Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Gorillas Game Prep Week Begins


Monday, 19 February, 2018

Most of the day was taken up by lots of scrimmage/game video study on HUDL.

It took a while, but the video of our scrimmage last Wednesday in Switzerland against the Lugano Rebels was finally uploaded on Sunday while I was visiting Genoa.

After breaking it down I can say that we got much better as the scrimmage unfolded.

Our Defense played as well as I suspected that night.

The Special Teams still needs some tweaking to be sure.

The Offense is progressing but needs consistency as we approach this Saturday's DII season opener at the home field of our crosstown rivals, the Varese Gorillas, this coming Saturday night at 8:30 p.m.

After breaking down our scrimmage video, I then started to evaluate the schemes that the 2017 Gorillas used against the Skorpions in our road game against them last season.

We will have to play much better than we did in either of our two scrimmages to bring home a victory this Saturday night.

Outside of the world of Skorpion football, I did have one other task today too see to as I got a parking ticket in Pavia last Friday.

I had parked in a pay-to-park blue lined spot that had a two hour limit. Since we were still in the Lombardy region, as I understood it, parking was free if I just put my document stating that I drive an energy saving auto on the dash.

I did so, toured Pavia's historic center for about an hour and returned to find a parking ticket under my windshield wiper.

What the . . .

Finally it dawned on me as I looked at the car next to me. While I could indeed park here for free, I still had to honor the two hour time limit.

You see, in Italy cars have a little blue card on their windshields or dash like . . .

. . . this one on mine

I had forgotten to reset the time that I arrived at the parking spot using this little blue device. Thus the officer who spied my arrival time was told by it that I had been parked there since 9:30 a.m. and it was now about 4:45 p.m., way over the allowed two hour stay.

This breach of parking etiquette on my part would cost me 28.70 Euros if I paid it within five days and 98 Euros if I waited longer to pay it.

A huge GRAZIE to Santa Barbara Nardi and her daughter Federica for helping me decipher the ticket before our practice on Saturday and explain how to pay it!

How does one pay a parking ticket issued by a city over an hour away you ask?

Why at the Post Office of course!

This is the Post Office in
Venegono Superiore

In Italy everything governmental and financial eventually ends up at your local Post Office.

Paying this ticket in less than five days would thus be easy.

No it wouldn't

It was 1:45 p.m. and as you can clearly see in this picture, the Post Office closes Monday through Friday at 1:35 p.m.

I was ten minutes late but not to worry, it was only day three of my early five day reduced fine payment period so bright and early on Tuesday, day four, I planned to take care of my parking mistake.

On the plus side for the Italian Postal Service . . .

. . . I got a card from Laurie that
she mailed in late January!

It was her annual Groundhog Day
card for me

And only 17 days late.

In the evening, while making a pizza at home, I turned on the TV to the Rai 1 channel which to my surprise was showing . . .

INSPECTOR MONTALBANO!

I have read 11 of the Inspector Montalbano mystery books by Andrea Camilleri set in the fictional Sicilian towns of Vigata and Montelusa.

The Camarillo Public Library has the first 20+ videos of the TV adaptations of these fun reads with English subtitles. The episode tonight on Rai 1 was much newer.

Most of the same actors were in the main roles as usual but, somehow, they have all gotten older looking.

How is that possible?

No English subtitles on Rai 1 but I still had fun watching old friends nonetheless.

BEAT THE GORILLAS!


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