Fall has....fallen?

Ahh, it's finally fall around SC. The weather has a certain crispness to it (which is an actual tangible crispness...unlike the "fall" we had in Florida, where anyone who's not lived there for at least 10 years and hardly knows any better would even realize the season changed). Temperatures are consistently in the 70's during the day, 50's at night (great sleeping weather, btw), the skies are consistently bright blue with just a few wispy white clouds. Tailgating and football entertains all Saturday every week (and give us something to talk about during the rest of the week). Actually...this is the South...football does more than entertain once a week, football is the basis of our entire schedules. Work functions, social outings, even weddings are planned around the football schedule. (Seriously...try to get married on game day and people will very truthfully be mad at you and will likely not come...great way to keep the reception budget limited though, haha).

Oh...and another real sign that fall is in the air in SC...the State Fair has come to town! Okay okay...anyone who really knows me just scratched their head in confusion. I do not, in fact, like the fair. I've really only attended once or twice before. All of my friends will confirm that I don't in any way care for large gatherings of loud dirty rednecks or country/ghetto people. And everyone knows that a fair is the breeding ground of such people (seriously...they go there to find dates...ugh). No one likes to people watch more than me, but even I have my limits. Of course, on top of the people there...there's really little else to draw me to the fair. The food is grossly unhealthy (I believe I've blogged about the various fried products available...bread, pickles, ice cream, oreos, Pepsi...yes, even fried Pepsi), the country music acts usually are people I've never even heard of or simply don't care about, the rides...well, if portable roller coasters were really a viable option, Disney World is grossly overspending. Be that as it may, the coming of the Fair certainly does mark the onset of fall better than most other ways.

These are the days I live in SC. The weather, the fun, the relaxing! Yay fall!!

Admission is the first step...

When I'm flying down the road at 15 or 20 over the speed limit, weaving in and out of traffic, flying through every yellow light to make it to the liquor store before it closes...maybe I should take it as a sign that I might have a problem. hahaha

Actually...I do have a problem. But that problem is not alcoholism, it's Blue Laws. See, lovely SC has some holdovers from their ridiculously conservative days (like last week, haha) known as Blue Laws. Basically they're just laws that enforce morality. Don't get me wrong...I tend to fall on the more conservative side of the tracks as far as morality is concerned (well...for most of the world, maybe a bit less so compared to SC), but these particular laws often just irk me.

The main law in question now is one requiring all liquor stores to close by 7 pm every night and not open at all on Sunday. 7:00???? Are you serious?! I guess the goal is to keep the drunks from heading to the store at 2 am and buying some malt liquor or something, but in reality, it just causes people to have to plan their drinking in advance. (Oh...for the record, I arrived at the store at 7:02, but they hadn't locked the door yet, so they let me run in and grab what I needed real quickly. I guess it might have been illegal, haha...I'm a bootlegger now, maybe!)

Last night being the USC Season Opener (that's Gamecocks...not Trojans...don't front!) (and I'm talking football, by the way), I had to grab a little adult beverage to take to my boss's house to watch the game. I picked up a bottle of my new favorite drink....Sweat Tea Vodka!! Seriously folks...it doesn't get too much more Southern than this, I know...but this stuff is great. If you live in the South, check your local package store and see if you can get it. This stuff is dangerous too. It tastes JUST like sweet tea...you don't even realize you're drinking until you go to stand up and things are a bit wobbly. Wow...it's great!

Anyway....other blue laws include: (In certain counties) nothing other than groceries and health and beauty products are allowed to be sold before 1:30 PM on Sundays. So that means Saturday at midnight, all the Super Wal-Marts have to rope off the non-grocery/health & beauty sections until 1:30. Also, I hear rumor that in certain counties, up until a few years before I moved to SC, you couldn't even go to the movies on Sundays b/c that was considered sinful or immoral or something. Ugh!!

Oh...and in case you were wondering, South Carolina shut out NC State 34-0!!! Whooo Hooo!!!