When I asked four friends over to watch “Mamma Mia” and to dine on Greek cuisine because the movie is set in the Greek isles, I had no idea Sunday was the night of the Super Bowl.

All I knew was it was Feb. 1 and it was time to kick the month of January in the behind. I’ve long thought January should be canceled — particularly in Minnesota when the weather is just plain frightening.

If you can’t leave the state or cancel January, what better way to escape than watch a movie during which not one person is costumed in a Michelin man coat? Where the Mediterranean is the most beautiful blue you’ve ever seen? Where Meryl Streep continues to impress us with her acting range and her singing, and Pierce Brosnan still looks handsome even if his singing falls short? Where there are many laugh-out-loud moments even if the story line isn’t the greatest? Where even grown women find themselves singing along to Abba even though they’ve never been fond of them?

Skeptical? Check out the trailer below — it has 2.9 million page views so far.  

I also had no idea who was playing in the Super Bowl until I read that Sen. Amy Klobuchar was invited to President Barack Obama’s party, and she was rooting for Arizona and he for Pittsburgh.

And that was pretty much the case for my friends. Not one turned down the impromptu invitation issued late last week. I think one was thrilled because she figured her husband would be fixated on the game, and she really likes to sing and dance to “Mamma Mia.”

She noted that it was 50-something degrees in Athens.

Yes, maybe my friends and I live in a world apart from the Super Bowl and the millions of dollars spent on quirky ads. But while others feasted on chips and Sloppy Joes, we had gyros, Greek salad, raspberry-pineapple salad, pita bread, stuffed grape leaves and baklava ice cream for dessert (and malted milk balls and dark chocolate for the movie).

Then we escaped into the world of “Mamma Mia.” A sure cure for the wintertime blues.