Fun in Saratoga

The Saratogian, Capital Play and questions

OK, I'm in a complaining sort of mood, so you've been warned.

What's up with the Saratogian?  Do they have any pride as a newspaper?  Do they get CNN over at 20 Lake Ave?  Wednesday's top headline in the Times Union, and virtually every other Daily in the nation, was "Gerald Ford dies at 93".  Wednesday's top headline in the Saratogian?  "Returns to the Trenches", and the article starts into an enthralling story about some guy returning a flying saucer toy (a Christmas present) to some store at the Wilton Mall.   What time do they go to print for the next day's edition, noon?  In Thursday's edition, the Saratogian desperately plays catch-up, and has two articles about Ford and a timeline of his life all over the front page.  Pathetic.

Speaking of pathetic, it appears that Capital Play Racing, the Australian Consortium that was disqualified for failure to meet an August deadline to post a bond.  Now the spokesman of the group claims that they were "disqualified on a technicality" and will take its case directly to the Legislature. 

Here's my view:  (1) These guys don't stand a chance unless (on the off chance) they join up with one of the three groups still in play (NYRA, Empire Racing or Excelsior Racing).  (2) They appear to be mostly outsiders (The Australian thing gave that away), which may have limited appeal in a perfect world, but this is New York so they need a dose of reality. (3) They didn't follow the rules, and calling it a "technicality" won't  negate that fact. (4) and finally, while some of their claimed ideas are good, they certainly aren't  exclusively available to them.  And they already are coming in as aloof or arrogant by stating that making racing a social event that appeals to younger demographics is the "Australian" model.  Uhhh, guys, as the AP article on this story notes, that sounds like "Saratoga" to us, so you might want to use the more geographically proximate example. 

As far as calling their missed deadline a technicality, I will post below the section of the Racing and Wagering Law, which I found on the latest entry on the "Left at the Gate" blog.

The recommendation, by statute, requires the committee to "report its findings to the legislature, the governor and the racing and wagering board with recommendations for such actions as it deems necessary to implement its determinations regarding the corporation or corporations, association or associations to which such grants of authority and/or franchises should be made or granted, the legislation which should be enacted governing such grants of authority or franchises, and the responsibilities related thereto which should be assigned to the racing and wagering board and to such other state agencies or officers as it deems appropriate." See, N.Y. Rac. Pari-Mut. Wag. & Breed. L. §208.f.

OK folks this one is going to be a long, long story and it obviously affects Saratoga tremendously so I'll be commenting from time to time.  Take care. 

Saratoga's best blog

    Yes, you've all been waiting to finally view Saratoga's best blog - one with vivid, colorful, and almost 3-D pictures.  One with every cutting edge feature imaginable in blogs.  A blog with a color scheme and layout that is so incredible makes you say "Wow" each and every time you log on.  Yes, you've been waiting for that perfect blog, but you don't have to wait any longer.  Merry Christmas.

    Unfortunately, that blog I just described isn't my blog.

    Fortunately, I'm going to link that blog I just described for you.  But not just yet.

    Yes, I'm addicted to way too many things related to blogs now - Technorati, Blogpulse, Bloglines, Feedster, Clusty, Blogwise, Pubsub, (it's down lately but I hear it's excellent).  The list goes on.  Well I was searching the deep recesses of technorati late on Christmas Eve (or was it the 23rd?  - it blurs) and I found the coolest blog based right here out of Saratoga. 

    Visually, this other blog is everything I wanted my blog to be, and more.  It blows me away it's done so well.  This guy Andrew Acomb has a gift for photograpy - wow you will see what I mean when you link his site.  Check out his posting and the pictures of the Oregon sand dunes - what an incredible picture!  This guy is such an artist he made a picture of a run down U-haul truck look cool.

Plus this site has utilized and/or linked every cutting edge blog and internet tool that I am just learning about.  Just as I am finally figuring out the vaguest notion about Skype, Digg, Del.icio.us, RSS, and flickr, this blog has them all utilized and linked and it looks like Andrew knows the ins and out of all of them. 

This blog is that good that it made me almost question myself two weeks into my blogging - I mumbled to myself "I can never be this good, and I'm embarrassed by my dull and amateurish pictures and layout compared to his artistic and professional presentation, almost to the point that I want to take my pictures down".  Of course, it's not my style to give up, but it did give me pause.  No, I will use Andrew's site as one that sets the bar for me and challenges me in a positive way. I will never get to his level of artistry - but he sets the standard for making a blog visually appealing and utilizing cutting edge internet services, and I will use that site as an example and a goal and if I just continually learn and improve that will be very positive.  In fact, my plan is to befriend Andrew - or annoy, harass, bribe - whatever it takes - to get him to take some time to teach me so I can learn some things about blogging and make my site half as cool - heck a tenth as cool, as his.

Oh, and our blogs do have something in common - both of us are fans of George Fletcher and Bourbon Renewal, so we both have entries about the band - of course Andrew's has great, and I do mean great, photos of George Fletcher and Pete Pashoukos. I emailed Andrew the other night when I found his awesome blog and he gave me some real encouraging words back so I appreciate that.  Plus, I finally get to use the Trackback feature on a blog - the Blogger.com blogs I have been reading don't have the Trackback feature, but Andrew's does, and I will be the first blogger to use that feature on his site (I think). So with me barely learning this stuff I feel pretty advanced being the first to use it on his site.

    OK so hopefully I'll be able to learn some pointers and concepts and can start making my blog a little more visually appealing.  Of course, some of my friends think I need an editor too - in other words they think my emails, letters, and presumably blog posts are too long.  Oh well it's my blog and I'm having fun.  Again have a Merry Christmas and don't forget to link that blog. 

Interesting article on (dis)utopia of Saratoga Springs blog

There is an interesing article posted on the (Dis)Utopia of Saratoga Springs website regarding smart growth and issues with suburbia and urban living.  After reading this article, which I somewhat disagreed with but still noticed the author had some valid points, I couldn't help but reflect on how fortunate I was to live in Saratoga Springs.  The author in the article basically argued that, in contrast to the new urbanism and smart growth philosophies, suburbia was actually pretty nice and living in urban areas was actually not so nice.  Regardless of how valid or invalid his points are, I can't help but notice that living in Saratoga is the best of both worlds.  Like some urban areas, in Saratoga you can walk from your home along the streets amongst friendly people to a vibrant business district with a nice balance of interesting local and national restaurants and stores.  Unlike those urban areas, Saratoga residents don't have to deal with typical city problems like smog, crime, crowds (except in August), and excessive noise. Like suburban areas, in Saratoga you can enjoy green grass, privacy, ample parking etc.  Unlike those suburban areas, the neighborhoods in Saratoga still have character and a real distinguished feel to it - there are no cookie cutter houses in Saratoga.  Of course, unlike anywhere else, Saratoga has the beautiful Saratoga racetrack, Congress Park, SPAC and the Saratoga Spa State Park, Yaddo, and of course the list goes on.  Saratoga residents should take a few minutes to read that article, then count your blessings.  We are so fortunate to live in such a wonderful place, and I'm very happy here.  I'll remember that on Christmas morning.

Local Music, the Saratogian, and Christmas wishes

Well I was too late to see George Fletcher play last night, but I did get there to at least say hello, buy his new CD, and help him pack up.  That's me, blogger and band roadie.  My parents should be proud.  George is playing I think somewhere in Greenfield on New Year's Eve, but I got an error message when I tried getting his calendar on his web site.  Occasional error messages notwithstanding, George has a good web site that's got some pizazz to it.  It is frustrating to me when good musicians don't pay attention to the business/PR side of things, but George does, and in addition to his web site he sends out an e-newsletter announcing his upcoming gigs.  He's a great musician who puts his heart and sole into his performances, so if you get a chance to go out and see him you should.

I left Baileys after talking to George and caught Kevin Maul and No Outlet at Gaffneys.  Other than the loud college age group there, it was really enjoyable.  Kevin Maul is a gem in the local music scene because he is the only person I've ever seen play what I believe is called the pedal steel guitar, and he plays it great. Apparently there are several type of steel guitars, and Kevin plays them all.  I really liked watching his band No Outlet - they do some rockabilly, blues, country, bluegrass, southern rock, 60s and 70s album rock, Bob Dylan, CCR - you get the idea - it's a diverse set and again they are just so good.  Unfortunately they don't have a web site (Kevin - see previous paragraph) but they do have an email list so I added my name so hopefully I can let you know next time the band is playing up this way. 

On a different note, I am not shy about pointing out flaws in the newspaper The Saratogian, so I should make an effort to point out the good things as well.  Friday's edition had a front page picture taken by staff photographer Ed Burke that is one of the most beautiful pictures I've seen in a long time. It's of the Saratoga Monument in Schuylerville (The one off to the right as you enter Schuylerville on RT 29 coming from Saratoga) with the sun setting in the background.  Great work Ed! I would link it but apparently the Saratogian does not have pictures on their web site.  If their photographers are doing such good work then maybe they should post pictures on the site. 

Well I'm off to Buffalo for the holiday.  I will likely post from there, but just in case I don't, have a Merry and safe Christmas. 

Thoughts on a cold and rainy Friday night

Yuck, yuck, yuck!  It is cold and wet out there!  Nonetheless, this rain sure beats the white stuff.  Sorry to those of you that want that nostalgic and romantic white Christmas, but I have to travel tomorrow and then come back Tuesday so I'm hoping for a green, brown, gray, blue - anything but a white - Christmas.  Ok I'll compromise, maybe a dusting. 

Anyway I have to get my Christmas cookie fed butt to the YMCA tonight and get a workout to get rid of the goodie guilt, so I can't spend my usual 90 minutes on this posting.  Lets hope.

Well yesterday's Saratogian had a front page article about Bonacio Construction's plan for building on the parking lot site on Broadway (spelled 'broaday" on the Saratogian site) between Lillian's and Professor Moriarty's.  It's in my nature to be suspicious of any big company with plans in a historic district, but I have to say that, at least based on the sketch, the design looks like it fits in downtown and I like it.  I disagree with the people that think it should remain a parking lot - the proposed building looks like this will add to Broadway's character and will add to the retail footage available, plus some offices and residential units.  It's good for downtown and it's good for the tax base. If you look at that building on the other side of the street where The Stadium bar and a few other businesses are - there's some bad 80's architecture that never should have been utilized.  I hope someday (soon) they get rid of that building and put a more architecturally appropriate building there. Anyone got a wrecking ball I can borrow on a Saturday?

Shifting gears, today's Saratogian had an article with Empire Racing Associates making some announcements about their proposal for NY's racing franchise.  Now the details of these announcements don't have much relevance to me, what has relevance is that it's obvious that Empire has their PR machine well oiled and kicking and they are trying to look good, or perhaps more than good - maybe they are trying to look exciting and inclusive in the public eye.  Perhaps they think they can get support if even the small investor can get involved - hence the going public announcement.  Empire seems to have made a conscious decision to put a face to their operation - namely Jeff Perlee.   Is there any reason why the Saratogian put two pictures of Perlee talking on the front page?  Wow, there's some exciting photography.

Expect some counter PR moves by the New York Racing Association (NYRA) and Excelsior Racing Associates - it's not that NYRA and Excelsior have been silent - it just seems that Empire is really ratcheting it up.  I see they hired PR consultant Mark Grimm, and they no doubt have hired at least one if not more slick PR/advertising firms out of NYC or perhaps Washington DC. I think I even saw some paid advertising pushing Empire.  My whole point here is that we're going to see more and more of this, and it could get ugly - there's a lot of money at stake and we know how money motivates. There's already hints of ugliness - in a not so veiled swipe at Empire's competition - Jeff Perlee, in talking about VLT's, stated "We can't have a franchise operator that would understand Saratoga and it's racing-only operations as an afterthought."  Huh?  Note to Jeff: make your soundbites shorter and easily discernable.  Note to Mark Grimm:  get your client to make his soundbites shorter and easily discernable.  Lets hope we don't see something like an election campaign analogous to the Gillibrand-Sweeney race. I doubt it will get that ugly, but all three will be sneaky, and I do expect this to at least be a very active PR competition trying to win the hearts and minds of the voters.  It may not be outwardly ugly, but expect a lot of anonymous sources throwing mud.  As I said in an earlier post - I don't have a preference (yet), I just want to enjoy the racing and enjoy Saratoga Springs and make sure what makes both entities great isn't lost in the process.  For what it's worth, I will be looking at all three of these with a discerning eye.

OK, I kept my promise and didn't stay on here forever.  Now I have to go to the Y and then I'll probably stop at Bailey's to see my old guitar instructor George Fletcher play tonight - he has two bands and I forget which one is playing but they're both good so...it will be good either way.

Thoughts on SPAC and Marcia White

It always frustrates me to deal with people who don't recognize leadership or the significance of leadership in our world.  Case in point, people who were originally against Marcia White, President of Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC).  She announced an operational surplus for SPAC during a board meeting Friday, which was reported about in an article in Today's Saratogian.

Remember the old SPAC - the one before Ms. White came aboard?  It was basically a carbon copy of how NYRA was at the time - inept, corrupt, greedy, a laughing stock etc.  When Marcia White was proposed as the new president, many people cried out about her lack of experience in that area etc.  Well the previous leadership team had plenty of experience, but they were pathetic, and Ms. White's detractors didn't seem to realize the difference.  It took Marcia White, oh, about 3 minutes to shut up her critics and show what an effective leader she is, and we've experienced nothing but positive things from SPAC since her arrival.  She is smart and tough, and yes I'm a fan.  As an aside, she has a drop dead gorgeous daughter that is a hollywood actress, but I can't remember her name, otherwise I'd provide a link to a relevant web page. 

SPAC is not without it's problems.  I went to the Tom Petty concert there last summer and I had concerns.  I felt like I was at a Dave Matthews concert instead, it was loaded with tons of kids who were drunk, probably high, etc.  People were throwing up - it just looked way oversold and I was wondering what would happen if fights broke out.  Luckily that never happened - but I really was concerned about the size of the crowd and whether their security plan could handle such a thing.  Also, Tom Petty had these beautiful, bright, and sharp humongous jumbotron type TV screens on stage which really showed great colors,  and the SPAC jumbo screens looked old and dull compared to Petty's top quality screens - the SPAC screens were so dull that what was accurately shown as bright red on Petty's screens were pink on the SPAC screens.  These are of course minor or at least managable issues that I am sure will be addressed by Ms. White and her team - heck they've only been in a short while and they have to address several years of ineptitude and essentially absent leadership. I'm quite confident SPAC will continue to improve and be a great asset to the region, and I hope they have some good concerts there this year. 

End of week thoughts

Well just a few points I want to make here. First of all, today's Saratogian has an article about the proposed rail line from Saratoga Springs to North Creek.  I couldn't find the article in the online edition of the Saratogian, so I included a more comprehensive article from the Times Union.  I think this is great, and it should give the Saratoga businesses a boost during the slower winter months. As a resident here, I like the idea of more hustle-bustle during the ski season - I hate to see such a drop off after track season and maybe this rail line will help.  One problem: the train station is so far out of the loop on the west side of the city - it would be nice to see the train station walking distance to downtown but...maybe they'll set up a shuttle bus or something.  Lets hope they start working on that rail line sooner rather than later.  If you want a more detailed (and certainly more informed) blog entry on rail travel in the Capital District, check out I-Saratoga's post about the subject.)

Switching gears, the online edition of the Saratogian does have the second article about NYRA's latest desperate efforts to retain the power and money that comes with the state's horse racing franchise.  Long story short, NYRA is suing the state claiming that NYRA owns the 3 tracks (Saratoga, Belmont, and Aqueduct) and therefore the state can not give the franchise to another entity.  I don't plan on getting too deep into this subject - I am sure others know more and are reporting more - so I won't duplicate their efforts here.  What I will do is...well give my simplified view of it all.  NYRA has had the franchise to run these tracks since Dwight Eisenhower's first presidential term, and with what happened earlier this decade, they blew it.  Basically, their story in recent years has been one of ineptitude, corruption, bankruptcy and everything else that screams the fact that they should be replaced.  The problem is, the other two frontrunning entities (Empire and Excelsior) trying to win the racing franchise seem to have dollar signs in their eyes everytime they talk about the issue.  Again this is my view.  The other two are both promising the world (millions for backstretch improvements, facilities to improve New York's breeding etc.) to get this franchise, and considering how valuable the prize is, they are ready to really get down and dirty to win this.  The problem is - NYRA is awful (I should note that they did shake the place up and get some honest people in there - but maybe too little too late), but the other two wannabees seem like they would like to open Saratoga racetrack up 51 weeks out of the year and squeeze every last dime out of the place.  They seem willing to say whatever it takes to win.  I don't have a horse in this race (I couldn't resist) because I'm just a guy that likes to take family and friends to the track and enjoy myself.  Whoever can deliver that the best is who I want.  What do you do - go with the devil you know, or take a chance on one of these new businesses which show promise, but also come with their own agenda (read desperate need for profits)?  I honestly don't know.  Let me know what you think.  This saga will continue and I will continue writing on it - but again in a simplified manner. 

Finally, with the recent Taco Bell E. coli scare fresh in our minds - do you know where your produce is coming from?  Well I strongly suggest going to the Saturday morning Farmer's market so you can talk directly to the grower and ask him important questions about the produce - like what if any chemicals were used on it etc.  (You won't get that info from Price Chopper).  The Farmer's market is from 9am -1pm every Saturday at the Salvation Army building on Woodlawn Ave b/t Lake and Division Streets.   In the summer it's at High Rock Park.  Great produce but much more - wine, honey, maple syrup etc. etc.  Oh and homemade Peanut Butter!  Go, go, go -it's fun, social, and a little different! OK it's late folks I'm going to bed.

Saratoga photos

Ugggh! You know how it is when you write a long email and you try to send it and the computer jams and it's lost?  Well that just happened to me as I spent the better part of a half hour trying to post the below info (with pictures) and it just disappeared on me.   This Typepad.com software is good in some ways, totally user unfriendly in others.  Because of some quirks I can't type stuff on Word first and then copy and paste - very annoying at times - even when working correctly. 

Ok so anyway I wanted to get some pictures up here to both learn how to do it and jazz up the site a bit.  I got back to Saratoga at 9PM and drove around town looking for anything to photograph just to have something to post.  Quality blogging at it's best - hey bear with me I'm just trying to do and learn.  Well besides losing the work, I also previously did a lot of work that was probably unnecessary.  Oh well that's why I am doing it - to learn.  I just wish I wasn't learning at midnight.

OK this picture is of the Christmas trees and...I don't know...gingerbread house (?) in front of Putnam Market.  What pathetic state was your life in before I started this blog?  What pathetic state is it in now as you read my blog?  Thank you to the guy in the bronze Chevy Cavalier who backed up his car for me so I could shoot the picture - of course a little further would have helped but I appreciate the kindness.

Here's the inside of the house. 

The house as seen from the sidewalk.

Here is the Christmas tree at the back of Congress Park as seen from the intersection of Union Avenue and Circular Street.  I would like to apologize to any motorists that had to avoid me as they drove through that intersection about 9:10pm Monday night.  Yea, that was me in the dark suit darting in and out of traffic trying to get the right angle for the photo. 

The folks at the Union Gables Bed and Breakfast do a great job of making that place, and their apartment building across the street, looking really nice.  They did a nice job on their Christmas lights, and I hope the picture turns out OK here.  If not take a drive by and check it out.  They are really fantastic people, those owners, whoever they are.  And I'm not saying that just because I want to use their tennis courts next summer.  Wonderful people, yes sir. 

OK it's late and I am going to bed.  I hope I don't lose this posting again and I hope you enjoy these pictures. Again, this is really day two for me on this blog so I intend to improve as I go along here, and if I don't improve, well it's not costing you a dime so...deal with it. 

Interesting T-U articles

        Well I certainly do not intend to make it a habit to post three entries in the same day too often because (1) it will burn me out and (2) it will burn you out.  Nonetheless I just read the Albany Times Union and I saw two things of note in there and I wanted to share them with you. Hey give me a break it's my first day.

        The first thing that caught my eye in Sunday's edition was an article updating readers on repair work of Canfield Casino.  There was nothing earth shattering in the article, and it just basically says they did a lot of work but it's an old building so it will constantly need maintenance and repairs.  The Canfield Casino is a beautiful building and it is one of the many unique assets in Saratoga, so I thought the article may be of interest. 

        The second article I wanted to mention was an article on company pensions and the fact that so many companies are ending their defined benefit pensions and replacing them with defined contribution pensions like 401-K's.  The article mentioned that the Journal Register Co., owner of The Saratogian and the Troy Record, just recently made that move.  I have my frustrations with the Saratogian, but I felt bad for the employees and I want the best for them because they live and work in our community and I'm sure some of you know people that work there. 

        I needed to get out of the house tonight so I read the T-U at Uncommon Grounds.  It was Sunday night about 8:30 and the place had the feel of a Skidmore cafeteria - lots of college kids and it was loud.  It wasn't a bad thing, in fact part of the reason I stepped out was b/c I spent all day working on this blog, and other than eating breakfast at Beverly's with a friend I really didn't have any human interaction or fresh air all day, so it was sort of good if not a bit surprising to see it so lively.  The walk back to my place on Union Avenue usually takes 10 minutes, but with the cold I had a jump in my step and definitely shaved a few minutes off that time.  Something tells me I will beat tonight's time record come January and February when it's even colder. 

Swing dancing in Saratoga

This coming Saturday December 16th from 7:30-11:30PM the Saratoga Savoy dance studio will be hosting their monthly Diamond Dance at the Saratoga Music Hall on Broadway next to city hall.  For you non-dancers, they do give about a half hour swing dance lesson before the actual dance - arrive at 7:30 for the lesson and 8pm for the dance.  I would say you could probably get by without a partner because you may find a dance lesson partner there, but if you show up with a partner it will probably be easier for you.  Easier, but not impossible, so don't let lack of a partner stop you from coming and the lessons are usually pretty basic so don't be intimidated.

Dancing to live music is fun and the Diamond Dance is the best in Saratoga.  Some of these dances are better than others based on the band playing, but this month's dance has The Lustre Kings playing and they play great rockabilly music, so I strongly suggest going this month.  For those of you who may not know what rockabilly music is think early rock and roll like Elvis or Carl Perkins  playing "Blue Suede Shoes", or the band The Stray Cats singing "Rock this Town".  Great stuff.  Just for fun, and to get you excited about swing dancing, I also included another Youtube.com link here showing some dancers really doing showing their stuff in an old movie while Bill Haley and the Comets play "Rip it Up".

For those of you who may be interested in learning to swing dance -  it's a ton of fun and there is a beginner's swing dance lesson every Thursday at the Fuze Box down on Central near Lark Street in Albany at 8:30pm every Thursday.  They have the lesson from 8:30-9:30pm with a DJ playing dance tunes til past midnight.  You definitely don't need a partner for these lessons; in fact they make sure everyone dances with everyone during the lesson so you experience different types of dancers.  therefore even if you bring a partner you will likely be dancing with him/her just briefly and spending most of the lesson dancing with others.  To find out about other swing and latin dance events in the Capital district, including Saratoga, check out my friend Barry's web site at www.city-of-troy.com.