Blind Cheek

May 30, 2008 · Filed Under Italian news · Comment 

The Far Sighted Record Breaker

There is a lovely little story in Milan’s freebie newspaper ‘Epolis Milano‘ today all about a guy down in Taranto who pretended to be blind.

The story gets better, though.

This ingenious chap managed to keep his perfect vision out of sight for twenty four years! I wonder if there is a world record for ‘the longest fiddle ever’.

There is more. This far sighted individual actually used his sightless status to land himself a job as a telephone operator at Taranto prison, of all places. As a result of his far sighted fiddle, he may well end up as a permanent resident in the very same prison.

And yet more. Our blind friend had a driving licence and a big powerful motorbike.

Somewhere along the line, someone must have cottoned on to the fact that for a person registered as blind, he could see pretty well. In fact, Italian police finally caught up with him after he was filmed while reading a newspaper.

End of a possibly record breaking fiddle.

But what of the good doctor who signed our not so blind friend’s medical certificate? Good question. Actually, the doctor concerned is 100% safe from any kind of legal recourse, thanks to the fact that after a certian length of time, you cannot be prosecuted for a crime in Italy.

One does wonder whether the mischievous medic had signed any other dodgy health certificates though. Digging around I imagine investigators could come across a few two-legged one-legged men, and women. A few walking dead, or maybe even the odd deaf piano tuner or two.

More Dodgy Doctors

On the subject of dodgy Italian doctors, a few incidents have made it into the news here recently. How about the 32 Milanese doctors under investigation for having issued prescriptions to those who are now living behind the pearly gates (Or simmering down below)?

Then there was the esteemed ‘prince’ of Italian paediatricians, Carlo Marcelletti, who was arrested for demanding money from the parents of his little patients to, er, accelerate their treatment. This charming quack was then found to have had pornographic images of  what was probably a child on his mobile phone.

To round things off, this price of fiddlers was also, apparently, pocketing money owned to the hospital where he worked and, just for good measure, was probably involved in the manipulation of tenders for work within the hospital.

Ah, the artful dodgers of Italy.

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Jeff Healey 1966 - 2008

March 4, 2008 · Filed Under People · Comment 

I was saddened to hear about the passing away of Jeff Healey today.  If you did not know he was a talented Canadian blues-rock guitarist, singer, and jazz trumpeter and clarinetist.  But what was really amazing about this guy was that he was blind.

I have a couple of his albums and like his music a lot. 

Throughout his relatively short career, he was only 41, he had been battling with the cancer which had taken his sight away when he was only one.

When I hear about these things, it makes me wonder whether there is a supreme being, but I guess it’s just one of those mysterious ways things.

My condolences go out to his wife and two children.  And I’m going to get what sadly turned out to be his last album, ‘Mess of Blues’, and I’ll pop it in my shops by way of a tribute to this guy who was an example to us all.

Bye Jeff, you will be missed.

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