Football Wizards

Pretty quiet morning. I made gingerbread pancakes for breakfast and watched snow and football-related cartoons. Ran two more Donald shorts, both featuring Chip and Dale. One, in fact, was called "Chip and Dale"; it was their first appearance, and their first go-around with Donald. Donald's chopped down their home for firewood, and they want it back. "Corn Chips" is a variation on this short. This time, the chipmunks fall in love with the popcorn Donald's making over his fireplace on a wintry day, and the trio go into a prolonged battle to see who gets to keep the crispy treats!

I switched from snow to football cartoons after Donald and the chipmunks ended. Mickey Mouse isn't the first Disney character I'd put in Peyton Manning's cleats, but he did do a very cute football-related cartoon in 1932, "Touchdown Mickey." (Goofy's an even less likely Howard Cosell!) And Hello Kitty proves that girls can do anything, even be a princely penguin's wide receiver, in a very imaginative version of "Cinderella," "Cinderkitty."

I finally got a ride to work from Uncle Ken. The snow was slowly beginning to melt, but it was still pretty icy. Work was steady, busier than yesterday but nothing like last week. I'm hoping it won't be too bad this week, despite another storm being announced for Tuesday night-Wednesday. Maybe people got all their panic buttons hit last week...

Uncle Ken drove me back to his house for the Super Bowl. It was a full party, despite the weather. We had Dad (who had a toothache), Jodie, Uncle Ken, Dolores, Dolores' children and grandchildren, Samantha and her family, and a couple of friends of Uncle Ken's. Erica and her mother Miss Helen and Rose and Craig appeared later, after the game began. There was tons of food. Uncle Ken baked a chocolate cake for Samantha's sons Matt and Ethan, who's birthdays were last month and last week, respectively. (Ethan just turned 13; Matt is 11.) There was a bread bowl with spinach dip, Uncle Ken's sensational ham, a vegetable platter, cookies, macaroni salad, deviled eggs, potato salad, a second chocolate cake Erica and Miss Helen brought, and shrimp from Rose and Craig.

I walked back and forth, chatting with everyone. The game went pretty well, too, and halftime was awesome. I'm a huge fan of the British rock group the Who. There's only two left, but those two, singer Roger Daltrey and guitarist/songwriter Pete Townsend, can still put on one hell of a show. Roger Daltrey's harmonica solo on "Baba O'Riley" was just amazing. And I was thrilled when they played my favorite Who song, "Won't Get Fooled Again," as the finale. Everyone laughed when I sang along, but I loved it.

I left with Rose and Craig after the halftime show, so I didn't see the second half. The Saints were behind after the first half, but they apparently made a major comeback and won, 22-17. There will be partying on Bourbon Street tonight, and it won't just be in preparation for Mardi Gras!

Oh, and the commercials that I saw were much better than last year's. My favorite was the guys releasing the whale into the ocean. I have no idea what it was about, but it was funny.