On The Silly Side by Jimmy Del Ponte

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

Since I’ve had the same phone number and the same address since 1960, I’ve made an easy decision – I’ve decided to stay in Somerville until they pry my lifeless hands off the railings of my house (or until it gets foreclosed, whichever comes first).

Seriously, why have I decided to stay in Somerville? Well, it’s simple – Somerville is cool, plus ownership of the family house has finally trickled down to me. Sure, I tried to leave a couple of times – like when I moved to Billerica (Somerville with Trees) in 1973. I still hung around with my friends in Somerville, which cost me a fortune for gas, so back to the ‘Ville I came. Then I moved to California in the 80’s, but missed Somerville so much that I took a grueling five-day trip back on a Greyhound bus.

Okay, there were actually two other reasons I returned – 1) the girl who broke up with me and prompted the move in the first place wanted me back and 2) failing at my attempt to make it famous also contributed to my return.

Knowing I could move back into my old bedroom where my stuff still was didn’t hurt either. Another comforting feeling was the fact that my friends would still be in the same places (and often times sitting on the same stools) they were on when I left. I actually stayed in Florida for a whole year in 1985 because I didn’t want those same friends to say, ‚ÄúI knew you’d be back‚Äù. Whenever I moved, I missed Powder House Park, Davis Square and the Sons Of Italy (and of course my good pal Ronnie Rossetti) across from Trum Field. I missed seeing ‚ÄúBolo‚Äù down in Ball Square and I missed Archie and Steve and Bobby and Jimmy at McKinnon’s. I missed seeing that barber at Dente’s that looked like Arthur Fiedler.

Most of all I missed my family – including my cousins, aunts and uncles. There is a Somerville ‚Äúseparation anxiety‚Äù that sets in when you try to leave for any extended length of time – you can call it being in a comfort zone, call it being at peace with familiarity or call it being happy in your element – maybe even call it being a wimp who needs the constant love, reassurance and concern of family and friends. Hey, I need my ‚Äúpeeps.‚Äù I still hang around with my cousin Carol and my godmother (Auntie Marie) and Uncle Carl live on my street! (Okay, our street) My Cousin Carla and her husband Derek and their kids also live on the street – my Auntie Claire is around the corner, and three aunts, an uncle and two cousins live within earshot of each other near the old Western Junior High! Jill, Gemma and Joe (who we sadly just lost) and Olga are all within three streets of each other – and that’s just my fathers’ side of the family – there’s another contingent of relatives from my mothers’ side of the family who all live off of Somerville Avenue! Yes, we all stayed in Somerville!

It’s great to have the family close – and it always was. Being Italian and from Somerville is a double-edged sword – loyalty, solidarity and a love of pasta! I remember weekly family gatherings at The Continental Restaurant on Somerville Avenue. I remember back in the 60’s when we had just moved to our street, a bully was harassing me, so I did what any Italian kid would do – I got my cousin to come over and ‚Äústraighten him out.‚Äù My cousin was three years older than me and just his name was scary enough to be a threat – his name was Butch. And just in case he couldn’t handle the situation, I had the U.S. Marines for back up – with my cousin Mike ready to land on Hall Avenue. Anyways, Butch took care of the situation for me – and we can still depend on each other today. 

My mother’s side of my family still meets on Christmas Day and for my Aunt Molly’s birthday every year – this March she will be 93 – but you didn’t hear it from me.

It was always a comforting feeling to be able to come home to the people who loved you unconditionally and to the ‚Äúfamily house.‚Äù Now, I am the one who is keeping that fortress open for business by the skin of my mortgaged to the hilt teeth – hopefully. Well, if I lose the house maybe one of my family members that I just spoke so highly of can rent me an apartment, and cheap! So it looks like I will stay in the ‘Ville for as long as I can – and when I do venture off, it will only be the occasional trip to that vacation spot where I always bump into fellow ‚ÄúVillians‚Äù – Old Orchard Beach, Maine – or as I fondly call it ‚Äú Somerville with water.‚Äù

  You can email Jimmy with comments directly at jimmydel@rcn.com