A Warm Feeling on a Cold Winter Day

A Warm Feeling on a Cold Winter Day

By

Mike Scinto

            In my line(s) of work (radio/TV and writing) I have become increasingly cognizant of the fact that things we say or do can impact others totally without our ever knowing it. Kathy and I were moved recently when, out of the blue, I received such an acknowledgment via my Facebook account. I want to share it with you just as I saw it. Since I didn’t ask her permission, I have eliminated any business names and the writer’s last name.

Hi Mike! I have wanted to contact you for years and wasn't sure how to go about it. Took a chance I might find you on Facebook and here you are!

              I'm sure you don't remember me but I used to work as a photographer at (A Local) studio. I photographed you, your beautiful wife, and son, Zak a few different times. There was one time in particular that I will remember, I think forever!! It was during our busy holiday season and on this evening, we were extremely busy and the other photographer had to leave early due to a family emergency. You and your family had been in earlier and had returned to view your proofs. In the mean time, a former customer came in that was doing a reshoot and was not happy that I would be the photographer taking her photo that evening. There was a huge scene and of course there were many customers in the store at the time!! I was young and on the verge of tears when I returned to you and your family in the proof viewing room. I can't remember what you said to me exactly but you made some sort of comment about what had just happened to try and make me feel better because you could tell I was obviously upset. And the reason for me contacting you is to tell you how much that meant to me!! It has always stuck with me.

              Whenever I hear the phrase about “a person may not remember what you say but they'll remember how you made them feel” I honestly think about you and how you helped me that evening. I know this may all sound really corny but I just wanted to let you know that you made a difference to someone....to me. Thank you for that!

            Sincerely,    Sallie

As I told Sallie in my reply, while we don’t remember the details, we certainly remember the event…….but not with the impact Sallie shared. Don’t miss your opportunity to impact lives. It likely won’t be a planned impact, and you may never be as fortunate as we were to find out about it, but you will touch lives by offering a caring word of consolation or understanding. But remember the flip side; a negative attitude can likely have the reverse affect. I love Facebook!

High-Speed White Elephant

High-Speed White Elephant
by

Mike Scinto

     Last week President Obama, with his trusty sidekick Joe Biden close by on his leash, announced plans to pump eight billion dollars into high speed rail systems across the country. Four hundred million of that will be earmarked for Ohio. The administration might as well flush it down the West Wing lavatory. At least it might serve a useful purpose; at least it would be in good company there!


     In my 34 years of hosting a radio talk show, I have heard the dream of high speed rail come, and go. I can’t count the number of groups who supported it, telling listeners it was the future of intercity and interstate travel. Most of those train peddlers are selling vacuum cleaners or encyclopedias door to door now. Shows my age; I meant selling them via the Internet.

     During the same three decades I watched Amtrak fade into almost total oblivion. I saw Ohioans growing more and more independent with individual travel means. We, unlike commuters in the Northeast Corridor who do use trains, prefer to have our own cars at our disposal. A drive from Cincinnati to Cleveland will take 3½ hours at the most. It tends to be a scenic, leisurely drive and even at today’s gas prices is not cost-prohibitive.

     I admit this is anecdotal (mainly because I got so many conflicting answers) but I have been told that “high-speed” in Ohio doesn’t mean the same as in Japan or Europe. Because of our population density, the top speed under current law would be 79 MPH (plus stops). Ask any State Trooper between Cincy and Cleveland on I-71 and they’ll tell you that would be slower than most drivers……… and non-stop too!
Contrast that with purchasing a ticket, waiting for a train that’s likely to be behind schedule, sitting in an uncomfortable seat next to a guy who snores or didn’t take his weekly bath and you question why you didn’t just drive.

     There have been no definitive studies that say we want high-speed rail, or need it; or would use it for that matter. And while it would create jobs, if we HAVE to use that money stolen from taxpayers called “stimulus”, you mean there aren’t better things to spend it on?

     If this system is the panacea that’s being hyped, why hasn’t some money individual, or team, jumped on board (no pun intended)? Why is taxpayer money being used to build this white elephant?

     I’ve got a better idea. If Obama feels compelled to spend that stimulus money, try this. There are approximately eleven million Ohioans. Our cut of this project is 400 million. That would be about 37 bucks per Buckeye. Send us each a check and we can all use it to buy a half tank of gas to drive to Columbus next year for John Kasich’s and Mike DeWine’s swearing in as Governor and Attorney General, respectively, of Ohio. Now that’s money well spent!

Holding On To What is Ours

Holding On To What is Ours

By

Mike Scinto

            There’s a suspicious looking pickup truck rolling up and down your block. The truck has out-of-state plates and two unsavory characters in the front seat. It’s made several passes.  You head out the door as you watch this mysterious vehicle approach again, slip your door key under the mat for the cleaning lady so that she might herself in and then head off, briefcase in hand, to another day at the office.  You return home that night and find you’ve been cleaned out. And you wonder how that could have happened!

            Well, if you guessed I was headed someplace with that little metaphor, you’re right. The American people are that homeowner and the current elected officials (at least the majority of them) are the guys in the truck.  Now I don’t mean to imply that Obama, Reid and Pelosi are thieves; they’re not. But, in an effort to change what has made America great, they have to “steal” from its citizens.

            Americans seem content to give up on blocking outsiders who would sneak across our borders, take our jobs, use our health care system and run freely through our system. We seem okay with forbidding the “profiling” of those of Islamic backgrounds at airports, even though that is where our biggest terrorist threat seems to be hiding (certainly not with ALL Islamic people). It doesn’t bother us that our government owns our auto manufacturers, banks, mortgage companies and controls their lending policies. Some have been convinced that the government can somehow run our health care system when it can’t even spot a terrorist in its own military ranks (Major Nidal Hassan-Fort Hood) or a one-way ticketed, cash-carrying, no baggage-toting, would-be underwear bomber flying into Detroit from overseas.

            Recent events suggest we may be starting to see the light. Americans have, through tea parties, phone calls and petitions said (in growing numbers) that we don’t want control of our health care system handed over to Washington. In Massachusetts the election of Republican Scott Brown to fill the Senate seat held by the late Ted Kennedy still has the pundits scratching their heads. These are just two of the more pronounced awakenings.

            This is a pivotal year; locally, state-wide and certainly in Congress. We must be vigilant. We can’t be distracted or mislead.  Our focus must be on the goal line. And we can do it! We are, after all, Americans. You might think the guys in the pickup truck are just innocently trying to make your neighborhood a nicer place to live. But their ultimate goal is to own everything they can get their hands on by the time they leave. We can let them clean us out, or we can stand fast and send them packing. The choice is ours!

Grabbing a Slice of Life

Grabbing a Slice of Life

By

Mike Scinto

            My father was born and raised in a house on Park Street in Bridgeport, Connecticut.  He was one of five children in this Italian-American neighborhood near the center of town. Stella, the only female sibling in the family lived in the neighborhood her entire life.  Tony, a right-out-of-“Grease” leather-jacketed tough guy lived in an apartment across the street with his wife and son. Lenny moved to a nice house in the suburbs post-war.  Ernie married young, divorced and lived in a room in the large family home his entire life.

            My father, post World War II, met my mother in Memphis and the rest, as they say, is history. That’s where my brother and I were born and spent our pre-teen years.

            This column isn’t meant to dig into the roots of my family tree but was simply setting up the background of this New England-rooted family and its love for the great American food…..pizza, and the best parlor to ever bake it, Jennie’s Pizzeria (still in business I might add). If I were to be asked for my two favorite foods on the planet, they would be pizza and bar-b-que; the Memphis, Bridgeport influences of course.

            If you Google it, I’m sure you can find millions of anecdotal stories of the origin of tomato pie (pizza). My grandmother’s explanation has always rung true for me.  In the “old country” women would take leftover dough and flatten it out. She would spread some freshly ground tomatoes, oregano, olive oil and a light sprinkling of ground parmesan cheese on top.  Voila! It’s tomato pie.  And I am true to Grandma.

            The thinner the crust is, the better.  You need to take that big old pie shaped slice and fold it in half to take a bite.  But as much as I love this traditional American food, getting a pizza place to make it that way for me is nearly impossible.

                If I say “extra sauce and light cheese please” they act like they can’t believe anybody would really want a “plain” pizza with light cheese and, seemingly to “get my mind right”, they load on the cheese anyway. I had Zak hooked on the correct way to eat pizza until his Mom suggested pepperoni………..and extra cheese.  The interloper won him over. It’s as if he went over to the dark side to join Darth Momma.

                Elvis liked bar-b-que pizza. I’ve eaten margarita pizza, sampled Hawaiian pie and munched on dough with green onions and ham. I felt like I was back in my Catholic childhood when I snuck into a protestant church with a friend.  It was so wrong!

                So you go on ordering your gourmet “pizzas”, cut in squares and baked in a deep dish, and I’ll stay true to my Italian-New England roots and eat tomato pie the way it was meant to be eaten. And you can only dream about how GOOD truly tastes!

“The List”

“The List”

By

Mike Scinto

Are you on “The List”? If you are, you know it by now. If you’re not, you’ll likely be wondering why after reading this. But it is open to additions (and deletions). I’m talking about the Scinto Family Christmas card list.

I’m sure there’s a master list somewhere but all I have is in bits and pieces on this laptop, or that desktop. Some of it is on my external hard drive and some is simply in Kathy’s old handwritten address book.

I’m not even privy to the origins of the list or the criteria for staying on, or being banished from, the list. So, at best, these are guesses since my sole role is creating the annual newsletter/update, printing off the labels and taking them to the post office.

I believe the very first parchment with names of the fortunate ones was penned following our wedding nearly 35 years ago. But that original list is hidden better than the Holy Grail. It somehow comes together (most years anyway) and sneaks into my database.

Once you’re on it, it’s tantamount to a lifetime appointment. I’m sure divorce, prison or death can mean an exit for you. In some cases there seems to be a two year rule; If you don’t reciprocate with a card for 24 months you’re thrown under the bus for good………or until you prove yourself worthy again; that is to the “Keeper of the List”.

I know I saw names on there this year that we haven’t heard from in a couple of decades. When I sheepishly ask her about them, I get “the stare” and go back to printing labels.

Don’t shoot the messenger. I’m just delivering the message for Kathy (unofficially). I’m almost afraid to suggest it but if you’d like to make the list, you might discretely ask her. But don’t push it! Be good, try not to cross her this year and you may just have something special in your mailbox about ten months from now……..then again, you may not!

Merry Christmas 2009!

Merry Christmas 2009!
By
Mike Scinto

It’s here again and this year we’re ready! Christmas is here. This Holiday encompasses so many different emotions, ideologies, spiritual experiences and sentimentalities. As a Christian, I am well aware of the significance of the celebrations, and reverence, surrounding the birth of our Savior. As a big kid I just get downright excited!

Would it shock you if I told you that a guy in his 50s believes in Santa Claus? I do. Without going in-depth into the evolution of the spirit of St. Nicholas, suffice it to say I believe things happen at this time of year, miraculous things, that can’t just be explained away.

I am fortunately married to a lady who loves gaudy outside, and inside, decorations. To quote Kathy “you can’t have too many decorations”. So this year I kicked it up a notch. I started well before Halloween with our outdoor lighting. I’m not quite Chevy Chase’s Clark “Sparky” Griswold, but Zak says I am heading in that direction.
Zak is 17 now and is still excited about the season and Carly is always excited about anything involving Elmo, her musical toys or the sound of ripping off wrapping paper!

Over the years on my show I’ve dealt with the myriad stories about some Scrooge or another in government ripping apart a nativity scene in Any Town, America because the ACLU said it was a violation of the so-called “separation of church and state”. I’ve deliberately tried to ignore those stories this year although I’m sure one or two will come up while hosting the national show these next couple of weeks.

So continue, or start, your own seasonal family traditions. Reach out to those who may be alone or depressed. Remember in your heart and soul the real “Reason for the Season”. And don’t forget to let the kid in you come out. I can tell you, it feels GREAT! Merry Christmas from the entire Scinto Family!

Your Camcorder Can Be a Treasure Chest

Your Camcorder Can Be a Treasure Chest

By

Mike Scinto

                I actually had three inspirations for writing this column. The column itself is my Christmas gift to you and I hope you take advantage of it.

            I recently spoke at a ceremony honoring our veterans during Veterans’ Day week. As I relayed a story about my own Dad it stirred some thoughts in the back my mind.  I talked about my Dad’s memories of his breakfast-cut-short on December 7^th, 1941.  You see, he was stationed at Schofield Barracks, Pearl Harbor on that “day that will live in infamy”. He then served in the Guadalcanal Campaign. I heard his recollections of those momentous events all through my years growing up.

            I was fortunate.  Because I hosted radio and TV shows I have several hours of those stories on audio and video tape shot for my shows. It paints a more realistic and colorful picture than me trying to pass the story on to our children or other family and friends than I could ever do as I try to recapture it now that he has passed on.

            The second thing that inspired me to write this was our own thanksgiving feast, and the funeral of a wonderful man we’ve known, our sister-in-law’s father. It made me realize what I had known for years; there are generations of living memories out there that won’t be with us forever.

            The third inspiration is trying to discover if this could present an avocation for me. I have been Blessed to have a job that is a passion for the past 34 years.  I plan to host radio and TV shows for many more years to come. But, if there is a market, I would like to utilize my gift in a job that I could enjoy just as much; memory preservation archivist.

            Let’s tie all this together. The oral (and visual) stories our parents, grandparents, great-grandparents or even friends can share are priceless! Watching a DVD of your uncle who fought in the Korean War, or traveled around the globe on his job, sure beats a second hand account that may be shaky at best and that will eventually fade into oblivion.

            I doubt there is a family out there that doesn’t have at least one camcorder or could borrow one from a friend.  The rest is making time to have the person whose brain you want to pick sit down and open up. It would be the best hour or two you could spend on many levels and would create an irreplaceable heirloom.

            I realize there are people who cringe at the thought of “interviewing” somebody or being on tape themselves. And some of these “vaults of living memories” may appear too shy to open up. Thinking out loud, that is where I could envision me, or an outgoing family member of yours, coming into the picture.  I’ve learned over the years that, with the right approach, even the most shy of interviewees will let it all out after the right button is pushed. And then you have it.  And it will always be there for your family to enjoy, and share.

            So consider archiving those memories. And what better time than on your Christmas visits. I only wish there were tape recorders or camcorders when I was a teen so I could now share my Grandparents’ stories with Kathy, Zak and Carly. The wisdom in their words and the sincerity in their expressions would touch us all.