April Day! Alitalia Si È Rotto

On August 1, airline industry analysts warned that high fuel costs were threatening to bankrupt more than 50 European airlines. The same day, The Financial Times reported that delivery of a rescue proposal for Italy's Alitalia Airlines would be delayed due to stalled merger negotiations. Days later, Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's Prime Minister, promised to save Alitalia from bankruptcy. 'We will perform another miracle and will offer a profitable national company, he said'. The Italian government owns 49% of Alitalia. The ensuing three weeks were filled with rumors of new investors and partners to save the troubled airline; until Thursday when it was confirmed that Alitalia had filed for bankruptcy protection.

You need to know that Alitalia history and Pavlov's Theory of Classical Conditioning to understand the impact this airline industry turbulence has had on me.

Anytime I hear the words Alitalia Airlines, the song Eh Cumpari plays in my head. The Italian novelty-song from the 1950's is about the different instruments from the orchestra playing the song. Julius La Rosa sang it, backed by Archie Bleyer's band. It's The Gaylords' cover of La Rosa's #1 hit that plays in my head. (I could only find La Rosa's version to put here.

for your entertainment).

Say "Alitalia" and I hear the whistle of the friscalettu; the toota of the saxofona; the pling of the mandulin; the zing of the viulin; the poppa-pop of the trumbetta and the story told during the extended instrumental bridge. It goes something like this:

I received a letter from my Uncla Guisseppe.
He tella me he heard from my Uncla Pasquale. Pasquale, he fly, he fly right into Italia. Onna big plane, he fly right into Italy.
They be in the air about 20 minutes an' the pilot, he come onto the radio.
"Hello, this is your cap-i-tan speaking. I just wonna tella you that earlier, we had a little bitta' trouble. Its-a all o.k. now, but I juss wanna to letta you know."
He be in the air about another 20 minutes an' the pilot, he come onto the radio.
"Hello, this is your cap-i-tan speaking. I just wonna tella you that we hadda a little bit more trouble. Its-a all o.k. now, but I juss wanna to letta you know."
He be in the air about another 20 minutes an' the pilot, he come onto the radio again.
"April Day! April Day! This is your cap-i-tan. We havin' a bigga trouble right now. We gonna haff to make a splash-down landing. All of the passengers, iffa you know how to swim, go to the right side of the airplane. All of the passengers, iffa you don't know how to swim, you go to the left side of the airplane.
After we hit the water, the people on the right - I tella you - you know how to swim, you swim to shore. We juss about 20 miles from shore. You gonna be o.k. The people on the left, those of you who do not know how to swim - I tella you - thanks a lot for flying Alitalia Airlines. (chorus)

I keep hearing on the news that Alitalia's bankrupt, but what I really hear is Tippity-Tippity-Ta!

[Eh Cumpari!]  [Alitalia Airlines]  [Silvio Berlusconi]
[Julius La Rosa]  [Archie Bleyer]  [The Gaylords]
[Pavlov: Classical Conditioning]

And They Lived Happily Ever After

After Moya Dillon's article in Oshawa This Week, my parents received a telephone message outlining the dwarfs' location. No gravelly-voiced ransom demand - the caller didn't know how the figures were acquired, just where to find them.

Doc, Sleepy, Grumpy, Sneezy, Bashful and Bambi's friend, Bimbo are back at Summers End.

Unfortunately, Dopey didn't make it back. I hope it means he's lost, not that he's come to any harm.

The recovered dwarfs and Bimbo appeared to have been treated well by their captors. Happy beamed a brighter smile as his brothers were asked to comment and provide details of their experience.

"Mush," complained Grumpy, as he shrugged off a hug.
"I'm sleepy," yawned Sleepy.
Sneezy chimed in with a very loud "Ah-choo,".
Bashful whispered that he was embarrassed by all the attention.
"We are grateful to everyone who facilitated our return," Doc declared. "We are happy to be home."

Tags: [Snow White] [Lawn & Garden]
[Moya Dillon] [Oshawa This Week]

Finding Hope In A Strange Place

It ain't easy. It ain't easy.
Well all the people have got their problems,
That ain't nothing new.
With the help of the good Lord
We can all pull on through.

(written by Ron Davies,
performed by David Bowie on The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars)

It sure ain't easy.
It must be August since Andrew had surgery again; but it's all good, because I found Hope where I least expected it -
the refrigerator.

I was making a path to get something from the back of the fridge. I shifted the bag of meds to on top of the milk, moved the bowl of melon salad up one shelf, relocated the yogurt containers closer the juice carton and there it was:

OK, so it's just a magnetic word tile, but surely it is a sign.

Usually the word tiles are put together like this on the fridge door:

I am fuzzy with cheer and we be sunny giggle

Right now, we have he is Goofy and

I AM Lucky Amazing Special and Silly

It has to be a sign; because two days later, I saw this:

You don't have to clobber me over the head.

Tags: [Hope] [Omens] [Rainbows]
[Ron Davies] [David Bowie] [Ziggy Stardust]

Watch the latest videos on YouTube.com

Grammarians Gone Wild

Jeff Deck and Benjamin Herson, pleaded guilty to vandalism after damaging an historic, hand-painted sign at Grand Canyon National Park. On March 28, they were accused of using a whiteout product and a permanent marker to deface a sign that's a National Historic Landmark.
Investigators learned of the vandalism from an Internet site operated by Deck on behalf of the Typo Eradication Advancement League, or TEAL.
According to the Internet posting, TEAL members correct typos on public signs. (The TEAL site is currently unavailable) Original and corrected signs are photographed and posted at the site. A detailed map tracks the progress of the grammar vigilantes' cross-country crusade.
In addition to being banned from national parks for a year, the two are barred from modifying any public signs and must pay restitution to repair the Grand Canyon sign. Read more...

Errors on public signs irritate me too, but I wouldn't deface a national monument in the name of good grammar. What kind of sentence includes being barred from modifying any public sign?

I have never experienced a 'whiteout emergency'; maybe I don't truly have a type-o personality.


Tags: [Jeff Deck] [Benjamin Herson]
[T.E.A.L.]
[Vandalism] [Good Grammar]
[Personality Types]

Happy's Saga Continues...

The kidnapped dwarf story has been picked up by the main-stream media:
(Click photo to read article)

The online article has a different headline...good thing, because it's killing me to leave this one alone...

A Grimm Discovery

On Friday, my parents took their coffee at the cafe on the grounds of Summers End. They surveyed the yard and noticed something amiss.
Over there in the NE corner of the lot where the playhouse stands... where was Snow White?

They walked to the playhouse and were horrified to discover 6 of their concrete dwarfs were missing.
The 40" Snow White figure had been knocked down, but at least she was still there. Somebody kidnapped the dwarfs!

Doc, Grumpy, Sneezy, Sleepy, Bashful and Dopey - all of them gone! Only Happy was left behind. (Unfortunately, an horrific accident left Happy a double-amputee several years ago).

Snow White and the seven dwarfs have been friends of the playhouse for at least 25 years. They've been a part of the Wild parties, Family Picnics, Wayne Day and several weddings. They're family - the children of the house after The Original 6 moved out.

Every few years, my Dad would cart each dwarf to the garage where my Mom would painstakingly repaint him. Once sealed and dry, my Dad would carry each concrete man back to his place. Snow White received an ultra deluxe spa treatment, including chemical peel (old paint removal), deep facial line treatment (filling weathered areas) and microdermabrasion (sanding) before hitting makeup and wardrobe.

Two fawns, Bambi and Bimbo, are usually placed as if they'd just left the cornfield - heading toward the playhouse. Bimbo was also missing.

In order to execute the robbery, the dwarf-nappers had to park on the shoulder of the road, climb the fence, walk to the playhouse area, pick up the concrete statue (you need 2 people to carry Bimbo), carry it back

(enlarge to view getaway route)

down the yard, over the fence, down the hill at the ditch to the waiting car...seven times! There's been too much rain to drive through the field without getting stuck. {Aside: Escape through the field after a rain was attempted once. Once. You noticed I said 'attempted'?}

"I miss them," my Dad told me yesterday when I visited the homestead. "I miss you too," he quickly added lest I be offended.
So deep is the loss that he can't bear to whistle while he works in the yard.
Come to think of it, the wind wasn't whistling through the trees either.

As for Happy, well I thought he looked quite lonely.

Tags: [Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales] [Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs]
[Disney Lawn Statues] [Crimestoppers - Durham]