You take some time off and you end up running around and seeing more people than you would when you're working.
Bumped into former mayor Irene Elia in a waiting room at Mt. St. Mary's Hospital the other week, and we spent 20 minutes or so chatting amicably about everything from our families to the current state of Niagara Falls politics.
Retirement seems to agree with her. She looked great, very fit and tanned, and said she's been dividing her time between the Falls and Florida.
She laughed out loud when I told her people used to say that, once she left office, I wouldn't have anything to write about anymore.
The low-key reception the Reporter held at Cocktail Bob's to celebrate its fifth anniversary drew a number of notables, including uber accountant Vince DiMarco, international businessman Carl Pasquantino, retired NFPD detective Jimmy Lincoln, contractor John Gross, restaurateur Chris Churakis, NFR Vice President Roger Trevino, Town of Niagara Justice James Faso, land baron Jim Copia and more.
As is the case everywhere these days, the main topic of conversation was the widening federal corruption probe of Mayor Vince Anello and a number of his associates.
Jimmy Lincoln told me that, in more than 40 years, he had never seen a grand jury number assigned as quickly as it was in the Anello case. And I was surprised to learn that the beer concession on the East Mall -- an area of interest in the investigation -- is held by a company controlled jointly by convicted felon Mike Gawel and County Coroner James Joyce. Convicted felons aren't allowed to have liquor licenses, don't you know.
Joyce's name also appears in the financial records of Aarrow Brokers, a company controlled by Tuscarora businessman "Smokin'" Joe Anderson. The records, now in FBI custody, first revealed Anderson's payments of $40,000 to Anello just before and immediately after he was elected mayor in 2003.
Cocktail Bob himself won the Mike Hudson Lookalike Contest, sealing the deal with an appropriately goofy-looking shirt, cheap sunglasses and loafers without any socks. But the picture we took together reminds me more of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito in "Twins."
After Happy Hour, Bruce, the lovely Ann Marie, the Redhead and I headed over to a dinner party at Frankie Smith's house. Chef Francesco and the ladies really outdid themselves, serving up delectable Cornish game hens, vinegar ribs, sausage-stuffed banana peppers, strawberry shortcake and I don't know what else.
The fare was four-star all the way and, since Frankie is co-owner of Third Street Liquor, everything else was top shelf as well. As a charter member of the Anello Enemies List, Frankie has been stymied in his attempts to open a restaurant on Third Street, but it's a safe bet he'll have one open somewhere before too long.
There's no rest for the wicked, so they say, and although it was late when we finally got to bed, we got up bright and early the next morning for a day of sausage-making at an undisclosed location in the city's North End.
Armed with 100 pounds of pork butt we picked up at Sam's Club, Bruce and I were joined by Staba, former county Democratic Party chairman Nick Forster and City Court Judge Robert Restaino. The sausage-making is supervised by a gentleman I'll call Mr. Palermo, who takes his task very seriously and doesn't like seeing his name in the newspaper.
"Mr. Palermo," I said as the judge and I fed chunks of lean pork into the motorized grinder.
"Anybody ever get his hand caught in there?"
"Notta by accident," he joked. At least, I think he was joking.
Judge Restaino was still nursing a grudge against Reporter columnist Mark Scheer for writing a negative piece a month or so ago about the Yankees, who haven't gotten any better since.
As a Cleveland fan, I can of course commiserate with anyone who lives and dies by the fortunes of a lousy team, but will take this opportunity to caution my young friend Scheer against littering, spitting on the sidewalk or anything else that might even be remotely against the law while in the judge's jurisdiction.
Bruce and I didn't get out of there until about 7 o'clock and, although we were scheduled to go to Carl Pasquantino's going-away party out at John's Flaming Hearth, I felt my energy flagging.
So it's nice to be back to work. I can use the rest.
| Niagara Falls Reporter | www.niagarafallsreporter.com | July 12 2005 |