Coaching for Pizza: A Fond Arrivederci to Baffo and Jack and Yet Another American Football Weekend

Monday, October 7 -

Monday, October 14, 2019

While the start of the week was quiet for Laurie and I, it was a busy one for our two Skorpions, Giacomo and Nicola, to say the least.

While we had headed back to Camarillo on Sunday after the Washington-Stanford game, "Jack" and "Baffo", as they are known in Varese, stayed in the Bay Area for the main purpose of their trip to California, the Monday Night NFL game featuring Jack's Baker Mayfield led Cleveland Browns (2-2) vs. Baffo's San Francisco 49ers (3-0) at Santa Clara's beautiful Levi's Stadium.

At our Husky tailgate on Saturday Jack and Baffo met our nephew-in-law John Tidwell and his friend Tom Garry who both work for Hewlett Packard in the greater Silicon Valley area.

As Jack is a Computer Science major, it was a fortuitous meeting to be sure.

Jack and Baffo visited the Hewlett Packard

headquarters on Monday afternoon

Baffo and Jack at Levi's Stadium

In the Hewlett Packard luxury box

at Levi's Stadium

John, Jack, Baffo and Tom

with Joe Montana photo-bombing

The HP gang and our two Italians

enjoying the luxury box

By all reports, they had a great time as the 49ers took home a dominating 31-3 victory on national TV.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Giacomo and Nicola headed inland to view the majestic beauty that is California's Sequoia National Park and the exotic city of Kernville before returning to Camarillo.

Thursday was hectic as I had to attend my weekly Italian Conversation class in Thousand Oaks while Jack and Baffo continued to support our local economy with a few more purchases at the Camarillo Outlets.

In the afternoon, we headed up the Conejo Grade to Newbury Park High School to watch some of the Panthers day before a game practice and tour their facilities. My son Mike who teaches at NPHS also wanted Jack and Baffo to connect with one of the Panther defensive linemen, Alessandro Zazzetta, who moved to the USA from Roma last year.

The Italian Connection

Baffo, Alessandro and Jack

In the evening we headed to Cronies in Ventura to watch the New England Patriots (6-0) destroy the hapless New York Giants (2-4) 35-14.

After the game we remained at Cronies and met with Diego Renteria who played for the Rio Mesa Spartans back in the day and is currently an up and coming referee in our local high school and junior college ranks.

The main purpose of this meeting was for Diego and Nicola/Baffo to exchange information as to their shared vocation, nursing.

It was an eye opening discussion for me as they compared notes on how the job requirements differed in Italy and the USA. They exchanged their contact information and promised to keep up their dialogue in the months ahead.

Thus both Giacomo/Jack and Nicola/Baffo made unexpected professional contacts in California on their American Football vacation.

On Friday, we headed to LAX for our two Skorpions' evening flight back home Milano.

We took the scenic coast route

via Malibu

Another stop on the bluff overlooking

the beach at Santa Monica

We just had to take a walk

on the famed Santa Monicas Pier

Sun Worshipers

The end of historic Route 66

from Chicago to Santa Monica

After a good Mexican lunch

in Santa Monica, we headed

to the Venice Beach Boardwalk

Two muscular Italians posing at Muscle Beach.

We now had but one last stop before arriving at the airport for . . .

. . . two donuts for Nicola's

wonderful wife Vanessa

Randy's is yet another iconic SoCal spot that is near LAX. Note the airplane on its landing approach in the big donut's hole.

As it turns out, Vanessa is crazy about American donuts so, with the aid of one of Laurie's Tuperware containers, Baffo brought her not one but two of Randy's delicious creations.

What a husband!

After saying our good-byes, I sped back up the coast to meet up with son Mike and grandson Jacob in Ventura to watch the Channel Islands Raiders (0-6) play the Buena Bulldogs (3-3) coached by our former Buena player and Hässleholm Hurricanes/Rio Mesa Spartans coach Ryan Bolland.

Jacob watching the Buena Band

take the field

Jacob with the Bulldog mascots

Pre-game with Jacob

and a HUGE tire

"Poppo, what is this tire for?"

"Jacob, the Bulldog football players

flip it to show how strong they are."

"Poppo, I think I'll just sit in it instead."

The game is afoot!

Channel Islands offense in white

Jacob checking out

the line of scrimmage

Diego Renteria was working the game

as a ref and gave Jacob a penalty flag

We had another good time at Buena

together enjoying the Bulldog's 14-13 win

Saturday morning soccer with Jacob

pursuing the ball

Everyone has to sit out a quarter

During Jacob's sit out quarter he made this Go Sharks! mini-sign to encourage the team on to another win.

Post game with the grandkids

and a photo-bombing Michael

Nothing like a family post-soccer

celebration breakfast at Cronies

Saturday night, Mike and I

took in a DIII game

Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Stags (2-2)

California Lutheran Kingsmen (2-2)

The Kingsmen were entering the game with a 1-0 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference record while the Stags were 0-1 in SCIAC play.

It was a BEAUTIFUL night for

American football!

More family bonding time

I really liked the Stags helmet decal

The Kingsmen used a dominant

Second Half to win this SCIAC game 37-7

While we were at CLU, the Huskies (4-2)

were playing the Arizona Wildcats (4-1)

Nice rebound win after last

Saturday's clunker at Stanford

On Monday, after visiting my Mother at midday, Laurie and I stopped off at her alma mater, Crescenta Vally High School, to watch the Falcons (6-0) host the Glendale Dynamiters (1-6) at 3:15 p.m.

Dynamiters?

Glendale H.S. is also known as the Nitros which I think made for easier, shorter sports headlines back in the day.

This game was originally scheduled to be played last Friday night at Glendale H.S. as a CVHS home game but local wildfires led to poor air quality and the game was postponement to Monday.

Glendale H.S. has the only stadium in the Glendale School District and it shares it with both Crescenta Valley and Hoover high schools.

For some reason, the game was shifted from Glendale to CVHS which has a nice artificial turf field but stands for only 200 people more or less.