HANCOCK, Mich. -- Safely esconced in Hancock for at least a little while longer, I've got a few thoughts about the recently passed Super Bowl.

- First of all, I watched the game at the Jitterbug Bar in downtown Saginaw. I had a totally awesome time with the free eats (the chili was very good). Although I got distracted by trivia and a Wheel of Fortune knock-off by the end of the game, I think everyone had a good time. Steve, by a stroke of luck and help from Erin, trashed the high score on the Wheel of Fortune knock-off.

- On to the pre-game, I'm so glad that I only was exposed to an hour of FOX's pre-game show. I'm afraid that I would've been knocked out by terminal boredom if I started watching the pre-game show at 10 a.m. (The game started at around 6:30 p.m.)

- Disconnect. The FOX pre-game was kind enough to have a reading of parts of the Declaration of Independence (although I'm still slightly baffled as to how that pertains to a sporting event). Good stuff to be sure, considering it's part of the foundation of our nation.

However, conspicuously absent were any representatives from the "left" while Jack Kemp and a representative of Focus on the Family got their fair share of the spotlight. Oh, and women didn't get to read part of the Declaration either. Sure, that's both "Fair _and_ Balanced." Oh I forgot, those "commie" lefties don't believe in freedom.

While this oversight isn't worth a "post-Janet Jackson outrage!" come on.

- Speaking of Janet Jackson, this year's halftime show featuring Paul McCartney was horrifically bland. However, considering the history of Super Bowl halftime shows, it wasn't all bad. (BTW, The Simpsons "Halftime D'oh!" was an utter embarrassment despite revealing the name of Comic Book Guy. Oh, and American Dad seemed like a pale knock-off of Family Guy. Considering that Family Guy is a pale knock-off of The Simpsons, that's not good.)

- The introductions. Will Smith and Michael Chiklis (sic?) were OK, but isn't the game about the players? Wouldn't it have been better to do a traditional player introduction ceremony instead of the semi-glossy tripe that FOX served up? The blue-screen line-up preening of the players slightly made up for this oversight (or lack thereof).

- America the Beautiful. I thought it was great that Alicia Keys and a deaf and blind school choir performed the song (which is a better "song of unity" and better song overall than God Bless America). At the same time, I was slightly spooked by seeing the ghostly visage of Ray Charles joining Keys in a duet. Still, if the late Rod Roddy of The Price is Right is doing public service announcements on the radio, I suppose it's not too bad.

- The national anthem. I was truly struck by seeing cadets from the American military academies singing The Star-Spangled Banner. Although I was curious how "The Greatest Generation" figured into the Super Bowl (which is not to say World War II veterans shouldn't be recognized), the ceremony was a emotional one.

- Commercials. Only a couple of them stood out in my mind. I liked the AmeriQuest "Don't Judge People Too Quickly" commercials because of the set-ups and I liked the Pepsi iTunes commercials out of loyalty. The Napster commercial bombed completely -- there was very little humor and it probably created more confusion among those who had no clue about downloading music.

- Last but hopefully not least. When it came to the game itself, I was pleasantly surprised by the defensive struggle on the field. It was a relatively close match despite the big lead the Pats developed toward the end of the game. I was in a bar full of mostly Eagle fans while I lukewarmly thought the Pats would pull it out. We all got along famously and we all had an awesome time.