Watching The Pansy Bowl On New Year Day Two

Yesterday, on New Years Day, I was all excited that I'd scored a rare invite to watch a football game at the Knappson Football Game viewing center.

The Knappson invite was for the Rose Bowl.

About an hour, maybe two, before I was thinking I was going to be watching the Rose Bowl, I was informed that the Knappson football game schedulers had messed up, that the Rose Bowl was taking place today, the day after New Years Day.

And my coveted invite was no longer valid.

I was so disappointed regarding the aborted Rose Bowl invite that I am of no mood to watch it today.

I do not even know who is playing in the Rose Bowl.

Way back in the previous century, before the world got all messed up, it was easy to know who would be playing in the Rose Bowl. This year it would have been the University of Washington Huskies, due to having the best record in the Pac-10, or whatever number the Pac has in it at this point in time. The Huskies would be playing whoever won some other league, I think the name was Big 10, or something like that. Wherever Michigan plays, I think.

Anyway, with New Years Day football totally ruined I opted to go outside, away from any TV screens, and sit on a bench on the Circle Trail, looking at my neighborhood Pansy Bowl, which is what you see in the photo above.

The aforementioned Huskies played in a bowl game a couple days ago. Something called the Peach Bowl. There are so many of these bowl games with so many names.

It used to be simple.

Rose Bowl, Orange Bowl, Cotton Bowl, Sugar Bowl, and maybe a couple other fruits and flowers attached to bowls which I am not remembering.

The Huskies lost the Peach Bowl. The game had something to do with picking the national champion, like that is a really important thing.

Did the Tournament of Roses Parade take place out of sync, today, too? That parade used to be a New Years Day staple, til, like I already said, the world got all messed up....

Why Are The University of Washington Huskies In A Heart of Dallas Bowl?

I saw that which you see here this morning via the online version of the Seattle Times. The headline and that which appears below the headline confuse me.

Huskies to play Southern Miss in Heart of Dallas Bowl

The Huskies will make their sixth consecutive bowl appearance against Southern Miss on Dec. 26. The matchup at the Cotton Bowl is an intriguing one.

I don't pay all that much attention to football of any sort, but it sort of surprises me that I was unaware, that, apparently, the Huskies have made six bowl appearances against Southern Miss in a row.

I don't know why the current matchup is an intriguing one. Is it because the game is being played in the Cotton Bowl in a bowl game named the Heart of Dallas Bowl?

I thought the Cotton Bowl was played in the Cotton Bowl?

I remember the first time I visited Fair Park in Dallas and saw the Cotton Bowl. It was wide open so I was able to walk right out on to the field. I was surprised at how small and barebones the renowned Cotton Bowl was. I understand it has been much refurbished since I last walked on the field.

The last time I was at the Cotton Bowl was in January of 2009, with my mom and dad. Below is photo documentation, with mom and dad in their ubiquitous cowboy hats, mirrored behind them above the Cotton Bowl entry.

The Heart of Dallas Bowl takes place the day after Christmas. When does the storied Cotton Bowl take place?

And why are the UW Huskies playing in the Cotton Bowl in something called the Heart of Dallas Bowl? I asked a fellow former Pacific Northwesterner and the reply was that the Huskies are Bowl Sluts, that they will play in any bowl they get invited to.

I remember when it used to be a big deal when the UW Huskies played in a bowl game, way back when the only bowl game they could play in was the Rose Bowl, back when the Rose Bowl meant something and did not have goofy modifiers attached to its name, like the Cheesy Doritos Rose Bowl, or the In and Out Burger Rose Bowl.

So much seems to have gone so wrong in America, with this advertising attachments to Football Bowls just one more symptom.

How come the Heart of Dallas Bowl has no advertising modifier? Like the, I dunno, the Whataburger Heart of Dallas Bowl. Or the General Motors Heart of Dallas Bowl. Or some such other thing.

And why is this called the Heart of Dallas Bowl when the Cotton Bowl is a distance to the south and east of the Heart of Dallas?

One thing I know for absolute certainty, I will not be watching the UW Huskies win or lose the Heart of Dallas Bowl in the Cotton Bowl, in person, or on TV.....

Fort Worth Mayor Moncrief Thanks TCU For Making Fort Worth The Envy Of America

You are looking at Fort Worth's ultra-goofy, ultra-corrupt mayor, Mike Moncrief, in purple shirt and tie, in Texas Christian University's Daniel-Meyer Coliseum on Sunday for a public celebration where only around 6,000 TCU fans showed up to celebrate TCU winning the Rose Bowl.

You who live in the part of America that is not Fort Worth may be surprised to learn that Fort Worth is the "envy of the nation" because a university in this town won the Rose Bowl.

At Sunday's celebration Mayor Mike Moncrief thanked TCU "for making us the envy of the entire nation."

The "entire nation."

That is impressive.

I no longer subscribe to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Because it was no longer worth subscribing to. So, I do not know if the paper has reverted to using its "Green with Envy" type verbiage over and over again in its print version regarding some nonsensical thing that no one is envious of. Like some little known country music singer moving to town.

But.

I do look at the online Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and, though I missed it til Elsie Hotpepper pointed me to it, there it was, once more the goofy "envy of" conceit. This time in quote form on the front page, linked to an article titled "More than 6,000 TCU fans pay tribute to 'unbelievable' season for Horned Frogs" in which the Star-Telegram repeats the "envy of the nation" verbiage....

FORT WORTH -- As the community heralded its university and Rose Bowl champions as the "envy of the nation," one couldn't help but wonder whether guys named Baugh, O'Brien, Meyer and even Wacker weren't somewhere looking down and sporting smiles as big as Fort Worth.

More than 6,000 enthusiastic Texas Christian University fans filled Daniel-Meyer Coliseum on Sunday for a public celebration honoring coach Gary Patterson's football team and recognizing a 2010 season that was about as good as any in the 110-year history of the program.

I have no clue who guys name Baugh, O'Brien, Meyer and Wacker are.

But, I do know I read in west coast online newspapers, more than one Pac-10 football fan opine that a Fort Worth school named TCU, from one of the non-top type conferences, playing in and winning the fabled Rose Bowl is the final nail in the coffin of the widely disliked BCS system of choosing who plays in what football Bowls.

This somehow does not sound like envy to me. It seems more like disappointment that a fabled institution like the annual Rose Bowl has been greatly lessened. And is no longer even played on New Year's Day.

Now, what I am really curious about is all the years some team other than a Fort Worth football team won the Rose Bowl, was Fort Worth collectively envious of the town in which that winning team was located?

I do not recollect ever reading in the Seattle P-I, or hearing anyone opine that Seattle was the "envy of the nation" because the University of Washington won the Rose Bowl.

Do these locals who tout this type verbiage have even the slightest clue that it gets read by people outside of Fort Worth, you know, out in America, and that it makes Fort Worth seem really silly? And that it is sort of embarrassing to be saying this that or the other thing in a town like Fort Worth is the "envy of the nation."

This type bragging really needs to be retired permanently from this town. Until the day comes where something is actually worthy of such lofty verbiage.

The 6th Day Of 2011 Dawns Bright In Fort Worth With Casey Thompson Off Top Chef, Increased Murders & A City-Wide TCU Celebration In A Tiny Coliseum

The 6th day of 2011 seems to be dawning with yet one more blue sky day in Texas. Blue sky and we are at a balmy 6 degrees above freezing.

I need to remember to get anti-freeze before next week's predicted deep freeze.

I am in a better mood this morning than I was last night, because last night I went to blog on my TV Blog that Fort Worth's Casey Thompson had been told, on Top Chef, to pack her knives and go.

But, Google's Blogger program was in major malfunction mode. But, it's back working this morning.

Obviously, because you are reading this.

Yesterday in the Seattle P-I I learned that Seattle homicides are at a 60 year low. But this morning in the P-I I learned that domestic homicides are at a near record level. So, fewer strangers are being killed, but more family members?

Meanwhile, here in North Texas, I learned this morning in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that the number of homicides rose in 2010 in North Texas.

What has more people killing each other in one part of the country and way fewer in another part? I suspect it's something in the water. Or air.

I also learned in the Star-Telegram that our Fort Worth city-wide celebration of the TCU Horned Frogs winning the Rose Bowl will not be city-wide. Instead it will take place January 16 in Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. The public is invited. But, I believe that particular coliseum holds less than 8,000. There are more than 700,000 people who call Fort Worth home.

What happens when all of Fort Worth shows up to celebrate at that tiny coliseum?

Well, I have myself a very busy day of blogging today, trying to catch up after last night's Google Blogger Breakdown stifled me from my blogging.

The 3rd Day Of 2011 Dawns Cold In Texas With Thoughts Of Wild Women & TCU

The 3rd Day of 2011 dawns blue and one degree above freezing in my frigid zone of North Texas.

I saw no details, yet, in the Fort Worth newspaper of supposed record, the Star-Telegram, about our city-wide celebration celebrating Texas Christian University winning the Rose Bowl.

I believe TCU is the smallest school to ever win the Rose Bowl. And is also the only school with "Christian" as part of its name to win the Rose Bowl.

Or, likely, any other bowl.

I woke up this morning with an annoying twitch in my left eye. Why my left eye is twitching I have no idea. But I do know that I want it to stop.

Other than an unwanted twitching eye, I have no fresh maladies to report.

A day I wake up with no fresh aches or pains is the start of a good day.

I don't know, for sure, what I'm about to do on this first Monday of 2011. Except, maybe, finally get around to setting up the auto-deposit from Google to my new bank.

That and going walking somewhere other than the Tandy Hills. Speaking of which, I was informed last night, by someone who should know, that an announcement is soon to be forthcoming regarding the 2011 Manly Men and Wild Women Tandy Hills Hike.

I do not know if the Wild Woman of Woolley, Betty Jo Bouvier, will be in attendance. I suspect not.

The Dawn Of January 2 Thinking About Fort Worth's City-Wide TCU Rose Bowl Victory Celebration

This morning we are looking at the dawn of January 2 of 2011 from Miss Puerto's freezing balcony.

It is only 23 degrees this morning. That's cold.

Very cold.

I learned this morning that Fort Worth's TCU football team won the Rose Bowl.

Ten years ago I don't think anyone could have thought of a way the above sentence could possibly make sense.

I read this morning, in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, we will be having a city-wide celebration to celebrate TCU's stunning Rose Bowl victory.

We have not had a city-wide celebration here in Fort Worth for years. Not since some obscure Washington, D.C. lobbying group picked Fort Worth as one of the Top Ten Most Livable Communities in America.

I do not know, yet, how the city-wide TCU Victory celebration will manifest itself. Will Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief make another attempt to dye the Trinity River purple?

I have no idea what this Sunday, 2nd day of the New Year, has in store for me. All I can rule out is I am almost 100% certain I will not be going to church.

A New Year's Day Walk Around Fosdic Lake Thinking About Fort Worth's TCU Beating Wisconsin In The Rose Bowl.

You are looking at Fosdic Lake in Oakland Lake Park in Fort Worth, Texas a little after noon on the first day of the New Year of 2011.

Usually on the first day of a New Year you see a lot of people in the parks getting on with their New Year's Resolution to live a more healthy lifestyle.

It was not all that many degrees above freezing today, and a wind was blowing, both factors which, I think, made it cold enough for some to postpone the start of their New Year's Resolution.

That and there are football games on TV today.

I got a call on my way to Fosdic Lake and during the course of that call I was asked if I knew what time the Rose Bowl game started.

I had no idea. I am not a football fan. I don't get what can be so interesting about watching a football game that causes people to watch them, over and over and over again. Endless variations of the same theme is what those games look like to me.

But, much, much, much more watchable than the version of football the rest of the world plays, that version of football that Americans call soccer.

The person asking me if I was watching the Rose Bowl seemed to be shocked when I said no, I won't be watching. But, Fort Worth is playing in the Rose Bowl, I was told.

Huh? The Rose Bowl is a game that goes back way into ancient times, where the top team in the Pac-10 plays the top team in the Big-10. Teams like Washington, Oregon, California, Stanford, Arizona, UCLA, playing teams like Michigan.

I was told that TCU from Fort Worth is playing Wisconsin. In the Rose Bowl. Today.

I tell you, Fort Worth playing in the Rose Bowl is just one more sign that our world has gone totally mad.

I looked it up. #3 TCU plays #5 Wisconsin, in the Rose Bowl, at 4:30 ET 3:30 CT. Today.

Now that I know there is a Fort Worth connection to the Rose Bowl, just try and stop me from watching.