Labor Day Decisions

Labor Day weekend in the South consists of two important cultural events: dove hunting and the start of SEC football. At times, a very serious decision must be made when planning the holiday weekend - attend the football game or attend a dove hunt. Now, depending on the team you cheer for or whether you are a hunter, the choice may not be too difficult. Or you could always hunt and simply watch the games on television. But for my family, it is a little tough when our team is hosting a season opener. Lucky enough for us, this year we will be doing both.

My children and I will start by heading further south to Oxford, Mississippi, where we will partake in all the game day festivities Ole Miss has to offer. My son has finally reached an age where he is begging to join me. I guess he finally wised up that I’m a pretty fun football game date. I can smell the tailgates now.

The first thing we had to prepare for an Ole Miss opener was our outfits, obviously. In recent years, the school has started suggesting game day colors for the fans. When I was a student in college, there was no such thing, and we were still dressing as if we were going to an engagement party rather than a sporting event. With the relaxation of expected attire and the newly assigned colors, it is obvious what hue is suggested for the Saturday before Labor Day- white. Now, this goes back to the age-old rule of no white after Labor Day. This will be the last chance for ladies to sport their white shorts, white jeans, and white dresses before getting a judgmental snicker from the more traditional female fans. While the tradition was started in the 1800s to distinguish those with money from those without, it was during the 1950’s that the rule became a main staple of fashion through the American middle class with the help of women’s fashion magazines. These magazines deemed wearing white after Labor Day was simply not acceptable or appropriate, and it seems like it stuck in the South. Nowadays, it has turned a little bit, leaning toward what type of white fabric is to be worn rather than just focusing on the color. For example, a white linen would never be okay but a chic, winter white wool, corduroy, or even denim will work after Labor Day. But, if I’m being honest, I don’t think the younger generation really cares.

Speaking of the younger generation, the suggestion of wearing white to the only game before Labor Day can get a little risqué. While my mother would never let me leave the house in a white dress without a slip or a white shirt without a camisole, I’m not sure the college folk even know what a slip or a camisole is. And with things getting shorter by the inch as each year ticks on, you may as well have girls walking to games looking like they are dressed for their wedding night in white lingerie. Heaven forbid a “summa showa” pop up in the afternoon, or I may have to cover my eight-year old’s eyes. Any sign of a raindrop could hint at an unexpected (and unwelcomed) wet t- shirt contest in the Grove of Oxford, Mississippi. Let’s just say, that when there is a down pour on the wear white game, you can recognize those girls who were “raised right” real quick. While you may have college boys and drunken men participating in a rain dance, you can rest assured those older women are praying for clear skies all day, no matter how hot it is.

After our time cheering on our favorite SEC team, we will make our way back towards Nashville to participate in my childhood friend’s annual dove hunt. The Labor Day weekend dove hunt is yet another official announcement of the end of summer and beginning of fall in the South. The weeks leading up to Labor Day give avid outdoorsmen a chance to slip away from the craziness of the start of school as they announce “I can’t be here all weekend! I have to get the dove field ready,” before rushing out the door. While the less seasoned husbands still plant their dove fields in millet or winter wheat, the smarter ones know they best plant them in sunflowers. At least this way, when all is said and done, and their wives want to kill them, they can arrive home with beautiful sunflowers they can claim were grown just for their significant other. Fun fact- a sunflower field can also make a great backdrop for a family Christmas card.

Around two or three in the afternoon tends to be when the hunt commences. It’s usually blazing hot with a threat of that common “summa showa” thick in the air. A hassling Labrador (or two) trotting through the field with a wagging tail can usually be found awaiting a bird to drop from the sky. Gallon buckets make for the perfect resting stool, unless you go the fancy hunting route and get a specialty seat outfitted with all the latest outdoor gear. Kids sit patiently with their dads, dressed in their favorite camo shirts and shooting earmuffs, while most of the women choose to stay home and prepare an after-shoot dinner for the hungry hunters. Personally, choosing not to hunt is really an excuse for me to stay cool, have a few cocktails, and catch up on the latest gossip. We usually know it’s time to put the sides in the oven when we hear distant shots or the sound of a hunter yelling “low bird” from afar.

Every dove hunt in September, I tend reminisce on my first encounter with the sport. I believe it was when I was around ten or eleven years old. I was with my childhood friends, Robert, Seth, and Justin. They never missed a hunting season and knew all the ins and outs of the outdoor world. My father didn’t hunt, as my mother vowed she would never marry a hunter due to her own brothers and father spending an exuberant amount of time in the woods, so everything I learned came through my friends and future boyfriends. One hot, afternoon in Mississippi, one of those boys took it upon himself to have his own dove hunt in his back yard. Right in front of my eyes, my friend took out a dove sitting on a telephone wire, with his bb gun. I was shocked. My empathetic and caretaker heart broke as the dove laid dead at my feet. I began to cry in front of my bird killing friends as they sat silent, unsure what to do. I believe it was Justin who eventually slung his arm around me and whispered to me, “Suz, if you’re gonna live around here and around us, you’re gonna have to get used to some dead birds.” I knew he was right, and I reluctantly accepted my fate.

One positive thing about the bounty of a dove hunt (other than fun-filled memories) is what many refer to as “dove poppers”. After meticulously cleaning the dove, my favorite way to have them prepared is to soak the meat in Hoover Sauce, stuff the breasts with cream cheese and jalapeño, wrap with bacon, then cook on the grill. Delish! Interesting fact- in my debut novel, “The Carter Charm”, there is a dove hunting scene followed by poppers prepared this exact same way by a main character, Maddie.

So, as I juggle the busy weekend activities of watching my beloved Rebs start their football season and participating in the annual dove hunt, I hope you find yourself doing something just as fun. And may the hot summer days see themselves out and the cool, crips autumn air linger just a little bit longer than usual this year. Happy Fall Y’all, and Hotty Toddy!

Reflections and Shifts

Sheffield Boys