I have not been able to get out to Friday fish fry lately because I am currently working on Friday nights quite a bit. However, working one full-time job, one part-time job, and trying to get a private business off the ground (Cool Dadio Media), my lifestyle is ripe for carryout pizza. Just up the street from me is a joint called Tony and Maria's Italian Pizzeria. It is easy to over look them because I think, it is an old gas station converted to carryout pizza. I believe the place has been there for over 30 years. Coincidently, it borders on the corner of Newman Street and Milton Avenue (Hwy 26) in Janesville, Wisconsin. Up Newman a couple blocks is my grandma's house. She died in 1978. The house is still there. All the variables are there - my family's old neighborhood, blue-collar carryout pizza, and a die hard entrepreneurial operation.
You should really stop in and pick up a pizza if you can, as opposed to calling for delivery - at least just once for the experience. The lobby is small - there is a TV and a couple of chairs. One of the drivers is usually there, and you better be ready to chat. The folks behind the oven will go out of their way to chat with your too. Really folks, this kind of place reminds me of the steadfast entrepreneurs I met in Kurdistan and Vietnam. This is what small business is. You should give them a whirl.
The pizza comes from 10 to 21 inches. It is not what I would call really, really thin. But it is not a thick crust either. There is generous amounts of cheese and what ever toppings you get. I got the 16 inch with onions and pepperoni so I would have leftovers. It ran me sixteen Bucks. It heats up fine the next day if needed. I would call it a working man's pizza, and no funny business.
Tony and Mara's is cool with Cool Dadio. Call (608) 754-9543 for serving times and more details on sizes and toppings. It is just down from Interstate 90/39 on the north side of town on Hwy 26 Milton Avenue if you are passing through.
This week's Wisconsin soldier to remember is Army Specialist Justin W. Linden, 22. Specialist Linden was killed on Friday, June 4, 2004 when his convoy unit was attacked with an improvised explosive device and rocket-propelled grenades in Baghdad, Iraq. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Justin moved to Portland, Oregon, after graduating from Clinton High School in 1999. Clinton is a town of about 2000 people in Rock County, Wisconsin. Specialist Linden served with Company D, 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry Regiment, Oregon Army National Guard. Specialist Linden was the 18th Wisconsin soldier to die in Iraq since Spring 2003. The Journal Sentinel went on to say Justin's mother Donna lives in Elkhorn, Wisconsin. Linden moved to Portland about four years before his death. In Oregon he was married to wife Sarah on February 28, 2004 shortly before leaving for Iraq. In Oregon he had worked for Kentucky Fried Chicken were he met his future wife. The Journal Sentinel mentioned Justin is remembered in Clinton for his participation in baseball. Linden played outfield for Clinton and earned an honorable mention on the Rock Valley All-Conference baseball team in 1999.
3,690 Americans have been killed in Iraq since Spring 2003.
27,279 U.S. troops have been wounded in action in Iraq since Spring 2003.
78 Wisconsin soldiers have been killed in Iraq since Spring 2003.
112 journalists (several nationalities) have been killed in Iraq since Spring 2003.
Soldier of the week, military casualty, and journalist casualty information sources: Committee to Protect Journalists; cnn.com; and, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
