What makes this Pizza place so special? The friendships gained there. Yes, I would say the pizza is great, it is a sourdough crust with a nice spicy sauce. The ingredients they offered were many and good quality, topped generously, but that was what made the customers enjoy Free Wheeler Pizza. However some of the best times of my life can be found in the 13 years I worked there. Some of my most famous lines that I quote come from somebody who worked there. I still hold some dear friendships that were gained. The saddest part for me though, is the loss for my good friend Herb Doom who has put everything he could find in his life into Free Wheeler Pizza for over 20 years (again sorry to age you Herb.) He has fought tooth and nail for those years to keep a legacy alive and serve to employ people who have character and life in them yet find they don't want to fit into the mainstream of life. Free Wheeler has employed many types of people, college students, lifetime students, budding musicians, and those who either got fed up with corporate crap, or wished to completely avoid corporate crap. Thank you Herb Doom for your years of service to Free Wheeler Pizza and for trying your hardest to keep such a legacy alive.
5 comments:
No problem on the aging, but holy crap, I can't beleive it's closed. For real. I got your message when I was in the middle of a class and spaced it until I got on here. I'm struck. In awe. How's Herb Doom doing? Ziggy and the rest? Have you talked to them? Wow. This is a total mind bender.
I'm so sorry to hear this. I wish there were some way to buttress locally owned businesses against the ravages of time. But this is an all too common thing these days, and it seems the world has less and less room for regular folks to run businesses that connect, at a fundamental level, with their communities.
Sorry, Pizza Hut, but you'll never be able to do for us what places like Free Wheeler have.
Sigh.
I can't believe it! I kept trying to reach them tonight and the phone just rang and rang. I'm bummed. They owe me a free pizza.....
Max,
I don't know how the rest are doing, but Herb still seems very sullen. I keep thinking what is he going to do know, I'm am sure he ate slept and constantly thought Free Wheeler and is left empty now. My thoughts are with him during these trials.
Carmi,
This is the turn that our current economy has for us. I have seen several small businesses close lately, my friend fought the economy on a daily basis and even accepted a partner to buy two more years of life for them. He was not only proud of the pizza they made, but also of the people he employed, they were his friends and he would be willing to go the extra mile for them when necessary.
Anonymous,
I feel your pain, this weekend I have thought hard about how I will not be enjoying the taste of the Oktoberfest pizza, the famous "garlic rolls", or the fantastic Ziggie Stix. You will have to forgo that free pizza though.
Thanks for the kind words, everyone. There is actually some potential upside. For one thing, the last week or so of virtual unemployment has made me aware of just how much I really liked working there even after a number of years. The second thing is, I have the rights to use equipment, name, recipes, etc in the future. Third is I have lots of support (witness herein) with lots of creative types who might have some clever methods of renewing the business. I will keep you all posted on developments as they, well, develop.
Thank you all,
Herb Doom
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