Monday, October 11, 2010

Special (Day After) Columbus Day Edition: Forza Italia!

".....AND THESE ARE A FEW OF MY FAVORITE (ITALIAN) THINGS."

Apologies to Julie Andrews, since she wasn't singing about Italian stuff in that show. But I have never known exactly what Columbus Day means to me, a schmucky Jewish guy with no known Italian connections or traits. Yeah, yeah, I have been told Italian mothers are just like Jewish mothers ("What, you don't love me? Eat, eat.....Ess, ess....Mangia, mangia!"). And so we did, and still do. We love our mothers, and we want to please them, so we clean our plates. So I guess whether it is rigatoni Bolognese or stuffed kishka, there are a lot of similarities after all. And, I understand that if you get mad at a relative and disavow them, in either culture, it is permanent, the end, get outta my life, never darken my doorway again. And guilt? Don't get me started!

So I started thinking, hey, Bob/Irv, you love a lotta Italian things, and if it weren't for ol' Chris (Columbus, not Chaw) we wouldn't even be here to enjoy them. And in all honesty, this country should be named Columboland after the great navigator. But some dude by the interesting moniker of Amerigo Vespucci mapped and named our great land America. Yeah, yeah, I know it really should be named Vespucciland ("God bless Vespucciland, land that I love") but that would take up way too much space on a bumper sticker.

But I digress (so what else is new?). Below I have listed some of my favorite Italian things, in no particular order, with appropriate descriptions where necessary:

+ Pizza from Melo's
+ The Leaning Tower of Pisa
+ Nardi steering wheels (had one on my '64 Porsche)
+ Mona Lisa
+ Webber carburetors (ditto '64 Porsche)
+ Marcello Mastroianni
+ The Italian Job (the first one, with Michael Caine)
+ Florence
+ Pirelli tires (next year's exclusive tire supplier to Formula One)
+ Salade Caprese
+ Piazza Navona
+ Gnocchi
+ Autodromo di Monza (location of the Italian Grand Prix for over 50 years)
+ The Sistine Chapel
+ Cannoli
+ Sophia Loren (my second most favorite thing from Italy)

+ and last, but as many would guess, my FAVORITE Italian thing...... Automobili e Scuderia Ferrari!!

Do you have any Italian things you really like? Betcha do. Please send them to me here at the Transplant Trib (via Comments on the blog, email as listed in the right column, or on Facebook) and I will gladly publish them here. If you wish to contribute anonymously, please indicate such. Hey, guys 'n' girls, the FAQ thing didn't exactly set any records, so get on that computer of yours and Go Italian!

B-B-B-BUT WHAT ELSE IS SHAKIN', BOB/IRV?

Oh, not much. Had a great trip to UCSF last Thursday, where we visited two heart/kidney transplant dudes. One, David, is still pretty ill, and goes on waiting. The other, Fred D., is an old buddy from cardiac rehab in Livermore, who had a successful operation a week ago Monday. We also saw and heard the Blue Angels practicing above The City, an extra big deal for David, who was able to see the action from his 10th floor room in ICU. Very cool.

Friday was unusual, to say the least. Reminiscent of my famed diabetic melt-down in an important meeting back at Mt. D, I stupidly "stacked" insulin after dinner. I started to swing and sway as I was going to bed, and weakly asked Cheryl to help me. Unfortunately, she was fast asleep and didn't hear me right away. The next thing I knew, I looked up from my bed at what seemed like a dozen big guys (and one not-so-big girl) in dark uniforms asking me if I was OK. Seems Cheryl could not contain my violent writhing and arm-waving, so she had to resort to 9-1-1 for the first time in history. The firemen (firepersons?) couldn't hold me down either, but finally succeeded in getting some glucose into me. Someone said my blood sugar was 26. Anyway, I came right around, refused a ride to ValleyCare, and returned to bedtime activities.

We attended an excellent CTDN training session Saturday morning with no ill effects from the outside-catered lunch (despite the same sandwiches Sweet Affair has been making for about 72 years; what's up with the sprouts?). It took place in a conference room on the lower level of John Muir in Walnut Creek, so I was able to visit upstairs in the kitchen briefly. As at Concord Campus, it was truly great to see those who were there. Nice bunch, now as when I was there for six years.

As always, I have overstayed my welcome in your heads. Pardon the crap outta me!

Bob/Irv
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RJ/Bob/Irv is a 61-year-old beloved husband, father, uncle, brother, motor racing fanatic, and Livermore resident who received a heart and kidney transplant in February of 2010. Bob's recent years have been defined by his health, which forced him into early retirement. Unfortunately, many of his days were spent in a dialysis center or at various medical appointments, primarily due to his living with diabetes for over 40 years. Numerous were panic visits to various Emergency Rooms all over California for treatment of chest pain. But now no more dialysis and no more late-night dashes to UCSF! The main focus of Bob's family, friends, and doctors has been a prompt transplant, so that he can get back to traveling with his Sweetie, driving fast cars, enjoying great music and laughing with his friends. This blog will function as a way to communicate with all interested parties and to keep everyone informed. And hopefully it can serve a great purpose also, in making people more aware of the importance of organ donation and how each life saved has a positive effect on dozens of related friends and relatives.