First Post of the Year

Well the year has flown by and it's already August.
Here's the short skinny on the year.

I worked, I sat for the bar again, I worked some more, I saw some Allmans, a special Warren show at Irving Plaza, worked some more, my niece was Bat Mitzvahed, went to Mountain Jam, two month interlude from work. I moved to Queens. Yes, I am a resident of New York City now - not quite THE CITY, but I know my way via car around the area.

It all turned around this past week though.

My mom was released from the hospital after another bout of CHF - gotta teach her how to eat less salty foods - going down to Baltimore this weekend for that. So Mom is home from the hospital. Deep sigh of relief.

Saturday afternoon, I hit a line-shot homerun to left field in my pick-up softball league on the East River below the Williamsburg Bridge. First homerun. Hopefully many more to come.

I started working again for the insurance company whose mascot is Snoopy! It's great work in their AML division. Every bank and insurance company is doing AML so it's a great skill. My commute is hop on the bus to work. Bus line ends across the street.

Presenting the BENITANO. Yes, on my visit to Whole Foods last Saturday, I wrote up a contest slip for the Perfect Pie. Mine was Olive Oil, Garlic, Broccoli Rabe, Italian Sausage, Fresh Tomatoes and Mozzarella. Guess what?







I won! They called me this week and my BENITANO was Perfect Pizza Winner of the Week. Not just any winner, but the first winner as it was the inaugural week of the contest at Whole Foods Bowery on E. Houston Street. They took my picture, a bunch of handshakes, zipped me past 70 people at the checkout line. King for a day . . . or at least a few moments. As my friend Wendy said, "It's kinda like Dicks Picks Vol. 1." Naming a pizza is just the start. Hopefully more good news to report soon.

Best,

Ben