Getting Older

OK, this is just a random pic from the Web, it's not me! But I *am* 48 years old now...wow! I've now lived longer than most people in history!

As I get older, I'm noticing a trend. When I go to Bertucci's pizza, I almost always order the Marengo pizza. After having tried many different pizzas there at first over a period of several months, I tried the Marengo pizza, adding caramelized onions. I thought I had died and gone to heaven!

If I were to go back to Bertucci's often, I'm sure I would try many different dishes there. However, I only go once every few months and so I always have the same thing now, perhaps with a salad on the side. Why? I know I will love it, that's why. I found something I like and I stick with it.

That's the quandary of getting older. When I was young, I was ready to try everything, thinking myself quite immortal. Now that I realize my days are numbered, instinctively I want to use every moment to the utmost and that means sometimes not trying something different and new on the off chance I'll be disappointed. Rather, I'll stick with something I know I'll like to make the most of that moment.

This is not always a good thing. It's old-man syndrome. It's "when I was young, I could buy a Mars bar for a nickel." It's "what is it with these young people and their strange music?" However, if the old man is happy, what of it? If he's not, then maybe it requires a change in attitude.

A classic example is music. Everyone thinks that their generation's music is the best. Those of a generation younger than they listen to "strange" music, not like the music in the good old days. Suddenly we find ourselves listening to the oldies station, which of course only plays the best songs from every year of the 50s, 60s, 70s, and maybe even the 80s! However, this I do try to resist. I actually listen to the Top 40 pop station a lot and I love a lot of the new music. My current craze is Duffy and her song Mercy. OK, so it sounds as if it could have been made in the 60s, but still! I also love Natasha Bedingfield, Panic in the Disco, State of Shock and others. Those who would pine for the good old days of the songs of the 60s would do well to listen to them carefully and realize how many of their lyrics were silly, with all their "yeah-yeah-yeahs". Funny but true.

One place that getting older is not always fun is watching movies and realizing I had already seen the same story in an earlier movie. The kids think it's fresh and new. I know better! Shucks.

Funny and Cute

In Italy for a sad reason...

First, this is not my mom. This is the other lady in my mom's hospital room with me and my sister behind her. More on this in a moment.

I came to Italy very suddenly Wednesday, arriving Thursday after flying from Boston, where I was working, to DC, and then onto Zürich, Switzerland, where I hopped on three trains to get to Reggio Emilia, Italy, where my sister's friend picked me up and took me directly to the hospital where my mother has been for two weeks as of today. She came because she had a bad stomach ache that wasn't going away and just when things seemed to be going better, she suddenly fell into a semi-comatose state. The doctors said they believed she had had a stroke.

As soon as my sister told me on Tuesday, I cashed in 100,000 of my 140,000 frequent flier miles on United Airlines to book my ticket and flew out the next day. I wanted to fly to Italy directly, but the airline won't allow frequent fliers to use their miles to fly to Italy because it's too popular a tourist destination, at least not from June 1st until August 31st. So I found the closest city I could to which I could fly, and that was Zurich. I would have spent the cash to fly more directly, but cash is short right now. After two days of traveling, I arrived at my mom's bedside.

What I saw of her frightened me. I am not prone to easy tears but I was not able to stop crying. She was totally unresponsive, alive but in a deep sleep from which she would not wake. I returned and spent the whole day there yesterday and finally in the afternoon she woke up some and tried to talk but was not able to make much sense; her words not even recognizable.

My mom actually woke up today and talked a lot, clearly. The only problem was that she kept repeating the same sentence over and over, one that didn't make much sense. She appeared to be reliving the same moment from many years ago over and over. Sometimes she would answer our questions. We asked her what her name was and she said she didn't know. After we told her her name she then repeated it back later fine. My sister and I asked her who we were and she said she didn't know. That much didn't change. Her body is rather swollen, including her feet, from all the IV liquids she has been getting, and my sister asked her if her feet hurt and she clearly answered that, no, they did not hurt! Believe me, after the last two days of seeing her do nothing but sleep and occasionally murmur something that I couldn't make out, today was a joy. I doubt she'll ever be back to normal but I do hope to see a lot of improvement in the coming weeks.

I'm staying for at least two weeks. The doctors still don't know what is wrong with her. They have done many tests and think it's a virus, maybe one like Mad Cow, though clearly it's not Mad Cow.

My mom is only 73. She shares a large hospital room with two ladies, one who is 94 and the other, the one in the picture above, who is 92. The 94-year-old does not look good, but this lady, whose name is Onesta, is perfectly coherent and a lovely person with whom to converse. Onesta means Honest in Italian - what a nice name, no? She keeps an eye on mom during the night when we can't be there, though she herself is a patient. Unfortunately, she had to miss her sister's birthday the other day - her sister who just turned 100!

Onesta doesn't know much about the States and so she has asked me some interesting questions, based primarily on old westerns she has seen, I think. Here are two of the more interesting ones:

1. Do people in America eat snakes? I saw it in a movie. What do they eat in America?
2. Are there really people with dark skins in America? Do they live in huts?

The second question pained me so I explained carefully how the situation really is. She seemed very accepting of my answers!

I will post what I can from time to time, and I will also post some photos I took getting down here and being a passenger in my sister's car as we drive back and forth to the hospital twice a day.

Thank you to all my blog fans (both of you!) for your continued support!

Scenes in Italy Driving to the Hospital

Do click the photos to enlarge them and see them better.

Zurich...

Flying into Zürich


The last Starbucks I'll see for a couple of weeks - in Zürich Airport


In the airport train station to take the first of three trains


The train station sign showing we are Zürich Airport


What you see after leaving Zürich through the rain window (you really should click the photo to enlarge it!)

Italian Festival in Washington, D.C.

Yesterday was the annual Italian Festival in Washington, D.C. Every year they focus on a different region of Italy and this year it was Lazio's turn. It's a small festival, but nice. In area where it's rare to hear Italian heard, it's nice to hear so many people speaking Italian around me. The gelato was good and we got to see some friends we hadn't seen in a while.

Click here for more photos and videos.

Avatar - A Fantastic Series!

I have become hooked on Avatar, The Last Airbender, an American cartoon series that is starting its fourth season soon on Nickelodeon. It is very well written and voice-acted. It is full with action, adventure, betrayal and redemption. It's funny, it's serious, it is meant for children but is hugely entertaining for we adults as well. It borrows from many different Asian traditions but the result is rather unique too. I highly recommend it!

Another Fantastic Italian Meetup

Another fantastic meet-up of Italian ex-pats at the fantastic Michelangelo's Ristorante!

Click here for more photos!

I Have the Cutest Pets in the World

My dog does this every morning. He stretches, he rubs his face with his paws, he rubs it against the wooden banisters of our staircase, and he's a lot of fun to watch!

The guinea pigs, well, they just love to eat. If we wait a little too long to feed them and they hear us nearby, they stand up on their hind legs and start squeaking in no uncertain terms. Translation: feed us!

My Birthday Party at Wolf Trap Theater

My birthday isn't until Wednesday this week but that's a tough evening to have a party, so I planned it for last night instead. Thanks to my friend Irene (that's her son Arthur hamming it up for the camera) for her great idea to have a picnic on the lawn of the Filene Theater at Wolf Trap. As you can see if you click on the photo to enlarge it, the lawn is right above the seating area of the stage. Lawn seats were only $8.00 (cheaper than a movie!) and we got to watch The Gondoliers, a real fun Gilbert and Sullivan operetta set in Venice. Unfortunately, we had to cut it a bit short because of a lightning storm that came in. Anyway, thanks to all my friends who came to help me celebrate!

Outdoor Concert in Fairfax

I hadn't seen my friend Jill and her family for a long time so it was really wonderful to see them again!

Within walking distance of their home in Fairfax is a beautiful park and like many of the communities around here, they have weekly outdoor concerts in the summer. Friday evening I got to watch and listen and had a great time. It was peaceful surroundings and foot-thumping songs!

Thanks, Jill! Click here for more photos.

Steve and Shannon's Party

Steve and Shannon have been friends of ours for years and they always give the best parties! We were privileged to attend their party Saturday evening and had a blast. Thanks, Steve and Shannon! Their children, Maddie and Zach are child prodigies! Zach scored a whopping 700 on his SATs this year and Maddie has been making a big name for herself in theater. The coolest people ever!

Photo 1: Zach with three of his many girlfriends.

Photo 2: Me and Shannon!

Photo 3: The whole family, Steve, Shannon, Maddie and Zach!

Click here for more photos.

Reston Taste of the Town

On Saturday, we went to the Taste of Reston, where most of the restaurants at Reston Town Center had samples of their food out for tasting. It's always fun and we can check out lots of restaurants at the same time without spending a lot of money.

Click here for more photos and videos.

Pull the String on the Car

I was at a red light when I noticed that this car had a red string trailing out of it for quite a bit. So is this like when someone walks out of a public restroom with a piece of toilet paper stuck to his shoe? Or is it a pull string like on a doll? I wonder what would happen if someone pulled it?

Fun with Closed Captioning

Have you ever turned closed captioning on during a TV show or DVD you're watching? I do this often for a couple of reasons. First, when I have to keep the TV low it helps to make out what people are saying. Second, when it's a foreign film or there are characters with heavy accents, it's easier to "see" what they're saying.

I find watching closed captions interesting for another reason. When watching shows that are not live, but previously scripted, such as a movie or TV sitcom, the closed captions don't often match exactly what is said on the screen. Obviously, that makes sense for live broadcasts where the closed caption writers are writing as fast as they can but why would that be the case for scripted shows? The only explanation that comes to me is that actors often are not exactly following the script or the director or someone else associated with the movie made last-minute changes.

That being the case, I believe, it's fun to see what changes are made before or during the filming of a movie.

Herndon Fesitval

Last night was the Herndon Festival in nearby Herndon, Virginia. We had only gone once before years ago. It's a rather small and tame affair, though I suppose it's big enough for a small town like Herndon. Still, we found ourselves pretty much wrapped up in less than an hour and headed home. Nice enough and it doesn't cost anything, so no complaints. :-)

Italian Meetup at Michelangelo's

This week we had our Italian Meetup for the first time at Michelangelo's Restaurant here in Ashburn. That's Michelangelo and his wife in the first photo.

This restaurant is wonderful! Because we were a large group, I think there were 15 of us, and they knew we were coming, they prepared a fixed-price menu for us and brought out one dish after the other for us all to share. There was so much food that there was a lot left over after we were all stuffed - a real shame because it was all so delicious! The staff was very friendly and attentive. The owners were doting on us and making us feel so welcome, and the food just never stopped coming. The evening was capped off with Michelangelo's own homemade tiramisu -the best I've ever had!

We loved it so much that we decided to meet there once a month...FOREVER!

Click the link below if you live within 50 miles of Ashburn, Virginia and check out this wonderful restaurant!

http://www.michelangeloitalianrestaurant.com/main.html

More photos on my Flickr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/joeganci/sets/72157605329310500/

Herndon Friday Night Live Concert, May 23rd

Almost every week during the summer the town of Herndon near us holds a free concert. Sometimes it's well-attended, other times not. But it's always fun!

All the Colors of the Rainbow

We have a had a lot of rain lately, finally! I say finally because last year we had drought conditions and had to cut back on our water usage big time. Now we have had lots of rainstorms, so many that some areas have flooded. Luckily, we don't live in a flood zone so our basement is still dry!

The rain brings other benefits, like this rainbow I saw near my house. When it doesn't rain, we don't get rainbows!

Truth in Advertising

At the local Starbucks:

Are you energetic, friendly, motivated and addicted to coffee? Apply today as a full-time or part-time barista!

Great Bumper Stickers

Seen recently in my supermarket's parking lot:

I do whatever my Rice Krispies tell me to.


You're just jealous because the voices are talking to me.

Guinea Pigs Again Enchant The Neighbor Girls

The girls came to visit Nibbler and Quibbler again and this time they were able to feed them les carotes. What a feast. How lucky are these little piggies to be hand fed?

The Latest REALLY Cool Thing!

This is so cool and it's free. Check it out for yourself. You can explore space from the comfort of your home. It's a bit like Google Maps for space!

Download and experience it:

http://www.worldwidetelescope.org/experienceIt/ExperienceIt.aspx%5C

Smash Mouth in Concert

Sunday evening my son and I went to see Smash Mouth in concert nearby at the Belmont Country Club, the first in a summer-long series called Loudoun Music Fest. CCR Revisited was supposed to play two weeks ago but they were rained out. As you can see, this is an outdoor venue.

The opening act was a band called Mae, decent enough, rocking hard. Their set was a little long but pretty good. That's them in the first photo.

Smash Mouth came on after them and they rocked the house (OK, field) big time. One thing I thought while watching them is how it's pretty cool to see a band that was big (OK, sort of big) a few years ago. The reasons? 1) Tickets are much cheaper than seeing them in their hey day. 2) They've been doing this so long that if they didn't know how to do a concert right they wouldn't have lasted this long. 3) The crowds aren't overwhelming. As you can see, we sat pretty close to the stage!

You see the yellow-jacketed security guards? They were there to make sure none of us were audio or video recording the event (though many were, I'm sure). They also were guarding the fenced in VIP section in front of the stage. While the rest of us paid $15 - $20 for a ticket, those in the VIP section had paid about $40.

But something interesting happened after Smash Mouth got on stage and had played two or three songs. The lead singer, Steve Harwell, said that the concert would be a lot more fun if more people could be in front of the stage. The VIP section was pretty sparsely filled. He asked those who had paid a lot more for their seats and the security guards whether it would be OK with them if they let more people in. Put on the spot, what were they going to say? So in some of the photos you can see a lot of people hopping over the fence into the VIP section.

Steve was right. The concert was a lot more fun after that! I'm sure those who paid more for their seats weren't happy about it, but even they must have thought it was more fun to be standing and surrounded than just sitting there complacently.

Anyway, as the skies darkened and the full moon came out, the concert kept going. They played all of their famous songs and then some. You might know them as the band that sang I'm a Believer from the Shrek movie. You might also have seen them at the end of the very funny movie Rat Race.

Overall, it was a real fun concert!











I think the above photo I took is pretty cool. Click it to enlarge it!