3. Wall-to-wall weather coverage

If there is a storm anywhere in the state, Alabamians want to know about it. If you are visiting Alabama and are interested in watching a show on one of the major networks during a storm, you are out of luck. At the slight hint of a thunderstorm, meteorologists will break in to your programming. With luck, these will be brief interruptions- but more times than not, you are going to be watching men such as this one fill hours with storm reports, tower cams and hook echos. If there is a Tornado Watch, expect to hear tales of previous tornadoes. You will also be fully aware of how many people have lost power by the end of the weather event.

If you encounter some Alabamians watching a wall-to-wall weather event, make sure and appear interested. Comments such as "It looks like it's past Eutaw now" or "That's going to be hitting I-65 pretty hard soon" are acceptable. Whatever you do, do not mock the meteorologists or suggest that they may be scaring people. Alabamians are very righteous about their weather, and have strong personal feelings for their favorite weatherman.

It is also worth noting that 80% of the adult population in Alabama considers themselves to be amateur meteorologists. If possible, avoid bringing up actual meteorological terms in case they do not know them.