Stock Memorial Day Historical Post (zzz...)

Memorial Day Weekend has come and gone in Denmark. I didn't do much celebrating on my own; barbeques and trips to the beach just don't have the same effect with weather like we've had over the past, well, since I've been here really. Historically, MDW signifies the beginning of the summer season, so perhaps things will soon cooperate here as well.

In modern times, Memorial Day honors those American soldiers who gave their lives during military service. Often lost, though, are its roots which show much less clarity about what is actually being observed on the day itself. It originated as 'Decoration Day' in 1868, when Posts of Union Veterans would literally decorate grave markers in the many cemeteries of those who fell during the Civil War. This celebration would later adapt a strong religious tone. Those who died in combat were linked to God, as they were fighting for a better United States; one that was closer to the Lord. These baptisms of blood later gave way to much more nationalistic sense of the holiday until it ultimately expanded to recognize soldiers lost in all conflicts following the Great War (World War I).

However, regional differences in beliefs held during the Civil War once again presented themselves when efforts were being made to remember those who were killed in action. There are those who claim that the first Memorial Day celebrations were actually Southern traditions. The first such documented event was held by black Americans in early May, 1865, with others springing up in the years to come before 'Decoration Day' was enacted. The divide between white and black observances also became an issue, as I am just reading about in a book called "Confederates in the Attic," by Tony Horwitz. In this book, Horwitz investigates some of the modern ways in which the South still clings to its Confederate heritage. Pertaining to the Memorial Day question, he writes that it is essentially celebrated by four different groups in four different ways for four different reasons: whites in the North, whites in the South, blacks in the North and blacks in the South. Whether it was remembering the dead, remembering the cause, remembering the result or just the War itself, all refer to the same events, yet each group has their own specifics as to why they honor who, or what, they are honoring.

Celebrations were often times more locally recognized in small towns and communities. Parades, picnics, cookouts and concerts soon became the norm and as those who lived during the days of the War Between the States gradually died off, the reasons for remembrance began to fade.

In the interest of not writing a thesis here, I'll move on to say that the name 'Memorial Day' was enacted as Federal law in 1967 and the tradition of the three-day-weekend came the following year, along with President's and Veteran's Day. Poppies purchased to benefit VFWs across the country are actually not a truly American tradition themselves. They are a throwback to Canadian Lt. Col. John McCrae and his poem, 'In Flanders Fields,' written about the Second Battle of Ypres, fought on Belgian soil during World War I:

In Flanders fields, the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below...

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved, and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields...

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands, we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields...

I knew those lessons from student teaching would come in handy at some point. I could go on, but that would be too much like work. The point is, sometimes things get lost or shuffled over time and occasionally, it's nice to look back and rediscover them. After you've hopefully enjoyed a nice weekend with friends, loved ones and most importantly, good food, I hope that perhaps you took a moment to think about why you were able to do so.

Before heading off, I'd like to mention that I just caught up with Copenhagen correspondent, Olivia Nagle tonight, fresh off her tour of southern Europe. She's heading back to the States tomorrow and I wish her all the best in safe travels and offer thanks for the many travel tips she has offered so far. I also encourage her to think of those who will not have decent BBQ or hot wings for some time when she undoubtedly celebrates her homecoming in (delicious) style. Well, I'm hungry now. Maybe a snack before bed. Goodnight.

One Score Makes Four

A long touchdown pass from QB Henning Alstrup to WR Marc Sørensen proved to be the difference maker in this afternoon's contest as your Aarhus Tigers narrowly bested the visiting Esbjerg Hurricanes 7-0. With the win, the Tigers improved to 4-0 on the year.

I was actually a spectator for the lone scoring play of the day. It occurred on our first possession after the half, which I decided to watch from the sidelines to see what was going on with the defensive fronts we were getting. In weather conditions just as sloppy as our last game, the first half was mired by sloppy performances by both teams. It became apparent that we were having some difficulties with their defenders up front, who relied heavily on slants and stunts to make up for a lack of size and strength. I didn't think to remove myself from the game to see firsthand what was going until after halftime and when I did, I saw what I had anticipated. Their defenders in the box (linemen and linebackers) were simply exchanging gap responsibilities (who covers which hole we run to) and we were not doing a great job recognizing this. That didn't matter on the fourth play of the second half though, as the OL provided good protection and Henning delivered a strike to Sørensen in stride from midfield en route to a TD.

Some frustrations would continue on offense, as they had in the first two quarters. We were able to move the ball for a string of plays and then we seemed to fall flat for a few. Adjustments will be made in the next few days in anticipation for this week's game and the second half of the season ahead. With some of these in place, our offense will no doubt look to sustain and more finish more drives than we have been recently; all part of the fun in being a coach, I suppose.

Hats off to the Tiger defense once again. They have not been scored on in fourteen consecutive quarters of football and show no signs of letting up. They forced two key turnovers today; a fumble recovery inside our own five-yard line and an interception with under twenty seconds to play as the 'Canes were threatening on our side of the fifty.

It was definitely strange to be playing a game on a Sunday. I think I might have only once before, a JV game eight years ago when I was sophomore in high school. I could be mistaken, but nonetheless, still a little weird. I'm just happy the weather held up and it only hailed for about two or three minutes during the third quarter. My bag on the sidelines got totally drenched yet again, including the bag inside holding my wallet, iPhone and iPod. I looked in after the game to find said bag at the bottom of a small lake. However, thanks to my folks back home and the cases they've sent (one for each electronic device), they remained safe and dry; crises averted.

Felt good to be out on the field again. Some of their guys did a little more talking than we saw last game. I'm sure they were saying very tough and meaningful things but since they were speaking Danish, I just smiled and waved at them before each play. They were probably just lonely and I thought to myself that you always catch more flies with honey than vinegar. Actually, since I didn't say anything back, they probably thought I was hard of hearing or something. Good times, but it wasn't quite enough to qualify for this week's "WTDAFM" (Welcome to Danish American Football Moment ... I guess it doesn't form the cleanest acronym, but it's an awful lot to keep writing it out like that).

Anyways, this week's WTDAFM (eh, it's not so bad) is really more for all the football strategists out there (Smitty, Coach B and all the other MHS guys, I hope you're taking notes). At today's coin toss, I was going about my business and staying warm and loose during the monsoon and I peaked over and saw that we won the toss and deferred to the second half. Now, even the casual football fan (I hope) knows that when your team defers their option as we did, the other team is presented with a few choices. Among these are whether they want to kick or receive the ball to start the game. Common sense would dictate that you would want to receive because the other team put off making that choice until the second half (which almost always means they will receive then). Each team therefore has a chance to start off a half with the ball and look to set the tempo as they see fit. Well, today, I think a new strategy was employed. The Hurricanes opted to kick to start the game, essentially allowing us to start each half with the football. This confused even our special teams units, as our kickoff team had already started to run on to the field and then had to be replaced by the kick return squad; I know it sure threw me for a loop. I guess it almost worked as we only managed seven points but generally speaking (call me crazy), I'm a fan of free possessions.

That's about it for now. I'm going to relax to a movie tonight and enjoy the win. Tomorrow starts preparation for the next game. We play again on Saturday so it's a short turnaround this week. Come on back again soon; I'll be here.

Fri-Man (Last time, I promise)

I forgot about this part and then I promise not to talk about Friheden until I go back again! This is also pretty cool because I got to play around with some of my iPhone's nifty features. I shot the following video at the base of the 'Sky Tower,' a ride I really wanted to do, but opted not to and you can see why.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrum5_vdL7U

I am fully confident that my back is strong enough to handle what you you'll see there, but my gut told me to think otherwise (he's around me [literally] enough to know these things). A little later on in the summer, I will absolutely return for this, but for now I'll just let the video do the explaining.

The iPhone actually allows you to send video you shoot directly to YouTube. You just take your vid, hit "Send to YouTube," add all the pertinent info and it compresses the movie for you right then and there. This was the first time I got to try this. Now that I know how easy it is, look for more of these little featurettes in the future.

Almost bedtime here, I'm just preparing some things for tomorrow's game. Be back after that for a full recap. Before I sign off, I'd like to send some brutal birthday wishes to my good buddy, Mr. Bryan Dine back home. I don't think DineBot's an NTD reader, but that's okay. He's still Something From the Tree's number one SuperFan and the biggest one we've got (literally). Happy birthday, Bryan; hope you've had a safe Spirit Journey.

Goodnight to all else, this Tiger's gonna rest up now. Goin' on the prowl at 15:00 tomorrow...

Fri-Man (Cont.)

As promised, I've returned now to finish off last night's escapade through Tivoli Friheden. I mentioned last post that while we Tigers were free to roam about the park and prey on unsuspecting rides and attractions, these things themselves weren't exactly 'free.' At your average American amusement park, admission covers the cost of pretty much everything inside, with the exception of course of food and tacky souvenirs. Here though, such is not the case; admission is merely your first opportunity to fork over some dough. Once you're in, these opportunities continue to present themselves, at each ride for example (pretty ironic, since Friheden means 'freedom'). You have to buy tickets that are good for x amount of rides, or pick up a wristband that provides you unlimited access to most of them. The contingent of dedicated ride-goers that was Bysted, Stefan Meyer, Thomas Pedersen and myself opted for the bands to enjoy ourselves to the fullest (thanks to Anders for generously treating me to mine). In a moment, I'll get to those rides, but first I want to show you some of the scenery inside:


As I said yesterday, both this park and the one in Copenhagen borrow part of their names from the ancient Roman township, Tivoli, famous for its gardens and impressive landscaping (though I'm pretty sure it didn't have a roller coaster). Friheden does have some pretty nice hedgery though and a lot of neat fountains and decorative pools like the one pictured above.


Pictured above is a portion of the entrance way. The arched branches continue down the path a ways and it looks pretty cool. If I had stood about fifteen feet to the right, you would've seen a rather large mass of people pouring in, assumedly for the Kashmir, but more likely for what's in the next two pictures:



Though this wasn't the restaurant where we ate, what self-respecting American could resist taking a few photos with one of his own? "Eating the American Way," at least in the mind of the Danish amusement park designer, is eating typically-Danish foods (i.e. hot dogs with the bun on the side) that are just much larger than usual. Bysted told me they used to have a giant sausage that nobody really cared for because it was just too big and gross. I was just happy to get a shot with the man himself.


This was taken from the very back of the open-air amphitheater where Kashmir played. Pretty good crowd despite their set being played during the night's heaviest period of rain.

That's about all for scenery, on to the rides!

First off, we went on a rather small roller coaster (the name of which escapes me at the moment). I realize this isn't the best shot, but I can assure you there wasn't much more to it than this. It did however feature one inversion and served as a tasty appetizer to some of the others to come later.




The next one was a pretty excellent coaster called 'The Cobra.' It was much larger than the first, featured two inversions and had a great little mascot (pictured above in some kind of a water-themed variation of the ride, to take place later in the summer). This particular ride actually broke apart in 2008 and injured four passengers, as the car came loose and struck the ground. We experienced no such misfortune last night.


Our favorite of the night was probably 'Pegasus.' This twisted variation of the 'Tilt-a-whirl' has you seated in a gondola while its arm rotates about 360 degrees. Meanwhile, the arm inverts up and down repeatedly, while each gondola rotates independently on its own axis. This was pretty comparable to an astronaut's G-force simulator as you are literally thrown upwards, downwards and side to side for a full two-and-a-half minutes. This is strange because I always figured flight on a real winged horse would be a pretty smooth go. Proof that we got our money's worth here: Bysted's nose started bleeding halfway through the ride.



The 'Tyfonen' (Typhoon) was probably the weakiest of the night in our estimation. It was sort of like a Turkish Teacup on a roller coaster track with only a fraction of the amusement of each. Still though, expert cameraman Morten Sehested was unsuccessful in snapping a halfway decent picture. In the one at the top, you can see my hand sticking up. The one below it was supposed to be the best shot of us ... until this guy walked right in the path of the camera.

No one managed any pictures of the next ride, a giant kiddie swing set that Stefan and I managed to squeeze into. I liked it so much I almost stayed there for the rest of the night. That was also due in part to the fact I was stuck in the seat. I was eventually released by the guy working the ride (Danish carney, minus the meth addiction).


The last ride of the night was a tried and true classic, bumper cars. The Danish equivalent though featured a ratio of way too many cars to bumping area. It was more like a simulated traffic jam, but still fun nonetheless. Pictured above, you see me destroying a twelve-year old (him and his buddies were eyeing me from the start - I had to show them who was boss). Pedersen is pictured just above my left shoulder and Stefan is next to him.

That's about all for now. Great times at a fun place; I know I'll be back there again sometime before long. For now, time to go pick up a few things at the store to avoid cleaning up around here. Be back either later today, but definitely tomorrow with a game recap of our clash with the Hurricanes of Esbjerg. Until then, adios.

Fri-Man

Hello again. Sorry for my recent absence but I've been catching up on some rest over the past couple of days and still holding on to a few nice events that I did last week. In between some much-needed cleaning of my apartment tomorrow, I think I'll be able squeeze a post in. Right now though, I do have some cool stuff to share as tonight marked one of the most exciting adventures I've participated in since arriving in Denmark.

Since we don't play until Sunday, a team event was planned tonight at Tivoli Friheden (Free-dhen), an amusement park about two minutes from my front step. Before I go on, it should be noted that this park is not to be confused with Tivoli Gardens, Scandinavia's largest and most-visited attraction of the sort (third most in the EU). That park is located in Copenhagen and I have not yet had the pleasure of going there. Furthermore, neither location should be confused with Tivoli, Italy (just outside Rome), though both are named after it and its famous botanical wares.

To those in NH, Friheden is very comparable in size to Canobie Lake Park; on the small side, but bigger than you think once you've walked in and out of everything after a while. It's been an Aarhus staple since opening in 1958 and unfortunately seems to have a less-than-flattering reputation, as several rides have experienced malfunctions over the years. The aftermath of these has resulted from the minor (guests being stranded for a few hours in midair) to far more serious (fatality). One would never know this by looking at the place in its present condition now though, as it is a clean, seemingly well-functioning environment. On this particular night, despite (you guessed it) some more RAIN, the park was still filled with families and patrons of all ages enjoying the heck out of all it had to offer. It had been a long time since I was to an amusement park (five years ago to Universal Studios for a high school trip) and I really forgot how much damn fun they are. Friheden was certainly no exception.

Our night started with a buffet dinner at one of the restaurants in the park. Defensive and Special Teams Coordinator (and NTD follower), Anders Bysted (Byoo-steth) worked in security at Friheden for several years, so he set up the whole night's affair. The food was okay, but the softis (soft EES) or Danish soft serve was definitely the winner of the meal. It was probably the creamiest soft serve I've had since B & J's in Fort Washington, MD and tasted pretty good, too. After dinner, we were free (well, not free - I'll explain in a moment) to enjoy ourselves in the park. Part of the reason tonight was selected was because a popular Danish rock group was kicking off Friheden's summer concert series. The group was Kashmir and they sounded an awful lot like U2. They were enjoyable enough; not something I would normally listen to, but they seemed to have a pretty big following and they put on a decent show. Interesting note about their name:

They have actually been around since 1991 and were originally called 'Nirvana.' Somewhere along the way, three meddlesome youths from Seattle decided to go and become extremely successful and our Danish friends were caught in a bit of a pickle. To avoid any confusion (just in case their stark musical differences weren't enough), they changed their name to 'Kashmir,' after the famed Led Zeppelin number.

I must admit that I did not see their entire set. Bysted, myself and two others were busy braving several of Friheden's most treacherous rides during their first few songs. We did manage to catch about a half-hour of their performance though, which I'm glad we did. I'm a sucker for live music and it never hurts to say you've "seen so-and-so a few years back" during conversation. Add another one to the list. The guys I was with said they played a lot of their new material, which apparently isn't as "rock 'n roll" as their old stuff. I'd say not, just from my initial impression, but like I said before, it was just nice to see a few dudes having a good time, playing some tunes.

As for the rest of the night's adventures, I'm going to leave this as a rare "To Be Continued..." edition of NTD, as I'm pretty tuckered out at the moment. I will defintely get this one posted early tomorrow, possibly over breakfast (mmm ... Danish corn flakes...). I also have some really good pictures and will be sure to include those as well. For now, I'll leave you with Troels Vendelbo 'jumping for joy' on the way to dinner. It would have been better if (as Troels himself said) he got more than 5 centimetres off the ground.


Goodnight; be back in a few hours.

Lazy Monday

Today was some sort of holiday in DK. I had heard about it several weeks ago, but since I don't usually do much on Mondays, I didn't think of it until I walked to the post office and a few grocery stores, only to find them all closed. I then came back to my apartment to wallow in my lack of certain foodstuffs for a few hours. In retrospect, I should have limited my wallowing to a few less hours, as I decided to go to the gym right as they were closing early for, you guessed it, whatever today's holiday was. Taking this as a sign that I should probably begone before somebody dropped a house on me, I returned to my apartment and took a nap before I ate some leftovers from yesterday.

A teammate stopped by later to retrieve a few DVDs I had borrowed and I asked him what exactly the Danish people were celebrating today. His response, "I dunno, something with the Holy Spirit, I guess." Good enough for me. At least I got a good nap out of it.

In this weekend's football action, my U16 team again came up on the short end of our game. However, our progress continues to show on the field as we held the best team we've seen so far to a mere six points for the better part of the first half. The Junior Tigers are learning the game and are becoming better because of it. They have continued to put forth effort and do so with a smile. On the way home, we stopped at McDonald's and I regailed the kids with tales of America's finest fast food burger joint: Five Guys Burgers & Fries. They really seemed to enjoy the concept of a large drink cup and paper bag filled to the brim with fresh cut fries, but who among us could honestly say they don't feel the same? Certainly not I. After this, the kids basically held their own karaoke session on the back of the bus and even got the Ol' Coach up for a song. Needless to say, I gave 'em there money's worth (speaking of which, I don't recall anyone paying...).

That's all for now. Before I go though, I'd like to send some birthday wishes to my good friend and NTD reader, Jessica Savino of Hillsdale, NJ. If anyone out there ever needs some sort of decorative cake for any occasion, look no further than Ms. Savino (my personal favorite was an Iron Maiden-themed creation from our Junior year at Marist, complete with '6-6-6' candles), though I'm pretty sure she takes off from her baking duties on her special day. Happy birthday, Jess; Sonic run on me when I get back. Goodnight to everyone else, be back soon.

At least it's not raini...

I know I've been absent for the past several days, but things have been pretty nice here. I dare say this has been the most spring/warm-like weather we've experienced since I've been over. I'm making an effort not to stay cooped up inside when this happens and thus I'm usually tired at night and not much in a posting mood. The problem with that though, is that I'm often out doing post-worthy activities, so eventually something's gotta give. I'll do a short one tonight because I have a long day tomorrow and want to get some good rest for it. My Under 16 team has a game in Slagelse at 15:00 tomorrow. Just so everyone's on the same page, Slagelse is actually Danish for "on the other side of the country" (okay, not exactly). Anywhere else, I'm sure this would be a rather ominous task, but here, it really only amounts to about three hours of drive time. Weather looks like it's going to hold up too, so it should be a good time.

On this subject, I decided to do some exploring on the bike today. My first week here, Peter showed me a beach at Moesgård, about ten kilometres South of the city center. I thought today might be a nice opportunity to check it out, seeing as how it's no longer the middle of March. According to the forecast on my phone also, today was the pick of the week, with temperatures in the low seventies. So, after a visit to the gym, I picked up a sandwich, packed a lunch and saddled up for a pleasant beach outing.

Before leaving Århus, I rode by a park that was very crowded and thought about skipping the beach. I really wanted to take a dip though (even if the water was New Hampshire-cold) and thus I continued on my way. I then came to the road that would lead to Moesgård (MOSE-go-ahd), which actually hugs the harbor and surveyed the area to see if there were any people on the 'beaches' (artificial stretches of sand no more than forty feet wide). Since no one was down around that area, I figured they weren't being used now and opted to head to the nice beach I'd seen about two months ago.

I actually came across a bike path that follows the coastline and enjoyed a very scenic trip South. At times, I even scooted off this path down on to walking trails that appeared more treacherous and really put the Manitou Shocks on the bike to work. Along the way, I passed by the Deer Park, which is like a cross-between a nature trail and a petting zoo. As the name would suggest, deer are rather abundant in the park, however, they are not the only fauna for you to observe. There are other KINDS of deer. And birds. Oh, and of course, wild boar. The locals have told me about this and I figured these guys probably just skulked around in the undergrowth, rooting about in solitude, save the occasional straggler that might wander out in the open. How wrong I was. While biking alongside the perimeter fence of the park, I stopped immediately when I came across a pack of hogs doing exactly what I expected in plain sight. I was a bit too far away to snap a decent photo and actually did manage to take a short video, but the lazy bum was camera shy and didn't too much on film. No sooner did I put my phone away when the largest male (probably four-and-a-half feet long and close to 300 pounds) rose up on his hind legs and snatched a low-hanging branch down to snack on. These things were freakin' huge and were certainly the wildest boar I've ever seen (make that the ONLY ones I've ever seen, in the wild at least). Very cool. The little piglets were just as much fun as the bigguns; a rambunctious lot that scurried about on their short little legs, snorting and squealing all the way. I'll have to go back and take some better video; these guys were too much.

Well, I ended up distracting myself on more trails after that and eventually showed up to Moesgård a little later than I planned. I didn't think much of this though, because the forecast still looked good and it doesn't really get dark much these days (more about this in the coming weeks). I put my feet in the water, set my towel and sat down to enjoy the sandwich that got a little crushed in my trusty DonJoy bag after I was done playing Lance Armstrong. No sooner did I do this when I looked to my left and saw what I should have assumed was coming:


Of course. Ten minutes later, this was followed by thunder, lightning, strong winds and a very, very soggy ride home. The real kicker of the whole thing though, is that at the precise moment I pulled up to my front door, the sun shined brighter than it had earlier in the day. For those out there keeping score:

Danish Weather - 10,835
Me - 4

Oh well, it was nice to see that I could bike to a nice beach in about thirty-five minutes. After all my trail riding, backtracking and exploring, I must have gone close to forty or fifty kilometres on the day. Things did perk up after showering at home, as Bager invited me to a BBQ at his place and I enjoyed a tasty dinner. Grilled meatsies cure all. With that, I'm going to call it a night. I've got more fun things to share soon. Until then...

Long Live the Man on the Silver Mountain

Today was a very sad day. The sun was shining, the air was on the warmer side with a just enough breeze and I took in some local culture with a Tigers teammate who asked if I wanted some company (more to follow on that tomorrow). After that, I had a nice workout with Brian and then he brought me back to his place for a delicious Denver omelet dinner. By all rights, today should have been a great day. However, it was still a very sad day. In the midst of all these pleasant things, something stuck with me, as I know it did with countless other music fans across the globe.

I awoke like any other day and shortly after checked my phone for emails and other messages I may have received overnight from friends and family back home. When I came across one such message this morning, my heart suddenly became very heavy and I spoke out loud very softly the word, "no." I was very saddened to learn that someone who had brought joy and inspiration to millions of fans and artists alike for over five decades lost his battle with cancer yesterday. Ronnie James Dio was sixty-seven.


RJD will be remembered by casual observers for two reasons. Reason number one is that he is credited with popularizing the "devil horns" hand gesture that is synonymous with both heavy music and also anything that might be considered 'metal' out there. Reason number two is that he is often only known of as being Ozzy Osbourne's "replacement" as frontman for the iconic forefathers of heavy metal, Black Sabbath. I am embarassed to say that when I first heard of him, that's all I took him for as well. However, as I would soon learn, both Dio and his career were so much more than these two labels could ever possibly describe.

In the summer of 2003, my good friend and NTD reader, David LoVerme and I purchased tickets to see one of our favorite groups in Worcester, MA. The band was Iron Maiden and they were joined by two other acts, each far more legendary than Dave and I would have probably assumed at the time. The first opener was Motörhead, fronted by the timeless Lemmy Kilmister (the man whose trademark moustache and sideburns combination I am currently sporting). We both knew a few of their numbers and were excited to see them. The second opener was Dio, RJD's own band, and Dave and I were less familiar with their works. We looked him up and soon learned the aforementioned two facts about his musical legacy (and that he would actually, on occasion, slay a mechanical dragon on stage). That was good enough for us and we were now casual Dio fans. This would quickly change upon seeing him live in concert.

RJD was diminutive fellow. Some sources list him at five feet, four inches tall. What he lacked in verticality though, he more than made up for in charisma and above even that, vocal might. When we saw him take the stage that night, I can still remember him as being the shiniest human being I had ever seen. He was dressed in a flowing tunic that appeared to be made of mylar, glistening brilliantly in the spotlight. After the crowd saluted his entrace, he and his bandmates started their performance and I could understand why he was met with such approval. He sang and he danced and he had a great time because he knew his audience was doing the same. This was his passion and I'm glad to have seen him do what he loved not just once at this particular venue, but again, four years later in 2007. At the time he was touring with Heaven & Hell, an incarnation of Black Sabbath that focused on the material made famous during Dio's tenure as lead singer. These songs are decidedly different from those popularized by Ozzy Osbourne, or any of the other half dozen singers in the group's history; they are consistent with Dio's lyrical themes of mystery, magic, defiance and the neverending battle between good and evil. The Heaven & Hell show was indeed a treat to behold, below is a link (sadly, a bit too aptly titled one, at that) that should help you understand where I'm coming from:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6VWlw884sE

Operatic. Thunderous. Soaring. Ferocious. Consistent. All of these adjectives have been used in the last day or so to describe Ronnie James Dio's vocal stylings. However, many of these words can also be used to describe his life and his career. Everyone who knew him fondly all stated the same. The following is a portion of a statement made by one of his former keyboardists, Jens Johansson, that I think sums things up quite appropriately:

"My time in Dio was simply one of the best times in my life. Ronnie was one of the best people I ever met, very different from the usual musicians and other suspects in this wretched industry. I think this is something you will hear over and over — you have heard it before he was gone, and you will also keep hearing it after he is gone. Quite simply, because it's the truth. And especially towards fans. "

Metallica drummer, Lars Ulrich, remembers, in a letter to Dio, what he meant to him as an inspiration, like he was to so many other current greats of the genre:

"In the fall of 1976, when you played your first show in Copenhagen, I was literally in the front row and the couple of times we made eye contact you made me feel like the most important person in the world. The news that you guys were staying in town on your day off somehow embedded itself in my brain and I made the pilgrimage to the Plaza Hotel to see if I could somehow grab a picture, an autograph, a moment, anything. A few hours later you came out and were so kind and caring ... pictures, autographs and a couple minutes of casual banter. I was on top of the world, inspired and ready for anything."

From his early days in the heavy blues group, Elf (where he also played bass), to his stint in the pioneering metal act, Rainbow and on through his years in Black Sabbath and as a solo artist, Ronnie James Dio stayed true to what he loved: his music, his sports (he was a big fan of the Yankees, having grown up in Upstate NY), his beliefs and most importantly, his fans. To have seen him twice in concert was a privilege and an honor. To have learned over time what he has meant to music has been a reward. I hope you might now be inclined to do the same. Long live Dio and as he, himself, would say, "Long live Rock n' Roll!"

Treeanoh (Contined)

As promised, I'm back now with a more thorough recap of yesterday's victory. I must point out though, that as I was actively participating in the game itself, it's a lot harder to keep track of all the smaller details I was able to mention in previous summaries. Honestly, those things just don't stick with you when you have the pads on, so I'm not even going to bother piecing them all in order. Well, anyways, here goes:

The weather held up as usual yesterday, with temperatures in the low fifties (Fahrenheit), very strong winds and a steady downpour of rain. While lacing up my cleats, I thought to myself it sure had been a long time since I last played a game in the rain on a grass field; three-and-a-half years was my best estimation at the time (October 28, 2006 - a Saturday night home victory against St. Peter's at the Old Leonidoff Field). Since that time, I've played plenty of games in rainy conditions, but always on the comfort of FieldTurf synthetic grass and ground-up sneaker soles. While warming up and feeling pieces of the earth move around and fly up under my feet, I couldn't help but wonder how the hell I used to do it before artificial turf. Even the smell of it all triggered memories of high school and earlier years in college; I was quickly brought back to the present as water rapidly drenched my feet with each step.

The game began and my personal conquest to avenge the good name of the Tomahawks was underway. As coach of the offensive line, it's my job to manage my positions during play and today I experimented with something new. Typically (Stateside, that is) the OL is the only position other than the quarterback to not substitute in and out of the game regularly. However, in the interest of keeping the bodies that I had at my disposal fresh (and given the fact that I had said bodies), I elected to rotate seven guys through the five OL positions all day. This, of course, included yours truly making his first appearance in uniform for the Tigers. I started the game out at right guard and cycled through all the other positions throughout the day, while also keeping track of the other six guys.

Early on in the contest, the weather conditions showed us that it was going to be a sloppy day and this would ultimately hold true for both sides. Our defense managed to keep CPH on our side of the field in the opening quarter and we capitalized on this, scoring first to take a 7-0 lead. We continued to have success on O into the second frame as My Fellow American, Brian Woodward notched his first TD on the year; a circus catch in double-coverage to put us up 13-0. The PAT sailed wide and there the scored would remain through the half deep into the third quarter. Both offenses were quite literally stuck in the mud, as positive rushes and receptions were soon nullified by turnover upon turnover.

Things got interesting late in the third when a Copenhagen long snap from the three-yard line soared over the punter's head out of play, resulting in a safety that put us ahead 15-0. On the first play of the ensuing Tigers' offensive possession though, an interception returned for a touchdown turned the contest into a one-score affair, 15-7. The opposition would get no closer though, as late in the fourth, Jesper "Psycho" Christensen returned the favor with a Pick 6 of his own (plus his own PAT) to close the game out, 22-7. Another one in the books and your Århus Tigers are 3-0 on the year.

After speaking to the other OL guys, they were quite pleased with my rotating scheme. They felt fresher and more rested throughout the game; something that was a deciding factor as many of our opponents had to play both offense and defense. As far as my performance was concerned, it was great to be back out on the field. For my first game in just under a year, I was certainly a bit rusty (considering how little I have practiced for this compared to games in the past). However, you have to start somewhere and I must say, it was great fun to play five different positions in one game. That certainly wouldn't have flown in any past incarnations of my football life and I'm glad I have that chance now.

And now for the unveiling of this week's "Welcome to Danish American Football Moment." At first, I was looking back and trying to pinpoint something that actually happened while I was playing the game, but I must say that things were pretty much on target with what I expected out on the field. Before the game though, I was talking to our Head Coach about the game plan and what we expected to do offensively. We like to run an uptempo style of no-huddle, meaning we don't huddle together before plays. Instead, we just get right up to the line and call our plays there. This is a good way to keep the defense confused and also worn-out, as they are typically unable to make substitutions to match up against certain personnel. As we were discussing this, Coach mentioned that we should be fine, as long as the referees don't tell us to slow things down. I was puzzled by this and asked what he meant and he replied that sometimes if we are moving too fast, the officials can't keep up with spotting the ball and they will instruct us not to go so fast. Very amusing, indeed. Luckily, it never came it that as we must have drawn an officiating crew with superior cardiovascular fortitude. Thank goodness.

Here's another scary image on the way out:


I selected this number for two reasons:

1) To pay tribute to my Partner in Protection, roommate of three years, mathematical mastermind, Guitar Hero, Brooklyn's finest, NTD reader (I'll stop there) ... Coach Jason Tillery, who proudly sported the same digits for forty-four consecutive starts for the Red Foxes from 2005-08.
2) It was the only jersey that fit me.

That's all for now. Be back soon.

Treeanoh

I literally have one foot out the door now, as I am being picked up to join the rest of the Tigers out for a little all-you-can-eat victory celebration. We moved to three and oh on the season today with a 22-7 W over the Tomahawks in the pouring rain. My ride has just arrived so I'll leave it at that; more info to follow soon!

Copyright Infringement? (Oh no, They Didn't)

Kickoff is fast approaching and I need to get some shut-eye. I would have liked to post this one sooner (and with a bit more humorous insight) but two things happened over the last two nights that prohibited me from doing so. Last night I intended to relax to one of the DVDs I borrowed from the library and I opted for the preeminent Spaghetti Western, "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly." I didn't bother to check the run time and soon found myself trapped in a scenario what would have been more aptly titled, "The Tired, the Slow and the Lengthy." Two hours and fifty-one minutes of Clint Eastwood and bunch of overdubbed Italian cowboys sure did drag on; I really wasn't anticipating that. It was really excellent though, particularly Ennio Morricone's timeless musical score and I'm glad I watched it. However, I was rather beat by the end and I just went to sleep instead of forcing out a lackluster post (like I'm doing now).

Tonight I planned on watching another movie (a shorter one to be started earlier) then hammering out an entry before night-night. Foiled again though, as a Tiger teammate was in the neighborhood and decided to stop by and keep me company for a while. Very nice gesture and I gladly accepted his offer, but this time I wouldn't be able to delay another post, as it pertains to tomorrow's game and it's already, well, tomorrow.

In brief, here's the low-down: tomorrow we will be playing at 15:00 (twenty-four hour time here, folks) and it will be my first game in uniform with the Tigers of Aarhus. I am not going to bother telling you that I am excited for this one, I'm just going to assume you've already assumed as such... done so? Very well, then, moving on. Tomorrow's opponent carries with them something of great significance to me. We will be facing the Copenhagen Tomahawks. To those back home, I know you all are just as appalled as I that there is another team out there laying claim to the greatest mascot of all the Granite State's high school athletic programs. To all else, in case you haven't figured it out, I myself bled Tomahawk Blue for four years at Merrimack High. In all my years, I honestly cannot think of one other team, anywhere that has also carried this moniker. Frankly folks, such insolence cannot stand.

Here is a link to a video that Lasse (the Bloke with the chipped tooth) made in preparation for tomorrow's game. It's in Danish, but I think you can figure out all the pertinents:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuLuvx_FZ8M

Pretty exciting stuff there, I will post promptly following tomorrow's action and let you know how things go. Right now, I leave you with a another video, one that I actually just found a few moments ago. It appeared in the sidebar of recommendations during the one listed above. This is what happened prior to our first game and became my first "Welcome to Danish American Football Moment." I wonder what tomorrow's will be? Stay tuned to find out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1enEZxcRYxs&feature=related

Night(s) at the Movies

Another lovely day in the books here in Denmark. Heavy rain, whipping winds and temperatures in the low teens (Celsius) were today's conditions. Most Danes really like to discuss the weather (almost more so than native New Englanders) and they are also very quick to point out that "the weather is never like this around this time of year." This is usually the first thing they bring up when speaking on the subject. I'm starting to think these lines are more rehearsed than just part of typical conversation. Perhaps I've fallen into some sort of strange ''Truman Show" fantasy world, one that happens to be perennially stuck in the path of a lousy jet stream.

Rainy day aside, I went to the gym and did a few errands downtown this afternoon. Biking in the rain was actually pretty fun. The winds were really strong today; at one point I found myself pedalling against them with all my might, white knuckles on the handlebars, eyes barely open and teeth clenched. This must have been a sight for anyone present because I couldn't have been going more than five miles per hour. To add to the excitement, the mountain bike I'm currently using doesn't have a guard over the back tire so all the water and dirt underneath just kicks up on to my backside. My sweatpants got pretty waterlogged, too and I had to roll the legs up to keep from getting caught in the chain (which happened twice before I wised up). Never a dull moment here (rarely a dry one, either).

When I returned home, I felt inspired to do what anyone else would given the less than desirable conditions outside: be lazy and watch movies. Actually, I've been doing this the past few days thanks to a very special new edition to my apartment:


Yes, indeed. Forty inches of Peyton Manning-endorsed Sony Bravia found its way into my lonely little apartment last week. Peter purchased this for my use while I'm living here and after my stay is up, it will reside in the Tigers Clubhouse that we looked at the other day. This will be a handy tool for watching game film with others, or just watching Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne and Ricky Gervais on some British morning show. Note the Danish subtitles; this is actually how many Danes hone their English skills from an early age. I actually went to my first movie here last week (''Iron Man 2" - GO SEE IT) and that's how they are here. I thought it would be distracting, but it really wasn't. It was helpful to see printed text of words that I hear all the time alongside the actors' spoken dialouge. I'm going to make the effort to watch some TV here from time to time to see if I can develop my Danish in this way. Tough gig, no?

Anyways, back to the TV. This particular model is of the "picture looks better than anything in real life possibly could" series, espeically when it comes to DVDs. In fact, many images no longer look like they were shot with motion picture footage, but rather they look more like live television. You sort of lose the sense of theatrics when this happens. For example, I was watching ''Jurassic Park III" the other night and those dinosaurs didn't look enough like those in a Hollywood spectacle should; they just looked like regular dinosaurs you'd find out in the wild! Where's the fun in that? Either way, it's nice to have this sort of entertainment at my disposal now. Thanks to the library's respectable catalogue of titles, I anticipate I'll be able to eliminate many titles off my ever-expanding list of 'films that I probably should see at some point' (I've already crossed off Boris Karloff's classics, ''Frankenstein" and "The Mummy" in the last day alone). Among the titles I picked up today were "Dirty Harry," "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" (and I just watched "Million Dollar Baby" yesterday ... I'm not sure but I think Clint Eastwood himself might be sleeping on my couch as we speak) and "Iron Maiden: Flight 666," a rockumentary about Iron Maiden and their ability to tour rapidly, thanks to 'Ed Force One,' their own private Boeing 757.

Outside of my recent movie-hoarding, I found something pretty funny when I was doing laundry the other day. I put up one of my short socks as a comparison here:


I guess I picked up a hitch-hiker the other day when I removed my wash from the machine. My powers of deduction lead me to believe this shirt belongs to either a person who is very, very small or a pet who is very, very miserable.

I have one more image to share before signing off for the night. One can always tell when you put the helmet on again after being off for a while:


Scary stuff there, sorry I had to subject all twelve of you out there to that. More to follow about the upcoming game in tomorrow's post; that mark up there actually starts to glow when I think about football. So long for now, be back soon.

Was I Driving?

Alright, so this title will only make sense to a small portion of NTD readers. However, it is certainly fitting given my absence for close to a week now. Where the hell have I been? Denmark, still; going on eight weeks. The truth is, delivering on nightly or every-other-nightly posts can take its toll on a man. I would like to think that I bring you all some sort of enjoyment as you check up on my daily living here in DK. To do this, I find myself spending (sometimes) entirely way too much time on entries that could be said in half the text. This is part of the fun, both from a writing standpoint and (I hope) from a reader's perspective. But when I don't have much to report on, posts can sometimes seem a bit contrived or hollow (a freaking Swiss Ball, seriously?).

At the urging of Mother Dear (more to follow shortly), I was told to take a few days off from contributing to my own blog. Good advice as I return now, recharged and ready to catch up on a few things that have been going on. Mothers always know best.

Thing the first: GAME WEEK! I have been practicing a lot of football specific drills and onfield training in preparation for my return to playing this coming Saturday. Been a little sore from my recent wares, but this is certainly to be expected. During team practice the other night, I felt pretty darn good running around like I used to. We have two more this week, in addition to my own workouts before Saturday's showdown; very exciting times on the horizon.

Speaking of which, I thought it might be kind of cool to show you where the Tigers call home here in Aarhus. Although it doesn't have a cool name like "The Jungle,'' or the "Tigers' Den," (yet...) our field is pretty nice in that it is exclusively our's. It's part of an section of playing fields called Viby Idrætsanlæg (Sports Complex, roughly, in the Viby district of the city). Right next to our field (not pictured below), there is a field that local soccer clubs share and next to that one is where our club's Flag Football team plays. There is also another peripheral 'gravel' field that is used year round and looks pretty much as the name would indicate. ARK (Aarhus Rugby Klub) also has their home field and clubhouses nearby, too.


From this perspective, you can see a very large building overlooking the field. This is an administrative center where one of the directors is apparently a fan of American Football. If all goes well, perhaps he would be willing to take down some of the fencing surrounding the playing surface. This would be of great benefit to anyone who wishes to come check out one of our games, not to mention to our video cameras filming the all the action. As you can see, there are no bleachers but there is a natural embankment where people can take a seat. It's a lot more cozy than this photo might suggest, should be fun to play at.

We also are very fortunate to have our very own clubhouse being built as we speak (okay, maybe not RIGHT now). Take a look:


The room to the left will be a team room where we will be able to have meetings and possibly check out some film at some point. There will be two changing rooms to the right, each with some lockers and showers. I personally look forward to the completion of this place, which the Aarhus Kommune (city) is building for us and continually making steady progress. Carrying all my gear over my shoulder in a very large duffel bag while riding on bike is great and all, but if I could avoid it, I think I would. There will also be washing machines here at our disposal. When those go in, I'm thinking of showing some of our guys how they work. If four years of college ball has conditioned me in any way, it's that there is no going back to dirty football clothes. I'm quite comfortable with all the microbes that follow me around on a regular basis, I don't need anymore.

That's about it on the football front for now. There will be more to come this week, leading up to Saturday's game. Right now I'd like to show you how I've been supplementing my Danish eating habits. During heavy training periods, it's important to make sure you try and follow good dietary practices. Sometimes, it is darn near impossible to do this and thus you need to be able to have a quick, reliable source to satisfy your hungry muscle fibers. I have recently found one from bodylab.dk. In the interest of using a reputable product of Danish origin (Anti-Doping Danmark is a very, very strict governing body that oversees athletes, literally everywhere in this country), I opted for five kilograms of Whey 80. I picked it up yesterday from the Post Office and immediately got a kick out what I saw when I opened up the package:


In a bucket that appears to be better suited for carrying floor sealant, here stands eleven pounds of caramel-flavored protein. Luckily, it's pretty tasty because as you can see, I've got my fair share of the stuff. When looking at this, I can't help but think of one of my all-time favorite Simpsons sight gags, when Homer looks to gain sixty-one pounds to get on workman's compensation. Looking for a way to increase his calorie consumption, he is seen shopping for all manner of unseemly products ('Tubbb-o,' 'Uncle Jimmy's Country Fillin',' etc.). His travels soon take him to a nutrition shop, where he finds a new item:


While ringing him up, the cashier mumbles in disgust, "Eh, lucky for you this stuff don't work." Priceless; I'm so glad I found this image.

Getting ready to call it a night here. On my way out, I would like to wish any and all mothers reading this a very Happy Mother's Day. Such a strange concept does not exist in Denmark. In fact in recent weeks, a message quite the opposite from celebrating our mothers is being portrayed on many local billboards and radio advertisements:

http://www.sellyourmother.dk/sprite/

These ads are really, really stupid and really, really annoying. I can't imagine Grant Hill approving of the direction Danish Sprite has taken. Oh well, such is marketing. I don't buy much sodavand (soda water), anyways.

Safe travels and kind thoughts to both Bill and Casey as they embark on their cross-country journey tomorrow. Have fun, I demand a comprehensive BBQ report along the way. Same wishes also to my Copenhagen Correspondent, Liv, as she heads off on an exciting EuroAdventure tomorrow, too. Best of luck, Madame; enjoy your real pizza experience (hold the noodles).

Good to be back with you all. More fun to follow this week, please do join me again. Hej.

Ergomaniac

As I write this installment of NTD, I am doing so in a more ergonomic fashion; one that I will adopt through my time here in Denmark. According to the world's most accurate encyclopedia (Wikipedia), ergonomics is the "study of designing the job, equipment and work place to fit the worker." Very often are people cramped, bent, twisted, slouched or otherwise made uncomfortable in their places of business and I too have fallen victim to this since moving into my apartment. Unable to find a suitable office-type chair at Ikea, I have been sitting at my desk to write a post or watch two hours of music on Youtube at a time in a rather hard and lumbar-unfriendly dining room chair for the better part of six weeks now. The issue seemingly passed me by for the longest time until about two weeks ago when I really noticed some discomfort setting in. With a package being prepared at home to make the Intercontinental journey, I requested an item be included that I saw at a store back in NH not long before I left.

The store was 5 Below and until walking in there one day, I was convinced it was an outdoorsy supply shop. I also thought it would be very cold inside. I soon learned otherwise on both accounts, as the name of the place was rather telling, as it was featured only items priced five dollars and below. Very clever, but also very deceiving. While searching for whatever it was I was looking for (sunglasses on that day, I believe, more on that to follow), I came across a shelf filled to capacity with PhysioBalls, more commonly known as Swiss Balls. A handy tool to the excersizer interested in challenging his or her stabilizing muscles, the PB actually makes a great seat as it promotes a naturally ergonomic posture:



Okay, so this isn't exaclty what I was getting at, but I think this picture is hilarious; I believe it was originally drawn by Leonardo DaVinci. Long story short, I had my Dad explore this matter and sure enough, he was able to procure a sixty-five centimetre PB for five bucks. Last week I received the parcel and Customs was kind enough to ignore the deflated hot pink rubber ball inside. Unable to fill the darn thing with a needle the club normally uses to inflate our footballs, I was without it until today, when Peter and I picked up a dual action hand pump used for air mattresses. And so, I now type as the woman drawn above does (minus the footrest and monitor height, those will be next on the list). Ergonomy never felt so good; I really hope this ball holds up (the color ties the room together nicely).

Moving on, my U16 dropped our second game yesterday, though we showed much improvement from our first outing. Offense, defense and special teams all scored in the contest and I was once again pleased with our attitudes on the field. At the end of the day, all the kids were still smiling. We don't play again for about three weeks, so we will have plenty of opportunities to work on still-maturing fundamentals of the game.

I mentioned earlier that I had been looking for sunglasses before I left. Last fall, I found a great pair at Marshall's (terrific place for shades) for ten dollars that I wore everyday on the gridiron coaching the MHS Tomahawk Freshmen. That was until one day when I set them down in the school's lockerroom and never saw them again. I could never find the same ones again until right before I left and could not have been happier. Well, those broke in two places since Ive been here, as is the replacement pair I got at TIGER (awesome store, post coming soon about it) last week. This is why I never rationalize paying a lot of money for a so-called "nice pair" of sunglasses. I'm always convinced they will either get lost or broken. However, given my bad luck recently (or more likely, my fat melon of a head), I'm seriously reconsidering my philosophy on this subject. I'm open to suggestions on either brands or ideas here, folks.

Before going for the night, I'd like to share with you an example of the ravages Danish American Football can have on one's body. Following a win by our Developmental Team last Friday, runningback Lasse Schriver (Less-AH SCREE-voah) inflicted plenty of punishment on the Thrashers of Odense. He ripped through their defense for a rushing TD and also laid some blows on the defensive side of the ball. I can honestly attest to the fact that Lasse's one tough dude and this picture should help you see why:

Although this Jack Lambert-esque visage (look him up if you've never heard of him) appears to have come as the result of his efforts on the field, Lasse informed me that he'd broken that tooth a few years ago off the field. I was sad to learn this, but still think it looks hard as all get-up. Thanks to Lasse for very reluctantly letting me use his mug. I assured him that Internet stardom is around the corner.

Thanks to you for visiting tonight, I'll be back soon enough.

Olde School

Yesterday was a bank holiday in Denmark. Before jumping to the conclusion I know you all are (probably not) jumping to, I will clarify: this is not the same sort of bank holiday as those employed in the Depression-stricken 1930s United States. All it means is that businesses, most notably places where you would like to go out to eat for lunch, are closed. It's kind of like a teacher workshop day for grown-ups, too. With that, I had the great fortune of spending the day with Thomas Bager (pronounced BAY-er, which translates to 'Baker'). Bager is a seasoned Tigers veteran offensive lineman and has been instrumental in making me feel welcome since I've been here. Plus, he's a big fan of all things Wrasslin' and is always willing to reminisce about classic matches from the days of old. Oh, and he also looks like Steve the Pirate from "Dodgeball," after Peter La Fleur shunned him and he suffered his identity crisis. Take a look for yourself:


"PAY-DERR??" I really can't believe how eerie the coincidence is in this shot. He hasn't seen the movie yet, but I promised him his likeness was nothing to be ashamed of. Anyways, Bager was very kind to offer his services as host during his day off. He treated me to lunch and then a fun-filled trip to arguably Aarhus's most popular tourist attraction, Den Gamle By (Den Gamlay BOO). This translates to "The Olde City" and I'm pretty sure that 'e' has to be added to the word 'old' in order for the translation to be accurate. Stepping back into my days as a historian, this was indeed a great time.

In brief, Den Gamle By is a historical village created not far from the downtown area. Bager described it as an "open-air museum," and I would agree very much with this analysis. There are reenactors present to help visitors get into the spirit and assist with all manner of interactive recreations and activities. There are shops and even a restaurant for people to enjoy. All in all, it's a place that even locals find themselves coming back to explore because there is so much packed into a relatively small plot of reconstructed land. However, the coolest part of it all is just how the place is "reconstructed."

Unlike most other historical villages, Den Gamle By does not limit itself to one particular time period. The buildings and artifacts here range between the Sixteenth and Twentieth Centuries. They have been reconstructed exactly as they would have been in the past - because they are all actually FROM those times! The buildings present come from all over Denmark and were removed piece-by-piece from their original locations and rebuilt to a T in the Old City. That means when we were walking through and seeing the insides of hotel built in Aalborg in 1585, we were doing just that. Very, very cool. I can speak from personal experience when I say that people have grown a lot over the years. Literally.


Instead of attempting to give longwinded explanations of some of the neat things we saw (and also seeing as how I left the guidebook and map of the place in Bager's car), I thought it might be fun to just give a pictorial rundown of the trip:


Worker's food, circa 1864. Nothing satisfies quite like rugbrød (dark Danish rye) topped with fat (lard), dried onions and salt. If people back then got their calories like this, why were they so damn short?


CLEARLY up to no good.




We didn't even go into this one, but it reminds me of the AB Clydesdale Hamlet back home. This time though, I was the annoying tourist. Is that horse sick?


Casting on a Nineteenth Century stove of a Viking wrestling a bear. Most likely based on a true event, we searched desperately for the reenactment and hoped to try our hand at it.


I was shocked to learn the big glass one was the oldest one there. Actually those are some of the most expense offices in Aarhus, built overlooking the Old City. I'll bet the reenactors had a tough time explaining the role of "wicked iron beasts" nearby during construction, as this "Shimmering Tower to Valhalla" was erected a few years back.


More reminders of the Brewery, except our spent grain doesn't do that to livestock. Very amusing.


Improptu game of "Kick the Sphere whilst Chasing he who Kicks." Early displays of soccer hooliganism, I believe.


Great photography by Bager here, actually managing to capture the split second I appeared to be doing okay up there. The woman next to me kept singing this weird Danish jingle to the tune of "Old Saint Nick."

I could probably go on for many more, but I'm going to cap it there. Many, many thanks to Thomas Bager for being a terrific host and same to his girlfriend for a fantastic dinner. I also must thank Bager for being the first to read me the article I was featured in several weeks ago. Coincidentally, we spent some time at a few local pubs later in the night. At one such place, we actually ran into Lars, the reporter who wrote the piece. Bager and I were able to both compliment him on a fine job. He told me his editor loved the whole premise, particularly the toaster theme. He said he would have gone a different direction with things, but the powers-that-be thought otherwise. He also said he'd checked out NTD and enjoyed my writing. He's also a very good liar. All kidding aside, thanks again Lars and we look forward to seeing you in a few weeks at our home opener.

I'm going to call it a night for now, I look forward to seeing all of you sooner than that.