Today was a special day in Super Bowl history. The first time they opened up Media Day to the public. And why not? It was held in the stadium with plenty of seating. I think players got a kick out of it, too... at least once they realized the public could hear them.
It's a pretty cool set-up they have - not sure if it's a normal set-up or a new one for the new public attendance. They had nine key players and the head coach set up at individual podiums for an hour (for each team), and the rest of the players rotated to other media set up along the sideline. We were all given radios so we could tune into one of six mic'd up players/coaches. Of course there was a lot of focus on both quarterbacks. In fact, it was obvious a majority of people were listening to Tom Brady when he started gushing with respect for Peyton Manning and the crowd cheered. It was at this point he realized the public could hear his interview. Apparently, they failed to tell the players some of them could be heard by the audience over radios. All in all, it was a neat experience.
Eric and I have walked the village a few times now, and though there are a lot of cool things to check out there, you can only go so many times before you've seen it all. But there was one thing we hadn't seen/done yet... the 
zipline! Some friends of our had extra tickets for tonight and offered them up to us. That was one ticket that Eric and I decided NOT to buy in advance, but then by we decided it might actually be cool, all the advanced tickets were sold out! So we were pretty excited when we got the invite tonight.
So the experience? It was awesome!! It wasn't 22 lines across a river, down a mountain, but it was a unique experience on its own! The line ran over the length of a city block, right over everyone's heads strolling around in the village. There were four parallel lines, so we all got to go at the same time and kind of race. As we got towards the main crowd, they all cheered and hoot'n'hollered as we zipped by. I must say, it was quite a rush! Definitely pumped us up for the rest of the night. Too bad it's only Tuesday and not on the weekend when we could use that adrenaline rush!! ha ha
So you can obviously tell this week is awesome! I really wasn't sure what to expect when it was announced it was coming. Now that it's here, I really hope we get another one!
So the Super Bowl has been around for 46 years now. In the beginning, tickets to the game were cheap and there was no marketing behind the league to get things pumped up to where people thought it was more than just another game. Now it falls behind only Thanksgiving Day for most food consumption on one day in America. 
And to top that fun little fact off, it also bring out everyone, from A-listers to locals, for the festivities. So in order for more people to get more out of the even that now last over a week, the NFL added a 'cheap ticket' for everyone to enjoy things... the NFL Experience.
I got to preview this last Friday, as this is where my volunteer gig is. It's amazing! I've put a couple of shifts in so far and have had a blast doing that so far. This year's NFLX covers nearly 1 million square feet in the convention center. 
It covers the whole range of activities and fans, to the 'big kid' (grown men everywhere) who want to live out their NFL dream by getting a chance to punt, throw, kick, etc., to the kid who wants to play ball with some actual NFL players, to the light hearted fan that just wants to browse some memorabilia. And the Lombardi Trophy to be given away at the end of THIS YEAR'S Super Bowl.
Eric and I actually went to it tonight and got to see a little more than I have been able to see to date. The lines were all really long for the games, but we still had plenty to keep us busy for a few hours. We started by looking at some memorabilia, including all 45 Super Bowl rings. Some of them were outrageous! Then we wandered over to wear they had actual workers from the Wilson Football factory (located in Ohio) with stations set up and they were making footballs, right there. Talk about authentic! 
We did some more wandering around, looking at some sponsors exhibits and some autographed memorabilia before heading to the NFL Shop they had set up with more merchandise than you could imagine for the Super Bowl in one place. The we capped off our Experience with a visit to see the Lombardi Trophy up close and personal.
So if you live in Indy, or have a Super Bowl near you in the future, this is a worthwhile ticket to get. Granted, i got mine for free as a thank you for volunteering, but it would've been worth paying for, too. Kids of all ages have a good time. Word of advice, though - don't go on the weekend if you can avoid it. At least here in Indy, we broke records last weekend with the crowds that showed up - over 40,000 fans each day! Crazy!
Few Cities get to see it happen to them, and this is the first time for Indy to see it happen... Super Bowl preperations! And talk about a lot of craziness!
With my proximity to downtown and the stadium (just a half mile west of me!), I'm truly witnessing everything! To top it off, I'm volunteering, so I'm getting some even earlier previews to it all! Wow... talk about a lot to do in a little time!
Of course, since we didn't know who was even coming to the SuperBowl until last Sunday, only so much could be done. 
Plus, they wanted to keep a lot of the detail under wraps until the last minute possible. But it's all coming to light, now, from the huge banners and building facade masks, to the astroturf running down Capital Ave under the ziplines. It's amazing to me how much a City is willing to inconvenience its residents for an event, though... I think most of us are taking it in stride, but the amount of street closures, and even parking closures, is pretty intense for a compact City like Indianapolis.
As far as volunteering goes, I'm pretty stoked because I got to pick up my uniform last week, complete with a 'Super Scarf', which was one of their big goals for volunteers this year - a handmade scarf for every volunteer! And with it being the NFL, they didn't go cheap with the rest of the unifrom, either! Not sure if the 'winter coat' they provided is truly warm enough, but most of my volunteering is inside, anyway. Can't wait to volunteer now!
So the next week and a half or so, there will probably be a few Super Bowl related blogs. I hope to spend one afternoon just walkind around and taking it all in (and taking photos, of course!). As I hear more and more newscasts about things happeneing, I'm realizing there's more and more to take in. It's all so exciting!
Don't want to say I told you so, but, "I told you so!"
Back in November, when the Penn State scandal erupted into the absolute insanity that it became and JoePa offered up his resignation (because he was kind of forced to, after all), I said he wouldn't live much beyond his 85th birthday in a blog about how Andy Rooney died after retiring. And today we learned he, indeed, didn't make it far past his 85th birthday.
Today, we lost a legendary man, and an even more legendary coach.
There will be a lot of blogs and a lot of stories out there about the life and career of Joe Paterno. No one can argue with his success at Penn State. No one can argue with a career and status at a University that can compare to the tenure of a single royal on a throne - not much else lasts for over 60 years, especially in this day and age. Joe was witness to the evolution of college football to what it has become today. Not too many coaches can even come close to that claim.
Some may argue his end was coming, regardless - afterall, he was sick. But I think the scandal brought it on earlier... in his shame, he gave up his fight. Anyone who has any inkling of knowledge of Joe Paterno and Penn State football knows that he is not one to give up on anything. But the media and attention brought on and aimed pointlessly at him brought on a shame that only the questioning of one's self could bring. I still say, "Shame on all the media and the University for placing so much blame on Joe"... it was like accusing your blind grandfather of not reporting a crime he 'saw' happening. Poor Joe... did what he thought was right, only to be told it wasn't enough. And then stripped of what he loved all of his life.
I can only hope that the scandal become only a footnote in his historic life and career and truly hope everyone only remembers him for what he really was... a college football legend.
RIP Joe.
It hit me, today, as all the various stories popped up on the political front... I'm going to be one of those cynical, bitter, old women that complains about how everything is in the world and constantly tell stories of "how good it used to be before..."
*yikes*
As much as I'd love to say it's just politics that trigger my ramblings and venting, it's not. It's kids these days, the education system (and I don't even have kids yet!), the unwillingness of people to change (probably always an issue), and, of course, the idiot politicians, themselves. I just can't get over how much of a finger pointing, he said/she said, blame game politics have become. Disgusting.
Shoot... I already seem to be a very cynical person. Just waiting for the 'old and bitter' part to hit.
But seriously... is it just me, or has politics really hit rock bottom?? or do they still have more to go before they hit rock bottom?? Either way, they are definitely NOT on the up and up. And I blame today's politicians for all the problems I seemed to get amped up on... they are failing to address the real issues at hand. Who cares about the fact the the Hollywood and Music industries are being 'hurt' by people sharing movies and music 'illegally' through the internet. Is it really that different than when we used to hit the record button on a tape player when a song came on the radio, or when we'd record a movie during free HBO preview weekend on cable? They claim they lose money, yet they seem to be the only industry in America thriving during this down economy. Yet, this is the big topic up for debate in congress today... not the fact that our education system has become such an embarrassment as other countries fly past a majority of kids in this nation with their knowledge.
Priorities, people... the government really needs to get them straight!
I blame the political party system for it all, too. It's become all about party verses party... politicians are no longer in office for the people. It's ridiculous. And a lot of that is because of the type of politicians we have in office... I read somewhere that there are very few in office that ever served their country in the military, which used to practically be a prerequisite to get into office. It meant they saw more of life and the world than those who never get out of their little bubble of a world. Just because your mother or father was in congress didn't give you an automatic bid to be 'qualified' for that office. Just because you had your party's backing didn't make you qualified, either... you had to earn the people's support to be qualified.
So, yeah... today's politicians and the way politics are today are the cause for all of the country's problems... the wrong people get put into office because of certain 'qualifications' they have that aren't truly qualifications; and then they only work their party's agenda, not the people's, which means the things that really matter (education reform, health care reform, etc) never get addressed properly; which means they don't change, which leads to our kids not getting a proper educations, or health care being run by insurance companies with no regard to what people really can afford, or even need; which leads to kids not knowing anything and not able to get jobs to even create their own worth; which leads to these 'kids' having no respect for anyone else or anything else; which leads to lack of caring; which leads to doing a crappy job, no matter what it is, which leads to companies getting upset and not thinking these employees are worth their pay; which leads to layoff and/or that company moving out of the State/Country.
Maybe a little of my logic is off, but you get the gist. Watch out for me when I get old.
I thought it would just pass us by this year, barely phasing us and our day to day lives. You know... it would just be Spring before we knew it. We were still getting into the 50's in early January, after all...
It's nice to dream sometimes.
Winter came in hard and fast today, with the temperatures dropping from a 'comfortable' 36 degrees, just above freezing, to WELL below freezing with a windchill taking us to below 0. Cold weather does not make this girl happy.
It started with some light snow late this morning, and grew steady through the afternoon. It stopped for a bit before rush hour, but we were promised more was to come. And it it did. But not before I had to leave work and head home. I walked out of my office to find some of the snow had iced over, including on my car, freezing the doors shut. Awesome. I had to resort to popping my rear hatch and climbing in over the seats. Thankfully, I don't think anyone was witness to it. Not sure why I'm even writing about it now.
It snowed through the night with lots of wind and bitter cold temperatures. This was not the way to break us into Winter, Mother Nature. What happened to the gradual decline in temps through December before we got to weather like this?? It didn't look too bad when daylight broke. The salt crews stayed on top of what came down and the roads were very drivable. But it was still cold. Really cold! About 15* with a windchill still below zero.
But you know what? Despite the frigid temperatures, it looked pretty. So long as you could stay inside. Which I tried to do as much as possible, aside from my trips between the car and various buildings. It can warm up, though... at least make the wind stop.
*dreaming*
Barely a week into the new year, and we've already celebrated four birthdays!
Okay.... so we cheated a little. One birthday was at the end of December, one is in a week, one's next month, and one was from LAST May! But this was one of the lone times we could get all the kids AND all of us together to celebrate. So four birthday kids meant four birthday cakes! 
I offered to help Lytta so she didn't need to spend an entire day in the kitchen making cakes. I ended up making the boys' cakes, both of which were space shuttles. Betty Crocker made it look easy enough, and it may be for the more experienced cake maker, but then it may just be my perfectionism talking, too. I guess they turned out alright...
With the cakes, we brought down a bunch of food and had a quick and easy dinner while watching football. 
We actually had the celebration down at Kelly's house, so the kids were much less apprehensive since they were in their own house... with their own Wii. It made it easier at the end of the night, too... no kids getting cranky because they were tired. Plus, no clean-up for Eric and I (either before or after), even though we still pitched in there. The party came up kind of last minute, though, and our house was nowhere near company ready (since we weren't expecting any anytime soon!).
It was a fun night, though. Hopefully, the kids don't feel gypped out of an individual party for them... but I don't think they did. Especially since they all had their own cake!
It's a pretty cool set-up they have - not sure if it's a normal set-up or a new one for the new public attendance. They had nine key players and the head coach set up at individual podiums for an hour (for each team), and the rest of the players rotated to other media set up along the sideline. We were all given radios so we could tune into one of six mic'd up players/coaches. Of course there was a lot of focus on both quarterbacks. In fact, it was obvious a majority of people were listening to Tom Brady when he started gushing with respect for Peyton Manning and the crowd cheered. It was at this point he realized the public could hear his interview. Apparently, they failed to tell the players some of them could be heard by the audience over radios. All in all, it was a neat experience.
zipline! Some friends of our had extra tickets for tonight and offered them up to us. That was one ticket that Eric and I decided NOT to buy in advance, but then by we decided it might actually be cool, all the advanced tickets were sold out! So we were pretty excited when we got the invite tonight.
