Focused at Fifty

***Blogger's note: I have changed the names of the individuals and some of the places discussed below for privacy. Pic courtesy of Firstnetsource.com The other evening I stopped at my local firehouse social club, the hosey, to meet my friend Sue for a beer. A lot of my neighbors and friends head down there on Wednesday nights for drinks, games, and fun. I figured I'd join them for one beer, maybe two, maybe two and a shot of Fireball. You get the idea. I had just walked in and who did I see across the bar but my friends Dan Myers and his wife Louise. I hadn't seen them in a couple of years since they had moved west to Missouri. I had gotten to know them fairly well when I was bartending at the hosey a while back. They lived around the corner from me and then moved out west for work after Dan had spent month after month job hunting in our economically depressed county. He finally gave up and went where the work was after no success up in this area. I went over,...

Much of what I write about is for my brother and sister. The blog has become sort of a written record of my family's history. My father has often forwarded family photographs, scrapbooks, heirlooms, and anecdotes my way and it was he who dubbed me the official family historian. I feel a sense of duty to my family since Mom passed away, to remember and record these memories, whether snippets or lengthy stories. My blog has become an easy way to share my family history with not only them, but also extended family and friends.  I find my cousins and close friends having "Aha!" moments when they rediscover past memories. My memories of Nana (Nanny) and Grandpop (my Mother's parents) extend from approximately 1973 through my Grandpop's passing in 1976 to Nana's subsequent passing two years later.   They lived at 22 Endwell Lane in Willingboro, New Jersey, in a one story rancher built in 1967. It's still there today. One funny memory was that my Nanny insis...

Guanciale OK, OK I have to say it and it's a bit sacrilegious, but this Jewish guy likes bacon. and furthermore, I like most pork products! I'd say my Jewish mother Abby may be rolling over in her grave but I know she isn't. She once told me she could eat bacon and not feel guilty because it was sooo good AND it didn't look like a pig. What??? LOL. OK Mom. And I am my Mother's child because I now use that same justification! :) For John's birthday back in November, I decided to get him a huge cheese box from DiBruno Brothers on Chestnut Street in Philly filled with his favorite Italian foods and some new ones too. Since I call him the Big Ragu and he is the most Italian person I know, I knew it'd be sure fire hit. Inside was the prerequisite sharp provolone, a rustic hot soppressata dry sausage, balsamic glazed figs, lupini beans, Italian long hot peppers, guanciale, and a bunch of other awesome foods! For those who do not know what guanciale is, it...

Every month, my office sends out a department newsletter over email. There are several sections such as anniversaries, birthdays, get-to-know new employers, co-worker trivia, and quotes. I began reading the co-worker trivia section to try and figure out who it was. The first sentence was "the first thing I notice about people is their confidence." Wow, I thought, I do that too! I always am drawn to other confident people! Next, the person "preferred cats over dogs, and summer over winter." Hmmm, I thought, me too. I have two cats and I am SO OVER this winter! After that, the person had written that they liked Asian food, the color royal blue, movies with happy endings, and mint chocolate chip ice cream. You know, I said to myself, I could easily be friends with this person! I have so much in common with them. Now I also like the color grey and coffee ice cream but royal blue and mint chocolate chip ice cream are ultimately at the top of my list! So I checked a...

"Voile" Pasta Measurer by Alessi Throughout the years, I have acquired several favorite cooking tools as gifts or through my own discoveries. I am always on the lookout for cool kitchen gadgets. Mom's favorite kitchen tool was the wooden spoon. When we stepped out of line, she would grab it and threaten to paddle us with it. She was kidding/half serious most of the time but I think I remember once or twice when I got the spoon to my butt for being a bad kid. Mom swore by wooden kitchen tools and to this day, I have plenty in my kitchen as well. The first favorite kitchen tool is the "Voile" Alessi Pasta Measurer. Alessi is an incredible Italian design company. Check out more of their wares at www.alessi.com . It was a gift from my father and stepmom Martha. Each circle in the pasta measurer is for a different amount of pasta. It was truly a perfect gift from the two of them as it encompassed Martha's passion for the kitchen and cooking, and ...

The Ingredients! Can a Jewish Mother make a good, possibly great quick marinara? You bet she can! Now in the 70s and 80s, my Mom was more of a jarred tomato sauce type of gal. There wasn't too many option available at the local Pathmark supermarket. She did mix it up though, adding her own onions, garlic, peppers, and spices. She often browned ground beef and added it for meat sauce. That's what I grew up with and was always proud to call it my Mom's sauce. But later, I was so happy to discover this recipe of hers while going through her recipe box. Now if you don't have an entire afternoon to boil your own tomatoes, peel them down, separate the seeds and water, and then blend them, this is a great quick marinara you can make within an hour. It comes out so much better than your average jarred sauce. It tastes fresher and you have the satisfaction of knowing that YOU made it and it's healthier for you too.  You can thank my Mom. MOM's QUICK MAR...

Here are a couple stories as a child that involve some car issues. As I have stated before, I was a pretty odd (maybe more normal than I realize) child.  All I know is that I gave my parents a lot of grey hairs. No wonder Mom did the 80's frosting kit every other week.  Anecdote #1 I don't know why I wanted to do it but I did. I remember when I was about 5 years old,   my family was driving back from my grandparents' house in Willingboro, NJ on Rt 295 in South Jersey on afternoon. Car seats, what were they? We were all over the back seat. I don't know what possessed me to do it, perhaps too much sesame candy at my Nana's, but I rolled down the back seat window of our blue rambler station wagon while Dad barreled down the highway at 50 MPH. For some reason, I wanted to see the tire spinning so I started to climb out the back seat. My sister was preoccupied joking around with my brother and wasn't paying attention to me. My Mom saw me attempt to climb out a...