John, I like the Sicilian links page. The superstitions were pretty funny.
Caro Giannuzzu, congratulations for your web site. The way I wrote your name is how your grandmother used to call you. Ciao Carmelo centroleopardi@wnt.it ( Note: Carmelo Manetta is the director of the language school I attended in Italy)
Hi John You did a great job on this site. I especially enjoyed the pictures. More please. The ones from Italy would be great. Love, Mom
Well, as I told you before, Who knew you were this talented ? Liked the site, you did a verrrry good job. I will miss your wee face when you leave but, with this site I will be able to hunt you down when I want (why?) Take care. Your ever lovely and delightful Desk Clerk, Pat Primonato !
Hey John, your page looks great and I am so happy for you! How is your Dad doing and is he still in our hometown? Did he retire yet? Well take care. Marigrace Randazzo-Ratliff (Yes, he and my mother are still there. He retired just a couple of years ago. Thanks)
Hey, John! Great job...you put a big smile upon my face. One correction though...your Dad is still not retired. I spoke with him just one week ago and I left thinking that even the older D.O.'s can do anything! Karen DeJoe
Congratulations John. Looking forward to see you! Ben and Toni
Congratulations John. I enjoy reading the updates on your webpage. Sorry to have missed you at the reunion. Take care and keep in touch. Cathy (Mancuso) Kestler
very sweet John, you are a great man. One day (after 2 marriages Ha HA) I might find someone like you. Take Care and keep in touch. Hope every thing works out. God Bless you. L. Lawton
I enjoyed learning about you. Now you are not just another faceless person that I am wondering if shares some of the same genes as my significant other. Camille Santoro Ciesla (Editor: Camille has contacted me as a possible ancestral relative)
hey john, i came back to your website to check out the liqueur recipe. i'm going to give it a try soon. i'll let you know how it turns out. excellent web site. no one would know it was your first attempt at one. best wishes to you. take care. alex mills
as i promised, i attempted to try your recipe, but when i got to food lion, they were out of lemons. so i bought oranges instead. i made the recipe the same in every other way. i just tried it. it's very good. as we speak, i am taste-testing it against grand marnier and mandarine napoleon [a belgian liqueur]. unfortunately, i only have grand marnier [jaune- which is made in mexico instead of france- it's not quite as good]. the g/m has a pale gold color, the m/n has a peach color and the homemade has a translucent yellow color. oddly, it didn't take on that color until i added the simple syrup. the orange zest and everclear resulted in a clear yellowy color. i generally prefer m/n over g/m because it has more bite. but the homemade liqueur has the most bite. and yet it remains very smooth. no doubt the added alcohol content is a factor. i figure the homemade stuff is about double the proof. they all taste so different, and each has their own redeeming qualities. it's hard to really say one tastes better than the other. they all taste great. so i guess it's a matter of personal preference. but i must tell you, the homemade stuff is really good. if bouquet is a factor i prefer the smell of the homemade stuff. i would rate m/n next and g/m last. but again, they all rate highly in that category as well. i am looking forward to preparing the lemon liqueur according to the recipe and i will buy some at the liquor store to compare against and again offer my feedback... for what it's worth. btw, for those without metric scales, 300 grams of zest = 9 ounces. so 3 ounces per 100 grams is pretty easy to remember. thanks for sharing your recipe. alex mills [I tried this and it is tasty. However, I suggest using 400 grams of orange zest]
John your web site is great and so are the pictures. Everyone should have a web site. "G"
Hi, I'm a university student living in Kingston, Ontario and the other day, as a form of procrastination, I decided to search "original joes" on the internet. This choice was not completely random as this is the restaurant that I worked at all summer. Anyway, one of the results that came up was your web site. So strange to see so many familiar pictures!! I'm quite homesick (oh yeah, my home is a block a way from original joes in Edmonton) so it was nice. I know all about the messed up seasons. Also, thought I'd let you know, April had her baby a couple of weeks ago, a girl name Amber Rae. Good web site, wish there were more pictures of Joes and the employees. Too bad you missed me. Sounds like you left about 2 weeks before I started working there. It is an amazing place, best place I've ever worked. All the people are awesome. Matt was like a big brother too me and I even met my boyfriend working there (you didn't see him whe you visited the restaurant because he was skiing in BC at the time but I told him about your site and he already knew about it, I guess Matt told him). Anyway, just wanted to share this with you, don't really know why. Guess it's that friendly Edmonton personality. Glad you enjoyed your time in the city. If you ever stop in again maybe I'll run into you at Joes! Kate
Regarding the Limoncello <<da Gianuzz>>: "Excellent, crisp, clear, flavorful. Sassy, but not impertinent. Complimenti per un limoncello straordinario!" Mary Clark, Taster. (Editor: Mary tasted some of my Limoncello and this comment was forwarded to me via a hand written note. I have added it here for all to see. Mary also has her own limoncello recipe. I have tasted it , found it to be excellent, and have made a modification to my own procedure. Thanks, Mary)
Caro Giannuzzu I was searching about belforte because I lived there for 5 months in 2000 I also studied at the giacomo leopardi, man what a life I had I can tell you, wait for the paper back. anyway it was great to come across your pictures , seeing the castle and even my friend gianni it was so cool, 5 months there I made close friends with many of them. well its cool that this place on earth has human beings like you and me sharing memories on different periods of time, if you ever want to chat about il piccolo pease belforte drop me a line damosso@yahoo.com buono fortuna tou vita
John Just a note to say hello and find out how life is treating you. I am now working in Baton Rouge LA on a ExxonMobil project. As you know there is no other work out there right now. I assume that you are still working telecom. Are you still working for FD? Let me know what is going on. Later "G" [Editor: I have now discovered who "G" is.]
I think we may get along just fine. I have something to add.... Why doesn't Alec Baldwin stop whining about voting reform, admit Gore lost the election and go back to making shitty movies none of us want to see? Why doesn't Barbra Streisand write her own damn memos, stop blaming everyone else cause she can't spell Gephardt correctly, and go back to making shitty movies none of us want to see? Why doesn't Sean Penn sober up and wake up, realize America is not the bad guy here, and go back to making shitty movies none of us want to see? Why Doesn't Martin Sheen realize he only plays the president on TV and finally realize he HAS a TV show cause no one wanted to see his shitty movies? By the way, Marty..being a role model starts at home, tell your son Charlie (doesn't he also have a TV show cause we got tired of his shitty movies?) to just say no. Tell your other son Emilio to stop thinking divorce is a hobby. I just had an e-mail debate with this guy named Howie, who ran himself stupid trying to prove his lame point he was never quite confident in, if you want a laugh, I'll e-mail you all the interactions...Gavin.
Good for you John. You said what I was thinking. Keep up the good work! [Editor: This was in reference to my political comments made in early 2003. I don't know who said this, but, Thank You]
