replied "Um, what's Auburn?".

I responded that way because was sincerely confused, and my confusion horrified the inquirer.  I wish I remember who it was that asked me this question, cause I'd like to go back in time and slap him or her around a little.  After all, this person was more interested in knowing what team I rooted for than learning my first name.  But that's Alabama for you.

Gotta love the government

You see, I grew up with a die-hard Boston Red Sox fan as a father.  He was not a college football fan, and I was not old yet enough to begin shopping for colleges.  I had simply never heard of Auburn University.  So shoot me.  However, now that I've spent a lot of my time in this fine state, I (kind of) understand the importance of the question imposed upon me.  But in my defense, the southerner should have known to only expect so much from a blonde girl that "talks really fast and like a Yankee."

Nine years later, here I sit in a Barnes & Noble, a proud alumnus of UA. Although I only lived in Tuscaloosa for two years (due to some serious college hopping), I have a lot of respect for T-town, its university, and its Nick Saban.

Needless to say, I was heartbroken to hear about the enormous tornado that ripped through the town back in April.  The storm leveled businesses and houses that were located only blocks away from apartments in which I had lived -- information that does not sit well in the pit of my stomach.  I saw the destruction with my own two eyes three weeks after the storm.  And I know it's cliche to say, but pictures do not do it justice.

Below are some of the photos I snapped.  Most were taken in a neighborhood about 100 yards from Bent Tree Apartments, where I lived my junior year.  The others were taken on 15th street.

My friend Amanda's footwear proved more appropriate than my flip-flops.
I punctured my left foot on a nail during our adventure.
And, by the way, those grapes were not ours.

I LOVE YOU, TUSCALOOSA!