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Marg-Ins-Heading Into Super Spring?
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Take a deep breath, the Super Bowl is over.

And pitchers and catchers will soon be reporting to the first day of spring training.

Like many people, I spent a portion of Super Bowl Sunday at a party for the event, though I opted to arrive shortly before kick-off and did not succumb to the temptation to turn the TV on at 9 a.m. and follow six-plus hours of ‘preview’ activities. There is only so much build up you can take; just show me the game. Already looking ahead, next year’s game will be close to home, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara and it sure would be nice to see a familiar team playing there. (It is the home of the 49ers, after all.)

This year, though, it was fun to graze at the Super Bowl spread, rate the commercials and do a check off of a ‘Super Bowl Bingo’ card, with such spaces as ‘commentators draw on screen’ and ‘tear jerker commercial’ to cover.

There were a few spaces that never did get covered, with no ‘foam finger’ seen and no ‘fans with painted chests’ spied in the crowd.

Super Bowl Sunday is almost like a national holiday, with the added twist of rooting for the right numbers to come up if you took part in any type of pool. My numbers didn’t. So back to work I went on Monday morning. But the game itself, with highly protected, properly inflated footballs, had its fair share of exciting moments, twists and turns, and even Katy Perry doing her best imitation of a Hot Dog on a Stick employee with one of her outfits for her halftime show. The life-size chess pieces moving about in another song on a 3D board, however, added some depth and uniqueness and overall it was a highly enjoyable way to spend a Sunday afternoon-evening.

Even more interesting is listening to your co-workers dissect the game and the commercials – what they liked, what they didn’t, who should have won, etc., etc. – when they are supposed to be getting their work done on Monday morning, as our deadlines loom. If the papers are late this week, now you know why.

From my perspective, though, it is now February and it seems like every year, the time just goes faster. Weren’t we just recovering from the Christmas and New Year’s rush? And yet here we are, with Ground Hog Day just passed and Valentine’s Day straight ahead. Punxsutawney Phil, by the way, saw his shadow so we should have six more weeks of winter. Which I am totally in favor of because it was a little unnerving over the weekend to have bees buzzing everywhere and seeing the first few buds on the trees. My allergies ask for six more weeks of winter and, if possible, a few more good soaking rainstorms.

In terms of storms, my parents in upstate New York escaped with having to deal with only about six inches of snow from the big storm that veered a little further east and dumped nearly two feet on my nephew in Boston. They are on alert for more snow this week, however, and when I called my mom over the weekend, I was out walking in 65-degree weather with the constant hum of busy bees in my ears while the wind chill temperature in New York was minus 6.

Minus 6.

Hard to believe I used to deal with that, when you walked outside and literally had your breath taken away by how freezing it was. I sometimes dislike driving in the California fog but it still doesn’t compare to sleet and freezing rain, whiteout conditions and snow-covered roadways.

Hopefully we get a series of storms in here and the rain will wash away the fog and put some more water into our reservoirs, while the higher elevations get some much needed snow.

I am sure this month will go by in a flash, so make sure to get those Valentine’s cards addressed before it’s too late and get ready; the World Champion San Francisco Giants open their spring training schedule with a ‘road’ game against the Oakland A’s at Hohokam Park in Mesa, Arizona on March 3.

Play Ball!

 

Marg Jackson is editor of The Escalon Times, The Oakdale Leader and The Riverbank News. She may be reached at mjackson@oakdaleleader.com or by calling 847-3021.