Hello. It’s me!!

It was December 31, and I look outside and notice that Dad was loading the RV.

Oooooooooohhhhhh Boy! We’re going somewhere.

The first stop didn’t seem all that exciting … chicken sandwiches at Popeye’s in Blythe???

I mean, I can get a chicken sandwich by asking Dad to open the freezer, so this didn’t seem worthy of a two-hour drive into California.

We drove another three hours, and next thing you know we’re in Pasadena. To me, there can only be two possible reasons we’re in Pasadena.

1. To see the cast of the Big Bang Theory at their television home.
2. To attend the Rose Bowl.

Given that the Big Bang Theory ended nearly a year ago, I was increasingly convinced that we were attending the Rose Bowl!! Signage proved me right.

We arrived!

Our spot in the RV lot was not available, which was disappointing given that Dad paid a lot of money for it. Rose Bowl staff parked us across from the Rose Bowl, next to a parking lot with a visual array of port-o-potties.

We slept among a sord of Ducks fans also camping in RVs next to the array of port-o-potties. Well, we slept until 4:00am. At that time, Rose Bowl staff decided to light up the portable LEDs you see in the image above. Being in the RV was not altogether different than the experience of being in Kramer’s apartment when a Kenny Rodgers Roasters opened across the street.

My rods and cones were all messed up!!

 

By 8:30am we were ready to tailgate!

The tailgating is fun, of course. But then it was time to enter the stadium. This is where things got ugly, in my opinion.

Mom and Dad didn’t buy me a ticket.

Apparently only “service dogs” are allowed to attend the game. What a kick in the nuggets, #amirite? To come all this way and not be able to see the game, geez.

So while Mom and Dad enjoyed the game, I had to listen to the pageantry from the RV. The top yellow arrow is where I sat, in the RV. The bottom yellow arrow is where Mom and Dad sat.

They call this game the “GrandDaddy of ’em All”, and for good reason. The stadium is set in the ground, with trees lining one side of the stadium, mountains in the background, and all of the colors afforded by an amazing sunset and two enthusiastic fan bases.

Of course, Mom/Dad’s beloved Badgers fell short, losing to the Oregon Ducks 28-27. Regardless, the setting for a football game is second-to-none. The colors, the mountains, the bands, the noise, the changing light as you go from afternoon to evening, all contribute to an amazing environment for a football game.

Mom and Dad has a great time!

 

And I had fun as well when I was allowed to participate. Let’s hope the Badgers make this an annual event.

 

P.S.: Mom and Dad were particularly thrilled to learn that a Woman was flying the B2 Stealth Bomber over the stadium in the pre-game fly-over, a first! Now THAT’S the sight of freedom right there.