Super?
My Super Bowl Sunday included a late breakfast at Jack's Coffee Shop in Whittier with a friend, a visit to Whittier's Little Old Bookshop (which, in a news flash, just changed hands and is now called Half Off Books), a mid-afternoon lunch at an uncharacteristically empty Mix Bowl Cafe in Pomona (at game time) and a book break at an uncharacteristically quiet Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf in Claremont.
Two senior men were in front of me in line. They concluded the Super Bowl was to blame for the calm.
"Who's playing?" one asked.
"The Steelers and..." the other said, forehead crinkled in thought. He couldn't come up with the other team.
"You can tell the baseball guys from the football guys," his friend replied with a chuckle.
I had a good day but wish I'd planned something better, like a visit to a place that's always packed -- The Grove, say, or Philippe's -- just to revel in the elbow room.
How was your Super Bowl Sunday -- especially if it didn't include the Super Bowl?
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A journalist for more than two decades, David Allen has been writing a column for the Daily Bulletin since 1997 and blogging since 2007.He lives in Claremont.
E-mail David here or read columns here.
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This SuperBowl I did what I've done for the past several years: made myself a vodka martini and read my book while sitting on my patio. The difference is that this year I was reading my book on my iPad! That I didn't have last year. No one had an iPad at this time past year. Now 7 MILLION of us have them. Dang, Apple. Take over the world, why don't you?
And, hey: Great news about Whittier's The Little Old Bookshop! I grew up in Whittier, so any positive news about that town I like to hear. I kind of wish the new owners would keep the old name, since I'm a sentimental type, but whatever. Great bookstore! I wish I was closer so I could visit and support them more often. You go, Little Old Bookshop! Or Half Off Books! I'll call you whatever you want. (And, while we're at it, props to Jack's Coffee Shop too!)
I was at the final performance of Lisa Lane and the Ladies of Country Music at the Candlelight Pavillon in Claremont. It was great!
I've never watched a Super Bowl (nor even a football game), but my fondest memory of the first Super Bowl in 1967 was the craftiness of my favorite radio station at the time, KRLA.
The station sent out upwards of 15,000 schematics telling people how to build their own VHF antenna out of wood and coat hangers so they could pick up San Diego TV stations and watch the game. It had been blacked-out in the Los Angeles area.
http://krlabeat.sakionline.net/blog.html
As for this year, I fed the roses and fuchsias and spent the afternoon sitting in the sun with my neighbor's cat, re-reading Edith Wharton's "Custom of the Country."
What is this "Super Bowl" of which you speak? A new fast food place featuring larger-than-usual soup bowls? Nah, I guess that would be named "Souper Bowl." Or maybe "Super Soup Bowl."
I put a couple of chicken breasts on the Foreman, had a heap of veggies along side, put on some music (Patsy Cline and the Beatles, if you must know), grabbed a real-life paperback and disappeared from the everyday for a while.
Then I took a nap. All in all a very delightful day.
Well, I watched it! OK, I watched the commercials. During the game I played with my best friend's little toddler, who didn't always appreciate my leaving him to see the ads. I missed Christina Aguilera messing up the National Anthem, and wish I had missed the awful half-time show!
I'm a fair-weather football fan, but I love to cook so I helped out a buddy by making very fresh and moderately spicy salsa and a killer shrimp salad. Did you take advantage of Jack's "at your table toaster" or have they abolished that item that was a mainstay for years?
[No toasters in sight. I hadn't heard of that; that's a shame. -- DA]
Alana and I performed at Disneyland along with our dance troupe, Irish Dimensions. We were all hoping that the park would be lighter due to folks staying home for the game. Alas, no. It was plenty crowded. The best thing, though, was that they did not ruin Disney magic by having the sound systems blaring the stupid game. They left that up to the ESPN Store in the downtown. LOL
Had the crowds been lighter, I would have told you that it was the perfect day to be there. However, even for passers like us, things were slow-going, and we didn't stay long after our show. :)