Did I tell you about the time...?

        I don't think I told you about the time Kimmy and I drove back to Pennsylvania with Cody...when he was 6 weeks old...yes, 6 weeks!  What would possess us to drive across country (2,500 miles, about 40 hours of driving) instead of fly?  Just after we moved here, Kim decided that she no longer wanted to fly...how convenient.  You know, as with anything, whatever Kimmy wanted, was more than great with me - she never asked for much and never complained, so when she did ask for something, I wanted to do whatever it was she wanted for her.
        We had just finished paying off all of our credit cards, which always feels great, but we were never smart enough to close them, so we'd end up piling up the debt again anyway.  All we had left was our Chase debit cards.  We had made car rental reservations through Hertz, and the day we were to leave, went to pick up the car, only to be told that we needed a Visa, Mastercard or AmEx - they did not accept debit cards.  We were frantic.  We rushed home and ransacked our drawers and cabinets to see if we had any credit cards that we had not closed...no luck. 
       And I turned to my Toys R Us family for help.  I worked for Toys R Us for just over 15 years.  And made life long friends, who I still speak with frequently and who continue to help out our family.  That day, the call was answered by Denise Shipley, one of the assistant managers I worked with.  Denise has been with Toys R Us for over 25 years!  She is one of the hardest working people I've ever had the pleasure of being teamed with...and she has a lot of compassion.  Oh, and Denise is a cancer survivor herself!   A miracle, who was there to lend support and inspiration to Kimmy during her short fight. 
       When we told Denise about our situation, she drove out to the airport immediately to help us, transferring our rental car, a van actually, to her name and her credit card!  Who would do that?  I insisted on taking the full insurance, something the 'experts' tell you never to do, and happily, we were off!
       That trip was wrought with peril.  Just east of New Mexico, a storm began brewing.  It was tornado season and I knew the signs.  My sister, Sherri, lived in Muskogee OK at the time, and had described the surreal, greenish hue the sky took on and the 'football' shaped clouds...that's what I was staring at.  Suddenly, it began to hail.  Stones the size of golf balls pelted the van.  Soon, the road was covered with them and the van began to slip.  I was praying hard - bargaining actually - something I knew I wasn't supposed to do and knew that God did not work that way.  None the less, I promised to memorize certain prayers and live a better life if God could just help me safely navigate what had become a full blown ice storm...in June!  He did and I did memorize those prayers, although I continue to struggle on being a better person...
        We stopped at Sherri's place, saw her kids, Anthony, Natalie and Jackie - ate a great meal (my sister can cook!), caught a nap, a shower and continued on our way. 
         Here's the funny thing about this cross country extravagana I remember:  It was during the McDonald's monopoly game.  Kim and I always seemed to get hooked on that particular game and we thought we had an incredible chance to win, reasoning we'd be crossing 11 states and stopping at as many McD's as we could to improve our chances of getting big winning game pieces!  Well, we did not win a big prize, but sure won a lot of free food and saw some interesting McDonalds!  Oklahoma had two of the more interesting ones we visited.  The first, was in Hennrieta (spelling?).  My nephew, Anthony, was a big Cowboys fan and told us we had to stop at the McD's there...turns out, it doubles as a Troy Aikman museum!  The town is so small, they do not even have a stop light.  They wanted to build a museum, but decided to put it in the highest traffic building in town...McDonalds!  It was quite the sight.  They had everyone of Troy's jerseys framed from Pop Warner through the pros.  And all of his football cards on the wall, trophies, paintings, etc...actually, it was a little scary - especially having grown up as a Redskins fan (and getting killed in the 4th quarter by Roger Staubach!) and then as an Eagles fan (after they drafted McNabb 12 years ago).
          The second most interesting McDonalds was in Tulsa - so it seems Oklahoma has a stronghold on cool McDonalds (but not much else!).  This one was the deemed the largest in the country and stretched over top of route 40!!
       We overdid the McDonald's that trip...feeling greasy, fat and sweaty - you know, I always am congested after eating McD's, too - I call it my McDonald's cold!  And, we never played the monopoly game with the same zeal or earnest that we did that summer...
       Another fun thing we did, as we drove across country, was sneak Cajun into the hotels we stayed at.  She came everywhere with us and was so quiet and well behaved...but I liked to give her a bath in the hotel, cuz she shed like a maniac and it was kind of my calling card to leave a super hairy bathroom - I always wondered what they maid thought the next day 'jeez, a hairy man was staying here last night...'.  I'm easily amused.  But Cajun was a great traveler, having been from the Jersey Shore (way before 'Snooki' of Jersey Shore, ever desecrated the beaches!) to the beaches of San Diego...
      This trip was made special, because, we had recently gotten a video camera.  When ever I was sitting shotgun, I would film Kimmy driving - her trying hard not to giggle at my lame jokes - and trying to make something out of nothing from road signs, buildings, etc....
      When we crossed the western border of Pennsylvania, we rejoiced - we were within 6 hours of the Philadelphia area!  Then, typical Pennsylvania weather kicked in - slate gray skies, followed by rain...it got heavier and heavier, leaving visibility a few feet in front of the van, windshield wipers working overtime to try to keep up.
       Sidebar:  Kim's stepdad, Jim, had an amusing story about an Indian legend named "Falling Rock"...he mesmerized the bambini with the tale of this wandering icon and even drew them a picture, so they would know him when they saw him (last weekend, in Sabino Canyon, I showed them a rock outcropping that resembled the face of an Indian and they all squealed simultaneously 'It's Falling Rock!').  He told them that every state posts signs to warn travelers to watch for him - and they might even see a sign that is yellow that just says 'Falling Rock' and they should keep their eyes open...they LOVED this story!!!
        As we approached exit #6, on I-70, the Claysville, Pa exit, just west of Pittsburgh...we saw just such a sign and, we were not aware of the legend at this time.  And how many times have you passed a similiar sign?  I used to even comment to Kim 'what the hell?  have you EVER seen a falling rock?'...'No' she'd giggle.  And yet, here one came - as I sat shotgun, I was nearly frozen, unable to move or say anything...and then, in panic, I just yelled 'ROCK!'...the rock had tumbled down the hillside, in the driving rain, before my stunned and weary eyes...it bounced onto the road, into our lane, in the absolute middle of the lane we were traversing...and stopped...Kim, in Clint Eastwood-esque fashion, gripped the wheel, knowing, that in these torrential conditions, any sudden turn would result in an out of control spin...so, she centered the vehicle to go over the rock and held on tight!!!  A wrenching, grinding sound came from beneath the van and Kim held the vehicle true!  We veered for the exit to check the damage and to take our hearts out of our mouths and put them back in our chests (underwear change!).  We pulled into a little Exxon station just off the ramp, in the pouring rain.
          I jumped out, disregarding the deluge and laid on the ground, instantly soaked to the bone and peered beneath the van...to see carnage!  We had ripped off the oil pan and punctured the gas tank!   Cody screamed bloody murder in the back seat.  Kim shook with fear, still gripping the wheel...and here came the owner of the gas station...'Get that thing the hell outta here!  You're leaking fluids all over my station!'....'But sir, we need help!  We drove all the way from Tucson, AZ with a 6 week old - my wife is in tears...please...'.  'I'm calling the cops if you don't get that outta here!'...so I pulled across the street to a pay phone and called Hertz to tell them what had happened (thank God, back then, there were still phone BOOTHS!).
         A lady named Hazel, in Oklahoma City, answered.  I told her Oklahoma has the most fabulous McDonald's and filled her in on what happened.  "Ordinarily, since you got full insurance coverage (Yes!), we would just meet you out there with a new van....BUT, since the vehicle is registered in Denise Shipley's name, she needs to be present for this to happen."  Ohhhhhhh....
       Meanwhile, a couple who had seen what had happened, pulled off to see if we were allright...they gave us an umbrella - a blue one with prints of dogs on it - we still have it to this day!  Kim protected that thing over the years like it was the Holy Grail itself!  Now, the treasure falls to me to preserve.
       Kim was still in tears...I'm on the phone with Hertz..Cody's wailing...the gas station owner is banging on the phone booth door, yelling at me...I'm dangerously close to snapping...
       We managed to get to a hotel, where I called several people to make the 6 hour journey to come fetch us...my mom ended up making that drive.  While we were stuck in the hotel, I wandered down to the vending machines for a soda.  A limping, hobbled man, holding his rib cage, walked down the sidewalk towards me...reminded me of Dennis Hopper.  'How you doin?' he asked.  'Don't ask' I told him, my inner-Philly coming out.  'Well, last night around 3 a.m., blind on barbituates and whiskey, I didn't notice that I had entered a construction zone.  I crashed my car into a ditch, abandoned it and crawled here to this hotel', he confided in me.  'I think my ribs are broken' he added.  I just kind of looked at him and said 'Good luck' and started away...he called after me 'Please don't turn me in...'  'To who?'  I asked...
       My mom got us back to Philly and Hazel worked hard over the next few days to get us a new van!  Denise was gracious and patient in helping through the process...What a long, strange trip that was!
       We actually did that drive two or three more times, before Kimmy found her flying legs, or wings, again...

       Bambini report:  What a delightful day...I was invited by Mrs. Schantz to chaperone a field trip to the International Wildlife Museum with Antonio's class!  Furthermore, she asked if I would ride in a special van, so Tonio could be paired with his best friend, Sean, who is in a wheel chair, and Mariano, a special needs boy, that Tonio adores. 

                Tonio, Sean and Mariano, get wait patiently for their lunch bags to arrive...
                They loved all of the stuffed animals at this museum.

            The museum was full of interactive displays, so the kids had a lot of fun.  Whoever it was that narrated their tour did a pretty good job keeping the children dialed in...

                   Mrs. Schrantz and Tonio appear unaware of the imminent danger presented by the tiger directly behind them...haven't they ever seen Night at the Museum???
                   Our van driver, inclusion specialist, Alison Zagona, shared some 'small world' stories...'Have you ever heard of Caruso's?' she asked...Probably the first Italian restaurant Kim and I ever went to after moving here!  'My uncle owns it...and my dad owned one called Vince's on Speedway'...I remember the neon light of the chef flipping a pizza...'Have you ever been to Viro's?' I asked.  'My dad bought the bread from his restaurant there! I go there for cannoli shells, sometimes, when I don't feel like making the shells and for pastries, etc'.  Good stuff.  I took the bambini's there tonight for Ash Wednesday, after we got our ashes.  Autumn ate pasta (what a surprise)...the boys had a huge plate of calamari - both squid fans!  And I had the fish fry - incredible.  Robert, Erica, Nicoli and Breanna took great care of us, aside from Nic rubbing it in that his AC Milan is in first place in the Serie A, while my Juventus languishes in 7th - but a surprising Napoli, my second team, is in 3rd... Breanna made an astonishing cappuccino that will assure me very little sleep tonight!  And, as it is 11 p.m. and I'm not a bit tired, I guess that cappuccino has worked its magic!  The boys had swim lessons tonight, too.
       When I picked up Cody, I stopped in to wish Mrs. Lopez, his algebra teacher, good luck tomorrow - she will have her baby at St. Joseph's, where Cody, Autumn and Antonio were all born.  We gave her some classic board books, like Eric Carle's Hungry Catepillar and wished her well.  It was good to see her replacement, Linda Sarnoski, who allowed me to assist her at St. Pius in Antonio's religious education classes and is long time friend, Cheryl Devitt's sister, today too.  I am constantly amazed, and humbled, at what a small world it is!  Cody's Language Arts teacher, Mrs. Archuletta, told me a great story about Cody that occured the other day...she handed out popsicles to her class, as a reward.  Cody was first in line.  His pop was so cold that his tongue got stuck to it!  She said it was just like on 'A Christmas Story'!  I told her that I promised the kids a trip to Colorado next year - her home state - she said she would give us some off the beaten track, must see places...Lived there for awhile opening Toys R Us's and want to show the kids that Rockies beauty...

                  Anyway, next time McD's monopoly game comes around, think of the valiant effort, the conspiracy to dominate, that Kim and I attempted in the summer of 1997 and aspire to find ways to win!  Kim and I were unable to win the 'big prize', but, had the memory of an incredible road trip...

                   Love,
                          Dave