Is it September 12th yet?

I have never looked forward to watching a season of Patriots' football more than this year.

The Pats open on Sept. 12. A week from yesterday. One day after the 10th anniversary of that surreal Tuesday morning. This football season, much less significantly, marks the 10th anniversary of the Pats first Super Bowl season. It's also almost the 10th anniversary of my divorce but that's a topic for a different blog.

The Dennis Hopper video above is one I made with my camera recording a VHS tape playing on my TV. Thus the quality. Very 2001. Actually, very 1991.

I first posted it in an entry I wrote shortly after Hopper died last year. As I said in that post, the video captures just how amazingly fun and incredible it was that the New England Patriots actually won the Super Bowl. The 1-15 New England Patriots. The "new coach gets electrocuted at his first press conference" New England Patriots. The "turns out most of the team was on coke before they got killed in the '86 Super Bowl" New England Patriots. The "there aren't enough toilets so the whole stadium is a toilet" New England Patriots. They won the Super Bowl! I can still remember how great it felt to yell and laugh and hug after Vinatieri's kick sailed through the uprights.

When Hopper laughs and shouts "They're champions of the freakin world, man!" ... well, that's exactly how it felt 10 years ago.

At the end of the video Hopper shouts something else... "Every year, man! Every year!" A prediction of a dynasty that came true.

The video starts on a somber note. An ad for a news report on the one-year anniversary of 9/11.

Now it's the 10-year anniversary.

A lot has changed in those 10 years. Good and bad.

One thing that has not changed -- despite the fact that I am a comfortable distance away from my 30s -- is the enjoyment of getting together and tailgating with friends and family on some beautiful (and not so beautiful) fall days.

This could be the best year yet.