Pimp My Stadium

I didn’t fully understand the merit of all the hype until I saw IT. IT is the stadium of all stadiums, Cowboys Stadium. I hear you can see it from space. Unfortunately, we failed to see it from our parking pace a mile away. In the midst of our wandering we stumbled upon the recently opened Fuzzy’s Taco Shop in Arlington (we had one near TCU and I ate there more often than I care to admit publicly). So, instead of deal with the stress of locating the stadium immediately, we stopped in for a beer and some fish tacos (best I’ve ever had). The beer gods were shining down on us as the Coors Light Girls spotted us and rewarded us for choosing Blue Moon (a Coors product) with a free round. What a great start to the evening.

Next, we started out on our one mile journey towards the stadium (Brian led the way, because I still couldn’t see it). But once we turned the corner, there it was in all its glory. It is tall enough to fit the Statue of Liberty and the exterior looks like it belongs in the movie Independence Day, slightly spaceship-esque. It was a bit of a walk, but worth it to avoid the $75 parking fee.

We got there with 15 minutes till kick off and we still had to pick up our post-game passes to see JJ at will call. Too bad for me, we were at the South Side will call, and needed to be at the North Side will call. I sent everyone else in to enjoy kick off and Stosh and I ran off to to get the passes. It was a frantic few minutes to say the least. After, lots of bad directions, huge crowds and long lines we got the passes and ran to find our seats. In all the confusion, we failed to notice the escalators to the top of the stadium. Instead, we took the stairs. I lost count after the 8th flight of stairs. I just want to point out that we were in the second to last row at the top of the stadium. Just a reminder, this is the same stadium that is tall enough to fit the Statue of Liberty inside. Needless to say, I was glowing (aka dripping with sweat) by the time we found our seats. But, the good news is we made just in time for kick off! Good thing they were running late.

Now that we were in our seats I had a chance to look around and admire the House that Jerry Built. The video screen at the top (well, from where we were sitting it seemed to be at eye level) was the biggest thing I have ever seen. It is 160 feet long and the world's largest HD video display. The next thing to catch my eye was the section behind the end zone specifically set up for caged pole dancers. Sweet. Talk about necessary entertainment at a pro-football game.

The game didn't go as I had hoped, but I still had a blast watching the fans around us. We almost witnessed a brawl between two really scary Panthers fans and a group of drunk frat boy Cowboy fans (who were later escorted out for their comments to surrounding Panthers fans). I tried to make friends with the scariest Panther fan, because obviously, if things went down I would want him on my team. I think it worked. Maybe we can be pen pals when he undoubtedly ends up in prison.

We were all able to meet up with JJ after the game in what was basically a holding pen. We were supposed to stay inside the pen and the players were allowed to come up and talk to us. It felt a bit like a petting zoo so JJ snuck over to our side. Unfortunately, he has a hard time convincing security that he was a player when he tried to get out to go to the buses later.

I am looking forward to the next away game trip, which will be back to Phoenix Oct. 28. Until then, I am relaxing in Charlotte getting ready for more visitors.