Great comments from this week
We get hundreds of comments here at AOA each week. Here are a few that made us think or laugh this week.
Thanks to everyone who posted a comment!
Shopping the farmers' markets
One of the best things about weekends in the Capital Region is shopping the farmers' markets.
This week -- the first corn of the season! Also sour cherries and other yummy fruit.
Here's more info on what to expect at local markets.
The people behind the Craigslist ads
Check out this online photo exhibit by Saratoga Springs-based Mark Andrew. (might be NSFW)
It's called "de-classified" -- and it features photos of people who have posted missed connections and other personals on Craigslist. It. Is. Fascinating.
From Andrew's artist's statement:
When I began the project, I anticipated that by the time I got to 50, I would have captured a fairly complete representation of what was to be had. But now that I've hit that milestone, it is very obvious that I've barely touched the surface. Perhaps when I've completed another 200 I'll be closer to what has become my internal true north for the project - an exhibit that represents the human condition.
Some of the pictures are suprising. Some are sweet. Some are sexy. Some are a bit disturbing.
Many of the people featured are local. Among them: the guy trying to sell his underwear, the woman looking to get her money back and the two girls who spotted a hot guy at Washington Tavern.
We're even pretty sure we highlighted this guy in one of our weekly "Craig and his wonderful list" posts.
[via]
(Thanks, Dan!)
photo: Mark Andrew
Stuff to do this weekend
Happy almost 4th of July.
Hey-- three day weekend! And things are looking up weather-wise. So if you haven't done it yet, it's time to make a plan.
Here's our weekend rundown of things that looked fun to us. Mix them, match them, trade them with your friends-- and by all means, if something good is missing, let us know.
Have a great weekend!
State comptroller says he'll stop senators' pay, officials say fatal Schenectady fire was arson, Troy's Cannon Building could be closed, WTEN going up for auction
State comptroller Tom DiNapoli says he will withhold state senators' pay because of the Senate standoff. There's some question as to whether DiNapoli can legally do that -- and a spokesman for Senate Democrats has already said they'll sue if the comptroller actually goes through with it. [NYT] [NYDN] [TU]
There didn't appear to be an significant progress toward a resolution of the state Senate mess yesterday, though the two sides did talk. David Paterson asked the public for ideas about how to fix the situation. [Daily Politics] [Capitol Tonight]
One group that's made OK in all this: lawyers. [Capitol Tonight]
With another "extraordinary" session planned for tomorrow, senators were making Fourth of July plans. Among them: conjugal visits, fireworks at the ESP, laundry and reading "computer mail." [NYDN] [NYT]
Schenectady County DA Robert Carney says the fire that killed a 10-year-old girl in Schenectady last month was intentionally set by woman who was upset with the girl's mother. The woman has been charged with murder and arson. Carney says he doesn't think the woman intended to kill the child. The girl's mother was not home at the time of the fire -- she's been charged with endangering the welfare of a child. Three firefighters were injured while trying to save the girl. [TU] [Daily Gazette] [Fox23] [CBS6]
The sun will come out
Hello
This just in: the Sun still exists.
We saw it with our own eyes -- briefly -- Thursday evening.
Foxes and fishers and bears, oh my!
A moose at the Saratoga Race Course in June.
Where are the wild things? Lately, it seems the answer is here. And by here, we mean our backyard. And your backyard.
Over the last month, there have been moose sightings in Saratoga and East Greenbush, a bear spotted in Troy and reports of rabid foxes. Every few weeks someone drops into AOA to post a comment about a fisher sighting. And we seem to be hearing about coyotes a lot more, too.
So, what's going on? We called up Roland Kays, the mammal curator at the New York State Museum, for some answers. He studies urban wildlife.
Roland says some of these sightings are probably just part of the cycle of young animals heading out on their own for the first time. But he says there's a bigger story here, too: wild animals are moving into our neighborhoods. And that's a good thing.
Where's the love?
From a letter by a Saratoga woman to the Post-Star: "I think they should consider wooing me a little bit, seduce me..." To whom is she referring? The Red Cross.
Hammering away at Home Depot
What better way to bond (hopefully not literally) with your kids on a Saturday morning than with a hammer, some nails and wood glue?
On the first Saturday of every month Home Depot offers free "Kids Workshops" where you can channel your inner carpenter and relive your shop class glory days.
Your kids will probably have fun, too.
Senate questions answered
If the state Senate mess has left you with more questions than answers, NY Mag has put together a cheat sheet about the slow motion political disaster.
Cheap tickets at Capital Rep
If you're looking for some "cheap fun" this 4th of July weekend, but fireworks and potentially soggy barbecues aren't your thing, here's something you might want to try. Local theaters have a little more trouble filling seats on big summer holidays.
Bad for them -- good for you.
Craig and his wonderful list
The good thing about Craigslist: it's a window into our fellow community members' wants, needs and aspirations. The bad thing about Craigslist: it's a window into our fellow community members' wants, needs and aspirations.
Good or bad, we'll let you decide...
That was a lot of rain, state Senate will meet on 4th, RPI disputes fire department accusations, Rudy Giuliani wants to motivate you, ALB says show up earlier
Yesterday's severe thunderstorms dropped more than three inches of rain in some places (the official NWS tally of 2.76 inches was a local record for July 1). Latham and Cohoes seemed to get the worst of it. There were reports of flooding all over the area. [TU] [NWS] [Fox23] [Twitter]
The state Senate held another of its "extraordinary" in-and-out sessions yesterday. The big issue of the day seemed to be the question of whether the Assembly would accept the bills "passed" by the Senate in Tuesday's V8-fueled session. It looks like the senators will be spending the Fourth of July at the Capitol -- David Paterson has ordered them into session every day through Monday. [TU] [Daily Politics]
Both Senate factions are expected to turn in per diem requests for the last two weeks today -- though whether they'll be paid is apparently up in the air. [NYDN]
Guilderland's supervisor says the town will be pulling its garbage business from the Albany landfill because of concerns about the facility's expansion into the Pine Bush. [TU]
RPI says that its public safety office called the Troy Fire Department just 32 seconds after the first report of a fire at one its chem labs this week -- not 12 minutes as the department has alleged. The TFD says RPI's delay created a more dangerous situation for firefighters. [Troy Record]
Salad by Derrida
Via Fun in Saratoga, could Sperry's have the Capital Region's weirdest Caesar salad?
June washed away
Hopefully the puddles will give way to blue skies
The seemingly non-stop rain in June really added up.
We got just a few drops more than five inches of rain last month, according to the National Weather Service. That's about 34 percent more than in an average June. And we got at least a trace of rain on 15 different days (normal is 11.6 days).
But get this: June 2008 was even rainier than this year's (by almost half an inch). And the rainiest June on record came in 2006 (8.74 inches).
Oh, and: the average high temp for this past June was 74.9 -- about 2.5 degrees lower than normal.
Feasting
One group that's probably hoping the state Senate mess drags on: downtown restaurants. Though we know for a fact that senators will venture a little farther out. [via @OneReputation]
Where to see fireworks this weekend
Ooooooooooo. Ahhhhhhhh.
With the 4th of July on a Saturday this year, there are fireworks displays all weekend long.
Provided they don't get washed out, here's where you can see them.
If you know of some that we didn't find, share with the group. Fireworks, like most things, are more fun with friends.
A challenger for Gillibrand
Reps for Carolyn Maloney say the congresswoman will "definitely" take on Kirsten Gillibrand next year in the Democratic primary for US Senate. [Daily Politics]
What's up in the Neighborhood
Among the topics in this most recent spin around the Capital Region's online neighborhood: goals, celebrities, birthdays, crushes, traps, hedgehogs, fizzy quotes, catfish, lunch trucks, coupons and cleavage.
Bye-bye BFF
Saratoga's Kaitlin Cassidy was eliminated in last night's episode of that Paris Hilton reality show. Earlier on AOA: Talking with Kaitlin Cassidy about Paris and Saratoga
Looking for more? Check out the last week's worth of posts or the archive.
And you can always try searching for it:
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