You will be redirected back to your article in seconds
Can the New York Giants defend their home turf on Sunday and defeat the NFC East rival Philadelphia Eagles? Oddsmakers don’t think so, with DraftKings Sportsbook currently listing the Giants as 2.5-point underdogs. Perusing Week 12 predictions from national football analysts, it’s apparent the majority of them don’t think so.
What do your Big Blue View contributors think? Well, even here there does not appear to be a whole lot of faith in the home team.
“It pains me to pick the Eagles here, but they’ve been playing much better football over the last month. I’m worried that their new scheme presents some bad matchups for New York and the Giants will play right into the Eagles’ hands.”
“The Giants should have nowhere to go but up after a 30-10 loss to the Buccaneers in which the only touchdown scored was by the team’s left tackle. But the Eagles, bolstered by the second-best run offense in the league, have been trending upwards in recent weeks. Jalen Hurts has embraced his dual-threat tendencies to carry the offense to two-straight wins over against the Denver Broncos and New Orleans Saints. Perhaps the only advantage the Giants have this week is that the Eagles will be scrambling to watch film on Freddie Kitchens’ play calling now that Jason Garrett is out as offensive coordinator. But the advantages likely stop there. This is a Philly team that has generated some postseason momentum and so the Eagles have more to play for when they visit the Giants at what is likely to be a very green MetLife Stadium on Sunday.”
“I’m taking the Eagles. I didn’t previously believe too highly in the Eagles but they’ve been great over three wins in the last four games. The one loss was on a virtual time-expiring game-winning field goal to the Chargers. Jalen Hurts has been leading a good running game along with Miles Sanders and Jordan Howard. The Giants’ offense needs to really step up and I just don’t know if they’re going to do it this week. It’s still a little to tough to really believe they’ll take this one, for me at least.”
“If not for the interception Adoree’ Jackson was practically gifted, the Giants would not have scored any touchdowns against the Buccaneers last week. There is little reason to believe New York can score enough to keep pace with the Eagles, who have won three of their last four and scored at least 30 points in each of those wins. A new play-caller is not going to magically solve the offensive ineptitude New York has put on display the last few weeks.”
“Maybe it’s a case of temporary insanity. Maybe I think the Giants’ offense will be temporarily inspired with Jason Garrett gone. Maybe I can’t stand the fact that as I type this no one else on the BBV staff is picking the Giants. Maybe I just can’t stand the Eagles. Whatever, I’m going there.”
The Link LonkE. Rossi and Co.’s Little Italy storefront, on the corner of Grand and Mulberry, appears to be just a typical gift shop, crammed with religious articles, music and kitchen equipment. (Otherwise known as the Italian essentials.) But the tourists who amble by — tipsy on Campari and full from pasta — might want to give it a second look.
It’s actually the oldest Italian gift shop in Little Italy, and perhaps in the United States.
“My grandfather Ernesto Rossi came here in 1900 and opened up for business 10 years later,” Ernest “Ernie” Rossi, Ernesto’s grandson and the shop’s owner, told The Post. The shop has been a cornerstone in the community, alongside the cannoli and espresso, for well over a century, employing a number of new immigrants to New York (including this writer’s grandmother, Olga).
Rossi, 71, has been working at the shop since he was a kid. “My uncle Pat used to give me a dollar a week,” he said. “And for a dollar I’d buy five slices of Sicilian pizza and a couple of Cokes.”
Originally a hub for the exploding immigrant community, which sold Italian-language newspapers, magazines and books, E. Rossi and Co. soon became known as a chief importer of Italian music: first player piano rolls and then records. “My grandfather used to go back to Naples every year to participate in the Festival of Piedigrotta,” Rossi said of the now-defunct music festival which began in the 1800s.
His grandfather would scout both tunes and talent, leading him to launch his own publishing company. As a result, E. Rossi and Co. became an American gatekeeper for music from the old country, including the Neapolitan genre dubbed the Sceneggiata.
“It was a musical theater genre that focused on revenge plots,” said Dr. Reba A. Wissner, an assistant professor of Musicology at Columbus State University and one of the few experts on the artform. “When immigrants came to the United States from Italy, the stories shifted to longing for home and adjusting to a new land. Rossi’s shop sold a lot of sheet music from these plays.”
While the artform has long fallen out of popularity, it’s forever immortalized in “The Godfather: Part II” when a young Vito Corleone, played by Robert De Niro, catches a Sceneggiata performance. “My father was actually very good friends with Francis Ford Coppola’s father,” Rossi said of the film’s director.
While the overflowing store still sells music in the form of CDs, it’s since shifted focus to items ranging from prayer cards to Bialetti espresso pots.
But the last year has put the shop’s future in jeopardy.
After closing due to the state-mandated COVID-19 shutdown and reopening in late 2020, Rossi developed diverticulitis and was subsequently hospitalized.
“While I was in the hospital, my wife Margaret said, ‘Ernie, I’m going to keep the store open.’ I told her, ‘No, leave it closed.’ She said, ‘No, you’re gonna be closed for too long.’”
The shop stayed open, but in March Margaret and a close friend, Freddy, who helped her run things, were infected with the virus. They both passed away a short time later.
“We were married 51 years,” said Ernie. A songwriter himself known to serenade customers, he wrote a ballad dedicated to Margaret dubbed “The Other Side of Forever” that the singer Jenna Esposito recorded in tribute.
Due to the hardship, Ernie found himself behind on rent. Last April, a GoFundMe was set up to keep the store afloat as he finds himself in danger of closing for good. A court date with his landlords is set for Nov. 30. “I have to say it, they’ve been very patient so far and I’m sure we’ll be able to work something out,” he said. “I hope so.”
“Ernie’s shop is special because it is a landmark in Little Italy,” said Wissner. “It’s one of the few shops of its age to survive and which thrives on sales of Italian American imports.”
For Rossi, the store gives him a reason to carry on in the face of terrible loss.
“Sometimes people don’t come in to buy anything, but rather to say hello and say, ‘I’m happy to see you’re still here,’ ” he said. “I guess they probably feel that as long as I’m here, they still have these memories to come back to.”
PILSEN — The pandemic has shown how important it is to support local businesses.
The pandemic has forced the closure of local favorites, including Sabor y Sazon and Step Down Cafe. But others remain — and they’re relying on your business to stay open.
To make it as easy as possible to support these local spots, Block Club rounded up a few small businesses in Pilsen, Little Village and Back of the Yards where you can grab gifts while doing your holiday shopping.
A few shopping options:
Credit: Madison Savedra/Block Club ChicagoSleep Walk Chocolatería and Cafe, 1844 S. Blue Island Ave. Website.
Nestled on Blue Island right off 18th Street, this coffeeshop and chocolate factory from Dark Matter Coffee has an assortment of house-made chocolates and bags of coffee beans.
Its Sweet Spot gift box ($60) includes five chocolate bars, four drinking chocolate pouches and three mini honey jars. Throw in a molinillo ($15) to take your loved one’s Mexican drinking chocolate to the next level.
Open 7 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. You can also order online. 312-600-9336. Instagram.
Credit: Madison Savedra/Block Club ChicagoPocha Pet Boutique, 1840 S. Racine Ave. Website.
This Pilsen pet shop has everything you need for pet owners who treat their pups like family, from doggy sports jerseys to colorful collars.
If you’ve got a furry family member, you can get a “barkuterie” set ($30) or a colorful holiday outfit ($17-$20).
Expect a great discount on Black Friday, and, closer to Christmas, homemade tamales for dogs.
In-store shopping is available 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday-Tuesday and Fridays and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Order online. Instagram.
Credit: Madison Savedra/Block Club ChicagoPinwheel Records, 1722 W. 18th St. Website.
For the music fanatics, this Pilsen record store has a vast collection of vinyls, new and used.
If you’re not sure exactly what kind of music your loved one is into, you can surprise them with a Pinwheel gift card so they can pick out their own records.
In-store shopping is available noon-6 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, and orders can be placed online for delivery or curb-side pick-up. 312-888-9629. Instagram.
Credit: Madison Savedra/Block Club ChicagoKnee Deep Vintage, 1219 W. 18th St. Website.
This Pilsen vintage shop has everything from ’50s floral dresses to ’90s grunge T-shirts for the fashion-forward people in your life.
Aside from clothes, be sure to check out the glass counter filled with accessories, including beaded necklaces, colorful bangles and retro clutches.
Knee Deep is open noon-7 p.m. Monday-Saturday and noon-6 p.m. Sundays. 312-850-2510. Instagram.
Credit: Madison Savedra/Block Club ChicagoShudio, 1152 W. 18th St. Website.
Based in the heart of Pilsen, this quaint shop offers a wide variety of gift options, from plants to jewelry to purses to fragrances. You can still grab its North King vanilla leather bomber jacket ($44) or a J Gallerie metallic pale olive trench coat ($60).
To give someone the experience of shopping for themselves, Shudio also offers gift cards.
Shudio is open 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday. 312-898-3061. Instagram.
Osito’s Tap, 2553 S. Ridgeway Ave. Website.
For fans of this Little Village speakeasy, consider Osito’s Tap merchandise, which includes colorful, lotería-themed T-shirts ($25).
Or, gift someone the experience of patronizing the cocktail bar themselves with an Osito’s Tap gift card.
Osito’s Tap is open 4 p.m.-1 a.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 4 p.m.-2 a.m. Friday-Saturday and 11 a.m.-midnight Sundays. 773-277-8117. Instagram.
Credit: Madison Savedra/Block Club ChicagoSolei Boutique, 3738 W. 26th St. Website.
This boutique in the heart of Little Village features handmade clothes and other accessories made by people in Indigenous cooperatives in Mexico. One option: You can buy an embroidered bell-sleeve dress ($65) — and you get to pick its colors.
In addition to shopping in-person and online at its website, Solei has an Etsy store called SoleiEthnic.
Solei Boutique is open 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sundays. 773-715-4771. Instagram.
Credit: Madison Savedra/Block Club ChicagoDiscount Mall, 1315 W. 26th St. Website.
This iconic neighborhood mall off 26th Street holds more than 100 small businesses.
Consider checking out some of the many shops inside, including Palominos Western Wear, P&L Jewelry, Royal Fashion and the much-loved Chicago Pet Store for your holiday shopping this year.
In-store shopping is available daily. Hours vary by store.
Credit: ProvidedBack of the Yards Coffee, 2059 W. 47th St. Website.
This local coffeehouse has a variety of beans, ground and whole, as well as coffeehouse merchandise, cans of cold brew (four-packs for $14.99) and even a drip coffee apparatus ($35) for your caffeine-addicted loved ones.
You can also gift someone a membership to its Coffee Club. They can pick which coffee they want, ground or whole beans, how much they want and how often it’s delivered.
Back of the Yards Coffeehouse is open 6 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Friday and 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Order online. 773-475-6381. Instagram.
Sugarberry, online. Website.
Based out of her home in Back of the Yards, Sara Victoria Lopez Zuñiga sells ornately hand-decorated cookies as well as do-it-yourself cookie decorating kits to go with holiday themes.
For Christmas, expect nutcracker-themed cookies, a build-your-own gingerbread house kit and a Christmas DIY kit at the beginning of December.
Orders can be placed online. Instagram.
Sputnik Coffee Company, 2057 W. 51st St. Website.
Headquartered in the heart of Back of the Yards, this coffee shop and roastery highlights a single, signature blend of a medium roast coffee, described as smooth and with notes of chocolate.
Sputnik has already started selling holiday gift boxes ($29) that include two 8-ounce bags of coffee with the choice of a Sputnik T-shirt, mug or tumbler.
Sputnik is open 6 a.m.-1 p.m. Monday-Friday and 7 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturdays. 847-668-8075. Instagram.
Did we miss your favorite neighborhood spot? Not to worry! Add it to our Block Club reader guide, which will come out in early December.
Listen to “It’s All Good: A Block Club Chicago Podcast” here:
The Link Lonk
SLINGER, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Little Switzerland Ski Hill is opening up for its ski season Friday, Nov. 26 at Noon.
Little Switzerland Ski Hill, located in Slinger, offers skiing, snowboarding, and other activities.
The Ski Resort features 18 trails and three terrain parks for interested visitors.
Officials say to save on tickets by buying online and in advance and to check out the snow report to see what hills will be open
The Link Lonk
The Little North Pole will be back for another beautiful Christmas season this year! Kicking off with a grand opening celebration on Sunday, Dec. 5, Joe Mure’s famous Little North Pole will be keeping one of Rockaway’s most beloved holiday traditions alive for another year, and is hoping to raise even more money to help find a cure for juvenile diabetes.
The Little North Pole, which has been operating for more than two and a half decades, has managed to raise over two million dollars for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation since their first lights went up, and has brought smiles to countless faces as kids and adults alike travel from near and far to visit the lights and attractions that adorn Mure’s front lawn every December.
The local landmark was catapulted onto the national stage a few years ago after winning the $50,000 grand prize on ABC’s Great American Light Fight in 2018, beating out several other Christmas spectacles from around the country. Since 2018, Mure has only added more to the attraction, growing the lightshow a little more each year.
Those looking to help support the Little North Pole’s mission to end juvenile diabetes can make a donation through their website, littlenorthpole.org.
The Little North Pole is located at 144-03 Newport Avenue. The festivities begin Sunday, Dec. 5, at 3 PM – don’t miss it!
The Link LonkRed Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom was a better swimmer and tennis player growing up than he was a baseball player.
“Little League was it for me,” Bloom said. “That was about as far as I was going to go.”
Let’s take a quick break from free agent rumors, trade talks and labor negotiations to toss a few fun questions at Bloom and other MLB executives who spoke with MassLive.com at the GM Meetings in Carlsbad, Calif., earlier this month.
Bloom discussed his brief baseball career, his days as a swimmer and tennis player, his first MLB game as a kid and more.
Smith: What was the first major league game you attended as a kid?
Bloom: “It was a Phillies game, but I couldn’t tell you exactly when. I have very vague memories of it. But I once actually tried to see if I could figure out which game it was. I want to say it was against the Padres and I’m not certain about that. I’m pretty confident Mike Schmidt played in it. But beyond that, I couldn’t tell you anything.”
Smith: What got you with baseball. What made you really love it?
Bloom: “I think it was gradual early in my life and it became more and more a part of my life. But the thing that really clinched it for me was falling in love with that ‘93 Phillies team. I was 10 years old. It was around then that it became more of an obsession.”
Smith: Did one player increase that passion for you? I’ll tell you, my favorite player was Tony Pena and I wanted to be a catcher but I’m left-handed.
Bloom: “I’m also left-handed and my favorite player as a kid was also a catcher. It was Darren Daulton. I was realistic enough to know I wasn’t trying to be him but he was just my favorite player.”
Smith: When did you learn there was more to baseball than just what happens on the field? The analytics side.
Bloom: “I think as I got into high school, deep into high school, I became aware of this whole other world behind the scenes. And it was very early in college that I really decided to pursue it as a career. It was just fascinating to me.”
(Bloom graduated from Yale with a degree in Classics (Latin). He wrote for his high school paper, interned at Baseball Prospectus in college, then worked an internship in the MLB front office).
Smith: So it was really early in college?
Bloom: “When I tried to make my passion a career, yeah.”
Smith: When did you know baseball wasn’t going to happen as a player?
Bloom: “Oh, that was apparent really early on. I’m a well below-average athlete and I have been my entire life. There was never a chance I was going to play this game at a high level.”
Smith: What other sports did you play growing up?
Bloom: “I swam. That was probably my best sport. I played some tennis.”
Smith: What swimming events?
Bloom: “I kind of did all of them. All four major strokes.”
Smith: In high school?
Bloom: “No, I stopped after middle school. My high school didn’t have a swim team. ... But freestyle and backstroke were easier for me than breaststroke and butterfly.”
Smith: Do you still play tennis?
Bloom: “Very infrequently. Once in a while I’ll play against my wife (Aliza). She’s a lot better than I am.”
Smith: What sports do you play for fun now? Do you golf?
Bloom: “I have golfed a total of twice since becoming a parent. ... So it’s been a while. But I enjoy it. I like playing pickup basketball.”
Smith: Are you a good shooter?
Bloom: “No. No. I’m taller than most people so I just try to stand around and throw some elbows.”
Smith: Who do you play pickup basketball with?
Bloom: “It’s been a while. I used to play a lot of it at spring training. Actually in ‘20 before the shutdown, we played a little bit of it. Obviously this past year because of COVID concerns we weren’t playing basketball.”
Smith: Did you play tennis in high school.
Bloom: “For a year. Not a ton. Mostly recreation.”
Smith: And you played high school baseball?
Bloom: “No, I didn’t play high school baseball. Little League was it for me. That was about as far as I was going to go.”
Smith: Is your wife more athletic?
Bloom: “Yeah, and by a real margin. She’s a tennis player. (Played in) high school. But she was actually good.”
MassLive.com asked other executives about the first MLB game they attended as a kid, what really got them passionated about baseball and their favorite players growing up.
Brewers' David Stearns. (AP Photo/Aaron Gash)AP
“First major league game I ever attended, I was very young and I only remember certain aspects. It was a Mets game at Shea Stadium. I remember Dave Magadan hit a walkoff home run for the Mets. I want to say it was ‘89 or ‘90. Somewhere in there. And I was actually disappointed. I was happy the Mets won. I was disappointed because we had to go home. I wanted the baseball to keep going. I want to say he hit the walkoff in the ninth. And so I was very excited for extra innings.
“It (baseball) is part of my family. My maternal grandfather grew up a big Brooklyn Dodgers fan. When the Dodgers left, the Mets came, he stuck with National League baseball and became a Mets fan. I just sort of fell into a baseball culture and baseball family. I loved playing. I played whenever I could. I just loved the game and still love the game.
“As a kid, I fashioned myself as a pretty good shortstop. Not sure I was, but I like to think I was. And I had a good arm but I couldn’t really hit. And so a similar guy with the Mets was Kevin Elster. So I really liked Kevin Elster as a little kid. As I progressed through the ‘90s, the Mets had some pretty good teams in the late ‘90s. Those were the Mike Piazza teams. Rey Ordóñez was the shortstop and I was a fan of his.”
Athletics GM David Forst. (AP Photo/Matt York)AP
“First game I ever went to as a kid? I grew up in L.A. I was a Dodgers fan and my first memory would have been like ‘80 or ‘81 with the Dodgers. (Fernando) Valenzuela. (Steve) Sax. (Steve) Garvey. Ron Cey. Those are the teams I remember best. And I remember taking a picture with Steve Sax at like a player appearance when I was 6 years old probably.
“I think it just was seeing the Dodgers up close. Like I said, I saw Steve Sax at a player appearance and I wanted to be a middle infielder. I wore No. 5 because Mike Marshall was wearing it in the outfield. I think you just sort of connect to those guys who are larger than life when you’re that age.”
(He attended his first game at 4 or 5. He can’t pinpoint the exact game).
“My dad grew up a Dodgers fan in LA. He was at (Sandy) Koufax’s perfect game in ’65. I’m sure from the time I was born I was going to Dodgers games.”
Guardians' Chris Antonetti. (AP Photo/David Dermer)AP
“I know it was at Yankee Stadium. That’s where we went to games — in the old stadium. I want to say it was in mezzanine. I was 6 or 7 years old. I don’t remember a lot about the specifics other than I believe we were playing the A’s. I was definitely into the game but also interested in eating hot dogs and the atmosphere that comes along with the ballpark.
“I grew up in a family of four boys. We played (baseball) all the time. We were always doing athletics. Baseball was one of those sports that we played all the time in the backyard. And then just watching Yankees games for me growing up and we would sit around and watch it on WPIX.
“Don Mattingly was my guy.
“When we were going to hire a manager, Don was one of the candidates. It was a surreal experience for me. Growing up, kind of idolized him. I was naturally a right-handed hitter and I tried to hit left-handed to mirror his swing. Obviously that wasn’t very successful based upon my playing career. It was a little bit surreal to do that (interview him.”
Angels' Perry Minasian. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)AP
“First major league game I went to, I want to say I actually bat boy-ed the game. (Dodgers) playing the Cubs. My father worked in baseball, my grandfather. My brothers work in baseball. So it’s in the blood to a certain extent.
“We were close family friends with Tommy Lasorda. He’s my brother’s godfather. So my grandfather and Tommy were best friends. My dad worked for Tommy in the minor leagues when he was managing. So the first game I can remember going to, I want to say I was 6 and I was a bat boy.
“In Wrigley. We were playing the Cubs in Wrigley because we originally were from Chicago. Maybe they took me when I was really young and I don’t remember.”
Rangers' Chris Young. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)AP
“It was a Texas Rangers game when I was probably 3 years old. I can’t remember much about it. I just remember my parents driving me out to old Arlington Stadium and I just loved it.
“The bonds with my father. Just going out in the front yard, throwing the baseball with him or going to the park and hitting and having him pitch to me. Or sitting and watching major league games with him. That bond was special.
“When Nolan Ryan came to the Rangers in ‘89, that really infused this love of pitching for me. That was the moment I decided I wanted to be a pitcher. I couldn’t be Nolan Ryan but nonetheless, he helped grow the love for pitching for me. He changed my fandom for the Rangers.”
Reds' Nick Krall, left, with Nick Castellanos. (AP Photo/Aaron Doster)AP
“I grew up about 45 minutes or so north of Baltimore. And I went to an Oriole game when I was a kid. Orioles-Blue Jays at Memorial Stadium. I was probably 4 or 5. I don’t remember anything about it. But I got a scorebook.
“My dad actually played college baseball when I was born. I joke with family, I say, I went to baseball games and I don’t even remember what happened.
“I played baseball growing up and just fell in love with baseball. As a kid, being an Orioles fan, Eddie Murray was probably my favorite player. But that was early on. The Orioles picked Ben McDonald with the No. 1 overall pick. I went to a minor league game. I had a buddy who was a batboy for the Harrisburg Senators. ... Ben McDonald was the No. 1 pick and I went to the minor leagues to see the Orioles (prospects) ... and I met Ben McDonald in the bullpen. Ever since then, I was a huge LSU fan. And I loved LSU baseball growing up in Pennsylvania. So it’s one of the reasons I wanted to go and try to walk on.”
“1990 Braves game in Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium. So it was right before they became really good. I’m almost certain that David Justice hit a home run in that game. I was a big Dale Murphy fan, for sure. And then obviously the next year in ‘91, they went worst to first. And I became obsessed at that point. That was a pretty easy fandom. Anyone ‘91 to ‘94 Brave, I can tell you their first, middle and last name.
“Early I was a Ron Gant guy. Then, obviously (Greg) Maddux, (Tom) Glavine, (John) Smoltz. Those guys really came on the scene. I enjoyed watching those starting pitchers day-in, day out. I mean, there were so many great players there. Chipper (Jones) came in. I think just the whole team. Like all my other friends, I was pretty obsessed.”
Related Content
Boston Red Sox’s Chaim Bloom: Scrutiny, strong opinions ‘part of what fires us up’
The Link Lonklittle.indah.link The super PAC backing former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley entered the election year in January with just $3.5 million in...
