Table of Contents
- Architecture vs Engineering
- Nebaletan Word of the Day – Cumar/Cumbar
- Pizza Review – Blaze Pizza – Houston International Airport
Architecture vs Engineering
I worked as a “facilities” engineer at Kodak, where I designed the mechanical systems inside buildings. One of my projects was a microelectronics plant that produced photo chips for the first digital cameras.
This was in the early 1980s, when US chip-making was still a new and risky industry. The chip making process involves using dangerous chemicals and gases that, if not properly piped and contained, could leak causing explosions or exposure to humans and be life threatening. I learned how to choose the right materials and techniques to handle them safely and efficiently. It was a huge and exciting challenge for a young engineer like me!
These projects made me look at buildings differently. I’d to pay more attention to the structural and mechanical features, not the architectural ones. I would look at the ceiling and notice the safety systems and sprinklers not the walls and floors. I still do!
But then I found out that Grandpa Lucio was probably a mason and bricklayer. A mason’s work is both form and function.
One of the most wonderful examples of stone form and function for me is the “Guardians of Traffic” pylons on the Hope Memorial (Lorain-Carnegie) Bridge that links the west side of Cleveland to downtown.
Pictures from – Lorain-Carnegie Bridge Pylon – Cuyahoga County Engineer’s Photography Collection – The Cleveland Memory Project (oclc.org)
The bridge’s pylons not only function to keep the bridge erect, but their form is also a work of art created by Southern-Italian stonemasons (see this). Although Grandpa Lucio was not part of this project, I can envision that he might’ve known these guys and were his cumars or perhaps worked on different projects with them.
The thought of Grandpa Lucio on a scaffold with brick and motor now has me noticing not just function but form too and wondering how and what he did!
I realize the above is not important to most, but remember, this started as a blog for my grandkids 🙂
Nebaletan Word of the Day – Cumar/Cumbar
This is a rather long. As I thought about this word and reached out to others, I realized that it was important to many…
As a kid, I’d hear my family call someone their cumar or cumbar (pronounced coo-mar and coom-bar).
- In Latin “cum” means “with”. So, this was someone that was “with” or for them
- In “formal” Neapolitan the word is likely cummare (cu-mar-ey) which means Godmother
As I child, it was confusing to listen to the conversations like:
- “He’s his cumar”
- or “She’s her cumbar”
- So, it seems/seemed that the words were gender-related
Family members described people as their “own, personal” cumar/cumbar. Although, it was bewildering as I was never sure whose cumar/cumbar “belonged” to whom, I was sure that one’s cumar/cumbar was someone special, and it created a family quality bond and deserved the utmost respect.
I reached out to my “guides”
- Per my brother, he felt his cumar was his Godfather Anthony Candela, or going back to when we first came to the USA, it would refer to someone from their home village in the South.
- The word was not only used with in my family. I’d hear Nebelatan friends like Donnie and Carmen and their parents also used cumar/cumbar frequently (even if the parent had no Italian roots!).
- Per Donnie, his mother used it to refer to a close friend, and for her, cumbar was a “term of endearment”.
- Carmen called cumar one who was a “special friend” that was formalized with a gift.
- These are the true essence of the word to me!
- But my friend Chuck from Buffalo didn’t use the word within his family…must be a Buffalo thing!
Unfortunately, television and popular myth uses “goombah” as a stereotypically insult of a Southern Italian-American. I didn’t hear goombah while growing up. But, to me, the word goombah elicits the same reaction from me as when I hear bah fanabla. They are my equivalent to the N-word.
Such a great, important Nebaletan word as cumar/cumbar should never be confused with such crap as the above stereotype…please strike from your lexicon!
Pizza Review – Blaze Pizza – Houston International Airport
I’ve mentioned previously that I’m not a fan of chain pizzerias, but when I see a pizza, it’s sometimes hard to fight the urge! That same urge hit me as we tried, and got lucky with the chain Jet Pizza in Lakeland, FL. So, don’t judge me…ok, already…go ahead since I’ve never been afraid to judge…others’ pizzas!
So, as I waited for my plane at the Houston Intercontinental Airport, I saw a Blaze Pizza stand near my gate. I said to myself, “What the heck? I’ll give ’em a try.” I was pleasantly surprised!
| Date | 1/14/24 |
| Pizzeria | Blaze Pizza |
| City/Neighborhood | Houston International Airport |
| Website | https://www.blazepizza.com/ |
| About Us | |
| Style | Neapolitan-ish, maybe more New Jersey style than anything else |
| Ambiance | None, airport terminal |
| Beverage Pairing | Coke Zero |
| Rating Criteria | |
| Shape | Round |
| Dough/Crust | Tickness – Cracker thin, although not quite as crispy as a cracker Cook – somewhat soft and chewy with an ever-so-slight crispness. Flavor – bready, not bad. Unfortunately, the dough is machine-shaped and rounded. This pushes out any air that might be in the dough. In addition, unless the dough is pretty much centered in the press before shaping, the cornicione can be broken or misshapen as was the case with my pizza (see in last picture above and of the finished pizza below) Example of a dough shaper machine – Best Selling Pizza Dough Press for Fast Casual Pizzerias – Endurance Pro X2 |
| Cornicione | As with the crust, chewy with slight crispiness, no bad except for the part that the shaping broke it. To me, that’s a no, no |
| Toppings | Seemingly fresh and tangy cherry tomato and fresh basil with excellent flavor |
| Sauce | Very flavorful, tangy, medium thickness, rich tomato taste (not quite the taste of tomato paste), and no salt taste in the sauce. |
| Cheese | Cheese Type – Moozedell, fresh, hand shredded (ovalini style) and parmagian, very tasty Cheese Distribution – both all over and in splotches, stringy and salty |
| Cheese to Sauce Ratio | Sauce = Medium Cheese = Medium Balance = Good |
| Value | Great – $12 for a 10-12″ |
| Overall Rating | Good, surprising good (don’t judge me!) |
| Would I Go Back? | Hmm, maybe, this is a really good question. We have a Blaze Pizza in Rochester near our daughter’s former college campus that we’d visit typically after her soccer games. I don’t like the fact that Blaze is owned by LeBron “The Traitor” James. And frankly, the Blaze in Rochester has a much larger menu and was LESS TASTY! So, this lack of consistency would likely keep me away if other choices exist. |
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