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Being Texan: by Bum Phillips

Discussion in 'Houston Texans' started by Lynus302, Jul 31, 2001.

  1. Lynus302

    Lynus302 Contributing Member

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    I got this in an email not too long ago. Enjoy.

    Being Texan: by Bum Phillips

    Dear Friends,

    Last year, I wrote a small piece about what it means to me to be Texan. My
    friends know it means about damned near everything. Anyway, this fella asked me to reprint what I'd wrote and I didn't have it. So I set out to think about rewriting something. It's as long as Texas is wide.

    I considered writing about all the great things I love about Texas. There are way too many things to list. I can't even begin to do it justice. Lemme let you in on my short list.

    It starts with The Window at Big Bend, which in and of itself is proof of God. It goes to Lake Sam Rayburn where my Grandad taught me more about life than fishin, and enough about fishin to last a lifetime.

    I can talk about Tyler, and Longview, and Odessa and Cisco, and Abilene and Poteet and every place in between. Every little part of Texas feels special. Every person who ever flew the Lone Star thinks of Bandera or Victoria or Manor or wherever they call "home" as the best little part of the best state.

    So I got to thinkin about it, and here's what I really want to say. Last year, I talked about all the great places and great heroes who make Texas what it is. I talked about Willie and Waylon and Michael Dell and Michael DeBakey and my Dad and LBJ and Denton Cooley. I talked about everybody that came to mind. It took me sitting here tonight reading this stack of emails and thinkin about where I've been and what I've done since the last time I wrote on this occasion to remind me what it is about Texas that is really great!

    You see, this last month or so I finally went to Europe for the first time; hadn't ever been, and didn't too much want to. But you know all my damned friends are always talking about "the time they went to Europe."

    So, I finally went. It was a hell of a trip to be sure. All they did when they saw me was say the same thing, before they'd ever met me. "Hey cowboy, we love Texas." I guess the hat tipped em off. But let me tell you what, they all came up with a smile on their faces. You know why? They knew for damned sure that I was gonna be nice to 'em. They knew it cause they knew I was from Texas. They knew something that hadn't even hit me. They knew Texans, even though they'd never met one.

    That's when it occurred to me: Do you know what is great about Texas? Do you know why when my friend Beverly and I were trekking across country to see 15 baseball games we got sick and had to come home after 8? Do you know why every time I cross the border I say, "Lord, please don't let me die in _____"?

    Do you know why children in Japan can look at a picture of the Great State and know exactly what it is about the same time they can tell a rhombus from a trapezoid? I can tell you that right quick. You. The same spirit that made 186 men cross that line in the sand in San Antonio damned near 165 years ago is still in you today.

    Why else would my friend send me William Barrett Travis' plea for help in an email just a week ago, or why would Charles Stenciled ask me to reprint a Texas Independence column from a year ago? What would make my friend Elizabeth say, "I don't know if I can marry a man who doesn't love Texas like I do?" Why in the hell are 1,000 people coming to my house this weekend to celebrate a holiday for what used to be a nation that is now a state? Because the spirit that made that nation is the spirit that burned in every person who founded this great place we call Texas, and they passed it on through blood or sweat to every one of us.

    You see, that spirit that made Texas what it is, is alive in all of us, even if we can't stand next to a cannon to prove it, and it's our responsibility to keep that fire burning. Every person who ever put a "Native Texan" or an "I wasn't born in Texas but I got here as fast as I could" sticker on his car understands. Anyone who ever hung a map of Texas on their wall or flew a Lone Star flag on their porch knows what I mean.

    My Dad's buddy Bill has an old saying. He says that some people were forged of a hotter fire. Well, that's what it is to be Texan. To be forged of a hotter fire.

    To know that part of Colorado was Texas. That part of New Mexico was Texas. That part of Oklahoma was Texas. Yep. Talk all you want. Part of what you got was what we gave you.

    To look at a picture of Idaho or Istanbul and say, "what the Hell is that?" when you know that anyone in Idaho or Istanbul who sees a picture of Texas knows damned good and well what it is. It isn't the shape, it isn't the state, it's the state of mind.

    You're what makes Texas.

    The fact that you would take 15 minutes out of your day to read this, because that's what Texas means to you, that's what makes Texas.

    The fact that when you see the guy in front of you litter you honk and think, "Sonofabitch. Littering on MY highway."

    When was the last time you went to a person's house in New York and you
    saw a big map of New York on their wall? That was never. When did you ever drive through Oklahoma and see their flag waving on four businesses in a row?

    Can you even tell me what the flag in Louisiana looks like? I damned sure can't. But I bet my ass you can't drive 20 minutes from your house and not see a business that has a big Texas flag as part of its logo. If you haven't done business with someone called All Tex something or Lone Star somebody or other, or Texas such and such, you hadn't lived here long.

    When you ask a man from New York what he is, he'll say a stockbroker, or an accountant, or an ad exec. When you ask a woman from California what she is, she'll tell you her last name or her major. Hell either of em might say "I'm a republican," or they might be a democrat.

    When you ask a Texan what they are, before they say, "I'm a Methodist," or "I'm a lawyer," or "I'm a Smith," they tell you they're a Texan. I got nothin against all those other places, and Lord knows they've probably got some fine folks, but in your gut you know it just like I do, Texas is just a little different.

    So tomorrow when you drive down the road and you see a person broken down on the side of the road, stop and help. When you are in a bar in California, buy a Californian a drink and tell him it's for Texas Independence Day.

    Remind the person in the cube next to you that he wouldn't be here enjoying this if it weren't for Sam Houston, and if he or she doesn't know the story, tell them.

    When William Barrett Travis wrote in 1836 that he would never surrender and he would have Victory or Death, what he was really saying was that he and his men were forged of a hotter fire. They weren't your average every day men.

    Well, that is what it means to be a Texan. It meant it then, and that's why it means it today. It means just what all those people North of the Red River accuse us of thinking it means. It means there's no mountain that we can't climb. It means that we can swim the Gulf in the winter.

    It means that Earl Campbell ran harder and Houston is bigger and Dallas is richer and Alpine is hotter and Stevie Ray was smoother and God vacations in Texas. It means that come Hell or high water, when the chips are down and the Good Lord is watching, we're Texans by damned, and just like in 1836, that counts for something. So for today at least, when your chance comes around, go out and prove it. It's true because we believe it's true. If you're sitting wondering what the Hell I'm talking about, this ain't for you.

    But if the first thing you are going to do when the Good Lord calls your number is find the men who sat in that tiny mission in San Antonio and shake their hands, then you're the reason I wrote this tonight, and this is for you.

    So until next time you hear from me, God Bless and Happy Texas Independence Day!!

    Bum



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    "I have no regrets except that I wasn't up to keep Randy from getting on that plane."
    --Ozzy Osbourne on guitarist Randy Rhodes

    [This message has been edited by Lynus302 (edited July 31, 2001).]
     
  2. Jeff

    Jeff Clutch Crew

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    - sniff -

    God bless Texas!

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    Who's your buddy? Who's your pal? I am, aren't I?
     
  3. THE BREESE

    THE BREESE Member

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    I wasnt born in Texas but I live here now and the only other place i would ever live is back in Scotland and that probably wont happen so im in Texas for life and lovin it

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  4. Lynus302

    Lynus302 Contributing Member

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    Damn straight.

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    "I have no regrets except that I wasn't up to keep Randy from getting on that plane."
    --Ozzy Osbourne on guitarist Randy Rhodes
     
  5. ROXRAN

    ROXRAN Contributing Member

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    Exactly!

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    Rarely is the question asked: Guns kill squirrels than REDRUM to fools across the nation?
     
  6. Rocket River

    Rocket River Member

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    D*MN YOU TEXAS!!!

    I think it is the best place to Live
    So hard to leave it . ..

    Rocket River

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  7. Francis3

    Francis3 Member

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    I need to move to Cali and feel the great weather. [​IMG]

    Im a Texan , but not a die hard texan. Ford is the best in texas. [​IMG]

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    "The girls danced, started fondling me, I got aroused, they performed oral sex," Ewing said. "I hung around a little bit and talked to them, then I left."
     
  8. bcdjad

    bcdjad Member

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    Another great thing about Texans is that we look after our own. If you need proof, just remember those that helped out during the Houston flood 7 weeks ago.

    The only way I'll leave Texas is in an urn!

    Bum Phillips is a truly a real man for all times!! GOD BLESS TEXAS!!

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    HOUSTON Rockets forever!!
     
  9. Elvis Costello

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    Let me preface this by saying that I was born and raised in Texas, as were *all* of my family. I would also like to say that I love Bum Philips as much as one can love anyone without ever meeting them. But..
    What a load of crap! If anyone thinks that a bunch of flags at a car dealership, or tacky souvenirs with the Lone Star on it means that Texans love their home anymore than other people love their homes is *ludicrous*. The flag is there beacuse it is a product symbol like the golden arches, Yankee pinstripes, or the American eagle. The meaning is gone. And do you really think the Texas version of "freedom" was any different from Santa Ana's to anybody who wasn't an Anglo male?
    Look, if I dress up in an Eskimo jacket and boots and hat, I am sure just as many people in Europe will come up to me and talk about Alaska. If I bring a surfboard to the Champs Elysee I bet just as many Frenchmen, or Albanians, or Guatamalans will ask me about California. It is only in the US that people ignore people from other countries. The image of the "friendly Texan" doesn't really resonate once you get passed Bum Philips, anyway. The world doesn't revolve around Texas anymore than it revolves around the Seychelle Islands.
    Maybe I am bitter because I am from Channelview, TX ; ). Not a single person who has ever lived there felt that "Every little part of Texas feels special."

    -Elvis!

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  10. Nutcracker

    Nutcracker Contributing Member

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    God blessed Texas!!!

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  11. Lynus302

    Lynus302 Contributing Member

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    You could not be more wrong here. I've been all over the world and if you tell someone you're a Texan you get one hell of a better (and a very different) response than if you were to say "I'm an American." I've put the theory to test. I've also traveled these places with friends and family from California and other states including Alaska, Florida, Oklahoma, and Michigan. Being from Texas does mean something. I've had many drinks bought for me and I've had many people strike up conversations just because I'm a Texan.

    I don't think Americans ignore people from other countries. A person from Texas has the same exposure to people from neighboring states as a person in Germany has to neighboring countries. With the USA being as big as it is and with the Atlantic separating us from Europe, sure most of us don't see Europeans very often. Its not that we ignore them, we just aren't as exposed to them.

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    "I have no regrets except that I wasn't up to keep Randy from getting on that plane."
    --Ozzy Osbourne on guitarist Randy Rhodes
     
  12. Curly

    Curly Member

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    Funny, when I was in Monte Carlo (no, not the hotel in Vegas) Monaco (French Riviera) a group of us took a little walk around the marina and BOOM right there in front of us was The Texan restaurant....right there in the middle of all the French culture, was "The Texan", not "The Californian", not "The New Yorker"..."The Texan". I couldn't speak a lick of French, but as soon as I whipped out my TDL and showed them we were from Texas (not that my Stetson didn't give it away) the first word out of there mouths wasn't "Hey Yous" or "Hello", it was "Howdy"...I kid you not! To go further with this, we were eating on this mountainside restaurant of some small Italian village. Lively place, and they had a small Italian band, with an accordion player too. As we were eating, the accordion player was going around the tables playing some traditional Italian songs. Again, when he saw my Stetson, he broke out with "The Eyes of Texas". Guy only a handful of English words, but he sure as hell new Texas. So, don't presume that ANY other state or country is more recognizable than Texas, anywhere.
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    In the end there will be no judges...only witnesses to my greatness.

    [This message has been edited by Curly (edited August 01, 2001).]
     
    #12 Curly, Aug 1, 2001
    Last edited: Aug 3, 2001
  13. Lynus302

    Lynus302 Contributing Member

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    Amen Curly. Your story reminded me of the first time I was in Paris with my mom. We stayed with a friend of hers and one night he took us to a little bistro on some street in Paris. As we were sitting there eating crepes or some French something-or-other a man came around playing a Mandolin. He spoke very little english, but we told him we were fom Texas. The next thing you know he's going through The Eyes of Texas and into Yellow Rose of Texas. It was great, and one of the first times I realized how far and wide the mystique and culture of our great state reaches.

    Also in London there is the Texas Embassy, a very good and popular restaurant, which is not too far from the actual Texas embassy that we had in London when we were an independant nation. The Texas flag flys proudly in both places.

    In college, I was in the Cowboy Band at Hardin-Simmons Univ. We went to France for the Carnival de Nice where we did countless parades and concerts in full cowboy attire (Stetsons, chaps, the whole 9 yards). There were many American groups there, but none were as popular or as in demand as we were. The same thing was true when we went to London for the '99-'00 New Years Parade. In both places, people were waving little Texas flags when we passed and saying "Howdy." When in France, we did a parade in a little village about an hour outside of Nice. Small children were following us around, wearing little chaps cut out of paper bags, and what looked like their dad's hats that were obviously the closest thing to cowboy hats they could get.

    Elvis Costello, don't ever underestimate the reach of the culture of our state. Be proud!

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    "I have no regrets except that I wasn't up to keep Randy from getting on that plane."
    --Ozzy Osbourne on guitarist Randy Rhodes
     
  14. Elvis Costello

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    In college, I was in the Cowboy Band at Hardin-Simmons Univ. We went to France for the Carnival de Nice where we did countless parades and concerts in full cowboy attire (Stetsons, chaps, the whole 9 yards). There were many American groups there, but none were as popular or as in demand as we were. The same thing was true when we went to London for the '99-'00 New Years Parade. In both places, people were waving little Texas flags when we passed and saying "Howdy." When in France, we did a parade in a little village about an hour outside of Nice. Small children were following us around, wearing little chaps cut out of paper bags, and what looked like their dad's hats that were obviously the closest thing to cowboy hats they could get.

    Elvis Costello, don't ever underestimate the reach of the culture of our state. Be proud!

    Ok, lynus..clearly being a Texan defines who you are ; ). The mythology of Texas has nothing to do with my life and if you were honest with yourself, it probably doesn't have anymore to do with your actual life than dressing like someone from Elizabethan England. I know you may not realize this, but you are not a cowboy! In between band camp and college, have you gone to a corral and rustled cattle, or rode the open range, or any of that quitessentially Texan stuff everybody goes crazy about over here? I doubt it. And even if you actually have done this cowboy stuff, does that represent who you are?
    I know people who are proud of their Scandanavian culture, but they don't go around wearing a Viking hat. Of course people are going to recognize and cheer you..if you are in a friggin' parade dressed as a cowboy! I do not doubt that a lot people recognize Texans..but the reality of Texas has little do with cowboy hats and stetsons or "the whole nine yards." The extent of state pride here doesn't mean that this an instrinsically better place than anywhere else. Sorry. Do you think the French love their country less than people in Texas do? My fiance is from new Zealand and she is moved to tears when she hears the New Zealand national anthem, or sees pictures of her home? The pride of "being a Texan" has more to do with the love of one's home...like most people around the world love their home.

    -Elvis, who loves Texas, honest, but doesn't feel it is without question the best place in the world
     
  15. Lynus302

    Lynus302 Contributing Member

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    Elvis, you completely missed the point Curly and I were making. I don't feeling like quoting a bunch of things I already wrote, so go back up and reread the stories related by Curly and myself. You sounded as though being a Texan didn't have an impression on people in other parts of the world, and I am telling you that you are wrong. Texans are known for being fiercely proud, and we are known for being very friendly. That is not to say that people in other places are not proud or friendly, just that our reputation for being so precedes us. We are known for those things, and whether you like it or not, the image the rest of the world (and most of the US) has of Texas is of a cowboy.

    Thank you for telling me what I am not, as I never could have figured that out for myself :rolleyes:. I never said I was a cowboy. I'm not, for your information. I stated that I was at a university whose mascot was the Cowboys, and whose band, of which I was a member, dressed in full cowboy regalia and was known as the Cowboy Band. Our band received numerous invitations every year to perform all over the world, but money was an issue due to the fact that we were at a private university, so we only went out of the country every 4 years. However, when we did travel, we received a very different reaction than other American groups, and our schedule when we traveled was much busier than other groups.

    No I have not done any of those things, but I've played enough rodeos, parades, and cowboy reunion rodeos in west Texas when I was in college to know a hell of a lot more about it than you do. I have also never been to a band camp of any kind.

    No but I do wear a necklace with a silver replica of a carving of Thor's hammer. And my ancestry is English, Scottish, Welsh, and Irish. Whaddya make of that, smart guy?:eek:

    As I said before, like it or not, the image of Texas is the cowboy.

    That's disputable. Having pride in something is to have an opinion in something. If my opinion happens to be that Texas is the best place in the world, then that is my opinion and no one can tell me otherwise. NOT because I am right or wrong, but because it is my opinion.

    You answered your own questions here. No one in this thread said anything to the effect of "Gee, those French guy sure don't love France the way Texans love Texas." The pride of being a Texan, or an Englishman, or a Martian has to do with loving your home. No one will ever tell me that _____ is a better place than Texas though. That is my opinion and I am entitled to it.

    I find your tone to be rather offensive, btw.
     
    #15 Lynus302, Aug 3, 2001
    Last edited: Aug 3, 2001

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