Texas is still great... almost to the Top Ten!

A friend asked the other day if I am doing these posts because I am homesick. And honestly,the reason I am writing them is because I was sent a list of the Top 50 about a week ago...and that list linked to the Top 100 and all I could think of as I read those 150 things was, "WAIT! What about ______ or ______?! How could they leave _____ off the list!"

So that is what prompted it. :-)
I am not homesick; I am just proud.
Yes, I am an American, but first and foremost, I am a Texan.




22. Yes m'am and No sir.
Don't be shocked and don't feel old when you hear it. Because you WILL hear. Gotta love the manners of the southern folk! 

21. The SHEER SIZE. Seriously. You can drive 13 hours and still be in Texas...... And along that drive you can experience "global" places like DUBLIN, Texas; PARIS, Texas; TURKEY, Texas; ATHENS, Texas, and even PALESTINE, Texas... So maybe we should require Texans to have a passport just to drive through the state! :-) 
(Trivia: Did you know El Paso, Texas is CLOSER TO CALIFORNIA than to my hometown of Nederland, Texas?!)


20. Nederland, Texas..my hometown. It may have been settled by the Dutch (hence, NEDERLAND), but it is as close as you can get to Cajun Culture without being in Louisiana. This is an area where names like Fontenot (our family name), Broussard, and Thibodeaux are as common as Nielsen and Larsen are in Denmark! 


19. Speaking of borders... Folks wonder why Texans don't often travel too far from home? Well, we not only have EVERY type of geography and landscape in our 696200 km2, but we also border 4 other states (New Mexico, Arkansas, Louisiana, and that state to the north) PLUS the Gulf of Mexico AND the country of Mexico....so a road trip through Texas can offer a lot! (although I still say we Texans need a passport and need to get out of the south every 
now and again!)




18. "The Friendly State". Yes, every state in the US has a nickname and technically we are the LONE STAR STATE, but the word "Texas" comes from "Tejas" (a Caddo Indian word meaning FRIEND or ALLY), so if you "know" anyone from Texas, I can guarantee that you have a friend for life! 

17. The Dallas Mavericks.
Because you see, I loved them LONG BEFORE they were NBA champs! 
And one of the best purchases I ever made was the year I decided to get season tix for me and Jess... and the next year. And the next year. And the year after that. 


16. Dirk Nowitzki. Amazing ON and OFF the court.  We have bumper stickers in Texas that say:

And Dirk fits into that category. Other teams want him and have been wooing him....but he's a smart man. He knows a good thing when he sees it.   




15. BBQ Crabs & 10 minutes-- the recipe to finding heaven on earth. The benefit of being from SE Texas is the 10 minute drive you need to cross the border into Louisiana to find ALL YOU CAN EAT BBQ CRABS at Starks Silver Dollar. Now of course, MoMo Fontenot would say that the fact that you could gamble in the back room while you rested from eating the first round of BBQ crabs was the BEST part of the drive. God, those are incredible memories..... I think I need to take my Viking there at least once....

14. Texas Rodeos.
Did you know the world's first rodeo was in Pecos, Texas in 1883? Whether you are a cowboy/girl or not, EVERYONE should experience an authentic Texas Rodeo AT LEAST ONCE! (And no, you do not have to wear boots... I never did! Right, DAD?)





13. There are A LOT of Texans in the world! And that is a good thing!! SEE #18 on this list! No matter where I travel in the world, when I say I am from Texas, IT NEVER FAILS that the person I am meeting is either 1) FROM Texas, 2) Has a relative/good friend in Texas, or 3) Wishes more than anything to someday TRAVEL TO Texas! So how many current residents are there in Texas???
About 24,750,00.....and that does not include the 15,000,000 heads of cattle!


Why even the little community of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex (where I lived before arriving in HERNING!) has more than 6,300,000 residents... which is more populous than THIRTY-ONE of the US States.... and is about 800,000 MORE THAN THE WHOLE COUNTRY of Denmark! 


12.  Texas truly has something for everyone..... We even have COWBOY CHURCH! Did you know the first "Cowboy Church" was started in Waxahachie, Texas? This is not something I will personally ever experience, but it is just an example of how Texas really does have something for you...no matter WHO you are! 

11. The Comal River, just outside of New Braunfels. There is not a one of us that does not have a memory of floating the Comal on a hot summer day.... and for most of us, we have LOTS of memories from LOTS of summers.....




And I think that is really where my Top 50 list comes from.... each item is associated with a memory.... a smell, a taste, a warm feeling on my face....  So stay tuned. The Top Ten is coming soon!