Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough. ~ Oprah Winfrey
What’s Thanksgiving Really About?
Thanksgiving, as I’ve mentioned in past years is my favorite holiday. But as some of you know, I work at perhaps the most liberal college, in perhaps the most liberal area of the United States. So it’s not surprising on campus to hear Thanksgiving described as celebrating a colonizer’s holiday. A holiday that celebrates how white people from Europe came to America, got helped by Native Americans and the proceeded to commit genocide on them. Then, the white American school system disneyfied the whole story to happy Pilgrims and Native Americans to the current story we pump into textbooks to brainwash all the bad stuff away.
While there certainly is a lot of truth in that narrative, that’s the what of the history of Thanksgiving, the history of the holiday and the way America operates. And like so many things in life, we have a choice to how we view things. We can choose to hang onto the cynical take and make the decision that because of the origins of this holiday we should shun the holiday, or deride it for the idiocy of American political thought.
But that’s not the choice I’ve made with this holiday, because in that original story of Thanksgiving, in fact Native Americans did help out the Pilgrims. Initially, I’m sure those colonists were grateful and that basic attitude of gratitude to me, is the important thing that has become the central tradition of the holiday. Hell, many people even celebrate November as gratitude month, that doesn’t happen without this holiday.
Sure, we’ve all developed our own traditions around the holiday. For some it’s hunting, for some it’s a huge family dinner, for others a quiet time away from the world or watching football. For me, because I grew up hunting Thanksgiving morning, Thanksgiving day always meant eating a huge breakfast, passing out watching football only to wake up to an early dinner and finish off the day hunting. So as life has gone along, my tradition has morphed a bit, I no longer hunt. So, my tradition is a hike, time outside is critical, I always cook, I always eat a lot. This year the menu includes Cornish Game Hens, lasagna, deviled eggs, stuffed mushrooms, stuffing, potatoes and my standard chocolate pie. There is still football watching, napping and probably a bit of writing.
One of the core reasons for the hike, for the time outside is time to think and time to consider what I’m grateful for, no matter how bad things are at the time. You may have had recent deaths in your family, illnesses, your dog may have recently died, a family member may be going through cancer, you might be super lonely, or taking care of an ill parent.You may be really dissatisfied with where you are in life right now or the things you’re dealing with. But we are all grateful, not just for something, but many things in life. You may be thankful for the family that you have around you, your job, your financial standing in life. You may be thankful for having healthy children, or good friends. You might just be thankful for the fact that you’re able to have a nice holiday dinner. And at the end of the day, in this country, most of us can be thankful for our first world reality. We have food, shelter, entertainment, cell phones that cost as much as computers, we’re blessed and lucky in many ways. So on this one day a year, we make the extra effort to see past the bad, to appreciate the good in our lives and be thankful for it, that’s what Thanksgiving is all about to me and I hope for you. Have a happy day my friends and a happy Thanksgiving. ~ Rev Kane
I found out about Avellino through a website I really respect in regard to NY Pizza in San Francisco and they called it the place that most reminded them of the pizza place they grew up with in Brooklyn. So, although the nearest BART stop was three miles away and over a couple of series hills, I made the trek up to the edge of the Presidio to visit Avellino’s and grab some slices. As you can see from the image above, they look absolutely wonderful and I was excited to try them. I popped out to the outside tables and sat down to hit the slices. First bite and utter disappointment rang through my body, they were terrible. The problem was really the crust, it absolutely tasted like pre-made pizza crust giving the slice an overall frozen pizza taste. It was so disappointing, the fact is that I took a bite of each slice, and then maybe for the first time in my life, I didn’t finish the slices, a seco
I was really excited to check out The Pizza Shop, as I had mentioned in the memoriam section my favorite place had been in the Mission neighborhood of the city. It was super conveniently located near the 16th street BART station. The Pizza Shop is pretty close to the 24
Baseball hasn’t been the national pastime for many years now – no sport is. The national pastime, like it or not, is watching television.~ Bob Greene
Happy Viewing: Best Streaming Recommendations
I often see on social media people asking for recommendations for something to stream. Like most folks, I often shoot off a couple of things I’m currently watching. Recently however, a friend underwent surgery and was immobile for a time. So I took some time to go through and really create a list of streaming shows that I’ve seen that I really liked and would be willing to recommend to folks. I thought about how to lay out the list and initially I thought I would do it by genre, then I realized exactly how I would use a list like that. I’d shoot straight to the science fiction section and possibly miss some really great shows. Then of course there are shows like Bodies that are a mix of genres. Also, if there’s a foreign section and you don’t like subtitles you might skip over things like a fantastic Korean film, Train from Busan. This list, outside of mentioning Train of Busan, will focus on serial shows, not movies and I’ll list them by streaming service, quick summary and location. No need for reviews, if it’s on the list, I recommend it. And I’ll apologize in advance for location, streaming services have started selling off parts of their catalog to other services so some of these may have moved around.
How does this tie into the blog, I like TV, or streaming now. I need novelty and new information to be entertained and living in the golden age of TV has definitely been a happy experience. The shows on this list made me happy by entertaining me and hopefully they’ll entertain you. ~ Rev Kane
Amazon
The Expanse – One of the best shows in a long time, and one of the best science fiction shows all-time.
The Man in the High Castle – This is one of those frustrating series that doesn’t end but the first couple of seasons are amazing. It’s an alternate history series, lots of Nazis, multiple universes but not in a stupid Marvel way.
The Boys – The single most insane series ever, there are scenes that are beyond description. Not even close to politically correct at any level, if you are offendable at all, skip this series. But if you like off the wall, insane, sometimes disgusting, humor with a solid story line and good acting, check it out. It’s basically anti-marvel superheroes.
Wheel of Time – Definitely for the fantasy lovers, great cast, well acted but definitely your mystical forces type of fantasy series, prophecies, powers, reincarnation the whole thing. I’ve really enjoyed it and honestly I think the next season will be ever better.
Reacher – If you liked the Jack Reacher movies even a little bit, you’ll love Reacher. Much closer to the character in the books and I really dig this series a lot.
Lord of The Rings: Rings of Power – Basically the prequel to the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings stories, really well done, interesting, just enough action and you don’t need to know the Lord of the Rings story to enjoy it.
Truth Seekers – This series is stupid and kind of funny.
Falling Skies – A really early on alien invasion story, the story always felt intense and very real and enjoyable watch.
Resident Alien – This show is kooky and funny as hell. An alien comes to Earth and decides to live here, his take on humans and what we do is hilarious.
Fringe – If you liked the X-Files, you’ll totally dig Fringe. Basically, hipper version of the X-Files with a little multiple universe angle, series ran for like five years so there’s a lot to watch.
Counterpart (extra purchase only) – As far as I’m concerned, the best multiple universe show ever, not because of the multiverse angle, but because the acting was incredible, can’t believe this didn’t last longer, there’s only a couple of seasons and no wrap up.
West Wing – The single best political show ever created, there were episodes that will give you shivers down your spine. One of Aaron Sorkin’s early series and it’s absolutely fantastic, one of the best shows ever on television.
Netflix
The 100 – Drop a 100 young people on a planet and make them fend for themselves, fun science fiction and it sure doesn’t hurt that the entire cast is gorgeous. Storyling is engaging, good drama and good action, very much a strong female-centric series.
Lost in Space – The remake of the original series that I watched initially with a lot of trepidation and ended up really digging and they wrapped it decently.
Sweet Tooth – Imagine a super sweet hybrid kid with antlers living his best life in the apocalypse. Sounds ridiculous, kind of is, but it’s also sort of sweet and fun to watch. Also, definitely tween friendly.
Dark – (German) Super cool science fiction, even if you don’t like subtitles check this one out, it’s super engaging and pretty amazing.
Travelers – I love this show, really engrossing, great story, good performances, 3 seasons and no wrap up at all which absolutely sucks. If you dig scifi, definitely check it out.
Squid Game (Korean) – Dystopian madness at it’s absolute best, can’t wait for the second season, the first was absolutely unique and brilliant.
Vikings – What a great show, get’s a bit soap opera like in the last couple of season but the first few seasons, the story of Ragnor Lothbrook’s life is amazing. Great adaptation of one of the classic Norse Sagas.
Vikings: Valhala – A Vikings spin off that I didn’t have high expectations for, especially when they cast a model as the lead. But Frida Gustavsson absolutely rocks! And the show is a really great ride, new season coming out soon I believe.
The Sandman – A series comic nerds have been waiting for, forever! It didn’t disappoint, really well done, just the right level of trippy. I always think of it as a serious live Nightmare Before Christmas vibe.
Midnight Mass – Crazy vampire shit in a small New England town, short series, good watch.
Cowboy Beepop – The live action and the cartoon are both good. The live action only got one season but I really liked it, may not be everyone’s cop of tea, a bit of an anime edge.
All of us are dead (Korean) – Like zombies, fun high school zombie series, think Walking Dead lite.
Kingdom (Korean) – Historical zombie show that absolutely kicks ass, think of every good season of the Walking Dead and this is right at that level.
Sweet Home (Korean) – Korean monster show, but in an incredibly unique way. I LOVE this show, two seasons so far and both were fantastic. One thing that always disappoints me is when I can see things coming, I rarely get surprised by shows. This show surprises and astounds me in every episode, some of the best TV ever made.
Stranger Things – You all know it, it’s great, if you haven’t seen it, check it out.
Santa Clarita Diet – This show has an amazing cast, cool premise, great acting and writing and it’s totally nuts and hysterical in a very bloody and violent suburbia sort of way. Absolutely worth a watch but another series that went belly up without a wrap up.
Mindhunter – Dig shows like Criminal Minds, well this show takes you back to the FBI agents who created how to hunt for serial killers, great show, not enough seasons.
HBO Max
The Wire – The best cop show ever, maybe the best TV show ever. If you’ve never watched it, watch it start to finish, the characters actors played in this show are who they will always be to me. I see Wire actors in other shows but it doesn’t matter how good the new character is, I can only see their Wire character, that’s how iconic and incredible this show was. Cop show about cops in Baltimore, put this at the top of your list.
The Newsroom – Short-lived, great cast, the first episode has one of the greatest speech Aaron Sorkin has ever written for a character and that’s saying something.
West Wing – The single best political show ever created, there were episodes that will give you shivers down your spine. One of Aaron Sorkin’s early series and it’s absolutely fantastic, one of the best shows ever on television.
The Last of Us – One of the few video game conversions that has really worked well, just a season so far, but man it was fantastic. The frustration however, is that even before the actor’s strike this was on a slow roll out schedule with a year or two between seasons planned.
Peacemaker – I’m not a huge Marvel fan, and I have a tendency to like the fringe Marvel stuff way more than the mainstream movies and series. I LOVE Peacemaker, John Cena is magnificent in this series and plays the lunkhead superhero to perfection and in a way that really makes you care for his character. Another slow roll out, another season is coming, eventually….
United States of Tara – Toni Collette at her very best as a person with DID (multiple personalities) also the series where Brie Larson got her start.
Chernobyl – An absolutely kick ass drama with fantastic performances.
True Blood – Did you like Buffy the Vampire slayer, you’ll likely dig True Blood, consider this the R-rated version of the PG Buffy, with a Louisiana Cajun spin and one the single most kick-ass opening songs of any series ever. And like Buffy, absolutely filled with pretty people at ever turn, but also really well written storylines.
Treme – An HBO series you have likely not heard of, but a series about the Treme neighborhood of New Orleans. I love New Orleans which probably pre-disposed me to love this series but it’s really good with a great Crescent City vibe.
Station Eleven – When I read this book, I wasn’t sure what to think of it. But it definitely stuck with me. The series will do the same to you, but is a bit more coherent and wraps up better than the book did.
Six Feet Under – Since it aired this has always been one of my favorite series. Set around a family who runs a funeral home, you’ll recognize every primary actor in the series, they’ve all gone on to do great work. Just a masterful series that will hit every emotional note for you.
Deadwood – They finally did a wrap-up movie, the lack of a wrap up was the only weakness in this series. A spectacular western set in the mining boomtown of Deadwood. Buffalo Bill, Calamity Jane lots of characters and actors you’ll recognize. The one thing I will say, if you’re offended by F-bombs, stay away from this series, they drop F-bombs like breathing. But great acting, great writing, fabulous performances, really satisfying.
The Leftovers – Man this is a damn roller coaster ride. I’ll tell you nothing of the story, it is a series that will get under your skin, screw with your mind and entertain the hell out of you. Intense, extremely well done and mind blowing.
The Boondocks – Animated series about a black family in suburbia. This series is hardcore social commentary, the N-word flies constantly and the show at times, completely on purpose will make you completely uncomfortable watching it. It will challenge how you think about things and it will make you laugh your ass off.
Watchmen – Short run series with no plans ever for another season. This series is the reason that most Americans know about the Tulsa massacre. It’s an amazing series, helps if you’ve seen the movie, or read the graphic novel, but not necessary to follow the story and be incredibly entertained.
Falling Skies – A really early on alien invasion story, the story always felt intense and very real and enjoyable watch.
Fringe – If you liked the X-Files, you’ll totally dig Fringe. Basically, hipper version of the X-Files with a little multiple universe angle, series ran for like five years so there’s a lot to watch.
Game of Thrones – The books are magnificent as well as this series. Easy to get addicted to and take everything you think about the series and how things will go after the first couple of episodes and throw those ideas away, you’re wrong. The twists and turns in this series are absolutely magnificent.
House of Dragon – Game of Thrones spinoff, prequel. Watch Game of Thrones first, if you love it, watch this, if you don’t let this one go. It’s enjoyable if you like the GoT universe.
Boardwalk Empire – A Steve Buscemi lead series that is really fabulous, it’s all about the early days of Atlantic City.
Carnivale – Take a dive into the world of carnivals and sideshows with a cast of absolutely amazing characters. I loved this show when it came out, but like so many, it was cut short with no wrap up. Great cast, great characters, great writing.
Band of Brothers – The most amazing World War II show ever made, follows Easy Company from Normandy all the way through to Germany and the end of the war. Intense, incredibly well acted, historically accurate and characters who will stay with you forever.
OZ – Absolute warning on OZ, it is an incredible TV show. It is also NC-17 or higher. If you can’t handle violence, rape and brutal abusive scenes do not watch this show. It’s a brutal, gritty and incredible series about live in a maximum security prison. If you like the Elliot Stabler character from Law and Order, or the psychiatrist played by JK Simmons, DON’T WATCH OZ, you’ll never be able to look at those actors the same way again.
The Sopranos – Everyone knows this series, if somehow you don’t know the single greatest mob TV series ever, check it out. For the record I hate the series ending episode.
The Stand – I’m a huge fan of the book, The Stand and every version ever made. The most recent is on HBO and it’s very good, go on down to Sweet Home and save the world.
Big Love – The show that taught most people in America about Mormons and Jack Mormons. Super interesting series with an amazing cast, great writing and great performances.
Paramount
Yellowstone – I really resisted watching Yellowstone, figured it was just another over-hyped soap opera masquerading as a western drama. Then I watched the next show I’ve listed 1883. And 1883 was absolutely spectacular. Given that, I decided to check out Yellowstone and yes, it’s primetime TV soap opera-ish drama but it’s a damn good one. Taylor Sheridan is a damn genius and also a pretty good actor with a small role in the show.
1883 – If you ever played the ancient computer game, The Oregon Trail, here’s the live action version with everything you can imagine, mutiny, bandits, Native American attacks and culture, and on and on. All centered around a family and the performances are beyond spectacular.
Tulsa King – Sylvester Stallone as a mobster, fresh out of a long prison stint and exiled to Tulsa. Man I had no expectations for this show and man I love it. Perhaps Stallone’s best performance since the original Rocky and far more nuanced. I really modern and interesting mob story set in Tulsa, Oklahoma of all places.
Halo – Another video game adaptation that actually works pretty well, definitely your basic alien, space battle hero science fiction but well done.
Dexter and Dexter II – Dexter, the show that made people cheer for a serial killer, Michael C Hall is brilliant in this series. He was also one of the stars of Six Feet Under. There is also a sequel series that came out last year, it’s pretty good. The original Dexter is genius and the second benefits from the love of the original series.
Apple TV+
Servant – This is solid M. Night Shyamalan, it’s twisty and weird and intense and at times confusing and creepy and definitely worth a watch.
Invasion – This show was the reason I got Apple in the first place after watching the very first episode on an airplane. Basic science fiction alien invasion in season one and really well done, then season two is an absolute gear change and gets way more interesting. Can’t wait for season three.
Hulu
The Bear – Hulu’s big break out hit during the pandemic, season 1 is a magnificent thrill ride right out of the gate. Season two is a much more nuanced and complex season, it moves along deliberately until the last few episodes that suddenly punch like George Foreman. Two great seasons.
The X-Files – The series that brought UFO’s and the paranormal to the masses, up until the last couple of season an incredible series with a couple of episodes that are some hall of fame level episodes.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer – It’s funny, this is a show that really polarizes people just from the title, the premise or the movie and now because of Joss Whedon. People see this show from the surface, pretty blonde girl, surrounded by a cast of pretty people fights vampires and worries about her nails and whether or not she’ll make the cheerleading squad. And yes, all of that is true and makes it seem like an utterly vapid show, but man that surface level read completely misses the boat. This series is not only completely fun, but constantly and sometimes subtly addressed all kinds of relevant issues to teenagers, suicide, bullying, loneliness, being an outsider, losing a parent, sibling rivalry, cultural appropriation, sexual assault, discrimination and on and on and on… All handled incredibly well, made interesting and relevant and yes, pretty people, lots of monsters and witchcraft. Buffy the Vampire Slayer is one of the best shows to have ever been on television, if you never have, give it a watch, you’ll get hooked.
Under a Banner of Heaven – Interesting murder mystery centered around the Mormon culture and if you don’t know much about Mormon culture and history it’s an interesting watch.
Nine Perfect Strangers – Weird little show that absolutely sucked me in, definitely worth a watch with a big time cast.
Legion – As I’ve stated, I have a tendency where Marvel is concerned to be drawn to the fringe Marvel shows. When I first watched Legion I didn’t even realize that it was a show in the Marvel universe. This show is the single trippiest show to ever air on network television and FX absolutely knocked it out of the park. Aubrey Plaza is insanely good in this show, this show is absolutely mesmerizing.
Disney Plus
The Mandalorian – I really loved the first two seasons, it’s slipped as it’s gone on but it’s still pretty good, plus Baby Yoda.
Moon Knight – I watched this mostly because I own a mint first edition of the comic book that I gifted my brother and I couldn’t believe they made it into a series. But holy cow, they did an amazing job, I really loved the first season of this show. I have no idea if they are doing a second season or not, but I really hope so.
Obi Wan Kenobi – I loved Ewan McGregor as Obi Wan in the movies, equally loved him in this mini-series and thought it was very well done.
Boba Fett – Standard Marvel fare, if you love Star Wars you’ll like it, if not, probably meh.
Jessica Jones – I love Krysten Ritter, I love the character and I really dug the show, again an off-brand Marvel product. Jessica Jones is the anti-hero superhero and a complete badass, and a a complete screw up. Always thought is made for a fascinating character and show, apparently it didn’t push the right buttons with the masses.
Wanda Vision – Probably the one Marvel mainstream project that I really dig. This is a great contained series, great arc, great story and really well done, definitely worth a watch.
Hulu
The Tick – Animated series, may not be everyone’s taste, but it’s totally insane and cracks me up.
Firefly – Joss Whedon’s masterpiece space western, show that got way too little air time, they did a good job of wrapping it up with a movie. Amazing characters, beautifully written and amazing cast and performances. If you’ve ever liked any science fiction, it’s a must watch.
Coincidence is the word we use when we can’t see the levers and pulleys. ~ Emma Bull
Coincidence is a Crazy Thing
From early on in my current gig I really hit it off with one faculty member in the Cosmetology Program. She was awesome and loud and a lot of fun. We also bonded over Cajun food and in particular shrimp. So, I would bring in homemade seafood gumbo for her and whenever we had a meeting together she would stop by a shop near her place and bring us both these amazing shrimp burritos, shrimp became our thing. Sadly, she passed away suddenly a little over a year ago.
The past two weeks I’ve been craving shrimp and oddly her name came up a number of times. Additionally, I had a talk with another faculty member where they said, Carmen’s really working for us from heaven this week.
So, I’ve also had a taste for lobster as well and Red Lobster near campus is having their shrimp and lobster feast, so I texted the other faculty and said, lunch in honor or Carmen today, going for shrimp. I was wearing a Skyline College polo and as my server walked up she said, I graduated from Skyline in Cosmetology and then she went, “oh my god you’re the dean.” We caught up briefly and I ordered and I realized while talking to her, she was in the last class Carmen ever taught, the universe works in strange ways. I had a great lunch, thought about my friend and gave the server a very large tip.
Because we have large evening programs in Cosmetology, Esthetics and Barbering, and because there are no other administrators on campus at night, I have shifted my schedule to finish in the early evening four days a week. Tonight when I did my walk through on the way out, I stopped to talk to several staff who all knew Carmen and related my day. They immediately leapt into stories about how over the last two weeks they’d had similar experiences related to Carmen. Who knows how the levers and pulleys of the universe work, but something pulled us all in the direction of her memory this week.
As I related this story out on social media I found the reactions to be varied and very interesting. Some people responded joyfully that I had a positive memory of my friend. Others reacted with hug emojis, obviously feeling that I was sad and needed support. I think likely that each person was reacting in the way that they react to remembering lost loved ones.
But while it is a sad thing that Carmen is gone, a very sad thing indeed, today was a happy day. That feeling that everything is connected, the opportunity today created for a number of us to reminisce and the opportunity to likely have made a former student’s day with a large tip are all good things.
So take a moment today my friends, to have a good memory of someone who is no longer with us, maybe it will trigger the universe to bring you a similarly good and happy day. ~ Rev Kane
Inspiration for my piece each week comes from random places at times. I’m actually writing this a week early, my aunt died this morning, my assistant’s mother-in-law died this afternoon. So aging and life are certainly on my mind and as I came home from the grocery store after the gym, cursing the darkness due to the time change, The Who came on the radio and I got to thinking about the quote I posted above.
Now certainly when The Who wrote that lyric they meant it quite literally. You see the world was in complete cultural revolution. The conservative, very white, very Christian pillars of society were being deeply questioned by young people both in America and in England. Shut up, do what your told, don’t question authority, not your parents, not your church, not your government just wasn’t working for people anymore. The Civil Rights Movement was in full swing, the Vietnam War was raging and making less and less sense every year. For the first time a large number of Americans started to not blindly trust the government. The hippy movement was starting and people were burning their draft cards and some fleeing to Canada to escape the draft.
Cultural upheaval has a tendency to be a great time for art and music. As the boxes people see themselves in begin to change, new ideas more easily find their way to the fore and boom, welcome to the heyday of rock’n roll and those immortal lyrics by The Who.
I’ve always loved that song, and loved that lyric and I’ve always taken it to mean something a bit less literal. You see every one of us has to age, trust me, I’m about to turn 60 and it will happen to you as well. But getting old quite frankly is optional. Old is all about your mentality, I know 20 year-olds who are old as hell. They’re set in their ways, their closed minded, they aren’t looking in any way to make changes or progress in their life. I know people of advanced age, in their 70’s and 80’s who are old, in the same way those 20 year-olds are and they have a tendency to be bitter and unhappy people.
What gives me hope, are all of the people of advanced age I know and have known who aren’t old. My granny’s friend Johanna, at 88 would flirt with me like a young woman, she absolutely had the spirit of a teenager. Currently I have a friend Marv, closing in on 90, plays golf every week, still drives and loves to talk, debate politics and new ideas with an open mind. I’ll never forget when I was attempting my thru-hike on the Appalachian Trail and I met Scrap one night. She was a thru-hiker in her mid-80’s, about 5’2″ with a thick Austrian accent and had an amazingly adventurous attitude. She was an absolute joy to talk with on the trail.
And honestly it’s all about attitude, and your attitude is one hundred percent within your control. Life is what happens to us, we all have tragedy, responsibility, times when things just don’t go right. But our attitude is how we decide to respond to what happens, what story we decide to build for ourselves around what’s happened. The simple fact is we build our own reality with that story, this is why you can encounter two people who have had to deal with very similar tragedies, but one is miserable and the other isn’t. You can build a better story in your life.
There is a bit of a chicken and egg issue here, does a better attitude lead to better story building, or does better story building lead to a better attitude? Here’s the advice for tonight, you control both, but it’s easier to work on building a better story, to help build a better attitude.
So my friends, create the mental space to think about the story you want to construct around what’s happening in your life. Are you stuck in a bad spot, or are you pausing as you prepare to take the next leap. Will you focus on your achy joints and the fact that you can’t sprint anymore, or will you focus on finding long distance walks to find adventure and happy times? It’s your life and your story and you are the sole author, write a story that keeps you young and happy and you’ll certainly die, before you get old. ~ Rev Kane
The soldier above all others prays for peace, for it is the soldier who must suffer and bear the deepest wounds and scars of war. ~ Douglas MacArthur
The other day at work, as part of the ice breaker for a meeting, we were asked if there were any vets we would be remembering on Veterans Day. My answer was easy to come by, four of my great uncles and both of my grandfathers fought in World War II. One of them, my great uncle Tony, was killed in the Pacific Theater, The simple story I told was about Normandy on D-Day. My paternal grandfather had been missed by the draft, so at 32, with four children at home, he was drafted late. His first action would be D-Day. If you’ve seen the movie Saving Private Ryan, the scene where Tom Hanks and company is exactly what he did that day. Hit the beach, make it to the cliffs, climb them, lob grenades into the German positions. He made it it through all of that somehow.
Later after the assault was finished the First Army came to shore with the tanks. My paternal grandfather was given the duty of directing traffic at an intersection. My maternal grandfather came ashore on those tanks and through that intersection. So some twenty years before they would ever meet as my parents dated and married, my two grandfathers passed within 10 feet of each other in France.
My paternal grandfather a couple of weeks later would be hit by shrapnel from a grenade and be captured by the Germans spending almost two years in a German POW camp, including escaping once, one of the craziest stories I’ve ever been told. My maternal grandfather who had been with the First Army since day one of America’s entry into the war, all the way across Northern Africa, including being wounded when a mortar barrel exploded during the battle of Kasserine Pass, the first time the Americans faced General Rommel and were overrun by the German tank core.
I was incredibly close to both of my grandfathers, oddly, one very early in my life, one later in life. My maternal grandfather died in 1969 when I was 5 years-old, and we were nearly inseparable up until his death. My paternal grandfather died as the new millennium dawned and in his later years he and I spent hours and hours talking in his little apartment in Waterveliet.
My Maternal Grandfather – Leonard (Buster) Cordato
My POW and I in 1966My Grandfather and my Uncle Mikey
My maternal grandmother, my granny, was fond of saying that the way she knew I was the joy of my grandfather’s life was that while he had four children, he never changed a diaper until I was born. We were together a lot, as a toddler I would watch him work in his workshop, he was a sign artist. After work we would drink beer together, the photo on the left above. He would have a mug of beer and I would do shots of milk. He taught me to chug it down, slam the shot glass on the table and yell, “more beer POW!”
To everyone else he was Buster, to me he was POW. When I was an infant he would make a fist and like a comic book hero, would say pow as he pretended to punch me, much to my amusement. So when I was first able to speak I called him POW and that became his name. I remember sitting at that table with him, I remember him in his workshop, I remember following him around the house. I have no memory of his death, or his funeral. I asked my granny once if I was even there and her answer to me was that I was and that I had been inconsolable for days. Something else I didn’t remember would hit me like a brick about 15 years ago.
When my paternal grandfather died, I took some tapes I had made of him talking with me and digitized them and gave them to my family for Christmas. My aunt recently told me it was the best gift I’d ever given. I learned something by doing that, when people die we have lots of photos and stories. So we remember what people look like, what they did. But we have no reminders of how they sounded, how they spoke, how they laughed. That was what hit everyone, hearing Grandpa Kane’s laugh again.
This is a disappearing problem, people my age and younger are all over cellphone videos and websites so we’ll have that, but for folks in my parent’s generation we don’t have that. So my friends, take your phone and video or audio record them talking about anything, no matter how mundane. Ask them to relate a recipe they know, or the story of your birth, trust me, you’ll treasure that recording once they are gone.
When my great Aunt Gwen passed away about 15 years ago, I asked my granny to look for audio tapes at the house. Gwen’s husband, my great uncle “hillbilly” Joe and POW had gone to basic training together at Fort Knox in Kentucky. They became fast friends and they met two hillbilly sisters in rural Ohio on the Kentucky border, then they married them. In the 60’s, while my uncle was stationed in Vietnam, POW started sending him audio letters by reel to reel recorder. He also corresponded with my uncle Joe this way. When I asked, my granny send she didn’t find any, then one day in the mail I got a priority mail box filled with tapes.
I had no way to listen to them, so I sent them out blind to be digitized having no idea what I’d get back. It was a fascinating mix of tapes. Some live comedy club recordings, a recording of a very early Bill Cosby comedy record. A letter from my great uncle Walter, a man I’d never met who had lived in Texas. And then absolute gold, some audio letters from my POW. For the first time in 40 years I was hearing his voice and I broke into tears. The first time I played them for my mother and my granny they cried as well. While listening to one of the recordings I suddenly hear him say, “Michael, get over here and say hi to hillbilly Joe.” Then a few seconds later, my three year-old voice appears on the tape, it was unbelievable and has become one of my cherished possessions. That’s how I’m remembering him this Veterans Day.
My Paternal Grandfather – Thomas Kane
I got very close to my Grandpa Kane later in his life. Whenever I would come home for college I would go to visit him in his apartment. He lived near my aunt’s convent, (she’s now mother superior), and did their landscaping work and spent a great amount of time with them. My aunt’s order is still full nun garb so we refer to them as the penguins. My grandfather had been a hard man in his younger years, he worked as a steam pipe fitter in NYC and after two years as a POW came home with a heavy dose of PTSD.
When he got older, his 70’s and 80’s, he in many ways softened up, but was a hard core Irishman to the end. The way I always remember him I’ll share below, I wrote and read the eulogy at his funeral, and I think it really sums him up.
A Eulogy to amuse the penguins 2006
People don’t want the truth particularly not when death is at hand they don’t want to know a life can’t stand to see the warts they want disneyanna where at the end of the day we gather and have a parade down main street America
My grandfather was a man a hard man a cold man but he mellowed with age hard jagged lines on his face fading soft with his laughter eyes lit as he talked about back in the day
He died in 2000 and I was asked to do the eulogy wanting to speak his life warts and all but my sister ratted me out ratted me out to my aunt the nun I suffered through the speeches sister, aunt, father oh my to my shame I acquiesced
But I was on the hook my friends had to stand up in front relatives, family, friends, nuns So I chose to pick a slice grab a day in the life and this is the one I chose
My grandfather loved tomatoes and roses and in the neighborhood was a challenged boy a boy of 32 with a dad in his 50’s the boy had trampled grandpa’s plants and he was pissed he had the opportunity to see the boy’s father never given to silence, he spoke of course grandpa spoke with his fists like an 87 yr old warrior from the WWF he came off the top step with a right cross Grandpa went to scrappin in the street he lost, hitting his head on the curb
I found my way to the hospital the next day and asked him what happened he said that guy had a roll of nickels in his hand yeah grandpa, he was waitin for you then he grew stone faced and paused looking at me seriously, he said I hit that guy in the gut with everything I had and he didn’t go down, I might be getting old and I laughed at the coolest thing I’ve ever heard that day, my 87 year old grandfather just started to consider that he might be getting old.
People in the church smiled, but the penguins rolled in the aisles, because they knew him best
I have to admit I don’t like pizza. I love it. And I am prepared to do literally anything to get my hands on a slice. ~ Liz Truss (and Rev Kane)
Pizza
So as I mentioned in a post yesterday, my SF Pizza Update, I headed into the city to find a new pizza place. Recently my go to place in the Mission District, Arinell, closed down. So I did some research online, talked to some colleagues at work and selected three places to try, Tony’s Coal Fired Slice House, Outta Sight Pizza and Gioia Pizzeria. While all three places had their merits, you can check out the other post for pictures and details, Gioia Pizzeria was absolutely the best. They served me two of the best slices I’ve ever had outside of New York City and slices comparable to the best pizza places in New York.
Two amazing slices from Gioia Pizzeria
So I’ve sort of done what I hate what movies do, give you the current situation then go, but two hours before, sorry about that. Pre-pandemic and during in fact, I would at least once a month do a walking tour in San Francisco. I’d map out a route of places and neighborhoods I wanted to check out and then put together a five or six mile loop to walk starting and ending at a BART stop. I did one again recently when a couple of friends came into town and it really got me fired up to start doing these again. They are a really nice combination of several things I really love, walking, photography and eating. I love taking long walks, I always find interesting things to photograph and great places to eat. Much like two other cities I love, NY and New Orleans, SF is a great food city.
So today I set out from the UN Plaza/Civic Center BART stop and did a loop around Hayes Valley to catch the first two pizza places and then across and over past Union Square, through Chinatown and into North Beach (Little Italy) for the last place and then finally down to the Embarcadero and back on to BART and home. At least six miles, maybe more.
And in tonight’s post I want to talk about exactly what the title says, pizza which I already have, and peace which I’ll do below.
PEACE
Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding. ~ Albert Einstein
The day started with my stopping by the UN Plaza for a large rally for peace focusing on the tragedy of the Gaza/Israel war that is currently going on. There was a huge crowd including lots of families and people, as they will be in SF, were very vocal and focused on calling for peace.
I’m going to diverge from my normal policy of keeping the Ministry of Happiness blog politics free and include something I wrote recently about what’s happening in Gaza and in particular about the question I keep seeing online, wouldn’t you want revenge?
Revenge
To state the obvious, the Israel/Palestine issue is complicated. It has been for the last 75+ years. And there is no argument that Jews have faced attacks for centuries. People in Israel live under constant threat of attack and surrounded by people who want them eradicated.
People in Gaza live in what the Israelis call an open air prison. Their movement, imports, water, power and communications controlled by Israel. Israeli settlers, supported by the government, take Palestinian homes and lands through violent means sometimes killing Palestinians
Israel was attacked by Hamas, and I’ve read totals that from 700 to 1400 people were killed in the attack, including civilians and children. The attack was tragic and horrifying. And since the attack I’ve seen lots of posts talking about revenge.
Often the question is wouldn’t you want revenge if your family was attacked/killed? And yes, my Scotch/Irish blood would boil and I would want the world to burn. To quote a line from Sin City, “Never give an Irishman good cause for revenge.” We Celts have our own historical trauma issues.
But I would hope that my better angel would prevail and I would find a better way. And the question that has to be asked, how much? How much revenge is enough? I’ve seen statements that Israel plans to kill every member of Hamas. There’s a problem with that.
Hamas is both an organization and an idea, you can kill the people. But to quote V for Vendetta, “ideas are bulletproof.” The father who does not support Hamas or Hamas’ tactics, whose children died today from Israeli bombs is likely now Hamas, will you kill him now?
The 5 yr old child, made an orphan today by Israeli bombs is now Hamas, or soon will be. Will you kill him now too, or in 5 years, 10, 15 – how long will this killing have to go on before revenge is satisfied? How much revenge is enough?
I have read that between 8 and 10,000 people have died in the Israeli attacks. Figures report up to 3000 children are dead. Tens to hundreds of thousands have had their homes destroyed and they’ve been displaced.
How many more homes must be destroyed? How many more families must be displaced? How much more blood, how many more children have to be killed to satisfy revenge? Is it 10,000, 100,000? And now, aren’t their parents also entitled to revenge for the death of their children?
Ghandi said, “An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind” Until we find another way, a better way, our world will drown in rivers of blood and the cries of dying children.
I have no solution, right now honestly all I have is sadness. Listening to the speakers today, looking at the families and children surrounding me, I broke into tears. What’s happening in the world is more than a little overwhelming for all of us. I have Palestinian friends who are suffering terribly during this, I have Jewish friends who are overwrought as well, it tears me up inside to see what’s happening to all of them.
It’s been a hard week for me as well. There has been some medical issues happening in my family as well. A lot of the responsibility falls on others and that’s hard to handle as well as the distance can make you feel less supportive than you feel you should be. My job also continues to be a drama filled circus of frustration. The day started with someone dear to me letting me know their mother has been diagnosed with breast cancer and they are understandably blown up over this. It’s easy to feel like my world is falling apart, and I didn’t even win the $1 million dollar Fantasy 5 drawing tonight. 🙂
So what’s the lesson in all of this? And honestly I didn’t have to think long and hard to figure out what it is, particularly in the month of November. It’s simply gratitude for what I do have. My life has never been easy, never been simple but for many years it also included substance abuse or money problems, or battles with deep depression. None of that applies to me anymore. I am grateful for having found my way to a place in life where I’m no longer substance dependent, I’m financially stable and no longer battling with the demons that led me into the depths of depression. I’m a generally happy person, I’m closing in on semi-retirement and in fact, likely retiring earlier than I had originally planned. Life is good as I get ready to celebrate my 60th year of life. I’m very much looking forward to the celebrations that I have planned.
So yes, there’s a lot of shit in the world, things are horrible. But you can’t focus on the horror, you do what you can to help out in the world, but you have to keep your near focus on those silver linings, the things you’re grateful for and try to be happy, in a clearly unhappy world.
Photography
Photography can be a way into worlds and memories that words sometimes fail to convey. ~ Stacy Martin
Finally, I took a few photos on my stroll and here’s a few of my favorites.
I have to admit I don’t like pizza. I love it. And I am prepared to do literally anything to get my hands on a slice. ~ Liz Truss
San Francisco Pizza Places
As I mentioned in the in memoriam section of the Pizza Page, recently Arinell, my go to place for a NY slice in SF has closed. So I’ve been wanting to get back into the city to find a new one. Today I did just that. I did some research on the web and even held up a meeting at work to thoroughly discuss the topic and get some recommendations. I went to three places today, here they are.
This slice house is a continuation of Tony’s Napoletana which is an Italian restaurant in North Beach (read Little Italy East Coasters). Of the places I visited today it was the least busy and took the longest to get my slice out. It was a decsnt slice, it had the right look, the crust was close, the cheese was great, the sauce was close. But it just didn’t really come together as well as a NY slice should. Plus they charged me twenty cents for a to go box I didn’t ask for, kind of annoying. I did see the pepperoni slices and their pepperoni looked really good. All in all a c-level NYC slice, if you’re hungry and want a slice definitely worth grabbing. If you have time and want something a little off the NY slice, going to the restaurant for a Margherita Pizza or something with fresh mozzerella, those pies looked really good and it makes sense, Tony’s has won the pizza world championship 13 times. So I’d say skip the slice and head for the restaurant.
Outta Sight Pizza is a fairly recent addition to the San Francisco pizza scene and it’s getting a lot of hype. Definitely the hip new pizza place in the Hayes Valley area of San Francisco. It shows up very often on the San Francisco top pizza lists. When I got there I had to stand in a decent line, both because it was popular and a bit because of the way they handle reheating the slices. And let’s address that right now, something I see a bit in SF that I rarely see in NY is using a small pizza oven to reheat slices. I’m not a fan, they just don’t come out as well, I think it’s because the small oven looses a bit of temperature when ever the door opens so the oven just doesn’t stay as hot.
The slice at Outta Sight was good, a bit like Tony’s and the fresh basil, oil drizzle and a little fresh grated cheese over the top was a really nice touch, but again a C-level NYC slice. I will say that some of their specialty slices looked really good, and yes, that’s me avoiding calling them gourmet pizza. So if you want something a little more fancy I’d recommend Outta Sight, but get a whole pizza so you get it out of the oven without the small oven reheat. A special note, they have a bathroom and it’s clean, a rare combination for any take out oriented place in the city.
A place I found off of a couple of best in SF lists I decided it was worth a shot. It’s a little place, one table to sit at inside and the cutest little glass bottles of diet coke for sale that I’ve ever seen. It was crowded when I got there but the line moved quickly. I immediately saw that the pepperoni was really right, the slices looked really good in the case. So I ordered two, when they came out I was absolutely thrilled. Everything you look for in a good NY slice was there. Well cooked but the cheese wasn’t overly brown. A great crispy mottled under crust with a crispy on first bite edge crust that gives way to soft and fluffy inside, good bread! The sauce was right on, not sweet, the cheese perfectly and fully melted. The pepperoni, cupped and at the edge of burnt and crunchy and the slice had just the right amount of grease flowing across the surface, a decent amount on the pepperoni slice and just a little on the cheese slice, a sign they use high quality full-fat cheese.
While the appearance was great, the slice was also perfectly heated and laid out nicely on a paper plate with a very smart marketing move, the wax paper shows their name. I was excited and had high expectations and the first bite was absolutely fantastic! A light crunch as I bit into it, the cheese was hot and melty with little stringers as I pulled back from the bite. The sauce was right on, the pepperoni perfect. These were easily the best two slices I’ve ever had outside of NYC and were on par with my favoritie place in Brooklyn that I talked about above. I definitely have a new go to pizza place in San Francisco. Gioia is relatively new, it opened in 2019, I hate that I’m just getting there. Another bonus, it’s not a very long walk from the UN Plaza/Civic Center BART stop.
It has always been my aim to live everyday like Halloween by celebrating individuality and creative freedom within a world of horror. ~ Sharon Needles
Happy Halloween Movies – Part 4
The final installment in my Halloween horror movie reviews. Please remember to check out my Happy Halloween reviews Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.
A Haunting in Connecticut (2009) – Had never heard of this one before, it is being shown as part of the AMC horror movie month so I DVR’d it. No build up, this movie is a true horror flick. Highly suspenseful and seriously disturbing. There is something about this film, maybe the way it’s shot, maybe their making use of infrasound, but something is disturbing about this film. The set up, purportedly based on a true story, a family, due to a family member illness have to move into a house closer to the hospital. The house it turns out to be a former mortuary and the strangeness leaps off from there. This one, along with the Exorcist, is at the top of my list so far and so if you’re looking to freak yourself out, give it a watch.
1408 (2007) – John Cusack is cynical writer of paranormal literature. He combs the country visiting and staying in haunted locations and writes books about the horrors of these places although he’s never experienced anything himself. He’s drawn to New York and the Dolphin Hotel to stay in the mysterious and deadly room 1408. The movie is based on a Stephen King short story and shows up on a lot of best horror movie lists, another film I thought I had seen but I guess I just saw the trailers when it came out.
Daybreakers (2009) – Another movie I’ve known about for a long time and thought I’d seen but it turns out I haven’t . Ethan Hawke is a vampire and a blood researcher, the vamps have taken over and the humans are essentially cattle, except for a tiny resistance. Ethan is sympathetic as the blood supply is running out. A fairly formulaic film follows, not particularly scary, nor suspenseful. Technically a horror movie but not a very good one.
Christine (1983) – Another Stephen King classic, I hadn’t seen it in like 15 years, the premise itself is scary as hell. The idea that a car could both come to life and so enthrall someone that they no longer care about anything else, including a smoking hot Alexandra Paul, pre-Baywatch. But all in all it’s just kind of a fun horror movie. So looking for a fun movie yes, looking to be scared no.
The Hills Have Eyes (1977) – In 1977 this was probably fairly horrifying just because it was so damn weird and violent. But it’s basically just a movie about a bunch of people attacked by freaky cannibals in the desert. While I didn’t re-watch the modern remake this month, I seem to remember that film being more suspenseful.
It (2017) – Maybe the most terrifying single character ever created by Stephen King, the original mini-series was pretty terrifying when it first came out. The movie is updated, a little over reliant on jump cut scares but definitely has it’s moments. You can think of it as the Goonies meets Nightmare on Elm street. If you haven’t read the book, probably worth a watch.
Fright Night (1985) – A movie I really love, it’s absolutely nothing more than your basic vampire moves in next door movie. Of course the nerdy kid is the only one who realizes what is going on. But this movie includes an older science fiction icon, Roddy McDowell of Planet of the Apes fame. I loved those movies and as a kid actually got to be him, in full monkey costume at a car show, so he holds a special place for me. This is an absolutely well done and really fun movie, Chris Sarandon plays a great vampire.
Salem’s Lot (1979) – This two part mini-series is one of my all-time favorites. It’s a bit dated now, but it is nearly 50 year’s old and without a doubt there’s a good bit of nostalgia for me in watching it. Another Stephen King gem and one of my favorites of his works. Plus any film that stars half of Starsky and Hutch can be all that bad, absolutely not a fan of the remake.
Pizza makes me think anything is possible ~ Henry Rollins
The pizza page, how has it taken me so long to add this to my site? For those who know me well, they know one of my absolute loves in life is a slice of NY style pizza. I’ve traveled a lot, have had the benefit of eating fantastic meals, in fantastic restaurants all over the world. But to me there are few food experiences better than that first bite of a perfect slice of NY style pizza. The closest thing to that experience is my first bite of the Rabbit and Dumplings at Cochon Restaurant in New Orleans.
As such, I search out pizza wherever I go looking for places for good slices. So the pizza page will be a reflection of just that, reviews of the pizza places I find in my life and travels. Hopefully it will give you a few good places to get a piece of pizza.
First, some clarification, who invented pizza? Salerno’s Pizza has a site which is one of the best histories of pizza on the web. What we recognize as pizza was invented in Italy, in Naples. But how and where pizza became what we truly know today was created when immigrants from Naples moved to the East Coast, in particular New York and Connecticut. The coal fired oven style of NY pizza is what I truly love and what I will use as my measuring stick for evaluating the pizza I discuss on the page.
What I won’t be discussing is Chicago or Detroit style pizza or even Sicilian style NY pizza. Please understand, these are all great food. I have certainly enjoyed my fair share of each, hell while in grad school I once had a friend buy and drive a pizza down from Chicago as he was returning from a conference. But these other styles of pizza are not what I love, so I’ll let others talk about them. When I say pizza, I’m only referring to NY Style pizza.
So what is NY style pizza? See the photo above, thin and crispy crust, real whole milk or buffalo milk mozzarella cheese and of course, the slice should be at least a little greasy and definitely foldable. A good pizza place will always have shakers available with granulated garlic and oregano. My perfect pairing for a slice is always a coke, that’s my bliss, but I don’t judge people on what they accompany their little slice of heaven with and it even works with a nice glass of red wine.
Toppings and gourmet pizza. I’m not a toppings snob, you won’t hear me scream, “no fruit on pizza!” Honestly, whoever came up with the Hawaiin pizza was a culinary genius, it shouldn’t work, seriously, ham and pineapple on pizza? But it definitely does. However, that’s about as exotic as I like my pizza. For me the standard toppings are pepperoni, sausage, and mushrooms. I don’t like onions, but onion, garlic, peppers and olives are standard adjacent in my book. As soon as you see a menu with 20 different types of pizzas and topping combinations, and you’re not in NYC, you’re likely not in a pizza place I would highly recommend. There are exceptions, but they are few and far between. Anything labeled “gourmet pizza” is immediately out of this conversation and belongs in the category with Chicago and other styles of pizza, it may be good food, but it ain’t pizza, not by my definition. And a special note to my friend Kara, broccoli and carrots should never be on pizza.
Pizza Places In Memoriam
First in my reviews let me start with pizza places in memoriam and I have three. The first, is the single greatest pizza place to ever have existed, I’ll accept no disagreement on this point and will fight you if you try.
The Pizza Pit (Hudson, NY)
A very old image of the street in front of the Pizza Pit
I’m sure I’ll be accused of bias as this was my pizza place growing up. But I truly believe I just happen to be lucky enough to grow up 3 blocks from the greatest pizza ever. Every week the owners would drive to NYC to buy ingredients, and these hand tossed masterpieces were served up six nights a week. A tiny little hole in the wall, slices available of course and they would open at 4PM and shut when they ran out of ingredients each night. On a weekend night, it was almost impossible to get a pie after 8PM. You always knew when it was over, because you dialed 828-1170 and kept getting a busy signal. Mr. Bijan had taken the phone off the hook, because they had all the orders they would take that night. The Pizza Pit closed because antique dealers from NYC found Hudson and starting opening storefronts for their businesses in Hudson taking advantage of lower taxes and lower property values. As such, the owner of the building The Pizza Pit was in decided to jack up the rent through the roof and so The Pizza Pit owner retired. He has the pizza ovens in his garage and I have on more than one occasion begged him to make me one last pie.
Don’t know the name in Vegas
The second pizza place I will include in the in memoriam section I have no idea what the name of it was. The pizza place was located in a little strip mall that was located across from the current Planet Hollywood Hotel/Casino on the strip. Next door to where the old Holiday Inn used to be. This little hole in the strip mall, was the first time outside of New York that I ever got a true NY slice. Of course, that part of the strip has undergone multiple changes and is now a massive hotel complex including Aria and the Cosmopolitan.
Arinell
The third one has been my go to pizza place since I moved to the San Francisco area. In the Mission, just off of the 18th street BART subway stop was a place call Arinell. Another hole in the wall, seeing a pattern yet, solid NY slices with an accompanying NY vibe. Arinell fell victim as many businesses to the ravages of the pandemic. It was an easy BART ride into the city to get some good slices. There are supposedly other good NY slices in the city, but none as convenient for me. But I’m on the hunt and will have reviews up soon for a couple of those places.
My most recent excellent pizza experience came at My Little Pizzeria on Court Street in Brooklyn Heights. It’s near where my brother lives and so I hit it while I was visiting. As a matter of fact at one point, I hit it for five straight meals over two days. While in Brooklyn, I can’t walk past this place without going in for a slice. It’s the epitome of a classic NY slice place and the pizza perfectly represents what I described as a NY style pizza. The picture at the top of the page were my first two slices when I was last there.
Frank’s Pizza is ok. Definitely a place that has a standard NYC slice and I really liked their pepperoni. But the slice just wasn’t quite there and they seemed to be bordering a little too much on the gourmet side of things. They also likely suffered a bit from being in direct comparison with My Little Pizzeria.
Secret Pizza has a great gimmick, no sign outside the restaurant. You basically have to sleuth it out on the web, or learn about it by word of mouth. Located on the third floor of the Cosmopolitan Hotel/Casino, they make a really decent slice. However, I have some caveats. First, it’s Vegas, on the strip, so the slices are too expensive. Secondly, their pepperoni is terrible and I always have to remember to avoid ordering a slice with one of my favorite toppings when I go there. But if in Vegas, worth a visit, it’s a fun little adventure finding it, especially if you’re going for the first time.
They’ve opened a location in the Silver Legacy Casino in Reno, but it’s only open on weekends and so I haven’t had a chance to check it out yet.
Celestino’s has a number of locations in Northern California, two in Chico and one I lived near in Roseville. I’ll start with the Roseville location, really solid pizza, in the vein of NY style, close but not quite there. But I love this place and it was my go to place in the Roseville area.
About 15 years ago I was at a conference at the California State University at Chico. I wasn’t thrilled with what was on offer for lunch so I took a walk down campus looking for a restaurant. At the base of campus I saw for the first time, Celestino’s NY Pizza. There was a line out the door and a student came walking by eating a slice and it really looked right. And my friends it was, probably the closest I’ve had to a NYC slice in Northern California, it was glorious. Just a really solid slice and over the years when I’ve revisited, they’ve been consistently solid. I stopped in during the pandemic, while school wasn’t in session and the quality was down a bit. But I think that was a pandemic impact, and I imagine, and current online reviews seem to back it up, that the quality has returned.
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