It’s Super Bowl Week, and everyone is supposed to be charged up and rarin’ to go for the “big game” next Sunday! Yep, it’s all come down to this for NFL fans and anyone else who wants to hop aboard the bandwagon and become immersed in the hoopla and craziness that is conveyed through every media source on God’s green earth.
The entire Super Bowl thing is even larger and more important to two contingents: 1.) Those fans who have a rooting interest in either team (I don’t!); 2.) Those who have a wagering interest in anything related to the event (I don’t!). So as a casual observer, I can enjoy the game without any pressure and concentrate on whatever it is I’m going to be grilling on the Weber charcoal grill (I haven’t decided on that yet—BBQ chicken, perhaps?).
Yesterday, Super Bowl Week really kicked into high gear with something called Media Day. You know, the event where the players from both teams are up on platforms and expected to answer all sorts of hard-hitting questions from fawning and gushing reporters and analysts. Of course, I’m rather jaded when it comes to professional athlete interviews as none of the players seems to have anything really important to say—about anything!
Point in case: A certain player for the Seattle Seahawks “agreed” to sit for a ten-minute session and entertain all kinds of questions. His stock answer for each was, “I’m only here so I don’t get fined by the NFL.” Now, isn’t that special! Of course, the wide-eyed, gawking media folks fell all over themselves trying to get this paragon of intellect to say something other than his standard response. Now that’s a true, heartwarming American sports story, friends, and I’m awfully glad my 10-o’clock news devoted so many minutes to it last night.
As for the big game itself (which doesn’t start until very late in the afternoon), I will come home from church, change into my comfy “uniform of the day”—sweats, hoodie, and sweat socks—and prepare the charcoal for my pre-game cooking of the aforementioned chicken. Of course, I will have already had the breasts, thighs, and legs cleaned and marinading overnight, so they will be ready whenever the Weber is up to temperature.
And, out here in northern Illinois, there’s always the weather to factor in to my plans. As of right now, it’s supposed to be cloudy and windy (oh, how it gets windy here!) with snow. The highs are supposed to be in the mid 20s and the low somewhere around 6°. But as I’ve proven in the past, this will not deter me! I am well equipped with heavy Carhartt jackets and coveralls as well as nice warm boots.
Once the charcoal is going and the chicken is ready to be put on the grate, I can warm myself in the closed garage with all of the pre-game programming on my TV. There will be plenty of cold, golden Budweiser at hand, and the day will be merry, and as game time gets closer, I’ll continue to monitor the progress of the chicken and then move on inside.
I will watch the teams as they come out for the coin flip, followed by the kickoff. I will watch the game as it gets fully under way and marvel at the talents of those massive players who do incredible things on the field on this day—America’s Super Bowl!
During the course of the broadcast, there will be brand new and unique commercials that will entertain and hit us one way or another. These usually turn out to be better than the game, particularly to those of us who have no rooting or betting interest for either team. Until the chicken is done, I’ll go back out to check on it, add coals as needed, and count my blessings that I don’t have to hear any players attempt to answer the media’s questions—especially the guy from Seattle!
Happy Super Bowl Week, everyone!
Down Many Roads... 
Unfortunately, I typically don’t make it past halftime during the Super Bowl, Mark. I wish the game came on a little earlier. I’m up at 4:00 am on Monday morning. 😦 Feeling old. 🙂 Enjoy the game!
Hi, Jill. I’ve always wanted the game to be played on Saturday rather than on Sunday, although Sunday is NFL day, so I see their reasoning. But it would have always made for a lot more fun having Sunday to “rest and recover” before having to go to work early Monday morning! And their starting time could be a lot earlier, but TV, commercials, hype, etc., etc. I get it! Enjoy the first half, Jill. 🙂
Here in Phoenix we are getting ready by bemoaning the set aside alcohol laws so that out of town fans can get drunk out in public and raise heck. Yeeha. Gonna be a fun weekend!
Have fun, Mark. I guess my hubby will follow the scores online since we cancelled our TV service. 🙂
There are many days and nights when I would like to have cancelled our TV service, too! I think I would get a lot more writing and reading done than I already do. 🙂