Welcome Back Me: I have spent pretty much of the last week in not-so-sunny, pretty-damn-chilly, Southern California -- specifically, El Lay. High temperatures all week hovered around 58. High temperature when I got back to Ann Arbor today: 58. A full accounting of my trip will be forthcoming, but let me just say that the Rose Bowl, while quite a spectacle, was a bloody disaster for the Wolverines.

I can only assume that the offensive line adopted the strategy of the Radiers in last year's Super Bowl, considering Navarre was too busy hitting the turf to hit his receivers. And Suzy Kolber demonstrated a better pass defense when she was opposing Joe Namath. Ah well -- it was all very traditional: The historically most frequent Big 10 champ loses to the historically most frequent Pac 10 champ. All we needed was Bo Schembechler and some throwback jerseys to take us right back to 1980.

More importantly, I have clearly done something to offend the travel gods. I don’t think I have ever experienced more delays, cancellations, and general frustrations than during my journeys there and back. I think I wrote nearly a thousand words solely on the first leg from Grand Rapids, MI to Milwaukee, WI.

But like I said, that and more will be coming soon. For now, jet lag is my steadfast companion. Once I lose him, you’ll see me again.