Wieners & Losers

vic fortezza
4 min readOct 8, 2024

Aurora Borealis, aka the northern lights, Alberta, Canada. Reuters photo by Todd Koro:

South of the border, Narcoland, headline from nypost.com: “Mexico mayor’s decapitated head found on his car six days after taking office.”

Headline from outkick.com: “Al Pacino Claims He Saw The Afterlife, And It Sounds Terrifying.” According to the article by David Hookstead, edited by yours truly, the legendary actor, who was nearly taken by Covid in 2020, said: “I didn’t see the white light or anything. There’s nothing there. As Hamlet says, ‘To be or not to be’; ‘The undiscovered country from whose bourn, no traveler returns.’ And he says two words: ‘no more.’ It was no more. You’re gone.” Later in the piece, Hookstead writes: “My grandfather (RIP) told me a story about how his best friend briefly died in a hospital before being brought back to life. He cussed out the nurses for keeping him alive because what he experienced was exactly what he was hoping for.” I’m expecting what Pacino experienced but hope I’m wrong.

RIP MLB stalwart Luis Tiant, 83. Born in Cuba, he found himself on the outside looking in while pitching in Mexico when Castro seized power. An only child, he did not see his parents for 14 years. Signed by the Indians, he made his big-league debut in July 1964, shutting out the Yankees. El Tiante had a 229–172 record, 2416 strikeouts, 3.30 ERA, 187 complete games, 49 shutouts. He was an All-Star three seasons and 20-game winner four. He was the AL ERA leader in ’68 and ’72, leader in strikeouts per nine innings pitched in ’67, and the leader in shutouts in ’66, ’68, and ’74. He also pitched for the Twins, Red Sox, Yankees, Pirates and Angels, career ending in 1982. He pitched parts of seven seasons in winter ball and is a member of the Venezuelan Baseball Hall of Fame. He served as a minor league pitching coach for the Dodgers and White Sox, and for the Nicaraguan Olympic team. He was head coach of the Savannah College of Art and Design, an NCAA Division III program, ‘98-’01, teams compiling a record of 55–97. He launched a line of cigars he formulated and designed, dubbing them El Tiante. He made an appearance on Cheers. He is the subject of the documentary The Lost Son of Havana. He was a dad of three. One of baseball’s all-time great characters, he co-authored two autobios. I’ve never forgotten the following ad, which might not be allowed in today’s touchy climate. Thank you, Sir. Awesome run. Facts from Wiki, photo from Google Images:

Fine movies I watched only once, too bleak for a second viewing:
Schindler’s List (1993) — real life monsters killing innocents.
Saving Private Ryan (1998) — may be the most realistic depiction of war ever, but brother.
Titanic (1997) — great special effects, couldn’t remain aloof from all the deaths.
Raging Bull (1980) — odd because it usually takes me a second viewing to acclimate to Martin Scorsese’s cynicism. I somehow made it through a second viewing of Goodfellas, as much as I hated the characters. I really enjoyed The Departed (2006) the second time through, but I didn’t want to spend any more time with the characters in RB.
City of God (2002), Rio slums. Might make one suicidal with despair.
Melancholia (2011), any of the films of Lars Von Trier, really.

Another gorgeous day and the Anti-Inflation Book Shop did well. My thanks to the kind folks who donated and bought stuff. The incoming was far greater than the outgoing — but stellar. Here’s what sold: five books in Russky, The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz and Janet Mills; Life after Life by Kate Atkinson; Cross Roads by Wm. Paul Young; a Broadway CD compilation; Tapestry by Carole King; Dionne Warwick — Sings the Standards; Christian singer Martha Munizzi DVD concert… Ira tried to buy groceries with his government issued food card and was told there was only 39 cents on it. He went to an office to report it and was told it’d been skimme. He will be reimbursed… Gonzo had a large bloody wound on his head from a fall. He’s on a bunch of meds. His doctor wants him to use a cane, but pride won’t allow it.

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vic fortezza

I was born in Brooklyn in 1950 to Sicilian immigrants. I’ve had more than 50 short stories published world wide. I have 13 books in print.