Check out our September newsletter!
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THE SLG ADVISOR
SEPT 2022 THE LOVE OF A DAUGHTER Happy 21st Birthday, Jessie!!!
and Jake and I were (and still are) very close. So, I confess, I secretly hoped we’d have another son. Thank God we didn’t!!!! Not because Jake wasn’t a joy to raise, but because Jessie added such a different dimension to the family dynamic. A dynamic that is uniquely Jessie and which makes each of us in the family so much happier. Since I have limited space, let me give you the 10 best adjectives that describe my now grown-up bundle of joy. She is kind, empathetic, tolerant, confident, curious, funny, tough, protective, loyal, and faithful. If you are Jessie’s friend or family, you have the best supporter you could imagine. She will ALWAYS be there for you. Jessie can also be your worst nightmare. She is an aggressive pit bull in the face of injustice or bullying. Obviously, I am a biased observer, but I have a hard time finding any personality flaws with this special woman. I am a HUGE fan!
21st birthday, as it is such a bittersweet milestone for all of us in the Spada Family.
On Sept. 11, 2001, the people of the United States, including me, were consumed with sadness and rage over the attacks on the World Trade Center. Our TVs and radios played uninterrupted reports of the horrors that occurred that day in New York City. That was 21 years ago. On Sept. 13, 2001, just 48 hours later, at Winchester hospital, my sadness and rage were transformed to sheer joy and hope for the future. What caused this juxtaposition of intense emotions? My beautiful daughter, Jessica Lani Spada, was born. My baby girl is now 21!!!!! I am a very happy person. I have a great life filled with love from an amazing family, wonderful friends, and super coworkers. But one of my biggest sources of joy comes from the honor and privilege of being “Dad” to Jessie. She literally makes my heart sing! I love everything about her! So, since this is my September newsletter, I thought I’d reflect on, and celebrate, Jessie’s
It seems like yesterday she was running around in my backyard
playing basketball, baseball, hockey, soccer, etc., with all the boys in the neighborhood. Jessie, much to the amazement of her older brother, Jake, was the best natural athlete in the family and the neighborhood. I will never forget coming home after her first communion, looking outside my window and seeing Jessie dribbling a basketball, then driving to the hoop in our driveway with her white dress and white heeled shoes still on. Now, she’s beginning her junior year at Boston University studying biomedical engineering, doing amazingly well and is such a pleasant and happy young woman. She is a joy to observe. Jessie is the youngest of our two kids. Her brother Jake is almost four years older. By the time Jessie was born, I was completely enjoying having a son,
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5 SKILLS MOTORCYCLISTS SHOULD PRACTICE To Reduce Their Risk of Accidents The weather hasn’t completely cooled off so there’s still plenty of time for motorcyclists to ride. It’s imperative that motorcyclists take every precaution to remain safe on the road. This includes refreshing yourself with some essential riding skills. Below you will find five skills that every motorcyclist should practice to reduce their risk of being involved in an accident. Head & Eyes: Look Where You Want To Go This is one of the most critical motorcycle safety skills, yet it is one that many riders rarely do. When riding, you should look where you want to go, not just with your eyes, but by turning your body and pointing your nose where you want the motorcycle to go. Riding this way will allow you to ride more smoothly and make sharper and smoother U-turns. Following Distance A safe following distance is keeping a minimum of 2 seconds of following distance between you and the vehicle in front of you. Keeping this distance helps you see what’s ahead of you on the road rather than only being able to react to other vehicles as you immediately encounter them. Slow-Speed Skills Slow-speed maneuvering practice helps motorcyclists develop clutch and throttle control, body control, and head and eye placement, all while reducing risk while being out on the street. Emergency Braking Emergency braking is a fundamental skill all riders need to know and master. Other people using the roads often will make poor and even stupid decisions that will impact your path of travel. To have the skill when you need it, you must practice it ahead of time. Cornering The Motorcycle Safety Foundation teaches a simple and effective technique for riders turning their bike into a corner. It’s the slow, look, press, roll technique. Slow when approaching a corner, look after you slow down, press on the hand grips to make your turn, and roll on the throttle to increase your speed or keep your maintenance speed through the corner. Practicing these five skills will help any motorcyclist stay safer on the road. If you’ve been injured in a motorcycle accident and don’t know what to do, give us a call.
PREVENTING P WHAT CAN WE DO? Pedestrian deaths increased by 30% in Massachusetts last year. It wasn’t just Massachusetts that saw an increase in accidents resulting in pedestrian deaths though. As a country, we experienced 7,485 pedestrian deaths in 2021, which is the most we have seen in 40 years. These numbers become even more eye-opening when you consider that there were fewer drivers on the road due to the pandemic. So why did we see such an increase in pedestrian deaths last year? One of the biggest risks is speed. In 2020, the percentage of deadly pedestrian accidents involving speeding rose to 8.6%, about a 1.5% increase from 2019. The faster someone is driving, the more likely a pedestrian could be killed in an accident. If a driver is traveling 23 mph and strikes a pedestrian, there is about a 10% chance that the pedestrian will die, but if they’re driving at 58 mph, that percentage increases to 90%.
Review of the Month
“Attorney Spada and his team were able to secure me a fair judgement in a recent car accident with injuries. The entire staff at Spada Law Group was exceptional to work with during the process. They spelled out everything and made themselves very accessible for all my questions. Robyn deserves a special shout out for her excellence and manner. Thank you, Spada Law Group!!” –Gregory F.
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PEDESTRIAN DEATHS
Another area of risk is intoxicated individuals behind the wheel as well as on the street. More than 30% of pedestrians 16 years old or older who were killed in a car crash had a BAC of 0.08 or higher. This reveals that walking under the influence of alcohol, not just driving, is hazardous. There are things we can do as drivers to lessen the risk of pedestrian deaths. This includes watching our speed and being aware of our surroundings. Additionally, the Governors Highway Safety Association released a report and explained their Safe System approach that aims to eliminate all road deaths. The five elements of the approach are safe people, safe roads, safe vehicles, safe speeds, and post-crash care. The goal of this approach is to create a transportation system that takes human mistakes into account and seeks to keep crash impacts at survivable levels when people are struck by cars. Each and every one of us plays a role in making the
INGREDIENTS • 1 tbsp unsalted butter • 2 cups shredded chicken • 1/2 cup Buffalo-style hot sauce • 1/2 tsp lemon juice • 1/4 cup sour cream • 4 oz cream cheese, softened and cut into pieces • 1/2 cup shredded white cheddar cheese • 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese • 1 1/2 tsp chopped chives • Celery, carrots, bread, or tortilla chips to dip DIRECTIONS 1. Preheat oven to 375 F. 2. Melt butter in an ovenproof skillet over medium heat. 3. Add chicken and hot sauce to skillet and simmer until sauce has thickened. 4. Turn off heat and stir in lemon juice, sour cream, and cream cheese. 5. Sprinkle cheddar cheese over top. 6. Bake for about 10 minutes or until the cheese has fully melted. 7. Remove from oven and garnish with blue cheese and chives. 8. Dip your favorite snack in and enjoy! Oven-Baked Buffalo Chicken Dip Football season is underway and many of us will be spending our weekends with friends and family tailgating. This Buffalo chicken dip recipe will impress everyone at your next tailgate!
roads safe for everyone. Pedestrian accidents are some of the most serious cases we see. If you were injured as a pedestrian in Massachusetts, you have rights and may be able to get compensation for your medical bills, time lost from work, pain and suffering, and more. Call or text us for a free consultation.
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Now that she’s 21, I quietly wonder how life will be as she starts to spread her wings and eventually leaves the nest. I pray she will stay close to Liz and me geographically, and I hope we can always make regular time to be together. I hope our special father/daughter bond will continue to grow. One of the things Jessie and I do together in the summer is get ice cream downtown in Newburyport where we live. As bad as eating ice cream three nights a week is for a guy my age, I just can’t bring myself to say no when she asks. I cherished every step on those nightly walks and every lick of the cone was sweeter because I was with her. I swear God removes the calories when ice cream is consumed in this manner (my waistline says otherwise however). So, to Jessie I say, thank you for 21 of the best years of my life, happy birthday, and I love you more than you’ll ever understand!
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617.889.5000 | SPADALAWGROUP.COM
111 Everett Ave., #1F Chelsea, MA 02150 INSIDE The Light of My Life Is Turning 21
5 Safety Skills Every Motorcyclist Should Practice
How We Can Help Prevent Pedestrian Deaths
Testimonial
Oven-Baked Buffalo Chicken Dip
The Insane Story of the 1904 Olympic Marathon
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It’s Unbelievably True! THE CRAZIEST OLYMPIC MARATHON OF 1904
with just 7 more miles to go. His fans on the sidelines provided him with a secret energy booster mix — a concoction containing strychnine (rat poison), brandy, and egg whites. By the time he crossed the finish line, he was hallucinating. And the fourth-place winner from Cuba wore dress pants and shoes for the entire race (because he lost his money gambling in New Orleans on his way to St. Louis and arrived after hitchhiking with nothing but the clothes on his back!).
Not to mention, support cars were churning up dust, leaving it behind for the runners to inhale, and they only had two water stations available before the halfway mark — and none in the second half! Even seasoned runners were not up to this crazy course! Three hours and 13 minutes after the marathon began, Fred Lorz, who had ridden a third of the course in a car, crossed the finish line. He was about to be adorned with a floral wreath when he confessed he had gotten so tired that he accepted a ride from one of the cars along the way, so he was disqualified.
In 1904, the year of America’s first Olympics, the men’s marathon was a bizarre spectacle to behold. In fact, it was likely the most jaw-dropping event ever in the history of the Olympic Games. On that hot, sweltering summer day in St. Louis, MO, only 14 of the 32 Olympic competitors crossed the finish line on what was deemed the most difficult course anyone was ever asked to undertake. Thomas Hicks, the American who actually came in first, received the slowest time of all of the Olympic marathons since 1896. But why was this one so tough? With temperatures of roughly 104 degrees F and 90% humidity, a rigorous 24.85-mile course with seven hills was a bit much for competitors.
This 1904 Olympic marathon went down in history as the most bizarre and
wildly entertaining race. Luckily, but surprisingly, nobody died!
Thomas Hicks, the true winner, was struggling
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