SUPER BOWL, HERE WE COME!

Many years ago, soon after Lou & I met, I gave him some gift giving advice if he wanted to steal my heart. I told him, “Don’t buy me jewelry. It doesn’t really interest me. AND if you were going to spend that much money, take me somewhere instead! Preferably a sporting event!” He has followed that advice wonderfully over the years with lots of fantastic trips & getaways.

We have been to the Daytona 500 (my favorite driver, Jeff Gordon, won) & Talladega 500 NASCAR races & the Indianapolis 500 open wheel auto race. The Giants beat the Phillies at the Major League Baseball playoff game he surprised me with in 2010 (the Giants went on to win their first World Series). There have been several NBA playoff games that we attended back when the Sacramento Kings were contenders. A couple years ago we watched the U.S. Open Golf Tournament & a professional tennis tournament in Palm Springs where all the big name players competed. And just this year we saw the America’s Cup yacht racing finals on San Francisco Bay.

BUT this year’s Christmas gift just may top the list! For several years, Lou has entered a lottery to be chosen to purchase Super Bowl tickets. Only 500 to 1000 pairs of tickets are given out for sale to the general public each year. They aren’t cheap, but going on Stub Hub or other resale sites jacks the price up three or four times or more of the face value.

There is only one entry per address allowed & it must be sent via registered mail. For many years Lou has entered using his dad’s, his sister’s, my sister’s, my son’s & my dad’s addresses in addition to ours. Each year we have all received postcards telling us we weren’t chosen & thanking us for participating – UNTIL THIS YEAR!

My sister, Karen, received an envelope advising her that she had the opportunity to purchase two tickets to the 2014 Super Bowl at the Meadowlands in East Rutherford, New Jersey!! But, there was a stipulation that this year (they had changed the rules without informing the entrants) ONLY the person whose name was on the letter could purchase the tickets & MUST pick them up with a photo ID & the credit card used for purchase, in person, at the stadium. Damn it!

Well, Karen & I figured out how to do it within minutes. We each have a credit card on my dad’s account in our names. She purchases the tickets using that credit card. Then she goes to the DMV, says she lost her driver’s license & gets a new one. Now, she gives me the old license & the credit card in her name. We are similar height & weight, both have long blonde hair & I just pull a ski cap over my head & pick up the tickets. Voila!

But Lou wasn’t too keen on our deceptive scheme & vetoed it. Hey, I know we could have totally pulled it off. However, Lou emailed & phoned the NFL office in charge of the lottery tickets. At first he was told they wouldn’t allow the transfer. The whole purpose of this new system is to prevent people from obtaining tickets & scalping them. Between Lou & Karen making several phone calls & sending emails back & forth (& an NFL guy who happened to go to bat for us with his supervisor), they made it happen! Lou was allowed to purchase the tickets for his use!

We have put together a week long trip to New Jersey & New York in the dead of winter so please, everyone, cross your fingers that the weather doesn’t turn nasty with a huge blizzard in early February! But if it does, what the hell, we’ll figure it out. It’s all part of the adventure!

Sure, I already know that my Christmas present is a trip to the Super Bowl, BUT half the fun of any gift is the anticipation – & I have a little over two months to let the excitement build. How cool is that? This is way better than a surprise. And WAY, WAY better than any pearl necklace or diamond earrings.

Does my sweetie know how to give a gift or what???? THANK YOU! Imagine – a trip to the SUPER BOWL! Be still my heart. How much better does it get for a true sports fan? What events could be left? Hmmm . . . . maybe the NBA All Star Game or the Olympics sometime – hint, hint. J