October 2, 2013
GE plans layoffs in Schenectady, Nelligan found guilty in beating death of grandson, proposed Albany budget holds residential taxes steady
GE says it will lay off as many as 200 salaried workers at its Schenectady operation between now and the end of the year as part of a restructuring effort. The company says it is not cutting hourly manufacturing employees.[TU][Gazette]
A judge found 43-year0old Gloria Nelligan of Schenectady guilty in the beating death of her 8-year-old grandson. Nelligan now faces 25-years to life when she is sentenced next month. [TU][YNN]
Former RPI business coordinator Christine Dickson pleaded guilty to grand larceny on Tuesday, admitting to charging $350,000 in travel and cash advances on a college credit card over six years. [WNYT][Record]
The New York State customer center for New York State of Health -- the state "health exchange" set up as part of the federal Affordable Care Act -- saw heavy activity on first day Tuesday -- with more than 2,500 calls in the first two hours. The rush caused some glitches in the website for the exchange. And this morning the website is encouraging "users who are unable to log in to come back to the site later when these issues will be resolved." [WNYT] [Saratogian]
Employees at military sites throughout the Capital Region have been sent home without pay due to the federal government shutdown. [Saratogian]
Gazette articles continue be open-access because of a computer problem.
Drawing: A big bag of items from the Local Harvest Festival
Drawing's closed! Winner's been emailed!
Honest Weight's 5th Annual Local Harvest Festival is this Sunday in Albany's Washington Park. Dozens of local producers and food vendors will be set up in the park from noon to 4 pm, sampling and selling all kinds of good stuff. And AOA is giving away a bag of some of that good stuff.
One winner will get:
Honest Weight
A $25 Honest Weight gift card
Old Chatham Sheepherding Company
A wheel of Old Chatham Sheepherding Company's Kinderhook Creek cheese and two Camembert Squares
Two Bears Provisions
+ A loaf of Two Bears Provisions Pumpkin Bread
+ A jar of Two Bears Provisions Jalapeño Jelly
Our Daily Eats
A granola/muesli sample pack from Our Daily Eats:
+ Maple Crunch Granola
+ Lemon Coconut Granola
+ Cinnamon Cranberry Granola
+ Raspberry Green Tea Granola
+ Oh Honey Granola
+ Sweet Fruit and Nuts Muesli
+ Raspberry Muesli
3 Chicks and a P
A 3 pack sampler (one hummus, one salsa, one pesto) from 3 Chicks and a P
Hawthorne Valley Farm
From Hawthorne Valley Farm, Olive Bianca: a smooth, creamy, spreadable fresh cow's milk cheese with organic Kalamata olives
Bake For You
One dozen white chip and cranberry cookies from Bake For You
Oliva Provisions
One container of kale pesto from Oliva Provisions
Native Farm flowers
+A dried bouquet of multi colored, freshly dried flowers from Native Farm
To enter the drawing, please answer this question in the comments:
The Local Harvest Festival showcases all kinds of wonderful things that come from the Capital Region. What's your favorite local thing to share with people who are not from the Capital Region?
Maybe it's apples, maybe it's a band, maybe it's a view -- just something you point to when you're saying, this is one of the things I enjoy about where I live.
We'll draw one winner at random. The winner should bring a big bag to the Harvest Festival on Sunday, where they can collect their prizes in person, directly from the producers.
Important: All comments must be submitted by 10 am Thursday, October 3, 2013 to be entered in the drawing. You must answer the question to be part of the drawing. (Normal commenting guidelines apply.) One entry per person, please. You must enter a valid email address (that you check regularly) with your comment. The winner will be notified via email by noon on Thursday and must respond by 10 am on Friday.
What's up in the Neighborhood
Among the topics in this most recent spin around the Capital Region's online neighborhood: Ragnar, love and hate, suggestions, a Troy neighborhood, gorgeous days, the Adirondacks, monarchs, chicken parm, Round Lake, sandwiches, apples, Wegmans, an outgoing person, a waterwheel, faster than a walk, an hour's difference, the solar system.
Aurora
A coronal mass ejection -- basically a huge burp of particles from the sun -- hit the Earth's atmosphere overnight, exciting the aurora in the early morning hours -- enough that it was visible in parts of New York. Check out this beautiful photo by Amy Bedard from Plattsburgh. She tweeted it was "breathtaking." [via @AndyArthur]
TC Bakery opening a patisserie
The people behind TC Bakery -- whose macarons prompted a strong recommendation from Daniel B. -- are opening a patisserie in Saratoga Springs, on Henry Street.
The shop had a "pre-opening celebration" this Friday, and plans an official opening "within 2 weeks," according to its Facebook page. Here's a bit from the pre-opening by the Chopsticks Option duo.
Earlier on AOA: Eat This: Macarons from TC Bakery
Art list
Who knew: The state Office of General Services has a web page listing the art at the Empire State Plaza, along with photos of many of the pieces. (Helpful upgrade to the page might be: a map and Pinterest-like display of the photos.) The ESP has a notable collection of modern art -- including work by Calder, Pollock, Rothko, and many others -- thanks in large part to Nelson Rockefeller. And it's all just sort of out there -- which has resulted in some rather indelicate treatment over the years. [via @ShellyBreyer, who wrote a travel bit about the collection recently]
TOP2013: Round 1: Schenectady
The opening round of the 2013 Tournament of Pizza -- sponsored by The College of Saint Rose -- continues with the Schenectady bracket.
The new-to-the-tournament pizzerias in this Round 1 pool competition of sausage pizzas:
Visco's - Scotia
Giovanni's - Scotia
I Love NY Pizza of Schenectady - Schenectady
Pizza Buono - Niskayuna
The judges gathered at the Mop & Bucket Company studio...
... said KGB about Drawing: What's something that brought you joy this year?