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A shop owner from the Phoenix area called the other day to order patterns and naturally the conversation turned to the fact that we are facing each other in the Super Bowl this weekend. Coming from the home of the Pittsburgh Steelers, who have the worlds most dedicated fans, I was a bit surprised when she said that the game wasn’t a really big deal in Arizona. She was of the opinion that most people only watch the game for the commercials. That made me a bit sad. The Phoenix coach, Ken Wiesenhunt (better known around here as The Whiz) was on the Steelers staff on their last trip to the Super Bowl and it must feel strange to him to NOT have fans the caliber of Steeler Nation backing him up.

Watching the game to see the commercials seems a bit weird to me. We are bombarded with advertising every waking minute of every day. Take my socks for instance. Why on earth do my socks say “NO NONSENSE” across the toes? Is that a command or reminder to behave? Why did they give that name to my socks anyway? I’ve tried to imagine the corporate meeting when a bunch of “suits” were sitting around a conference table trying to choose a name for their new hosiery line. Exactly how do you think that conversation developed to the point where they thought “NO NONSENSE” expressed the finer points of their product? Then you might want to consider why they decided that the expense of developing a machine that would knit those words directly into the toe of each of my little footie socks was absolutely necessary. While my socks are a veritable advertising beacon, most of you tuck yours inside your shoes and the message is lost. Exactly how much mileage were they hoping to get out of applying text to my tootsies?

A friend (with as sick of a sense of humor as mine) wrote me asking if I had seen the ad for “Aciphex” a new pharmaceutical. (don’t get me started on ads for things that you can’t really buy) This is a new drug that reduces acid reflux. Aciphex is pronounced “ass-effects” according to the commercial. How on earth the announcer got through the recording of that ad without dying of laughter is beyond me. It reminds me of the TV Quilting personality that spent one entire episode referring to a Tri-Rex ruler as a “rec-tool ruler”. I know… I have a demented sense of humor.

If you are one of those people that are only watching the big game this weekend to see the commercials, I would like to suggest that instead of suffering through play after play of the actual game, you might want to cheer the Steelers on to Victory! It is easy to join the Steeler Nation!

Here are a few tips to looking and sounding like a professional: Dress yourself in anything you own that is black and gold. Refer to our quarterback as “Big Ben”. At any point in the conversation you can say “Don’t you just love Hines Ward” or “Let’s see some Fast Willie Parker”. Under no circumstances should you question the length of Troy Polamalu's hair. One more point, keep in mind that if anyone mentions a “six pack” they are not necessarily suggesting that you go for beer.

Go Steelers!