Friday, July 30, 1999

She likes Florence but loves New York

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BY JOHN JOHNSTON
The Cincinnati Enquirer

        Dorothy said it in The Wizard of Oz. Alison Ingoglia knows it's true. There's no place like home.

Everyone has a story worth telling. At least, that's the theory. To test it, Tempo is throwing darts at the phone book. When a dart hits a name, a reporter dials the phone number and asks if someone in the home will be interviewed. Stories appear on Fridays.

        Sometimes the 38-year-old Florence resident wishes she could click her heels and be back on Long Island. Back in Carl Place, the Nassau County town where she was born and spent the first 28 years of her life.

        She'd stop at the Carl Place Diner for a burger and fries. She'd hang out at Jones Beach. She'd lick some Carvel ice cream. She'd devour a pizza from Angelo's. She'd revel in the Big Apple's non-stop hustle and bustle.

        She appreciates the place — and its people — so much more now, because she's so far away.

        It's not that she dislikes Florence, where she and her husband, Ken, moved 10 years ago. She finds plenty to do in Greater Cincinnati with her 4-year-old daughter, Sara. Shopping is fun here, and, she adds, “I have met some great people.”

        But a part of her is still on Long Island. That's been especially true in a year in which she lost two loved ones and experienced serious health problems of her own.

        She and Ken, who is also a New York native, followed his parents to Northern Kentucky.

        Ken's parents had come to the area for a wedding, liked what they saw, and decided to retire here. They moved from Long Island to Richwood in 1987.

        At the time, Ken and Alison were newlyweds. Ken wanted to move close to his parents. Alison hedged; her family was still on Long Island.

        “It was kind of like, "I'll try it on a trial basis,' ” she says. “And 10 years later,” she laughs, “I'm still trying it.”

        She remembers crying almost all the way to Kentucky.

        When the Ingoglias (pronounced in-GO-lee-uhs) arrived in the Commonwealth, people were cordial. But it took time for friendships to form. After Sara was born, Alison found it easier to meet other mothers.

        Always, she looked forward to visits from her parents, and to the trips her family took to Long Island every Christmas and summer.

        Then late last year, the Ingoglias hit a difficult stretch. In November, Alison became ill with what she thought was stomach flu. By mid-December, the pain was so bad she couldn't walk, and she was admitted to the hospital.

        Because of her illness, she didn't make it to Long Island for Christmas. On New Year's Eve, doctors removed an ovary with an infected cyst.

        About the same time, her father was diagnosed with cancer.

        And in January, Alison's maternal grandmother died. Alison, still recovering from surgery, missed the funeral.

        The final blow came when her dad died in April.

        “It's been a hell of a year,” says Alison, who works for a company that rents cell phones. “It's got to get better.”

        She says her husband and in-laws have been great. And yet, it's difficult being so far from her mother.

        “Right now ,I wish I could be there, because my mom's alone. I can't be there to comfort her the way I'd like to.”

        When Alison needed comforting, a neighbor, Heather Giles, provided it.

        “When I had my (health) problems, and when my dad passed away, she was an angel. She helped me through a lot. That was a major plus because she was there for me.”

        Which helps confirm what Alison believes: “People are people no matter where you go.”

        The pizza, well, that's a different story.

        “Sometimes, I'll admit, I probably do come across as rude and obnoxious,” Alison says, “just because I'll say, "The pizza (in Cincinnati) stinks.' ”

        She'll gladly offer advice about where to get the best pie on the planet. It's 700 miles away. Little place called Angelo's.

        “I'm very proud of where I came from,” Alison says. “I don't think there's anything wrong with that. I love New York.”

       

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