Fun in Saratoga

Tedisco-Murphy Congressional race

This Tuesday voters in New York's Twentieth Congressional District will vote in a special election to fill the empty seat vacated when Kirsten Gillibrand was appointed U.S. Senator. The 20th district is a large gerrymandered district stretching from Lake Placid all the way south to Dutchess County then west to the Oneonta area. It's really a ridiculously designed district, which includes Saratoga Springs, originally gerrymandered to keep John Sweeney or any other Republican in power.  Well we all know how that plan went. 

Anyway I have received no less than six flyers in the mail in the past week or so attacking Scott Murphy.  I generally do not write much about politics on here, but this race caught my attention. The flyers weren't directly from the Tedisco campaign, but obviously part of a concerted effort from the Republicans on his behalf.  I thought the flyers' negativity and repetitiveness were ridiculous and I suspected they could backfire, and if one is to believe the most recent Siena poll, that may be the case.  It's also worth mentioning that the Albany Times Union endorsed Murphy in today's edition. I was going to write more about this race and the effect of all of this negativity, but a much more eloquent writer than I, Fred LeBrun of the Times Union, did just that.  So I will simply link his column here.

Saratoga Arts Fest Early bird ticket deadline approaching

I have lived in Saratoga Springs for nearly 3 years and I have never been able to make it to the Saratoga Arts Fest.  Hopefully this year I will get there - it will be held from June 11-14.  The Arts Fest web site describes the event as:

SaratogaArtsFest 2009 is a three-day celebration of the arts from June 11-14, featuring music, dance, visual art, film, theatre, and literary art. Take part in this dynamic showcase of the arts, now in its third year.

The early bird ticket deadline, which saves you $5.00 off an adult or Senior admission, is this Tuesday March 31st.  You can buy the tickets on line here.  See you in June.

 

Universal Preservation Hall fundraiser recap

Well it was not my intention to disappear off of here for 12 days, but I guess life happens.  I can think of no better way to restart the blog posts than to talk about the fundraiser I attended along with my girlfriend and about 175 other people last night at Universal Preservation Hall.

The event, as previously reported on here, was called "Rust Rocks the Hall", and included the Rust Brothers Band, a fun and talented group that kept the crowd dancing the whole night.  It was really a great party and I enjoyed meeting many of the guests and of course being a small part of the fundraising that will be used to continue repairs and renovations to that beautiful and historic building on Washington Street.  It was a fun and successful night for a great cause!

Next up on the UPH schedule is an a cappela concert on April 19th.  The Hall's web site has this information about the concert:

This event will feature performances by many local a cappella groups, such as the Bandersnatchers, Drastic Measures, Sonneteers and Accents. The groups will be performing at the first of a series of concerts being held at Universal Preservation Hall. A 50/50 raffle will be held with some excellent prizes! $10 tickets are available at the door (children 10 and under FREE) and all contributions will go towards the restoration and operation of UPH. Contact Mary Beth McGarrahan at the UPH office for reservations.

The Hall will also hold a raffle at Siro's on Kentucky Derby Day, which is May 2nd.  I hope to be able to attend both events and continue to be a part of the Hall's future. 

Saratoga Table and Chair 7 piece set

Thanks to the Internet you can find out the multitude of products out there utilizing the name "Saratoga".  I often see the name Saratoga listed in the name of a product - usually in an internet ad for a Piper Saratoga airplane for sale. 

Did you know there was once a model of car called the Chrysler Saratoga?

Well, anyway, the impetus for this post was that I saw a dining room set called the "Saratoga" set for sale on the net.  No word on whether Saratoga Springs residents get a discount. 

Irish Times on Phila to delay opening to June 1st

UPDATE JUNE 1ST, 2009 - The Irish Times will not be opening on June 1st. Click here for more information.

The Times Union's Table Hopping blog is reporting that the planned Irish Times Restaurant, in the old O’Callaghan’s Fine Food & Spirit/Original Saratoga Springs Brew Pub building on Phila just above the parking garage will not be opening on St. Patrick's day as originally planned. It is now scheduled for a June 1st debut. 

Warmth and sunshine in the Spa City

OK, Saratogians are a hearty folk, and our favorite city is certainly active year-round.  With that being said, the first warm weekend after a long winter made Saratoga Springs a virtual beehive of activity, which is very different from what we saw during our sometimes arctic January and February.  It wasn't just Broadway and its offshoots that were bustling - the neighborhood streets had throngs of people out enjoying the great weather as well.  Keep in mind these pictures below were taken at 5 in the afternoon - it was much busier earlier in the day. 

Virtually every street within the city limits had joggers, walkers, families, people walking to shopping destinations, and dogs.  And more dogs.  It seemed like there were as many dogs as people, and as many children as adults.  And I never saw more empty child carriages.  Why so many empty carriages?  With the nice weather and clear sidewalks, the little ones could finally get out and walk on their own, and from the smiles and content looks it seems like they've been waiting since November for this weekend.  Spring is almost here, and it's now light outside at 7pm.  Could track season be that far off?

Natural progression: Long John Silvers, Chianti, Mexican eatery

The Post Star Saratoga Snippets blog is reporting that the Chianti building will become a Mexican restaurant. 

The below two posts are from the Times Union's Table Hopping blog:

Vapor hosting cystic fibrosis benefit

Bread Basket offering St. Patrick's Day Cupcakes

Broadway "Kettle Korn"

I was buying some kettle corn from the folks that sell it in the parking lot of the Downtowner Motel  recently. They were kind enough to let me take a few pictures so I posted them on here. 

It's kind of a neat thing to buy that fresh hot kettle corn while walking down broadway on a cold winter day - just another neat thing that's uniquely Saratoga.

Styx, REO Speedwagon, .38 Special, Jackson Browne and the Batmobile in Saratoga

The 80's party (OK 70's too) will continue this summer at SPAC.  The Post Star's Saratoga Snippets blog picked up where I left off with the early announcements of bands at SPAC this summer, reporting that Styx, REO Speedwagon, and .38 special will be appearing there in one show on July 4th, and Jackson Browne will be there on July 24th. 

ADDED NOTE 5/12/09:  THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION ON THE BATMOBILE WAS BASED ON INFORMATION I PREVIOUSLY OBTAINED FROM THE SARATOGA SNIPPETS BLOG, HOWEVER I CAN NOT CORROBORATE THIS INFORMATION FROM ANY OTHER SOURCE, INCLUDING THE AUTO MUSEUM WEB SITE, SO I DO NOT KNOW IF IT IS ACCURATE.

Jumping back to the 60s, that same blog is reporting that the original Batmobile will be at the Saratoga Auto Museum on May 16th and 17th.  And Mr. Dimopoulos you get extra points for the fun title of that post - "Crash! Bang! Boff! Zowie!"  Points also to the person who posted the "ode to the 60s Batmobile" on Youtube which I embedded below - with a brief appearance by a certain villain (hint: the actor was also in the first few Rocky movies.  Bet you can't guess which one it is)!  Click here for the Wikipedia entry on the Batmobile.  Very cool!

All Over Albany

The folks over at the All Over Albany blog have been doing a great job reporting and commmenting on things in the Capital Region and I appreciate their efforts (not to mention their frequent linking of this blog).  They seem to be reporting on a lot of items including some here in the Spa City.  Check that blog out if you get a minute.