Blog Master G

Not that you would’ve guessed, but I love snow. How did my Valentine wife know what to get me? Jen got me 2 feet of snow (and still coming down!) in our first real snow storm this winter. I love it. There’s nothing like waking up to a blanket of white fluffy goodness.

We flounced around the yard in the snow this morning with the dogs — helping Stella celebrate her 8th birthday today!

How cool is this word? Katzenjammer.

It’s finally starting to feel like winter in Saratoga Springs — at least according to the treemometer, if not according to the snow depth on the ground (though there finally is a bit).

Know how cold it is here this morning? (And Yahoo Weather says it’s actually -6, so the treemometer must have given up.)

Cold enough to freeze the outside of our storm windows:

New York Times: What $1.2 Trillion Can Buy:

The way to come to grips with $1.2 trillion is to forget about the number itself and think instead about what you could buy with the money. When you do that, a trillion stops sounding anything like millions or billions.

For starters, $1.2 trillion would pay for an unprecedented public health campaign — a doubling of cancer research funding, treatment for every American whose diabetes or heart disease is now going unmanaged and a global immunization campaign to save millions of children’s lives.

Combined, the cost of running those programs for a decade wouldn’t use up even half our money pot. So we could then turn to poverty and education, starting with universal preschool for every 3- and 4-year-old child across the country. The city of New Orleans could also receive a huge increase in reconstruction funds.

The final big chunk of the money could go to national security. The recommendations of the 9/11 Commission that have not been put in place — better baggage and cargo screening, stronger measures against nuclear proliferation — could be enacted. Financing for the war in Afghanistan could be increased to beat back the Taliban’s recent gains, and a peacekeeping force could put a stop to the genocide in Darfur.

All that would be one way to spend $1.2 trillion. Here would be another:

The war in Iraq.

More…

Need I say more?

For once, we didn’t lose power in a winter storm. Many of our friends, did, though, so our place was the gathering spot last night for dinner and part two of the season premier of 24.

Photos from yesterday and this morning:

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Until I saw him live last month, Garrison Keillor’s voice always bugged me, especially on the Writer’s Almanac. I also didn’t expect to enjoy A Prairie Home Companion as much as I did. But it was really, really funny, and a wonderful, localized experience.

We went for the weekend both to see the show and to visit Johnny, a Buffalo native who said that either someone on Keillor’s staff must’ve been from Buffalo or really done their homework since everything was so accurate — right down to how neighbors always wave each other through at stop signs, something we had experienced first-hand that same morning.

It was really interesting to watch a live radio show unfold before my eyes. Keillor and his staff executed with such mastery they had obviously been doing the show for years. Keillor was very much aware of the live audience, but also in tune to the thousands (millions?) of live listeners across the country and around the world.

The show was funny and smart and I’d definitely see it again.

Show aside, the rest of the weekend with Johnny was tons of fun. From going across the border into Canada to the casino to hitting my first country western bar to delicious breakfast, we had an awesome time, and only wish Buffalo weren’t so far so that we could hang out with Johnny more often.

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It’s really cool to live in a town where the main street is shut down for an annual celebration of its Victorian roots. There are street performers, Santas, and even reindeer (however sad it is to see actual reindeer cooped up on a sidewalk). For us, it was an excuse to party like rock stars at 9 Maple.

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OK, so I’m only a bit over a month behind in blogging now, but it’s a holiday and it’s an ice storm outside, so what better way to spend the day than getting caught up on my two blog backlog lists (and doing some work, which I can’t resist).

Saratoga Springs officially became a town in 1819, so in the last week of November every year, local restaurants honor this (and try to drum up new business) by offering $18.19 specials as part of Restaurant Week.

Jen and I hit Mouzon House, which was a beautiful atmosphere but just OK food (too similar to One Caroline, which shares an owner).

The Steeplechasers and I hit Springwater Bistro later in the week, which had delicious food but took a while since they seemed to be understaffed. I would likely return to Springwater, but probably not to Mouzon House any time soon.

Photos from the Springwater night:

On January 5 I finally got fed up with the quality of the Saratogian (or lack thereof). I emailed the below letter that day, and, to date, have not seen it published. Can they not even take the criticism? I just resent it to them to make sure they got it. Either way, here it is:

Dear Editor,

I subscribe to and read The Saratogian primarily for its original and local content. Not a day goes by when I don’t cringe past a distracting typo or editorial blunder, each of which calls into question your editorial standards and degrades the quality of your product. But I press on. I live in and love Saratoga Springs, so I like to know what’s happening in my community.

Even though you don’t take the time to write an original editorial every day, could you please at least copy edit those you pluck from other sources? I counted four missing apostrophes from the January 5 editorial from The Poughkeepsie Journal (“Execution of Saddam a welcome development”). Additionally, the first sentence of the second paragraph declares that “Saddam was put to death today,” even though he was hanged on December 30, 2006.

There’s no copy editor listed in your masthead. Perhaps you should consider hiring one. A little copy editing goes a long way in allowing you to take pride in the quality of content you publish, and could help you earn some more respect from your readers.

Sincerely,

Gabe A_nderson
Saratoga Springs

I know I’m not the only one in town (or in the blogosphere) who feels this way.

The winter that wasn’t finally cooled off this week as temperatures dropped to around 20 degrees. It’s still a little dark outside at 7:30am right now, but it’s light enough to see some good-sized snow flakes falling gently from the sky. Is this the winter storm I’ve been hoping and waiting for? Regardless, it’s beautiful and brings a smile to my face.

Without snow and ice on the ground, I’ve been doing a lot of rollerblading lately — 4 days on, 2 days off, then the past 2 days on. First 4 days I went around the ‘hood with the dogs, followed by a couple laps at the track of the local rec field. Last 2 days I took the dogs and then 4 laps at the track (about a mile at track alone). That, combined with daily push-ups and crunches, and I’m feeling really good and full of energy lately.

And with the snow, maybe I’ll even be able to ski soon.