Tailgating without the Beer

On Friday morning we woke early with anticipation of the day's adventure. We were off to a great start at breakfast having been given a free pass by an older couple to attend the days' tailgate. In the south, tailgating usually encompassed a buffet of food, a chair and a cooler full of beer prior to an SEC football game on a fall Saturday. Having attended Auburn University, I attended a few as a student and too many to count as a devoted alumni. We had been told stories of the tailgate show and had in our minds what this adventure would entail. This tailgate included with the price of admission a yummy doughnut and a warm cup of coffee. It also promised hours off looking and dealing with some great people from across the USA! Above is the picture of it so you get a better idea. Basically vendors from all over the world rent these hotel rooms on the first and second floors. They completely convert the rooms into mini stores. They also use the parking lot, railings, patios, you name it, they cover it. The tailgate lasted from Wednesday to Sunday I believe. We piled up with Dad in his truck and arrived with much anticipation. From the looks of it, we thought we'd died and gone to a huge Lakewood heaven! We started walking around and found the prices much too high for our customer back home. The vendors had some fabulous finds, but like I said, for you guys we want to find great deals, and there where none here to be found. After a couple hours of looking, gasping and finding a few favorites, we decided to go a different route for the rest of our day. After catching up with the rest of our gang, who had more mature pocket books, we mentioned heading to Historic Franklin for the afternoon. They mentioned some great malls along the way and other spots to hit and we were off!