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Classic
inspiration, new design: Watkins with his work at the
Daily Grind.
Photo:
Alicia Solsman
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PARTY
LIKE IT’S 1662! It’s time for the annual Stockade Walkabout
and Waterfront Faire in Schenectady’s lovely, historic
Stockade neighborhood. This Saturday (Sept. 27) from 11 AM-5
PM, step back in time to Revolutionary-era Schenectady with
historic home tours, residents portraying (and costumed as)
historic characters, a reenactment with the 2nd Regiment Albany
County Militia, horse and buggy rides, and—OK, this is not
very 18th-century—an antique car show in the parking lot of
the 1st Presbyterian Church on Union Street. Tickets are $18
in advance, $25 day of the event and $7 for children; call
the Schenectady County Historical Society (32 Washington
Ave., Schenectady) for info at 374-0263. Better yet: The Walkabout
has an excellent Web site with all variety of info, photos
and videos, so visit stockadewalk about.com.
20TH-CENTURY INSPIRATION When artist Tommy Watkins
was approached to do a “beautification” of the inside entrance
to Lark Street coffee-shop mainstay the Daily Grind,
he looked back to the first decades of the last century and
the art nouveau movement: “Around the very earliest years
in the 1900s, an Italian artist named Leonetto Cappiello
was becoming very popular. . . . He did a lot of commercial
posters for some absinthe and chocolate companies,” Watkins
explained in an e-mail. You’ve probably seen examples of Cappiello’s
work—it’s distinctive. Watkins decided that the spirit of
that era fit the mood of the shop. Watkins is still working
on the project; why not stop by the Daily Grind and take a
look?
TEH CRISIS ALL AROUND US Read the business news lately? Ripping,
yes? I mean, blink and you’ll miss a good bank crash. To get
the “left” pov on this sort of thing, you might naturally
turn to the Left Business Observer. If you’re
the kind of person who reads the Left Business Observer,
then you may enjoy a lecture by its editor, Doug Henwood,
at the Sanctuary for Independent Media (3361 6th Ave.,
Troy) tomorrow (Friday, Sept. 26) at 7 PM. The subject is
Neoliberalism in Crisis. Admission is $10, $5 low income.
For more info, call 272-2390.
THEY ABSTAINED My crappy DVD player doesn’t work in the summer;
it loathes the heat and humidity. This is really annoying.
However, I can’t buy a new one at this time, so I endured
a few months without home DVD enjoyment. It worked a couple
of times this week with the advent of colder, dryer weather,
but crapped out again last night. (R.I.P.?) Anyway, the point
is that being without this device was really irritating. Imagine
what it would be like to go without, um, almost everything
mechanical or electronic for an entire year. On Wednesday
(Oct. 1), “No impact man” Colin Beavan will visit Schenectady
County Community College and explain what happened when
he, his wife and 2-year-old daughter decided to try to live
in their New York City abode without making any net
impact on the environment: “no trash, no carbon emissions,
no toxins in the water, no elevators, no subways, no products
in packaging, no plastics, no air conditioning, no TV and
no toilets.” And, to quote the Michigan philosopher Iggy Pop,
“no fun.” Beavan will explain how this all worked out for
them at 7 PM in the Carl B. Taylor Community Auditorium. (His
book, No Impact Man, comes out in 2009.) Admission
is free; just don’t forget to check your eco-guilt at the
door. For more info, call 381-1200.
—Shawn
Stone
sstone@metroland.net
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