Good Morning everyone, today is Monday, August 16, 2021. The porch weather went from 100 last week to 60 today and it looks cloudy right now but who knows what can happen later.

I have always been under the impression that music was not a big part of my interests, I mean I bought records and I had songs I liked, but I was never into big stereo systems on the wall or Bosch radios or any of that equipment. I felt it was way to sophisticated for me and I could not figure it out, a simple radio or tape player was good enough for me.

But at this time of my life when I hear a song some I liked and other I just heard, they envoke such memories that can last all day. So I guess subconsciously music ewas important to me, as most of the arts are.

This weekend, I heard the song ‘The Lion Sleeps Tomight’, this is an old song written and sung by a South African in 1939 and then in the 1950’s and 60’s became an international hit. It was originally sung in Zulu. In 1961 it was recorded and released in America by the doo woop group The Tokens, immediately rocketing to a number one hit. Later it even appeared in The Lion King, so this song had been around about 90 years. You might ask how does he know this, well in the late 60’s and 70’s in high school we had to analyze songs for English, I enhjoyed doing it , so it became somewhat of a pastime.

Now I don’t like sleep away camps , and it was something I never would do, day camps I can live with. However in 1961 at 7 years old when this song was released I found myself in the middle of Stokes State Forest, my mother had taken a job as camp nurse at Camp Madeline Mulford, a Girl Scout camp which my sister happily attended. We were there for the summer of 1960 and 1961. I was one of 4 boys, sons of other employees. We did not mingle with the girls part at all, so this left me free to do basically what I wanted most of the day, the counselors would teach us things when the girls were busy doing other things, swim when their lessons were over, we ate in a separate area, this is where I learned to drink bug juice, later I realized the bugs were really raspberry seeds. So,equipped with my transistor radio and ear phones I explored the forest, and the song was so popular it played all the time, so it became on of my favorites. On my explorations I discovered many things, a colony of bats living in an old barn, saw a mother bear bath her cub in the lake. The beautiful vistas of Sussex County high in the mountains. Countless animals, I also learned to respect nature and just be a visitor there, because that’s what I was , this was their home. When I look back I think those two summers taught me a lot, I sort of went to camp my way.

One night near the end of the season myself and the other boys were invited to the closing jamboree, we played games, cooked hot dogs on an open fire and I guess learned to make s’mores but it was not called that then, it wasn’t til recently I realized that. At the end of the night we were each given a piece of white birch bark and a candle and we made a sort of boat out of it, then one by one we sailed it into the lake, by the end the lake was totally illuminated, I can still remember standing back and looking and thinking how beautiful, there was some kind of lesson about life and friendship in doing this, about how we all mingle with each other like the boats and move through life like they did in the water. In the morning I ran to the lake and they were all gone. I think that might have been the lesson we take part of everyone we meet with us. So whenever I hear that song I think of the beauty of that night.

Sometimes when I write I can’t believe I have experienced some of these things some bizarre, some meaningful but they all add up to make me who I am. This is not unique to me we all have experiences that have shaped us to make who we are.

Well, it’s Java time and I’m ready so I will bid you a wonderful day and enjoy all you can. We’ll talk soon, Til Tomorrow!

Good Morning everyone, today is Friday, August, 13, 2021. The weather on the porch is beautiful and I am looking forward to a great day.

The photo I posted are of two dishes I made, one is Macaroni Puttanesca , I have eaten this many times but I found a recipe that puts tuna in it, so I wanted to try. It was outstanding , it is a dish that consists of olives, capers. Tomatoes, tuna, pasta, olive oil, garlic and the sauce is made in the time you boil the pasta. There are several ideas on it origin, one it was created on the island of Ischia one night when the owner used everything he had left to serve late coming patrons the second is it was created by let’s say ladies of the night because they could make it between customers. The name itself comes from the word puttana which means whore in Italian. So I have always adhered to the second version. Where ever it came from it is good. Now the second dish is Caponata, which is sort of a sweet and sour appetizer made with eggplant, celery, red pepper, onion, capers, tomatoes, vinegar and a little sugar. I have made this before and it was good , this time I roasted the eggplant and it was outstanding. I made this in the heat so I didn’t waste the eggplant, I guess that idea of wasting food comes back to you as you age. As a kid I use to scoff when my parents ate this and think it was horrible. It only shows how your palate changes as you age and the foolishness of youth. You don’t realize what your missing.

Yesterday’s post and again I want to thank you all for sharing that beautiful memory with me, is something very dear to me. I recieved two phone calls and texts from cousins who said it made them reminisce about it all day. I also got a message from Aunt Gracie’s son who is a priest, who actually married all of us, to thank me for remembering his family. That in itself made my day, after all that is why I write this post every day, yes to talk but to envoke our own memories and traditions that we have shared in our lifetime, not just mine but everyone’s personal story. Sure I tell my story, which is a springboard to remember your own. Last night Marylou and I went to dinner and we talked about St. Debla and how important it was, and I said to her how can this ever be forgotten, these events were our lives, this is the way we lived and the way they lived even before us, this is our history and legacy. It’s who we are. In this topsy turbulent world we live in we need more than ever to know who we are and where we came from. The ideals we were taught. Not everything can be forgotten and rewritten and reinvented. There is a past and it must be respected for the good and the bad, that’s how we learn and move forward. You know I talk about the 1000 year old tree, these events are the water and fertilizer to make that tree strong and grow.

Well maybe I was a little sentimental today, but that is who I am. Many things mean a great deal to me , things the average person doesn’t think about motivates me. I guess it’s not so bad being that way. Now it is time for coffee because I am getting a headache. So I will close, have an outstanding day and be careful in the heat, I don’t want anyone going down. Til Tomorrow!

Good morning everyone, today is Saturday, August 7, 2021, this will be my last balcony posting fro m the beautiful town of Cape May ending a beautiful vacation. The pictures I posted were to be the formal beach portrait for 2021, as you can see the shirts were.blue linen and Marylou a beautiful blue dress, as you can see the portrait never materialized, at the time Rocco was so silly as boys are at that age, Dario was dancing around like Saturday Night Fever, Marylou was no where to be found and I look like a statue of Mussolini. So these are the remnants of the planned photo.

As we pack the car this morning, the words of Frank Visco will sound in my head ‘ Tomorrow is Labor Day’ his way of saying vacation is over now we go back to reality. We would get so angry at that remark 50 years ago but it has merit now. We do have to resume normal life or we would not enjoy vacation.

However, I am not going home empty handed, I found a place near the harbor that sells crabs and they clean them too, so this morning I am picking them up for crab gravy tomorrow. I also went to Flalangers, supposedly the inventor of Salt Water Taffy in the late 1880’s, to buy fudge mandatory purchase at the beach. I’m not a fan of taffy never liked it that much.

While at Flalangers, they had vintage post cards of their store in Atlantic City so of course I could not miss the opportunity to browse through them. At a time Atlantic City was the jewel of New Jersey and the entire East Coast. A vacation there was a trip of a lifetime for most, with its grand hotels, the boardwalk, the Steel Pier with the diving horse the steeplechase and top entertainers vied to play there. Race track, some of the finest restaurants in the country, later Miss America. I’ve mentioned this before they had an entire store for Planters Peanuts actually nuts of all kinds. This is where I learned a the lesson of my life never to make fun of a person different then yourself, I can still feel that slap. If you wanted it you could find it in Atlantic City. Each year my parents went for a convention there on their return promised we would go for a week, but one thing the brought home was a box of Almond Macaroons from Fralangers, I loved them so yesterday I bought myself 2 , god knows I cold eat the box, they were good but not as good as 60 years ago but then again nothing is. My mother always wanted to stay at the Traymore Hotel because during the war they closed and turned it into a rehab, R & R for injured soldiers, her being an Army nurse this meant something to her. Now Atlantic City offers gambling and in many ways revitalized itself but never to its original grandeur.

So the next time we speak I will be porch side once again with my coffee. So enjoy a wonderful day and remember only we have the ability to make ourselves happy so let’s do it. Til Tomorrow.

Good Morning everyone, today is Wednesday, August 4, 2021. Today seems a little cool and cloudy so I think it may be a shopping , sightseeing kind of day. Sometimes I think God throws in a day like that to help us, how much sun can we take without a break , a lot lol.

Last night we flew by the seat of our pants concerning dinner. Amanda was vigilant in making reservations weeks and even months ago to certain places here because they fil up very fast, but we all agreed we would find something for Tuesday night. Well as it happened, it was hard to find somewhere, everything was booked, so we decided to just drive til we found something.

Well we did , it was a beautiful outdoor place that her and I passed in the morning and agreed we would like to try, everything was black and white striped which I like very much. The name was Elaine’s. I only mention the name because it brought back a memory from at least 45 years ago in New York. As Marylou and I were sitting there waiting for the little gentlemen to arrive we had a nice drink relaxing. As you know our minds can play ricks on us sometimes, as I was sitting there a table of women got up to leave and a women turned and walked towards us, and I thought to myself Elaine and I was getting ready to get up to greet her but she passed.

My mind had tricked me, I thought for that moment it was Elaine Kaufman the owner of The famous Elaine’s on Second Ave. in the city. This woman looked just like her, same shape , hair style , glasses. It was if time had stopped for that few seconds. Now Elaine’s was famous not so much for her food which was great, it was for her patrons, this was a small New York Style restaurant that attracted actors of every caliber, writers, all the literary types, directors , producers, there was never a time someone of fame was not there. I took my in laws there many times because every night they would watch Johnny Carson, so the could name many of the people from seeing them on the show. The night my mother in law saw Rock Hudson she was in heaven.

Rock Hudson was an extremely handsome man , and deserved that title movie star and idol. I don’t think there was a man of the time that did not wish to look like him. What he didn’t deserve was to have to live the way he did, live in shadows , exploited by the studios for his sexual preference. How lucky we are that supposedly that is over, but as you know there will always be prejudices of one kind of another. However our world today no longer sees those differences, who cares or who should care what you do with your life or lifestyle.

I have mentioned this many times before, in my life, I have befriended many people that I have no idea how we met and became friends, like Elaine, but on Saturday nights when I would arrive for dinner no matter how busy she was, she would come to greet me and find me a table. I spent many an enjoyable night there people watching.

Life is very precious and we need to live and enjoy every moment. We need to do that because we then have a bank where we can withdraw beautiful memories. The bad memories sometimes are not as bad as we perceived them when they happened when we look back at them, but all these things create our life and we need to continue to live the best we can.

Well it is that time of day and as Walter Winchell the great radio broadcaster used to say , Good day Mr and Mrs America from border to border and coast to coast and all the ships at sea. Have a great day Til Tomorrow!

Good Morning everyone, today is Tuesday, August 3, 2021. I am right here on the balcony doing some of my favorite things, speaking with you and watching the surf as the sun comes up.. actually I’m a little Leary about the sun today, it seems a little cloudy.

I’m also a little amazed and intrigued because I can also see the pool, technology is a wonderful thing, I see many things in the water and was thinking ‘what are they’ and I realized they are cleaning the pool and chlorinating it. All done by machines. When I was young I was the machine, everyday I had to vacuum, skim, put chlorine in the pool. Test the water ph, that was my job. If I wanted to use it I had to take care of it, not a bad lesson.

Cape May is a resort town so I love to drive and see all the hotels and motels, inns, bed and breakfasts. It seems one is nicer than the other. I have always loved the idea of a hotel and thought wouldn’t it be nice to live in one, like in New York, you would meet the most interesting people. Growing up, so many years ago as I did, road trips were the major source of vacationing, cars were becoming more prevalent and roads and highways were being built to take you anywhere with ease, but this all brought about the concept of the Motel, it combined the two words motor and hotel. My father was a real proponent of this, he loved the idea of pulling up to your room, unloading the car without a bellman. When it was time you reloaded your car and off you went . Check in and out in a breeze none of the hassles of a hotel. So this mode of travel became the way to go in the 50’s through the 70’s when I believe Motels were at their peak, they are still there today and used by millions.

Hotels, however just seemed a better fit for me. I have stayed in many around the world and me being me has a story for just about everyone of them, so this vacation week I will share some in our talks, some are really funny and things that only happen to me.

I have spoken many times about my first trip to Paris alone at 16. How grown up I felt at the time,that I was able to do this and how lucky I was that my parents gave me this opportunity. When the bus pulled up in front of the Hotel Dagmar in Paris’s left bank, I thought wow a real European hotel, so the priest escorted us in and showed us our rooms, there were 15 of us so we were three to a room. He then showed us where the toilet was down the hall, and the shower or bath down another hall. At this I started to wonder why our room didn’t have its own bathroom. Then we went downstairs where he showed us the breakfast room, every hotel I’ve ever stayed in in Europe had a breakfast room, I like that concept. But basically that is the only meal they served. So he said are you guys okay , you know where everything is now, so I will pick you up for mass Sunday, so take care of yourself and be the gentlemen you are and got back in the bus and left, and true to his word we didn’t see him for the next three days. So we went back to our room to look around, out the back window was a little garden, in the room was a curtain behind it we found a toilet or what we thought was a toilet, none of us had ever heard of or seen a bidet and we really didn’t know what it was, until one of the older guys explained it purpose, but for the next two weeks it is where we urinated.

Everyday the breakfasts were amazing to me, the others wanted more food but it was not an American breakfast with eggs and bacon and what not, it was a European breakfast, crossiants, baguette, some fruit ,cafe au lait and

amazing preserves. Til this day I like that kind of breakfast on vacation.

Over the years the smell of the Hotel Dagmar has remained with me, it was sort of intoxicating. What I came to realize years later was that it was the combined smells of croissants, espresso and paint, yes at the time they were painting the hotel. Nonetheless all these years later I can still recall that smell with pleasure. What I have also come to realize is at the time the Hotel Dagmar was not the palatial mansion I thought it was, it had actually seen better days but to me it will always remain Grand. The ignorance of youth.

Well under cloudy skies, it is time for my morning cafe, so I will wish you a glorious day, hopefully some of these clouds will burn away. Til Tomorrow!

A

Good Morning everyone, welcome to Sunday , August 1, 2021. Yes we are beginning a new month already, and summer is in full swing so there is plenty of time to still celebrate this wonderful season. The weather out here on the porch looks great , a little cool but it’s better than hot and muggy.

As I mentioned yesterday I am off for vacation for this week and it funny how things happen, this I told you is a family vacation and today we actually celebrate two holidays National Family Day and Parent Day. Both are equally important in our lives. Parents wheather we believe it or not basically selflessly dedicated their lives to their children and have worked tirelessly to give them a happy and safe childhood. Today celebrates the eternal love between parents and children. Most of us can agree on that, sadly there are many parents that don’t fit the bill. The creators of this holiday wanted children to physically spend time together with their parents, that is not always possible as much as we would love it to be, even if it was for 5 minutes , I would take it. As children we often take for granted the role of a parent we must remember the leadership role they played , the sense of security we felt, they set the foundation for leading us to grow up to be good human beings, they also influence decision making skills and how we correct our mistakes. Today is not just limited to parents, but for anyone who plays a leadership role in a child’s life, including grandparents, aunts , uncles and godparents.

This day was started to make our families become strong and more united by recognizing the parental role and reinstate the respect of parents that was evident in the past. I Thank God I had the parents that he gave me or else I would not be the person I am, and many of you will agree wilh me on that score. Sadly, there are many of us who cannot share that sentiment for whatever the reason.

With all that being said we celebrate the family today, we celebrate the bonds that laid the foundation for our lives, be it blood or otherwise. Take a moment and think of of your family foundation , how it was created and where we are taking it. Family is one of the most important gifts we will ever recieve and we should never take it for granted. Remember that tree will last 1000 years if it is nurtured in the proper way.

So I will spend today with my prized gifts, of course at times I will be annoyed but that will never outweigh the love in my heart, and it never should. We are all human, so we hurt , get angry, lash out, but when there is true love present there is also the capability to forgive , forget and move on to happier times.

Enjoy these two holidays today, it will makes us all much happier.

Well it’s that time of the morning, when we move on with our day. So the next time we speak on won’t be on the porch, hopefully on a balcony overlooking the magnificent Atlantic. Have a great day ,
Til Tomorrow!

Good Morning everyone, today is Saturday, July 31, 2021. We we are going to close the book on another month today. It is always sad to see the summer months go by, I think the incomparable Nat King Cole said it best when recorded ‘ Roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer, You’ll wish that summer could always be here. It seems to me everyone is just a little happier and carefree in the summer. We have talked about the month of August being vacation month in Europe, where it seems the entire continent shuts down. I myself have always liked to vacation in August. It seem a little hotter and more enjoyable to me. This year will be no different, I will be going on a much needed holiday starting tomorrow. I will be at the beach soaking up the rays and dining on seafood at night, two of my favorite things to do. However, we will still talk everyday, this time everyday , speaking with you has become such an important part of my life. I immensely enjoy sharing different ideas and foods and memories with you. Although some still scoff and say you talk too much or your boring and who cares, it dosent bother me because everyone has free will and if I am all those things you have the choice to just click me away.

This is a family vacation which I adore, I don’t know why it is the way I grew up and it is part of me, of course I love vacations alone with Marylou and wish I could take more. But when I was young in 1962 there was a movie that came out ‘ Mr. Hobbs takes a Vacation’ starring Jimmy Stewart and Maureen O’Hara, they take their family on a beach vacation much to his dismay, he wanted a European Tour but he got the beach with his children, during the movie he beefs about everything but in the end he realized he wouldn’t change that time for anything, because to be with his family is priceless. So I have always agreed with him and I’m sure this year will be the same. Just to see them on the beach is incomparable. This is the time true memories are made.

The photo I posted this morning was dinner last night, a pasta imported from Sicily Ceasarian or something like that with a pesto I came up with consisting of sun dried tomatoes and sun dried peppers with basil and parmigiano cheese, very easy to make but delicious. Sometimes I actually surprise myself it is that good.

Well it that time once again , where I wish you the best day possible, remember it is the weekend so take advantage of it. We will talk soon Til Tomorrow! I hope you all enjoyed some cheesecake I did.

Good Morning everyone, today is Friday July 30, 2021. Well we only have one more day to celebrate the great month of July, this month has really gone fast, it seems like I was in Pittsburgh only yesterday. However, Mother Nature will give us beautiful weather to end this special month.

We live today in what is considered the 21st century, can you imagine, I never thought I would see that in my life being born in the mid 20th century but God has seen fit for me to still be around to enjoy this world we live in. Everyday that world gets smaller and smaller, with technology, travel and a host of other variables. However, as human beings most of us do not appreciate the world we live in. Make no mistake about it we live in a tough world with miscommunication , mistreatment, lack of trust, discrimination, cultural discord, so creating peace really is a trying situation, there is really no reason why we cannot exist in harmony with one another. There are many organizations trying to make that happen, such as the United Nations , they exist to show us that there is good in this world , we just have to look for it and live it.

You might be saying to yourself , What is he talking about. Who cares about the UN, but I mention this today because July 30 is International Day of Friendships. It is a day set aside to promote peace , happiness and unity within the world community. I have always believed and said it most of my life, without understanding, and acceptance of other people and cultures we will never be able to truly live in peace and harmony. We do not have to worry so much for ourselves but we must be concerned with the generations that will follow us. The other day at the pool Rocco was jumping in and out as he does everyday and a little boy his age was also jumping in and out a little further down the pool, now this boy was from a completely different culture than mine but me being me said Rocco why don’t you ask him to jump with you, so he went over and asked and the boy was only to happy to jump together a
nd they did for about 5 minutes when the mother came and said they were leaving in 5 minutes . 2 hours later they were still there but in another spot. These children see each other everyday, I thought to myself How Sad, to perpetrate discord for no reason, let them play and enjoy one another.

Do you realize in the last century and in my own life we have had 2 World Wars, one was supposed to end war for all time. Korean Conflict, Vietnam War and scores of Conflicts in the Middle East for the past 50 years, for what? Have they really accomplished anything but death and destruction, my feeling is no. I think it is time we take another course of action and look for the good in all the world.

As a child Pan Am used to give their passengers a bag with their logo, a picture of the world on it, this is when airline travel started to flourish. I wanted one of those bags so bad because to me it represented travel, in my life I would have liked to visit every country in the world and enjoy every culture obviously that was an impossibility. As many of you know I do this virtually, through food , movies , stores and many other means, so I do get around.

This International Friendship idea is not new it dates back to 1958 with the friendship crusade. A movement to build bridges among cultures, countries and even ideologies. I feel we should all embrace this endeavor for a better life.

Well, I have spoken a lot this morning and now it is time for Java so I will leave you now to enjoy this beautiful day. Today is Also National Cheesecake Day, so for a treat and to celebrate I will be having some, maybe you would like a special dessert too. Til Tomorrow!

Good Morning everyone, today is Thursday July 29, 2021, wow it is scary how fast this month is flying, but we still have a lot of summer left so don’t get upset. I don’t know what the weather will bring today but right now at porch time it looks favorable, let’s hope it stays that way.

Now I am always pontificating about finding things large or small to make us happy and bring joy to our lives. Yesterday, I just took a break from the pool, I felt there were other things I wanted to do. So I went to one of my favorite stores World Market, there are just many small things in there to look at, and many one of a kind things that you have to keep going back for because the stock is always changing. This is a marketing technique I myself practiced and like, it keeps a store fresh and people coming back, afraid they will miss something.

When I entered the featured promotion were goods from Campania, Italy right off the bat I was happy and excited. Why, because Campania is a region of southern Italy , that contains the province of Avellino, and the city of Naples. This is where most of my forebearers came from, and my in laws too. So right there was part of my heritage , so I started to look around, they had pasta, tomatoes in the can and jar, peppers, anchovies, I know many of you are saying ewe but from this area they are the best there is, dishware, glassware and a host of other things. So I began to shop, I knew I had fresh zucchini at home that I wanted to cook, and I knew Coleen was coming for dinner and the baby soon to arrive has to like Italian food so I bought a special pasta, anchovies, more pasta shapes and vowed I would be back before it is all gone. I have my eye on the pasta dishes, but I think if I bring another dish into the house I could get murdered after we got rid of many recently. Before going home I drove to get my breakfast treat , taralles, I can’t start my day without. Going on vacation next week I needed my supply.

The photo I have shared is of Spaghetti Nerano, this is a dish from souther Italy invented in the fifties by a woman Maria Grazia for her restaurant which is still there run buy her grandchildren. Basically it is fried zucchini, not breaded with spaghetti and cheese , but the trick is 1/3 of the zucchini is creamed in a processor to create the sauce. I have to admit I outdid myself Coleen and the baby loved it as we all did, Ronnie even had seconds so when I saw that I knew I had a hit on my hands. This recipes was written in Italian so it took me some time to translate and get it right.

Today’s post may not have been earth shattering or anything special but my point is these small things made me very happy, it gave me pleasure to make this for my family and what else is more important in life. It also gave me a chance to connect with the past, which I als love. Using my vivid imagination I thought I was on the Amalfi Coast in Cafe Nerano. If only.

Well it is coffee time also a new blend from Lavazzo, so as you see today I am immersed . Have a great day and do things for yourself to be happy, Ciao Til Tomorrow.