I think it took me a whole week after moving to New Orleans to have the courage to finally say to someone, “OK, enough already. I give up. Why on Earth does everyone keep saying ‘Who Dat?’”
I was answered with a laugh and a look like wasn’t I just the cutest little kid inquiring about why the sky was blue. What followed next was a proud (and honestly, rather lengthy) explanation of the battle to, and ultimate victory of, the Saints’ Super Bowl journey just two years earlier.
I grew up in San Diego, so of course we had an NFL team, the Chargers, but I wouldn’t say it was exactly a football town. San Diego was one of those places people moved to from somewhere else. Real locals were few and far between, so people tended to maintain their loyalty to their hometown teams. Plus, I suppose it didn’t help that the Chargers weren’t exactly stellar.
This new city was like something I’d never seen, and five years later it still catches me off guard, even though, I too, have since joined the fold and outfitted my whole family with Saints gear. Our dog, my daughter recently pointed out, is even black-and-gold—he’s a diehard.
Football fan or not, the Saints are part of the culture here in New Orleans, as much as snoballs in the summer and those weird ladders with wooden box seats on them—another thing that required an explanation.
This month, we honor the Saints as they prepare to celebrate their 50th anniversary. What a ride it has been.
Happy Reading!
Kimberley@BizNewOrleans.com
CLARIFICATION
A clarification in the July issue.
Scott Wood is the owner, not co-owner, of Courtyard Brewery.
We regret the error.
