Sunday, July 31, 2011

26th Bash in the Bay

Top Of The Bay celebrated their 26th annual Bash.  Last night had a 90's music theme provided by the band Crush * Gunn * Bach.  The special Visual Effects Projection displayed on screens, people, buildings, and the street are from the mastermind of Jasper Mosher.  


Saturday, July 30, 2011

Question For Matt

Ted Ford made this comment on Facebook on Thursday....


If you happen to see Matt Doheney today ask him how he would have voted on the debt ceiling today? Please post his answer here on FB. Apparently nobody with news credentials is going to ask him.

I am not sure if Ted still wants an answer, I think that he was more concerned that local media was not all over this....  Any way.... if anyone knows Matt.... maybe they can ask him to contact me, so I can share his answer with Ted

Friday, July 29, 2011

Flooding Fatality

It is a very sad night at our house.  It was horrible to see his lifeless body floating in our back yard.....

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

You Have Been Served!

Awhile ago I did a story about the village offices being closed for several days.  Click here for that story.  Tonight the Village of Alexandria Bay has been served with legal papers, that I assume have to do with the abrupt firing of Kelly Butcher, former Deputy Clerk.  Someone once said that  human resources are the most valuable asset  any organization or corporation can possess. With all the people  that have been fired over the past four years, I am surprised this has not happened sooner.

Bridge Construction I 81

It was a slow go on our way to work this morning.  Like the signs say, Expect Delays!

Monday, July 25, 2011

Incompetent Life Guards?

This really trips my trigger.  It has been a problem for the past several years.  Apparently, no matter how much I rant about it, nothing is ever done! This video was taken on Saturday of two life guards on duty with two very obvious stations.  A stationary elevated chair on the left and one on the cement pier.  The two are positioned that way because of blind spots in the swimming area.  WHY DO THESE TWO LIFE GUARDS HAVE TO BE SITTING NEXT TO EACH OTHER?  SPREAD OUT, COVER YOUR TERRITORY.  This past week a mother had to rescue her own child  from potentially drowning because  life guards were not sitting in there separate stations. I do not care how busy it is.... if two guards are on duty, then they need to be sitting in the two separate stations.  The elevated guard chair on the left provides the best viewing of the swimming area.


Sunday, July 24, 2011

Passion on the River

Passion and Lust... "Something To Talk About" a Bonnie Raitt tune... I have always loved this song and it was covered nicely by the Lisa Lee Trio tonight at the Top of the Bay. I always wanted to do a music video in under a minute and a half. I think it tells the story.... what do you think?

9 Bands In The Bay!

I listened to 5 bands play at 4 establishments last night.  All totaled, there were 9 bands [maybe more] playing on a Saturday night in Alexandria Bay.  9....  a variety of music to satisfy almost anyone.  I would like to mention the places that I missed in the video.  Skiffs, Downtown, Das Village Haus, and Coleman's Dock of the Bay. Sorry, just not enough time.....


Speeding In The Village

Vehicles speeding on Walton St. was the subject of a letter that was read at the 7.12.11 Village Board meeting.  Tom Penn, a concerned resident fears that a fatality may occur on his street if the board did not install speed bumps.  The board pooh pooh'd the speed bump suggestion, instead they opted for a patrol car to keep an eye on the traffic.  I thought the idea of portable speed bumps was a good idea, moving them and warning signs to different locations throughout the village.  The board quickly moved  to another hazardous traffic problem on Miller Ave. A blind spot on the end of Miller Ave and James St. was identified and Blind Driveway Signs were installed within a few days after the 7.12.11 meeting.  Did any of the speeding issues get resolved?  NOPE! A patrol car hiding in the shadows can pick and choose who gets pulled over.  Signs can be ignored.  Below is the audio clip from that meeting.


Saturday, July 23, 2011

Hippy Night @ The Bay

Tonight at the Dancing Dawg is your chance to beat the heat.  Keep COOL.. man... dress up like a Hippy.


Friday, July 22, 2011

Boogie in the Bay

There are any number of things that can get you down.  The weather, economy, whatever....  Music is the Doctor for anything that ails you.  Saturday [7.23.11] night 8pm at the Top Of The Bay, the band S.O.S. will be performing .... you may find that your foot will start tapping and the next thing you know, your hips will be shaking.  You might  as well DANCE... Because any Resistance to dancing is FUTILE.






Hotter Than a Match Head

This video is a compilation of several video clips I took of the sun rising yesterday morning.  Knowing that the morning was going to be the most comfortable part of the day and night.  I tried to make it a time lapse video.  It kind of works.... The song fits the heat wave...


Monday, July 18, 2011

HOT Day Kool JAZZ in the BAY

Yesterday was HOT but the Jim Wiley Jazz Quartet that played at the Top Of The Bay was KOOL!  These guys were very good.  Sadly, they do not have another gig in the Bay this summer.  But you can catch them in Sackets Harbor.  Always great Music at Top Of The Bay, click here for the schedule of musical events this summer. No matter how hot it is where you are, Mother Nature always makes The Bay the Koolest place to be!



Saturday, July 16, 2011

Friday, July 15, 2011

It's Always Summer in the Bay

The Thousand Islands Bridge on the St. Lawrence River is your view. Listening to great music while sipping on your favorite summer drink. Does it get any better than this?





Bloggers Note: I realize that this video has some imperfections. This was my first attempt to use 2 cameras at different angles and then edit them both into one seamless video, For the most part it is successful. There are a couple of digital pops and some lag. Hopefully then next videos will have less of those as I learn the in's and out's of the software.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

34th Annual Vintage Boat Show

This weekend in Alexandria Bay! ;

Kick Off Party: July 15th 6:30pm Boldt Castle Yacht House.

Boat Show: July 16th 9:00am to 4:pm Upper James St. Dock.

Awards Brunch: July 17th 9:30am Bonnie Castle

Abay.com also has a story on this event


From

Below is a slide show I made from the 2010 Vintage Boat Show.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Bay Traffic Blocked on the 4th

On the 4th of July, A.C.S. Students had planned a fund raiser by charging vehicles to park at the school.  The school parking lot is a convenient location within walking distance to several great fireworks viewing spots.  Unfortunately for the students, the mayor decided to close off the village to incoming traffic before the village became congested.  Spectators were forced to park outside the village, even tho there were many parking spaces within the village including the school parking lot.  Chief of Police Mullaney stated that the traffic was stopped from entering the village at 7:30pm.  Trustee Jury experienced traffic being turned away from the village as early as 6:30pm.  The fireworks did not start till 9:45pm.

I know that some people like to get into the village early so they can "squat" in a good spot.  Maybe some people just parked in the outer limits of the village grumbling as they hoofed it into the village.  Or maybe some said Damn How Frigging Early Do We Have To Get Here?  Then LEFT!  The Chief said they let people in after 7:30 if they had motel or dinner reservations.  What if you did not make any reservations for the pizza, hot dog or ice cream you were going to eat?  I wonder how much revenue our eateries lost that night?

The other question I asked, where were all the other agencies that usually assist our village PD on the 4th?  The mayor said they did not want to partake this year.  Partake?  Audio from the 7.12.11 VB meeting can be heard below. There is a short music intro before the audio starts =)




Monday, July 11, 2011

A-Bay is a Musical Mecca

Even during mid week, it is not to hard to find several establishments that have live musical entertainment.  When the weekend hits, the Bay is a treasure trove of a wide variety of musicians.  Some of them have been around since I was a teenager.  Other musicians are younger but just as talented.  It is not uncommon to stumble onto a group of the old and the young just a jammin, you would swear they had playing together forever.  This past Wednesday and Saturday, I made my rounds to some of the bars that had live music.  The ones I visited were not charging a cover.  The video below, is just a small sample of the bands that were performing. 




This next video is a group of "older" musicians. Their chemistry is new and the music is unbelievable.


Sunday, July 10, 2011

T.I. Winery Turns 8




The War On Tourists



Ever since 9/11, the US has beefed up its patrol of our borders. Homeland security rules the roost with its primary objective, War on Terrorism. Canada has followed suit. Recently, all the media has been focused on Mr. Andersen, the American fisherman who got busted for not checking in with Canadian Customs. Some NYS residents are calling for a boycott on Canada. Seems like the logical next step, if you are the boycotting type.

 
 
 
How many terrorists have either of the countries caught trying to cross the borders illegally? How many have been caught trying to gain entry legally? None? Not many? Who knows! There is an amazing amount of Security on both sides of the border. No self-respecting terrorist is going to try and cross the border without a high probability of successful entry. The governments have saturated the 1000 Islands with all sorts of security. My guess is that the terrorists are looking at some other back door to cross the border. Shouldn't we spread out the anti-terrorist security? Are both governments’ bureaucrats screaming for results at any cost? Are there monthly quotas to meet?

 
Statistics and quotas are achieved by going after people like Mr. Andersen. I am sure there have been similar situations like his on our side. Some people just look at security as somthing not to challenge, so most go without any press. Is it possible to protect and serve without creating a police state? Since the elusive terrorist cannot be found, is it really necessary to wage war on the tourist?



Saturday, July 9, 2011

1000's Attend Bay Fireworks

The entire length of Church St. was the scene of a surge of spectators leaving the village after the fireworks.

Friday, July 8, 2011

VB Meeting 6.28.11 [Audio]

New Sign Greets Boaters to the Bay


A massive wind storm swept through the area in early June, causing damage to property.  The welcome sign that greets boater to the Bay was not spared from damage.













A new sign replaces the old damaged one.


Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Fireworks A-Bay

Tonight was beautiful!  Just before the fireworks started a freighter came down the channel in front of Boldt Castle.  I superimposed the fireworks finale over the passing of the freighter. The result?  A perfect blend of music and river harmony.  Everything was video taped in front of Riveredge Motel....

Monday, July 4, 2011

Happy 4th of July

Photo Courtesy of Lori Neumann

Jammin in the Bay

Bad Husbands Club kicked off the 4th of July weekend at the Top Of The Bay.  Their next gig is on July 9th at the Dancing Dawg. 

Saturday, July 2, 2011

T.I.R.R. & River Day Report on Events

Event organizers report on the success of their events at the 6.28.11 Village Board Meeting.

Ron Thomson reports, saying the number of military families attending this year's River Day is higher than it has ever been. He also takes the opportunity to bring up some old irrelevant business in an attempt to "fan the flames" of an ongoing conflict between himself and downtown merchant Alex Mosher. For the record, everybody supports the AUSA & FMWR River Day event, which gives military families the opportunity to experience the beauty of the St. Lawrence River. In the past Mr. Mosher and other downtown merchants have been concerned with the closing of lower James St. and the staging and drop-off locations. Village Board members have been told that the choice of staging locations is limited because of safety concerns for the families. One concern: limiting the number of crosswalks that families may encounter. Some may be concerned with the staging of this year's River Day event. The military families were lined up along Miller Ave. I talked to a few people in the line that day. They said that at one point the line of people extended from the blocked off section of lower James St. around the corner and up the entire length of Miller Ave. to Walton St. Miller Ave has no sidewalks or curb and was open to 2 way traffic that day.






Mary Compeau thanked the Village Board and the DPW for all their cooperation helping to make this year's T.I.R.R. a success.