Mon.-Thur., July 3-6, 2023
The biggest deal of the week was obviously . . .
Independence Day
The Fourth of July
Laurie put together this cheese
plate in the shape of a
delicious Old Glory
We spent the afternoon
at Casa Contreras East
Jacob and Mary had a ball racing
up and down the street with their
friends who live on the cul de sac
It got chilly just about the time that
the illegal fireworks started going
off all over the neighborhood
America, what a country!
I chuckled LOUDLY when I got
this message from our friend
Dennis Boika a player for
Poland's Zabki Dukes
Lots to report on the food front . . .
100%, Absolutely, Undeniably
TRUE!
It was the Fourth of July after all
Another FACT that we learned
searching for tacos in Chihuahua,
Mexico during one of our Europe
Warrior game weeks
If you are looking for a good sandwich in the Glendale or Pasadena areas, have I got two GREAT ones for you that I tested before visiting my Mother.
Mario's Italian Deli & Market
740 E. Broadway, Glendale
Their Bad Boy Pastrami Sub is made up of pastrami, lettuce, tomato, onion, mayonnaise, mustard, honey mustard, cheese, avocado and spicy Italian peppers, all on a huge toasted French roll.
It was a FANTASTIC combination of freshness, sweetness and just the right amount of spiciness.
It is easily big enough for two people to share, if you are into that sort of thing.
Howlin' Ray's Hot Chicken
800 S. Arroyo Parkway, Pasadena
Howlin' Ray's signature dish is The Sando which is a sandwich that comes with large, moist fried chicken breast, coleslaw, their mysterious and delicious comeback sauce, pickles (no thanks) in a sweet butter bun.
I know that a few years ago KFC and Popeye's Chicken engaged in an all out chicken sandwich war. Beyond a doubt, both of their offerings pale in comparison to The Sando.
One needs to be warned about
the potential heat of all
of Howlin' Ray's chicken dishes
Their sauces come in six
levels of atomic radiation
1. Country: No Heat
2. Mild: Brush of Heat
3. Medium: Feel the Burn
4. Hot: Burn, Baby Burn
5. X-Hot: You've Been Warned
6. Howlin': Can't Touch This 10++
Since it was my first time at Howlin' Ray's, I played it safe even though I do like spicy food. I went with the #2 Mild sauce and that was heat enough for me as it turned out. Any higher of a rating would have overpowered a great sandwich in my opinion.
My Mother continues to have her ups and downs, the last two days were good ones.
An old sign about two blocks from
my Mother's skilled nursing home
After my visit to Mom on Wednesday, I decided to stop at the Rose Bowl to get some steps in as I continue to try to improve my physical fitness.
I parked near this venerable baseball
stadium at Brookside Park next to
the Rose Bowl
The Arroyo Seco Saints of the
California Collegiate Baseball Summer
League call Jackie Robinson Field
their home
The 10-8 Saints were getting ready
to play the 8-10 Conejo Oaks
It was still almost two hours before the first pitch, so I opted to continue my walk on a warm afternoon.
Jackie Robinson statue
He is portrayed wearing #55, his jersey number when he played for Pasadena Junior College back in the 1930s.
Jackie Robinson still holds the
Rose Bowl Stadium Record with
his 104 yard Kickoff Return in 1938
He did this while playing for the 11-0 Pasadena Junior College Bulldogs team in a game against their Pasadena neighbors, the vaunted Caltech Beavers.
PJC is now known as Pasadena City College and they are known as the Lancers.
It's been FORTY years since the
Army-Navy game was played in the
Rose Bowl stadium
Laurie and I saw this game with Susan and Michael D'Antuono.
That was a memorable day to be sure.
The Sabolic, D'Antuono and Contreras
families in the Washington section
of the Rose Bowl Honor Court
Keith Jackson
The Voice of College Football
Speaking of American football . . .
The Top 24 Rankings of teams
NOT based in the USA or Canada
There are nine teams from the Japanese League including the top two in the rankings.
The European League of Football comes in second with seven teams in the rankings.
Finally, the Mexican League and the German League each had four clubs mentioned in these rankings.
The European League's most
recent Power Rankings were
announced also
One day the ELF hyped their
Week #6 schedule . . .
this cancellation
No real surprise as the Leipzig Kings had informed the ELF last week that they were in financial danger and may be dropping out of the league soon.
It was reported that the team asked the players to turn in their gear "for inventory" this week and then they decided to forfeit.
The official score will be listed as Prague Lions (1-4) 35 - Leipzig Kings (2-4). What a way for the Lions to win their franchise's first ever ELF victory in their inaugural campaign.
The Swiss NFLA Semi-Finals
will be played this weekend
If our old club, the Thun Tigers, gets their QB back off of the injured list, I like their chances to advance to Swiss Bowl XXXVII on July 15th.
The Italian DII Silver Bowl XXIX
and DIII Nine Bowl XXIII championship
games will be contested this weekend
Our original EuroBall team from the 2008 and 2009 seasons, the Catania Elephants (7-1), will take on the Brescia Bengals (8-0) in Friday's Nine Bowl XXIII.
Italy's governing body for American football, FIDAF, does a good job promoting our sport on all social media platforms.
For example . . .
Defensive Leaders are a wash
The two QBs have similar stats
The Elephants seem to have
the superior Wide Receiver
The Running Back edge statistically
goes to the Bengals but . . .
The Elephants RB Enrico Lombardo is an amazing athlete that seems to defy Father Time. He was an excellent RB for us back in 2008 and 2009 at a time when I would have guessed his age at about 30. That would make him in his 40s now and still going strong!
Go Elephants GO!
Finally . . .
The book that led to the movie
"Damn Yankees"
Growing up in the 1950s and '60s, it was easily my two sisters' favorite movie.
It eventually made it to the old "Million Dollar Movie" slot on a local Los Angeles TV channel. That meant that the movie would be shown once every night from Monday to Friday and twice on both Saturday and Sunday.
I am 100% sure that Marilyn and Linda watched all nine of the Damn Yankees showings that long ago week.
"Shoeless Joe from Hannibal, Mo."
