4 - Dispatch From Italian Design

Dateline Torino:

Modern Italian design is rightfully renowned.  It tosses out convention, stodgy old styles - but often the basic purpose of the object as well.  If it looks “bella!” it must be “fantastico!”  Nothing on the road is sexier than Ferrari, Lamborghini or Maserati - but they are more useful to send a mechanic’s kid to college, than to drive him there.

Our very luxurious Torino hotel has a lighting system of the most hi-tech remote control buttons that cannot be felt as on/off - and when pushed, delay for a second before letting you know if they did anything, nothing or the wrong thing.  Enter the room and one light pops on to allow the room card-key to be inserted into a slot - at which time every bulb in the place is lit - bath, bed, hall, closet, reading, desk, etc.  

Each individual light must then be visited to extinguish, or over to the far wall (and kicking the protruding leg of the haute couture chair) and then try to guess which one of a panel of buttons turns off everything - or automatically powers open the drapes for a view of the restaurant - and visa versa.  

And the restaurant is not immune from  better design - a pepper grinder that needs to be handed around and admired - all of us looking to find a way to get the gleaming tube to produce pepper.

The hotel's showers are also beautiful - a brochure photo from every angle.  But these descendants of the Romans (that invented running water and built aqueducts that still transport it flawlessly for miles) - have so precisely leveled the showers that they drain equally into, as well as out of.  And the exquisitely sleek multi-spray apparatus is beyond control, squirts hard where it shouldn't and continues to rain when turned off - requiring drying to be done on the flooded, deathly slippery - but gorgeously polished marble floor.  Wading over to the sink we find a chic towel rack - at a most unaccommodating level for nude users. Unless it is suppose to dry the nether regions while one shaves, can only be there for looks.

All this nuovo Italian design, is truly a feast for the eyes (except for those in the restaurant) but a pain for this practical old Scot’s toes and tush.  So ... its “buona notte” (good night) - if I can turn off the lights.

-  Stubbed Stew

Stitched Logo in bike seat and now in my butt.

Cool but ... ?

Lookout below.

Ferrari Coffeemaker? 

Bowls that won't stack

3 - Dispatch From Game One

Dateline Turin:

The Legends have come to town, along with 19,000 other jocks and jockettes from 107 countries - and Torino is ready with open arms.  Banners line the streets - shops, taxis and TV - all hail the arrival of the World Masters Games. 



The city is filled with yesteryear’s Olympians, All-Americans, national champs, etc.  

Master games are grouped by age according to the youngest member of a team.  The Legends play in the “65 to Dead” bracket.

Games Village Gate

Main Drag's Banners

Opening ceremonies have come and gone - down the street, light the flame, and make speeches - a repeat of Torino’s 2006 Olympics.  All looks very nice.  

But the volleyball venue is in a city gym far across town.  It is locked when the team comes to check it out.  They are painting some trim inside.  And the old gym needs more than paint - center court has a glass wall on one end making the colorful international volleyball look like a black pumpkin coming at you over the net.  

VBall knees after 50+yrs of jumping

The other end sports the “non funziona” drinking fountain and the toilets - classic squat blasters that the girls all love - and not too popular with the worn-out knees sported by some of the lads.

Bill Earns His Pasta

The fabled Brazilians fall in 2 games to the Ukrainians.  Next, Moscow is upset by Latvia.  Then The Legends take the court facing an undersized German squad.  USA draws the toilet side for the first game but finishes them off in 2 games to nil. 

Old Guys CAN Jump

MVP honors goes to Harold Reiser, the Legend who brought the toilet paper.  

Lesson learned for the next games here:  Bring more water and don’t wear your good shoes!

- Recap Rod

The Training Goes On

Boarts Sets ...

 ... Kitto Hits

Hotel's Goddess Joins the Team?

2 - Dispatch From Hell’s Bells

Dateline Lake Como.

Villa at left - St. L's Hells Bells on right.

I don’t know when or why churches started hanging bells.  During the Jesus era, the technology to make such noise-makers was unknown outside of China.  Could it have been a conscious marketing decision? The church’s threat that this din will go on for eternity if you don’t come in, sit down and shut up?  Ringing of the hours, and half-hours at all hours, might have been useful in medieval Europe, but every Italian now has a cell-phone in hand and doesn’t pay the least attention to promptness anyway.

Training Tables

The Good Neighbor

It is still a week before the World Masters Games - and Bill’s strict training routine calls for a period of nutrition, acclimatization, jet lag recovery - and some knowledge of the available wines. 

Girls Open the Villa's Gate

Eleanor’s 93year old knees were seeking a single story place, so we ask for the bottom of a villa up in the mountains on the shores of Lake Como.  But as the real estate types say, “Location, location, location.”  The agent omits the part about our neighbor, Domo St. Lorenzo - and this old lago Larry swings some really big ones - bells that is.

After the musical climax of a midnight-thirty, (12+2 for the half-hour), it is some nights possible to snore thru the single digit hours. At 90+ degrees, the windows are all open wide - and by 6 bells, so are the eyes.  

But the eyes have Lake Como to view, a pleasure since before hell’s bells were invented.

- Reverb Rod

Bill's Bells .mov

http://youtu.be/y2mlLkaGji0

Ceiling Nymphs to Sleep 

1 - Dispatch From a Stretch

Dateline home.

Our species has just started living longer than a few decades - now able to do competitive sports - teenage stuff, at over 60.  I have learned, as I near my 7th decade, that my “golden” years are more likely just pot metal - and that any exertion must be preceded by stretching ... lots of stretching.

Some my age are still in the game -  those very few that still have the will to train, the discipline to eat the right foods, drink the healthy drinks - and live the clean life.  One of these, is NOT my brother-in-law Bill Kitto.  Yes, against all odds he has kept playing - but the healthy food and drink part has always been questionable - and soon will be tested to the extreme. 

We pack-up and fly off to the World Masters Games - a sort of Olympics for old farts. Team USA, The Quicksilver Legends, is the 2 time defending gold metal winner - having defeated the Russians in a squeaker, four years ago in Sydney. Bill was MVP*.   Staying on the training diet in Australia was one thing, doing it in Italy may be too much to ask.

Jean and her mom have never seen The Legends play, nor have I, except on film.  The girls will form a Legendettes cheering section, while I will try to Dispatch from the press box.  



Bill and his agent/trainer/wife Chris will join us in NYC and then all together over the “pond” to the land of pasta, gelato and wine.  

I started stretching last night with 4 pieces of focaccia, a fresh caprese salad and a bottle of Chianti Classico. Bill had a Manhattan. 

- Stretchin' Stew

*Most Vertical Player