Well life, fatherhood, and a huge amount of back pain has gotten in the way of my blogging. But that's OK, because I'm very happy being a Dad! In the meantime, here's a few thoughts - most of which I've been meaning to write about for a few weeks now:
- It seems like quality sports writers from The Saratogian tend to leave our hometown daily soon enough. That was the case with Nicole Russo, and is now the same thing with Andrew Champagne. He not only put out good articles with commentary, but a lot of them. His hard work paid off, and he is moving on to a Horse Racing TV network out in California. Good luck Andrew!
- Sometime when I wasn't looking, The movie "Ass Backwards", which was partly filmed in Saratoga Springs and Albany, was released direct to video in September. It reportedly will be released in theaters on November 8th. If the facts that (1) the movie was filmed back in 2010, (2) had major financial difficulties and was shelved for a while along the way, and (3) went to video on demand before being released in theaters doesn't make you as uninspired as I am on this movie's prospects, perhaps the trailer below will seal the deal for you. I always want anything associated with Saratoga to succeed, but this flick seems like a dog to me. We'll know soon enough. In the meantime, you can watch the film on demand via Amazon.com.
- Speaking of movies filmed in Saratoga, how is it that I never heard of the movie "Aftermath" being filmed here in the Spa City? Perhaps because it was filmed in 2006 and apparently has been mothballed until early this year, when it looks like it was shown at the Cinequest Film Festival. The thriller, starring Anthony Michael Hall and Tony Danza, was also the last film for the late actor Chris Penn. Penn died in 2006, which is a clear indicator of how long this film has been languishing. That's a heck of a delay, much worse than Ass Backwards. Netflix lists the movie, but has a notation "DVD availability date unkown". I guess there were scenes filmed at Clancy's Tavern on Caroline Street, but I don't know much else about the filming locations. Please comment if you can add some knowledge on this. You can watch the Trailer below:
- And continuing with movies, I am nothing less than thrilled about the new downtown theater. Margarita and I are looking forward to walking downtown for some nice entertainment - and to have a clue what the Oscar-nominated movies are all about during the awards ceremony. Of course, with a newborn baby in the house, I don't know how often we will get out, but it's exciting to know the movie theater is here.
- Shifting gears, it seems like the groundwork is being laid to develop the St. John Neumann residence next to St. Clements Church on Lake Avenue. The parcel is apparently going to be split up so the vacant residence building is on its own parcel. What else could that mean other than an effort to sell it? It's a picturesque site with many large beautiful trees giving nice shade and serenity to that area. I hope any development there keeps those trees, the beauty of the building, and the residential nature of that neighborhood. I feel another condo development coming on.
- If you haven't been to Congress Plaza lately, the portion of the building slated for demolition is completely gone. It really looks a lot different there.
- Speaking of Congress Plaza, I really appreciate the CVS plaza being open 24 hours.
- So when's Papa Johns opening? Inquiring (and hungry) minds want to know.
- I wonder how Jacobs and Anthony's is doing? I was walking by there the other day and I want to go there in theory, but when I'm in the mood to go out to dinner it just doesn't excite me. I was there for dinner once when it first opened and it was just OK. The dining room is comfortable, but to me there are just better choices in that price point.
- I don't like the new Saratogian's print edition; the appearance has the appeal of USA Today. It looks too much like the Times Union as well. The extra-early deadline, imposed because the T-U is now printing the paper, is only going to make our hometown paper that much less relevant. On the plus side, the new web site looked sharp and clean at my first glance.
- Has Breuggers reopened yet? Will it ever reopen?
- Continuing on restaurants, I wonder which ones will close this winter. There are usually at least a few that don't make it through the winter.
- I've been to Cookies & Milk a couple of times. Really cool. Go there.
- NYRA finally has what I call the floating horse numbers on the bottom of the screen for simulcasts. You know, those computer generated colored and numbered bubbles that show you where your horse is on the track. Other tracks have had them for years, but now NYRA tracks finally have them. I can sleep well now.
OK folks, that's it for now. Enjoy the rest of the week.
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