7.13-14.2010, schenectady

my buddy tom owns a liquor store in the neighborhood (rotterdam) where he grew up. he's had it for the last five years. before that, he was a sewer-pipe layer, forklift driver, house painter, nurse, comic book artist (marvel in the '80s!), and an adman. thirty-two years ago, he traveled down to texas with me, but only lasted six months before his friends and relatives pooled their money to fly him back home. (he reminded me of some of the details of why i unassed from the house in oak cliff after only two or three. whew!) he only plans to stay in biz until his youngest daughter completes her undergrad work -- she's the only student in her high school's history to get a perfect score on an a.p. exam, and she actually aced _two_ of 'em! then he and his wife are gonna move to the dominican republic or italy. (she: "but you don't speak italian!" he: "_you_ do." her parents are first-generation calabrese, just like the italian kid's.) i thought it was funny that tommy, who's irish, is a member of the gabriele d'annunzio chapter of the sons of italy. (me: "but tommy, wasn't he a fascist?" he: "i dunno. didja know that there wasn't an italian language until mussolini?") tom's a great cat with a wonderful family and it was a pleasure to see him again after all these years.