Labor Day weekend with a few thousand of our new best friends!

As usual with all holiday weekends, Adam had to work. This year was a bit different as he got to lead mascots around the Atlanta Motor Speedway for NASCAR weekend on Saturday. He had a great time and got some sun while I played with the dogs at home and relaxed knowing I start my new job this coming Thursday, giving myself a well deserved break from Careerbuilder.com. We had tickets to the Nationwide Series race Saturday night and at the end of his shift, the NASCAR Gods smiled upon him a shining light and handed over two tickets to the Sunday night Sprint Cup Series race! Given the choice we opted for the Sunday night race since we don't really follow the Nationwide Series.

Now, after working from home since July and being unemployed the last two weeks, joined at the hip with my MAC job hunting, the possibility of getting out of the freaking house was awesome! I watched the races on TV since joining a NASCAR pool at the office years ago, more so to make it look like I knew what I was talking about, but  I had never been to a live race. Adam brought home t-shirts from his Saturday shift at the track and the golden tickets and we were excited beyond belief for Sunday night - the first night race in Atlanta.

We left the house at 3:30 pm and got stuck in track traffic. Once we got there we wandered around the midway, watched some pre-race shows, bought me a hat and ticket holders you wear around your neck, cause you never know when you will need those in the future, and then made our way to our seats. The seats were BEAUTIFUL! I swear I heard angels singing as we found our seats by the entrance to pit road up in row 40, meaning we were high enough to see the entire track.

Now, I have never been into sports like Adam is. My Mother-In-Law is a huge sports fan and Adam grew up in that household. I grew up in an artsy household where what you made, made you what you are and final projects for art class were framed and hung along side my Dads artwork in the house. Having entered the NASCAR watching frame of mind 8 years or so ago, I latched on to one specific driver and have been a fan ever since - Dale Earnhardt Junior. No specific reason, I just latched on with the force of a famished baby nursing and never let go. I even bought a Junior Nation baseball cap at the track and was wearing it proudly. Adam got jealous of my newly acquired hat so we made our way back to the midway before being seated in the stands and he got the same one in another color so we could keep them identified as our own. Good Lord, you don't want to mix up your fan hats - at my suggestion.

The race started. The stands shook from the vibration of the engines as they revved up at the starting line. They went fast, faster and even faster. It amazed me that they were going 200 mph. Hell, I go 10 miles over the speed limit and I get a ticket... the boys were flying! Junior gained spot after spot after spot and kept on coming.

Then there were hotdogs and funnel cake. What's a day out at a race or a fair without this fare I ask you? It was a fun time guessing what concessions were going to make their way up into the stands. Burgers? Chicken? Beer? Oh lots and lots of beer. People had their own stash in the coolers they let into the stands. There was every make and model of beer and the koozies to go along with them. Attire was interesting as well. from fan t-shirts and shorts to outfits you would only see on people who were trapped in the mountains for a few weeks. The woman in front of me, who I neglected to get a picture of, was wearing a shirt that said, and I quote: 'If I gave a crap, I would give it to you'. Thanks for the visual you obvious fan of Pricilla, Queen of the Desert, now go finish your PBR and your Lucky Strike smokes and sit the heck down so I can see the track :)

So after Adam enjoyed a few alcoholic beverages (hmmm Budweiser, maybe he is nursing a crush for Kasey Kahne?) I volunteered to drive us home as we made our way to the car - leaving early as to avoid a 3 hour parking lot vigil. We listened to the race on the radio as we made our way home and watched the last few laps on TV once we got home. 'You let the dogs out and I will turn on the TV' Adam said. Good plan! We settled in and watched the race end and the wrap up commentary.

It was a really fun night with a few thousand of our new best friends, some of which I would hose down before they entered my home, but nice people nonetheless. March race anyone?