Let the healing begin

Yes We Are! 

I've been thinking about how to post to our happy little blog for some time and have not known where to begin. We are a diverse group with, I am sure, a vast range of emotions on the topic. There are many included on this blog who aren't even PSU fans, but at one point or another have joined us in Happy Valley to experience the joy of a football Saturday. We hope you will come back to us and realize Penn State is so much more than has been perceived in the media. And as I've told others if any school is capable of overcoming such adversity, WE ARE!

The Penn State pride is always so closely associated with the football program, but those in and around Happy Valley know it is something deeper. Just ask my kids who beamed with pride as they displayed their art on campus after an amazing two weeks of camp with hard working undergrads. Just walk around campus and hear the "We are.." chant without a football field in sight or better yet be on the other side of the world and have someone chant that to you. Please if you have never done so, stand in the BJC in February when the students dance all weekend For the Kids and raise millions of dollars to fight pediatric cancer. Come to campus at 6am on a random Tuesday to share that pride with 3,000 friends, players and staff.

So many seem to be excited to come and support the team and begin to heal together. I expect our tailGREAT will likely see a surge in overall attendance (yahoo!). We are looking forward to another fantastic season of tailgating with the best!

Pam came up with a fantastic overall theme for the season :)! Since we have been banned from bowls for the next four years we are going to create our own bowl game atmosphere each week. Send me ideas for any bowls you would like to celebrate.  We'll start the first game with the Sugar Bowl.  This bowl game held in New Orleans, LA is a great start.  New Orleans should serve as inspiration for moving forward in the wake of disaster.  It is a noon kick off so as far as food goes, you could go the "Sugar" route and bring some sweet breakfast treats or you could also go the southern creole route and bring those tasty staples or you could go the "go your own way" route and bring whatever it is you'd like to share :)!  We'll bring the Mardi Gras beads :).

Pam and Donna supply many of the utensils, plates, napkins, coffee cups, aluminum food containers and sterno cups we use. To help them with this we have had folks bring an item or two to any of the tailgates throughout the year. Pam and Donna will store them and put them to good use.  Thanks much for any donation.

We'll touch base as the September 1st date gets closer. Apologies for the longer post!

Best wishes to all and hope to see you at Lot 24,
Tiffany

Final Home Game

Hi all,

I have had a real hard time getting excited about this game. It should be one of the highlights of this unexpectedly good season, but I am sure you are all having a difficult time concentrating on football. I think it may help for us all to get together knowing there is much that is still great about Penn State.

With it being a noon game I am afraid the TailGreat Tourney is not going to happen this year :(. I admittingly have been a slacker most of this year. Three little ones at home has me much less organized than I want to be :)! But I hope to be back on my game next season :).

We will hold the annual Soup Cook Off on Saturday. If we can't get enough votes in prior to the game we will announce winners post game. I will be sure to get prizes to the winners if they are not present when announced.

I saw this picture on a Facebook post and thought it appropriately represented current feelings. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families.

Looking forward to hanging with a terrific group of folks on Saturday.

Love,
Tiffany

TailGreat Tourney Update

Partly cloudy and 46 for Saturday. Brrr...bring your gloves for play!

We like to play the tourney on a night game, but that will not be a possibility this year. So, we'll make due with a 3:30 kick off. I have shorten the total points per round to accomodate a shorter tailgate. We will have two beer pong tables going, two bean bag toss tables and I am looking for a second ladderball set to have two of those going. If anyone has one, let me know. This will also allow for recreational play as teams are elminated :)

The Tourney Rules are below for those who want to brush up on their play, but I will also have copies of the rules on Saturday. The three events are: LadderBall, Bean Bag Toss and Beer Pong.

TailGreat Tournament
Ladder Ball: Play to 14
3pts, 2pts, 1pts
Count the difference of the points
You can knock an opponent’s balls off (not literally):)

Bean Bag Toss:
Play to 14
3pts in the hole; 1 pt on the board
Count the difference of the points
You can knock an opponent’s bean bags off (again not literally)

Beer Pong:
Shoot to start first
It is OK to blow a spinney
If you sink two in a row you get the balls back
There are redemption shots for opposing team when other team wins

Getting to the Championship Round
Everyone plays each game at least once
Single elimination
Play until you lose for individual game competition
Each team gets 1 point for every game played
Each team gets an additional 2 points for every game won
The two teams with the most points will move onto the Championship Round
Each team chooses a game to play for the title. If there is a tie after the two selected games, the third game will be played for the tie-breaker.

Be ready for play on Saturday!

PSU vs. Illinois-TailGreat Tourney!!

Hey Gang,

Wow! 7-1, a big win on the road and #1 in the Leaders division. I'll admit I NEVER expected a season like this based on our first few performances this year. But this group is really improving week to week.

A 3:30 kickoff next week! We gotta sneek in the TailGreat tourney next weekend (since we know it is a 3:30 kickoff and Nebraska is up in the air). Weather looking a bit glum...rainy and high of 48. Let's hope that improves over the week. We'll have to start games early if possible and annouce winners by 2pm. Reminder we play in pairs, so if you know your pair ahead of time let me know and I can begin to set up brackets at home.

Our next destination is Haunty Valley (dramatic dracula laughter inserted here). Rather than a dream destination, we'll head to a nightmare destination in honor of Halloween. Costumes optional, but always a good laugh :)!

Food wise, it is up to interpretation-and your creative energy. A pot of chili could be "witch's brew", make some yummy mummy dogs, or how bout a cheese ball goblin?

Here are some links for inspiration:
Food Network
Cool and creepy
Better Homes & Garden

Homecoming Game

It was a great day to be a Nittany Lion fan on Saturday :)! The whole day just felt right, didn't it? The weather was ideal, there was just an overall good vibe in the air (which is evident in the attached video clip) and the Lions finally got their revenge on the Hawkeyes. The Nittany Lion defense is so much fun to watch!!

2-0 in the Big Ten and heading into Homecoming weekend. The current forecast looks good: Sunny and high of 61 and with the leaves likely near their peak next weekend it is shaping up to be the perfect fall day.

Oktoberfest was the suggestion for theme next week. If you can't cross the pond for the live event, why not enjoy ours right here in Happy Valley. German is not my thing, so I have to research a bit before choosing my dish.

Just a reminder that the Annual Soup Cook Off will take place on November 12th when the Cornhuskers come to Happy Valley for our first Big Ten match up. Get those recipes ready because I hear Jess Brushwood is coming back to town to defend her title.

See you on Lot 24,
Tiffany