New Chapter: Columbia, SC

Austin has been good to me since college, but soon I'm going to be breaking up the Korean double-team on our street as I've accepted a new job and I'll be taking my talents to Columbia, SC.

Next week we are headed out to do a little house hunting and then I start my new job after Labor Day.  Shey and Maci will be holding down the fort in Texas while I do a bit of commuting, and then we plan on our full move in October.

The Backtoms Tailgate is still on for the Texas A&M game on November 3.  The tailgating trailer has been secured and as it gets closer we can work out some of the details.  I put in an order for 10 tickets which are allegedly spoken for, but tickets are still available as best as I can tell if you are ready to commit.

Annual Tailgating?

Anyone going to be up for trying to get together for the South Carolina game on October 15?  Not positive on the plans yet for our little one, but there is a good chance she would be staying with her aunt in Madison for the day.  Let me know if you are interested.

Golf Outing in Austin

The Austin SEC alumni groups are holding their golf tournament on Friday, April 1 if any of you are interested in coming down.  Why should you care?

Not only have I heard tales that we'll be graced by the presence of Aaron H. and Nunnrey, but Coach Jackie Sherrill is planning on coming out to help us represent MSU.  If you are ready to come re-live our college glory days with Coach Sherrill, then I suggest you contact me and start making travel arrangements. Be dialing.

Founders Day 2011

Anyone planning on going?  It's the weekend of March 25-27 this year.  In 2009 there was a large showing of our crew.  In 2010, not so much.  I spent a significant portion of the weekend drinking alone so this is me asking for your support so that doesn't happen again.

3rd Annual Backtoms Football Tailgate Plans

I'm pleasantly surprised to be heading into the weekend nationally ranked and on a nice winning streak (no whammies).  Here is what I know:

• James/Shey, Nunnrey/Kaci, JT/Lisa and John all get to Jackson on Thursday.  Be on the lookout for our Pimp Mobile aka mini-van all weekend.
• The above will be staying the night in Philly to make a little scratch to pay for the weekend.
• Deebo plus (grown-up) girlfriend are arriving in Starkville Friday evening.
• All of the above are staying at the luxurious America's Best Value Inn and Suites.
• Clay/Shay are driving up on Saturday.
• Current plans are to tailgate somewhere on the East side of Dorman (obviously subject to change due to availability).

Never heard back from some of you, but tickets are still available if anyone would like to join us.  And of course the more the merrier at the tailgate so join us for the day or at least swing by if you are around.

3rd Annual Backtoms Football Tailgate Plans

Plans are coming together.  Here are the details so far:

• Game is Kentucky on Saturday, October 30
• A few of us have done the unthinkable again and booked rooms at America's Best Value Inn and Suites (starting to become a tradition).  Checking in on Friday and checking out on Sunday.
• I've booked a room for Philly at Silver Star on Thursday night if anyone wants to join us and make some money.
• I'll be arriving in Jackson, MS on Thursday night at 9:15 PM.
• Leaving Jackson, MS on Sunday at 2:45 PM.
• If you guys want me to get our tickets together I need to know how many.

3rd Annual Backtoms Football Tailgate Planning

It's getting that time of year again and we need to pick the weekend for our 3rd annual tailgate.  Here are the Saturday home games:

Sat, Sep 04 Memphis
Sat, Sep 25 Georgia
Sat, Oct 02 Alcorn State
Sat, Oct 23 UAB (HC)
Sat, Oct 30 Kentucky
Sat, Nov 20 Arkansas

Deebo already chimed in and is picking Georgia since we don't have an opportunity to see them at home as often.  My wife is wanting October so it will be cooler.  I don't necessarily have a preference, but I want to float it out there and see if we can get some consensus.  Put your comments on here or if you can't figure it out...email me.

Also, if you are planning on making it out to the game in Houston on October 9th let me know.  My crew will be heading down to tailgate.  Hopefully, this year John can refrain from breaking his leg.

Thanksgiving in Vegas 2009 Update

Just a reminder that Vegas will be giving away money over Thanksgiving. So far we've got:

JT and Lisa

Nunnrey and Kaci

James and Shey

Michael, are yall in or out?

The invite is open to anyone interested. We are staying at the Bellagio. I believe we all get there on Wednesday, November 25. Some of us are leaving the night of Saturday, November 28, and some are leaving on Sunday morning.

Tales From The Road Part I

It's that time of year again. Time for my yearly FL vacation. We left TX on Monday morn. Stefanie found these at a gas station in Louisiana.



Longtime readers know that I'll eat boiled peanuts shell and all, but I agree that frying them makes it easier.

Checked out the Hooters in Denham Springs, LA (right next to Bass Pro Shops).

We stayed a couple nights in Biloxi, but we didn't get into much fun. I did get to check out the Urgent Care place in B-town. I had an ingrown hair on my neck that got infected. I got a shot in the @ss, and then they cut out the offender. So, I'm now walking around with a big bandaid on my neck and instructions to:

1) Stay out of the sand
2) Stay out of the water
3) Don't drink

Now, 1 isn't a big deal to me. I can live with 2, but 3?

Anyway, we got to the condo this evening and it's pretty cool.



After some minor research I've also decided to test #3. I figure I'll drink until I feel bad. Then I'll know the limit, and can back off of it by 1.

Club for Deebo

We all know the Deebo likes 'em young. Looks like he might want to take a vacation up to Rhode Island where it is apparently legal for 16 year olds to work as strippers. You can read about it at CNN.com:

A shocking legal loophole discovered by authorities in Rhode Island.

While teens can’t pump gas or climb ladders on the job because of protections in workplace laws, there is nothing on the books keeping 16- and 17-year-olds from stripping – as long as they’re home by 11:30 on school nights.

Authorities discovered this loophole during a police investigation into a 16-year-old runaway found working at a strip club in Providence.

At 16 she might even be willing to accept your business card as a tip. Remember that time at Sammy's in B'ham?

Thanksgiving in Vegas

Starting to work on plans for another Vegas trip. Right now we're looking at heading out there for the Thanksgiving holidays. We (Nunnrey, Shey, me) did this in 2007 and it was great. We ate a buffet for t-day dinner and watched a lot of football while at the tables and slots. It wasn't very busy which made it even better.

Right now it sounds like JT and Lisa are in and Nunnrey and Kaci are in discussions. Anybody else interested?

Update: 2nd Annual Backtoms Football Tailgate

As mentioned in April, some of us are planning on making it back for the Florida game on October 24. Here is what I know so far:

• Shey and I have plane tickets arriving in Jackson on Thursday and leaving on Sunday. We are planning on staying in Philly to make some money to pay for the trip.
• It's my understanding that hotel rooms have not been secured at this time. It is being worked on.
• Single game tickets go on sale today for Bulldog Club members. I am planning on purchasing 8 tickets. If you would like in on those let me know. I doubt there will be a problem getting more, but I simply don't want to be stuck holding the bag on extra tickets.

Today is a good day to learn how to comment if you would like to sound off with your intent on attendance (and if you want one of the tickets I'm buying).

When in Greece: Olympia Style

This is a picture from the cruise we went on in May. That's JT and me behind a pillar in the ancient town of Olympia, Greece. Yep, everyone else is taking in the magnificent relics from the early Olympic Games...me and JT...grab-assing as usual.

JT's New Man Friend

JT insisted I get a picture with his new man friend in Katakolon.  Not sure if you can read his shirt, but it says "Just Men".

The cafe this dude worked at was good to us.  We sat there and drank Mythos beer while the wives shopped.  We had 2-3 big beers a piece and the wives shared a carafe of wine for under €20.  Not too shabby since some of the places we went were more like €7 per beer.

When in Greece...

I think some of you guys would have loved Greece.  Here are some of the places we saw that reminded me of you:

The ol' Ramrod Club (Mykonos) looks like something Mark would enjoy.  Coincidentally, it's on the beach just like Joey's in Biloxi.

I'm not exactly sure what goes on in the B.A.Q (Be A Queen) building (Mykonos), but it sounds like something up John's alley.  Maybe he could share his beauty tips there.

Here is a knife and gun store in Athens.  I believe all of the guns are actually BB guns though so don't get too excited.

Nunnrey, they even have slices for you in Split Croatia.

Just not so sure what the neighborhood is like after dark.  This was right around the corner from the slice shop in Croatia.

Learned Something New

Through all of the years I've known JT, I don't ever recall knowing that he is afraid of heights.   Check out this pic of JT and Lisa.

It's a little hard to tell, but the pic is from a balcony at a cafe in Greece that is sitting on the edge of a cliff (and yes...it was pretty high up).  In the pic notice that JT only has 1 foot out the door and is actually holding on to the door frame behind his back.  At first he wouldn't even step near the balcony, but after being coaxed with some gelato he agreed to a quick picture.

James went to Europe, and all I got was this

bag of Fish & Chips flavored potato chips. To be fair, he did bring back some other stuff, but the chips were the funniest thing. I'd like to try the Cajun Squirrel.

We're On A Boat

Today we begin our cruise and I thought you may enjoy this video so you can see what we are up to.

Be on Ready Five

As you guys know, some of us (JT, Lisa, Shey, me) are headed off for a Mediterranean cruise later this week.  Just read this on FOXNews.com:

An Italian cruise ship with 1,500 people on board fended off a pirate attack far off the coast of Somalia when its Israeli private security forces exchanged fire with the bandits and drove them away, the commander said Sunday.

My suspicion is that our ship won't have Israeli private security (not to mention the fact that we aren't going anywhere near Somalia).  But as a precaution, I hope you guys will be on ready five in case you get the call from my emergency contact (John) to come rescue us.

And if you haven't seen last week's episode of South Park you should check it out.  It's titled Fatbeard and you can watch it here.  Hilarious.

2nd Annual Backtoms Football Tailgate

I believe we all drunkenly agreed that this years annual tailgate will take place on the Florida weekend which is October 24.  The General's Daughter (Devin) is already preparing his checklist for all of the supplies we need.

If you missed it last year we had a great time.  We had ~15 of us there under 2 of the 10'x10' tents in The Junction.  Devin worked his butt off by measuring each burger out to the 1000th of an ounce to match his special blend of seasoning (he counted out each grain of dry seasoning).  This year we are looking to go even bigger and better.

Details about where/when we are staying are in the planning process now.  Stay tuned for updates.