Dijon John, BOLOGNA, and I had a chance to ‘meat’ extraordinary soldiers from Alpha Company 132nd Brigade Support Battalion.

The exchange only further reminded me that the United States is home to the bravest men and women serving to protect our country in the military. I’m so proud that Oscar Mayer products, from hot dogs to deli shaved meats, are provided to Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines through commissaries, military cafeterias and beyond across the globe. When a hot dog can remind a self-sacrificing soldier of the comforts of home (such as grilling out with family) while on a tour of duty, that means all of the world me.

The Wienermobile vehicles visit about half of the more public US military bases each year making about 70 total stops. BOLOGNA has even gone overseas to Europe to thank U.S. military stationed across the continent.

This symbolizes how large a solder's strength really is.

Thank you, Troops. Please know that we support you and are thinking of you.

As Dijon John and I travel to the different capitals of beautiful Midwestern states, we find ourselves wanting the behind-the-scenes tours of the capitol buildings where policy talks and gavels drop. We were lucky enough to experience the inner sanctuary of the Iowa Capitol Building through snooping–with permission, of course!

When Dijon and I went through security, we unloaded Wiener Whistles into baskets to go through the x-ray machine. Suddenly, we were passing out Wiener Whistles and going for a personal tour with the head of security! If you’ve ever wondered where the magic happens in Iowa, you’re about to find out.

Welcome to the Iowa Senate!

Welcome to the House of Representatives!

The title may be a little confusing, but weirdly enough, it makes sense. The cheers are from the different colleges each Hotdogger graduated from. MmmK and Doggone Dave went to Penn State. Guac’alupe, Atta-dog Adam and my partner, Dijon John, graduated from the University of Missouri. Victory Dog Victoria and C. Melton Cheddar are proud Wisconsin Badgers. A-Dog Alison hails from the University of Texas-Austin. Crusin’ Crystal has her roots at the University of Texas-Pan American. Lil Links Laura is an alumna of Ohio State. Rachel Relish is a Minnesota Gopher. And me? I’m a University of Florida Gator.

While we represent many different colleges spread out across the United States, we make a great family. Sure, some members of my family can razz others when it comes to sports (especially my poor, loveable Gators), but outside of the land of trophies, we make our own school. We’re Class 22. I’m proud to call them my friends, peers, and family. Nothing could break us up (except…maybe a big football or basketball game) and when it comes to needing someone to lean on, I know there are 11 people just waiting to have my back.

Here’s to Deuce-Deuce: May we forever love Wienermobile vehicles, Oscar Mayer and each other.

Mixing up the school pride

One crazy family.

What do you get when you mix four Hotdoggers and one Windy City? ‘Bun’bassadors Victory Dog Victoria, Rachel Relish, Dijon John, and I took the train into the city of Chicago while the Wienermobile vehicles OUR DOG and BOLOGNA spent some time reuniting and resting in our hotel parking lot. It’s such a treat (or should I say ‘meat’) to find that two teams will be doing events in the same area. After the twelve of us spent two weeks straight together at Hot Dog High (there was no ValeDOGtorian, we were all too bright!) we all share a close bond. We’re like ketchup and mustard, relish and sauerkraut, hot dogs and Oscar Mayer. Needless to say, we had a blast.

All abun! I mean, all aboard!

I'm making sure Rachel Relish stays safe!

Squish!

All of the balloons being blown-up before the parade begins!

Would you like to see what it’s like from on top of a Wienermobile while riding in a parade? I filmed the view from BOLOGNA as I tried to get the crowd involved! Check it out!

Ride Along in the Parade!

Think you’d have buns of fun riding in a parade with the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile?

Leaving Florida to travel throughout the Midwest definitely comes with a change of scenery! I left lounging under palm trees that stay green all year long for an exciting adventure in a part of the country that has–hold on to something–seasons! Yes, I cannot believe it, summer is not the only season that exists (that’s pretty much the only one in Florida, though). I screamed with delight when we entered East Lansing, Michigan and called to Dijon John as I went running towards the most beautiful thing I had seen in nature, a “fall” tree!

I ran towards the fire-blazing colored creation and *LEAPED* onto the grass. Why did I leap?

…so that I could hear that fantastic *CRUNCH* noise when I landed on leaves!

As if the day couldn’t get any better, BOLOGNA, Dijon John and I got to participate in the Michigan State University Homecoming Parade!

The Spartans’ were ready to battle on their home turf to win their homecoming football game while I was gearing up for my own battle — WINTER!!!!!

Check out those snow free skies in the Wienermobile!

Happy Holidogs from Torey Toppings, Dijon John and BOLOGNA!

May all of your hearts be warm, all of your stomachs full, and all of your hot dogs be Oscar Mayer

As Dijon John and I moved our buns around the beautiful state of Michigan, we came across a beautiful site that left us dazed and drooling: the WienermobileCafe in the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn! Our friend MMMK had filled us in on how amazing the 1952Wienermobilewas to see, but we never would have guessed how excited we were for a restaurant themed after our favorite moter vehicle.

We had just come from Chicago, and we thought we had had some great Oscar Mayer hot dogs in the Windy City, but their menu was so diverse, we contemplated what we’d order.

As we walked around with our bunderful choices, we stumbled across a true treasure: an original 1950’s Wiener Whistle!

Needless to say, ‘it’s all about the BUNjamins’ when it comes to making my day!

The Wienermobile is terribly fun to see on the road. It easily brings smiles to faces of anyone it ‘meats’ along the way. But what I’ve come to learn is that this enormous food item on wheels means so much to so many people. I’d like to share one very important story with you.

We were in St. Louis, Missouri to do a baseball game on Sunday. It was our night off, and Dijon John and I were hanging around our hotel. All of the sudden, a family came rushing over to our table. Dijon John was wearing a t-shirt that had a bottle of mustard on it, so the mother of the family announced he had to get his photo taken in front of the most amazing thing they just saw: the Wienermobile. We realized that because we weren’t wearing our uniforms, they assumed we were guests. A small boy peeked out from behind a leg. Will, at four years old, had a wide grin and shy eyes, hid behind his mom but was bouncing up and down. He had a wooden pirate sword in his hand and was whispering to the ground that the Wienermobile was cooler than the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, his favorite TV show.

We asked the family why they were in St. Louis and then an answer came that immediately caused my eyes to well up with tears and nausea to overwhelm me. Will was in St. Louis for the wonderful children’s hospital. He has leukemia. He’s been fighting it for over two years and has to come for monthly chemotherapy treatments. This little boy with shining eyes is battling it with every thing he’s got. I’ve never seen a child smile so much or be so brave.

When we told them we drove BOLOGNA, they freaked out! We headed out to our hot dog vehicle. I’d now like to share an excerpt from a blog that Angela Page, Will’s mom writes with her permission, because I think she tells it best:

“We got to talking about where we were from and our reason for being in St. Louis. Torey was pretty interested in our story and asked, “So Will has chemo at 8:30 tomorrow morning? How about if we drive you to the hospital in the Wienermobile?” Okay….WHAT did you just say? “Meet us here in the lobby at 8:00am and we will take you to St. Louis Children’s Hospital and drop you off in the Wienermobile“ Holy Hot Dogs Batman! Can this be? Would they really do it? We hugged, we took photos, and we retired to our room with the promise of the ride of a lifetime. Can you imagine how difficult it was to get Will to sleep as he was bursting with excitement…”

Read the rest of the story through Will’s mother’s eyes at: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/willpage/journal/2

To the Page Family: We loved every moment we spent with you, and couldn’t image a better day with BOLOGNA. We promise to see you soon.

As Dijon John and I roamed the streets of Chicago in BOLOGNA, we came across the most maginificent center for education in the country: The Oscar F. Mayer Public School!

This Magnet school in a beautiful area of the Windy City was such a proud moment for me. Our founder was such a wonderful, hard working, dedicated man, that they decided to dedicate something back in his honor. A gorgeous plaque at the entrance to the building explains why:

The picture is hard to read, so I’ll transcribe. The plaque says, and I quote: ”

Oscar F. Mayer was born in Bavaria, Germany in 1859. At the age of 14, his father died and Oscar sailed to the United States with his aunt and uncle in search of opportunity and a better life. He settled in Chicago and lived with his uncle at the near north side of the city, where he apprenticed in a small butcher shop. In 1883, he opened his own butcher shop near this location with his brothers Max and Gottfried. Later, he married Louise Griener and they and their five children lived above the store. The butcher shop was successful.

Mayer pursued his ambition for a better life with an instinctive effort to create a better product and service at his shop – always searching for a better way to prepare and present his meat products. The butcher shop quickly became popular with local residents and prospered. It was here that a concept in meat preparation was born which was to ultimately revolutionize the meat packing industry in the United States and throughout the world. In the years to follow, the small butcher shop space grew and Oscar was joined by his son Oscar Gottfried Mayer. Over the years, he led the company’s transformation from a small butcher shop into a manufacturing plant located near Scott and Sedgwick Streets. This location became the headquarters of Oscar Mayer & Company.

The company continued to grow. New plants were opened throughout the US and around the world. Through pursuing innovations in packing, manufacturing, marketing and advertising, Mayer led the company to success as a meat processor rather than a meat packer. The “yellow-band” wieners, the Oscar Mayer jingle, “Little Oscar” and the Wienermobile were creative and unique national marketing programs which not only built a recognizable and trusted brand name, but became an icon of American culture, reflecting the opportunities inherent in our liberties and economic system. In addition, new continuous production techniques, packaging innovation, distribution strategies and advanced quality control procedures have had a dominant influence throughout the meat processing industry and have made Oscar Mayer & Company a world wide success.

Throughout his life, Oscar Mayer always loved and respected this community. To share the opportunity he had in America, and to give something back, Mayer worked toward securing the commitment to establish this school in our community. This school is named in his honor to remind those who come here of the opportunity that exists in our country to pursue ambitions for a fulfilling and successful life – even starting with a job in a small butcher shop on the north side of Chicago.”

Oscar Mayer gave more than hot dogs to this community: he gave hope and the feeling that you can do anything you want if you simply relish your dreams.