What caught our eye - 8/10/19

August 10, 2019

A sparkling mid-summer afternoon on Lake George, beautiful beyond compare.

SWEET SOLITUDE: You know Thoreau, of course. But what about Noah John Rondeau, the Adirondacks’ most famous hermit?  Like Thoreau, he lived the life of solitude he imagined in the deep woods. But he also enjoyed the company of others on cold Adirondack nights, and it’s said that all who stumbled upon his “city of one’’ were welcome – all except the state game warden. Eventually, Noah fought the law … and, well, you’ll just have to read Pat Gormley’s account of what happened next in this week’s The Adirondacks You Don’t Know.

ALL 46 BEFORE 5: If you are almost five years old and you’ve already climbed all 46 High Peaks of the Adirondacks, what’s your next act? http://bit.ly/Youngest46er

TWO NIGHTS, $55 MILLION: On muggy August nights for 99 years, yearlings with fine blood lines have been sold to racing's elite in the Humphrey S. Finney Sales pavilion just steps from the entrance to the Saratoga Race Course. In 2013, American Pharoah was paraded across the ring before growing up and capturing racing's coveted Triple Crown. So, what happened this year? http://bit.ly/FasigTiptonSales

An iconic racing image from photographer Skip Dickstein.

Great photographers establish a special rapport with their subjects. The dean of Saratoga horse racing photographers, Skip Dickstein, knows how to whisper to subjects like Serengeti Empress. (Tim Wilkin photo)

PHOTOS NEVER FINISHED: The thoroughbreds of Saratoga include one who has a camera slung over his left shoulder and a feed bag full of expensive lenses: Skip Dickstein, the dean of Saratoga horse racing photographers. He’s a Saratoga fixture, the best of his breed, and like other champions his work takes him far beyond Saratoga – to Churchill Downs and Belmont, to Santa Anita, Gulfstream and Delmar, and to the pages of Sports Illustrated. He’s covered 30-plus Kentucky Derbies, 35 Breeders Cups, 30 Triple Crown attempts and two horses that won the Crown – American Pharoah and Justified. In 45 years on the job, he’s been making images of race horses at work, race horses at rest, race horses at the rail, and race horses ringed with roses that look like they were produced with a paintbrush, not a camera. He's also covered two Olympics and three Daytona 500s. With millions of images in his portfolio, Skip is still shooting for The Albany Times Union, his long-time stable, and for Bloodhorse magazine and many private clients, and still looking every day for the next great shot.  www.skipdicksteinphotography.com

COLLARING BUYERS: What’s the fastest community in the Capital Region in which to sell a home? Rhymes with Roy. And here’s a cool one if you move quickly: Opulent brownstone — 26 rooms, ballroom, carriage house, elaborately carved crown moldings and parquet floors,  all overlooking a park and featured in the film “The Age of Innocence.” If that’s not your style, there’s a good deal on an asylum.  http://bit.ly/HotCollarRealEstateMarket

POINT: Everyone hates customer service. This may be why. http://bit.ly/CustomerServiceWoes

COUNTERPOINT: Everyone should love customer service. This is why. http://bit.ly/CustomerServiceWins

LIVES

LOVE IS OR IT AIN’T, AND WE LOVED HER: We lost the incomparable Toni Morrison this week, the Nobel Laureate, novelist, critic, activist, mentor and truth-teller who taught in the mid-1980s as the State University at Albany. We remember her inspiration. “As you enter positions of trust and power, dream a little before you think." http://bit.ly/ToniMorrisonRemembrance

BRILLIANT AND BELOVED: She earned a master’s in mathematics from Duke and a master’s in counseling from The College of Saint Rose. She taught in the Catholic schools of the Albany Diocese for more than 50 years and was the driving force behind a spiritual retreat in the Adirondacks. The legacy of Sister Monica Murphy, who died this week at 77. http://bit.ly/SisterMonicaMurphy

A HERO REMEMBERED. They will gather in the community of Hudson Falls today to remember young volunteer firefighter Paul MacMurray. He was a computer programmer for Albany Medical Center and Glens Falls Hospital who left his daughter’s birthday party on a summer afternoon to respond to a fire call at a local hotel. Residents were trapped. He dashed in.  http://bit.ly/HudsonFallsFirefighterMemorial

This former train station in Granville, reborn as a bed and breakfast, is an inviting stop.

STATION STOP: GRANVILLE: A 150-year-old former Delaware and Hudson Railway train station in the slate valley has been beautifully restored and is now a cozy bed and breakfast that’s getting statewide attention. http://bit.ly/BedandBreakfastStation

STEALING WHITEHALL’S BEAST: It is no less than the birthplace of the American Navy, but Whitehall is better known — in some circles — as the home of Bigfoot. Seriously. Somebody in Detroit it trying to swipe Sasquatch. http://bit.ly/StealingBigfoot

A GOOD SKATE: Alexandra, a figure skater since she was 5 and an art historian by training, took a spin by The Hyde Collection in Glens Falls.  Triple Axel! http://bit.ly/ScholarlySkaterHydevisit

WAY COOL: New Paltz, Great Barrington, Mass., and Bennington, Vt., are chosen by readers of BuzzFeed as coolest small towns in America. https://www.buzzfeed.com/hannahloewentheil/best-small-towns-america

AROUND THE HORN

ACE: A scrawny, middling middle fielder in high school. Never played in college. Now he’s a landscaper. One night, he went to a Colorado Rockies game and casually threw a 96-mph pitch. Meet the guy who just signed with the Oakland As. http://bit.ly/FanRecruitedByMLB

ANOTHER ACE: Shenendehowa grad Ian Anderson is stepping up to play with the Atlanta Braves Triple A team in Gwinnett, Ga. http://bit.ly/ShenBallplayerWithBraves

IS THIS HEAVEN? They’ll have to harvest the corn a little early. The New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox are headed to Dyersville, Iowa, next season to play baseball on the "Field of Dreams." http://bit.ly/ARealFieldOfDreams

BOB’S NEXT PLAY: Lifelong Red Sox fan and (seemingly lifelong) Mayor of Lake George Bob Blais, 83, the longest-serving mayor in New York State, will throw out the first pitch when the Sox host the Baltimore Orioles Aug. 18. http://bit.ly/MayorBlaisFirstPitch

SHOWER TIME: The Swift-Tuttle comet is about to put on a brilliant show in the night sky. The Perseid meteor shower will peak Monday Tuesday. http://bit.ly/MeteorShowerBrilliance

THE POWER OF KINDNESS: Can cruelty catalyze kindness? It seems so in Pinson, Ala. http://bit.ly/CruelNoteLeadsToKindness

SAY YOUR PRAYERS, LITTLE ONE: Dee and her dog Murphy were hiking the trail when the cougar appeared. Crank up Metallica. http://bit.ly/MetallicaWardsOffMtnLion

FIRST CLASS: Pittsburgh International Airport has opened a suite of "sensory rooms" to help people with special needs deal with the stress of flying. http://bit.ly/HelpingAutisticFlyers

AS AMERICAN AS A HOT APPLE PIE: We can’t figure out where we stand on fast food. Love it. Hate it. Criticize it. Crave it. Sneak it. Deny it. Give in and buy it. http://bit.ly/WeLoveHateFastFood

GO DUMB: If you’re like us, your smart phone is smarter than you.  Some people are calling it quits. http://bit.ly/DumbPhonesAreIn

THE SIGNOFF

A SHOT OVER THE FALLS: Maurice Allen did not go to Niagara Falls to get married. He brought a driver and went there to make history.  http://bit.ly/GolferDrivesOverFalls 

 NEARLY FINAL WORDS

“Do something.”

— Protesters in Dayton, Ohio, to Governor Mike DeWine after a shooter killed nine people in 30 seconds in the early hours of last Sunday.  http://bit.ly/FinalWordsDoSomething

THANK YOU to our content contributors John Brodt, Bill Callen, Bill Richmond, Tina Suhocki, Lisa Fenwick, Colleen Potter, Tara Hutchins, Nolan Murphy, Pat Gormley, Skip Dickstein and Claire P. Tuttle.

FACING OUT: FACING OUT is what we do. We help companies, organizations and individuals work effectively with their most important external audiences – their customers, their shareholders, their communities, the government and the news media.  www.behancommunications.com

Facing Out features news and other nuggets that caught our eye, and that we thought might be of value to you, our friends and business associates. Some items are good news about our clients and friends, others are stories that we hope will leave you a bit more informed or entertained than you were five minutes ago. As always, we welcome your ideas and feedback. 

Let’s make it a conversation: mark.behan@behancom.com