Super Match Bowl

Slept in more than I should have this morning and got a really quick start. At least the Uber drivers were just as fast. The one coming here arrived in less than 2 minutes. The one going home didn't even take 4 minutes. The lady who drove me home stopped and very briefly bought Girl Scout Cookies from the young ladies out today before we got going. She said it was for her husband. I thought it was adorable.

The floral department was frantic today. The managers are behind on pulling out flowers and making arrangements. I spent the morning pulling bouquets out of boxes and putting them in buckets of water. Got to help make "chop and drop" arrangements - ones where you just cut off the ends of a bouquet and place it in a vase with no additional fussing - after lunch. We also pulled plants that weren't doing well from the floral display in the seasonal aisle, and I watered the plants that were in good shape. And I'd never crushed so many boxes in my life, or piled so many into the store's bailer. We got a lot done, including a whole cart full of bouquet boxes.

Went straight home and into the shower. After I got out, I watched two vintage Disney football shorts that can currently be found on YouTube. "How to Play Football" pits teams of Goofys from Taxidermy Tech and Anthropology A&M against each other in a free-for-all spoof. When Taxidermy's star player gets knocked out of the game, the coach has to figure out  how to get him back on track.

A grandfather and his grandson imagine what it would be like if teams from "Football Now and Then" competed against each other. Bygone U. plays Present State in a game that's almost as hard-fought as Goofy's short. While Grandpa eventually forgets the point, the cartoon insists that there's a lot to be said for both modern methods and a little bit of old-fashioned know-how, off and on the field.

Match Game Productions also celebrated football of the past with his Super Bowl Sunday Classics marathon. In addition to the weeks featuring former players Rosey Greer and Alex Karras, we saw episodes with jokes about or references to long-time sportscaster Howard Cosell. I didn't really see much of Cosell as a kid in the 80's, but during the run of the original show and syndicated series, he and his nasal voice and toupee were fixtures on Monday Night Football. He was apparently as known for his ego and ugly toupee as his play-by-play, which came in for frequent ribbing. Patti Deustch in particular could do a great imitation of him. 

Future Super Bowl-winning coach Brian Billick appeared on Match Game PM in 1977, years before he led the Baltimore Ravens to victory. I'm afraid his ability to make plays didn't translate into the ability to match answers. He proved to be too sweet for this spicy show and didn't make a single match. 

Make it to the end zone with beloved football players, coaches, and the most famous sports announcer of all time in this riotous marathon!

Super Bowl Sunday Night Classics - Featuring Football Players, Coaches, and Howard Cosell

I alternated between the marathon and the Super Bowl itself while it was on. The game didn't start well. The 49ers coasted to an early lead 10-3 before Usher's big show in halftime. Things really picked up in the second half, when the Chiefs finally figured out what they were doing. They'd get a touchdown, then the Niners would run back and get another one. It finally went into overtime, and even that was crazy, with the Niners getting a field goal before the Chiefs got a touchdown in the literal last seconds. They eventually won one of the most thrilling Super Bowls I've seen in a while 25 to 22.