Travels & Experiences
... a work in progress
My friend Vince was living in Cairo and graciously invited us to visit. What at trip! Here we are in our "arabian" duds in front of the pyramids.
My friend Dave Kline took me kayak fishing in a quarry down near Myerstown ..my only catch was this whopper
As my retirement from the music store approached, I decided to "give some back" and took a bunch of the local guitarists to my "Guitarist's Night Out" to see Albert Lee at a local club.
For a few years I was a "contributing editor" to the Reading Eagle, specifically writing cooking and barbecue articles for the Berks Country magazine section. My articles were very well received and they actually paid me for some of them!
2019 trip to Italy ... here we are in Bologna eating the dish that the town is famous for ... BALONEY ..well actually mortadella and other cured meats .... a real feast!
My friend John and I had dinner every Friday Night for years at the "China Buffet" AYCE ... and we made sure to get our money's worth.
My friend Chad, took a bunch of bassists (and a guitar player or 2) to visit Roger Sadowski's shop in NY.
Salmon fishing on the Salmon River in Polaski NY. That's a whopper...yes?
We got to touch the "Gates of Paradise" by Ghiberti. They were commissioned by the mayor of Florence. When Michangelo first saw these gates, he deemed them "the most beautiful thing on earth"
My buddy Dave and I standing on the Continental Divide. I have many of these pics at various spots on the divide taken when he was living in Boulder Colorado
Three friends hanging out at my friend Don's lake house ... .fishing , cooking and just relaxin'
The class of 1969 from Muhlenberg High School ... some friends , especially my friend Sandy arranged these bi-yearly get togethers ... great friends and great memories
New Year Eve ...Y2K+1 ... celebration for the City of Reading in the Bank Lobby at 6th and Penn st. A SWANKY affair with many local dignitaries in attendance. Great band with Spyro Sbylis, Marti Jamison, Carl Belcastro and Dave Kline
Our first visit to Italy. Took this pic while taking a walk around the town of Fiesole.
2026 ... Martin Guitar did a demonstration etc. at the Reading Planetarium. Craig Thatcher did the playing and Chris Martin was in attendance. Guitar shown is a very special one-off instrument with diamonds inlaid in the top exactly depicting the night sky when CF Martin #1 stepped off the boat arriving in America.
I met and had a "hang" with the Greatest Jazz guitarist to have ever lived... from Philly no less ... Pat Martino RIP
After his retirement from NOAA, my friend Dave wanted to do a drive-about so I picked him up in Boulder Colorado and we drove to Slab City in Southern California and around the west etc.
We had a home in Ocean City NJ for 12 years ... there's a great casual seafood place .. .the Clam Bar ... fresh Topneck Clams right from the bay !
The most famous pizza in Berks County / Reading is at the Victor Emmanuel Beneficial Society. ... aka "Vics" ... in a pan ... gooey dough ... sugary sauce ... stretchy cheese ..and a great crust ....the best ..even better for next-day breakfast directly out of the fridge.
We took a bread baking class in NYC from the greatest .. Peter Reinhart .. author of many books on bread and baking.
My friend Chard Maurer (bass player about town) drove down to Philly to see one of the greatest R&B guitarists of all time, Eric Gales .. great show as always.
The whole family at Christmas.
My friend Tim drove down from Canada and then we drove to Lochart Texas to get some brisket ...took a week round trip ...man that was good brisket!
During the Covid 19 Pandemic ... SOMEBODY has to help with the hair! My first attempt at being a stylist!
Many years ago I had a line of guitar strings called "Heavy Metal Strings" .My friend Coco Montoya was my ONLY endorser. He has gone on to be one of the top blues guitarists in the country.
I wanted a "reverse trike" to tool around on...so I bought a kit from England ...frame and front suspension...took a welding course and with the help of my friend Aaron , over the course of a year, fabricated this trike... I ride it regularly and so far only a few pieces have fallen off!
Michalangelo's David. On display in "The Galleria" in Florence. Now that's some junk he's packin'
As part of my continuing saga of back problems ... Spinal Stenosis I had a treatment called "MILD". Minimally Invasive Lumbar Decompression. oooh ... 8 "pokes" into my lower back ... worked for a while anyway
Every January Dee Dee goes to "Cowgirl Camp" in Tuscon at the White Stallion ranch. I sometimes go and hang out ...
When it comes to "life experiences" what could be more memorable that having a cone of gelato, in Florence, on a super-hot summer day!
Yes, girls love shooting Sporting Clays also. Here's my girl having a go with my 12 gauge over / under Perazzi shotgun whacking some clays.
My Buddy, and CPA John Andras with a social commentary. A great guy, truly missed friend.
The Naked Cowboy in Times Square... you put tips in a hold cut in the top of his guitar ... I gave him and extra twenty and whispered in his ear...there's some extra for you to grab her butt for a pic.
My 2 key helpers on the TAsty Licks BBQ Competition BBQ Team .. Tim and Adrian. Tim was the BEST at determining when the brisket was ready to go and also drove the BBQ Portable Competition kitchen.
At "La Pizzeria Di Michele" in Naples. This is the ORIGINAL pizza shop where the queen ordered a pizza and he made one featuring the colors of the Italian flag... San Marzano tomatoes, Mozzerella di Buffala, and Basil. Named it after the queen ... MARGHERITA
At the Ferrari factory / museum ... on our visit in 2019 ... standing next to a cutout of my favorite driver and the last Ferrari world champion as of 2026 .. Kimi Raiakennen
My buddy Dave asked me to play at the City of Reading's "Fire and Ice" festival ... on Jan 1 2018 ... temp ... 20 something degrees F ... yes , freezing .. windy .... my speaker froze and my guitar sounded like it was making some sort of bussing sound instead of notes. NEVER AGAIN!!
Do you live in the Northeast?? Do you know what "black ice" is? ...well this truck came along, hit the ice and demolished my new sign on my BBQ store .. almost hit the building
Old Forge PA is a small town in the "coal regions" that declares itself to be "the Pizza Capital of the World" ..I visited my friend and bandmate Carl Belcastro and sampled that pizza .. pretty dam good I must say .
I was scheduled to join the "fishiin musicians" on their annual trip to Montana fly fishing so I figured I should get my casting chops in shape .. took a lesson on the Tully Creek from these experts.
We did this fly fishiing team competition at Penn State ... a charity donation type of thing .. lots of rules etc. etc. on some prime fly fishing water ...I was the only one who caught a fish!
A Medaglia family tradition that is carried on by my cousin Paul Valeriano ... Easter Pizza ... he cranks them out every year ... exactly like the Medaglia girls
Another road trip with Chad ... drove to New York to see Will Lee and Steve Lukathur ...what a band ... another great time with my friend.
