Avenue of the Pines merch? Chef's kiss.
BUT FIRST: Jamming with an NFL coach, Bob Dylan, Black pioneers and a chance to talk shop with...me.
TGIF, Dispatchers!
What a contrast: This spooky Friday the 13th is dovetailing straight into a gooey Saturday Valentine’s Day…no wonder it’s been absolute chaos around here.
We’ll see you on the flip side: Our weekend vibes food/wine/arts/travel Dish Saratoga will hit your inboxes Sunday.
Let’s get to it.
— Abby
Tune in
I got two more (unrelated but awesome) stories out of Will Levith, author of the upcoming book ‘Spa City Rock.’
Abby Tegnelia
When it comes to reporting on both music and sportsball, my former colleague Will Levith has me beat. So when a recent conversation somehow covered both, I decided to share.
But first: Bob Dylan. As I mentioned last week in a story about jazz singer Stephanie Spruill’s cover of “You’re So Vain,” Levith is writing a book, Spa City Rock, on Saratoga’s music history. Why let him keep all the juicy stories he’s collected to himself? And you know where it must begin…
AT: Take me back. Name one story that really made you feel like you were on the music scene of Saratoga’s past.
WL: A guy reached out to me on Facebook, and his dad was a dishwasher at Caffè Lena back in the day. He’s one of the oldest people in Saratoga, and one of the few people who was at one of [Bob] Dylan’s first shows who’s still alive. He said some hilarious stuff that you’ll have to read about in the book…but think about that perk: Working in the kitchen means he saw every artist that came through there.
AT: Since you were born and raised in Saratoga, you seem to have a connection to every native Saratogian. I’ve written a lot about the NFL’s Anthony Weaver, who just returned to the Baltimore Ravens as the defensive coordinator, since you told me about him way back when.
WL: He was an acquaintance of mine. I have this memory — I’m 99% sure this is true — but I have a memory of either going over to his house or going over to somebody’s house, bringing a guitar and a guitar amp. He was a guitarist at the time. I wonder if he still plays, but we once jammed out to Jimi Hendrix.
Will Levith publishes overflow interviews and unfinished excerpts from his upcoming book Spa City Rock on Drafts + Cuts.
📰 IN BRIEF
DMV shut-down
Friendly reminder that the DMV closed at 2 p.m. today for a tech glow-up. The department’s website has all the info: “Phone and online services will also be unavailable while we upgrade our systems. Offices will reopen and online services will resume on Wednesday, 2/18.”
New (free!) ice-skating rink
Lago by Druthers has officially opened a free ice-skating rink on Saratoga Lake, reports Saratoga Today. Bring your own skates to 550 Union Avenue for all ages fun.
🗓️ WHAT TO DO
The Torch Club presents: Saratoga Journalism at a Turning Point
The speaker: ME!
Monday, Feb. 16, 7 p.m., Saratoga Springs Holiday Inn
I’ll be talking about the Substack you’re reading right now.
· How reader behavior has changed
· What AI can’t do — and what it can
· How nostalgia isn’t a business strategy
· The excitement of this whole new world and what it means for human connection
And much more!
“Local media as we know it has been dying for a long time,” says Saratoga born-and-raised journalist and author Will Levith (see above). “It’s really going to require creative thinkers and creative journalists to figure out a new way forward. Your Dispatch is the 3.0 version of how local media should be reported right now. I love it.”
CLICK HERE FOR ALL THE DETAILS (Today’s the last day to reserve dinner, but anyone can come to the 7 p.m. talk.)
See you there!
Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation presents: In Conversation with Amy Godine.
Tuesday, Feb. 17, 7 p.m.
Where: Spring Street Gallery
Amy Godine will be discussing her book The Black Woods: Pursuing Racial Justice on the Adirondack Frontier. In the book, the esteemed scholar and author chronicles the history of Black pioneers who migrated to the Adirondacks from the late 1840s to the 1860s.
“The news of an antislavery philanthropist’s plan to settle the Adirondacks with Black New Yorkers in 1846 isn’t the only story,” she tells the Dispatch. “On top of the history there is the drama of recovery. How do we retrieve a page of history gone missing? No maps or diaries or old homes or barns. Nothing’s left. It’s a challenge.”
🌲 Weekend vibes
This brand-new local business is going places: starting with a drive down the Avenue of the Pines. When Saratoga Hat Company launched last April, like so many others in town I quickly became enamored by the beautiful, unique hat designs. And now? T-shirts and sweatshirts, oh my: A new collab with Alyssa Menhausen’s Pine & Park Design Co. (you might recognize her from The Horseshoe and Lucy’s Bar designs) has yielded some beautifully nostalgic merch starring everyone’s favorite windy, tree-covered road.
“I’ve always enjoyed making the drive down Avenue of the Pines as I make my way into Saratoga State Park,” says Saratoga Hat Co. owner/founder Patrick Campion. “It invokes such a good feeling, because it means I’m on my way to something enjoyable — a concert, nature walk, a friend’s wedding, golf. I sketched out these design ideas a couple of years ago and finally was able to bring them to life thanks to Alyssa’s help.”
To shop the collection, visit saratogahats.com. A portion of all sales goes to Project Purple against pancreatic cancer.
Keep reading!
📌 ICYMI…
Do ‘starter homes’ still exist in Saratoga?
Stewart’s and Whitman brew up a new partnership
Face card, activated: an esthetician answers your burning questions
Jazz singer who covered ‘You’re So Vain’ on what the ‘elite’ feminist anthem meant to Black women
Local finance leaders in the hot seat: ‘What keeps you up at night?’
Savor this, Saratoga: TogaNola’s efforts to give back are downright delicious