Two Weeks of Torture Ends Tonight

It's Super Bowl Sunday, and thankfully, the endless, relentless hype that has gone on for two weeks (which is simply stupid in my opinion, one week is enough) will come to an end when the 49ers and Ravens meet tonight in New Orleans to decide the NFL's champion.

For me, this day has always been about FOOTBALL. I don't have a serious rooting interest in the game (although I have never liked the Ravens). But I will always watch. I'm a football fan. I tune in. I'll be home by myself, as no one I know is planning any gatherings this year.

And let's get a few things straight. I don't care about the pregame, which CBS is beginning at 11 AM today. (Good God. I'm waiting for the day when one network will begin it 24 hours before the game.) Endless gobbledy gook. No thanks. I'm watching two movies and a few TV shows I taped, and will finish watching them at 6:30 PM. I want to see how close I come to the actual kickoff, and that's when I will put CBS on.

I'm not watching the halftime show, either. They've had a few decent ones in recent years, but Beyonce? Again, no thanks. Not my cup of joe. I'll be up on my treadmill for 30 minutes listening to my iPod.

And I really hate the hype over these commercials. They get WAY too much publicity. Who cares about these commercials, about 90% of which will never be seen again? And it seems to me on Monday we have to see what everyone's "favorites" are. Ugh. I'm planning on doing something I did many years ago and really enjoyed doing: switching channels during commercials. Which is something I sometimes do during NFL games during the regular season, too.

There is something I miss about Super Bowl Sunday that I wish would return: the great New York DJ Jonathan Schwartz would do his "Salute to Baseball", which was one hour of baseball highlights on his radio show. It featured a snippet from an average Red Sox game (he's a big fan like I am) from the '50s or '60s, some baseball songs, and a few memorable moments from the recent Red Sox past. It was always a fun hour away from the stupid Super Bowl hype and got me ready for Spring Training. Jonathan ended it some years ago, and I'm really sorry it's not around for today.

As for the game itself, I'm taking the 49ers and the points.

Then we can bring on the baseball season.