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| We both where glasses, so, we're like twins |
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Just kidding, that didn't actually happen. Because I didn't blog yesterday, so I had to make up for it. What really happened was, when I was in high school, on the first day of my senior history class my teacher (who had taught me before) was taking role and when he got to me, he was like "Maria, are you Dutch by any chance?" (probably in a more teacher-ly way). Anyway, I said yes because my dad's family is, many generations back, originally from the Netherlands and we're sort of like honorary Zeelanders or something (although, they did eventually move to Belgium). Anyway, my history teacher was like "oh, well, I figured because you have a double O in your last name and that's generally indicative of Dutch-ness," (I'm really ad-libbing here) "you know, like Roosevelt".
Which, of course, I took to mean that I was Roosevelt like, which was very exciting for me because FDR is my favorite president (closely followed by JFK, Lincoln, Washington, and Teddy Roosevelt (mostly for his phenomenal acting in
Night in the Museum)). So, that was kind of a cool thing for me, and, in general, having Dutch heritage is great, you know Dutch cocoa and tulips and the Orange Free State (which in my mind is a land where the Oompa Loompas roam free and safe) and legalized marijuana (JK) and all that. But there are some drawbacks. Orange, for example, is a horrible color for me and those wooden shoes really are quite uncomfortable. Also, for whatever reason, the double O sound is a really difficult linguistic thing for a lot of people which I don't understand because no one ever mispronounces Roosevelt (bitterness happening over here). Also, you have all the indirect problems that the Dutch caused in South Africa with the Boer war and killing the Zulus and all that. But, in general the world seems to have forgiven the Dutch for their unpronounceable names and funny shoes and boring wars but what bothers me is that it hasn't forgiven the Belgians.
Anyway, the Belgians take a lot of slander from the rest of the world because of Joseph frickin' Conrad and his heart of darkness (horrible as the situation in the Congo was, it's not like other European countries (cough, cough France) weren't doing the same thing). But, come on, you're talking about the culture that developed the Belgian waffle. What more do you want from us? Not to mention that Belgium was invaded by the Germans twice in the twentieth century, the second time of which could have been avoided if the French hadn't built the Maginot line but, hey, who's pointing fingers. French fries, by the way, despite what the beret-wearing, Maginot-line-building people in France want you to believe, are actually a Belgian invention. So, you have to figure that by the time you invent two of the greatest foods of all time, you've sort of reached your peak as a civilization and everything else is sort of a hard act to follow.
Blame it on the French.
Just sayin'
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