Saturday Workout at C.U.S.

Today was our last Saturday workout before donning the pads on February 7th.  

Seven new Elephants joined Gianmarco Pecorraro for the two hour drive from Palermo.

Gianmarco, in the center of the bottom row with the gray ski cap, will be playing the role of Jesus Christ in several Passion Plays all over Sicily during Holy week this spring.

We met at noon at the Elephant War Room to go over the offensive and defensive playbooks and clear up any questions that they may have had.

It was a very productive session.

Catania University Sportivo (C.U.S.)

As stated earlier, we will be playing our games here at C.U.S. this season.  Yes, that IS the Ionian Sea in the distance.

The view of C.U.S. from the other end zone.

 

The Elephants on a Warm-Up Jog

near Brian FitzGerald's Newest Sprint Toy

I had to ask what in the world is that huge bowl-like contraption at the edge of the track?  I have never seen anything quite like it before so I asked our owner Davide, sprinter/WR Salvo Persano and WR Claudio Mangano.  The same answer from all three of them independently.

Are you ready for this?  Sprinters are supposed to train in it.  Apparently, a college professor in Italy proposed that if you ran inside this thing, the need to fight centrifugal force would make you faster... if you didn't fall due to lack of speed, visualize me or Giulio Romano running in this thing.

It seems that the good professor was able to sell these things to track facilities all over Italy.  Only later did they figure out that it didn't work but ours is still out there for you to try out.

Now Brian FitzGerald, the Track Coach at Rio Mesa H.S., is recognized as one of the very finest sprint coaches in all of American high school coaching.  If Brian can get one of these things, I know that he could make it work to the Spartans' advantage!

30 Liter Can

This is Davide Giuliano's and it will soon be holding 30 liters of olive oil for his home use.

Sicilians take their olive oil VERY seriously in case you did not know!

at last... RADIO FREE MALIBU!!!

It is with a great deal of pride and with a heavy dose of humility that I can announce to you that Malibu now has a high speed internet connection for the first time in recorded Sicilian history!  That's over 3,000 years you know.

A Close Encounter of the First Kind

 I called Laurie, Jason and our friends the FitzGeralds on Skype and they all confirmed the strength of the connection... THIS IS AWESOME!!!

Now I know some of you are thinking, is this a new internet connection for 2009 or is this last year's "Internet in ten working days" finally being installed after 13 months?

I know which way I'm leaning but I'm not saying, I'm just happy to be alive and connected.

Savoca, The Godfather and Mummies

Feeling MUCH better today so I rallied for the 30 mile drive north to the mountain top town of Savoca.

The Savoca City Limits Wall

I said Savoca was a mountain top town.

Everything is ready in case a parade breaks out. 

Rush Hour in Savoca

Chiesa Santa Lucia

The first priority was to find two of the filming locations for the movie "The Godfather".  This is the first one I stumbled upon since there is nothing posted that refers to the Francis Ford Coppola film crew ever being here, I guess the subject matter of the film probably has something to do with this.

In the movie this is the church where Michael Corleone married Apollonia.

The Bar Vitelli

This is where Michael Corleone, a.k.a., Claudio Mangano, and his two bodyguards sat down and accidently disrespected Apollonia's father who owns the bar.  They were seated at the table to the left of the door and I believe that in the movie there was a shade screen over their table since it was another scorching hot summer in Siciliy.

Stylin'

This lovely young lady had the dubious job of breaking my heart and having to tell me that the Bar Vitelli was CHIUSO or closed.  All I wanted was one small cup of coffee in a historic bar, no such luck!  What was I thinking showing up at 11:30 a.m. looking for sustenance in a place like the Bar Vitelli?

O.K., the Bar Vitelli was closed but the final stop in Savoca promised to be interesting to say the least, the mummies in the Convent of the Frati Minori Cappuccini.

What, they're turning the Mummy Crypt into a restaurant?

Are the Mummies are going out to dinner perhaps?

Or maybe they mean restoration.

Hi-Tech "CHIUSO" Sign

Bottom line, the Convent is closed until Feb. 20, 2009.  You know those people who can never find a mummy when they want one, well I'm one of them having struck out in both Rome and Palermo last year for the exact same reason.  Are they really closed or are they all trying to hide something from the public?

Forza d'Agro Church

This church in nearby Forza d'Agro, also appeared in "The Godfather" when Michael first sees the town of Corleone.

 

Padre Pio

Not in "The Godfather" but HUGE in Italy nonetheless.

Of course in these two ancient villages there were several really remarkable buildings such as these next three.

Sicilian Puppet Show

You read about these traditional puppet shows in Sicilian travel books but I have yet to see one.  These were at the small shopping center in Acireale where I shopped for groceries on the way home from a somewhat disappointing day in Savoca.

I forgot to mention that our Elephant's workout Wednesday night was sparsely attended due to the BIG calcio game in Catania's Stadium against Inter Milan.  Inter prevailed 2-0.  It was eerie to be at practice and hear the roar of the Catania calcio crowd about a mile away.

The Road to Recovery is a Long One

Another long day in bed fighting this cold I caught in London, no fun!  I'm feeling a whole lot better tonight and I am going to rally Friday morning for a short road trip to Savoca about 30 miles north of Malibu near Taormina.

Why you ask?  Well, I am a life long reader of The National Geographic magazine and the February, 2009 issue that arrived in Camarillo just before I left had a feature article about "The Crypts of Sicily" and their mummies.

Savoca is also where Francis Ford Coppola filmed the wedding reception scene in "The Godfather" that was supposed to be the real western Sicilian town of Corleone.  Coppola thought that Corleone was too developed at the time of the filming in the early 1970's so he went to the east end of the island and found his perfect setting in Savoca.

It should be an interesting adventure.

If you want to read the National Geographic article on the "Crypts of Sicily" click

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2009/02/sicily-crypts/gill-text

The Long Arm of the Law, Part II

Sorry that I have not had much to report.  I am battling a sore throat from my long, cold walks in London.  Ergo, I've been in bed a lot, just not feeling too hot.

I have rallied for our conditioning/agility workout on Monday and a workout/meeting with our rookie DB's Tuesday night.  Tonight it will be back to Catania University's Sports Stadium for another round of conditioning/agility drills.

I sent Claudio a copy of the University of Nebraska's Strength and Conditioning book and the Elephants are following it religiously.  

I paid my ticket in Florence for entering a restricted zone with my rental car.  The Florence Municipal Police e-mailed me this very nice receipt and I loved their last line "Thank you and we send best regards."

If nothing else, the Florentines are a polite people.

The Italian Legal System

I opened my e-mail today to find out that Laurie had received a letter back in Camarillo yesterday from the Municipal Police of the beautiful city of Florence.  It appears that when I visited Florence last June 18th to see Mike and Vanessa, I was photographed driving my rent-a-car in a restricted area, i.e., only locals with a special permit are allowed to enter these zones.

Of course, no one at the rental company bothered to tell me about these zones and I am sure that they are probably clearly marked in Italian.

Bottom line, I owe the city of Florence 94 Euros for the ticket plus another 0.84 Euros for their postage stamp.  It was over six months ago, does anybody know anything about Italy's Statute of Limitations?

Electronic surveillance, who would have guessed it? Damn their eyes!!!

Stretching at C.U.S.

About 40 Elephants showed up at the University of Catania's Sports Complex to go through a 90 minute session of conditioning and agility drills.  A lot of good work was accomplished.

On a side note, our five home games will be played at this much more centrally located C.U.S. facility this year.

Also of note, our season opener at the home of the Ancona Doves has been switched back to Saturday, March 21, at 1:00 p.m.

A Serene Afternoon on the Ionian Sea

Staples

I did my first round of shopping today at the IPerSimply in Aci Reale.  A little bread, extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar... what else do you want in life?

Team Building Evening

Sunday evening was a time for some team building so we joined some of the Elephants for dinner and a few beverages.

But first I must digress, last year at the end of the season the four Americans sat down with our owner Davide Giuliano to discuss how to make the team better and how to improve the living conditions for the imports.

While "Malibu" was a great spot for Jason, Christie and myself, Matt and Brandon's experience at "The Dorm" needed to improve dramatically.

Let's take a look at Larry, Taber and Luke's new digs in Aci Trezza, "Newport"...

Mythos

The view out their front door is the side of our favorite local cafe, Mythos.  Convenient to say the least.

One of their spacious bedrooms.

Their living room

The view out of "Newport's" front window is nice.

Dinner at a new spot, Camelot,

near Castello Ursino

Bacon and Green Onion Cipolata, Veal Involtini and Bistec di Cavallo

Parking Karma?

Fondo Bianco

Atilio is the owner of the team bar.  An avid Harley-Davidson rider, I brought him this H-D T-shirt from the Camarillo store which he really appreciated with a series of complimentary beverages.

Operation Enduring Freedom

Atilio also is a staunch supporter of U.S. Navy personnel stationed at the nearby Sigonella Naval Air Station.  He is very proud of that they awarded him this U.S. flag and certificate in appreciation.   

Team Bonding is a MUST for Team Chemistry

The Phone Man Cometh

This morning Gustavo arrived with two representatives from the phone company to activate the phone line in Malibu.  The router SHOULD be in by the end of the week which means high speed INTERNET at home!!!

Glynis Carrodeguas and the flight to Catania

Who is Glynis Carrodeguas you ask?  She was the charming stewardess aboard my British Air flight from London's Gatwick Airport to Catania.  First, she was the winner of the recent "Great Britain Molly Slavin Look-a-Like Contest".  Molly was one of the absolute best booster club Moms in the history of North American high school football!  Glynis is a dead ringer for Molly and unfortunately the picture I took of her to prove my point didn't turn out well as a shaft of sunlight through the porthole window behind her ruined the shot, DAMN!  In talking to her I found out that she, like most of the Europeans I met last year, was not a George Bush fan.  The only way I could make sense of her viewpoint on Mr. Bush was that her ancestors must have worked in the Tower of London in the Glory Years under King Henry VIII.

Check-in at Gatwick was smooth taking a total of maybe five minutes from baggage drop off to security screening.  The flight it self was smooth as well but we only had 37 customers on board with only about 20% of the seats being filled.  I had a seat on the aisle in the exit row and was the only person in any of this row's six seats.

Good British Air news, they did not lose my bags on either of my two flights this week!!!

Elephants at Catania's Fontanarossa Airport

They came out to greet me, our new American DB, Larry Atkinson is next to me and a lot of the new faces are players who have joined us from last year's Palermo teams.  It was great to see and meet  everyone.

Arancini Ball at Etoile D'Or

The first stop was obvious, REAL SICILIAN FOOD.  An arancini ball is deep fried rice with an infusion of cheese and meat with rich ragu sauce!

Squisita Pizza at Jonica's Pizzeria

This is a Sicilian individual pizza at one of our favorite haunts in Aci Castello.  This particular one has ham, mushrooms, pistacchio, Swiss cheese and panna which is sour cream.  DELICIOUS!!!

The Guys outside Jonica's

We went to Jonica's for my first night in Catania just like last year.  Good food but the renewal of friendships was better!

Chiara, always funny and animated, was the first Pink Elephant I saw this year.

I woke up this Sunday morning to this view out my window at Malibu of the Ionian Sea.

It is still VERY brisk here because of winds that we did not experience last year.

Two of the Savia Bakery's Pistacchio Cannoli

At 11:30 a.m. my doorbell rang with a home delivery of these two beauties!  Ten minutes later, the doorbell rang again with another delivery, a warm chocolate tartufone hidden under the Savia napkins.

Let the diet begin... on Monday!

Roberta attempting to take a taste of the cannoli.

Roberta and Claudio were the deliverers of the cannoli while Gustavo brought the tartufone.

It was fun to see them and share some breakfast pasteries.

The first of many I'm sure!

Today is "International Jet-Lag Day" in Italy so I had to honor the cultural folkways of my host country.  This called for almost an entire day in bed getting up only for another slice of tartufone, the cannoli were long gone by the time my guests had left.

"I'm feeling better!"

London Pub Signs

As I have stated in past visits to London, I am really fascinated by the signs posted outside of London area pubs to try to entice you into joining them for a pint.

I ate lunch at this one in Covent Garden on Thursday

Good food, good atmosphere

The scene of my Friday mid-day repast.

The rest of these were ones I liked but did not have the time to visit their pub, hope you like them.

Final London Thoughts

One of my favorite views in London

This photo was taken from the steps of the National Gallery looking through Trafalgar Square with majestic Big Ben in the distance.

To sum up two fine days in London, not one person approached me about being an American and what to do about our President.  Last year that happened a lot.

The official temperature yesterday was 4 degrees Celsius which equals 39 degrees Fahrenheit.  It was the wind chill that made it memorable.

British Understatement Moment:  As I waited at the Charing Cross Underground Station late last night for my return to the London Elizabeth Hotel, a very subdued female voice came over the intercom to announce in a rather matter-of-fact fashion that "The Central Line is closed in both directions between Lancaster Gate and Notting Hill Gate due to a person under the train."

Now it is on to Catania this afternoon... Stay Tuned!!!

CHEERS From London!

Man vs. The Elements London Style

I slept right through my alarm due to a combination of jet lag and walking more in one day than I have in the last three months combined but if I hustled I could still make the Changing of the Guard Ceremony at Buckinham Palace at 11:00 a.m.  A quick Tube ride and a brisk walk through Green Park is all I had to do to be on time.

Buckingham Palace

First let's talk about the weather the last two days in London, for some reason the word "RAW" keeps creeping into my noggin.  It was bad enough that they cancelled the Ceremony!  In my opinion, you have to be a little tougher than this if you want to hold on to an empire.

Here you see me by one of the ornate, heavily guarded entry gates.  Please note the green umbrella in my hand that I brought with me from Camarillo.  It would explode about an hour later on Cannon Street due to atmospheric turbulence.

Christopher Wren's St. Paul's Cathedral

My umbrella disintegrated as I took this picture.

City of London Court Buildings

Entry Way to Lloyds of London

The George

Time to refuel, this is a grand old pub across from the Royal Courts of Justice on Fleet Street.

The inside of The George was very cool with these old school glass dividers.

Fish and Chips, of course, with a Pint of an adult beverage.

If I have any more of this room temperature beer, I may become a white wine drinker.  Pino Grigio anyone?  Cheers!

Outdoor Ice Skating in the middle of London

And some of you thought that Rockefeller Center in New York City was the ideal venue for a winter skate!

 

The Phone Booth, the Road Sign... I just liked it.

This picture was taken in Southwark on the South bank of the River Thames on myway to my next stop which was...

The Imperial War Museum

First, it got me out of the wind and cold weather and second, there was no admission fee.  Finally, they have HUGE cannons out front.

Note the new and improved black umbrella I bought that is in my right hand.

A Piece of the Berlin Wall

Always interesting to see a piece of milestone history from my lifetime.

INCOMING!!!

The Imperial War Museum even had an exhibit about my Father-in-Law, Bill Gardner.

Nice Outfits!

There was a group of about 30 boys on a field trip to the Imperial War Museum today, all in their very proper school uniforms.  Rio Mesa H.S. colors, do you think Ray Gonzalez, our Principal, would go for it?

British World War II Propaganda Poster

It was GREAT to see this poster today!  I did an official weigh-in before I left and tied my all-time record at 136.36 kilos!!!  Now I know in what direction to take my diet.

Hey, wasn't Monty stuck in the mud in Catania?

The National Gallery

Weather and free admission once again entered the equation.  Yet another great European art museum with breathtaking paintings.

It is amazing what people did with their creative juices before Play Station and X Box were invented.

Steve Newman

The leader of our Haunted London Ghost Walk

1665: the Plague hits London

1666: the Great Fire of London razes the city

All the time: sadistic murderers, grave robbers (a.k.a. "Resurrection Men"), suicides, unfaithful hooker-wives, public hangings, tortured prisoners...

What more can a city do to inspire a walking night time tour like this one?

The Nancy Pub

Recommended by Catania Elephant WR Gregorio Barbagallo, this was a fine place to sit next to a heater for a while after the 90 minute walk in even RAWER weather.

Good call Gregorio!

London Elizabeth Hotel

This cute hotel has become my London home base.  I love their lift (elevator) that measures 2 1/2 feet deep by 2 feet wide LITERALLY!

Its fun riding down four stories with my two bags.

Catania tomorrow night, I'm very excited!!!

The Journey Begins Again

Every journey has to start somewhere, so mine always seems to start at Cronies Sports Grill in Camarillo, California.  One last club sandwich with a huge drink that was constantly refilled at no extra cost with both Diet Pepsi AND ice!

The best part was dining with my #1 Pink Elephant!

Afterwards Laurie drove me down to Los Angeles International to send me off on my 10 hour, 10 minute non-stop overnight British Airlines flight to London.

Being away from her is the worst part of this deal.

London Heathrow Airport's Terminal 5

Less than a year old, Terminal 5 deals ONLY with British Airlines.  It was built in part as an answer for British Air's uncanny ability to lose luggage in London (see Susan D'Antuono for more info).

Fortunately they did NOT lose my one piece of luggage but I didn't get my bag until one hour after I got off the plane.  Slow to be sure but I'm thankful I had it. 

Heathrow Express at Paddington Station

After the long trip from Camarillo to Heathrow, about 15 hours all told, this Express train that costs 16.50 GB Pounds one way was deemed a necessary luxury.

The London Elizabeth Hotel was only a short 400 meter walk from Paddington Station as opposed to the one hour meandering walk last January when I got hopelessly lost on my first trip to London... LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKES!

After getting checked into the hotel, it was off to see the sights of London.  Where to start?  The obvious choice was a Tube ride to the Barclay's English Premier League's Shangri-La.

The Tube's Piccadily Line's Arsenal Station

My first, very emotional visit to the

"Home of the Gunners!"

Next up, lunch at the Punch & Judy Pub in Covent Garden

The Punch & Judy's Hearty English Fare of Beer, Sausages, Mashed Potato and Gravy

Harry Houdini, Jr.

He was back from the dead and performing at Covent Garden while I dined.

The view of Westminster Hall and the Houses of Parliament from Trafalgar Square

On Trafalgar Square some people get no respect!

The Horse Guards

Nice Warning Sign

Big Ben

The Buxton Monument

Celebrating Great Britain's outlawing of slavery in 1833.

CSI London?

I stumbled upon London's Coroner's Court.

Westminster Cathedral

No, this is NOT Westminster Abbey, totally different.  This Cathedral is Roman Catholic

West End Plays

This is my fourth trip to London and I have started each one the same way by attending a West End play on my first night in town.  Tonight's choice was the world's longest continuous running play, Agatha Christie's "The Mousetrap".

As you can see by this sign in the lobby, the performance I attended was number 23,400 in the streak.  The show premiered on November 25, 1952 and is in its 57th year in London! 

I figured it out!

The audience had to swear a loyalty oath to not reveal "who dunnit?" to keep the mystique of the play going.  I will honor my sacred oath but I AM proud of myself for figuring out who the culprit really was.

Thank you Gil Grissom for all you taught me on all those CSI shows from Las Vegas!

Inauguration Day, Cal Lutheran Football and Occidental Football

My last full day in California before

Catania Round II...

Barack H. Obama

44th President of the

United States of America

Mike and I started the day with a father-son bonding moment watching Barack Obama getting officially sworn in as our new President.  I REALLY feel like today was a rebirth of the American  dream.  These are VERY TOUGH times and the task for our new President and our nation will be difficult but I have renewed HOPE!

Did you know that a Cuban born designer created Mrs. Obama's stunning dress for the Inauguration?

SPREADING THE WORD...

After watching the Inauguration, I spent the rest of the day talking to interested seniors at two Southern California powerhouse Division III football programs about coming to Europe to continue their careers.

Now while my knowledge is limited to what I learned and experienced in my one season in Catania, I felt that I know enough to get people to not waste time and effort in looking for a European opportunity.

Stop #1

California Lutheran University

Thousand Oaks, California

http://www.clusports.com/football/

7-2 in 2008

On the far left is CLU's Head Football Coach, Ben McEnroe with nine of his seniors who are interested in the possibility of coming to Europe some time soon.  Ben just finished his second season at the helm and is doing a great job.  The Kingsmen's only two losses this past season were to former Catania Elephant star lineman Brandon Bennett's 11-1 Willamette team and to 9-1 Occidental College.

We had a good 90 minute dialog and I felt good about getting these Kingsmen headed in the right direction, which is pretty much East across the Atlantic Ocean actually.

Stop #2

Occidental College

Eagle Rock, California

http://www.oxyathletics.com/sports/fball/index

9-1 in 2008

Occidental's only loss was 48-33 to 11-1 Willamette (Brandon Bennett strikes yet again!) in the opening round of the NCAA Division III playoffs.

College Hall of Fame Certificate

Bill Redell

Occidental College, Defensive Back, 1962-63

Occidental is located about a one hour drive south of Cal Lutheran and I got there a little early.  While checking out their trophy room where I was scheduled to speak to the Oxy seniors, I came across this Hall of Fame Certificate.

Now this is significant for me because in 1958, when I first got interested in football, Bill Redell was the star QB (#12) of San Marino High School in the town where we lived.  That year he led the Titans to a Rio Hondo League crown and a berth in the C.I.F. "AA" playoff finals, a crushing 20-0 loss to Claremont H.S.  My Mother drove a bunch of the neighborhood kids to many of the away games and we snuck into most of the home games by crawling under the fence behind the visiting stands.  Bill would go on to win C.I.F. Player of the Year honors and earn a scholarship to U.S.C. before transferring to Occidental.

Bill was the obvious star and leader of that great team and I guess you would say he was my childhood sports hero.  I remember going to watch him practice one day where I saw the my other two memorable Titan players, twins Newt and Cecil Withers.  The twins were both linemen and I really don't know how good they were but I fell in love with their names.

After college, Bill played several years in the Canadian Football League and then I lost track of his exploits.  I wonder whatever became of him?

Occidental's Interested Seniors

Equally attentive, they were a great group too.  Rocky Ciasulli, on the far right, actually played in Finland last season and was a good sounding board for all of us with his perspectives.

Rocky Ciasulli and

Occidental's Head Football Coach

Dale Widolff

Dale has been Occidental for 27 seasons and, like Ben McEnroe at Cal Lutheran, is both a good guy and a good football coach.

Barack H. Obama

Occidental College Student

1978-1981

Did you know that President Obama attended Occidental before transferring to Columbia to earn his B.A. degree?  Well Oxy knows it and the Tigers were justifiably proud of him on this special day.  Small world...

Monday's Farewell Tour Stop

With Florene and Bill Gardner

Laurie's Step-Mother and Father

at Camarillo's California Grill

Monday was a simple day of packing and hanging out at Casa Contreras with Laurie, Mike and Vanessa.

In the evening we had a delightful meal with Bill and Florene.  Just a day of being with family, it really doesn't get better than this if you think about it.

Dr. Amada Ruiz de Villa

Orson Welles ground breaking 1941 film,

"Citizen Kane"

"Rosebud..."

From "Citizen Kane", it is arguably the most famous one word line in cinematic history.

And now for something totally different...

Amada Ruiz de Villa

My Long Lost Second Cousin

The Internet is such an amazing instrument!  Thanks Al Gore!  O.K. I know that IS a big stretch.

About ten days ago, I got a comment posted on the blog asking if I was Amada's second cousin George Michael.  I'm still not sure how she stumbled upon the blog but I'm glad she did!  Sure enough, I am.

First we had to clear up the Michael thing.  When I was born in 1947, my Father, Dr. Jorge Contreras was a brand new, proud immigrant to the United States from his native Cuba.  My Mother, Chuny, also a Cuban immigrant, wanted to name me George Michael but was knocked out as was the child bearing custom in the '40's.  So while she is passed out, Jorge, in a fever-pitched, patriotic mood signs the birth certificate with my legal name now officially being George Washington Contreras!  I'm sure that being born on July 7th, just after Independence Day, influenced his decision.

Not to be completely out foxed, my infuriated Mother was appeased by having my name appear as George Michael on my baptismal certificate.  I have to say that the good doctor won this round EASILY.  My Mother still calls me George Michael but I proudly am George Washington, thanks Pop!

Having cleared this name issue up, "Amadita" and I have been e-mailing and phoning back and forth ever since trying to make up for 40+ years of lost contact.  I really am excited about continuing our dialogue and just catching up on way too much lost time.

She just retired on December 31, 2008 from a very successful career as an Opthalmologist working in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina near the Virginia border.  She still lives a very outdoors oriented lifestyle in rural Littleton, N.C. near Lake Gaston.

Now for the tie-in.  If you are familiar with "Citizen Kane" you know that Orson Welles plays the title character, Charles Foster Kane and that the movie starts with his death as the last thing he says in this life is "Rosebud..."  The movie then proceeds to tell the story of this extremely powerful man based on real life mogul William Randolph Hearst as they search for the meaning of his dying word.

If you have NOT seen "Citizen Kane" stop here NOW as I am about to give away the ending.

It turns out that "Rosebud" was the name of Kane's snow sled from the idyllic, care-free days of his youth.

In these difficult times, I venture that if we thought about it that we can all come with our own "Rosebud" moments.

I have always known that my "Rosebud" moment occurred one summer in the late 1950's on a family vacation in Cuba.  Amadita, who is my age, and her family lived in a small town about 30 miles outside of Havana named San Antonio de los Banos and we visited them for a few days.

Their home was located on a corner with a very nice veranda in front that faced the village's central plaza/park.  Amadita was athletic, so it was a dreamland for two 10 or 11 year-olds to play in that park, go to see a film in the town's ancient movie house and eventually adopt a puppy together that her Father, Dr. Pepe Ruiz de Villa, was none too happy to see us bring home one day.  According to Amadita, her family happily kept it as a pet after we left for our return to California.

All of my idyllic, care-free, "Rosebud" memories happened in about a three day period I would guess and they all occurred in and about that central plaza/park.

If you feel comfortable sharing, I would love to hear about your "Rosebud" by posting a blog comment below.

GOOD TIMES INDEED!!!

The Farewell Tour - Sunday Edition

This is a big week here in the USA, today is a National Holiday honoring the memory and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Tuesday, America officially gets a new leader that brings renewed hope and vigor to a nation sorely in need of both, President Barack Obama.

On a much lesser note, Wednesday marks the end of the Farewell Tour as I fly to London for two days before landing in Catania, Sicilia, Italia (Eatalia?) Saturday evening.

To recap Sunday's Tour Events...

Dr. David and Gayle Hicks

"Physician Heal Thyself"

Gayle, Laurie's sister, and David drove up from Santa Ana in Orange County to visit and get travel tips for their first vacation to 'The Boot" this spring.  Unfortunately, David wound up feeling ill and had to lay down for most of the visit.

David was out of commission but Mike, Vanessa, Laurie and I proceeded to give all of our ideas to Gayle on the essentials for their first taste of Italy.

We look forward to their visit to Sicily at the end of their journey from Venice, Florence and Rome.

Hope you feel better today David.

Getting in the Mood

Sunday was also a day to work on packing for Sicily and watching both of the NFL's NFC and AFC championship games.

Though on a commercial break when this picture was taken, we were riveted by the Chicago-St. Louis-Phoenix-Arizona Cardinals' (this is why I like college football more than pro football, your college team NEVER moves or changes names) 32-25 come from behind after being way ahead victory over the Philadelphia Eagles to represent the NFC in Super Bowl XLIII on February 1 in Tampa Bay.

In order to watch the AFC championship game we would have to switch venues and move to Chuy's Mexican restaurant to engage in a very large Tour stop.

Gonzalo "GONZO" Rodriguez

Head Coach, Rio Mesa Girls Calcio Team

"Forza Spartans!"

Watching the AFC game on Chuy's multiple TV screens

Sixteen of us with Rio Mesa H.S. ties showed up for another round of food, football and friendship.  It was a great to see everyone one more time before leaving.

The AFC game was a good one too as the Pittsburgh Steelers outlasted the Cleveland Browns-Baltimore Ravens (yes they both moved AND changed their nickname) 23-14.

Today's NFL Trivia Question: In 1970, after a decade of fighting, the upstart American Football League's ten teams merged with the older, more established National Football League's 16 teams to form the current NFL.  The NFL split into two Conferences, the American and the National.  To make the Conferences equal in number, 13 each, the Cleveland Browns-Baltimore Ravens, Baltimore-Indianapolis Colts (yet another infamous moving franchise) and the Pittsburgh Steelers joined the new AFC from the old NFL.

Now for the question, with the Chicago-St. Louis-Phoenix-Arizona Cardinals earning a spot in their first ever Super Bowl yesterday, only two other of 1970 franchises that merged still have not played in a Super Bowl.  Can you name them?

The answer is at the end of this post...NO FAIR PEEKING!

Kathy DeVera, Koreen FitzGerald and Laurie

Even Tanner Wrout made a

Special Guest Appearance!

Many of you have been clamoring for updates on Tanner's progress since the end of the Freshman football season.  School is going well for him, he is performing at a very high level on the Frosh-Soph basketball team and the chicks dig him!

Lori, Tanner and Jeff Wrout

I can't thank these three people enough for making the 8-2 2008 Frosh football season such an interesting experience.  The Oxnard game... WOW!

A BIG thanks to Mike, Vanessa, Laurie, Brian and Koreen FitzGerald, Gonzo and Pam Rodriguez, Joe Mollica, Ben Todd, Kathy DeVera, Yen Lam, Marlene Mahan, Jeff, Lori and Tanner Wrout for all of their friendship and support!

Connie and Gino Milano

Owners of Camarillo's Cucina Isabella

The Milanos are building a Bed and Breakfast in the Sicilian hill top town of Enna about an hour west of Catania.  Gino just got back last week from a trip to Sicily. 

The Cucuina Isabella is a great little italian restaurant that is located across the parking lot from Chuys so we just had to go over and include them in the Farewell Tour.

Today's NFL Trivia Answer: Only the New Orleans Saints and the Detroit Lions from the original 26 franchises involved in the 1970 NFL-AFL merger teams have failed to play in at least one of the 43 Super Bowls.

2009 Catania Elephants Schedule - Revision #1

The Catania Elephants vs. the Ancona Dolphins in 2008

The IFL has published a revised schedule with two date changes for the Elephants from what we posted originally.  Also the kickoff times are now listed.

2009 Catania Elephants Schedule

 

Sun., March 22, at Ancona Dolphins  3:00 p.m.

Sun., March 29, at Bergamo Lions  2:30 p.m.

Sun., April 5, Bologna Warriors  3:00 p.m.

Sun., April 12, BYE

Sun., April 19, Reggio Emilia Hogs  3:00 p.m.

Sun., April 26, Bolzano Giants  3:00 p.m.

Sat., May 2, at Bologna Doves  8:30 p.m.

Sun., May 10, Parma Panthers  3:00 p.m.

Sun., May 17, BYE

Sun., May 24, at Milan Rhinos  3:00 p.m.

Sun., May 31, Lazio Marines  3:00 p.m.

Sat. & Sun., June 20 & 21, IFL Semi-Final Games

Sun., June 28, IFL Super Bowl Game

 

As with all things Italian, this schedule just yearns to be changed a few more times in the upcoming months.

I'll be in Catania this Saturday, WOW how the time has flown!!!

The Tracy Family and Buca di Beppo

From left to right:

George and Laurie Contreras,

Mike and Molly Tracy and their son

Luke Tracy who will be the

Catania Elephants signal caller in 2009.

We met the Tracys today for lunch at the Buca di Beppo in Santa Monica for what turned out to be a VERY Sicilian lunch that lasted for 3 1/2 hours!

Of course the main topic of discussion was our upcoming campaign and what was in store for Luke in Catania.  We covered every detail and answered every question that all five of us could come up with while still having a delightful time.

Laurie and I left the restaurant both feeling very positive about Luke and that we have the right guy to lead us in 2009.

In a related issue, our defensive back, Larry Atkinson arrived in Catania yesterday.  Wide receiver Claudio Mangano reports that he was quickly welcomed into the fold with an evening of fun and frivolity at Fundo Bianco.  The Fundo's owner, Atillio, was reportedly in rare form with his usual fire and drink show.

WELCOME TO THE ELEPHANTS, LARRY!

Farewell Tour Year Two

Shi Young Kim, Martha Jimenez-Ito

and Laurie Contreras

at

Cafe Firenze

563 West Los Angeles Avenue

Moorpark, California

805-532-0048

Friday night marked the beginning of the Second Annual George Contreras Farewell Tour.  This year's festivities will cover only a relatively short five day period as opposed to the inaugural two week shindig last year.

The first round of these deeply appreciated gestures was a small one with Martha, on her home court in Moorpark, and our "adopted daughter" Shi Young.  One of the interesting developments of aging has been the many wonderful ladies that I now have as true friends not just acquaintances.  As a youth who attended an all boys Catholic high school it took me a VERY long time to get over my shyness around the members of this fascinating gender.  It turns out that I really like them... GO FIGURE!

Cafe Firenze is a top notch Italian (there's that word again) restaurant whose main chef and owner is featured on national top chef competition on TV's Food Channel.

Penne Arabiata was my choice and I was not disappointed.  They also serve a rather interesting balsamic martini that sounds nasty but is quite good.

These last few days and meetings are the really hard part about coaching in Catania, the knowledge that for six months you will not be able to see your family and friends and share their joys and tough times up close and personal.

Of course the opposite is also true in that I get to reunite with my Sicilian friends and share in their lives.

Bittersweet times indeed!

The "Tour" has two stops today, the first one in Santa Monica to have lunch with our new Catania QB Luke Tracy and his parents (Buca di Beppo and YES it is an Italian restaurant) followed by an evening in San Marino to visit my mother, Chuny, and my aunt Katy.

Ferraro's Restaurant and "The Godfather"

Every Thursday night, the Regency Theatre in Ventura reserves one of its six screens to show a classic movie instead of one of their normal, first run pictures.

Last night's Classic-of-the-Week was "The Godfather".  How could we resist?

The Real Sicilian Town of Corleone

The town in "The Godfather" where Michael Corleone meets Apollonia Vitelli who will become his first wife.

Because Corleone was too developed for Francis Ford Coppola's tastes, he used the town of Savoca near Taormina to represent the city of Corleone.

What a great scene at the cafe when Michael's two body guards are unknowingly talking to Apollonia's father about the beautiful girl that struck Michael "like a thunderbolt" when he first saw her.  I love that after the father gets angry and Michael and the bodyguards realize their offending unintentional disrespect, Michael apologizes and smoothes things over WITH RESPECT.  The part I really like is when Apollonia's father realizes the now respectful gravity of the situation, how he subtly pulls up his suspenders thus returning the respect to young Michael.  I'm sure Michael's death threat didn't hurt.

Special thanks to Claudio Mangano, a.k.a. Michael Corleone, and Roberta Dantona for both responding quickly to the question of what Michael and Apollonia were passing out to their wedding guests out of a spoon.  It was traditional Sicilian candy made of almonds dipped in chocolate and covered with a hard sugar coating known as confetti.  Different colored sugar coatings are used to celebrate different events... white for weddings, sky blue for the birth of a boy, pink for a baby girl, red for graduation, etc.

Corleone in the Distance, June 2008

Corleone Up Close

The Traditional City Map of Corleone

I couldn't find the Vitelli's Cafe on it, maybe with Laurie's help this year we'll find it.

They still have horses in Corleone.

"Liberty and Justice"

The town's motto is permanently posted on Corleone's City Hall

A Great Italian (What Else?) Dinner

To get us into the proper mood, we joined Brian and Koreen FitzGerald for a pre-movie Italian dinner at another classic, Ferraro's restaurant.

I have only seen this film one time from start to finish. That was in a theatre in Santa Barbara in 1972 when "The Godfather" first came out.  Of course, I have since seen various different scenes from it on TV over the years but never again, until last night, the whole thing.

WHAT A MOVIE!!!  First, I think you have to see it in a theatre to get the full effect that Francis Ford Coppola wanted for the viewers.  Incredible story telling and, of course, it is packed with so many key phrases that are now part of the fabric of American linguistics.

"Leave the gun, take the cannoli."

Rio Mesa Wrestling

Wednesday night I joined Brian and Koreen FitzGerald to watch Rio Mesa's wrestling team compete in a thriller against Channel Islands H.S.

One-on-One

The beauty of this sport is "NO EXCUSES"!  It is always you vs. one opponent.

The gym lights go off as they turn out the single mat light to create this eerie scene for combat.  The gym is packed with now faceless fans yelling encouragement out of the darkness.  As they wrestle, EVERYTHING falls on the individual wrestler's shoulders.  You don't have the luxury of blamimg disaster on a receiver dropping a pass, a point guard missing a shot at the buzzer or a batter striking out with the bases loaded.  It is ALL about you and what you are made of!

I REALLY like wrestling and wish that every lineman and linebacker took up the sport, it would make them far better football players.

You Have To Be Quick To Win!

Final Score: Channel Islands 33 - Rio Mesa 32

A tough loss for the home team but a lot of great action for all in attendance.

Being a Tourist in Los Angeles

Our son Michael had the day off today so we decided to have last full day together before I go back to Catania next week...

Time to once again be...

"A Tourist in Your Own Town"!

But First... Dick Bellman and Betty Bright

Seen here at a holiday get together in December of 2007 

It IS the second Monday of the month, so at 8:00 a.m., a group of retired educators from Rio Mesa H.S. held our monthly meeting to catch up on each others lives.

Dick spearheads this monthly breakfast at Camarillo's "Eggs and Things" restaurant.  We purposely convene at this hour because we know that many of our former teaching pals are just starting their new work week at this hour... SWEET!

The big news of the day was that Betty Bright got engaged during the holidays to her long time beau Al Martinez.  Two REALLY nice people, they plan to get hitched in April.

CONGRATULATIONS!

After a light breakfast, well, light for me at least, I picked up Michael and we started our trek to L.A. just in time to come upon a BAD accident on the Ventura Freeway that closed down the road in both directions for 30 minutes!

By the time we got to downtown Los Angeles it was about 12:30 p.m. and Michael had not eaten yet so we just HAD to find him some sustenance!

Pink's Hot Dogs

709 N. La Brea Ave.

Los Angeles, CA 90038

http://www.pinkshollywood.com/

A Los Angeles gastronomic landmark since 1939, I have forever heard of Pink's but had never consumed one... until today!

But Which One?

It turned out that Pink's has a rather extensive menu

"Two Brooklyn Pastrami-Swiss Cheese Dogs, Please."

"Oh, and we'd like two Cream Sodas to go with that also, thank you."

Fully sated, we realized that we were only about 10 minutes from one of the newest high schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District which is of much interest to our family.

The Miguel Contreras Learning Center

Michael poses in front of the MCLC's gymnasium.  The high school is located in the heart of downtown Los Angeles and is named after a deceased American labor leader with strong ties to the United Farm Workers Union made famous by Caesar Chavez.

The Athletic Home of the Contreras Cobras!

No water in their impressive Olympic sized pool and a dirt track that only measures 390 meters, not the standard 400 meters but they have Field Turf and nice stands.

The Inaugural Contreras Cobra

Football Team

You HAVE to love their choice of helmet design, I know I do!!!

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art

(LACMA)

Next up, CULTURE as we spent a few hours at LACMA.

From the American Art Exhibit

Post World War I German Poster Art

This reminds me, Laurie and I need to be sure that all of our shots are up to date before we go to Sicily.

This looked INTERESTING...

They use VERY harsh measures here if you commit a stupid penalty.

And I thought the old Fontana H.S. "Slap" was extreme...

Superman vs. Montezuma

In the Latin American Art section, you would think that the Aztec King would have learned to pick his battles a little better after that skirmish with Cortes.

1925, Diego Rivera's "Flower Day"

"Lux Sit"

The Textures of LACMA

Culture makes me hungry, how about you?

Canter's Fairfax Restaurant,

Delicatessen, Bakery and

Kibitz Room Bar

419 N. Fairfax Ave.

Los Angeles, CA 90036

http://cantersdeli.com/

http://www.seeing-stars.com/Dine2/Canters.shtml

Opened in 1931 in the Boyle Heights area (East L.A.), Canter's moved to its current Fairfax location in 1953.  The Fairfax district is the heart of the Jewish community in Los Angeles, where else would you want your deli?.

When they were still in Boyle Heights my Mom and Dad would often go there for their great pastrami sandwiches.  Who are we to stop this family tradition now that they have moved?

It should be noted that in their famous Kibitz Room Bar, I once saw Rio Mesa H.S. counselor Paul Johnson once play in a band.  Slash from Guns and Roses has played in this very room over the years as well!

  

And I thought Pink's had a large menu...

Michael tries a Chocolate Egg Cream,

Supposedly Jewish Mafia Leader,

Meyer Lansky's

Favorite Non-Alcoholic Beverage

It was damn good!

Is it possible to have too much pastrami in one day?

Across the street from Canter's is an old time, open air news stand.

These precursors to Border's and the like, are now rare but they used to be all over the landscape of Los Angeles.  I can remember going with my Dad at night after he got home from work and driving to one to see what was new in print.

My favorite one is still open in Hollywood across from Micheli's Italian Restaurant on Las Palmas Ave. in Hollywood.  It was right around the corner of the Egyptian Theater where we saw "Ben Hur" in 1958.  What a movie, what a venue!

What a GREAT day, soaking up the old home town with Michael before going back to Sicily!

Catholicism, Never a Dull Moment

Santa Clara Catholic Church

Oxnard, California

Saturday Laurie and I went with our son Michael to meet with Father Mike Grieco at the church, pictured above, where Mike and Vanessa will be married in August.

The purpose of this soiree was for us, as Michael's parents, to swear under oath with one hand on a Bible (honest) that Michael has never previously been married. The answer was no to the best of our knowledge.

Additionally, Father Mike wanted to know if there was any reason that we could think of why they should not get married.  Quickly thinking about the 29 WONDERFUL years that Laurie and I have shared (not bad out of nearly 38 years of marriage) the was again a solid NO.

Vanessa and her parents, Tito and Liduvina, had gone through the same intense grilling with Father Mike before us.

Afterwards the six of us had yet another fine dining experience at La Dolce Vita restaurant in Oxnard's Heritage Square which consists of several perfectly restored Victorian homes that are now various types of businesses.

Why does everything good always come back to food, family and friends?

The Legendary Chris Pagliaro

Our hosts Chris and Linda

The first post ever on this blog was a David Lassen article in the Ventura County Star about my reasons for coming to Sicily.  In a nutshell I was fulfilling a promise I made to my old friend Rick Scott who suddenly passed away of a heart attack the day after we promised each other to go coach in Europe once we were both retired from teaching.

The reason we were even thinking about making this promise that fateful night was all the stories we had heard over the years from one of the legends of Ventura County football coaching, Chris Pagliaro.

In 1970, when I started my coaching career as a J.V. assistant coach at Thousand Oaks H.S., "Pags" was already well established as the successful head coach at crosstown rival Newbury Park H.S.  In those pre-historic days before camcorders, we would have to physically scout opponents and chart plays by hand during the course of games.  This meant that at least two coaches would have to go the game to be able to quickly record what they saw as the scouted team's blocking scheme, backfield action and pass routes before the next play started and still jot down the down, distance, hash mark and field position before the ball was snapped.

I bring this up because that first season of coaching I had to go scout a St. Bonaventure at Newbury Park game on a hot Saturday afternoon when the hillsides were ablaze and smoke and ashes made nearly impossible to see and breath.  I said "nearly".  The game was still played in the worst conditions I've ever seen... we were a tougher nation back then.

That season Newbury Park played Thousand Oaks for the first time to a memorable 48-48 tie.  Amazingly each team scored 6 TDs and each were successful on all six 2-point conversions.  As crazy as that sounds, the thing I remember the most, besides N.P. QB Jerry Torgeson's insane 80 yard TD run on the game's opening play, was that with 1:02 left in the 4th quarter the score was 40-40.  Both teams would put up yet another 8 points in the closing seconds to preserve the tie.  I don't know if it is still true but at the time it was the highest scoring tie game in California high school football history.

Chris would eventually hire Rick Scott at N.P.H.S. before moving on to a job as an assistant coach/athletic counselor at Santa Barbara City College.  It was during his time at S.B.C.C. that Chris started his European adventures.  Being a great story teller, he would tell us hilarious tales about his experiences in Europe that, as it turned out, prepared me mentally for the transition from a typical American football experience to the much more laid back Italian atmosphere.

Chris' first experience on the continent was when he joined former Cleveland Browns Head Coach Sam Rutigliano in 1988 to coach an American college Division III All-star team that played a two game series against the Blues, i.e., the Italian National team.  They played one game in Milan and the other in Pisa.

He enjoyed the experience so much that he returned to Italy in 1989 to be the Head Coach of the Saronno Pharones.  This team was based in a suburb of Milan.

Next up, in 1993, was a job as the Defensive Coordinator of the Geneva Seahawks in Switzerland.

The 1997 season saw him return to Switzerland to become the Co-Head Coach of the Zurich Renegades with Giorgio Volpi.  Giorgio was a key figure in landing me the job in Catania last year.  It really IS who you know after all!

It was on to Austria for Chris in 2000 for another Head Coaching job with Klagenfurt.  His son Vince was his defensive Coordinator that season.

In a role reversal, Chris' last two seasons coaching in Europe came in 2001 and 2002 as an assistant to Vince this time with a team in Madrid that won the Spanish League's championship in 2001.  Vince remembered his Dad's famous (infamous?) quote in winning the title in his first campaign as a Head Coach, "Success in football is 90% coaching".  You just can't make this stuff up and Rick Scott was sure to remind him about this quote EVERY time we met... this is truly the joy of coaching so long and making friends in the profession.

Over the years his stories just kept piling up making the idea of following in his footsteps just too attractive to pass up.  So here I am preparing to leave for Sicily again in about 11 days.

Last night we were invited to Chris and Linda's place in the Winchester Canyon area of Goleta, just north of Santa Barbara, to dinner.  We had a GREAT time and, among his many other talents, Chris turns out to be a damn good Italian chef.  Excellent lasagna, lightly fried portabella mushrooms, meatballs, salad, wine, incredible home made cannoli and conversation to top off a fun night.

Chris and Linda will be coming to Italy this spring and plan to spend a week in Sicily as Chris searches for his family's Sicilian roots.  As it turns out his grandfather was from Santa Elia and his grandmother hailed from nearby Carini.  Both of these villages are located near Palermo at the western end of Sicily.  We are looking forward to hosting them when they come to Catania and hopefully they will be there for one of our games.

GOOD TIMES INDEED!

David P. Lassen

I had lunch yesterday with long time friend and my calcio / futbol / soccer guru...

David P. Lassen

As if my 0-12 University of Washington Huskies and tying for last place in the Rio Mesa H.S. College Bowl Pool wasn't bad enough, David showed up wearing a PALERMO calcio game jersey!  Will the madness ever end?

Although David has covered the Beijing Olympics, the Rose Bowl and the Los Angeles Lakers amongst several other key assignments this past year in his career as the Ace Reporter for the Ventura County Star newspaper, I believe that his true talent could be doing investigative reporting on the fascinating world of American football in Italy.

We had a very nice meeting at the Adobe Cantina in Agoura Hills, I need to stuff as much Mexican food into me as possible in these last few days before flying to Sicily so this eatery was a solid choice.

David mentioned the word "salad" to me earlier this week and I was shamed into ordering the Tri Tip Tijuana Caesar Salad.  Tasty I must admit but for my true feelings click on this link 

http://video.stumbleupon.com/#p=n1cnd6no7c

Mark Johnson

Mark Johnson

Mark is one of my longtime friends from our University of Washington days in the late 1960's.

The picture of health just after turning 60 on June 7th, he is seen here just a few weeks later during our visit to the Murgo Winery in Sicily.

Soon after his visit to Catania he was diagnosed with tongue cancer which shocked all of us because the word "cancer" tends to always shock and also because Mark has never been a smoker.

I spoke with him this evening and am happy to report that after all his treatments, the results of a recent full body cancer scan proved negative.  In other words he is cancer free!!!

Tough guy, good guy... What a GREAT and BEAUTIFUL day today was.

LSU's 1958 Chinese Bandits

During the long weekend in Las Vegas a myriad of sports topics came up and one of my favorite groups was discussed, the 1958 LSU National Championship team featuring the Chinese Bandits.  Our son, Andy, asked me to write a post about this interesting footnote to college football history so here goes.

The Louisiana State University Tigers

National Champions 1958, 2003 and 2007

Paul Dietzel's squad started the season unranked but would go on to storm to an 11-0 record including a 7-0 victory over Clemson in the 1959 New Year's Day Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.

The team featured Billy Cannon (talk about a GREAT football name) at halfback.  Cannon's crazy 89 yard punt return for a TD vs. Ole Miss on Halloween night in 1959 led to a 7-3 LSU win and was key to his winning the Heisman Trophy that year.  That punt return is the stuff of which legends are made.

Again, 1958 was the first season that football became interesting to me so I read and heard a lot about LSU's magical season as a 6th grader.

In 1958 Coach Dietzel had to deal with the NCAA's very limited substitution rules.  The rule was that if a player was in the game at the start of a quarter, he could be replaced and then return ONLY ONCE in that period.

His starters were ALL TWO WAY starters, the "White" team.

His next "team" were offensive specialists known as the "Go" team.  The "Go" team was made up of third string linemen and second string backs.

The last batch of players were the team's second best linemen and third string backs.  They would practice mainly defense (they did have a very limited set of offensive plays in case they got caught in a substitution rules dilemma) and to try to inspire them he told them about the very popular comic strip "Terry and the Pirates" a military adventure set in the Orient.  In the cartoon, Chinese bandits were according to Dietzel "the most vicious people on earth!"  So to honor them, the third group became known as the "Chinese Bandits"!

The idea was to fire up that so that when they got to play, they would have a mental edge that would overcome any of their possible physical shortcomings.

Well, finally the mind game came to fruition when Alabama's offense was in a first and goal situation at the 5 yard line.  The LSU decided that the way the Crimson Tide was running over the Tiger's "White" team they were going to score anyway so what the hell, let them score on the Chinese Bandits while the starters got a rest before the start of the next quarter.

The result was that the Chinese Bandits went crazy and played just like their moniker.  They stopped Alabama on their first three downs, allowing only 1 yard and forced them to kick a field goal.  LSU went on to win 13-3 and the Chinese Bandits were now officially a force!

They kept getting into games and playing inspired, crazed football.  Their fame grew in the media and they even had a great picture in LIFE magazine in their game uniforms sporting rubber Chinese masks.

As the season progressed, an injury caused Coach Dietzel to have to adjust his lineup by moving Nose Guard Tommy Lott up from the Chinese Bandits to the "Go" team.  Lott was NOT happy about the "promotion" and asked to be put back on the Chinese Bandits as soon as possible!

The Famous LIFE Magazine Picture of

The 1958 LSU Chinese Bandits

The Chinese Bandits Line-Up:

Left End:  Mel Branch (6-1, 210, Jr.)

Left Tackle:  Emile Fournet (5-11, 195, Jr.)

Nose Guard:  Tommy Lott (5-9, 188, Jr.)

Right Tackle:  Duane Leopard (6-3, 196, Soph.)

Right End:  Gaynell Kinchen (6-3, 196, Soph.)

Left Linebacker:  John Langan (6-3, 183, Jr.)

Right Linebacker:  Merle Schexnaildre (5-9, 183, Jr.)

Left Corner:  Andy Bourgeois (5-10, 174, Soph.)

Left Safety:  Darryl Jenkins (6-1, 163, Soph.)

Right Safety:  Henry Lee Roberts (6-0, 172, Soph.)

Right Corner:  Hart Bourque (5-8, 172, Soph.)

I remember that at the end of the '58 season, I wrote a letter to the attention of the LSU Bookstore trying to buy some Chinese Bandit memorabilia.  No luck, I never heard back from them.

A quarter of a century later in 1983, the Washington Huskies traveled to Baton Rouge only to get man-handled by the Tigers 40-14.  Our good friend Mark Johnson went to the game and brought me back a Chinese Bandit souvenir T-shirt... LEGENDS DIE HARD!!  The shirt doesn't fit anymore but I still have it, THANKS Mark.

On a final side note, Mark and I flew to Alabama for the 2003 'Bama-LSU game (LSU 27-3) and then to New Orleans for the 2004 Sugar Bowl/2003 BCS National Championship game where the 13-1 Tigers beat Oklahoma 21-14.  They would share the title with Southern California's 12-0 team that hammered Michigan 28-14 in the Rose Bowl.  An LSU National Championship celebrated IN New Orleans after a Sugar Bowl victory will always be one of my GREAT college football memories!  THANKS yet again Mark!

Another Las Vegas Weekend

After the GREAT food stop at Emma Jean's Holland Burger Cafe in Victorville, CA, for breakfast, we continued our trek to North Las Vegas.

Upon arriving, we proceeded to unwind by sitting at Andy and Jenn's HD Big Screen Vizio TV to watch American football starting with the Connecticut vs. Buffalo International Bowl (UConn 38-20) and the NFL's NFC Wild Card game between Arizona and Atlanta (Cardinals 30-24).

Although we noshed throughout the broadcast, it was time to go out to dinner and experience a little bit of Las Vegas' allure.

First stop...

The Hofbrauhaus

This German Beer Garden is owned by the same people who own the famous Beer Hall of the same name in Munich, Germany.  It is a fun place to start your evening.

Brandon Bennett... This One's for You!

Andy and I enjoying a liter of Lager and NO, those are NOT horns coming out of my head.

Brauts, Sauerkraut, Hot Mustard, Mashed Potatoes and Beer!

This was a way to help get me excited about going to Europe again as Germany, along with Spain, are the two countries that I really want to explore.

Mike Contreras and Ryan Brucker

As it turns out, they are beer drinking veterans.  Who would have guessed it?

Anyone for a Putsch?

Getting into the Bavarian spirit with our hosts Jenn and Andy on the left.

Cool Bavarian Hat

This snappy lid was on sale in the Hofbrauhaus' Alpine oriented Gift Shop, and, YES, those ARE horns.

With stylish hats like this all the rage, no wonder Jason and Matt opted for Austria. 

The Las Vegas Strip

After Dinner Football

We left the Hofbrauhaus to enjoy the NFL's AFC Wild Card game that saw San Diego hosting Indianapolis (Chargers 23-17 in overtime).  What better place to watch this exciting game than the New York, New York's ESPN/Sports Book viewing area.

"What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas!"

Sunday started with, what else...

BREAKFAST!

The Draft House is owned by a former University of Wisconsin Badger and has a ton of great Badger and Green Bay Packers football memorabilia.  The owner has been a big part of the equation that has seen Wisconsin play UNLV several times in the past decade.  Brauts for breakfast, just when you thought life couldn't get ANY better!

Elroy "Crazylegs" Hirsch

The picture hung proudly near our table.

A great Hall-of-Fame wide receiver for both Wisconsin and the Los Angeles Rams.  He would eventually become the Athletic Director at Wisconsin.  In 1958 he did a one-day kids sports clinic in connection with the Union 76 Oil Company's Community Outreach Program at San Marino High School.  I attended and got to shake his hand that day.

It was my first brush with greatness and it was VERY COOL!

In Henderson's Green Valley Casino Complex

Pulled Pork Sandwich, enough said!

Another great football afternoon that saw two more NFL Wild Card games being contested.

In the AFC, the Baltimore Ravens beat the Miami Dolphins 27-9 while the Philadelphia Eagles outlasted the Minnesota Vikings 26-14 in the NFC nightcap.

"Its a Major Award!"

"FRA-GEE-LAY"

The EXCELLENT Italian-inspired decor in Lucille's.

Food, Friendship and Football were not the only activities in which we interacted...

Whiffle Ball

The batter, Ryan Brucker, was the starting center fielder for the San Jose State baseball team that played in the NCAA's 2000 College World Series.  Here he is seen about two pitches before Andy threw him some chin music!

Greco-Roman Wrestling

Mike and Andy were inspired by the antics of Andy and Jenn's two bulldogs, Blitz and Dooley.

Loren and Ryan Brucker

Often mistaken for brothers, this father and son duo felt relieved to escape with their lives after a weekend with the Contreras boys!

Emma Jean's Holland Burger Cafe

Guy Fieri Strikes Yet Again!

At the last minute last week we received a phone call from Ryan Brucker about a field trip to Las Vegas to visit Andy and Jenn one more time before I fly to Catania.  Ryan's father, Loren, was my college roommate at the University of Washington and played on both the Husky's football (DB) and baseball (catcher) teams in the late 1960's.  Laurie and Loren's wife Sandy were roommates at the UW as well.

Besides renewing old friendships during our drive out to Sin City, I knew this would be another great chance to experience food at its finest.  I researched the "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" website and came up with:

Emma Jean's Holland Burger Cafe

178143 D Street on Historic Route 66

Victorville, California

760-243-9938

http://www.hollandburger.com/home.html

These Two Signs Say It All

Located about one mile off of Interstate 15, it is about halfway between our house in Camarillo and Andy and Jenn's in North Las Vegas.

Four Thin Shadows About to Enter Valhalla

The shadows belong to Ryan and Loren Brucker and to Mike and George Contreras.  The question is can you correctly match the shadow to it's owner?

Saturday Morning's Excellent Kielbasa and Eggs Breakfast

Throw in some hash browns, home made biscuits and a little gravy and you just can't get any more contented!

Be sure to request the "Spicy" ketchup if you are man enough.

For some reason, "Stick To Your Ribs", seems like as good phrase as any to describe our experience.

On the Road at Emma Jean's with Loren Brucker

Don't let his mild looks fool you, I first met Loren when he cheap-shoted me on a Saturday morning practice at the UW during two-a-days in August, 1966.  I was covering a punt and he ear-holed me...NICE GUY!

Note that even in this picture, he is still slightly in my blind spot ready to strike if need be!!!

BB Shots

The window by our table sported only four of these holes from vandals.  In the summer these holes keep the cafe well ventilated.

Shawna

Our Waitress and the Star of the Cafe

 

Here she is seen showing her autograph book of famous people and long distance traveler's who have eaten at Emma Jean's.  My status with the Elephants Catania prompted her to ask me to sign her book.  I was honored!

The Brian Burger

How good was it?  Here you see Mike about to devour the "Brian Burger" on MONDAY as we drove back home from Las Vegas!

Brian is Shawna's husband and they are the third generation owners of the Emma Jean's.  This burger is named for him and includes a delicious spicy roasted green chile, a huge hunk of Swiss-American cheese on two slices of THICK Parmesan toast... INCREDIBLE!

The chocolate shake and blackberry cobbler ala mode that we all split were equally as good.

BOTTOM LINE:  With Andy and Jenn living in North Las Vegas, allowing us to have another excuse to visit the desert, I fully plan to stop at Emma Jean's EVERY time I drive through Victorville!  Note that they are only open for breakfast and lunch, not dinner.

New Year's Day, UCLA and the Getty Museum

Friday, January 2, 2009

Happy 35th Birthday

Andrew Contreras!!!

New Year's Day in America means only one thing in our house...

NON-STOP AMERICAN FOOTBALL!

8:00 a.m.: The Outback Bowl from Tampa, Florida where 7-5 South Carolina takes on 8-4 Iowa.  I picked South Carolina for two reasons.

First they are from the all powerful Southeastern Conference (SEC) while the Iowa Hawkeyes hails from the Big-10 which is no longer held in very high esteem.

Secondly, how can you not be rooting for a school whose nickname is the Gamecocks?

Final Score: Iowa 31 - South Carolina 10

10:00 a.m.: The Capital One Bowl from Orlando, Florida. It's the #19 Michigan State Spartans, 9-3 out of the Big-10 vs. #16 Georgia Bulldogs also 9-3 from the SEC.

I go with Georgia due to my same conference bias as in the Outback Bowl pick.

The Bulldogs do not disappoint me this time.

Final Score: Georgia 24 - Michigan State 12

10:00 a.m.: The Gator Bowl from Jacksonville, Florida.  Having to constantly switch channels since this bowl game is in direct conflict with the Capital One Bowl could have wreaked havoc but we kept it under control!

In this one, the traditional powerhouse Nebraska Cornhuskers, 8-4 from the powerful Big-12 played the Atlantic Coast Conference's (ACC) Clemson Tigers who entered the contest at 7-5.

I picked Clemson because I like their uniforms better than Nebraska.  Not really but it would be just as solid a reason to pick them as any I could come up with.

Final Score: Nebraska 26 - Clemson 21

2:00 p.m.: The Rose Bowl, "The Grand Daddy of Them All", at Pasadena, California.  The heavily favored and #5 ranked, PAC-10 Champion Southern California Trojans at 12-1 vs. the Big-10 Champion and #6 ranked Penn State Nittany Lions also checking in at 12-1.

In what should have been a great match-up, nobody really gave PSU much of a chance and even I picked USC without much fear.  The Trojans did not disappoint in cruising to a 31-7 half time lead.

Final Score: Southern California 38 - Penn State 24

It really was not that close but give PSU credit for not rolling over and playing much tougher in the second half.

Laurie gave me this T-shirt, she wanted it to read "blog" for the last word instead of "novel" but she could not find one.  I wore this one with pride for all five bowl games.

Five? Did he just say five bowl games?

Yes indeed!  One more game to go at...

5:00 p.m.: The Orange Bowl played in Miami, Florida.  Here, the #21 Virginia Tech Hokies, the 9-4 Champions of the ACC played the #12 Cinncinati Bearcats, 11-2 and Champions of the Big East Conference.

I went with Va Tech due to their long standing status atop the college football scene. 

Final Score: Virginia Tech 20 - Cinncinati 7

In conclusion, it was a fun day watching all these games with Laurie, Mike and Vanessa.  My only disappointment was that the BCS system has really diluted New Year's Day as only two Top Ten teams played (Rose) and two of the bowls (Outback and Gator) featured games with all unranked teams!

Friday I took a drive on a dreary day to Westwood.  The first stop was UCLA to practice some of the photographic techiques that Jason Johnson taught me.

I earned my Masters Degree from UCLA in 1971, have always loved returning there and have continued taking several Extension course there over the years

Through the trees, Kerckhoff Hall

or am I in England?

In the second story they have a SWEET Baskin-Robbins ice cream shop.  I just HAD to have a scoop of Jamoca Almond Fudge in a sugar cone for old times sake!

Influenced by Italian Architecture

UCLA's Royce Hall

UCLA's Powell Library

The old Men's Gym where I took many classes is now the

Student Activity Center

Home of the UCLA Bruins!

UCLA's American Football Practice Field

A Slightly Different View of

Spaulding Field

From UCLA it was a short drive to the J. Paul Getty Center Museum.  This museum houses some of the best art collections featuring western art from the Middle Ages to the present in five two-story pavilions.

The Getty's Central Plaza

Baroque Painting in Bologna, 1575-1725

The main reason for my visit was this traveling exhibit of Baroque Art that featured several pieces on loan to the Getty from Germany's Dresden Museum.

It featured works from the Bologna school of Baroque Art.  I really fell in love with city of Bologna last spring for several reasons. First Rick Steves does NOT mention Bologna in his Italian Travel books, this equals very few tourists like me.  Second, friend of the blog, David Lassen, highly recommended Bologna as a destination.  Finally, one of the blog's biggest Italian fans is a Bologna resident,  Stefano Mengoli.  The city is very beautiful and the food and gelato were top notch!  I had to go see this exhibit and support!

Photos were not allowed and, for once, I followed the law!  It was very worthwhile and if you are in the Los Angeles area try to see the entire Getty Museum, you'll enjoy it!

The architecture at UCLA and the Baroque Art Exhibit at the Getty Museum are really getting me in the mood to return to Sicily... only 19 days to go!