Wedding, graduation, and pool party season that is.  And, just around the corner, Football.  I love football season.  I am not sure what it is ,but, it may be due to the fact that I grew up with brothers and a mom that worked at night.  So as a child, I had to go along with my dad and brothers as they went to football practice every evening.  So, at the young age of seven, I began my descent into football enthusiasm.  I am not really sure what made me like the game so much.  Or, was it really the game at all at first.  It might have been being with others at the football field.  There was always a playground so some of the other “football sisters” and I would have a place to play while our brothers practiced.  Then, these same girls and I became cheerleaders for our brothers’ teams as we got older. Somewhere along the way, I learned the rules of the game.  And as time passed,  I learned not only what offense and defense meant, but also that a wide receiver is on the offense and is often covered by a defensive end during a pass play.  My football knowledge grew as my brother went from football player to football coach.  And that same camaraderie was always evident among the football girlfriends, mothers, and wives.  What began as cheering for the home team led to social outings and lifelong friendships.  Whether our team won or lost, we had a social gathering at the field on a Friday night, Saturday, or Sunday.  Now that I live in Charlotte, NC, I can truly say that I have a hometown team.  My son was eleven when we moved to Charlotte and quickly became a die-hard Carolina Panther fan.   My husband’s workday would often be interrupted by an eleven year old calling him to tell him certain Panther news that my son was certain my husband would want to know.  The year the Panthers made it to their first Super Bowl my son was twelve.  He was invited to a party at a school friend’s house and opted to attend instead of participating in the Super Bowl party we were hosting at home.  When I went to pick him up, his friend’s mother said, ” You son is a hoot.”  My first thought was “Oh, no.” “What did he do?”  She went on to say that instead of hanging out in the bonus room with the kids who weren’t really into the game, he sat in the family room with the adults and gave them all the statistics on each player along with the players background.  The adults at that party received much more Panther information than they probably wanted.  I smiled and said, ” Yeah, He can’t help it.”  “Football is in our genes.”  “I hope it wasn’t too much.”  She assured me the adults got a kick out his knowledge and devotion to the Panthers and he was a welcomed addition to the over 40 crowd.  Unfortunately, the Panthers didn’t win that Super Bowl but our devotion remains strong.  Sometimes I still cling to my New York Giant roots as they were the first professional football team I ever liked, along with a slight soft spot for the New England Patriots as they were our team to the north.  But having a hometown team is just plain fun.  Fan Fest is just around the corner and my son, now 28, has already given me instructions on how to buy tickets as they sell out quickly.  So on Saturday I will be sitting at my computer ready to jump online at exactly 9:00a.m. and hopefully score(no pun intended) some Fan Fest tickets.  If not, well the thrill of football season is just around the corner with hopefully cooler Carolina weather.  “Happy Fall Ya, all”