Life down here in the Big Easy is... well, for lack of a better word, pretty easy. In fact, the hardest times New Orleans folks face are those awaiting the four seasons of the year: hunting, crawfish, football, and hurricane seasons. Currently, New Orleans is in hurricane season, awaiting the arrival of football season. This is quite possibly the most difficult time for New Orleanians. The waiting game is on for New Orleans Saints fans, and this is what it's like to be a Saints fan in the summer.
So, what exactly do New Orleanians do during the off - season?
The off season normally begins in December, therefore, New Orleanians don't have a hard time coping with this terrible transition. It's the holidays, and even if our team isn't in the playoffs, we are often distracted by the holidays and the pending Super Bowl. But once the Super Bowl is over and fans are completely cut off from football- things don't go too well.
The summer creeps up way too quickly. Before you know it, it's the beginning of May and the heat is unbearable. Not only is it summer, but it's also hurricane season. Even if New Orleans doesn't experience any named storms, the city experiences such severe weather that technically it could be considered a hurricane. This occurs weekly-daily, if it's the month of June.
How do Saints fans temporarily get their football fixings?
On a nice summer day that doesn't call for a torrential downpour, highly unlikely, Saints fans make their way to the Saints Training Camp in Metairie, Louisiana. If you make it through the day without having a heat stroke, you promise yourself and your family to never put each other through that again. How do those boys work so hard when it feels like 117 degrees outside? At least you got to be within the a few feet of the players you know and love.
Why do New Orleanians care so much about football? It's just a sport.
When it comes to New Orleans and football, "It's just a sport." is a phrase that should NEVER be said. To New Orleans, the Saints are more than a football team and football is more than just a sport. To New Orleans, the Saints brought this city back together after Hurricane Katrina attempted to take everything from the city. Football brings the people of New Orleans together. When the Saints win, the entire city wins. When the Saints lose, the entire city loses.
Among other things that New Orleans Saints fans may participate in during the off season include: stalking Drew Brees and his adorable family via any and all forms of social media, watching the NFL's every move, and counting down the days until the beginning of the pre-season, the start of the regular season, along with the dates of the most important or difficult games.
It's safe to say that I, along with the entire city of New Orleans, am (im)patiently awaiting the start of football season.
