Notes from around town

 To follow up on what was reported on Thursday, the graffiti on the Hedley Building, along with the neighboring Marriott Courtyard hotel, has been removed, although the latter still has a visible sign of the damage, which was directed at Troy City Council President Sue Steele, as if she, in the eyes of the vandals, must take some responsibility for the Flock camera mess.

The Courtyard may need more paint.

Key Bank has opened a new branch in Troy, this time at Hudson Valley Plaza on Vandenberg Avenue, located next door to Wendy's. I'd say that's a win-win for both.

If you're on the road this weekend, be aware of detours due to the annual Memorial Day parades taking place, depending on where you live, between today & Monday. Troy's lone remaining parade steps off in Lansingburgh at 1 pm on Monday. Albany will have theirs tomorrow.

To correct from an earlier report, WROW has hooked up with ABC Radio News to replace CBS. The change takes effect Tuesday morning at 5 am.

Morning co-host Ben Patten will still read the local headlines from WRGB, unless they make a clean break from CBS, and shift to WTEN. Stay tuned.

As of now, though, WROW is adding forecasts from WRGB during the early portion of Patten's Saturday show (6-noon), in addition to airing hourly forecasts from 10 am-midnight Monday-Friday.

You'd think a father would want to be at his son's wedding. Not Donald Trump, Sr., and the reason isn't what he says it is

 So, today (I think), Donald Trump, Jr. is finally remarrying. He'll tie the knot with Bettina Anderson, his partner of about a year or two, after he'd split with Kim Guilfoyle.

Surprisingly, his father, the president, isn't attending, claiming that governmental responsibilities require his attention.

Right, and he's got a bridge to sell if you believe that story.

File photo courtesy Yahoo!.

No, the elder Trump knows that his presence will distract from the nuptials, and, to his credit for once, because he is such a polarizing figure, he wants Junior to enjoy his big day without him. If he can keep the press, especially the tabloid media, away from the wedding, so much the better.

Meanwhile, on Friday, Tulsi Gabbard resigned from her post as the director of national intelligence to spend more time with her husband, who has been diagnosed with cancer. Our prayers are with Tulsi & her husband at this time.

Unfortunately, Trump had to get one last dig in on Stephen Colbert to throw cold water on the series finale of The Late Show on Thursday night, using the same childish insults he's used on Colbert in the past. Colbert, in turn, appeared on a public access program on Friday for a mock "comeback". Trump is also whining about a video released by NY Governor Kathy Hochul, and featuring Alec Baldwin resurrecting his Trump mimic from Saturday Night Live. Apparently, SNL's current Trump, James Austin Johnson, went on vacation after SNL ended its season last week, and was unavailable.

If Trump needs immediate surgery for anything, it's to reinstall a funny bone.

Weasel of The Week: Sean Colter

 Mr. Colter is the chairman of the Section II softball sectional committee, which, like their volleyball brethren back in the fall, screwed over Troy High, in addition to Foothills Council schools South Glens Falls & Queensbury, in favoring Suburban Council schools with the top seeds in Class AA.

Of the three teams that were screwed, only Queensbury remains, after beating Troy, 7-1, on Thursday, in a game that should not have taken place. South Glens Falls, or, South High to the partisans in the North Country, fell to defending champion Burnt Hills in 9 innings, 1-0.

In short, the seedings were wrong from the start. Queensbury, South High, & Troy had the three best records in Class AA, but were held down due to politics. Queensbury should've been #1, but was seeded 3rd and hosted Troy, which was seeded 6th, and should've been #3. South High, at #5, should've been a 2 seed, and, along with Troy, should've hosted a home game in the 1st round.

Colter, from Shaker, saw fit to place Columbia at #1, Bethlehem at #2, and Burnt Hills, the defending champions, I must remind, at #4. All of it is incorrect. Like, we get it. The Suburban Council is the toughest league in Section II, and two of its members, CBA & Shenendehowa, aren't exactly popular with fans outside their districts because of their use of politics.

The Class AA quarterfinals should've looked like this:

8. Niskayuna @ 1. Queensbury.

7. Bethlehem @ 2. South High.

6. Ballston Spa @ 3. Troy.

5. Burnt Hills @ 4. Columbia.

Section II will argue strength of schedule justifies the seedings. No, it does not, and is a flimsy argument to begin with. They are not treating the Colonial Council as an equal. To them, the Foothills Council is on middle ground, since there are the rivalries between, say, Burnt Hills & Queensbury, since both teams use the nickname, "Spartans".

But, rightfully, all should be treated equal. Colter's political games net him a set of Weasel ears, and well deserved. Troy was thrown a bone of compromise by being deemed the host school for the Class A semi-finals next week, but, this cannot happen ever again.

Alumni & parents of current players should prevail upon the district to push for changes in how the seedings are decided. Troy has no representation on the seeding committee, and that needs to change. Every team deserves an equal voice and vote in cases like this.

But, we know the circus will start again with volleyball in October.........

Notes from around town

 Downtown Troy is starting to experience a rebirth.

In recent weeks, we've seen the Denim Library open in the former First Class Laundromat space. Troy Rewind gives the city its first video arcade since the 80's. Another cannabis dispensary has opened on Hoosick Street, next to the St. Mary's Massry Center. Really cheeky move there.

But, at the same time, citizens are increasingly angry over the Flock cameras installed in the city, with allegations that the information gathered is being shared with the federal government, which seems to be the point of the exercise in the first place.

However, overnight, someone decided that a little graffiti was in order at the Hedley building, current home of City Hall.

Photo courtesy Albany Times-Union.

Now, a number of other businesses, and some vacant storefronts, have been tagged in recent months, but when the graffiti reaches City Hall, well, it's only then that the police, at the request of Mayor Carmella Mantello, are looking into the tagging, because part of it, as you can see, can be interpreted as a personal attack on the Mayor.

Some will argue that the graffiti undermines citizen groups looking for peaceful solutions. The frustration is setting in, it's clear. We know the Mantello administration is emulating the idiot squad in Washington, and it's not a good idea. The Mayor is fishing for brownie points from the White House. Not only that, but recent photos suggest that the Mayor is growing old before her time, as she seems to have aged 10 years in the last 16+ months.

Schools throughout the 518 will be closed for the Memorial Day holiday starting tomorrow, with classes resuming Wednesday instead of Tuesday. It's a recent trend, similar to starting Easter break on Good Friday, for example. Things my generation didn't have back in the day.

After exhausting their supply of last year's baseball cards, Hatchet Ace Hardware on 3rd Street is trumpeting the fact they're carrying Pokemon cards, which can be found behind the counter to dissuade shoplifters. If they do get any of this year's baseball cards, they'll also go behind the counter, mostly to keep the greedy scalpers away.

And that would be a welcome idea.

On The Air: Pop Culture Jeopardy! (2024)

 This was inevitable.

As Sony continues to expand the Jeopardy! franchise, the newest spinoff is available for online streaming.

Pop Culture Jeopardy! launched at the end of 2024 on Amazon Prime, but shifted to Netflix for season 2, which ends June 6. Colin Jost (Saturday Night Live) is the series host. Unlike the regular Jeopardy! and other spinoffs, the Pop Culture iteration has three two-person teams instead of three single contestants. The more, the merrier.

Let's take a look at a sample category. Full episodes, of course, are unavailable, other than on Netflix & Hulu.

Jost's profile has been raised in recent years, what with an endorsement deal with Blue Moon beer and his marriage to actress Scarlett Johanssen. If the core Jeopardy! needs a fill-in should something happen to current moderator Ken Jennings, Jost would be a good bet to cover.

Rating: A.

Videos of Summer: The River of Dreams (1993)

 "The River of Dreams" is the title track from Billy Joel's 1993 CD.

Look quick, and you'll see Billy's then-wife, Christie Brinkley, doing some painting. Brinkley did the cover for the CD.

Now, comes word that a bio pic, "Billy & Me", is being prepped for a release, but without any cooperation from the "Piano Man", whose former bandmate, Jon Small, & former manager, Irwin Mazur, are behind the bio, which covers Joel's early career, before he signed with Columbia. Joel is blocking the release of the film, claiming Mazur & Small don't have the rights to use his music.

Stay tuned.

An era soon to end: CBS Radio News (1927-2026)

 CBS owners Paramount-Skydance claim that they needed to terminate the radio news department because of how today's society receives their news via live streams and social media.

When CBS Radio News signs off on Friday, an era will end, and not entirely for the reasons that they claim. One commenter online suggested that some of the current radio staff, including veteran journalists Steve Kathan, Vicki Barker, Debra Rodriguez, Wendy Gillette, and others, could move to streaming. CBS gave former WCW announcer Christopher Cruise a new lease on life, and he likely could move into retirement.

Locally, WROW, a CBS affiliate forever, will simply go directly to local news updates from WRGB between 5-8 am, starting May 26. Currently, the station will run a short news brief from CBS for about a minute or so before going to local news. That they get the local news from WRGB reminds that WROW no longer has a news department of their own, and hasn't in years.

On Mother's Day, CBS Sunday Morning ran a feature piece on their radio cousins. Intro by Jane Pauley. Mo Rocca is the reporter.

You know who to blame, really. Even though CBS Radio News is non-partisan in its coverage, the decision is not entirely on Bari Weiss, or new owner Larry Ellison. It comes because president Trump, who doesn't comprehend the distinction between constructive & destructive criticism, doesn't want to hear any dissenting voices on the air.

WROW dropped CBS' World News Roundup a couple of years ago in order to streamline their morning news. What will happen when there's a breaking story after May 22, and CBS can't cover it on radio? I guess we'll have to wait & find out.

But, trust me on this. After Trump leaves office, Ellison may be forced to reconsider this ill-advised decision, and he should.