Thanksgiving...I'm in!!!!

Finally!!! I can get back to my blog. Bas here, Mom has been hogging the computer for the last month all because of baseball. For a solid month she's been screaming and yelling for those so called Texas Rangers. Apparently they made it to the World Series for the first time ever. I don't get it, if it's the World Series why aren't countries other than the US playing. Mom explained that it represents players from all over the world and really it's just a title that helps to let you know it's different from the colleges....whatever. Of course, she's also been yelling about this football thing, too. I think I may as well give up on Mom till after February when football's over. Since I've trying to keep up with Mom and her craziness, I've been exploring some of the American traditions....baseball, football, Christmas, and I happened to discover one tradition that's right up my alley..Thanksgiving. A day to give thanks and a day filled with FOOD....I am so in!!!

Thanksgiving is a day to give thanks for all you have been blessed with for the year...family, friends, dogs, bones, etc. It´s also to celebrate a bountiful harvest. Now I agree with appreciating what I´ve been blessed with family, friends, and bones..but the harvest thing, well frankly, I don´t like veggies anyway. Apparently, way, way back in the old days settlers in America decided to celebrate the great harvest with their indian (Native American) friends. To celebrate they threw a great big feast. And Americans have been celebrating ever since. Nowadays, they celebrate with family and friends. Everyone gathers cause everybody´s off since it´s a national holiday and everyone eats till they bust. I´M IN!!! Then they watch parades and football all day, while nibbling on leftovers for the next 3 or 4 days. Like there will be leftovers with me around.

Mom says it´s one of her favorite holidays and she has lots to be thankful for like Dad and me, of course. She´s also thankful for all her new family, friends and new adventures. I think Mom is planning a Thanksgiving Dinner here..apparently you can have turkey, ham, chicken, duck, pork...just about anything on Thanksgiving. Plus a stuffing, sweet potatoes and lots of yummy desserts. I can´t wait to see what Mom makes...and I know I´ll get a plate, too. If I don´t, well let´s just say they´d better keep an eye on their plates or something might just end up missing. I´m not saying I´m a thief...I´m a Master Thief...just asked Dad how many broodjes he´s lost.

Well, time for me to go and I´ll let you know more about this dinner as time gets closer. Man, I´m drooling already...well ok, I´m normally drooling.

The insanity has begun....

HELP ME!!!! Bas here and I need help. It's Mom she's gone nuts. She keeps yelling at the computer screen during these things called football games. Now they're not like the voetball we're used to here. Seriously, I think these guys try to kill each other and Mom tries to help by yelling things like, "get him" and "go, go, go"at them. She yelled so loud once she scared me.

Apparently there are these animals called Longhorns and Horned Frogs and then these people called Cowboys. Now these animals look oddly like a bunch of guys wearing some silly costume and the Cowboys do the same. This week though Mom's even thrown in these things called "Sooners", now what the heck they are I have no idea. I tried wiki dogpedia, but couldn't find a listing. Apparently these "Sooners" meet up with Mom's "Longhorns" every year and battle. This weekend is supposed to be the big battle and Mom's all geared up for it.

They call it the "Red River Rivalry" . The University of Texas at Austin meets the University of Oklahoma half way between the 2 schools at the Cotton Bowl. Now this must be a really big bowl because they manage to fit 34,000 Texas fans and 34,000 Oklahoma fans in it. They say the equal split of fans goes right down the middle along the fifty yardline, one side burnt orange for the Longhorns, the other crimson red for the Sooners. These two teams have been meeting up since 1900. Texas has won 59 meetings, Oklahoma 40 with the rest being ties.

This is a huge deal in Texas and Oklahoma and the taunting usually begins the moment football season starts. You'l hear the famed "Hook 'Em Horns" from the Longhorns and "Boomer Sooner" from the Oklahoma Sooners. Of course, each side has there own insult to the other teams slogan. Sooners love to take the Longhorn symbol and turn it upside down...horns pointing down...haha. Texas takes a more direct approach and simply cries out "OU SUCKS". Fans shell out hundreds of thousands of dollars each year purchasing anything that is derogatory towards the other team. Guess you could say the rivalry is almost as big as Nederlands vs. Duitsland. In fact, it is one of the biggest games of the year in the US.

So as you can see I have my work cut out for me this week. Mom's already been trying to teach me to say "OU sucks" and I think she's been measuring me for a Texas jersey. It's going to be a long week. Think maybe I'll get in a little extra sleep before she starts yelling again.

September 11, 2001

There was a question on the Discovery Channel Hyves Page about where you were on 9/11. I was at home in Fort Worth, TX USA watching Good Morning America as I always did. The report was an hour behind time in Texas and they interrupted the newscast with the story of the first plane hitting the WTC. At this point, everyone just thought it was a horrible accident. As I continued to watch, the second plane hit. I love this morning news show because of the very calm and unflappable anchors, Charles Gibson and Diane Sawyer (at the time). Both myself and Sawyer had the same reaction..." My God!" The two newscasters rarely showed any strong reactions to incidents always professionals, that's why I remember her words that day, not just because I had the same reaction. My mind like so many others was just racing. Fear, anger, sadness, confusion, and pure shock set in all at once. I had to go to work that day, so I continued to get ready...but only getting out of view of the TV for as little as absolutely necessary. I watched as Tower 2 fall (2nd hit) then prayed that the other tower wouldn't fall....I had a strong feeling of not wanting whoever did this to win. Of course, the tower fell. I went into work, where everyone was just in shock and unfortunately, we all had the same feeling of "we're at war". We didn't have a TV only a radio to listen to, but it was on as loud as it could go. We heard about the Pentagon, then the Pennsylvania plane went down. I only had to make a delivery for the restaurant that morning so I left to do it. When I came back news reports were coming in that planes had been shot down, more planes were in the air, bombs in other buildings throughout the country, bombs on busses, subways and many other crazy reports. The reports were coming in so fast and furious that day that truthfully no one had a clue what was going on...the first 24 hours was absolutely frightening. Our restaurant was next to the Joint Reserve Naval Air Station formerly known as Carswell, it had been put on lockdown immediately. Military planes were going in and out....patrolling the skies. A bomb threat came over the radio for buildings in both Fort Worth and nearby Dallas. The restaurant dropped down from it's usual 60 person crew down to just about 6, no one was coming in....nor did they for the next 2 or 3 days. I wasn't needed so I went home.

Once I got home, it was right back to the TV. I watched as the President flew all over the country because they feared for his safety if he landed. There were reports of missing planes as late as 3 pm that day. As I recall the President landed once or twice at other airfields before finally landing in Washington. I don't remember when he spoke to the country, although I do remember him addressing the country at one of the stops prior to Washington. I do remember our Congress coming out, speaking, praying, then together they sang "God Bless America" while the Pentagon was still on fire. The Congress (both Republicans and Democrats) can't get together for anything...this was amazing...and it made me proud. It was hard to go sleep that night and I remember waking several times and turning on the news.

The next day news crews were still trying to make some sense of everything, but there was a different feeling slowly starting to emerge throughout the country. The country was uniting again and perhaps more strongly than it had since World War 2. While flags were at half mast at buildings and such you started to see flags on cars, windows, clothing...they were everywhere. There was a sadness that you could see on everyone's faces. A sadness but also a very defiant look as well. There was already a feeling of getting up and dusting ourselves off.

The next morning I went into work and once again no one was coming in. So we just listened to the radio and someone had brought in a TV. I do remember swelling with pride and thinking we need this as Lee Greenwood's "Proud to be an American"played on the radio...you heard it as well as many other patriotic songs for the next several weeks. I even felt a great comfort watching the guards at Buckingham Palace for the first time ever performing the US National Anthem...guess it helped knowing we weren't alone in our grief.

The next few days I watched TV. You couldn't take yourself away from it. I spoke with a coworker who had said the same thing...you just couldn't stop watching. Maybe it was a feeling that if you stopped watching you were giving up hope of finding survivors or maybe fear that something else would happen if you didn't watch. I was asked why we keep watching the programs even today...the only asnwer I have is we need to remember...not just the victims or events, but the feelings and thoughts of that day...perhaps so that we never forget.

The evening of September 11, I remembered a friend from college who worked at the WTC. I waited two days to call his family (getting through to New York was impossible) to see if he was alright...they had no word other than he had reported to work that morning. He wasn't supposed to be there that day. He did not survive. The upper portion of his burned and decaptitated body was returned to Texas at the end of October.

I still cry when I watch the towers being hit and collapsing, I don't think it's solely because of losing a friend, I think all those emotions of the day come flooding back, but that's a good thing because it reminds me why I am proud to be an American. Why am I so proud, because I know I'll always have that feeling of getting back up again no matter how hard you hit me... and I'm likely to be more fierce than ever. Japan's World War 2 Admiral Yamamoto was correct when he stated afetr the attack on Pearl Harbor "I fear all we have done is awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve." Right or wrong... knock us down, we'll get back up and be more determined than ever.

ROAD TRIP!!!!

On the road again, I just can't wait to get on the road again....yep, I, Bas, had my first road trip with Mom and Dad last week. Went down south to Geleen to visit my Opa and drop off my boy, Timo.

It started off wet and rainy, which by the way, I hate...seriously why is it necessary to get my paws wet. In fact, when we first started to leave the house I protested until I realized that I didn't have to walk in the rain. I gladly jumped in the back seat where the boy was....you know he was taking up half of my seat. Apparently someone forgot to inform him that the entire backseat is mine! That's ok though, I made good use of him...he's quite comfy as a pillow. Was he comfortable, who cares..it's my backseat....just kidding Dude! If I really wanted him to move all I had to do was ....ummmmm... how to put this politely....release by personal air unfreshener into the air...he would've moved pretty quick. Which I almost had to do...he thought I was his pillow.

Now I thought this was just going to be a quick trip with all the usual smells...whoa Nelly?!?!?!....3 hours of non-stop new smells. I didn't know what to do with myself or rather my nose...it was stuck to the top of the window. I don't have a clue what all those smells were, in fact I've still got a few left in my nose that I'd love to find out what they are.

Before heading to Opa's we dropped off the boy...thank goodness I could finally get comfortable. I no sooner got comfy than we were at Opa's. I finally got to meet my Opa and as always I gave a great first impression...I immediately went to sleep on the floor. Hey, car rides make me sleepy...well, ok everything makes me sleepy. He just could not get over my size, you know, what's the deal I'm not a freak...did you ever think that all those small dogs might be the freaks...I mean seriously some of them do have a bit of an attitude. But actually my Opa thought I was a very good boy and rather handsome I might add. We stayed for dinner and I got fries from Dad (that's my face in the bag) and a few cookies from Opa. He's a pretty cool guy, can't wait to visit him again soon.

Well, we headed back to Overdinkel, I tried to take in a few more of those scents on the way home, but the whole trip had been exhausting so I slept a bit, too. Of course, it took the next 2 days to fully recuperate from my road trip..but I'm ready to go again.

Well, that's it for my road trip. Uh-oh, I'd better go Mom is coming and she has been talking about nothing but football all week...apparently American college football starts this week.....oh, gotta go she's singing the Texas fight song....think I'll pretend to be asleep...Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Yes, I am crazy.......

To experience the full effect of this post, please allow the youtube video attached to play as the musical background. No need to actually watch, unless you're a Cowboy fan.

Yes, I am crazy...about my Cowboys. IT IS FOOTBALL SEASON....or at least preseason. There are only 3 things that matter in Texas....God, The Alamo, and FOOTBALL.....and not necessarily in that order. This time of the year in the US and 10 times more in Texas... all attention is turned to the gridiron ...that 100 yard, green, sometimes muddy, field with a goal post at each end. Two teams meet and square off trying to get into each others end zone. Hmmm, ok, it does sound alot like voetball....until you add the pads, the funny looking ball, helmets, cheerleaders, and the players who are obviously trying to kill each other. Some question the toughness of American football players, but to be honest, after watching the World Cup and watching players flop around on the ground after the slightest of hits...I still think American football players are pretty tough. Just wondering how Wesley would do with a 150 kilo defensive lineman trying to throw him to the ground. No offense, of course, I actually got into the Cup a bit...and the skill shown was incredible..and just for the record I played voetball in high school myself. Of course, some would say the US is "action horny" (quoting my Joost)...true, very true...we can not sit still long enough to watch only one goal being scored...we need our high scores, our tackles, our spectacular jumping catches, and watching one man try to run though 3 or 4 other players twice his size. Yep, we are "action horny", we get bored when the score is 0-0....we love a good, close game...21-21...sounds great to us...or if its your team 34-21 is even better. Football in the US is the mainstay of every weekend. On Saturdays...it's college football....which would be my University of Texas at Austin Longhorns...HOOK 'EM HORNS!...or my Texas Christian University Horned Frogs (no, there's no such thing as a horned frog...just horned toad) GO FROGS GO! Then, of course, it's Sunday (and sometimes Monday)....it's the NFL...and of course, the DALLAS COWBOYS... HOW 'BOUT THEM COWBOYS!!! On Saturday, Sunday, and even Monday night...it is football, football, and more football.

So who are these Cowboys, Longhorns, and Horned Frogs. We'll start with the Horned Frogs of TCU. TCU is the largest university in Fort Worth where I grew up. It's a small, private school that I lived less than 1 km from most of my youth. My high school often performed with their marching band at games. I even attended for one year. The TCU frogs have never been one of the big college teams, but they've always been fun to watch. Last year they were actually ranked #4 in the country...first time in many, many years that they even broke into the top ten. Oh, the "rankings" are done based on win-losses and also based on who plays who, most smaller schools can't really compete with the larger ones so TCU (being smaller) making the top ten along with some of the bigger schools was a big deal. Anyway, TCU will always have a little place in my heart because I practically grew up with them.

Now the Texas Longhorns. The University of Texas at Austin is the largest university in Texas and one of the top universities in the country. It's produced presidents, congressmen, movie stars, scientists...you name it. The Longhorns continually make the top 25 in the rankings and have won 4 National titles..the last in 2005...they were in the championship game last year but unfortunately lost to Alabama. The 'Horns are part of the Texas pride. Whether you attended the school or not, most Texans at least recognize the school fight song. Oh, fight songs, hmmm..how to explain that...fight songs are 'pump up 'songs played throughout games, parades, rallies etc...to cheer on the teams. The fight songs are such a part of college football that when former First Lady, Lady Bird Johnson (LBJ's wife) passed away...the Longhorn Band played "the Eyes of Texas" at her funeral. Lady Bird was a UT graduate and proud supporter of the 'Horns, it was considered an honor and very respectful that the band played for her. Anyway, back to the 'Horns. If you are from Texas, you proudly know the burnt orange and white...unless you attend Texas A&M..in which case you despise the 'Horns. That's part of the fun of college football. The school rivalries...some are within their own states, some are with outside states. One of the biggest rivalries is the Texas Longhorns vs. the Oklahoma Sooners...called the Red River Rivalry or Shootout and it's one of the most watched national games on TV. Every year the two teams meet half way between their hometowns in Dallas at the Cotton Bowl ('Horns are in Austin, Sooners are near Oklahoma City, OK)...each has an equal number of seats for their fans...35,000 each. The roads leading to the Cotton Bowl are jammed the day before the game...both directions. No matter how either team has played all year...this game is always different. The winner takes home a gold ten gallon cowboy hat. The Red River Rivalry is even mentioned in wikipedia..that's how crazy it is and I'm sure you'll hear more about it when it comes in October. Oh, and if you happen to see me with a strange hand gesture..first finger and pinkie finger up..all others down...that means Hook 'Em Horns...it's just a way of cheering in the team...I promise I'm not being rude.

By now the other video is done, to continue the experience play this next one. Again, only need to listen unless you're a Longhorn fan.

Ok, enough of that....let's talk COWBOYS!!! If I "practically" grew up with the frogs...then I was raised by the Cowboys. Yes, my beloved Dallas Cowboys, America's Team. When I was kid, my Mom (yes, Mom..she was a bigger fan than I am) would go to at least one game a year at Texas Stadium...where there was hole in the roof so God could watch his team...and never missed a game on TV. I remember watching da 'Boys when the legendary Tom Landry was coach and Roger Staubach was Quarterback. I remember the names of the players when I was little... Ed "Too Tall" Jones, Charlie Waters, Cliff Harris, Drew Pearson, Harvey Martin, Randy White, Tony Dorsett....just to name a few. I remember watching Roger Staubach losing part of his finger during a game and continuing to play...throwing hail mary passes to Drew Pearson. I remember Too Tall Jones crushing quarterbacks. I remember Cliff Harris making spectacular interceptions. Those were the early years and under Tom Landry the Cowboys won 2 Super Bowls. There were a few lean years where the 'Boys didn't do so well. Then the team rebuilt under coach Jimmy Johnson and new owner Jerry Jones...they managed to win 3 Super Bowls in 4 years (although Jimmy was replaced for the 3rd Super Bowl win). It was a return to the glory years. This time it was Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, Emmitt Smith, Darryl "Moose" Johnston, Darren Woodson, Bill Bates, and Charles Haley that dominated the field. Aikman, Irvin, and Smith became known as "the Triplets"... together they were unstoppable. Aikman passing, Irvin catching, Smith catching and running. This Sunday the last of the Triplets, Emmitt Smith will be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame...he will take his place along with 17 other Cowboys. Smith is the All Time leading Rusher in the NFL...he gained more yardage than any other player in the 90 year history of the NFL. But that was then, this is now. Today's Cowboys are Tony Romo, Miles Austin, Marion "the Barbarian"Barber, DeMarcus Ware, and Jason Witten. Unfortunately, the 'Boys haven't been to the Super Bowl since 1996 (don't forget though the Cowboys are still tied with the most Super Bowl wins and appaearances). Last year the Cowboys made it past the first round of playoffs for the first time since 1998. This year the Super Bowl will be played in Dallas at Cowboys Stadium (new stadium opened last year..and it has a hole in the roof, too) for the first time ever....and the Cowboys seem determined to defend their house. Training camp started 2 weeks ago and there seems to be an even bigger swagger in the clubhouse. I say bigger, because when you wear that star on your helmet it automatically adds a little swagger. So with some luck and some great football Romo and da 'Boys will be back where they belong...in the Super Bowl

Well, that's what my obssession is with football. It's funny, I was amazed by all Oranje stuff everywhere till I remembered...during football season the US can be even worse...with college flags, team flags flying everywhere, everyone sporting a jersey, tailgate parties at stadiums, bbq's at home to watch....yep, sports fanatics are sports fanatics so matter what country you are in.

Oh, and just for the record...my all time favorite players TCU..LaDanian Tomlinson, Texas...Colt McCoy and John Shipley, Cowboys...Coach Tom Landry, Roger Staubach, Bill Bates, "Moose"Johnston, and Marion "The Barbarian"Barber. Well, I leave it at this for now...season hasn't officially started yet so I have to save some stories for later...and I do have stories ....Hey, stop rolling your eyes... these are good stories. I will warn you though if you happen to hear alot of screaming...yelling ...Go! Frogs! Go!...Hook 'Em Horns....or How 'bout them Cowboys...don't worry it's just me watching a game.

Love and War

I'm in love! Yes, me, the Bas, has fallen in love. You see there's this cute, little corgi pup that just absolutely mesmerized me the other day.

There I was walking Mom on Hoofdstraat and there she was....wind gently blowing in her light blond with white fur. I couldn't stop staring at her. I rushed past parked cars trying not to lose sight of her as her petite, little legs ran to keep up with her Mom. But, alas, she didn't even notice me even as I tried to gain her attention...she wouldn't even give me a second glance. As she walked off into the sunset.....ok, really just her house... I watched still not taking my eyes off her....that is until ...SMACK!!...I walked into a light pole. Can you believe Mom found this funny, my heart was breaking and all she could do was laugh at me for walking into the pole....which I think she put it there, by the way, cause I don't remember it being there before. I searched the next day just to catch a glimpse, but to no avail. I'm one lovesick pup and I don't even know her name. I couldn't eat all day and all I wanted to do was sleep...well, ok all I want to do is sleep everyday, but I didn't eat till after Mom's final walk of the night. And I couldn't get comfortable for nothin'.

I guess they say all is fair in love and war. Right now I'm not so sure about that. I've been informed by a few of my bovine pals that ninja bunnies are preparing for an attack. On one of my nightly walks I counted 14...that's 14...bunnies including all the little baby bunnies...but don't be fooled...those babies are just ninjas in training. Their underground training camp is situated less than a kilometer from my house. You can also see signs that bunnies have been running recon missions in other parts of town like the park and such (the droppings are everywhere). Worse news followed though, from my bovine spies. It seems ducks, pigeons, and even chickens have aligned themselves with the ninjas. I'm afraid war is imminent. Heed my warnings now...a ninja bunny invasion is coming soon.

Love and war....seems they just somehow go hand in hand.

PS, Mom has some exciting news. She finally has some jalapenos growing in her garden. She gets so excited about such little things, yet she completely ignores my ninja bunny invasion warning...geez....what's a dog to do.

I have a confession to make....

I'm going to steal Bas's blog away for just a bit.

I'm almost always asked two questions since I arrived here in the Netherlands. First, how do you like Holland? Answer: Love it, weather's great, people are nice, it's been a great experience so far. Second, don't you miss America? Normally my answer is 'not really', I miss some things mainly food (still haven't had a jalapeno),TV, and such. This week, however, is a little different I have to confess I am missing the good ol' U.S. of A quite a bit.

See it's the week leading up to one of my favorite holidays...July 4th, Independence Day...America's Birthday, if you will. All through the week there will be tips on where to go for firework displays, Bbq'ing ideas, and parades on both local and national news broadcasts. It's the week you can show your pride in being an American just as loud and proud as you possibly can. July 4th itself is usually a fun day. Huge firework shows at night, baseball games and patriotic movies (like 1776, Independence Day, The Patriot) all day, and lots of parades, bbq's and picnics. Just a great day to celebrate.

But why do we celebrate this day....we don't celebrate so much the day as the meaning of the events of the day. In 1776, a committee formed called Congress signed and delivered the Declaration of Independence...declaring ourselves free of the governing rule of Great Britain. This congress took a great risk since they were in essence committing treason. This day represents freedom and courage. The freedoms we have fought and died for and the courage it took to do so. The freedoms that have allowed us to make mistakes and at the same time become world leaders. We aren't perfect, in fact we can be arrogant, rude, emotional, ignorant, and obnoxious, but we can also be very caring, sympathetic, kind, and there to lend a hand when needed most. Sometimes we're late to the party (World War 2) but once we get there you can't stop us. Right or wrong, Americans have conviction in everything we do. You can knock us down, push us down, but you will not keep us down.

Our freedom and courage won't allow us to stay down. I will never forget Sept.11, 2001 not just because of the events of that day, but how we as a nation reacted. Now I know everyone will point to the Afghan and Iraq wars, but what I'm actually talking about is the emotions that were brought out. I remember going to work on Sept. 12th, after listening to nothing but conflicting and frightening news reports the day before...I walked into work got started...everyone there was quiet and sad that day and didn't really want to be there, then a song came over the radio..."God Bless the USA" (Proud to be an American) by Lee Greenwood...we all stopped what we were doing and just stood there listening to a song we'd heard so many times...that day it just meant a bit more. Some of us were almost in tears, all of us felt a pride well up inside us. Almost like getting a shot of adrenaline we all got back to work with less sadness, talking more, and most importantly, with meaning. I realized quickly that you might beat us down, but we're going to get back up. For 30 days, by order of the President, the flag was flown at half staff to mourn those lost...I remember the first day they allowed the flags to be raised. I was driving down the street and saw our flag waving high and proud..it had never been more beautiful...what was funny was you could see that I wasn't the only one reacting...in virtually every face I saw there was pride showing through.

This is why July 4th is one of my favorite holidays. The signing of the Declaration of Independence is what gave us the freedoms and courage to be ourselves, be proud, and always get back up.

On July 4th, I will no doubt be thinking about the baseball game and fireworks and I will miss them. At the same time, I know that my American heritage is what gave me the freedom and courage to do the things I've done in my life...including moving to my new home...The Netherlands.

Yes, I have a confession to make...I'M PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!