I drove my great nephew Onofrio, his lovely wife Noemi and little Olivia to the airport. We hit traffic on the perpetually under construction Belt Parkway. By the time I dropped them off, it became a question of whether I would suffer the consequences of a 61-year-old bladder. I made it home with seconds to spare. Whew!
The flight should be in the air by now. It was sad to see them go. Who knows if we will ever see each other again? They made an incredible lasagna for dinner on Christmas Day, no meat, as Noemi is a vegetarian, but a delicious blend of spinach and ricotta. My niece Isabel has her youngest daughter Carmen and her boys to keep her company for a few more weeks. Valentino, 11, is quiet and mannerly. It was interesting to see him share his portable Play Station with his cousin Chris, communicating despite the language barrier. Yuri, four-and-a-half, is a ball of fire. I had to give him the tickle torture several times to keep him in line. Isabel would like to keep them in America, as their separate fathers are losers, but she is afraid of being charged with kidnapping. Her oldest daughter Tanina and her family are due in after New Year's.
I don't know if you saw the fantastic play Bengals' wide receiver Jerome Simpson made Saturday. There were two defenders waiting to put the hammer on him at the goal line - and he did a forward flip over one of them - and stuck the landing! It was an unbelievable show of athleticism of which Mary Lou Retton would have been proud. And the story doesn't end there. He faces federal charges of having received 2.5 pounds of marijuana at his home in September. What a world!
Since I had to make the airport run, the floating bookshop was open for only a short time today. I thank the kind lady who purchased beautiful pictorials on tall buildings and gardens, and a guide to parties for children. To his chagrin, Herbie, one of my regulars, was unable to find anything he hadn't read among the latest batch of popular novels Joanne donated. Thanks also to John, who helped me bring the crates to the elevator. I needed every inch of trunk space to accommodate Onofrio's luggage, as little Olivia made quite a haul on her first American Natale. Bon voyaggio, bellissima!
Read Vic's stories, free: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
No comments:
Post a Comment