Table of Contents
- Anarchist Bastard – Global Entry…Revisited?!
- Pizza Review – Sicilia Italian Pizzeria, Venice, FL – Sicilian Pie
Before I continue on my jobs with my 40 years as a Desk Jockey, I want to revisit a blog post from way back in July 2023 – Global Entry…DENIED!?!
Anarchist Bastard – Global Entry…Revisited?!
It seems like I have friends and family members that are glued all day to either FOX or CNN, depending on their flavor of choice. As for me, I don’t watch the news—I’d much rather be the one making it.
As much as I try to avoid it, though, the Doge-coin “concept” keeps popping up. I call it a concept because it’s hard to tell if anything real is happening or if it’s just another media game of “Rope-a-dope.” By the way, how does Elon go from being a darling one year to an enemy of the deep state the next? Wait…should I buy a Tesla to save the environment, or should I boycott Tesla because he’s an evil genius? What should I do about SpaceX? Oh my…
It’s worth noting that many Southern Italians, from whom I descend, were Anarchists, Socialists, or Communists. Though I firmly believe in Meritocracy (which is probably closer to Anarchism than the evolution of our current government) my dicey history with the Federal Government (see Global Entry…DENIED!?! saga above) and a less-than-favorable IRS encounter, make me no fan of government also. Anarchist? Not really. Bastard…you decide!
A Story Worth Learning – see here
A Quick Recap
Now, about that Global Entry denial…let me recount my adventure. In July 2022, I applied for Global Entry. By November, I had my interview with Homeland Security. Fast forward to January 2023—Cathy breezes through, but I’m placed on provisional status and asked for additional documentation from the Town of Canandaigua, NY from back in 1990! (Must be my anarchist leanings, right? Or is that left?).
The required documents were unavailable from our local government (read that as “a person with a lifetime job and little motivation”). Nevertheless, I provided that info to Homeland Security. Come April 2023, I was denied Global Entry and sent back to the end of the line…figuratively and literally at all airports!
If at first you don’t succeed…?!?!
Undeterred, I reapplied in November 2023 (glutton for punishment, anyone?). Tick, tick, tick…another interview in…. November 2024! And yet again, I’m asked for further documentation from 1990! Holy crap! Seriously, can’t someone just read my previous Global Entry request?
In December 2024, I search the NY State records database, travel to a certified location for fingerprinting (just to see my own records), only to find that NY State has no records from 1990 either!
Frustrated, I start copying my Homeland Security officer on every email between me, NY State, and my local Sheriff Lobo—hundreds of emails and forwards. Finally, in January 2025, I received Global Entry approval WITHOUT PROVIDING THE REQUESTED 1990 DOCUMENTATION!
Moral of the story? You choose:
- Perseverance, and an email deluge, pays off with government.
- Too bad Sacco and Vanzetti didn’t have email.
- Or better yet, don’t get arrested in Podunk, NY while being a good Samaritan!
Pizza Review – Sicilia Italian Pizzeria, Venice, FL – Sicilian Pie
In my last post (here), I posted a review of Sicilia’s NY Slice. This review will focus on my other order that day, a Sicilian Pie.
This first section is the same as the last post:
| Date | February 5, 2025 |
| Pizzeria | Sicilia Italian Pizzeria |
| City/Neighborhood | Venice, FL / just north of the Venice Airport on Tamiami Trail (Gulf of America Trail?!?!?) 41 Bypass |
| Website | Sicilia Italian Pizzeria |
| About Us | Sicilia Italian Pizzeria (About Us) Nicely done About Us page. As you know, this is an important aspect for me in choosing a pizza joint. It likely shows that the owners care a little more because they are willing to tell their story! |
| Style | New York |
| Ambiance | Sicilia is tucked away in a strip mall—not my favorite, but this is Florida, where strip malls are as common a Publix! Definitely not the Northeast, where charming old towns with historic brick buildings set the scene for cozy pizza joints. That said, the interior is well-done and has a touch of quaintness. But the real highlight? The owners are right there, making the magic happen. I had fantastic conversation with Massimo and Olga, the husband-and-wife duo behind Sicilia. They hail from Catania, Sicily—one of my favorite cities in Italy. When I mentioned that we’d visited Catania multiple times, they were genuinely surprised. Catania is not exactly overrun with tourists. I felt like I’d earned some unofficial honorary local status. |
| Beverage Pairing | San Pellegrino |
This section below is specific to their Sicialian Pie:
| Rating Criteria | |
| Shape | Square with 9 Square Cuts. |
| Dough/Crust | Tickness – Very tick Cook – Soft, chewy with a crispy bottom, sprongy and air, but not light! Flavor – Buttery and Sweet – it’s obvious that their baking pan is well seasoned with oils since that flavor truly permeates into the crust from below Per Massimo and Olga, the owners, they use a different dough for the Sicilian and the New York. The Sicilian is supposed to have a 72 hour fermentation, but the NY a 48 fermentation (I wonder if that’s totally true since the NY slice from the last review did not have the sharp flavor one would |
| Cornicione | Crispy, Spongy/airy, Bubbly, and Chewy – All at same time |
| Toppings | Tomato, cheese, oregano, and some fresh basil- the simpler the better! |
| Sauce | Tangy , Savory, Chunky, Salt, oregano. Pecorino and a slight hint of garlic – the chunkiness didn’t seem present in the NY Slice, so I’m thinking they use different sauces between their styles too. |
| Cheese | Cheese Type – Moozedell and pecorino Cheese Distribution – All over Gooey, Greasy, Stringy, and Salty |
| Cheese to Sauce Ratio | Sauce – Medium to A lot Cheese – Medium to A lot Balance – Outstanding, although the cheese could’ve have been turned down slightly! |
| Value | GREAT! Just as with the NY Slice from the previous review! They called it a 16″ Square, but it was more like a 12″ or 14″ square which was $26. Even if it’s a 12″ square, that’s only $9.5 for a 12″ round equivalent! Might be the best value in pizza that I’ve seen (except in Catania! Or Napoli…or just about anywhere in Italy!) |
| Overall Rating | Good – if you’re a cheese lover, this is for you, but for me, my mended heart started to get nervous by the amount of cheese on this pizza. The flavors of this dough and sauce and quantity of cheese harkens back to my favorite pizza as a kid (other than Aunt Teresa’s), Anita’s Pizzeria. Although my memory for names sucks, my memory for pizza is GREAT! Anita’s had similar texture to their dough and flavor for their sauce (Anita’s sauce was truly unique…my buddy Chuck worked there…I think they added wacky-tabacky instead of oregano in their sauce at Anita’s). Anita’s also had mass amounts of cheese! |
| Would I Go Back? | Yes – but likely not for another Sicilian Pie, although it reminds me of Anita’s my tastes have changed to more simpler pizzas. I’ll stick with their NY slice instead |
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