Photo Friday: Auburn, Alabama

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This Photo Friday is an attempt to sway the Universe. Universe, wouldn’t you LOVE to see an Auburn win on Monday? That’s what I thought.

While I graduated from UT—the UT, as in University of Tennessee—I come from a divided SEC household. My sister, my grandparents, my aunt and uncle, and I all went to UT. My mom went to Vanderbilt. And my dad went to, you guessed it, Auburn.

Growing up, I was much more a Tigers fan than Vols. I knew the Auburn fight song from the time I was a tot. Unless it was women’s basketball—Pat Summitt will always come first—I was rooting for the Tigers, out of loyalty to my dad.

Even though it’s a six-hour drive from their house, my parents have season tickets to Auburn football games (Tennessee, too). Because it’s tax season and my dad’s a CPA, they decided last minute not to go to the national championship game in Arizona on Monday. I know they’ll probably regret that decision come Monday.

When the four of us—Mom, Dad, SVV and me—went to Jana’s wedding in October, we stayed in the campus hotel and decided to get up early on Sunday morning for a stroll around the deserted campus. I had been to Auburn a handful of times growing up—both my sister and I went down for scholarship competitions, then chose to stay in state due to cheaper tuition (and the lottery scholarship for Kari; I was the last class not eligible)—but it was SVV’s first visit.

Having gone to college at a commuter school in San Francisco, he’s not accustomed to campus life and found the sprawling lawns and red brick buildings littered about the campus fascinating.

We had great local guides to give us a tour. It wasn’t a home game weekend, but that didn’t stop Toomer’s Corner from getting thoroughly decorated due to an away win.

You see, it’s been a long-standing tradition at Auburn that students toilet paper Toomer’s to celebrate each victory.

I wouldn’t like to be the person who cleans it up, but it’s fun to see the aftermath.

Now, let’s say a little pre-mature victory chant in hopes that Toomer’s Corner will have a reason to be rolled this coming Monday, shall we? All together now: “War Eagles, fly down the field…ever to conquer, never to yield….”

Who are you rooting for in the national championship game? (Don’t say the Ducks! Don’t say the Ducks!)

*All photos taken with a Canon T1i and Canon 17-85mm lens, housed in a LowePro SlingShot.

**For more Photo Friday fun, visit Delicious Baby.

COMMENTS
  • January 7, 2011

    I see this and I can’t help thinking how bad for the environment each win is.

    Awesome pics as usual.

  • January 7, 2011

    OK. Don’t toilet paper me when I say I don’t watch college football. BUT, I did go to Auburn for one semester. 🙂 Yes, indeed!! Go Tigers!

  • January 7, 2011

    War Eagle! We’re going down to Auburn on Monday to watch the game at the Arena and will hopefully be at Toomer’s Corner on Monday night. I think Patrick’s going to bring his camera so we might (if all goes well) post pictures sometime next week.

    • January 7, 2011
      Kristin

      Oooh it’s going to be FUN to be in Auburn Monday night! Even more fun if we win!

  • January 7, 2011

    I actually have no idea what sport you’re talking about. Unless we’re discussing hockey, I have nothing to add to the conversation.

    However, I have to applaud the tping skills. Clearly Auburn has a strong Pranking Department.

    • January 7, 2011
      Kristin

      In Steph speak, it’s the Tony’s. Only of football. 😉

  • January 7, 2011

    Auburn is one of those true college towns. I am always amazed at how little there is in the town when we drive through. I just love to visit college campuses down in the South…they have such beautiful buildings and lawns like you mentioned!

    • January 7, 2011
      Kristin

      I love that about the South. I went to Sewanee, which is consistently named one of the country’s most beautiful campuses by the Princeton Review, for my first two years of college, then transferred to UT, often named one of the ugliest, for my last two. And while nowhere near as pretty as Sewanee, I still think UT and Knoxville have their own kind of charm. I’ve felt the same for every other Southern campus–Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, all the North Carolina universities–too!

  • January 7, 2011

    OOOOOOOO! Sorry, Kristin. My Ducks are bringing this one home.

    • January 7, 2011
      Kristin

      Rhi, you’re from Oregon–I’ll give you that one. 😉

  • January 7, 2011

    GO DUCKS!!!

  • January 7, 2011

    what gorgeous photos!!!

  • January 7, 2011

    Pretty campus!

  • January 7, 2011
    jcristg

    It’s going to KILL ME to pull against the SEC.
    But such is my distaste for SCAM. Go Ducks.
    (I am dead, can you tell?)

    • January 7, 2011
      Kristin

      You’re killing me here, my fellow Southern belle! Support the South! 😉

  • January 7, 2011
    dots

    go ducks!

  • January 7, 2011

    DUCKS. We always root for the Northwest!

  • January 7, 2011

    WAR EAGLE! Things are getting crazy around these parts. I hope your parents got top dollar for their tickets!

    • January 7, 2011
      Kristin

      They actually backed down on getting the tickets at the last minute–mainly because they had it all set up to book the night Auburn won the SEC championships and it was $600, but then they held off a week to check my dad’s work schedule for January and it went up to something crazy like $1500 a ticket!

  • January 7, 2011

    I don’t know anything about Auburn U but I enjoyed your photos (particularly the toilet paper shots). Thanks for sharing!

  • January 7, 2011
    shannon

    GO DUCKS! (Auburn does look beautiful, however).

  • January 7, 2011

    This is all a bit alien to me but I like the photos! 🙂

    • January 7, 2011
      Kristin

      Anna, just pretend it’s akin to the Premier League championships, only a lot bigger as it’s the best two teams out of around 250!

  • January 7, 2011
    JeJe

    War DAMN Eagle!!! Fly Cam Newton!!! Tigers are gonna have some Duck for dinner!

  • January 7, 2011
    sbc

    This is my favorite photo friday ever! My husband & I graduated from Auburn & we will be at the big game Monday! Auburn is such an awesome little college town. War Damn Eagle!!

    • January 10, 2011
      Kristin

      Auburn alums! I love it! Hope you/we take it home tonight!

  • January 7, 2011
    Melissa

    Its hard for me to say this because I married into an Oregon State (Beaver) fan family, but I’m pulling for an Oregon win. My loyalty lies with the PAC-10!

  • January 7, 2011
    Katelar

    The photos are lovely, but as I’m typing this from Portland I have to say, “GO DUCKS!”

  • January 8, 2011

    speaking of campuses — Vanderbilt, UVa, FSU…

  • January 9, 2011
    Marisol

    War Eagle! I haven’t been to the campus in ages…thanks for posting these pictures! I grew up near Auburn, in Columbus, GA. Support was/is divided there between Auburn and Athens…a lot of fun. I’ll be rooting for the Tigers from Colorado, hoping that myself and other fans will be celebrating at a bar on Colfax!

    • January 10, 2011
      Kristin

      Another War Eagle, hurrah! I was starting to think for a minute that only Oregon natives read my blog 😉

  • January 11, 2011

    Nice pictures. Looks crazy with all that toilet paper 🙂

  • January 11, 2011
    Kristin

    War Eagle! And I was totally rooting for the Tide last year, so we’re even =)

    Fifth straight SEC national championship–yeah!

  • January 13, 2011
    DeniseNS

    I love your blog and now I know why. War Eagle! We were in Glendale Monday night and are still here – stranded from the weather cancellations. I am an Auburn Alum and just sent my oldest daughter off as a Freshman and the first of our third generation attending Auburn. It is a special place! Loved the photos. You really captured the spirit of Auburn.

    • January 13, 2011
      Kristin

      That’s so exciting that you were there! What a great game. I hope you make it back soon! I talked to my mom and dad just after the game ended and they said in retrospect they were glad they canceled their trip–they had planned to fly out of Nashville Sunday night and that was the day so many Auburn fans got stranded at the airports in Nashville, Birmingham and Atlanta! They either wouldn’t have made it at all or, if they had, been still stuck in Glendale, which is no bueno for my dad during tax season!

  • January 13, 2011

    Nice tradition! And good photos wit toilet paper 😀

  • April 29, 2014
    Karyn

    Annnnnnd, now I love your blog even more! Was perusing the archives and found my alma mater. War Eagle. 🙂

    • May 1, 2014

      I’m a Vol first and a Tiger second. My dad, on the other hand, is reverse (having gone to Auburn). But even when UT loses to Auburn, I’m OK with it…it’s sort of win-win for me in those sorts of games!

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