Boston and Commonwealth Strong

Last Monday is the latest day that will live in infamy.  It was just another day in which I was going about my day.  I had attempted a round of golf in the morning with my father-in-law, and then came home to do some chores in the yard.  My wife was home with the girls and was entertaining them and a friend that had stopped by.  It was a normal day in our house; then, I checked my phone.

Around 3:45 pm I looked at my phone to check e-mails and I poked around Twitter and I was taken aback by what I was reading.  A bomb went off at the Boston Marathon?  At the finish line?  I went into the house and asked my wife if she knew what was going on in Boston.  Her response, "ahhhh, No!”  I put the news on and the news became reality for me.  I immediately began to think about the people that I know that usually take in the Red Sox game and then head over to Boylston Street to catch the finish line of the marathon.  I also thought about the people that received bib numbers from my company, that sponsors about a dozen runners a year. I also thought about friends that went into to Boston to support friends of theirs.  At that point there were two dead and roughly forty injured, I had hoped that was all.

The next few hours and days were a whirlwind to this story because so much misinformation was reported it was tough to keep up with what actually happened.  First, there had been several un-detonated devices found and unarmed, and then there wasn't.  There was a report of up to fifteen dead, and then it was back to two.  Then there was a report of ball bearings used in the bombs, then there wasn't, then there was again.  Then there was the report of a third explosion at JFK Library, then it wasn't an explosion or related.  Finally, was that they had a Saudi National in custody and was a suspect, then he was a person of interest, then he was just being questioned.  Lastly, the "person in question's" apartment was searched and "bags" of stuff were taken out of it.  He was then declared no longer a person of interest.  It was all way too confusing for me, I had to stop watching.

The irresponsible reporting by the media could not overshadow the complete coordinated effort that it took place over the next couple of days to apprehend one of the two suspects responsible for the bombings.  The other suspect was killed in a fire fight with police.  I truly must commend the overall effort it took.  From Governor Deval Patrick, all the way down to the Watertown resident who discovered the suspect was hiding out in his boat, it was very impressive.  There wasn't a time throughout the afternoon on Friday I did not think the authorities had the situation under control.  The press conferences may not have led you to believe that but with the way things were being reported over the previous days could you blame them.

Did the police overreact by locking down everywhere ea st of Watertown?  I can see that argument but I really didn't think so.  It's easy for me to say that now because the decision was successful.  But without the help of that resident in Watertown the situation may not have been resolved as quickly as it was.  It wasn't as if people complained; more people stayed indoors for this request than when there is a major weather event.  That just shows how much the people of Massachusetts wanted the suspect caught.  Watching the people celebrate in the streets after the suspect was caught gave me goose bumps.  It was truly wonderful to watch.

Saturday was a wonderful day in Massachusetts.  Even though the region was still grieving and recovering from Monday's events, there was still a reason to rejoice.  The outpouring of support from across the nation was overwhelming to say the least.  To see the New York Yankees say they were united with Boston just shows you how great a nation we live in.  On the news that morning they showed reaction in stadiums across the country and everyone was truly excited to see that the suspect had been caught.

I cannot state enough how grateful I am to the police, the first responders and volunteers at the Marathon.  It was truly amazing watching people run into harm’s way to aid the injured and get them out of harm’s way.  I have always been a supporter of police officers because they have a job like no other.  This past week they and the entire Commonwealth showed that we are truly #BostonStrong.

If you can please donate to The One Fund at onefundboston.org, and also next year why don't you join me at the 118th running of THE Boston Marathon.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife

A Taste of Home

I was raised in Worcester, went to school here, met my wife here and got married here.  However, I was born in the Campania Region (Naples) of Italy.  Some of my vacations growing up were spending summers back in Italy with family that I still have there.  I was able to learn and practice the language, learn about my ancestry and understand the traditions more.  For example, every August we can tomato sauce for the entire year, never needing to buy any at the store.  Up until a few years ago, my dad and I made our own wine.  Holding on to old family traditions, no matter what your origins are, is something truly to be proud of.

Recently we went to Volturno Restaurant on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester.  Their sign said Pizza Napoletana, which coming from the region is big shoes to fill.  I had heard great reviews from friends and felt that we needed to see for ourselves.  The restaurant is located in the old Edward Buick building on the downtown end of Shrewsbury Street.  What an amazing job they did renovating that site, you would have never known there was a car dealership there.  We were greeted as soon as we came in and felt welcome almost immediately.

They have a one page menu, which is one of the things I love most about the place.  It is completely centered on its pizza, which a pizza restaurant should do.  For appetizers we had the Grilled Calamari with Chili Olives, Chick Peas and Parsley.  If you only like fried Calamari you are completely missing out on this one. It was presented well and it tasted even better.  We also had for and appetizer, the Arancini, which simply put was Risotto ball with Porcini and Mozzarella.  Very tasty!  Now it was time to move on to the real reason we were there, the pizza. 

Pizza Napoletana is world renowned.  It was even featured as one of the "eats" in the book/movie "Eat, Pray, Love".  It is normally cooked in a brick oven with oak firewood.  Volturno has two large brick ovens at the far end of the restaurant that everyone can see.  The pizzas that we ordered were the Margharita, Bianca and Calabrese.  The Margharita, which is my dad's all-time favorite, was cooked with just the right amount of Fiore di Latte (Mozzarella), tomato and basil.  The crust was light and fluffy, not too thin and not too thick, just right.  It tasted amazing.  My dad ate the majority of it, but the rest of did get to get a taste.  The Calabrese had the same type crust with and added mixture of sausage and scallions for toppings.  The Bianca was by far the best pizza of the three.  A "white" pizza with Ricotta and Fiore di Latte, seasoned with chile, scallions and roasted garlic.  When I say roasted garlic, there were full cloves on the pizza.  Everything just melted in your mouth.  

Volturno is named after the River Volturno which was a dividing point between the Allies and the Axis.  It runs right through the Campania region and out to the Tyrrhenian Sea at the beach town Castel Volturno.  In speaking with one of the owners on my way out she told me that her son had visited the region on his honeymoon and was so enamored that he went back for a year to learn how to make Pizza Napoletana.  I must say, job well done.

Volturno Pizza has a great atmosphere with its high ceilings, and its floor to ceiling front windows.  It does have a patio that was not opened when we went but I will assume will be very nice for outdoor dining.  The bar is at the center of the restaurant is also a great place to meet up with friends for a drink.  Volturno has other foods on its menu including Bruschetta's, Pastas and Entrees.  But really, there is no other reason to go there.  Volturno Pizza, Job Well Done!  Can't wait to go back

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

Government Motors Needs Work on Customer Satisfaction

I never look to get something for nothing.  However, if the opportunity presents itself I will certainly try.  My wife and I both own Government Motor (GM) vehicles, and to be honest we really like them.  So my wife was very distraught when the 5 year old GM vehicle with 52,000 miles had to have its transmission replaced.  Every mechanic that saw the vehicle or heard of it could not understand why that would happen.  It just so happens that three months after the warranty lets up we have a major repair on it.  Needless to say we weren't happy about it.  We aren't looking for a full refund, but throw us a bone.

So, when this happened we called our local GM Repair Center and asked if there was anything they could do for us because the vehicle was so close to warranty.  As expected the answer was no, but we can fix it $4,500.  Now why would I do that, when I know I can get it done for much less? Essentially GM had turned their backs on me and I took my business elsewhere.  That is the right I have as a consumer and during tough economic times you would think GM would try to save customers rather than turn them away.  Especially after the biggest government bailout kept them in business.

While the car was being repaired I was coerced into at least trying to see what GM would do for me, given the colossal failure of the vehicle and the repair center.  I will be using excerpts of my online chat with a GM representative to show how much they value customer loyalty.

Me: We just had the transmission rebuilt at 52,000 miles, a $3,000 expense because our local GM service Center wouldn't fix it

GM Rep: Where was this repair done?

Me: I brought it to a local transmission center

GM Rep:  because the vehicle was not repaired at a local GM dealer there's nothing we will

be able to further assist you with on this repair.

I guess I had to drop the extra $1,500 with the hope of GM helping me out this one.  Getting the door slammed in my face at the GM Service Repair Center, it was not a gamble I was willing to take.  When I explained this to the rep I got this.

Me:  so my only recourse was to pay almost double for the repair and HOPE you guys

would help out?

Me:  do you realize how ridiculous that sounds?

GM Rep:  I am very sorry for the inconvenience this has caused

They're sorry.  I feel absolutely great about myself.  Like I stated earlier, I don't look for free stuff but when companies hide behind idiotic policies like that it infuriates me.  So, now I am aggravated to the point that I need to let them know that they would not be in business if it wasn't for the good old taxpayer and I asked to speak to someone higher up.

Me:  is there someone else I can talk to? I can't imagine a company that got bailed out by the taxpayers is treating a customer/taxpayer like this

Me: it's bad enough you force me to buy specific oil or it voids my warranty

GM Rep: There is no one above me here you can speak with I can give you the Customer

Assistance Phone number if you would like, but because you had the repair done at

a local independent dealer there is nothing GM can do

There you have it; I am speaking to the CEO.  Ok, maybe not but when I was the happy customer explaining my situation I was passed around like a Frisbee.  Now that I am aggravated there is nobody else I can talk to.  There is a convenient truth.  For the record GM has a clause in their warranty that if you don't use their "dexos" branded oil it could potentially void your warranty. Nice, huh?

So after being told they were sorry for the umpteenth time and that because I chose to save money I thanked the rep for their time and told them I would be moving this up the food chain.  I had no problem with hearing the answer no.  They would have gotten further with me had they just hid behind the expiration of the warranty as the Repair Center did.  But Customer Assistance or lack thereof, stated that I had to pay extra to fix it with no guarantee that I would get any further assistance.

Needless to say, I will continue to voice my complaints. Do I expect any action?  I do not.  The irony of this, as my wife pointed out, we used our tax return to pay for the work. But you can never fault a guy for trying.  It gives for good material.

On a side note, I would like to give a shout out to Brian Greamo and his family from Port Charlotte, Florida. An old friend and a regular reader of Thinking In 3D, his oldest son Brian just turned 18 years old.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

I'm baack!

I did something on Monday that I have not done for just over 18 months, watched the Red Sox game.  I took last year off from the Red Sox; let's just say that I banned them.  Not one inning was watched in my house and if it was on anywhere I was, I would leave the room.  I am a Red Sox fan, but I fell out of love with them quite a while ago.  What happened at the end of the 2011 season I did not see as a choke job or bad luck, I saw it as an indication of things to come.

We have been extremely fortunate in New England.  Our four major sports teams have all won a championship in the last decade, not many cities can say that.  I don't think any city can say that.  We have a rabid and passionate fan base that makes rooting for these teams extremely special.  However, with the Red Sox it's different.  After they won the second World Series in 2007, rooting for the team just didn't feel right.  When the John Henry Group bought the team in 2001, nobody knew what to expect from them.  It had to be better than the stuffiness that resided at the end of the Yawkey era.  We saw changes immediately and a renewed energy grew among the fan base.

The Red Sox run at the 2003 championship was the takeoff for what I call the "marketization" of the Red Sox.  I don't want to say that the Red Sox weren't always in business to make money, but the new owners made you see it.  They utilized the confines of Fenway Park to make it more of an experience rather than just a place to see the ball game.  They installed seats on the beloved Green Monster; a feat that nobody ever thought would happen under the old regime.  The new owners pumped life into Red Sox Nation, and the fan base responded.  The team responded as well by finishing one game short of the World Series.  The fan base was excited, the stadium looked prettier, but the "Curse" continued.

The 2004 season was the pinnacle of my life in Red Sox Nation.  Everything I had grown up to believe and all the time that I had put in as a fan was rewarded.  The Red Sox had done the unimaginable, and won the World Series.  From that night on the Red Sox "Nation" took on a whole new meaning and regular die hard Red Sox fans were swept aside for the pink hat, replica ring buying, corporate fans.  I did not feel betrayed because it truly is a business.  I still watched the games and rooted for the team, but it was no longer appointment television for me.  I was actually on my honeymoon when the Red Sox came from behind again in the ALCS in 2007.

However, it seems that my honeymoon has been better served than the honeymoon that the owners of the Red Sox have seen dissipate.  The collapse during the 2011 season was a microcosm of what the previous three years had built up.  Not only was a great experience and a star studded team given to the fan base by the owners, it was now expected.  Watching how the organization reacted to the fall of the previous season weighed heavily on my decision to not watch last year.  In my eyes, Fenway was starting to look and feel like the Bronx.  One thing I have learned is when you try to be something you are not the results are disastrous.  That is the only way anyone could describe last season.

Now, one could read this and call me a fair weather fan, which is fair.  I like to look at it as me stepping aside while the herd thins.  The sellout streak will come to end this year, which is not by accident.  Because the fans that the ownership was appealing to only associate themselves with winners, and we all know that it will be some time before the Sox will be winners again. So, I am back!  I am rooting for this team without the hope of another World Series run, but with the expectation of another sub-par season.  I would rather root for a team that gives a full effort and is young rather than a team of overpaid aging superstars.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.