Musician Skrillex, born Sonny Moore, is shown in Detroit. Skrillex received five Grammy nominations on Nov. 30. The awards will be held Feb. 12.
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Well, the Super Bowl matchup has been set, which means the next two weeks are essentially a pregame show. The Pats and the Giants are everywhere, from TV networks to twitter hashtags to the newly created Social Media Command Center, whatever that is.
Between now and Feb. 5, we'll come dangerously close to overdosing on every aspect of XLVI, from the potential Advertisers to Zoltan Mesko.
Or . . . we could focus on something else, saving ourselves for the game itself instead of spoiling our appetite with 12 days of NFL-logo appetizers. Here are a few (or, like, XLVI) things we could do to keep us busy between now and Kelly Clarkson's hopefully un-bungled national anthem.
1. Immerse yourself in the other football — the Barclays Premier League — long enough to learn that Mario Balotelli isn't a celebrity chef.
2. Scan the list of Oscar-nominated movies and realize that Brad Pitt-as-Billy Beane is now poised to win more trophies than Billy Beane-as-Billy Beane.
3. Ask yourself if you should be proud or ashamed that the only potential Oscar winner you've seen is the one that has a diarrhea montage (Iron Lady, obviously).
4. Skip the coverage of Super Bowl Media Day and go see The Artist instead. Ask theatre staff if they're aware that their speakers aren't working. Spend the next 100 minutes improvising your own dialogue.
5. Feb. 1 is National Signing Day. Block off your afternoon to make not-creepy-at-all Facebook posts on the pages of your school's newest prep signees. Kids still like emoticons, right? Lots and lots of emoticons.
6. Proudly wear your San Francisco division championship hoodie, if only because you paid full price for it.
7. Why wait another week? Fire up the crock-pot, buy some Sun Chips and host the Best Pro Bowl Party Of All-Time, Ever.
8. Explain Skrillex to someone over 40. Sit patiently beside them as they weep for your generation.
9. Buy a set of reusable New York Giants shopping bags. The next time you go to the grocery store, loudly announce that no, YOU BROUGHT YOUR OWN BAGS. Hand them to the cashier and wait for the other shoppers to give you a standing ovation.
10. After watching 17 straight hours of Pawn Stars, spend an afternoon looking for hidden treasures in your attic. Come downstairs with dusty knees and what could be a decomposing raccoon or a vintage Jerry Jones hairpiece. Either way, you’re pawning it.
11. Discover that Jan. 27 is Thomas Crapper Day, in honor of the London plumber who popularized the flush toilet. Commemorate the occasion by taking your laptop into one of the stalls at work and stay there until your legs go numb and/or one of your coworkers calls the facilities guy to report that you’ve died.
12. Delete 728 unwatched episodes of NCIS from your DVR.
13. Note that neither the Giants nor the Patriots have a player who wears No. 46. Order a custom No. 46 jersey with the word Super Bowl Champ on the nameplate because that in no way would make anyone hate you.
14. Place a bid to buy the Dodgers. Offer them a reusable shopping bag and a Jerry Jones hairpiece.
15. Drop a metal serving spoon in your garbage disposal and turn it on, if only to remind yourself that there really is something that sounds worse than Steven Tyler singing the National Anthem.
16. Google “Whatever happened to David Tyree?”
17. Stock up on mousse, volumizing cream and hairspray before Mel Kiper starts making his pre-NFL draft trips to Sally's Beauty Supply.
18. Fix breakfast with your Pat Patriot ProToast toaster. Sincerely hope that you won't die alone in front of a plate of throwback-logo toast.
19. Tune in to Sunday's NHL All-Star game. Wonder if President Obama will refuse to watch because of political differences with Tim Thomas.
20. Give your name as “Fausto Carmona” when you place your Starbucks order. Hope that when the barista yells “Fausto Carmona” that everyone in the store slowly stands and says “I am Fausto Carmona”, Spartacus-style.
21. Do an Ancestry.com search to see if there's any chance that you might be a lost Manning. Or the real Fausto Carmona.
22. Pre-order 19 copies of Lana Del Ray's debut album and have them all delivered to Brian Williams, c/o NBC News, 30 Rockefeller Center. Laugh and laugh and laugh.
23. Start a rumor that Tim Tebow is dating Oprah.
24. Start a rumor that the A's are interested in Manny Ramir … wait, what?
25. Get a tattoo of Eli Manning's face over your own face.
26. While Tom Brady sleeps, hide a SmartCar in his chin cleft.
27. Guys, spend an afternoon debating how you could impress a newly-single Heidi Klum.
28. Spend the next afternoon debating how you could impress a newly-single Aretha Franklin.
29. Practice saying the “R's” in Welker and Vollmer. (New England-area only).
30. Make a Vince Wilfork-sized stack of pancakes. Not a serving size. An actual Bisquick and water-forged statue of the 325 pound tackle. (Paula Deen-area only).
31. Catch yourself rolling your eyes at the guy in the brand new No. 46 Giants jersey. Catch him catching you rolling your eyes. Catch your ankle on a curb as you race out of the Food Court.
32. Pay a $ 25 Urgent Care co-pay.
33 Buy and wear a velvet tuxedo. Note: This only works if you're Ryan Braun. Or Liberace.
34. Make a “S**t Losing Coaches Say” YouTube video, including lines like “In my opinion, that was a fumble” and “We didn't play to our identity” and “There are a lot of areas and the biggest thing, I think, is acquiring talent.”
35. Go ahead and fill out your NCAA bracket.
36. Take new Texas Ranger and “Japanese maple leaf”-enthusiast Yu Darvish shopping at Spencer's Gifts.
37. Buy a Yankee candle. Let it melt until it looks like Bruce Jenner's face.
38. Tweet Rob Lowe to see if his people have heard anything about Jorge Posada or J.D. Drew.
39. Call the sportsbook at Caesars to see what the over/under is for the Puppy Bowl.
40. Offer to help Chris Paul scrub the “Sk8r Boi” stains off the floors of his new Avril Lavigne-owned mansion.
41. Hate yourself for knowing who Avril Lavigne is.
42. Wear the Chadron State t-shirt you got to honor Danny Woodhead. Come home disappointed that no one got the reference, although several people asked if you were from Nebraska.
43 NO ONE HAS EVER SAID ANYTHING ABOUT BILL BELICHICK'S CLOTHING. DEFINITELY MAKE A TON OF JOKES ABOUT THAT ON TWITTER. THEN POST AN INSTAGRAM PICTURE OF YOUR COFFEE MUG AND USE THE WORD “YOUR” WHEN YOU MEANT “YOU'RE”.
44. Prank call Tony Romo. “Knock knock, Tony,” you'll say. “Who's there?” he'll ask. “The postseason.” “The postseason who?” “EXACTLY,” you'll shout, laughing so hard you accidentally knock your Pat Patriot toaster to the floor.
45. Wonder how many of Indy's Super Bowl tourists take advantage of the stacked calendar of Super Bowl Week Events at the Official Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library.
46. Give up and give in to the hype. Listen to the Coaches' Show on the NFL Network, watch Sportcenter in thick multi-hour chunks and give yourself carpal tunnel as you obsessively refresh the ProFootballTalk homepage. Next Sunday, lower yourself onto your sofa shortly after you brush the Pat Patriot crumbs off your shirt and don't move until after the game is over and Madonna has been re-packed in her box of earth. It's the Super Bowl and, as always, you won't realize how much you need all the hype until it's gone for another year.
Jelisa Castrodale has learned a lot about life by making a mess of her own. Read more at jelisacastrodale.com, follow her on twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/gordonshumway, or contact her at
Video: Super Bowl keys to victory
Russ Thaler, Pete Najarian & Shaun O'Hara break down the keys to viictory for both Super Bowl teams, better pass protection from the Giants’ offensive line and fewer turnovers from Brady and the Patriots.

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