Fall is observed during the month of October, period.  Leaves falling, the World Series, and Halloween mark Fall.  All happen in the month of October, and the Canadians are wise enough to understand that Thanksgiving belongs in the month of October as well.

Winter begins on November 1st and ends on February 28th (or 29th every leap year).  Christmas, the Super Bowl, and more snow in certain parts of the Northern hemisphere than is possibly needed mark the season.

But guess what?  Winter is officially over.  And today marks the beginning of SpringSummer, running from exactly March 1st through the end of September.

It is a state of mind and we all experience it.  Whether today was 75 and sunny where you read this or below freezing with heavy snow, you know what I’m talking about.  There is just a greater optimism on that day that the calendar first says “March”.  It seems rather arbitrary to separate Spring from Summer and there’s no reason to ever bound SpringSummer strictly by the solstices.

For those of you who enjoy the winter months, I am truly sorry.  But you’ll have to deal with it.  It’s not so hard to imagine SpringSummer if you try.

And what’s so great about March anyway?  Well, we are 7 days away from the beginning of Daylight Savings Time, 14 days away from Selection Sunday, 18 days away from the 4 greatest consecutive days on the sports calendar (a.k.a. the opening rounds of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament), and Spring Training unfolds daily from warm locales in Arizona and Florida.

And if you are a nocturnal creature, bemoaning the longer daylight hours, or could care less about the latest news from the world of sports, I’m happy to let you know that March is Red Cross Month.  Can’t argue with that one, now can you?

I hope you’ve enjoyed the first two months of work on this site.  There will be many more random musings and slightly off-center observations from the world around us in the days, weeks, and months ahead.  We are just getting warmed up around here – literally.  Stick around for a while.

And enjoy the first day of SpringSummer!

This year found the team guaranteeing an NFL-record $41 million to Albert Haynesworth and another $22.5 million to DeAngelo Hall. That is the same Albert Haynesworth who was suspended for 5 games in 2006 for cleating an opponent’s face and the same DeAngelo Hall who was waived by the woeful Oakland Raiders just last season.

Snyder’s Redskins have a history of splashy free agent signings over the last 10 years – from Bruce Smith to Deion Sanders to London Fletcher and countless others.  And what has it bought him?  Exactly two playoff wins and only two playoff appearances this decade.  Pathetic.

Don Banks of SI.com wonders why the Redskins keep making the same mistakes over and over again.  It was Albert Einstein who once defined insanity as the act of doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.  Hmmm…

There was plenty of other action today and more certain to follow.  Adam Schefter is one of the best at keeping tabs on all of the latest activity in his blog at NFL.com.

One under-the-radar move that bears watching is the Patriots’ signing of Fred Taylor.  The veteran running back (and future Hall of Famer) is a nice addition to a typically stacked roster. 

The Patriots have been very active in free agency over the last decade but tend to leave the flashy signings to owners like Snyder and Jerry Jones.  While the Redskins and Cowboys collect headlines, the Patriots (and others) just collect Super Bowl titles with their much more astute player personnel decisions.

We’ve seen a new President take office, a new Super Bowl champion crowned and, um, even a new H-O-R-S-E champion.

However, much has remained the same for those who entered 2009 unemployed or in dire financial straits.

Well, turns out that Mental Floss has got you covered.  Check out their lists of “8 Successful People Grateful They Got Canned” and “7 Wildly Successful People Who Survived Bankruptcy”. Hopefully, both will provide a little inspiration for all of us.

If not, just continue to waste your hours away online.  The Daily Lunchtime Quiz Archive will be a great place to start.  Or, if you prefer, just spend some time with the human beat machine from Uzbekistan.

And it will be very interesting to see how Santonio Holmes handles his new fame as Super Bowl MVP.  My guess is not well.  He has, after all, been arrested three times since joining the Steeler franchise out of The Ohio State University.

But congrats to the best franchise in the post-merger era.  It gets no sweeter than this.

The history of the Super Bowl starts with two things: the merging of the American Football League with National Football League, and a bouncy rubber ball.

The NFL – AFL World Championship Game was created as a piece of the merger agreement between the NFL and the AFL in 1966.

During the negotiations between the NFL and the AFL, Kansas City Chief owner, Lamar Hunt, thought of the name “Super Bowl” for the Championship game, after observing his daughter playing with her toy Super Ball. Hunt only meant the name to be a stop-gap until the powers that be could think of something better. Not having thought of one, the game was named “The NFL-AFL World Championship Game”.

The first Championship took place in 1967. With the official title being quite a mouth full, the fans as well as the media took to the short, unofficial name, Super Bowl. In 1969, the name, “Super Bowl” became official.

The Green Bay Packers won the first two Super Bowls convincingly, causing many people to question if the AFL teams could compete. The very next year, the New York Jets upset the Baltimore Colts for the AFL’s first Super Bowl Title. The Chiefs won the 4th Super Bowl, evening the record at 2-2.

In 1970, the NFL and AFL merged into one combined league with two conferences, which resembles today’s National Football League. Three NFL Teams joined the 10 AFL teams forming the AFC (American Football Conference). The remaining 13 teams from the old NFL formed the NFC (National Football Conference).

The winner of each Super Bowl receives the Vince Lombardi Trophy, named after Vince Lombardi, the great coach for the Green Bay Packers who led his team to victory in each of the first two Super Bowls. Following his death, the trophy was named prior to Super Bowl V in his honor.

Enjoy the game!  Kickoff at 6:18pm ET.

Vince Lombardi Trophy

FanNation posted the headline “Favre-to-Vikings move possible” and immediately saw the topic become its most commented of the day. 

The note in its original context was first run in the St. Paul Pioneer Press.  Charley Walters offers the idea that the Favre-Vikings rumors “have been circulating for a week.”

So wrong

Personally, I strongly believe that Brad Childress and Darrell Bevell are waiting for Favre’s imminent release to make this concept official.  Favre may not have much left but he is an immediate upgrade from Tarvaris Jackson, Gus Frerotte, & John David Booty.

As for Favre’s current employer, the New York Jets, it appears that talks regarding his future could begin as early as next week.

It will be very interesting to see how the Packer faithful react to this new round of speculation.  Was last summer’s gnashing of teeth the end of it or will new emotions rise to the surface?

Brett will not pass on an opportunity to stick it to Ted Thompson.  And Thompson’s worst nightmare appears imminent.  Or is it?

Perhaps the Aaron Rodgers era is now officially underway and none of this matters anyway.  Rodgers reflected on his first season on ESPN Radio this morning.  The interview with Mike & Mike runs about 8 minutes and covers a number of topics, including his take on the only game that really matters this week.

But there is one point to which no one will argue.  Steelers fans are obsessed.

And will provide a sizable home-field advantage for Pittsburgh on Sunday waving their Terrible Towels.  For extra motivation, they are already in an uproar over this video of Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon “disrespecting” their hallowed piece of cloth.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has been asking fans to upload photos showing their passion for the Steelers and over 1000 (and counting) have shared their love of all things Black ‘n’ Gold for the world to see.  A few of the most notable are profiled here, including one fanatic who explains his tattoos of Lambert, Bradshaw, Bleier, and Roethlisberger to go along with the bedtime reading of Steelers rosters with his fortunate son.

Conversely, the state of Cardinals fans can be summed up with the sad tale of “The Birdman” in this entertaining comparison of the two fan bases from this week’s Phoenix New Times.

The Super Bowl tickets will make their way into the hands of Steeler Nation one way or the other.  And hopefully, NBC’s production will give us a taste of the inequity of support for (and its effect on) the two teams during the game.

But the sad fact is that the majority of them (at least outside of Steeler Nation) really could care less if Warner or Roethlisberger gets his second ring.  Or if Tomlin can outcoach Whisenhunt.  Or, quite frankly, who wins at all.

You know it, I know it, everyone knows it.  All eyes will be on the stupid commercials.

Personally, I think this whole subplot to the best sports event of the year is ponderous and boring.  You may believe otherwise and, if so, I recommend that you check out this profile of the Top 25 Super Bowl Commercials of All Time.

I will make one exception to my lack of interest in Super Bowl commercials and it is technically not a “Super Bowl” commercial at all, as it debuted prior to the game.  It will always be remembered as such, however, due to its exposure during Super Bowl XIV on January 20, 1980.

This classic Mean Joe Greene spot stands as a milestone ad and one that all young fans related to for the possibilities that it stirred in having an impact on your heroes’ lives (not to mention the sweaty souvenir).

Well, it turns out the Coke has brought it back in some form, this time to promote Coke Zero.  In this first look, Troy Polamalu does his best Mean Joe and preps us for the “twist” to come. 

I like Polamalu.  And the bonus of having a player in the game star in this ad is a nice coincidence for Coke.  But this twist better be worth it.  The last thing we need is another lousy football remake.

But, since the Super Bowl brings out gamblers of all stripes, I thought that you might enjoy this interview with Jay Rood, Race & Sports Book Director of the MGM Mirage.

Some interesting nuggets, including the reminder that the Cards were 60-1 to actually win the Super Bowl. There’s gotta be at least one die-hard Phoenician (?) who stumbled into that bet during a weekend bender in Las Vegas last summer.

As for me, I am done with predictions for awhile. I think I’ll stick to something more my speed, like Super Bowl Squares.