518Life May 2014

Let Your Kids Play Video Games pg.38 The Failures of Common Core pg.34 A TIMES UNION PUBLICATION MAY 2014

Parade of Homes official guide pg. 45

Hey Cheaters, We've Got Your Number

Home wood Suit

by Hilt on es Best Weste rn

pg.99 Want to know more about hypertension or choosing the right food for plants?

Cou y ard

by Mrt arriott

Check out our two FREE seminars

Pie Imporrt1 s

pgs.106 and 88

o W

lf

Fleet F et Sporte s

R

o

Holida ad y Inn Pizza H ut

Marrio

tt

Stic le y, Audi k & Co.

Hanna fo Plaza rd Barnsid

er

NBT Bank

k

NYS TranspDept of ortatio n

Panera

s

ee

k

Macy’s

ad

en tr

L.L.Be

al

Av

e.

Sears

.

o W

Rd

C

Comfo rt Inn

Wolf’s d 1-11 oa fR Chipotl e

Trader J Plazaoe’s

Bed, and BeBath yond

Ro lf

ol W

Cr

Toys“R ”U

Wolf R DeN o o d yer Shop Chevoro pers a let Park

Berksh Bankire

nd

ir

ac

ay

’s

Sa

Ad

d on

No

w rth

Denny

Bosco an

Barne s& Noble v’s

Colonie Cente r

Walls, Malls & Sprawl

pg.

28

How we left the city for the suburbs by Paul Grondahl

AMISH MADE AMISH MADE

WWW.Mooradians.CoM • Hours:

LV34839.INDD 1

bY WineSburg

AMISH MADE

A Complete Dining Collection The name “Palettes” means we give you a blank slate, an empty artist’s palette, and you fill in the custom color, fabric, style and wood species to create your own masterpiece exactly the way you want it. We emphasize “casual but elegant” styles from traditional to the eclectic, all produced with superior craftsmanship and made 100% in the USA. You Pick: Style | Wood Species | color | Finish | Hardware

Our dining room collection from Palettes by Winesburg reflect a wide diversity of styles and prices. Quality and craftsmanship are 1758A Rt. 9 Parkwood Plaza, Clifton Park 518.694.8452

: Mon To Fri 10-9, saT 10-8, sun 12-5

800 Central Ave. Albany 518.489.2529

their trademarks. Their furniture is 100% Made in the U.S.

We do more for

CANCER So our patients

GET MOR OUT OF Learn more SPHP.com/more

R CARE

RE LIFE

Have you visited the Healthy Living Center at Hannaford?

Stop by for FREE classes, programs, and workshops — right in your Hannaford store! No membership fee required.

Visit with a CDPHP® On-Site Specialist TODAY! Discuss eligibility & benefits Learn more about coverage or plan options Enroll with CDPHP® Stop in today or call 518-729-4732 to schedule an appointment.

Hours of Operation: Mon. - Fri. 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. & 4 p.m. - 8 p.m. Sat. & Sun. noon - 4 p.m.

Century Mall Hannaford, 900 Central Ave. For more details on the Healthy Living Center, including class schedules and registration information, please visit www.healthyalbany.org or email info@healthyalbany.org with questions.

Healthy Living starts here – we look forward to seeing you!

Ready to suit-up this Summer?

Increase your Confidence...

Enhance your Body, Breasts & Face Call us today! Steven Yarinsky, MD, FACS

Model

Serving Albany and the Capital District for over 25 years.

Selected one of America’s “Top Plastic Surgeons” by Consumers’ Research Council of America & by Plastic Surgery Practice Magazine as one of the “Best of 2013 Plastic and Cosmetic Surgeons” Chosen by Saratoga Today’s readers as “Best Plastic Surgeon of Saratoga Region for 2013”

Board Certified Plastic Surgeon

Your Cosmetic Procedure is done at our office – at the ONLY Joint Commission Accredited Office Surgery Facility in the Capital District for your Security, Safety, Privacy, Convenience, and Cost Savings.

Certified Expert Injector – visit www.expertinjector.org

Full MediSpa Services for Men and Women Botox® & New Xeomin® • Juvéderm® • Voluma™ • Sculptra® & Radiesse® Face Fillers Laser Hair Removal - Face & Body • New SkinMedica® Professional Face Peels Leg Cellulite, Sclerotherapy & Laser Spider Vein Treatments Endermologie® Lipomassage™ & Endermolift™ •“Liquid Facelifts” New Genesis V® Laser Facial & Excel V® Laser Capillary, Acne & Age Spot Removal

Saratoga Springs Plastic Surgery, PC 7 Wells Street, 3rd Floor Saratoga Springs, NY 12866

Dr. Yarinsky personally does all facial injectable treatments.

Scan and watch our testimonial videos and call us today!

Call Us Today (518) 583-4019 • Visit www.yarinsky.com – save up to $500 • 100% Financing Available

©SY2013

Steven Yarinsky, MD, FACS

Cosmetic Surgery Services for Body, Breast and Face Breast Augmentation and Lift • Tummy Tuck • Mommy Makeover New LipoPerfection® Liposuction Fat Removal • Labiaplasty Forehead, Eyelid and Face Lifts • Face Fat Injections Nose, Ear, Chin & Lip Reshaping • Laser Skin Resurfacing

See your home in a whole new light.

Visit our showrooms to see the

New LED Lighting

It’s time to let your home shine. Spruce up your exterior with Wolberg’s newest selection of landscape and outdoor. A beautifully diverse selection of innovative lighting solutions, ranging from practical to the extraordinary. Elegant, practical and functional, these landscape lighting products add beauty and warmth – all while addressing your personal safety and security concerns. Visit our website for In-Store Bonus Coupon www.Wolberg.com

CE

L

AT EBR

I NG

89

GREA

Since 1925

PLUS - We offer a full service electrical counter for all your electrical supply needs.

T YE

AR

S

ALBANY 35 Industrial Park Rd. 518-489-8451 SCHENECTADY 152 Erie Blvd. 518-381-9231 SARATOGA 60 West Ave. 518-886-0446

VISIT OUR NEW LOCATION KINGSTON 1221 Ulster Ave. 845-802-5600 Shop over 40,000 Items: www.Wolberg.com

THE TERM Supermarket 

just doesn’t seem



SUPER Enough.

What do you call a supermarket when it’s so much

And what better location for a cooking school than

more than a supermarket? You call it Market Bistro.

a place that’s filled with all the world’s best foods?

Inside, you’ll find everything you’d expect from a

That’s right, at Market Bistro, we have culinary

world-class grocer. Premium steaks. The freshest

experts sharing their passion for food every

seafood. A produce selection that’s unparalleled.

week in fun classes like Cooking 101, Knife Skills

But then we added an ar tisanal baker y, an

and more. Finally, to top it all off, we also added

authenticc IItalian market authenti talian m arket aand nd eeven ven oour ur vvery er y oown wn

new,, n non-grocery departments new on-grocer y d epartments ffor or eeasy asy oone-stop ne-stop

smokehousee w with smoked meats.

Next,, we aadded smokehous ith smoke dm eats. Next dded aan n aamazing mazing ccollection ollection ooff 1155

shopping.. T There’s shopping here’s aan n iin-store n-store fflorist, lorist, kitchen a kit chen tools tools section, section, a greeting greeting

exciting new exci t i ng n e w eeateries. ateries.

card car d center, c enter, even e v e n a walk-in w alk-in

There’s T here’s ssomething omething

health center and and a drive-thru

for ever yone.

p h a r m a c yy.. A n d w e f i t

Subs, burgers and

it aall—amazingly—under ll—amazi n g l y —under

burritos.

Soups, burr i t os. S o u p s,

onee rroof.

So stop on o of . S o sto p iin n ttoday o d ay and new Market an d ccheck h e c k oout ut tthe he n ew M ark e t

ladss a nd sa lad n d sushi s u shi . pizzaa aand panini.

There’s Pasta, pizz nd p anini . T here’s eeven v e n Chef’s C hef’s

never thing Bistro.. Y You’ve Bistro ou’ v e n e v e r sseen ee n aany ny thin g llike ik e iit. t.

Grill, a full-size, casual, sit-down restaurant.

Because there’s never been anything like it.

873 New Loudon Rd., Latham • marketbistro.com

(L-R: Thomas H. Signor-SVP Operations, Jeffrey D. Stone-SVP Retail & Business Development, John A. Balli-CEO, Lee R. Carman-SVP Lending, and Bruce F. Sowalskie-SVP & Credit Officer)

Looking for a bank that’s small enough to care about you and big enough to get you there?

Call one of our senior team members today and find out why Kinderhook Bank is...your kind of bank!

Coming Soon to Latham! www.yourkindofbank.com

Chatham • Delmar • East Greenbush • Greenport • Kinderhook • Valatie www.yourkindofbank.com 518.758.7101

Driving Values from our family to yours!

“Thanks Warren Tire!”

It’s not about the lowest prices, because the lowest price doesn’t mean it’s the best value.

Spring Car Care Package: It’s not about gimmicks... it’s about brands you know, service you trust and values for every budget.

For over 30 years, that’s exactly what you have been getting at Warren Tire.

We look forward to seeing you soon.

We recycle

• oil • tires • metal • antifreeze • batteries

Includes lube, oil & filter (up to 5 qts)

• 30 Point Safety Inspection • Top off all fluids under the hood • 4 wheel tire rotation • Check tread depth and adjust tire pressure • Check all belts & hoses for cracks & proper tension

Locally owned and operated by the second generation of the Kellogg family.

Our company’s number one priority is to provide the best costumer service you will ever receive from your automotive repair facility!

Visit one of our 13 convenient locations today for a free estimate! Also visit us on our website www.warrentiresvc.com and join our GOOD NEIGHBOR CLUB for additional savings!

Corner Rts. 9 & 146 Clifton Park

371-3343 M-F 7:00-5:30 SAT. 7:30-5:00

75 Saratoga Ave. Waterford

233-1480

M-F 7:30-5:30 Sat. 7:30-5:00

Route 7 Latham

785-6377 M-F 7:30-5:30 Sat. 7:30-5:00

608 Columbia Tnpk.

East Greenbush

477-7635

M-F 7:30-5:30

Sat. 7:30-5:00

www.warrentiresvc.com

39

$

95

(on most vehicles) EXPIRES 5/24/14 Healthy Life Magazine

> CLIP & SAVE <

Doesn’t it make sense to do business with an environmentally-conscious company where you “never pay more for the best.”

203 No. Comrie Ave. Johnstown

762-8315

M-F 7:30-5:30 Sat. 7:30-5:00

712 State Street Schenectady

374-3326

M-F 7:30-5:30; Sat. 7:30-12:00

Get Ready for Weddings, Proms, Reunions, Graduations and Summer

Publisher

George R. Hearst III

Editorial

Before Acne Treatment

After

Janet Reynolds Executive Editor Brianna Snyder Associate Editor Genevieve Scarano Editorial Intern

Contributing Writers

Steve Barnes, Rachel Fiske, Anna Zernone Giorgi, Paul Grondahl, Rebecca Haynes, Alistair Highet, James Kidd, Kerry Ann Mendez, Akum Norder

Design

Tony Pallone, Design Director Colleen Ingerto, Emily Jahn Designers

Contributing Photographers

Vincent Giordano, Alistair Highet, Colleen Ingerto, Emily Jahn

Before

Sun Damage Treatment

After

Sales

Kurt Vantosky Sr. Vice President, Sales & Marketing Kathleen Hallion Vice President, Advertising Tom Eason Manager, Display Advertising Michael-Anne Piccolo Retail Sales Manager Jeff Kiley Magazine Advertising Manager

Circulation

Todd Peterson Vice President, Circulation Dan Denault Home Delivery Manager

Business

Nick Gagliardo Chief Financial Officer

After

Before

TimesUnion.com

Paul Block Executive Producer

Rosacea & Redness Now offering Strongest Laser for nail fungus: toes & fingers

20-25% off the following services and packages**

BOTOX® • JUVÉDERM® • RADIESSE® • BELOTERO • XEOMIN® Acne, Sun Damage, Rosacea, Skin Tightening, Laser Hair Removal **Free treatment with package purchase.

0% financing if qualified

*Call for details; consult required.

Call 383-3300 today to book your Complimentary Consultation: $150 value.

Love the Way You Look!

Visit our State-of-the-Art location!

950 Route 146, Clifton Park www.almedspa.com Michael Salzman, M.D., P.C.

518Life is published monthly. If you are interested in receiving home delivery of 518Life magazine, please call (518) 454-5768 or e-mail magcirculation@timesunion.com.

For advertising information, please call (518) 454-5358.

518Life is published by Capital Newspapers and Times Union 645 Albany Shaker Rd, Albany, NY 12212 518.454.5694 The entire contents of this magazine are copyright 2014 by Capital Newspapers. No portion may be reproduced in any means without written permission of the publisher.

Capital Newspapers is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Hearst Corporation.

Spring ~ the season of color!

HEWITTâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S Home of the Lifetime Nursery Guarantee Visit hewitts.com for more information

Rt. 50, Glenville 399-1703 Rt. 9, Clifton Park 371-0126

Rt. 7, Latham 785-7701 Rt. 20, Westmere 456-7954

Rt. 9, Saratoga 580-1205 Feura Bush Rd., Glenmont 439-8169 Rt. 4, East Greenbush 283-2159 Quaker Rd., Queensbury 792-3638 Photo by Peter Bowden

CONTENTS 518 LIFE MAGAZINE | MAY 2014

12 14 114

What’s Online Editor’s Note Photo Finish

Up Front 16 20 24 26

Trending Where & When FYI with Curran Streett In Other Words

Home

pg. 99 What makes a cheater cheat?

28

Walls, Malls and Sprawl

34

The Common Core Solution

38

Game On

Why we moved from the city to the country

85

Forging Ahead

88

Plant food? Bugs?

90

Turn-Key Annuals

93 96

99 102

Your kids should play video games

106 PARADE OF HOMES SPECIAL SECTION

111

42 Re-raising the Barn An old barn gets a new life know about the Parade of Homes

10 518 LIFE

Get the scoop with Peter Bowden Low-care pops of color

Chained Up Surviving dining in the suburbs

Sporting Wines Climate and altitude make the difference for Mendoza

Health

How a lack of resources makes standardized education especially difficult

45 OFFICIAL GUIDE · Everything you need to

Blacksmith Noah Khoury makes unique items for the home and garden

presented by

112

Our Cheating Hearts Why are some people cheaters?

Life After Death How becoming an organ donor can make a difference

Ask the Doc What everyone needs to know about hypertension

Trainer Tip Perfecting the squat

Say When Make smart choices about drinking On the Cover Cover design by Colleen Ingerto Background illustration taken from a survey map of the area, dated 1850

1 2013 130

+

#

VOLUME HONDADEALER INTHECAPITAL REGION *

BASED ON 2013 SALES

It’s not just a guy thing Here at Mohawk Honda, cars aren’t just “a guy thing.” In fact over a third of our staff members are professional women. We wouldn’t have it any other way.

HONDA PRESIDENT’S AWARD WINNER

FOR SALES AND SERVICE EXCELLENCE

AUTOMOTIVE SALES AND SERVICE PROFESSIONALS TO PROVIDE THE EXPERIENCE YOU DESERVE

“

Mohawk Honda is the Capital Region’s #1 Volume Honda Dealer because we treat every one of our customers as if they’re the most important person in our world. When you walk in our door, we do everything we can to get you in the vehicle that’s just right for you and financing that fits your budget. And we keep working for you after the sale, with a 23-bay service department, full collision services and more than 130 sales and service professionals. It all adds up to a dealership worthy of Honda’s prestigious President’s Award for Sales and Service Excellence for 2013.

But you don’t have to take our word for it... stop in and find out for yourself just what we mean when we say, “We go out of our way to please you!” We look forward to seeing you.

”

Nick Bonarrigo General Manager, Mohawk Honda

YEARS

175 Freemans Bridge Road (at Route 50) in Glenville • 518-370-4911 • mohawkhonda.com

What’s

ONLINE 518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM

more

GALLERIES

ONLINE

Back in Time

On the Edge

Want to see some vintage old photos of the region? Check out our massive slideshow online!

blog.timesunion. com/ontheedge What we’re talking about in the 518.

More, More, More For more photo feasting, check out our exclusive slideshows of blacksmith artisan Noah Khoury (story on pg 85), local suburban restaurants (pg 93), an old barn before its conversion into a house (pg 42) and more!

YouTube youtube.com/ TimesUnionMagazines Watch our video supplements to this issue’s stories!

Twitter @518LifeMag The best tweets this side of the Hudson.

(Either side, really.)

Facebook facebook.com/ 518Life Pictures and events and videos and more!

HOW-TOS Here’s an example of a fourth-grade Common Core math problem.

Candy wants to buy herself a new bicycle that costs $240.

Candy has already saved $32, but she needs to make a plan so she can save the rest of the money she needs. * See the full question on page 35

HOW’S YOUR SQUAT?

HOW’S YOUR MATH?

Fitness trainer Jeannine Trimboli showed us how to do a perfect squat (pg 111). Then she showed us a few new ways to squat. Check out our video online!

You’ve heard all about the new Common Core standards. Turn to page 35 to see a sample question. Post your answers on our Facebook page — we’ll see who’s still got their 4th grade math skills!

12 518 LIFE

After back surgery elsewhere, this patient didn’t expect more pain than he went in with.

Unfortunately he ended up with a condition known as “failed back syndrome” which made walking a challenge and running impossible. Our spine specialists suggested a minimally invasive procedure. After a brief recovery period he quickly reached his goal of walking pain free and was soon on his way to reaching his next goal—running his first 5K.

New patient appointments available within 24 hours (518) 439-4326 CapitalRegionNeurosurgery.com 1220 New Scotland Road, Slingerlands, NY

Capital Region Special Surgery offers personalized extended payment programs for patients who are challenged by high deductibles and out-of-network fees.

At 43, when he was left immobile by back pain, he asked us to help him walk.

Instead, we helped him run.

Editor’s Note

It’s All a Game O

ur kids spent much of their youths in a one-screen household. Yes, we had one TV and no games.

Not surprisingly they spent every second they could visiting other friends’ homes whose parents were clearly cooler (read: pro-video games).

We tried to lessen the constant din of begging for PlayStation, Xbox, whatever, by letting them have Gameboys and owning games like Super Mario. You can imagine how well that worked.

Fast forward to our middle son’s 14th summer, during which he was hit by a car while biking and broke his leg just days into sum-

mer vacation. My husband reacted to the horror of almost losing him by packing him into the car — walker and all — and going to buy a mega-TV. My boss brought over his PlayStation for us to borrow — and the rest is history. I realized video games are not the devil incarnate and we went on to own each iteration of these boxes over time.

We still only have one TV, but it’s really a moot point with the various screens that are now just part of everyone’s lives. As for my granddaughter, I buy her apps for my iPad all the time. It’s educational, you know.

JANET REYNOLDS jreynolds@timesunion.com

Three things you’ll learn in this issue: 1. Gaming can help improve concentration and reading and writing skills. 2. The following servings count as one drink: 12 oz. beer, 5 oz. table wine, or 1.5 oz shot of 80 proof liquor. 3. Among developed countries, America ranked 19th in reading and 23rd in math in 2013.

With our compliments to be used on any Single Service $60 or more.

Valid 4/27/14 through 5/23/14 CONSIDERATIONS

- This is not a gift certificate.

- You will need to present this voucher at the time of your service.

- You may only use one voucher during this promotion.

- If you forget the voucher on the day of your service, you will be responsible for full payment.

- This voucher is valid for the value specified and expires on the date shown above.

- We recommend you schedule your appointment well in advance, and please arrive on time.

- You may not redeem this voucher for cash or products.

- Total amount must be used on the day of service. Left over balance will not be carried or refunded.

- This voucher cannot be used for gratuity OR to purchase gift certificates.

TRENDING #518 Neighborhood Watch

Gamblers’ Paradise

How safe is your town?

2013 Victims of Violent Crime (per 1,000 residents) 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Crimes Per Square Mile

in 105............... Schenectady in 106............... Troy in 122............... Albany in 377............... Cohoes in 396............... Watervliet in 1,034............. Saratoga Sprgs in 1,974............. Delmar in 1,299............. Colonie in 2,129............. Latham in 2,244............. East Greenbush in 2,428............. Clifton Park

COMPILED BY BRIANNA SNYDER

314....................... Schenectady 253....................... Troy 235....................... Albany 80........................ Cohoes 67........................ Colonie 39........................ Latham 33........................ East Greenbush 25........................ Saratoga Sprgs 11........................ Clifton Park

It’s a longshot (for now), but Republican Sen. John Bonacic (R-Mount Hope) wants to legalize, license and tax Internet gambling, according to the Times Union.

Bonacic’s proposal would allow New York to license 10 operators of virtual poker games, and those operators would pay $10 million in licensing fees and taxes — or 15 percent of their gross revenues. This comes at a time when developers are trying to secure licenses to build casinos around the area, the details of which are in the earliest stages of development.

Figures courtesy of neighborhoodscout.com

Meet Me in the Capital Region

SARATOGA SPRINGS 29 32

4 67

87

67

CLIFTON PARK SCHENECTADY 7

7

890

COHOES

5 7

90 90

COLONIE

LATHAM TROY 9

20

787

4

ALBANY 90

87

EAST GREENBUSH

Just a Few Syllables Here’s a bit of local genius: Someone’s writing haiku while riding the CDTA. Some of it’s profane and most all of it is funny. Like:

“Love your sarcasm/Show up on time next time bro/Five minutes early” “Obey the no food rule/Not having a bus snack’s cool/Said no one ever.”

Only in the 518, right? Check out more at twitter.com/CDTAhaikus 16 518 LIFE

B

ored? Looking for new friends? You’ve probably come across Meetup.com, a place for local hobbyists and aficionados of any niche or esoteric item to schedule events and get-togethers.

One of the most popular Meetup groups, for instance, is Hiking Mates of the Capital Region with 2,253 members. You can find mountain and terrain climbing trips hosted frequently, as well as trivia nights if that’s

your thing. Capital Beer Enthusiasts go on brewery tours, bar nights, and sampling events.

Capital Region Photography has over 700 members.

And let’s not forget bronies, aka dudes who love “My Little Pony.” Yes, there’s a meetup for you, too. Bronies of Albany get together for all things “My Little Pony” — including the “My Little Pony” conference, BronyCon — in Baltimore this year in August.

— Genevieve Scarano

Gambling photo: Godfried Edelman/GettyImages. Bronies, © flickr/kimsworldofart.

A few Bronies at BronyCon 2013

32

THE REGION’S

GLENS FALLS

LIFELINE Albany Med: Expert Care in Your Community.

Albany Medical Center specialists are seeing patients in your neighborhood, bringing our unparalleled level of expertise close to you.

Visit www.amc.edu/closertoyou for more information about our community locations.

GREENWICH

WILTON

MALTA

SARATOGA SPRINGS MALTA CLIFTON PARK

LATHAM TROY

ALBANY

NORTH GREENBUSH

DELMAR

VALATIE

WEST COXSACKIE

SAUGERTIES

KINGSTON

s we wait to see if the Time WarnerComcast Cable merger happens (Gov. Andrew Cuomo has proposed legislation that would give cable regulators more power, which would make the mega-merger tougher to pass in New York), we found this data about the service industries who suffer the most abuse from customers. (But we can’t say they don’t deserve it.)

Housing contractors 1:90 Cable providers 1:123 Auto Repair 1:144 Tow Truck 1:159 Locksmith 1:192 Storage 1:214 Pest Control 1:215 Heating & Cooling 1:215 House Cleaning – 218

Chefs hate to see on a dinner order: 5) “Glutenfree risotto.”

4) “Please make sure nothing on the plate is touching anything else.”

3) “Calamari, but tubes only, no tentacles,” or “Chicken wings, but drummettes only, no wings.”

Lawn Care 1:271 Carpet Cleaning 1:275 Plumbing 1:334 Home Buying 1:411 Auto Dealers 1:870 Flowers 1:1,110 Property Management 1:1,390

Ever been standing at the vending machine, trying to make a good choice — as if one were even possible to make? Here’s some (maybe) good news: Let’s Pizza is a new vending-machine service that cooks a pizza for you in less than 3 minutes. Following in the footsteps of the failed burrito vending machine (duh!) and the cupcake ATMs, we’ve got mixed expectations for Let’s Pizza. But that doesn’t mean we’d turn one down if it shows up in the Capital Region. They’re in the UK now and expanding “internationally,” according to a press release, so, hey, it could happen. Right?

2) Mix-andmatch creation of an entrée, i.e., “I want chicken, but with the sauce from the pork dish and the sides from the salmon entrée.”

1) Beef or tuna requested well done — Steve Barnes

Hotels 1:1,486 Senior Living 1:1,742 Veterinary 1:2,634

See more at: tinyurl.com/518customerservice

18 518 LIFE

THINGS

There are few things everybody can agree on. One such thing is the selling of ivory, which is notoriously taken from the tusks of elephants.

According to the Wildlife Conservation Society, African elephants are on the brink of extinction thanks to ivory hunting: 96 elephants are killed every day. A recent poll found that more than 80 percent of New York voters favor a permanent state ban on ivory — that includes ivory found in antiques and other rarities.

A

Satellite TV providers 1:82 conversations

&

5

Felony Ivory

The Merger

What’s that Dot?

M

aybe you haven’t noticed them or maybe you have. Those red, circular stickers on the glass doors of various local businesses.

Sometimes you’ll notice two or three of them all over the door. Sometimes they’re not red but black.

“Those are so people don’t run into the glass,” says an employee of City Glass. You can get the red dots at most glass shops in the area. They come on a big roll. And sometimes people come in to get them for their patio doors.

Do we really need big red

dots on our doors? Aren’t we already walking through the door, so we’re anticipating there’s a door there? Does the Capital Region really have such a hard time walking through doors?

“You’d be surprised,” the employee says.

Photos: GettyImages. Elephant, Daniel Pupius; Pizza, Jennifer Borton.

TRENDING #518

2 IN3 women WHO DIE FROM A

HEART ATTACK

DONâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T RECOGNIZE

THE SYMPTOMS Heart disease can often be prevented or treated if detected early with a simple screening.

TAKE CARE OF THE WOMAN YOU LOVE Give her the Cardiacure gift card. Only $25. Exclusively from Ellis Medicine.

ellismedicine.org

Gift card available online or at these convenient locations:

WHERE & WHEN #518 Do this

See this

Make your way over to the Vanguard’s 34th annual designer showhouse in Loudonville. This year’s house consists of 24 different units, decorated

by Vanguard’s 20 different designers and artists.

All money raised by this project goes to fund the Grammy Award-winning Albany Symphony Orchestra. Not bad, right?

We know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking, “I love Troy! I love Troy so much, I wish someone would make a musical about it.” Ah! Have we got something for you.

Don’t Iron While the Strike is Hot! is a new musical about a young Irish immigrant named Kate Mullany. The show is set right in Troy, and follows Mullany’s organization of a strike against the Collar Laundry Union in Troy in 1864.

Mullany has no money, power or influence, but

VANGUARD SHOWHOUSE, through May 19, 6 Schuyler Road, Loudonville, vanguard-aso.org

Listen to Neko Case’s “The Pharaohs.”

Trust us.

COMPILED BY BRIANNA SNYDER

her determination and charisma persuade 300 women to walk off of their jobs one February morning and demand better wages and working conditions. (We won’t give away how it ends.) But here’s a neat fact: The Collar Laundry Union was the first Women’s Labor Union in the country, and the musical honors that, while also parading in famous Troy personalities such as Emma Willard and Uncle Sam. The show is produced by The American Labor Studies Center in Troy.

DON’T IRON WHILE THE STRIKE IS HOT! premieres May 14 and 15 (10:30 a.m. & 7:30 p.m.) at The Bush Memorial Auditorium on the Russell Sage Campus in Troy.

Hear this Neko Case is best known for her solo career as a singer-songwriter, but she’s also collaborated with Canadian indie-pop heroes the New Pornographers. She started out as an alt-country music-maker but she’s since made a slight shift to a more indie rock/Americana, fem-folk sound.

Case’s most recent record, The Worse Things Get, the Harder I Fight, the Harder I Fight, the More I Love You, came out last year to high acclaim.

(Check it out on Spotify. Never heard her before?

We recommend “The Pharaohs” as a good introductory track.)

NEKO CASE, May 7, the Egg, Albany, theegg.org

Curious about the history of Watervliet? Get edified at virtual.shakerheritage.org, which provides a full virtual tour of the city’s history, architecture, photos, people and events. The idea is to educate people about everything around them as well as about the first Shaker settlement in America, which was, of course, in Watervliet.

SHAKER HERITAGE, virtual.shakerheritage.org

20 518 LIFE

Photos: Neko Case, Amy Sussman/GettyImages; Shaker Heritage, Virtual Grounds Interactive, LLC.

 Click this

T N E V E E C N A I L P P A & TV

$

Serrvic ce Dis scou unt ANY SERVICE

With this coupon at point of purchase.

Now thru 5/30/14 .

Does not apply to prior sales.

NC A P P L IA

ME ES · HO

O N IC S ELECTR

FRE EE Local De elive ery y ANY TV or APPLIANCE OVER $299 With this coupon at point of purchase.

Now thru 5/30/14 .

Does not apply to prior sales.

NC A P P L IA

CTR ME ELE ES · HO

O N IC S

FREE

ASK ABOUT OUR 3 YEAR PARTS & LABOR APPLIANCE PROTECTION PLAN* *FREE 3 Year Parts & Labor Appliance Protection Plan from date of purchase/delivery. Excludes TVs and microwaves. See store for full details.

Rated A+ by

STORE HOURS: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 10-8 • Wednesday 10-6 · Saturday 10-5 · Sunday 12-4 158 Railroad Avenue, Colonie (Behind Target at old Northway Mall) 453-6100

WHERE & WHEN #518 Learn this Hang out with teacher, chef and artist Ellie Markovitch (of storycooking.com) at the Arts Center in Troy to learn about farms, food, and photography.

Presented by both the Arts Center and the Agricultural Stewardship Association, this class will be a tour through the Howard Stoner’s Urban Farm in Troy and then on to the Community Garden Produce Project. Final stop is the Troy Farmers Market, where Markovitch will teach participants how to take great photos of food, light and colors.

The tour ends back at the Arts Center kitchen, where class members will prepare a perfect farmto-table lunch with what everyone picked up on the tour. After that classmates will critique and workshop each other’s food and photography.

 Dig this

 Run this

The gorgeously soulful John Legend is coming to Schenectady this month, which is a pretty special treat. This is a raw, unplugged tour, which Legend describes as “intimate” — believable because he’s playing at the cozy Proctors theater. Tickets are pretty affordable too — starting at $25.

Saratoga’s got a lot of racing options, we’ve noticed. Here’s one we’re into: the SPAC Rock & Run. This is a family-friendly 1K kids run, 5K walk/run and 10K run that starts and finishes at SPAC. Different bands and musicians play tunes along the route to keep racers pumped. The end is a big party: magicians, a bounce house, face painting, balloon animals, and food.

JOHN LEGEND, May 16, Proctors, Schenectady, proctors.org

SPAC ROCK & RUN, May 18, 9 a.m., Saratoga Performing Arts Center, Saratoga, spac.org 22 518 LIFE

Photo: Saratoga Rock & Run, Times Union Archive; John Legend, Photo by Paul A. Hebert/Invision/AP).

FARMS, FOOD AND PHOTOGRAPHY FOR ADULTS, May 3, Arts Center, Troy

Don’t ask why we’re so low - Ask why they’re so high

WE LOVE TREES. But sometimes a tree must be removed due to poor health, threat to safety, poor aesthetics, or incorrect size for the space.

MARKS TREE SERVICE can remove a tree efficiently and safely, no matter the size or location.

30+ Years of Experience

Senior and Off Season Specials!

See markstrees.com

SAME DAY SERVICE AND EMERGENCY SERVICE AVAILABLE

• TREE REMOVAL • TREE TRIMMING

10% OFF ANY SERVICE

• BARK MULCH Don’t ask why we’re so low - Ask why they’re so high

• FULLY INSURED • FREE ESTIMATES

With this coupon. Expires 5/31/14. Must present coupon at time of estimate. Does not include firewood.

ALBANY • 518.489.1196

www.markstrees.com

FYI with

Curran Streett

Executive director of the Pride Center of the Capital Region

BY BRIANNA SNYDER | PHOTO BY COLLEEN INGERTO

A

s executive director of the Pride Fred Phelps comes to mind. He’s almost Center of the Capital Region, dead! [Ed. note: Fred Phelps died within Curran Streett works passionate- a week of this conversation.] It’s actually ly on behalf of the LGBTQ com- been really interesting. I’ve seen all over munity, and has since she was a teenager. Facebook things like, “I’m not going to stoop to his level and say anything bad She’s traveled all over the country working in queer and social activism and HIV pre- about him.” It’s good. Which talent would vention for recovering addicts, the home- you most like to have? Teleporting. Does it less and those who’ve spent time in prison. have to be a realistic talent? What’s your Streett and her partner have a 2-year-old current state of mind? Hungry. Other than that I would say kind of reflective. My daughter and two dogs.

How did you get started in social activ- Monday mornings are like my planning/ ism? It’s hard to find a point of origin. I’ve strategy time. What do you consider your always been passionate about helping oth- greatest achievement? I would say my family and having such a great and super people. One of my mom’s good friends portive partner and a creative and loving was fleeing a violent home situation and kid. What’s the hardest thing about they moved in with us when I motherhood? The sleep deprivawas in third grade. I think that Want to bug tion. How do you stay spiritually was an incredible lesson for me.

Curran Streett healthy? I don’t know. I take a lot After that experience — I rememin an email? of time for myself. I cook a lot. ber I was probably 10 or 11 — I Use too many What do you like to cook? A lot of asked my family if we could stop exclamation different things. I’ve been learning giving Christmas presents to each points. the kind of further reaches of my other and instead donate what we crockpot capacity, so, making a would’ve given to each other to people in need. When did you come out? lot of soup. My most recent success was a chicken coconut cilantro soup. It was reI came out as a lesbian to myself when I was 13. I had a girlfriend in high school. ally, really good. What website sucks up I came out to my parents when I was 19 most of your time? Pinterest. Who’s your not knowing how they would handle it. favorite hero of fiction? Hm. Can we come How did they handle it? Pretty well. It’s a back to that one? Sure. What do you most challenging experience on both sides be- value in your friends? Humor and compascause there is no handbook on parenting sion. Do you have a favorite bumper sticker? No. I can’t say that I do. My partner in general but if you’re not prepared for that news you never know what you’re goand I have a competition, though. I just ing to say or what kind of impact that’s got a new car and because I park on Lark going to make. But since then my parents Street, it gets dinged up. So we have this have been my biggest champions and very deal that he can’t put any bumper sticksupportive of me. What is your idea of perers on it if I don’t ding it up. What’s your fect happiness? My idea of perfect hapfavorite breed of dog? I’d say black labs. piness. Perfect happiness. That’s tough. I It’s what I grew up with. I have two dachswould say being in a place in life where hunds now. What are their names? Bean you have a level of confidence and supand Turner. What are you doing this sumport and self determination. Yeah, that’s mer? Planning Pride! Can we go back to tough. Three records you’d take to a desthe hero-of-fiction one? Yeah! So who’s ert island? I would say Stevie Wonder, your favorite hero of fiction? Atticus Finch the Cure and, hm, I don’t know, let’s see. is one. How come? He had a strong moral Neko Case. What living person do you compass and was not afraid to stand up to most despise? That’s contentious. Man. injustice.

24 518 LIFE

GIFT CERTIFICATE In The Amount Of: Expiration Date: Redeem:

10% Off Your Total Purchase!

June 30, 2014

Comfortex Factory Outlet - 9C Johnson Rd. - Latham, NY 12110

Cer tificate can not be used in conjunc tion with any other offers, or prior purchases. *Cer tificate must be presented at time of purchase*

Comfortex Factory Outlet

783-0778 www.comfortexfactoryoutlet.com

9C Johnson Road â&#x20AC;˘ Latham Monday - Wednesday 10am-6pm, Thursday 10am-8pm, Friday & Saturday 10am-4pm

In Other Words

BY AKUM NORDER

Different dangers, same old

ANSWERS

AKUM NORDER Akum Norder is an Albany writer.

T

he ANSWERS plant was a stateowned trash incinerator that provided power to heat and cool the Empire State Plaza. When it opened in the early 1980s, ANSWERS — it stood for Albany New York Solid Waste to Energy Recovery System — was billed as a way for state government to save money while producing income for the city, which sold trash to the state. The incinerator was in Albany’s Sheridan Hollow, with its smokestacks at the level of the Arbor Hill neighborhood.

Don’t worry, city and state officials said.

This is going to be perfectly safe.

As the years passed, they kept assuring neighbors the incinerator posed no risks, even as residents endured soot-blackened cars, odors and asthma.

They kept assuring residents as outside experts studied the plant’s data and warned that its dioxin, nickel and chromium emissions posed a danger. Though the Department of Environmental Conservation commissioner called dioxin levels “acceptable,” an environmental organization found that out of all the facilities they studied, Albany’s incinerator had the highest dioxin and lead emissions.

One waste-to-energy expert who had visited dozens of similar sites said, “Albany is the worst plant I’ve seen in the world.”

In the late 1980s, tests of ANSWERS ash found it to contain levels of lead and cadmium that exceeded federal toxicity levels. Albany started disposing of the ash in sealed landfill pits. Yet incinerator neighbors spoke of regularly seeing ash spill onto their streets from open-bedded trucks carrying it to the dump.

No risks, officials said.

Then, in January 1994, a heavy sootfall darkened the snow across downtown Albany, including the grounds of the governor’s mansion. Suddenly, it was the city’s problem, not Arbor Hill’s problem. The trash incinerator

26 518 LIFE

was shut down within weeks.

When residents asked the state to pay for blood tests, soil sampling and topsoil removal, some officials balked. Lead in your vegetable garden? Oh, that could be from peeling paint.

They questioned the value of running more dioxin tests. Neighborhood and environmental groups launched lawsuits. ANSWERS ended in 1998 with a $1.4 million settlement.

Industrial projects carry risks. Often those risks fall more heavily on lower-income and minority communities. And when it comes

dirtier, carries an even greater pollution risk and requires different cleanup procedures in the event of the spill.

The Bakken crude they’re handling now presents its own serious concerns. After a series of accidents — including last summer’s deadly explosion in Quebec — federal officials warned that Bakken may be more flammable than traditional heavy crude. Most crude oil is shipped in tank cars that aren’t suited to carry flammable materials. And as more oil travels by rail, the amount spilled has skyrocketed.

There will always be different interpretations of data, different ideas of acceptable risk. to health, safety and the environment, we’ve heard enough to know that people with a stake in a project are probably not our best source of information.

A

nd that brings me to the Port of Albany.

Albany has quietly, rapidly become an important hub of crude oil transportation.

More than two billion gallons a year come into Albany by rail from the Bakken fields of North Dakota.

One of the companies involved in the oil business at the port, Global Partners, wants to add facilities there for heating crude. So far, the company has been vague about exactly what it’s going to be handling and what its plans are in case something goes wrong. And that should worry the hell out of us.

The company has said the heating facility will give it the flexibility to handle different types of products. Does this include crude bitumen extracted from tar sands? That’s something Global hasn’t confirmed or denied. But it’s something Albany deserves to know, because crude from tar sands is different from conventional crude. It’s heavier and

The rail cars that carry this Bakken crude to the Port of Albany idle near homes. They pass down the middle of 787.

There will always be different interpretations of data, different ideas of acceptable risk. The communities that are asked to shoulder those risks deserve to know what they are and what steps are being taken to contain them.

Crude oil operations at the Port of Albany must be put to a full environmental review.

The DEC should have done that in the first place. But that’s just the start: Safety protocols need updating; inadequate tank cars must come offline.

This isn’t solely a South End issue, or an Albany issue: Tanker trains pass through many Capital Region communities on their way to the port. Beyond that, these problems are part of the larger conversation about our energy future and what risks we’re willing to suffer for it.

We’ve been here before, and we’ve learned enough to demand answers and action. June 2 is the end of a DEC public comment period.

Make sure the oil industry and the government know we are watching.

Stay Connected INTRODUCING AUDIBEL A3i ™

®

The Made for iPhone Hearing Aid.

Audibel A3i™ hearing aids connect directly to the iPhone®, iPad® and iPod touch® via our TruLink™ Hearing Control app. Together A3i and TruLink deliver the most personalized hearing experience ever and are designed to: • Stream calls from your iPhone directly to your hearing aids using Bluetooth® 4.0 wireless technology • Deliver pristine sound and exceptional listening clarity • Help you hear comfortably in noise • Eliminate buzzing and whistling • Stream FaceTime®, music and more directly to your hearing aids

Please call immediately to schedule your FREE Hearing Screening and Consultation of the new Made for iPhone Hearing Instruments!

FREE

• Hearing screening & consultation • Clean & check of your current hearing aids • In-Office demonstration

Try the Made for iPhone Hearing Aid for 45-Days!*

Call today to schedule your appointment.

Space is limited.

Call your local office now.

ALBANY (518) 708-6123 www.albanyhearingaids.com

COBLESKILL (518) 868-7322 www.cobleskillhearingaids.com

AMSTERDAM (518) 620-4267 www.amsterdamhearingaids.com

$500 OFF

a premium pair of hearing instrumentsts

Expires May 30, 2014

TM

TROY (518) 618-4226 www.troyhearingaids.com

HUDSON (518) 291-4198 www.hearforyou.info

ROTTERDAM (518) 631-4188 www.schenectadyhearingaids.com

Coupons cannot be combined and are not valid BALLSTON SPA on past sales. Restrictions apply.

(518) 618-4805 www.ballstonspahearingaids.com

Visit our websites to learn more about us! Like us on Facebook....Follow us on Twitter!

*45 Day Satiscation Guarantee - Full refund within 45 days of purchase if not fully satisfied.

Not a medical exam and only for the purpose of amplification © 2013 Audibel. All Rights Reserved.

12/13 NPAD2684-00-EE-AB A3i and TruLink are compatible with iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5, iPhone 4s, iPad Air, iPad (4th generation), iPad mini with Retina display, iPad mini, and iPod touch (5th generation). “Made for iPod,” “Made for iPhone,” and “Made for iPad” mean that an electronic accessory has been designed to connect specifically to iPod, iPhone, or iPad, respectively, and has been certified by the developer to meet Apple performance standards. Apple is not responsible for the operation of this device or its compliance with safety and regulatory standards. Please note that the use of this accessory with iPod, iPhone, or iPad may affect wireless performance. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and FaceTime are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc.

Walls, Malls & Sprawl I

n 1948, when Peter Platt was 8, his parents vacated a creaky, century-old rental apartment — his grandparents lived in the flat upstairs — on Pennsylvania Avenue in Albany and moved into a brand-new, pristine brick bungalow they had built to their specifications on Wolf Road.

At the time,Wolf Road was an unpaved country lane flanked by small family farms, sand dunes, a golf course and a rural way of life.

His favorite boyhood locale was a pond between the third and fourth holes of Colonie Country Club — the site of Colonie Center today — where he and his buddies swam, fished for bullhead and dove for golf balls they retrieved and sold for a quarter.

Platt lived at 40 Wolf Road and worked at the family business, Platt’s Dairy, a dairy

28 518 LIFE

Why we moved from cities in the first place store and ice cream shop located adjacent to their house. Life was slower and simpler, marked by the rhythms of the growing season, of dawn-to-dusk toil during the vegetable harvest and cutting loose at Friday-night barn dances.

The American Dream, and the social landscape of the Capital Region, was shifting beneath Platt’s dusty boots. Upwardly mobile couples turned away in the 1950s from densely packed apartments, railroad flats and two-family houses. They sought refuge from what was perceived as a crowded, noisy, grimy, crime-ridden cityscape. They moved out to big, open skies and untrammeled spaces with bucolic scenery. Veterans returning from World War II could begin afresh and newlyweds starting families could afford to buy a ranch house with a big, fenced yard, a

two-car garage to park V-8 gas guzzlers with extravagant fins and chrome and shiny appliances that would make their lives easier within spacious, modern kitchens.

Suburbia — what Kenneth Jackson in his Crabgrass Frontier calls “the quintessential physical achievement of the United States” — was born.

This was no random social movement, but rather these “Keynesian suburbs” were products of social engineering and government policy, according to David Lewis, associate professor of geography and planning at the University at Albany who specializes in regional planning. “The suburbs developed here and across the country due to a combination of economics and the public policy behind it,” Lewis says. “It was fueled by millions of veterans returning home after World War

Photos from the Times Union archives. Suburbs illustration by Emily Jahn.

BY PAUL GRONDAHL

The Exodus to the Suburbs

Colonie Shopping Center under construction, 1965

II, and the GI Bill that gave them enough money for an education and federal loans to buy a house.”

Simultaneously, the 1956 Federal Aid Highway Act invested billions of dollars in a federal highway system that accelerated automobile mobility following periods of railroad and trolley line development. The federal government also began backing mortgage loans in the suburbs because they seemed a safe bet with the promise of increasing property values. It was a concerted government effort to get people out of cities perceived as dirty and dangerous and out into the new, homogeneous suburbs.

Suburbanization was also economically exclusive and tinged with racism and so-called “white flight,” notes Ray Bromley, professor of geography and planning at UAlbany, who studies the city-suburban dynamic. “From the 1950s onward, a suburban home became the American Dream and a mass phenomenon,” he says. “They were overwhelmingly white, middle-class couples with children and two cars. It was an automobile culture and very stereotypical.”

These were complicated sociological and demographic shifts writ large and locally. It was an Ozzie and Harriet version of the good life with broad appeal. State employees packed into Albany’s downtown apartments or General Electric factory workers renting downstairs flats in two-family houses or textile workers crowded into Troy rowhouses started moving into new subdivisions in the so-called “inner ring suburbs” including Colonie, Bethlehem, Guilderland and Niskayuna. The boom occurred in the 1950s. For instance, the population of Colonie jumped from 29,522 in 1950 to 52,760 between 1950 and 1960, Bethlehem rose from 13,065 to 18,936 and Guilderland more than doubled from 7,284 to 16,710 during that same decade.

Rocky Ferraro, executive director of the Capital District Regional Planning Commission, cites three major drivers of suburban migration: transportation, sewer systems and water lines. “The inner ring suburbs had explosive growth in the 1950s because those towns made the necessary public investment to create the infrastructure required for expansion,” he says. This first wave of suburbanization, located in close proximity to

Albany, Schenectady and Troy, also included Glenville, Rotterdam, East Greenbush, North Greenbush and New Scotland.

The Baby Boom generation — 76.4 million “baby boomers” were born in the U.S. between 1946 and 1964, or almost 40 percent of the nation’s population — was another key factor. Growing families wanted larger houses and cheap, plentiful land was available to develop in the inner ring suburbs, transforming what had been family farms in the late-19th and early-20th centuries into tract housing and suburban subdivisions.

T

he Platts, a family of five, were prototypical strivers of the emerging middle class.

“My parents’ dream was to get out of the two-family flat and to own a home of their own. That was the American Dream and it still is,” says Platt, 73, a retired chairman of the Colonie Planning Board. His dad had a milk delivery route in the city and he scrimped and saved and bought several acres at $800 per acre in 1937 on Wolf Road. It took another 11 years before they could afford to build a house on the land, the epicenter and geographical heart of the Capital Region’s suburbanization. Wolf Road became known as “The Miracle Mile” and became the most prosperous commercial strip in four counties.

Platt witnessed “the Big Bang for Wolf Road,” Interstate 87, known as the Adirondack Northway, which opened in phases between 1957 and 1967. The busiest Albany to Clifton Park section opened in 1960.

“I’d come home on college breaks, cut through the woods and see how much further they’d gone on the Northway construction,” recalls Platt, who graduated from Georgetown University in 1961. “I knew it was going to change everything.”

The Northway was a game-changer and it lit the fuse of suburban sprawl that soon spread north into Saratoga County during the second wave of development along the Northway corridor.

“When we heard the golf course sold for $20,000 an acre in 1963 to make way for Colonie Center, we knew the boom had arrived,” says Platt, whose family catered to changing tastes by closing Platt’s Dairy and opening in 1970 Platt’s Place, a popular delicatessen.

Colonie Center opened in 1966, the region’s first enclosed shopping mall. It replaced Colonie Country Club and erased Platt’s boyhood playground.

The flip side of Colonie’s boom was the de-

The population of Colonie jumped from 29,522 in 1950 to 52,760 between 1950 and 1960, Bethlehem rose from 13,065 to 18,936 and Guilderland more than doubled from 7,284 to 16,710 during that same decade.

100k

10k

50k

Scale

29,522

SCHENECTADY

TROY

COLONIE

GUILDERLAND ALBANY BETHLEHEM

1950

134,995

52,760

SCHENECTADY

COLONIE

TROY

GUILDERLAND ALBANY BETHLEHEM

1960

129,726

81,591 SCHENECTADY

COLONIE

TROY

GUILDERLAND ALBANY BETHLEHEM

2010

97,856

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 29

Road workers at Veeder Elementary School, 1967.

cline of Albany, which fell from a population of 134,995 in 1950 to 115,781 in 1970. The cities of Troy and Schenectady suffered similar fates as the suburbs boomed.

It was a double-edged sword. The Platts were victims of the transportation progress that benefited their family business. The state seized some of their acreage for construction of the Northway and the incessant buzz of traffic caused them in 1969 to move their brick bungalow with heavy equipment several blocks away, to Alfred Drive, a quiet side street off Sand Creek Road. Platt and his late wife, Jean, who also grew up along Wolf Road, raised five children in the house and he still lives there, 45 years after a large crane set it into place. The Platts’ deli closed in 1999 and they leased the property to Buca di Beppo, a chain restaurant.

Meanwhile, in 1971, John Scherer moved to Clifton Park at the peak of construction of Robert Van Patten’s transformative subdivisions. Van Patten was a radio repairman for Sears, Roebuck & Co. who bought a Mobil gas station on the corner of Brandywine and State streets in Schenectady in the 1940s and in the late-1950s started a salvage business that included building demolition. The selfmade Van Patten branched out in 1959 by breaking ground on his and Clifton Park’s first residential development, Country Club Acres, a 40-house tract near the intersection of Route 146 and Blue Barns Road. He

30 518 LIFE

honed an assembly-line construction method, increased the size of his crews and in 1961 started his first major development, Clifton Knolls. Land was selling for just $350 and he convinced four families to sell large farms.

The sandy soil was conducive to fast, mass construction and since land was so cheap the developer could still reap a handsome profit despite the costs of installing roads, sewer and water. Homeowners could choose between 3- or 4-bedroom ranches, a raised ranch or a Colonial style and the houses were selling in the $22,000 to $29,000 range.

There were no blueprints or plans and the house styles were named after their framing foremen: “Hanks” for Hank Graves and “Stans” for Stan Marrick. They were set back from the road on treed lots — Van Patten prided himself on not bulldozing mature trees — and two-car garages. Every house was finished in white aluminum siding. He used so much siding that Van Patten started a side business in the mid-1960s to fabricate his own. It was unabashed cookie-cutter design and they sold as fast as Van Patten could throw them up.

He advertised his developments as “superb wooded settings where piney woodlands, clean air and spacious homes make gracious living a habit.”

“There were no written contracts to purchase a Van Patten home, only a $100 deposit and a handshake,” says Scherer, who has been

Clifton Park’s town historian since 1978 and also is a senior historian emeritus of the State Museum. If the buyer was not satisfied with the finished house, the deal was canceled and the deposit funded. Similarly, if Van Patten developed a beef with the buyer, he would refuse to sell the house.

By the time Van Patten died in 1990 at 71, he had built more than 3,500 homes and 1,000 apartments: the vast tracts of Clifton Knolls, Country Knolls, Country Knolls South, Country Knolls West and the Northway Eleven Apartments. A gleaming white monument in Jonesville Rural Cemetery proclaims him “the Father of Clifton Park.”

In his influential 1961 book, The City in History, sociologist and critic Lewis Mumford wrote that the endgame of suburbanization is “a multitude of uniform, unidentifiable houses, lined up inflexibly, at uniform distances, on uniform roads, in a treeless communal waste, inhabited by people of the same class, the same income, the same age group, witnessing the same television performances, eating the same tasteless prefabricated foods, from the same freezers, conforming in every outward and inward respect to a common mold, manufactured in the central metropolis.”

The majority of homeowners in the Capital Region and beyond did not share Mumford’s repulsion. The suburbs in this region grew and grew unabated in the 1950s, ’60s and

and now lives in Washington County, tapped into the cultural zeitgeist with his anti-sprawl screed, The Geography of Nowhere, published in 1993. He wrote that suburbia was “depressing, brutal, ugly, unhealthy, and spiritually degrading — the jive-plastic commuter tract home wastelands, the Potemkin village shopping plazas with their vast parking lagoons, the Lego-block hotel complexes ... the particle-board garden apartments rising up in every meadow and cornfield, the freeway loops around every big and little city with their clusters of discount merchandise marts, the whole destrucut after 1980, large social patterns began tive, wasteful, toxic, agoraphobiato change across the nation and around inducing spectacle that politicians the Capital Region. “The suburban model beproudly call ‘growth.’” gan breaking down in this region,” Bromley While Kunstler’s extremist view says. “The demographics were changing and might have put a sharper point on the cities became more like suburbs and the the gradual turn away from the suburbs became more like cities, so that we suburbs, the rush-hour traffic jams had a polycentric development pattern where along the Northway between Alall the space between Saratoga Springs and bany and Clifton Park — nothing as horrenDelmar began to fill in and it became one dous as the Long Island Expressway or the continuous suburb.”

Beltway around Washington, D.C. — became The amorphous evolution of development a low-grade irritation and one more affront patterns could be seen in a struggle for idento the suburban quality of life. By 2013, betity and shifting names for the area between tween 125,000 and 150,000 motorists each the mid-1950s and the mid-1990s: Tri-Cities, day traveled the Northway over the Mohawk Capitaland, Capital District, Capital Region River and the Twin Bridges, the boundary and the marketing and branding designation between Albany and Saratoga counties, and Tech Valley. bumper-to-bumper traffic became the new James Howard Kunstler, a local writer normal for morning and evening commuters. who spent many years in Saratoga Springs But there were broader social trends at work, beginning with a sharp rise in the numbers of Baby By 2013, between 125,000 and 150,000 motorists each day traveled the Northway over Boomers who morphed into Empty-Nesters, their chilthe Mohawk River & the Twin Bridges, the dren grown and long gone from four-bedroom Coloboundary between Albany & Saratoga counties nials on one-half acre lots with vast swaths of lawns and expansive gardens that required costly and time-consuming maintenance. The other side of the coin was the boom of the Millennial generation, with roughly 77 million Americans born between 1980 and 2000 — a massive population bulge nearly identical in size to the Baby Boom.

The Millennials were also shaped by a big wave of immigration and Construction on the Twin Bridges October, 1959

’70s — by percentage increases in the high double-digit and low triple-digit range — a slightly less dramatic decrease in population for the three cities. A big push from cities to suburbs during these decades was the decline of quality in city school districts and huge investments in suburban school districts that began posting much better test scores and graduation rates.

The tipping point occurred in 1980 when roughly 40 percent of the U.S. population, or about 100 million Americans, lived in the suburbs, which for the first time had a higher percentage of residents living there than central cities or rural areas.

B

Aerial view of Route 9. Date Unknown

greater ethnic diversity, including twice as many people of Hispanic origin as the Baby Boomers, 19 percent compared to 10 percent.

It is largely the Empty-Nesters and the Millennials who are fueling a documented, statistically significant shift: a slowing of the rate of growth in the suburbs and the first population gain for Albany, Schenectady and Troy since the 1950s.

Census figures showed that between 2000 and 2010, Albany grew by 2.3 percent (after dropping by 27.5 percent five previous decades), Troy increased by 2 percent (after a 30.7 percent drop) and Schenectady gained by 7 percent (after a 27.9 percent drop).

History is cyclical and the Capital Region appears to be experiencing the maxing out of suburbanization. Traffic congestion, rising commute times, high gas prices, prohibitive property taxes, a desire for a walkable community and being close to cultural attractions are also cited as factors in addition to demographics.

“The question is are they going to stay?”

Ferraro asks. “The quality of public education and public safety are the keys to urban living.

If the Millennials get married, have children and their children reach school age, will they repeat the cycle of Baby Boomers and move back out to the suburbs?”

Stay tuned. The answer should become apparent at the conclusion of another 50-year cycle.

Read about Saratoga’s History 

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 31

What About the Spa City?

BY PAUL GRONDAHL

S

aratoga Springs is in a category by itself as the only city in all of New York state that had population increases in each of the five decades between 1950 and 2000.

It is a hybrid that features several desirable elements: a picturesque Main Street urban core; a walkable, vibrant downtown with a lively mix of restaurants, bars and boutique shops; a well-preserved Victorian housing stock; and a summer tourist destination with a famous thoroughbred horse racing meet and national acts at the Saratoga Performing Construction on SPAC, 1963 Arts Center.

It is also the fastest-growfor Saratoga Associates and he credits that downing city in the state, with 31.5 percent growth town firm of landscape architects, engineers and from 1970 to 2000. Its boom period came in planners as being in the vanguard of the city’s the 1960s, when population grew from 16,630 resurgence. “It had the basic infrastructure and in 1960 to 19,906 in 1970. That coincided with 15,000 people lived within walking distance of construction of Interstate-87, or the Adirondack downtown, so that was a terrific base to build Northway, which was built in stages and reached upon,” he says. “The business community, the Saratoga Springs by the mid-1960s. citizens and city government all came together to Saratoga’s populace has grown steadily since save downtown. There were some government 1950 — minus the boom of our suburbs and preservation grants, but mostly it was the private bust of our cities — to a population of 26,586 in sector who stepped up. Slowly, this grassroots ef2010, based on Census figures. fort began to turn Saratoga around.”

Saratoga Springs is a bedroom community In terms of downtown development, Borneof sorts, but its demographic and development mann says the renaissance came in the 1980s, trends differ dramatically both from Capital Rewith an influx of new stores, restaurants and gion cities (Albany, Schenectady, Troy) and its small professional offices followed by a boom traditional Northway corridor Saratoga County in condominium construction for empty-nesters suburbs (Clifton Park, Halfmoon, Ballston, Maland weekenders that got started in the midta, Wilton). This unique development pattern can 1990s and continues to grow. be attributed to the Spa City’s rich history. It was The number of jobs in the city is growing, but a 19th-century tourist draw for its therapeutic a majority of residents still commute to jobs outmineral waters and as a gambling mecca for New side Saratoga, Bornemann says. He adds that the York City high-rollers who bet on the horses at city managed to preserve its small, compact urSaratoga Race Course in the afternoon and at the ban core, with some suburban-like development gaming tables of Canfield Casino after dark. in the outlying areas and a ring of green space But there was a time when the Gilded Age surrounding it. downtown had gathered rust and Saratoga had When Tillman Nechtman, a Skidmore College not yet reinvented itself as an urban success professor, and his wife, an attorney, moved to story and the Capital Region’s crown jewel. “I the area from Los Angeles eight years ago, they came to live here in 1970 and it was a pretty bought a house that is a converted 19th-century depressed place, much like other upstate cities. tavern just over the city line in Wilton. He has Half the downtown storefronts were vacant and a seven-minute drive to campus and she has a there were a lot of boarded-up buildings,” recalls 45-minute commute to downtown Albany.

Geoffrey Bornemann, the city’s planner from “If we thought more rationally or understood 1985 until his retirement in 2006. the center of gravity of the region when we Bornemann worked as a planner in the 1970s

32 518 LIFE

first arrived, we may have ended up living in Albany, but we love Saratoga,” says Nechtman, associate professor and chair of Skidmore’s history department. He didn’t mind leaving behind his 90-minute commute in LA. His wife has made peace with her 90 minutes in the car each workday and only complains about her commute in inclement weather.

The couple has two young children and his academic flexibility allows him to pick them up from preschool, but the family also travels frequently to Albany.

“We have a lot of friends in Albany and we use that 45-minute Northway space as our living space and that’s only possible because of the Northway,” Nechtman says. “We’re different than my Skidmore colleagues, who tend to have a gravitational pull to Saratoga.”

He praises city leaders and planners for encouraging development that blends in with the 19th-century architecture and does not detract from its Victorian charm. “It’s a 21st-century planned community that preserves a 19th-century urban space. It gives one the sense of living in an appealing resort town,” Nechtman says. “I tell my new Skidmore colleagues when they arrive that it’s a small town done well.”

Long-term prosperity breeds prohibitive housing prices, though, and newly elected Mayor Joanne Yepsen says she heard repeatedly during the campaign from residents who said they were being priced out of a city where the residential sweet spot downtown has become an $850,000 condo.

“I am very concerned about affordability and we’re working on that issue. We need a wider range of prices in housing options,” Yepsen says.

But she does not intend to fix what’s not broken and for the third straight seven-year comprehensive plan, the city will continue its “city in the country” theme. Yepsen will look to bolster “a balanced package” of an appealing downtown core with a strong mix of shops, restaurants, nightlife amid attractive architecture, as well as the track and SPAC. “We want to continue to build on the successes we’ve had over the past couple of decades,” the mayor says.

Design your kitchen.

Customize your savings.

Purchase select Jenn-Air appliances and receive up to ®

4,498

$

in combines savings*

Offers Valid January 1–June 30, 2014 *See Store for offer details and qualified models. Offers only valid at participating Jenn-Air brand retailers in the U.S.A. No substitutions allowed. Your Purchase, Your Reward Terms: Customer will receive an instant credit at the register for the retail price of the free appliance model(s) with qualified purchases. Free appliances do not qualify for Fire & Ice promotion. Upgrade available on select models; consumer pays the difference between the retail price of the free appliance and upgraded appliance. All products must be purchased on a single receipt. ARV of Dishwashers, $1,378. ARV of Trash Compactors, $1,149. ARV of Microwaves, $760. ARV of Warming Drawers, $1,399. ARV of Ventilation, $1,802. ARV of Built-In Refrigerator Panels, $1,299. ARV of Undercounter Refrigeration, $1,866. Pro Handles are not included and may be purchased separately. Retailer alone determines the actual resale and advertised price. Fire & Ice Terms: See Rebate Form for complete details and qualified models. Offer not valid for Your Purchase, Your Reward free appliances. Rebate in the form of a Jenn-Air brand MasterCard® Prepaid Card by mail. Cards are issued by Citibank, N.A. pursuant to a license from MasterCard International Incorporated. MasterCard is a registered trademark of MasterCard International Incorporated. Cards will not have cash access and can be used everywhere MasterCard debit cards are accepted. ®/™ ©2014 Jenn-Air. All rights reserved. To learn more about the entire Jenn-Air brand line, please visit jennair.com. NCP-15816

Receive up to a

600

$

MasterCard® Prepaid Card by mail with qualified purchase*

Fire&Ice

FREE APPLIANCES

valued at up to $3,898 when you purchase select appliances*

YOUR PURCHASE

YOUR REWARD

John D.

MARCELLA

& Sons Appliances & Electronics

“We do try harder to please!”

560 Broadway • Schenectady • 518-381-1957 • www.marcellasappliance.com • Mon.-Fri. 9-8; Sat. 9-5; Sun. 12-4

BY BRIANNA SNYDER

The

W

Solution*

hen the Common Core standards were introduced in 2009, most New York progressive parents and educators supported the education initiative. But in the 2012-2013 school year, when the new Common Corebacked curriculum started to roll out and test scores fell dramatically, things changed.

Teachers are outraged. Parents are confused.

Students are stressed. Nobody’s happy.

* Hint: It’s the resources

34 518 LIFE

Photo: Rob Lewine/GettyImages.

S

The objection to Common Core, however, is o why did the New York State United Teachers (NYSUT) union — threefold: the standards have been inapprowhich represents 600,000 teachers priately implemented; a universal, one-sizeand accounts for 15 percent of na- fits-all approach to teaching is impossible to achieve; and without adequate resources, any tional teacher union membership — suddenly standard — no matter how high or low — turn on the initiative it once supported? One can’t be enforced without support. big reason: School resources have never been Which explains, in part, why NYSUT so scarce, making this fast implementation called for a moratorium on Approved Proabsurdly difficult.

Carl Korn, chief press officer for NYSUT, fessional Performance Review (APPR) evaluputs it this way: “It’s like building a plane in ations. That moratorium didn’t make it into the budget on April 1, though Gov. Cuomo mid-air.” says his administration is still considering it.

If you’re not totally sure what the Common Core is, here’s a quick primer: Over the last What did pass was a two-year delay on the decade, American students consistently have impact of student test scores on their permalagged far behind their global peers in math nent transcripts.

And, in a post-budget dust-up as we went and language skills. In the developed world, America ranks 19th in reading, as of 2013, to press, NYSUT ousted its president Richard Iannuzzi and elected Karen Magee (NYSUT’s and 29th in math.

So in 2009, Barack Obama iniBy the old standards, in 2012, about 55.1 percent tiated Race to the Top, which awards of 3rd through 8th graders met or exceeded money to the states baseline proficiency in English and writing. whose students are achieving at the first woman president). Magee has been highest levels and whose curriculums are harshly critical of the Common Core reforms meeting the new Common Core standards, a compendium of baseline requirements, based and in her election speech she promised to strengthen the union against unfair treatment on age and grade, that dictate what students of teachers. “My ultimate goal is to make should learn before they graduate from one grade to the next. Those guidelines were sure teachers are respected again as professionals and that NYSUT is respected again as drafted by a committee of educators, policymakers and experts, and since they came out, the great labor organization it is,” she told the Journal News.

45 states have adopted the Common Core “This all came to a head in August 2013,” (though Indiana has backed out) and some have been awarded money from Race to the Korn says. “The students were tested in April and the scores came out in August and the Top. (New York got $700 million in 2010.)

That sounds like a lot of money, but it students’ test scores dropped by more than 30 hasn’t been enough to adequately prepare or points on average.”

That set off a panic chain reaction: Stusupport teachers and schools, who were already lacking in support to begin with. The dents stressed because their performances had declined, which in turn freaked out parents result is stressed students who are confused because they’re unfamiliar with the material, and many teachers whose APPR scores fell based on their students’ lower scores. teachers who don’t know how to teach it to By the old standards, in 2012, about 55.1 them, parents who are overwhelmed by new percent of 3rd through 8th graders met or homework they don’t understand and, to top it all off, the first round of testing on Com- exceeded baseline proficiency in English and writing. In 2013, just 31.1 percent met or exmon Core struck just eight months after it ceeded Common Core baseline proficiency in rolled out. that same category. For math, in 2012, 64.8 Carl Korn, of NYSUT, likened the new percent met or exceeded the old standards; in standards to this kind of exchange: “Did you study Russian in school?” “No.” “Well, 2013, 31 percent met or exceeded Common you’re going to have a Russian test tomor- Core standards.

“There were kids bursting into tears, getting row.” That’s what’s happening with a lot of physically sick,” Korn says. “They were horrithese kids, he says. bly stressed. Kids want to please their parents Every teacher and parent we talked to is in support of higher education standards. and teachers. But then they’re given this test

Here’s an example of a fourth-grade Common Core math problem.

Candy wants to buy herself a new bicycle that costs $240.

Candy has already saved $32, but she needs to make a plan so she can save the rest of the money she needs.

She decides to save the same amount of money, x dollars, each month for the next four months.

Part A: Write an equation that helps Candy determine the amount of money she must save each month.

Equation:

Part B: Solve the equation to find the amount of money she must save each month to meet her goal of buying a bicycle.

Show your work.

Answer: $_____

Do you know how to answer this question? Snap a picture of your work and show it to us on Facebook!

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 35

May is filled with excitement Mother’s Day First Communion Graduation COME SHOP WHERE STYLE MATTERS, FASHION FLATTERS, AND THE EXCITEMENT IS DOOR TO DOOR. FOLLOW OUR SIDEWALKS AND YOU’LL DISCOVER 62 SENSATIONAL SPOTS TO SHOP AND DINE. SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

ON WESTERN AVENUE WHERE THE NORTHWAY BEGINS.

follow us on: and our E-newsletter@stuyvesantplaza.com

in Russian. So what happened is their scores plummeted.”

Board of Regents Chancellor Merryl H. Tisch says things aren’t as bleak as they look. She says the reason the Common Core implementation was so rocky was because parents and teachers didn’t fully understand what these newer, lower scores meant.

So when Johnny came home with a lower test score and placement at a level 2 — when he’d previously been testing at a higher level 3 — Johnny’s parents panicked. That’s not a big deal, she says. If you make school harder, kids are going to fall behind a bit before catching up.

Tisch adds that teachers needn’t worry about their APPR evaluations. Of a 100-point system, she says, just 20 points are based on student test scores. The other 80 points take into consideration all other aspects of that teacher’s performance. After the 2013 APPRs, only 1 percent of teachers “were deemed ineffective,” Tisch says.

The state has also delayed the Common Core Regents exams to address the learning curve. So this year’s 9th graders are taking the old Regents exams, but by the time 4th graders now get to 9th grade in five years, they’ll take the Common Core Regents.

If timing is everything, the Common Core — widely thought to be a benevolent force in a troubled education system — is suffering from jet lag.

“Common Core was introduced at a time of layoffs and cuts in professional development and programs,” Korn says.

“What you have here is a perfect storm of layoffs and cutbacks and lack of resources.”

He says 70 percent of New York school districts are operating now with less state aid than they had five years ago. And the Gap Elimination Adjustment, which Gov. David Patterson put in place in 2010 at the grave expense of New York schools, was

never lifted, holding a property tax cap firmly in place. That tax cap, Korn says, “is undermining the community’s ability to figure out how to fund schools. Investing money in education by eliminating the GEA and reinstating funding should be top priority for our politicians.”

Alicia Wein, a high school English teacher in Guilderland, has been teaching for 17 years.

She says Guilderland is a strong school district whose curriculum already meets or exceeds Common Core standards. She says the APPR reviews cast a shadow on her and her fellow teachers that “was very anxiety-provoking. I think Common Core didn’t get a fair shake because people were a little panicked about what the test was going to do.”

Wein worries about what she calls a “flattening effect” on the curriculum, particularly in schools already teaching above the new mandated standards.

For example, Wein’s department has a successful and strong writing program. The Common Core standards have dictated emphasis on critical thinking (and writing), and so “personal narrative is being de-emphasized.” That’s a big mistake, Wein says. “I’ve seen students use personal narrative to think critically, then to look outward and say, ‘Oh, and also I’m thinking about this world or global issue in relation to myself.’”

To build strong academic programs, teachers and students need to work intimately together, testing what works and what doesn’t with different kinds of learners. Common Core, though well-intentioned and aspirational, is new and stringent enough to have teachers teaching only with an eye toward test preparation, which Wein sees as a short-term solution to a long-term endeavor.

“Teachers feel like, ‘I better get a good score,’ and they make quick decisions and not always

Sidebar illustration by Emily Jahn.

ALL STUDENTS

74.0%

35.3%

American Indian

58.5%

18.8%

Asian/Pacific Islander

81.6%

56.5%

Black

58.1%

12.5%

Hispanic

57.8%

15.7%

White

85.7%

48.5%

English Language Learners

34.3%

7.3%

Students with Disabilities

44.7%

4.9%

for the benefit of the students in the long run,” she says. A good curriculum “takes collaboration, but takes tremendous time and resources.

When already scarce resources are funneled toward test prep instead of thoughtful shifts in the curriculum and reflective practice, it’s hard to see how real improvement will occur.” She acknowledges, too, that the freedom to collaborate and workshop is allowable by certain socioeconomic privilege. Other, less-resourced districts will have bigger problems.

One Albany teacher — who would only speak anonymously — spoke emotionally about the way Common Core is agitating her students. “[My class] saw Common Core material for less than one year,” she says. “And I’m telling you I felt like I was abusing the children.

You can’t do that to kids. They felt demoralized. The math I’m teaching them is so abstract they cry every day. Two kids out of my class of 20 passed the test. When my scores came back, for my APPR I got zero because my kids failed.”

Another teacher, in Rensselaer County, also asked to stay anonymous. She works with kids with special needs. “My 65 students, many of whom are special education students with a variety of diverse needs and skill deficits, are so different,” she writes in an email. “I have a couple of students who are on the [autism] spectrum, one who is doing high school work, one whose parent is in

Percent of students graduating collegeand career- ready (defined as scoring at least 75 on Regents English and 80 on a Math Regents, which correlates with success in first-year college courses)

2012

(Old standards)

2013

Percentage of students in grades 3-8 statewide meeting or exceeding the proficiency standards in English language arts (ELA) and math.

(Common Core) 64.8% 55.1%

31.0%

31.1%

Source: NYSED Office of Information and Reporting Services

jail, another whose parents don’t make him go to school, and a handful who don’t come bathed or with supplies, to say nothing of the many who don’t do homework teachers assign. Many are still reading at an elementary — even low elementary — level. ... Yet I am supposed to get all of these students to show growth on a handful of skills, all shown on one test on three days. The results of those hours of testing are supposed to represent all the many days and sweat and tears that students and I have put in.”

In other words, as long as poorer, urban school districts lack funding and support, students there will continue to underperform, no matter how high the standards are raised, and teachers’ careers will suffer as a result of something they can’t control.

Nor is the Core just an issue in urban schools. Nichole McBride, a mother of two in Schoharie, is a pediatric occupational therapist. She says she and her husband — middle-class, educated people — struggle to help their 4th-grade son with his math homework.

One day he came home with homework on something called “math disks.” “[My husband] and I have master’s degrees,” she says. “We’re intelligent people. We go on engageNY.org [the informational and support site for parents, students and teachers] and say, ‘OK, let’s figure out what these numbers are.’ And between the two of us we still couldn’t figure it out well enough to de-

Math

under current requirements

ELA

High school graduation rate

Source: EngageNY.org

scribe or explain it to my son.”

That’s another frustrating aspect of the new standards. It’s not just that the work is tougher; it’s that it’s very different from what most of us grew up with. Students no longer memorize multiplication tables. Instead, they “show their work” — a criterium emphasized repeatedly throughout the Common Core — by diagramming out their process in a way that shows the teacher they don’t just know the answer, they know how to perform the action that gets you the answer. (See sidebar on page 35.)

That’s stressful for a 4th grader who, in 3rd grade, memorized the multiplication tables and now, when multiplying 9 by 9 can’t just write “81,” but must draw nine circles nine times.

“We haven’t been given by the district any vocabulary to talk about how to do this work,” McBride says.

For a parent like McBride, who’s educated and socioeconomically secure, this work is challenging. So what about the parent who maybe didn’t graduate high school, works two jobs and can’t help her daughter with her new, confusing homework?

“Without the resources, the standards aren’t going to happen,” Alicia Wein says.

“Just telling me to jump higher to clear a bar is not enough. I need the support. I need the resources. I need the rest and the food and the energy to make this thing live. Just having the standards in place is not enough.”

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 37

Game On

Why your kids should play video games

BY RACHEL FISKE

T

our tablet (as evidenced by the shrillness of her screams when we tell her it’s time to stop), neither her dad nor I feels as if gaming is irrelevant to her development in this tech-based world she’s growing up in.

The problem — for us, anyway — has been that that’s where our parental gaming strategy has stayed: based on a feeling. Not anymore, though.

It turns out that gaming, in fact, does teach kids valuable skills. And we’re not just talking hand-eye coordination — though that definitely gets beefed up. We’re talking practical, social, real-world skills… a.k.a. all the skills my partner and I worry most about our daughter not developing when she’s hanging out in screen land.

Not convinced? Consider this: According to the American Heart Association journal Stroke, playing a videogame called Stroke Hero for just 15 minutes improved a test group of children’s ability to recognize and respond appropriately to stroke by 33 percent — and the more kids played it, the better they got at recognizing the more subtle symptoms of stroke, such as uneven balance. Importantly, of the test group of roughly 200 children, 97 percent reported thinking the game was fun — and everyone learns well when they’re having fun. It’s like brownies that secretly have broccoli in them — I will always eat my vegetables if they’re hidden inside something way more fun to eat. 

Photo: paul kline/GettyImages.

his was the extent of my childhood gaming: Crystal Quest on our tiny Macintosh computer (so much plastic box and so little screen), and Tetris and Zelda on the original Game Boy. Part of this limited gaming experience was the result of when I grew up (hey there, 1980s and ’90s), but another part of it came from the fact that I had parents who were adamantly anti-screentime. What good were all of our toys and books and the big yard behind our house if my brothers and I just kept our noses pressed against screens, after all? Add into this mix the fact that gaming was pretty decidedly not marketed toward girls at this point, and most of my interest in playing stemmed from denying my brother access to something he wanted to do more than my own actual interest in whatever was going on on the screen (although I will whoop you in Crystal Quest to this day, and that’s a promise).

Flash forward to today. I’m partnered with a man who has, at various points in our relationship, had a dedicated gaming night each week — and together we’re raising a 4-yearold in the land of smartphones and tablets and PlayStations and Xboxes. It’s such a far cry from my own childhood — both in terms of the panoply of options and the prevalence of gaming opportunities — that it can be almost dizzying. And while some days we accidentally let our daughter spend a bit too much time with her Nabi or doing puzzles on

38 518 LIFE

STOP CLEANING YOUR GUTTERS! CHANGE THIS TO THIS Instant Rebate

$

END GUTTER CLEANING ONCE AND FOR ALL!

300 OFF

Your Gutter Pro Order!

End this dangerous and costly problem forever.

Now...you can give yourself and your home a new lease on life. NO MORE CLIMBING LADDERS. No more water spilling over and ruining your walls, soffit & fascia.

Senior Citizen’s Discount 0% FINANCING

Protect Your Home With The Most ADVANCED GUTTER SYSTEM AVAILABLE

FREE ESTIMATES

Call for a FREE DVD

Custom-Installed By FACTORY-TRAINED GUTTER PRO PROFESSIONALS

SEAMLESS GUTTER & SUPPLY CO. Installing Seamless Gutters At The Lowest Prices Since 1985

518-464-4705 | 1-800-886-5883

|

Visit us at www.GutterProNY.com

According to Dr. Steven Fox, Ph.D., the following guidelines are useful for helping children develop healthy relationships with gaming: n One hour per day of screen time is the baseline — for younger children it may be less and for teenagers a bit more. It also depends on the nature of the screen time (alone vs. social, educational/prosocial vs. violent/aggressive).

Most kids probably aren’t playing games like Stroke Hero at home, though, and depending on their age, they’re much more likely to be engaged with platforms that prominently feature items such as slingshots, fast cars, and imaginary lands. If you think that these sorts of pursuits are a waste of time, though, Dr. David Seelow, founding director of the Center for Game and Simulation Based Learning at Excelsior College in Albany, would encourage you to reconsider your position.

It is worth noting that Seelow has three English degrees and, in addition to his post at the Center for Games and Simulation Based Learning, is also director of writing programs and the Online Writing Lab at Excelsior. In other words, he is a person who places a premium on books and communication — the antithesis of the vidiot we all worry our children can become if they follow the wrong course with gaming. And in case you’re worried that Seelow has his head stuck in the lofty clouds of academia and, as such, is out of touch with the practical realities of children, rest assured that he used to work in public schools and was a social worker for middle and early high school students for 10 years.

R

emember how 97 percent of the kids who played Stroke Hero thought it was fun?

Well here’s Seelow’s take on what this can look like in a classroom setting. “Students in 8th grade who are reading at a 5th grade level — if they’re given an afterschool program with reading material oriented toward the games they play in their leisure time — actually read above grade level. Based on being interested in the material, they’ll spend a lot more time trying to figure out the language. And the same is true for writing. Students who write below grade level in the classroom, will write extensively about their favorite games — and intelligently, with detail and description.”

One way to understand the educational value of gaming, then, is to recognize it as an in to help young people develop traditional academic skills, particularly when these skills are lacking. Instead of refusing the idea that there’s room for gaming in the classroom, it

40 518 LIFE

n Gaming should not be a default, but rather a treat. Parents should encourage play and other activities and place gaming in the context of all possible activities, not the go-to option. n Parents should monitor which games are played and know their child — some children have lower tolerances for some of the aspects of gaming than others. Gaming should also not be the babysitter or a way for the child to be quiet, as that may inhibit development of the child’s own ways to regulate emotion.

n Warning signs that parents can look for that signal their child may be developing an unhealthy relationship with gaming include appearing driven to play games (sneaking time, not accepting limits, expressing no other interests) or appearing unable separate the game from reality. n If you suspect your child has an unhealthy relationship with gaming, seek professional help.

Psychologists are able to gauge whether the relationship is unhealthy and provide ways to ameliorate the situation should that be the case.

The Benefits of Gaming group games can help foster cooperation

games with multiple levels can teach perseverance and patience

can help socially awkward children share an experience with someone via game-playing

can help improve reading and writing skills

Photo: PLAINVIEW/GettyImages.

How Much Is Too Much?

improved hand/ eye coordination

might be more helpful to think of ways to update the classroom experience by recognizing gaming’s popularity.

Seelow raises another particularly interesting point. “Games are much more learnercentered than the traditional public school classroom — way less top-down as a method for teaching, and more discovery based,” he says. He then drew comparisons to the Montessori method of letting students explore and learn through the unfurling of their interests. It makes sense that if our kids are spending their leisure time in virtual spaces that allow them to take the lead in their own learning — be it figuring out the basics of a game, helming the design of an online world, or mentoring another player — that shifting gears to a classroom dynamic where they are increasingly encouraged to stay on a narrow course (got to pass those standardized tests) and forced to spend most of their time just taking notes would be pretty unappealing.

But what about social skills and creativ-

ity? Video games aren’t exactly the mindnumbing, isolation-inducing vortex touted by some parents and naysayers. In fact, they can be places for kids who otherwise might struggle socially and creatively to bloom.

“Today most kids are either meeting up with friends and playing a console game with each other, or they’re playing online, in which case they have this amazing opportunity to play with kids all over the world,” Seelow says. “And then there are games like World of Warcraft, where kids are organized into clans and have to cooperate in order to move forward, so it teaches teamwork and communication extremely well. In some of these games completing a quest requires months of intricate planning.” Working together for months? Some days my partner and I can barely coordinate dinner.

S

eelow isn’t alone in his recognition of gaming as social and creative. Dr. Steven E. Fox, Ph.D., a licensed psychologist who practices in

Our Facebook Readers Weigh In Confession: Sometimes I don’t tell other parents the truth about how much we let our daughter play screen-based games because I’m worried they’ll think I’m a bad mom. But when I turned to Facebook to see what other folks do about gaming and their kids, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that though the parents who are adamantly against gaming sometimes scream the loudest, they’re not necessarily in the majority.

“I am not strict on time limits, but I do deny time as a punishment. I also only allow PG/ friendly themed/educational games ... no violence whatsoever,” writes Aarin D, mother to three children under the age of 10.

Lauri S, who isn’t a parent herself but has played video games since she was about 5, offers her own proof of the potential positive impact of video games. “I’ve been inspired to create art, write, and play music as a result of my experience with games (I taught myself to play the piano because of Silent Hill and Final Fantasy),” she writes. “I consider them to be an integral part of who I’ve become.”

Phew. Not only are we not alone in letting our child game, but who knows what sorts of other pursuits she’ll be inspired to try because of their virtual experiences?

Gaming is here to stay. Perhaps instead of resisting this development, it’s time we embrace it so we can figure out how to best use it — our kids certainly have.

Latham and Valatie, also identifies the potential for benefits from gaming. Speaking analogously he says, “There are some games that are akin to board games in that they promote healthy competition, teamwork, problem solving, and time together.”

Which isn’t to say that there aren’t risks in gaming, too. Just as much as kids can learn to think creatively and solve problems and work together, gaming can also cause, as Fox puts it, “desensitization to violence, sex, and profanity.” In other words if gaming is a means of learning, then it is important for us as parents and educators to be thoughtful about the content involved in that learning process. Just as much as gaming can teach children a sense of competence and stick-to-itiveness (anyone can beat a video game if they try hard enough and don’t give up), the end results of those lessons are equally important. Do I want my daughter to feel as if she can figure out any puzzle she puts her mind to? Absolutely. Do I want her to feel like the best pimp in town? Not so much. In gaming — as with all media — content matters.

Great Educational Games FOR OLDER KIDS:

Citizen Science Based on the real Lake Mendota in Wisconsin, this game teaches kids about environmentalism, community needs, ecology, and problem solving. gameslearningsociety.org/games.php

Food Force Designed by the United Nations, this game teaches strategic planning, resource management, networking, and more while exposing kids to real world problems and donating money to the UN’S World Food Programme. download-freegames.com/ freeware_games/ food_force.htm BrainPOP.com A website filled with educational games covering everything from RNA and photosynthesis to geometry to art concepts.

FOR YOUNGER KIDS: BrainPOP jr.com Just like BrainPOP except for the kindergarten through third grade crowd.

ABCmouse.com Geared toward kids as young as three, this website teaches reading, math, and more using puzzles, games, songs, books, and art.

Springtime Lake on the

Special

Accommodations, Breakfast and Sweeping Lake Views

Getaways From $239* OTESAGA.COM | 800-348-6222

*Per room, per night, based on availability. Excludes applicable sales taxes. Offer valid midweek only (Sunday – Thursday) from April 24 through May 29, 2014. Weekend rates available.

A rendering of what the house will look like when it’s finished this month.

A

s soon as Brett Balzer, an architect and partner at Balzer + Tuck Architecture, heard about an old 19thcentury barn on two acres of property out in Saratoga Springs, he jumped in his car and headed over to see it.

Balzer and his wife, who lived in East Greenbush, were looking for a home in Saratoga Springs so that Balzer could be closer to his office. He sent a picture of the barn to his wife. “I put ‘our new house?’ in the subject line and she wrote back ‘Only if you want to live alone,’” Balzer says, laughing.

“I’ve always been drawn to the aesthetic of a barn,” Balzer continues. “It’s a simple building with simple lines.” When he saw that this barn’s wood was in mostly good shape — considering the structure was almost 150 years old — he knew what he wanted to do.

“That was the key decision on moving forward with everything — knowing we had a lot to work with,” Balzer says. So, working with Bill Moreau, of Moreau Associates, and Jim Sweet, who specializes in dismantling old barns and salvaging and re-erecting them, the

42 518 LIFE

five-bay barn came down. Then they rebuilt it, farther back on the property, converting it into a house and a carriage house.

You can see the new home — which features the old timber from the barn prominently throughout, with gorgeous sturdy beams crossing through the living room — this year in the Parade of Homes. This is the first rehabilitated home by an architect that’s ever been featured in the annual event. (See page 45 for the official Parade of Homes guide.)

Balzer aimed for New York State Energy Resource and Development Authority (NYSERDA) Energy Star certification on this home, which he already had a leg up on because he’d built it with salvaged materials. He also super-insulated the whole house. “It’s a fairly tight envelope in that we have a closed-cell spray foam in the walls and the whole house is wrapped in a layer of 1-inch rigid insulation,” he says. The reason for that is when you’re inside the house and look up you can see the original barn ceiling, or, actually, the roof.

So they had to insulate on the outside using “SIPS,” a structured insulated panel system.

Barn   





    

       

 

Old wood makes a new house BY BRIANNA SNYDER

 



   



 

Re-raising the

   



 

    

   



   

 

    

   

   

 



   

  

   

 

 

 

   

Oreck upright vacuums start at about 9 pounds so you can easily take them all over the house. But they also generate 102 mph airflow, giving you the power you need to clean up whatever you find when you get there. And they’re backed by our reputation for dependability and our Oreck Clean Home Centers, so you’ll be saying...

Barn photos by Dania Bagyi Photography.

This old barn, built around 1880, before it was razed and its wood salvaged.

That kind of insulation provides a “tight envelope,” one of the criteria for Energy Star certification. The other criteria concern an efficient HVAC system and house orientation (is it facing the sun and using its heat?).

Balzer and his wife also tapped Elizabeth Tanny of E.Tanny Interiors to help them design the house. (By the way, Balzer’s wife “has come full circle” on the home and has been active in the process.) The family’s two daughters will have lofted bedrooms — each equally sized to the inch — separated by a movable barn door, which they were very excited for, Balzer says.

“Knowing that there’s only so many of these old barns left,” Balzer says, “you felt like you had to keep it there.”

HANNAFORD PLAZA WOLF RD. ALBANY • 446.0250 www.oreckstore.com/albany

ENHANCE YOUR CURB APPEAL, invest with us!

FAT TRANSFER Nature’s Filler

Get 2-for-1

Get rid of the fat you want to LOSE, then put it where YOU choose.

Face • Breasts Buttocks • Hands Experience is the key to good results.

Dr. Capek has been performing fat grafting for 14 years!

Visit us on Facebook or our website. capekplasticsurgery.com • 518-786-1700

• Garden/Landscape Restoration, Installation & Maintenance • Tree & Shrub Pruning • Seasonal Bed Cleanups & Fertilization

CERTIFIED MASTER GARDENERS

THE PLANT KEEPER, LLC 1-855-404-2733 www.theplantkeeper.com

Plastic Surgery • Laser Center Skin Care & Aesthetics 713 Troy-Schenectady Rd., Latham NY

email: plantkeeper@nycap.rr.com Your Plants Will Thank You! Serving the Capital District Since 1999

What’s the truth?

The truth is: It’s too costly to have a checking account at a bank!

We have low fees and convenient access through free online banking and thousands of free ATMs and shared branches!

Call (518) 783-2211 to switch and save!

20 Wade Road, Latham, NY 12110 www.communityresource.coop

Federally insured by NCUA

OFFICIAL GUIDE 2014

MAY 31, JUNE 1, 7 & 8

WWW.CRBRA.COM

paradeofhomes

presented by

presented by

Trustco Bank

Mortgages Made Easy!

Low Cost, Great Rate No Points or Broker Fees Leave Branch with a Closing Date Quick and Easy Application Process

TRUSTCO BANK Your Home Town Bank R

www.TrustcoBank.com

518-377-3311

Please note: We reserve the right to alter or withdraw these products or certain features thereof without prior notification.

EQUAL HOUSING

LENDER

Member FDIC

Columbia CabinetWorks Distributor of Wood-Mode and Brookhaven

Fine Custom Made Cabinetry

visit our main showroom 235 North Greenbush Road N.Greenbush, NY 518-283-1700 www.ccabinet.com

presented by

Charlton

y r t e n i b a C a g e Om insist on it!

Don’t settle for less in your new home or renovation!

Halfmoon

Rotterdam

Come ind out why your neighbors have been our loyal customers for over 125 years!

• Complete Kitchens & Baths • Free Computerized Design • Cabinetry - Factory SemiCustom & Custom • Cabinet Hardware

• Countertops – Granite, Quartz, Corian, Laminate • Butcher Block • Vanities, Medicine Cabinets, Mirrors • Complete Plumbing, Heating & Cooling Supply

CHAS. G. BURCH Supply Co. 760 State Street, Schenectady (518) 346-1293 | www.cgbsupply.com

What’s Inside

50 52 54

Welcome to the Parade of Homes Schedule, Ticket Information & Sponsors Parade of Homes Map

Parade Entries 57 61 63 65 67 69 71 73 75 77 79 83

Amedore Homes, Inc. Balzer + Tuck Architecture BCI Construction, Inc. The Elms BCI Construction, Inc. Loudon House Belmonte Builders Carrow Real Estate Services, LLC Malone & Tate Builders, Inc. Malta Development Co., Inc. Polito Homes, LLC Saratoga Builders, LLC Burgoyne Estates Saratoga Builders, LLC 30 Smith Road Witt Construction, Inc.

presented by

Welcome

to the 2014 Spring Parade of Homes

You are invited to the Spring Parade of Homes being held the first two weekends in June. This popular event, presented by the Capital Region Builders & Remodelers Association, consists of twelve spectacular new homes designed and built by some of the region’s finest home builders, architects, interior designers, carpenters and other craftsman. You will find the latest trends and technology in home building as well as cultivate ideas for your new home and remodel project as your tour these homes valued from $200,000 to over $1,000,000.

CRBRA is proud to be making a generous donation to the local chapter of the American Cancer Society from ticket proceeds. Please join me in thanking the dedicated American Cancer Society volunteers that will greet you at each Parade Home and encourage you to cast your ballot as you will be judging each home you visit. The winners will be announced on June 15.

New this year: Langan Audi East will showcase a full range of vehicles from luxury to SUV to high-performance vehicles including the all new Audi A3. These amazing vehicles will match the lifestyle of each Parade Home-offering something for everyone. Enjoy the double tour this year and bring your auto enthusiast friends! Added value bonus, Hoffman Car Wash will provide vouchers for a free car wash with the purchase of each ticket when you vote.

Enjoy viewing these exquisitely designed and decorated homes for all lifestyles.

Special Gratitude and Appreciation for the experienced, committed and hard-working 2014 Parade of Homes Committee: Ed Gilligan, Chairperson-Curtis Lumber Takla Awad, Trustco Bank Jim Amsler, BCI Construction Jim Carpenter, Curtis Lumber Pam Dorwin, Dorwin Dawson Associates Jessica Doyle, Plum & Crimson Fine Interior Design Bob Glasser, Curtis Lumber Jason LaFountain, Royal Building Products Aileen Loy, Tralongo Realty Win Peck, LOGIX Geff Redick, Redbud Development Ken Sherman, HIG

Ed Gilligan

Annemarie Mitchell

Chairperson Parade of Homes

2014 CRBRA President

Denise Sieber, Frank Webb’s Bath Center Barbara Vincent, Security Plumbing & Heating Supply Frank Tralongo, Tralongo Builders Staff: Pam Krison, Executive Officer

We are proud to partner for the sixth year with the Parade of Homes.

The generosity of the CRBRA’s Parade of Homes donations has made a significant impact in our local community helping those who have been touched by cancer. Thank you to everyone participating and attending the 2014 Parade of Homes and for joining us as we strive to Finish the Fight. For more information visit cancer.org/fight 50 518 LIFE

DeeDee Enides, Director of Membership

Pick up a copy of the 2014 New Home Construction & Remodeling Resource Guide at any Parade Home for free. The Guide provides extensive cross-referenced listings of 300 building industry professionals and product sources.

presented by

Schedule & Ticket Information May 31, June 1, 7 & 8 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. daily Tickets: $20 per person (valid all four days) Tickets can be redeemed for a free Hoffman Car Wash ($10 value).

A donation from ticket sales will be presented to the local chapter of The American Cancer Society.

Tickets may be purchased after May 1st: · online at crbra.com · at 30 Trustco Bank locations in Saratoga County and the Capital Region. To locate a branch go to trustcobank.com · Curtis Lumber, 885 Route 67, Ballston Spa · or at the first Parade Home you visit.

Map & Directions: Individual directions to each home from I-87 The Northway are listed on each Builders Page in this Program Guide. However, to plan your own tour from house to house, use the interactive google map on crbra.com – click the Parade of Homes logo and find the map.

Tips: At most of the homes you will be asked to remove your shoes or put dirt-free booties over your shoes. We recommend that you wear shoes that are easy to remove or plan on wearing the booties. No photography, food or beverages will be allowed in the houses.

Sponsors Platinum

Gold

Media

Auto Dealership Sponsor

AUDI EAST

52 518 LIFE

Ticket Sponsor

Silver Sponsors Andersen Windows Boise Cascade Boston Cedar Capitol District Supply Frank Webb’s Bath Center Granite & Marble Works

International Built-In Systems Precision Glass & Aluminum Redbud Development Russin Lumber Towne TV

Bronze Sponsors

Awards Reception

BlueLinx Busch Products CertainTeed Insulation David-Louis Floor Covering Parksite Northeast Stairs Corp.

Crawford Door & Window Sales

COOL UNDER FIRE Hot button issues are flaring up in the construction world.

When the heat is on, TJI® joists with Flak Jacket™ protection offer the high-performance floor system you relied on for years with the fire-resistance ratings that the updated residential codes require.

TJI joists with Flak Jacket protection are the only I-joists in the industry that fights fire with a code accepted, factory applied fire-resistant shield. Protection and installation made easy. Contact your Weyerhaeuser representative to learn more.

TrusJoist.com/FlakJacket

1.888.453.8358

B U I L D I N G S U P P O R T™

presented by

Glens Falls

Parade of Homes Map 87

Saratoga Springs

Saratoga Builders

BCI Construction

Balzer + Tuck Architecture

Polito Homes Belmonte Builders

Witt Construction

Ballston Spa

Malta Development Amsterdam

87

90 890

Saratoga Builders

Schenectady Waterford

Amedore Homes

Malone & Tate Builders Latham

88

Troy

Loudonville Voorheesville

Wynantskill

Albany

90

Carrow Real Estate Services Delmar

54 518 LIFE

BCI Construction

87

East Greenbush

Not for the faint of home.

Siding Decking Trim & Mouldings Shake & Shingles Soffit Siding Accessories Shutters Mounts & Vents Columns

Homeowners are making passionate decisions and taking educated chances with their exteriors.

They’re taking the outside of their homes very personally and challenging building professionals to do the same.

Check out how we’re meeting that challenge at royalbuildingproducts.com. Or contact Zane Swanepoel at Zane.Swanepoel@royalbuildingproducts.com.

Exteriors

© 2014 Royal Building Products

ZOEener y solu ions inc.

All the Best in Alternative Energy • Security / Fire / Environmental Alarm Systems • Surveillance Systems • Access Control Systems • Home Theater / Sound Systems

SOLAR

Family Owned and Operated for over 40 years Providing Custom Installation & Quality Service to area homes and businesses.

WIND

14 Interstate Ave. Albany, NY 12205

ibsalbany.com (518)459-3993

Photovoltaic Hot Water Pool Heating Vertical Axis Turbines

GEOTHERMAL

Heating Cooling Hot Water

518-751-1025 www.zoeenergy.com www.zoegeothermal.com

BEGIN SPRING

T: 518.346.5647 115 Freemans Bridge Rd, Scotia precisionglassinc.com facebook.com/precisionglassinc

WITH A FRESH AND CLEAN NEW STYLE. Visit our showroom or call for a complimentary estimate on your custom closet or shower door!

Photo courtesy of Terrace Homebuilders

presented by

About this builder Methods are always changing but principles never do. With that philosophy George Amedore, Sr. laid the foundation for a company that eagerly seeks ways to deliver the best value, while adhering to the principles and integrity that sets us apart. We continue to build on that integrity, generation by generation.

Amedore Homes, Inc.

amedorehomes.com

518.456.1010

Canterbury Crossing, 1 Stacey Court, Latham 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1300 sq.ft. $235,900 base price

The CHESTNUT end-unit condominium is designed for ground floor living, offering a spacious living room, dining area and wellappointed chefs-style kitchen. The laundry room and linen closet are conveniently

located down the hall and easily accessible from both bedrooms. Enjoy the sumptuous master suite with dual closets and spacious master bath. The attached one car garage allows for private entry into the home.

Directions: From I-87 (Adirondack Northway) take Exit 7 east to Route 9 (Loudon Road).

Head north for about 1.2 miles, then turn right onto Preston Drive. Follow Preston Drive into the Canterbury Crossing community and turn left at the first roundabout.

• • • • • • • • • • •

Maintenance Free Living Rt. 9 Latham & Low Taxes North Colonie Schools Pella Windows & 9 Ft. Ceilings Spacious Covered Patio High Efficiency Gas Fireplace Tank-Less Hot Water Heater Luxury Hardwood Oak Flooring Lavish Ceramic Tile Chef-Style Kitchen Amedore Homes Quality Construction

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 57

Stickley Highlands Dining Table and Server with Mackintosh Chairs

DINING WITHOUT RESERVATIONS

Handcrafted furniture, lovingly made in the USA for over 100 yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;to last for generations.

151 Wolf Road, Albany 518.458.1846 Complimentary Interior Design Service stickleyaudi.com

Does your home fit your lifestyle?

Let us help you improve your home for the perfect fit.

Call for a consultation today.

additions I renovations I custom homes © Stock Studios Photography

P r o u d C R B R A M e m b e r a n d Pa r t i c i p a n t i n t h e 2 0 1 4 Pa r a d e o f H o m e s

518.377.0277 www.buildgci.com

built for your lifestyle.

Since 1991

468 broadway saratoga springs ny 518.580.8818

www.balzertuck.com

SAVE UP TO $1700 ——-————— ON ———————-

THE ULTIMATE COMFORT SYSTEM

SPRING 2014 REBATES MARCH 24, 2014—JUNE 13, 2014

1-844-APPOLO1 (277-6561)

SCHENECTADY WAPPINGERS FALLS VESTAL

presented by

About this builder Balzer + Tuck Architecture produces thoughtfully designed buildings of enduring quality and character, working to carefully craft a reputation for exceptional design and attentive service. Moreau Associates is an owner operated construction company with over 25 years experience specializing in custom residential homes, building restoration, historic preservation and renovations.

Balzer + Tuck Architecture

balzertuck.com

518.580.8818

139 Meadowbrook Road, Saratoga Springs 4 bedrooms, 3.5 baths 2900 sq.ft.

Builder: Moreau Associates • Constructed By Moreau Associates • Reclaimed Exposed Timber Frame • Interior Rolling Barn Doors • Custom Kitchen

By Teakwood Builders • Vaulted Reclaimed Wood Ceilings • Screened Porch With Fireplace • Custom Light Fixtures And Furniture • Lennox Heat Pump System • Demilec Spray Foam Insulation • Sips Panel Roof System

This project involved the careful dismantling and relocation of an 1880’s English threshing barn that previously existed on the property. The original barn has been reconstructed into both a new residence and detached two car carriage house which

respect the original historic farm building aesthetic while introducing contemporary detailing throughout. All materials from the original barn structure have been reused including the heavy timber frame, metal roofing, wood siding and wide plank flooring.

Directions: Take I-87 N to Exit. Turn left onto Union Ave (Route 9P). Travel .6 miles and make 2nd left onto Meadowbrook Road. Travel 1.5 miles, stone driveway will be on the left House is located 300 ft off Meadowbrook Road behind the treeline.

First Floor

Second Floor

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 61

The Ultimate in Beauty and Performance ◆ Natural Cedar texture look available in six classic styles: Triple 5" Straight Edge Perfection Shingles Double 7" Straight Edge Perfection Shingles Double 7" Staggered Perfection Shingles Double 7" Straight Edge Rough-Split Shakes Double 9" Staggered Rough-Split Shakes Double 6-1/4" Half-Round Shingles ◆ Use as whole-house siding, or a decorative accent ◆ Never needs painting, virtually maintenance free ◆ A wide variety of colors to choose from ◆ Coordinating trim and accessories for a finished appearance

99 RAILROAD AVE., ALBANY, NY 12205 (866) 320-3743 • FAX: (518) 454-0088 www.eriematerials.com

800-233-8990 • certainteed.com • http://blog.certainteed.com R O O F I N G • S I D I N G • T R I M • D EC K I N G • R A I L I N G • F E N C E GY P S U M • C E I L I N G S • I N S U L AT I O N

presented by

About this builder BCI Construction Inc. is a full service builder that is committed to providing customers with award winning quality and service in each project. From simple to complex projects BCI guides and works with the customer to achieve their project goals and exceed expectations. Integrity, Professionalism and attention to the smallest detail is the driving force every day at BCI Construction Inc.

BCI Construction, Inc.

theelmsatsaratoga.com

518.366.2495

The Elms at Saratoga, 4 Persimmon Place, Saratoga Springs 3+ bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 2868 sq.ft. $599,000 base price

The Elms at Saratoga offers quintessential Saratoga living. From the sidewalks with old fashioned lighting to the quaint front porches on our historic inspired homes, you will get the feel of stepping back into a more relaxed time. Enjoy everything from dining and shopping to parks and recre-

ation. The Elms is uniquely situated on the Historic West Side of town and is just a few minutes from all Saratoga has to offer. The Elms at Saratoga, where you’ll find distinctive urban living in a quiet neighborhood setting - live the best of both worlds.

Directions: I-87 North/South take exit 14. At the exit bear right onto Union Ave. At the end of Union go left onto Circular St heading to Broadway. Cross Broadway (now on West Circular St) and go 4 blocks and turn left onto Elm St. Persimmon Place will be on the right one block in.

• • • • • • • • • • • •

Quintessential Saratoga Living Stroll To Saratoga Attractions Sun Drenched Rooms Patio/Fire Pit For Entertaining Lifestyle Design Amenities Cottage Style Unique Interior Designed For Entertaining Open Floor Plan Concept Fabulous Galley Kitchen Luxurious Master Suite/Bath Veranda Style Front Porch

First Floor

Second Floor

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 63

presented by

About this builder BCI Construction began as a very modest company in 1993 and has steadily grown into one of the largest and most capable construction firms in the Capital District. Our business plan has been simple yet definitive; to conduct business with honesty, integrity and to meet our clients’ high expectations without fail.

BCI Construction, Inc.

bciinc.com

518.281.0588

The Loudon House Condominiums, 6 Schuyler Road, Loudonville 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1707 sq.ft. $615,000 base price

Superior design. The highest quality materials. Thoughtful amenities.

Yesterday’s luxuries are necessities for today’s most discerning homeowners. At The Loudon House Condominiums you will find a home of comfort and convenience, as well as elegance that satisfies your busy life-

style and broad range of personal and professional interests. Well-appointed kitchens and spacious dining areas enhance the joy of cooking and the pleasure of entertaining family and friends. Living at The Loudon House will simplify your life, leaving more time free for what really matters.

Directions: Exit 5. Take a left onto 155 - Watervliet Shaker Rd. Take a right onto Rt 9. Left onto Menands Rd. Located on the left at Corner of Schuyler and Menands Rd.

• Elegant 9’-8” Ceilings Throughout • Granite Or Quartz Countertops • 3 ¼” Engineered Hardwood Floors • Ceramic Tile • Luxurious Master Baths • “Low E” Energy Windows • Conveniently Located • Underground Parking Garage • Exercise Facility • Access To Two Elevators • Intercom Access Control • Wide Covered Porch

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 65

   Largest kitchen & bathroom showroom in the area

Located 500 Yards West Off Exit 11, 187, Just 15 Minutes From Latham

presented by

About this builder

Belmonte Builders

belmontebuilders.com

Founded in 1977, Belmonte is one of the largest custom home builders in the area. Our mission is to identify the individual needs and lifestyle of our customer and build a “Home As Individual As You Are.” Come visit a Belmonte home to see the flow of the floor plan, the quality of the fixtures, the integrity of construction, and the loving attention to detail.

These qualities are the building blocks which our success stands on today.

518.371.1000

McKenzie’s Way, 9 Maria Lane, Saratoga Springs 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 2199 sq.ft. $374,900 base price

Belmonte’s 2014 Parade of Homes entry is located in McKenzie’s Way, in Saratoga Springs. The Frisco is the first Parade Home from our Affordable Luxury collection and has the appeal and convenience of a suburban home in an urban package.

This three bedroom, two and a half bath

home has over 2,100 square feet of comfortable living space and features a screened porch on the first floor and a unique sleeping porch off of the master bedroom. The spacious open floor plan in this bright, sunny home offers many unique and interesting standard and optional features.

Directions: Exit 13N onto Rt 9 N. Right onto Crescent Avenue. Left onto Jefferson Street.

Left onto East Broadway. Left onto Maria Lane. 9 Maria is 1st house on the right.

• • • • • • • • • •

Flexible, Expandable Floor Plan 9’ or 10’ First Floor Ceilings Optional 1st Floor Screen Porch Optional 2nd Floor Sleeping Porch Convenience Center; Wine Fridge, Coffee Center Optional Tandem Three Car Garage Large Master Walk In Closet Large Study And Three Bedrooms Standard Garage Storage Area Large Master Suite With Optional Cathedral Ceiling 518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 67

Experience the all-new 2015 Audi A3 at Langan Audi East today or visit us on line at LanganAudiEast.com The all-new Audi A3. Stay Uncompromised.

“Audi,” “MMI,” “quattro,” “Truth in Engineering,” all model names, and the four rings logo are registered trademarks of AUDI AG. ©2014 Audi of America, Inc.

presented by

About this builder Carrow Real Estate Services, LLC is a New York Limited Liability Company headquartered in downtown Albany, New York.

Carrow is proud to serve the Capital District as a local company with a national presence.

For more information visit www.carrowrealestateservices.com or call (518) 462-7491.

Carrow Real Estate Service, LLC

stonecreekestatesny.com

518.462.7491

Stone Creek Estates of New Scotland, 1 Brookview Terrace, Slingerlands 2 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 1600 sq.ft. $299,900 base price

• Age Restrictive, Independent Living • American With Disabilities Act Compliant • No Home Owners Association • Superior Craftsmanship & Quality Products • Select Finishes & Upgrades Available • 1,600 Sq. Ft. Of Spacious, Single-Level Living • Spacious Basement For Additional Space • Integrated Security System • Cultured Exterior Stone • James Hardie Board Siding • Pella ENERGY STAR® Windows

Nestled in the historic Town of New Scotland, in the foothills of the Helderberg Escarpment, Stone Creek Estates of New Scotland is an age restrictive (55+) development for persons seeking to downsize without compromise. Designed and developed by Carrow Real Estate Services, the interior and exterior of each, one-of-a-kind home, is constructed with superior craftsmanship and the

highest quality building products available; Pella ENERGY STAR® Windows, Sherwin Williams paint selections, Therma-Tru Front Entryway System, Cultured Exterior Stone, James Hardie Board Exterior Siding, and 50year architectural roofing shingles, to ensure that our customers will enjoy years of carefree, maintenance-free living.

Directions: From I-87 South, continue to US-20/Western Ave., Guilderland. Turn left onto US-20 East. Take 1st right onto Country Rd. 204/ Schoolhouse Rd. At the traffic circle, take 2nd exit onto Krumkill Rd. Turn Right onto Blessing Rd. At traffic circle, take 1st exit onto NY-85 West/Slingerlands Bypass. At traffic circle, continue straight onto NY-85 West/ Lagrange Rd. Turn left onto Stone Creek Ct. Take the 1st right onto Brookview Terrace.

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 69

WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU? PLENTY.

©2013 Trex Company, Inc.

Elevations STRONGER, SMARTER, SAFER.

OUTPERFORMS, OUTLASTS, OUTDECKS ALL OTHERS.

MAXIMUM STRENGTH, MINIMALIST STYLE.

BRINGS TREX QUALITY TO EVERY PRICE POINT.

presented by

About this builder In business for over 40 years, Malone and Tate Builders have produced some of the highest quality projects throughout upstate New York. Commitment, Service and Experience are the cornerstones of our working philosophy. We combine state of the art materials with cutting edge designs to create truly memorable homes that meet and exceed our client’s expectations.

Malone and Tate Builders, Inc.

maloneandtate.com

518.370.0044

Country Gardens of Niskayuna, 103 Lois Lane, Schenectady 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1864 sq.ft. $254,900 base price

A new home at Country Gardens offers a premiere Niskayuna address and a statement in quality and style. Each home is situated on a secluded winding road, inspired from nature with sought – after small town charm. Each residence is de-

signed to provide the highest level of luxury, quality and unrivaled value. Experience high-end Niskayuna living with low taxes and all the convenience and value of owning a condominium.

Directions: I-87 to Exit 6W onto Route 7. 5 ¼ miles left on Pearse Road. 1 ¼ miles right on Consaul Road. ¾ miles left on Lois Lane.

• • • • • • • • • • •

Large Open Plan Design Private Entries 1 or 2 Car Attached Garage Maintenance Free Living Custom Cabinets with Granite Tops Stainless Steel Appliances Nine Foot Ceilings Custom Wood Trim Hardwood Floors Private Decks Forever Wild Lot

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 71

One Stop Shop For All Your Insulation Needs

The Foam Guys Spray Foam Insulation

RESIDENTIAL • COMMERCIAL Green Building Consulting Design & Construction 932-2989 1-877-330-FOAM (3626) Energy Efficiency - Sound Control Indoor Air Quality • Fiberglass Cellulose • Insulation Removal Open Cell - Closed Cell Servicing NY, VT, MA, ME, NH, NJ, CT

www.thefoamguysinsulation.com www.demilecusa.com

n!

ree G d il u B – $ e v MANSFIELD Sa CUSTOM HOMES, LLC

Build Efficient, Build Green.

Call 518.205.3729

Beautiful, Efficient, Cost Effective Custom Modular Structures www.mansfieldcustomhomes.com

SetYour Home Apart WithNatural Stone.

GRANITE MARBLE SOAPSTONE GARNET STONE TRAVERTINE ONYX CAESARSTONE

8 COMMERCE PARK DRIVE, WILTON, NY 12831

518.584.2800

Northway Exit 16, East on Ballard Rd., left on Commerce Park Drive Open: MTWF 9am–5pm, Th 9am-7pm, Sat 9am-3pm www.graniteandmarbleworks.com

presented by

About this builder For 26 years, Malta Development has been building the American Dream for buyers in all prices and at every stage of life. Malta Development is dedicated to creating communities that exceed expectation by anticipating the ever-changing needs of the modern home buyer. Our ultimate goal is to offer unparalleled quality and value in everything that we build.

Malta Development Co., Inc.

maltadevelopment.com

518.928.3057

Lakeview Landing, 1 Admirals Way, Malta 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 3190 sq.ft. $570,000 base price

Step into a world of timeless classics with a modern twist. With a respect for traditional elements, the “Champlain” adds innovative design elements and state-of-the-art technology which is the hallmark of the aptly named Modern Classics Collection

at Lakeview Landing. A family-friendly floor plan combines with essential updated elements such as the Butler’s Pantry, Command Center, and built-in mudroom cabinetry to elevate this home from practical to Dream Home.

Directions: From I-87 exit 13S, 2 miles on Rte. 9 south to left on Rte. 9P (at Ripe Tomato Restaurant), ½ mile to right on Admirals Way.

• • • • • • • • • • •

10 Ft. Ceilings 1st Floor 9 Ft. Ceilings 2nd Floor Study With French Doors Tray Ceiling Dining Room Fabulous Butler’s Pantry 2-Story Great Room 2nd Floor Loft Area Large Master Suite Technology Package ENERGY STAR® Certified National Green Building Standard Certified • Community Sidewalks & Walking Trails

First Floor

Second Floor

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 73

Your Satisfaction is Our Business!

THE BEAUTY OF WHAT YOU CAN’T SEE. What makes some homes more special than others? Often, it’s the solid feeling of floors framed with premium Boise Cascade Engineered Wood Products. Read all of the reasons we believe these premium products make a better home for you and your family -now and for the life of the home:

WHY BOISE CASCADE ENGINEERED WOOD PRODUCTS ARE BETTER FOR BUILDING: Always uniform depths and thicknesses Flaws are virtually eliminated or widely dispersed in the manufacturing process

Custom Fabrication and Installation of Natural Stone

Made with about 10% moisture content, perfect for home construction Stable and consistent – doesn’t warp, twist or change shape Stronger than dimension lumber, so less may be needed

400 North Pearl Street, Albany, NY 12207 Phone: (518) 465-5890 | www.esstone.com

For more information, please contact Mark Johnson 518-409-5878 © 2014 Boise Cascade Wood Products L.L.C. BOISE CASCADE, the TREE-IN-A-CIRCLE symbol, and “Great products are only the beginning” are trademarks of Boise Cascade Company or its affiliates.

presented by

About this builder Polito Homes at Park Grove LLC has been designing and building upscale custom homes for almost a quarter of a century.

Our strengths include an ability to listen very carefully to what our clients want and need and to create a design that converts that wish list into the exact home of their dreams. The secret to our quarter century of success has been direct and constant contact with our customers.

Polito Homes, LLC

parkgrovesaratoga.com

518.365.3518

Park Grove, 13 Joshua Road, Saratoga Springs 3 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, 3100 sq.ft. $997,000 base price

Our Park Grove Parade of Home was designed by architect Frank Gilmore featuring a unique shaker style design with many interesting elevations. This home is a wonderful 3 bedroom, 3 ½ bathrooms with an oversized two stall garage. Our home has two exterior patios, one off the kitchen and great room. The other private patio is off the home office. The interior layout provides an

open feel with many intimate areas to relax in. This home is a one of a kind design that has a comfortable feel in all spaces.

Park Grove is a beautiful wooded subdivision located minutes from downtown Saratoga Springs. Saratoga Spa Park and both horse race tracks. Streetlights and sidewalks add a wonderful feel to our community.

Directions: I-87 to Exit 13N, follow Route 9 straight through three traffic lights, then take right onto Crescent Street (across from Dance Museum) and next right onto Joshua Road, home on left hand side.

• Authentic Slate Roof • Nature Stone Fireplace & Foundation • Hand Crafted Beams • Window Bed In Living Room • 9 Ft. Basements • Energy Efficient Appliances • Pella Windows • Marble Countertops • Custom Landscape Package • Custom Smart House Package • Minute To Downtown Saratoga • Energy Efficient Furnace

First Floor

Second Floor

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 75

At Frank Webb’s Bath Centers you’ll find more than 54,000 quality products. More than 500 working displays. No less than 117 smart and experienced consultants in 38 inspiring showrooms. It all comes down to one great room...your dream bath. We invite you to make an appointment or simply stop by and browse to get started.

POOLS, CABANAS & WATER FEATURES DECKS & SCREEN ROOMS STONE PATIOS & WALLS OUTDOOR KITCHENS & FIREPLACES GARDEN DESIGN & so much more….

Visit frankwebb.com for hours, directions and design tips.

More than 35 showrooms throughout the Northeast including: 17 Erie Boulevard Albany, NY 12204 518-455-8833

1 McCrea Hill Road Ballston Spa, NY 12020 Opening Q4 2014!

R E D B U D D E V E L O P M E N T. C O M residential landscape design construction management

518.691.0428

Get the peace of mind you need with a

6-month rate lock • • • •

Available for 5/1 ARMs, 10/1 ARMs or a 10-, 12-, or 15-year fixed-rate mortgage Can be used to finance primary residence or a second home Requires a 1% rate lock deposit that is refundable upon closing Is offered at .125% higher than published rates

Call us today at 518-783-1234.

Please contact a SEFCU Mortgage Services representative for a full listing of products and details. Please note: We reserve the right to alter or withdraw these products or certain features thereof without prior notification.

SEFCU Mortgage Services, Company ID NMLS #309847 621 Columbia Street Ext., Cohoes, NY 12047 • www.sefcumortgageservices.com Licensed Mortgage Banker – NYS Department of Financial Services.

presented by

About this builder Dan Barber and Sam Palazzole, the principals for Saratoga Builders, LLC, have over 30 years experience building custom homes for satisfied customers.

They are committed to identifying and fulfilling their customers expectations while staying on time and on budget. They work directly with their customers from start to finish on every project.

Saratoga Builders, LLC

saratogabuilders.com

518.584.8411

Burgoyne Estates, 1 Anthony Lane, Saratoga Springs 4 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, 3428 sq.ft. $599,000 base price

This traditional, one of a kind, custom home with Timber Frame accents is located at Burgoyne Estates just 4 miles east of Saratoga Springs and I-87.

Homeowners have immediate access to Fish Creek that connects to Saratoga Lake.

All of the lots are a minimum of 2 acres of

wooded land in a natural setting. Burgoyne Estates has a Saratoga Springs mailing address and is in the highly rated Schuylerville school district. Each Saratoga Builders home comes with the highest Energy Start rating and a 10 year warranty.

Directions: Take I-87(Northway) to exit 14. At the end of the exit ramp turn Left onto 9P South. Take your first left onto Gilbert and drive to the end. Turn Right onto Route 29 East and drive 4 miles to Bryant’s Bridge Road. Turn Right onto Bryant’s Bridge Road and drive a short distance to the end. Turn Right onto Burgoyne and drive a short distance to Anthony Lane on your Left.

• • • • • • • • • • • •

9 Ft. Ceilings Hardwood Floors Ceramic Tile Floors Wall To Wall Carpeting Granite Counter Tops Custom Gourmet Kitchen Schrock Cabinets Range, Refrigerator, Dishwasher, Microwave Kohler Plumbing Fixtures Pella Windows Highest ENERGY STAR® Rating 10 Year RWC Warranty

First Floor

Second Floor

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 77

IT’S NOT JUST A WINDOW, IT’S PEACE OF MIND.

®

Richard X. Keating Architectural Business Development Rep 518-265-6739 • Fax 651-351-3029

darrell.smith@andersenwindows.com

rich.keating@andersencorp.com

“ENERGY STAR” is a registered trademark of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. AW03/14-3329 “Andersen” and all other marks where denoted are trademarks of Andersen Corporation. ©2014 Andersen Corporation. All rights reserved.

Elegance

outdoor

Thermory® is not for everyone, but for those who appreciate a distinguished exterior hardwood. It has no equal.

We set the benchmark for outdoor elegance.

RIBUTED B IST

800-724-0010

Y

Darrell Smith Territory Sales Rep 518-281-4852 • Fax 651-275-7937

THE BENCHMARK FOR

D

For over 100 years, people have relied on Andersen. With over 100 million windows installed, no other windows are in more homes than the Andersen 400 Series. Its innovative blend of craftsmanship and style has helped make Andersen the most trusted window brand among builders and remodelers. Why choose anything else?

RussinLumber.com

presented by

About this builder Dan Barber and Sam Palazzole, the principals for Saratoga Builders, LLC, have over 30 years experience building custom homes for satisfied customers.

They are committed to identifying and fulfilling their customers expectations while staying on time and on budget. They work directly with their customers from start to finish on every project.

Saratoga Builders, LLC

saratogabuilders.com

518.584.8411

30 Smith Road, Mechanicville 4 bedrooms, 4.5 baths, 3370 sq.ft. $450,000 base price

This traditional, one of a kind, custom home was designed and built by Saratoga Builders to the desires and vision of the homeowner on the homeowner’s land. This home was designed to provide the homeowner with a wide variety of life styles.

Saratoga Builders builds a number of custom homes each year on land owned by the homeowner. The homes range from large Timber Frame homes on a lake to cottage style homes in the city.

Directions: Take 87 North to exit 9. Take a right off the exit onto RT 146 East. Take the next Left onto RT 9 heading North. Follow to the intersection of RT 9 and Farm To Market Road (on your right) Take a right onto Farm to Market. Follow until the bottom of the hill and take a Right onto Smith Road. Continue on Smith. House is on the right.

• • • • • • • • • • • •

9 Ft. Ceilings Hardwood Floors Ceramic Tile Floors Wall To Wall Carpeting Granite Counter Tops Custom Gourmet Kitchen Schrock Cabinets Range, Refrigerator, Dishwasher, Microwave Kohler Plumbing Fixtures Pella Windows Highest ENERGY STAR® Rating 10 Year RWC Warranty

Second Floor

First Floor

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 79

HOME ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEMS PROFESSIONALLY DESIGNED AND INSTALLED • Home Theater • Multi-room Stereo • Lighting Control • Home Automation • Structured Wiring and Wifi networks • Flat Panel TV’s • Security Cameras • Commercial Audio & Video • Major Appliances

NEW CONSTRUCTION: We are referred by many of the area’s finest home builders.

• New or Existing Construction • Professionally trained experienced install • Expert sales staff • Free Local on-site evaluation • Referred by the area’s top builders • No project too large or small

Proudly serving Upstate New York since 1956.

3125 Carman Road, Rotterdam Just off Thruway Exit 25 or I-890 Exit 9B

355-1020 · www.townetv.com

R o o fi ng

•

S i di n g

•

W i ndows

WORKING IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD!

For your home’s facelift, there is no better choice than Apple Home Improvements. For more than 38 years, we’ve been providing local homeowners with the residential upgrades and improvements needed to make their houses the talk of their neighborhood!

CALL FOR A FREE QUOTE

HOMECREST KITCHENS INC., 110 FREEMANS BRIDGE ROAD, SCOTIA, NEW YORK 12302 STOCK CABINETS • CUSTOM CABINETS • VANITIES • COUNTERTOPS APPLIANCES • CARPETING • FLOOR COVERINGS JOHN & JAMIE BERGAMI 518.370.3110 • FAX:518.393.7694

WWW.HOMECRESTKITCHEN.COM

1563 State Street Schenectady, NY 12304 info@AppleExteriors.com AppleExteriors.com

518-374-0160

presented by

About this builder

Witt Construction, Inc.

wittconstruction.com

518.587.4113

Summer Hill Retreat, 83 Brown Road, Stillwater 4 bedrooms, 4 full & 2 half baths 6186 sq.ft.

• Exterior Is A Mix Of Stone, Stucco & Board And Batten • Detached Garage • 1st Floor Master With Breakfast Bar • Open Floor Plan • Reclaimed Wood • Wide Plank Floors • Dining Room With Hearth • Veranda With Phantom Screens Overlooking Pool • Sunset View Of Lake • Lower Level With Bar Designed For Entertaining • Exercise Area And Wine Room • Lower Level Guest Suite

Overlooking beautiful Saratoga Lake this home showcases an open floor plan featuring both relaxation and entertainment from top to bottom. Stoned walls detailed with custom Witt designed built-ins greet you in the spacious foyer leading into the vaulted great room. Pass through the home to the lower level featuring a full bar, wine room, theater and guest suite. The exterior exhibits

Witt Construction, Inc. builds award-winning, custom-designed homes striking in appearance, energy-efficient, and enduring in their value. Witt Construction, founded in 1987, builds custom and semi-custom homes in the historic city of Saratoga Springs, NY and the surrounding Capital Region. The company is recognized in the industry and by clients alike as the prominent customhome builder in Saratoga and is noted for constructing homes that are rich in spirit of space and designed to enhance the unique character of each home.

a natural use of stone, stucco and board & batten. The rear of this truly custom home details expansive glass doors and windows capturing the dramatic water view beyond.

Sit back and relax on the amazing veranda which includes a phantom screen, fireplace and TV. Completing this impressive home is a custom designed in-ground pool and jacuzzi spa.

Directions: Exit 14 East. Follow 9P about 3 miles around Lake. Take Left on Brown Road.

House is 1 ½ miles down on the left.

First Floor

Second Floor

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 83

“D on ’t ask w hy w e’re so low - A sk w hy they’re so high”

A JO B F O R P R OF E SSIONAL S Tree rem oval can be a dangerous job w hen you don’t have the necessary skills and experience.

W e’ve been providing a com plete line of professional tree care services for over 27 years so you can count on us to do the job right.

• TREE REM O VAL • TREE TRIM M IN G • BARK M ULCH FUL L Y IN S URED • FREE ES TIM ATES S a m e Da y S ervi c ea n d Em ergen c y S ervi c e A va i l ab l e

AL BAN Y 518 .48 9 .119 6 SPRIN G SPECIAL

10% OF F

ANY S E RVI CE

w ith this co u po n . Expires 5/31/14.

M u stpresen tco u po n a ttim e o festim a te. Do es n o tin clu d e firew o o d .

“D on ’t ask w hy w e’re so low - A sk w hy they’re so high”

T he A rea’s B est Firew ood - G reat P rices

ForA Lim ite d Tim e W e W ill P a y You r S a le s Ta x!

Forging Ahead Blacksmith Noah Khoury makes unique items for the home and garden

BY JAMES KIDD | PHOTOS BY VINCENT GIORDANO

N

oah Khoury, at the age of 24, is a second generation blacksmith. He is also, unlike many modern preconceptions about blacksmiths,

an artist.

A blacksmith doesn’t just shape near-molten steel. A blacksmith will design, lay out, cut, drill, join, finish, temper, weld, and braze metal into functional and often stunningly beautiful creations. Blacksmiths are masters of metal working.

Khoury’s interest in smithing started when, as a 7-year-old, he’d watch his father work in his metal shop. His father was a welder and metal fabricator and had trained with traditional blacksmiths.

Khoury learned much from his father, and from other blacksmiths along the way — from how to use the hammer properly so he doesn’t develop shoulder problems (shoulder problems are the carpal tunnel syndrome

of the crafts world), to how to protect his ears from the destructive decibels of pinging metal and how to carefully handle metal at several thousand degrees. He yearned for something more. So he packed up his bags and moved away from his childhood home in Altamont and headed south to Tennessee Tech University.

At Tennessee Tech University’s Appalachian Center for Craft he excelled at an extensive and comprehensive program in blacksmithing. Projects ranged from architectural iron work with an emphasis on creativity to functionally aesthetic projects that incorporated the use of mixed materials in his work.

While at the school Khoury learned about the importance of design. He learned the art and reliability of mortise and tenon joinery among other techniques such as using old school rivets to increase the interest of his stunning pieces. He learned to mix materials 518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 85

Store who gives wholesale pricing to

everyone.

STEP BACK

in time

Wholesale pricing on Prime Rib. (6 expert meat cutters)

Cheeses • Can Good Goods • Fr Frozen F Foods ds • C Coldcuts oldc ol dc

In business Since 1937, Family Owned

1631 VAN VRANKEN AVE. SCHENECTADY 374-3197/374-3198 OPEN MON.THRU SAT. 8AM-6PM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS

MORE SOUND

FarmersMuseum.org

MORE WORDS

Full sound in – richer sound out

Improved speech understanding

5775 Route 80 Cooperstown, NY

MORE PERSONAL

MY.WIDEX.COM – Your personal website

True-to-Life Sound is Now a Reality with Widex DREAM With Widex DREAM™ hearing aids, activities you may have stopped enjoying can become memorable again. By allowing more sound in, these advanced hearing aids provide clear and natural sound. So you can look forward to hearing the world in a way that’s as true-to-life as technology allows.

Stop by or call us today for an appointment and demonstration. And enjoy the show.

It’s not a dream. It’s the DREAM. Only from Widex.

BELIEVE YOUR EARS IT’S NOT A DREAM. IT’S THE DREAM. ONLY FROM WIDEX.

Dr. Laura Brodsky 711 Troy-Schenectady Rd. Suite 105 Latham, NY 12110

250 Delaware Ave. Delmar, NY 12054

Call (518) 783-3110 ext. 3004

Noah Khoury’s interest in blacksmithing began when he was 7.

“Portal”: A sculptural console table.

Forged and fabricated steel, cherry, salvaged window. Price range $3,000 - $4,000. (top left)

Product shots by TTU Photo Services, courtesy of the artist.

“Weathered Stone” Garden Bench: Forged and fabricated steel, copper, marble. Price range $3,000 - $3,500. (bottom right)

such as steel, copper and stone to craft rugged furniture that’s not only appealing to look at, but, more importantly, comfortable to sit on, too.

But, even though Khoury has answered an artist’s calling, he hasn’t turned his back on traditional blacksmithing. Part of what he learned at the Appalachian Center for Craft was a history of the craft. One of the traditional blacksmiths who has inspired Khoury is Samuel Yellin.

Yellin was born in 1885 and is considered by many to be the father of modern-day blacksmithing. Yellin completed his apprenticeship in blacksmithing at the age of 16, and soon thereafter left Poland for the United States. Once in the U.S. he took classes at the Philadelphia Museum School of Industrial Art and within a year was teaching there.

From there he opened his own shop and, always championing creative development of his art, he designed and fabricated architectural iron work for some of the finest buildings in America.

Like Yellin, Khoury went to school to further his knowledge of the craft. Coming off a recent and well-received thesis show at the Appalachian Center for Craft, Khoury has opened his own studio. Named after the breathtaking natural landscape escarpment just outside of Albany, Helderberg Blacksmith is where Khoury answers not only his artistic calling, but the calling of historical restoration contractors who need reliable and authentic iron work reproductions.

He’ll work from drawings or photos but prefers to have a sample piece of what he’s recreating. Like a CSI technician, he

studies an old piece of iron work he has to reproduce to get a sense of how the original blacksmith forged it. This takes some time, but once Khoury understands how the piece was originally forged, he fires up his own. Using a Civil War era bellows and forge, he manipulates the metal in such a fashion that it will be an authentic reproduction of an antique piece of iron work. From hinges to iron grates, arbors to railings, Khoury recreates historically accurate pieces of architectural metal work that have been installed on some of the area’s most important treasures.

Currently Khoury is working on some very challenging reproduction pieces. “At the moment I’m working with a housing preservationist bringing a 1701 Dutch Colonial back to its former glory. I’m producing all the hardware in a traditional fashion, from the nails, the dead bolts, to the broad sweeping decorative hinges on the barn doors, I’m recreating all of it,” he says.

That’s his mainstay, and hinges are the most sought-after items he makes.

Married this past August, Khoury balances married life with work life just as he balances his artistry with his traditional craft.

For more photos, visit 518Lifemagazine.com 518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 87

Confused About

Plant Food? Insects?

Gardening guru Peter Bowden is here to help

BY JANET REYNOLDS | PHOTOS BY EMILY JAHN

T

he wall can be fairly intimidating.

We’re referring to the wall of plant foods and pest controls lined up in fancy bags in most large nurseries.

Add in the references to various formulas and no wonder many consumers do one of two things: pick one of everything because they’re too confused or turn and walk out without buying a thing.

Hewitt’s gardening guru Peter Bowden wants to help change that. It’s time, he says, to get beyond the marketing hype and understand what you really need to make your garden thrive this summer.

So Bowden will do a reprise of his very popular seminar, Plant Food and Pest Control Basics — last year’s free seminar at the Guilderland Hewitt’s was completely full — May 3 at the company’s Wilton store. (See box for

88 518 LIFE

Holiday - Winter

WEIGHT GAIN? details.) He gave us a little preview over the phone.

“You see those walls of nutrients and all those plant foods with pretty pictures and all the solutions for any garden problem you could possibly have — it’s daunting,” he says. “I want to help people dig through the mar-

“

It’s dumbfounding looking at that wall.

Four different companies are making different things. People end up buying based on what package appeals to them rather than what’s really going to work.

”

keting and pull the veil back.”

“People often duplicate or get the wrong product,” he adds. “I will show them how to read a bag of plant or lawn food. I will explain the differences between them all.”

That people are often confused by the array of products confronting is no accident, Bowden says. “Packaging is like a shell

game. The fertilizer company in an effort to sell as much as possible will come up with secret formulas for each plant. I will explain the formula.”

Bowden will also help people better understand herbicides and organic controls. He’ll offer advice on the issues that work best with organic solutions and give tips on how to use herbicides safely for those times when that approach makes more sense. “There’s a lot of confusing things out there,” he says. “Even if the statement may be truthful there’s more to know about these things.”

First stop for anyone serious about making their garden thrive is a soil test, Bowden says. “Because it sounds scientific, people don’t do it,” he says, noting it’s a three-step process.

“Making coffee in the morning is harder than this.”

But knowing your soil is critical to making the right care choices for your plants and shrubs. “You spend $30 on a shrub,” he says. “Do you really want it to sit there for 10 years without taking off?”

Knowing your yard’s soil type will also help you understand which plant formula will work best. “I want [gardeners] to use products but to use the right one,” Bowden says. “Don’t waste your time, and don’t abuse the environment.”

“I’m a practical gardener,” he adds. “It’s my duty to get this information out to folks.”

We offer medically supervised, Affordable Weight Loss Programs for anyone needing to lose weight using the most effective, innovative, state of the art treatments.

Each program is individualized to your specific medical profile and adjusted according to your response as needed.

Keep in mind that no ONE weight loss program works for everyone.

Please make sure to ask about our newest treatment addition to our bariatric programs to increase the amount of body fat lost during treatment.

Stuart I. Erner, M.D. 1873 Western Ave., Albany

452-4910

www.drerner.com Treating patients for weight problems in Albany since 1979

Join the Club!

Did you know the Co-op has an Organic Juice & Smoothie Bar? Stop by and give it a try! Love juicing? Buy any 10 fresh, organic juices from our Cafe and get the 11th FREE!

Hewitt’s Gardening Seminar:

Plant Food & Pest Control Basics The free Hewitt’s Garden Center talk on plant food and pest-control basics will be held Saturday, May 3, at 11 a.m., at the Hewitt’s in Wilton, Rte. 9, 612 Maple Ave. Gardening guru Peter Bowden will help make sense of plant food labels, and insect and weed control.

Come get your questions answered and win great giveaways, including Hewitt’s gift cards! Although the event is free, registration is required.

Go to HewittsGardening.eventbrite.com.

100 Watervliet Ave. Albany, NY 12206 (518) 482-2667 www.HonestWeight.coop

Gardening Simplified

BY KERRY ANN MENDEZ

Turn-Key Annuals

M

ay is a month when gardeners race at ramming speeds around annual displays at garden centers. The euphoria triggered by a kaleidoscope of brilliant colors after a color-starved winter can be dangerous, not only to our health but also to our wallets. Before the onset of another buying frenzy, consider the following turn-key, no-fuss, bring-it-on, flowering annuals.

Before raving about some tried-and-true winners, I offer this disclaimer: You will not see any cool season annuals such as Nemesia, Pansies and Diascia. I love their exuberant blooms in spring and fall, but what’s up with summer? I’m not on siesta, so why should they be? And annuals, such as old- fashioned Petunias, annual daisies (Argyrnthemum) and pinks (Dianthus), that demand constant deadheading to continue flowering or that can’t take the heat should get out of the kitchen (garden). I have no patience for flowers that shrivel away when the August swelter arrives. Step aside most Lobelias and Stock (Matthiola hybrids).

Do I sound choosey? Darn right. You should be too. We work too hard to add more chores to our gardening plate. I want — no, need — flowering annuals that are non-stop color beacons from May through October. They also must require little or no deadheading and cannot be water hogs. It doesn’t matter if plants are in the garden, window boxes, hanging baskets or patio containers. My expectations are the same.

Now that I’ve made myself clear, let’s give a garden-gloved hand to these sun-loving superstars.

Low-care pops of color

Lobularia ‘Snow Princess’

SUN Masses of cascading, white fragrant flowers will have you swooning. Make no mistake, this is not your grandmother’s alyssum that fades away in the heat of summer. One plant mounds to 10" and can spread up to 24"! One of these “ladies” can do the job of what would have required one to two six packs of older varieties.

Lantana Stand back after you plant these heat-loving, tropical beauties. They will quickly embrace 12" to 30" of garden space, depending on the cultivar. Flashy red, yellow, fuchsia or orange flowers were standard colors but now cool 90 518 LIFE

white, grape and pale yellow are also available. Butterflies swarm Lantana, deer snub their wet little noses at them. Proven Winners has some knockouts in their Bandana and Luscious series.

Calibrachoa (Superbells, Million Bells) These come in mounded and trailing varieties, depending on how you intend to use them (the plant tag should state its habit). Although these petite looking petunias are commonly used in containers, I prefer planting them in the garden. They provide season-long, colorful anchors that effectively link gardens together.

I especially like the trailing varieties spilling onto pathways, cascading over retaining walls

and filling gaps where spring blooming bulbs have gone dormant. Calibrachoa’s only peeve is soggy soil. This is rarely a problem in freelydraining gardens but containers can be a different story. To minimize this stressful condition, steer clear of glazed containers that hold moisture longer. Go for something like terra cotta that breathes better.

Salvia farincea (Blue Sage) I am a sucker for blue-flowering plants. Salvia in the farincea category bang out “blue-tiful,” spike-shaped blooms into fall, even tolerating light frosts. Heights range from 12" to 48". Proven Winners has some new farincea crosses coming out this spring, Mystic Spires

Photo by Chris Brown Photography.

Lobularia ‘Snow Princess’

Blue and Moody Blues, that will surely bewitch onlookers. Butterflies and hummingbirds have long appreciated Salvia farincea’s tubular blooms; deer are far less charmed.

Some other remarkable annuals for sunny areas include Supertunias or Wave Petunias; Euphorbia Diamond Frost; Angelonia; Cleome Senorita Blanca and Senorita Rosalita; Scaevola; and Vinca (Catharanthus roseus).

SHADE

I

mpatiens walleriana had long dominated shade gardens as the annual of choice. With the onset of the downy mildew epidemic, these impatiens are now relegated to a small corner in the back of many greenhouses. Stepping into the spotlight are:

Torenia (Wishbone Flower) These lovely, hardworking plants look a tad like mounded snapdragons. They can range in height from 6" to 10". Some varieties do better in more sun but the Catalina series from Proven Winners performs in full shade. All Torenia attract hummingbirds but discourage deer. You can choose single colored cultivars such as Catalina White Linen (glows in low light areas), Yellow Moon (canary yellow) and Summer Wave (blue) or opt for wildly popular multi-color selections such as Gilded Grape (yellow and purple), Midnight Blue (blue, yellow and white), or Grape-O-Licious (white and purple).

Lobelia The Laguna and Lucia Lobelia hybrids from Proven Winners put other Lobelias to shame. These heat tolerant Lobelias keep sending waves of color straight into fall. You can choose from six different colors, ranging from lilac, white, lavender and various shades of blue, including true blue. Although the plant tags indicate that these do well in sun to part sun (and indeed they do!),

I’ve personally found they also thrive in part or dappled shade.

Changing the quality of your life!

Browallia Browallia receives the MVP award in my garden, not only for its exceptional performance but also for its ability to trick folks into believing it’s a perennial. It looks like a Bellflower or Balloon Flower except it doesn’t need deadheading. This Energizer Bunny blooms in part sun to shade (even full sun in cooler climates) from May through the first heavy frost, usually in October. Endless Flirtation sports crisp white flowers, Endless Sensation has rich blue-purple flowers and Endless Celebration has soft blue flowers.

Begonia benariensis If you’re looking for a dazzling, fool-proof annual that surpasses expectations in both blazing sun and deep shade, then meet Proven Winner’s Surefire Begonia Collection. Surefire Begonias thrive in containers, window boxes or massed in landscapes. They have a quick draw and rapidly grow into bushy, upright plants with gently arching stems. Plus the flowers are the largest of most begonias.

There are several colors to select from, with heights ranging from 18" to 24" tall. Surefire Begonias keep blasting out color right until the first hard frost.

Additional annuals that make statements in shade with little effort on your part include Coleus, Wax Begonias and New Guinea Impatiens (resistant to downy mildew).

Finally, as with your children and pets, plants also need water and food. The majority of annuals I’ve mentioned are quite drought tolerant, but they still need water! And every one of these stars will become superheroes with the addition of Espoma’s all natural, slow feed fertilizer, Plant-Tone.

Kerry Ann Mendez is a passionate gardener, designer and author of three gardening books. For more info visit pyours.com.

LANDSCAPE DESIGN & INSTALLATION WATER FEATURE DESIGN & INSTALLATION WATER FEATURE MAINTENANCE Retail Water Garden Stores - Latham & Rotterdam: POND SUPPLIES & EXPERT ADVISE AQUATIC PLANTS & POND FISH ON-SITE DISPLAY PONDS Visit Website For Store Hours & Seminar Schedule

www.ThePondPeople.net 1632 Main Street, Rt. 5s Pattersonville, NY (Rotterdam Area) • 518-887-5552

New 2nd Retail Location: 1157 New Loudon Rd, Rt. 9 Latham, NY • 518-608-5653

|

|

|

Driveways Parking Lots Tennis Courts Private Roads

SMOOTH OUT THE ROUGH EDGES WITH A FRESHLY PAVED DRIVEWAY

Don’t let your AAA Membership Expire!

Renew or Join Now

Trade potholes, cracks, sunken areas, loose stones and dirt for a smooth, solid drive…

You’ll be happy you did!

on our new mobile site!

AAA.com

WE MAKE IT EASY Free detailed, written quotes, Better Business Bureau A+ rating, references provided with driving directions. Ask around…we’ve probably paved in your neighborhood!

Call 518.479.1400 or request a FREE estimate appt at www.broweasphalt.com

yar

Building quality pavements in Upstate New York since 1960

ATTENTION TO DETAIL SUPERIOR QUALITY CRAFTSMANSHIP CUSTOMER CARE FUNCTION

518-426-1000

SPRING TAKES FLIGHT

Experience at: CROSSGATES MALL Albany, NY 518.452.9170

BY STEVE BARNES | ILLUSTRATION BY EMILY JAHN

Chained Up

PEOPLE DINE OUT DIFFERENTLY IN THE SUBURBS THAN THEY DO IN URBAN DOWNTOWNS. They go out earlier, visit less often, don’t spend as much, hunt for bargains, pay attention to advertising and promotions, and generally want a large menu of mainstream fare

that will please everyone from preschoolers to seniors. Midpriced, family-oriented national chains — think Applebee’s and Olive Garden, TGI Friday’s and Uno Chicago Grille —

How indie restaurants succeed in the ’burbs

understand how to exploit these habits and patterns. It’s why they thrive in the suburbs, but not a single one has a downtown location anywhere in the Capital Region.

Some independently owned restaurants have always succeeded in the suburbs and exurbs. Salty’s Pub in Clifton Park and Reel Seafood Co. in Colonie have been open for several decades, Canali’s Italian & American Restaurant has been a Rotterdam fixture

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 93

r ay!

You le y Tod u d art he Sc ion P uat rad

Like No y Spa O a D the A

G

r

The Spa Sampler

+ Family Atmosphere + Expanded Seating Area + Reasonable Prices + Quality, Fresh Ingredients ntss + Full Service Catering Available ilable for your next Fundraiser + Comfort Food, Burgers & More + COMING SOON - Wood Fired Pizza! “...never seen ribs that were

$125*

LP so meaty and juicy...” — YE Sample three different 22-minute treatments: Head in the Clouds Massage, Foot Massage and Mini Mani.

Includes use of indoor pool, whirlpool, sauna & steam room.

WWW.WAGONTRAINBBQ.NET

356-0650

*Excluding 20% service charge. Available Sun – Fri. Cannot be combined with any other package or promotional discount..

671 MARIAVILLE ROAD, SCHENECTADY

FULL SALON • WAXING SERVICES • PUBLIC WELCOME • GIFT CARDS

Next to Del Gallo Pools at the corner of Mariaville Rd. (Rt. 159) & Burdeck St. (Rt. 337)

LENOX, MA

413-637-1384

CRANWELL.COM

Get Peace of Mind with Ellis Medical Alert Service Lifesaving Support for Independent Living l Personal

emergency response system l Help at your fingertips l 24/7 medical monitoring Call 518.382.2224 today.

ellismedicine.org

Photos: Times Union archives. Clockwise from top right: Ruth Fantasia; Cindy Schultz; Lori Van Buren; Cindy Schultz.

since 1946, and The Wishing Well in Wilton opened a decade before Canali’s.

But chains dominate the suburban dining scene. The big shopping zones — Wolf Road in Colonie, routes 9 and 146 in Clifton Park, Route 50 at Northway Exit 15 in Wilton, Route 9 near Northway Exit 19 in Queensbury — were once almost the sole domains of chains, at least in the category of sit-down restaurants.

But in the past few years area restaurateurs with significant experience in downtown restaurants have been expanding into the suburbs and learning how to compete with the chains for customers.

“Urban restaurants are much more consistent when they’re busy. A lot of that is driven by business dining; it’s a guarantee,” says Angelo Mazzone, owner of Scotiabased Mazzone Hospitality. “In the suburbs, during the week at least, you never know when you’re going to be busy.” The company operates six a-la-carte restaurants and four banquet-only sites. Long familiar with the restaurant scenes in downtown Schenectady and Albany, Mazzone in the past few years has opened Angelo’s Prime Bar & Grill in a Clifton Park hotel attached to a mall and Tala American Bistro adjacent to a salon and spa in Latham. He says of suburban business, “It’s dependent on the weather, on the school calendar, on whatever they’ve got going on in their lives.”

At New World Home Cooking in Saugerties, owner Ric Orlando says he’s always busy on weekends but, midweek from late fall through early spring, “We could do 40 or we could do as many as 150.” At New World Bistro Bar in Albany, where Orlando is executive chef and a fi-

nancial partner, he says, “We can rely on being busy seven days a week.” He adds, “We have to work harder on promotional stuff and events [in Saugerties], but in Albany we work harder physically to keep pumping all that food out.”

T

im and Colleen Holmes purchased the 16-year-old Wheatfields restaurant in downtown Saratoga Springs in 2004 and ran it for five years before expanding the brand to The Crossing shopping campus in Clifton Park.

“During the week, when people are eating near where they live, they’re eating early, they’re very conscious about price and value, and they want to get home because they’ve got to get up in the morning for school or work,” says Colleen Holmes.

Another fundamental difference is the way downtown restaurants and bars crosspollinate with their neighbors. The business-dinner and after-work crowd might have dinner at Angelo’s 677 Prime in Albany, followed by a drink at one or more of the half-dozen restaurants located within two or three blocks of its Broadway location. The same is true in downtown Saratoga, where a customer of DZ Restaurants’ Boca Bistro might pop in at three other spots including Wheatfields, or Schenectady, where Mazzone’s Aperitivo Bistro is roughly across downtown State Street from Johnny’s, an Italian restaurant owned by the Mallozzi Group, which also operates suburban eateries.

“People make any evening out of parking once and going to three or four places,” says Bobby Mallozzi, whose parents opened their first venture, the bakery Villa Italia, in 1968.

The complementary-downtown-neighbors model was familiar to David Zecchini, owner of three DZ Restaurants in downtown Saratoga Springs and of Pasta Pane in a shopping plaza in Clifton Park. What was new for him was how suburbanites dined.

When Pasta Pane opened in 2010, Zecchini marveled that he was seeing lines at the front door before the bar opened at 4:30, the kitchen might serve 300 people in three hours, and the restaurant would be essentially empty by 8:30 p.m. He’d often leave Clifton Park and stop in at his Chianti il Ristorante in Saratoga to find another wave of diners sitting down for a 9 p.m. dinner, and late-night noshers still coming in for food at the bar two hours later.

Zecchini says, “Marketing-wise, we try to run all of the restaurants the same, but we see differences. In Clifton Park, they really take advantage of the specials. They’re really big on that in the suburbs.”

New World Home Cooking Co. in Woodstock

The Wishing Well in Wilton

Reel Seafood Co. in Colonie

Wheatfields Bistro and Wine Bar in Clifton Park 518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 95

Sporting Wines

STORY AND PHOTO BY ALISTAIR HIGHET

Weathering

Argentina W

Climate and altitude make the difference for Mendoza

e associate wine with the good things in life — fine dining, European cars, fashionable clothes, and romance — but in reality wine has more in common with potatoes. We grow wine, and as such, the plonk that we drink is an expression of the soil, wind and sun, where the vines are planted.

That’s what is meant by the expression terroir — a French word that may sound pretentious but means, more or less, territory. All wines — at least those that are in bottles and not in boxes — are as much about the territory where they are made as they are about the varietal of the grape planted.

Which brings us to ripe, bold, increasingly impressive wines of Argentina, and to the city of Mendoza — a small city of tree-lined streets in the foothills of the Andes. If you were driving down the spine of Argentina on Route 40 you would drive right through it, and past the flat vineyards that spread out all around it. The Andes — snow covered and majestic — dominate the vista to the West. If you hop in a plane and climb to 20,000 feet and pop over the mountains you can be in Santiago, Chile, in about an hour.

Now, by all rights wine grapes should not prosper so far south and in deserty soil. But wine grapes are one of the most adaptable — and clearly god-given — of agricultural marvels and seem to adapt to extraordinary circumstances. What makes wine work in Mendoza is the altitude. The average vine-

yard is about 3,000 feet above sea level, some of the highest in the world. At this height, the cool overnight temperatures allow Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec and other red wine grapes a chance to mature slowly and acquire flavor. The winters are cold enough — at times too cold — to allow the vines to be dormant when they need to be. The soil is sandy, good for vines, and the mountains provide water for irrigation.

However, the real virtue is the very dry air and the intensity of the sunlight at these elevations. With no pollution in the air, it is thought that the very clear light spurs photosynthesis, and naturally ripens the color, flavor and tannins. This, married to the variation in temperature, leads to very aromatic, fruitful red wines with comparatively soft tannins.

The Argentines think of themselves as the most European of South Americans, with some justification given the influx of Italian and Spanish immigrants in the 19th century.

They have a long-standing wine culture, and it shows in the classy wines of Mendoza, often blends of Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec. Myself, I don’t like Malbec on its own — too one-dimensional. I prefer the blends.

Here are just a few that I’ve liked.

Colores Del Sol, Rich Red Blend, Mendoza, 2011 Reserva ($12)

gives this velvety wine excellent structure and the blend of Malbec deep notes and the high registers of Cabernet Sauvignon are in lovely balance

Here is a blend that includes Merlot and Bonarda Argentina, a fruity grape that was imported from Piedmont but is considered the domestic grape. This was just a lot of fun, a fruit bomb in the

96 518 LIFE

New World style but with enough acidity and riotous red fruit flavor that I found it irresistible.

Carlos Basso, Dos Fincas, Mendoza, 2012 ($15) Glossy in the glass, blackberry, black cherry and tart cherry fruit, good acidity

Alistair Highet is a former editor, restaurant manager, and vine dresser, and has written about wine for over 20 years.

Domaines Barons de Rothschild, Amancaya, Mendoza, 2010 ($21) A partnership between the French family and

the Catena family in Argentina has produced beautiful wines, and this is a fine example. A blend very much in the Bordeaux style with the Malbec doing the work of Merlot — fruitful, full, balanced, with strawberry, plum, cedar on the nose and a classy, mature finish.

American Handcrafts Locally owned and operated, supporting our community for over 50 years. featuring

pottery glassware jewelry Shown: Flambeaux by Bill Campbell Pottery

pearl grant richmans S T U Y V E S A N T P L A Z A • A L B A N Y • 5 1 8 .438.8409

Quality Q ualit y o off Life is Our Our FFirst irsst Priority.

The Community The Comm Co mmun unity Hospice un help he lps seriously seri se riou ousl ou sly ill people sl helps stay st ay in n their th own homes, where they’re surrounded wh by the people and things they love.

Call Today: 724-0242 communityhospice.org

SPRING is HERE! ARE YOUR FEET READY?

If you are hiding your feet due to unsightly thick, deformed toenails, it sounds like you may have a fungus among us. Laser treatment for fungus is painless, FDA cleared, safe way to treat fungus without drug therapy.

Call us today at 518-273-0053 to see how you can have beautiful toes again or visit us at www.capitaldistrictpodiatry.com.

CAPITAL DISTRICT PODIATRY, PLLC

Tejas R. Pandya, DPM 763 Hoosick St. Troy, NY 12180 1 Tallow Wood Dr., Suite7 Clifton Park, NY 12065

Request a FREE copy of our book on foot pain.

Call 1-888-260-8185

To make an appointment, call 518-273-0053 (often same day).

You are never alone at...

Where traditional medication management and counseling therapy services come together under one roof.

The process of healing and personal growth can be challenging.

Pinnacle Behavioral Health is committed to creating a caring, supportive environment.

Our staff is comprised of leading licensed professionals dedicated to meeting the needs of our patients.

Our Services Include: Services paid for by Medicare, Medicaid and most insurance plans

• Medication Management • Psychotherapy for Depression and Anxiety • Marital, Family and Relationship Counseling

• Stress Management • Lifestyle Transition Counseling • Anger Manage Group • Crisis Management and more...

Most insurances accepted.

1 Pinnacle Place, Suite 102, Albany, NY 12203 518-689-0244 www.pinnaclebehavorialhealth.com

Our Cheating

HEARTS Why some people cheat

BY REBECCA HAYNES | PHOTOS BY COLLEEN INGERTO

Kids do it on tests. Athletes do it in competitions.

Spouses do it to each other.

And Americans do it to the IRS. Temptations to cheat are everywhere. But what makes some of us more likely to bend the rules?

“It’s unlikely that there are people on this planet who have never engaged in these behaviors,” says George Bizer, Ph.D. and professor of psychology at Union College in Schenectady. “But some of us do it a lot more than others.” A narcissistic personality, he adds, is high on the list of predictors.

“People who are narcissists think very highly of themselves,” he says. “This perception that they are special, or superior in some way, provides the motive for deception. They

fail to feel guilt after behaving improperly and as such, there is less resistance to behaving in this sort of way.”

When people decide to cheat, he says, they justify that behavior. “In the case of the narcissist, it’s their right,” Bizer says. “They feel entitled.” A narcissist believes he or she is above the rules that apply to everyone else, so the rules are dismissed as irrelevant and the cheating behavior is justified in that person’s mind.

Cheating behaviors and the motivations behind them run the gamut, says Mark Muraven, Ph.D. and program director of the social-personality track in the Department of Psychology at the University at Albany. But another trait that can indicate whether a person is more likely to cheat is the ability to self-control, or exert willpower.

“We know that people who are low in selfcontrol are much more likely to lie, cheat, steal and engage in criminal behavior or things considered to be immoral,” Muraven says. “There is probably a certain amount of genetics behind it, but everybody can improve

their self-control. Even adults.”

It’s simply a matter of practicing, he says, almost like working out and building muscle.

For instance, Muraven conducted a study among smokers who wanted to quit. One test group was given the task of cutting back on sweets for two weeks before beginning their stop-smoking efforts; the other test group was given tasks that increased their selfesteem but not their ability to self-control.

When both groups began trying to stop or reduce their smoking, the group that practiced cutting back on sweets had more success, he says. In other words, practicing self-control strengthened this “muscle” or ability, allowing those who did it to have more endurance when it comes to self-control efforts.

Bizer takes it one step further — that exerting self-control actually uses up the body’s energy. He cited a study in which people were put in a room with freshly baked cookies and told not to eat them. The energy and effort it took to not eat the cookies made study subjects more likely to give up on subsequent 518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 99

WE CALL IT THE BATH-WILL-SHINE-LIKE-NEW-ROOM

CAPITAL DISTRICT COIN DEALERS ASSOCIATION

Coin & Hobby Show Coins, Stamps, Collectibles, Gold, Silver, Jewelry 75 Tables

25 OFF

$

Sun., May 4th Sun., June 1st

REGULAR MAID SERVICE

Call now for a free estimate.

518-464-8963 New customers only.

Not valid with other offers.

Polish Community Center Washington Ave. Ext. · Albany 11 am - 4 pm

Get the kind of clean that only comes from a team of specialists.

Visit Maids.com to learn about our unique 22-step deep cleaning system.

ARE YOU READY TO CHOOSE HEALTH?

Life is a journey. Wear comfortable shoes.

If you could transform your health without drugs or surgery, would you?

NEW

‘BOUT TIME™

TWIN™

FREE TIME™

TOUR™ FOR WOMEN

FREE

Seminar

NEW

TAKE TIME™

VIVA™

SIDE GORE™

JOURNEY™ FOR MEN

Over 6,000 Pairs in Stock!

SAS Comfort Shoes

580 New Loudon Road, Rt. 9 • Latham (adjacent to Newton Plaza) • (518) 220-2001 HOURS: Mon.-Sat. 10:00 - 6:00 ; Sunday 11:00 - 4:00

STOP and ask yourself if your habits are leading you towards health.

CHALLENGE yourself to make a change.

CHOOSE to transform your health

Saturday, May 3, 2014 9-10 am Hilton Garden, 235 Hoosick St., Troy NY

Please RSVP to GotOptimalHealth@gmail.com For more information visit www.transform-my-health.com

mental tasks that required them to think strategically or make decisions. It follows, then, that a person who has expended that mental energy is more likely to cheat if doing so gives the brain a break from hard work.

Another study out of Florida State University showed that test subjects who had used up energy through self-control efforts were able to bounce back and maintain that self-control in subsequent tasks after drinking a glass of lemonade sweetened with sugar. Other test subjects, who were given lemonade sweetened artificially, did not have the same benefit.

“Acts of self-control actually use up our physical energy, our glucose levels,” Bizer says.

Tempted to cheat? Drink or eat something high in sugar to boost your glucose levels.

Muraven was part of another study that found mood can impact a person’s willpower.

Test subjects who were shown comedy videos or given surprise gifts that lifted their spirits were less likely to succumb to the effects of willpower depletion after exerting self-control behaviors. Take that one step further: Happy people are less likely to cheat because they have more self-control.

Sometimes cheating is all about a person’s inability to delay gratification. “Some students are better at doing work now and putting off the fun until later, whereas other students do the opposite and fall behind down the road,” he says. “The ability to delay gratification is important in a lot of ways in life. Those of us who are able to resist that

“

If you’re in a culture ... where cheating is the norm, you feel a perceived justification.

”

— George Bizer

temptation are less likely to cheat and lie.”

Sometimes it seems as if everybody is cheating and to keep up with your peers, or get ahead, you have to do it as well, Bizer says. “If you’re in a culture or an environment where cheating is the norm, you feel a perceived justification. It’s a calculated cost analysis — if I cheat I’ll get this benefit. So the cheater calculates the likelihood of getting caught and if caught, what is the likely outcome. If I’m a student and I know I’m going to do very poorly on a test, then I’m going to get an F if I don’t cheat and if I cheat and get caught I’m still going to get that F, so why not.”

Studies have also shown that cheaters who get away with it are more likely to continue those behaviors. “It all leads back to that justification,” Bizer says. “I did it before and it was fine so I might do it even more.”

“People have a pretty good defense mechanism when it comes to cheating,” Muraven says. “They try to tell themselves they deserved it or the system is rigged against them so they have to do it.” But as a person ages and becomes more mature, they might look back and ask themselves why they did it. “It could cause guilt or depression or other negative consequences,” he adds.

“There is no diagnosis for someone who cheats,” Muraven says. “Unfortunately, we don’t have a lot of mental health professionals that recognize self-control and the importance it plays. It would be great if we could start taking people with this issue into

therapy and offer them tools. But people are starting to become more aware of it and how it can underlie other disorders.”

In some cases cheating is not well-defined.

“One argument can be made that cheating is not always a black and white situation,” Bizer says. “My syllabus, for instance, has become quite lengthy because I want my students to know what is cheating and what is not. When we think of cheating, we think of the negative perception that it’s wrong. But if somebody didn’t perceive it that way, then is it? That’s where motive comes in.”

Some Cheating Stats A quick Internet search reveals a wealth of studies on cheating (wait, was I cheating to do that?). Here are two we found about academic cheating and cheating on your taxes.

Two studies conducted in 2009 by the Josephson Institute of Ethics revealed the following: • More than half of 40,000 high school students surveyed said they had cheated on a test over the past year (and 34 percent of those teens said they had done it more than twice).

• 1 in 3 of those high school students said they plagiarized assignments with the help of the Internet.

• People who cheated in high school were three times more likely to cheat as adults (compared to those who never cheated), doing things such as lying to a customer or inflating an insurance claim.

• High school cheats said they were twice as likely to lie or cheat at work, and oneand-a-half times more likely to lie to a significant other or cheat on their taxes.

A 2013 study done by the Pew Research Center and the Tax Foundation estimated that 1.6 million Americans cheat on their taxes, while 79 percent of survey respondents said doing so was immoral. A study the same year commissioned by the Internal Revenue Service Oversight Board, which randomly polled 1,500 adults, showed the following: • 87 percent said cheating on taxes is wrong • 11 percent said a little cheating here and there is OK • 95 percent said personal integrity motivates them to be honest, while 63 percent said honesty was precipitated by fear of an audit and 41 percent said they are honest because they believe their neighbors are as well.

• 62 percent said the IRS should receive more funds to enforce tax laws and be sure everyone is paying what they owe.

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 101

BY ANNA ZERNONE GIORGI

M

aybe you haven’t signed on to be an organ donor because it makes you uneasy. No one likes to think about their own death or what might happen to their bodies when they’re gone. But, if you’re not an organ donor, you’re ignoring the needs of thousands of people whose lives could be changed — even saved — with your help. And avoiding that is something that should make you very uncomfortable.

On average, over 10,000 people are on the organ transplant list in New York State awaiting transplant surgery. In 2012, 612 people on that list died while waiting, at a rate of about one person every 15 hours.

Though it’s the third most populous state in

102 518 LIFE

the country, New York lags at 48th out of the 50 states with percentage of residents who are registered organ donors. With only about 20 percent of New Yorkers in the state registry, we’re barely halfway to the national state average of 45 percent registration. (Compare that with the state with the highest percentage of donors: Montana, where 82 percent of the population is registered.)

New York State is hoping to improve its status by making it easier for people to become a donor. Now, you’ll be faced with the question when you interact with the Department of Motor Vehicles. Since October 2012, with the passage of Lauren’s Law, drivers who apply for a license application or renewal, as well as in-

dividuals applying for or renewing non-driver identification cards, are required to answer the following question: “Would you like to be added to the Donate Life Registry? Check box for ‘yes’ or ‘skip this question.’”

By answering “yes” to the question, you give bound legal consent to allow your organs, tissues, and/or eyes to be recovered and used for transplantation and/or research upon your death. It’s possible to specify if you prefer that only organs, tissues, and/or eyes be recovered and whether they are used for transplantation and/or research. If you sign up for the Donate Life Registry, your family or next of kin will be informed about your decision upon your death, but their consent

Photo: Peter Dazeley/GettyImages.

Life After Death

How becoming an organ donor can make a difference

will not be needed for the donation process. Only you can withdraw your consent by contacting the Donate Life Registry and requesting the change.

If you sign on to the Donate Life Registry, it’s wise to discuss your plans with your family so they’ll be prepared. “It’s much easier for everyone involved if you’ve had a discussion and your family or loved ones have heard directly from you that these are your wishes,” says Rebecca Daniels, hospital and community

are already on the registry, to see if they’ve made the decision to donate themselves, or if we have to work with their family or the next-of-kin to gain consent for donation. Once authorization is given, or we find out the donor has already authorized himself, we have a clinical staff that see the case through along with the hospital staff,” Daniels says.

The CDT staff oversees management of the donor, including taking lab reports and other tests to evaluate the organs. The

Though it’s the third most populous state in the country, New York lags at 48th out of the 50 states with percentage of residents who are registered organ donors.

services specialist with the Center for Donation and Transplant (CDT) in Albany.

Perhaps you’re concerned about what your decision might mean to your family. The donor’s family does not incur any additional hospital expenses for the procedure. In addition, the organ procurement surgery is not necessarily disfiguring and won’t delay funeral arrangements or prevent your family from having an open casket viewing. “The procurement surgery is treated just like any other surgery. It takes place in the operating room. It’s a sterile, respectful environment,” Daniels says.

The CDT is one of 58 organ procurement organizations (OPOs) in the country. Each OPO covers a specific geographic area.

The CDT serves 43 hospitals in upstate New York and western Vermont. Every hospital in the country is assigned to an OPO. “We work with the hospitals when there are potential donors to check and see if those donors

process is important to ensure that only organs that can be successfully used for transplants are taken. The information is reported to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), the national organization that oversees the donor matching process.

“We put our donor information into the UNOS system. It helps us to make offers in placing the organs. And that process happens confidentially. We never know the exact identity of the patient to whom those gifts are going,” Daniels says.

The CDT clinical staff is not involved with the donor patient until brain death has been determined. It’s a misconception that patients who are organ donors are treated differently upon arrival at the hospital. The physicians who treat a patient until the time of death aren’t involved with the teams responsible for organ removal or transplant.

“The registry, which is maintained by the Department of Health in New York State, is a

5798 Route 80 Cooperstown New York

Winslow Homer:

The Nature and Rhythm of Life From the Arkell Museum in Canajoharie

June 6 - August 24

THIS SUMMER!

Winslow Homer, Watching the Breakers: A High Sea, 1896, Oil on canvas, Arkell Museum at Canajoharie, Gift of Bartlett Arkell, 1935

FenimoreArtMuseum.org

confidential registry. The only folks that have access to that are our organ procurement staff. So, even physicians who are treating a patient don’t have the ability to check that registry. It’s just the organ procurement organization that can do that,” Daniels says.

Almost anyone can be an organ donor, regardless of age. It’s important to increase numbers since not every individual registered will ultimately be able to donate. “There are certain circumstances that need to occur to be an organ donor. Only about 1 percent of people who die in the country, die in a way that allows them to become an organ donor.

For the vast majority of cases, someone needs to be declared brain dead. They must be on a ventilator to preserve the vital organs,” Daniels says.

The role of organs in treating very sick patients can’t be underestimated. “Organ donation is an incredibly important tool to treat patients with end-stage renal disease. Patients with renal failure have to be on dialysis. Dialysis significantly and detrimentally impacts their quality of life and their lifespan,” says Dr. David Conti, chief, section of transplant surgery at Albany Medical Center. “A kidney transplant really significantly improves their quality of life and their life expectancy.”

Kidney transplants are more common than liver, heart, lung and pancreas transplants.

“The majority of the patients waiting for an organ are waiting for a kidney transplant,” Conti says. “The only way we’re able to do transplants on those people is if we have organs to transplant into them. Right now, the only organs that we have are organs donated by humans.”

Of the approximately 450,000 people on dialysis in the United States, Conti says about 90,000 patients are on a kidney

transplant list. “That number grows every year because the number of patients with renal failure is growing incredibly. So, the numbers of patients that would qualify to have a renal transplant also grows. But the number of patients that we have available to take care of those patients with a kidney transplant has stayed relatively stable.

So, more and more people are waiting and therefore, they have to wait longer and longer to receive a kidney transplant.”

Over the past 20 years, medical advances have led to improved techniques and treatments for transplant patients, resulting in better outcomes. “The operation itself is better, the techniques that we have are better, and the medicines that we have to prevent rejection and to treat infection that occurs after the transplant are better. Right now, on average, when a kidney transplant is done in the United States, there’s about a 90 to 92 percent chance that that person is going to be alive with the kidney working a year later,” Conti says.

One result of refined techniques and more effective drugs is the expansion of the pool of medically eligible patients. “The result of the operation being refined over the last 20 years and the medicines that we have being better, means more candidates qualify for a transplant. So, if you go back 25 years, it would be very rare for a patient over age 55 to receive a transplant, because it was too dangerous for them. Now, we routinely transplant patients in the late 50s, 60s, and even in their 70s,” Conti says.

Grace Anderson, 62, of Chatham, was lucky enough to receive the gift of a kidney transplant in August 2012. She suffered with polycystic kidney disease, a genetic disorder in which cysts grow in the kidneys. With this

Say “Yes” to Organ Donation

It’s easy to become part of the New York State Donate Life Registry. Here’s where to start:

Some New York residents joined the “Life Pass It on Registry,” which was created in 1999. It was an intent registry that recorded an individual’s wishes for donation in the event of death. Since it did not record legal consent, permission from next of kin is still needed for donation. If you joined the “Life Pass It on Registry,” you are not automatically included in the Donate Life Registry.

New York State Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)

104 518 LIFE

dmv.ny.gov You’re required to answer the question regarding organ donation when you apply or renew a driver license or non-driver identification card. If your driver license or non-driver identification card isn’t due for renewal, you still can become an organ donor by creating a MYDMV account at the DMV

condition, the kidneys can become enlarged by cysts, which results in reduced kidney function and ultimately, kidney failure.

Diagnosed with the disease at age 30, her kidneys eventually deteriorated to the point where she qualified for a transplant at age 60.

However, since her kidneys were so enlarged, she had to have one removed to make room for transplant surgery. With one diseased kidney remaining, she began her wait for a kidney in October 2011, and started dialysis three times a week. “It drains you. After dialysis, I was tired for the day. I have three grandchildren. I couldn’t do much with them because I was so tired. I couldn’t babysit them or play with them. I could only just sit there,” she says.

The waiting time for a kidney transplant can vary widely. National averages range anywhere from two to five years. Organs are matched with recipients on the transplant list based on a wide variety of considerations such as severity of illness, time on the waiting list, blood type, size of organ, and geographic proximity to the available organ. All organs are matched through the UNOS computer system.

Though waiting can be stressful, the potential for improved health can have a positive effect. “You might think, ‘Is the phone ever really going to ring?’” Anderson says. “It’s hard being on the transplant list, but it gives you the motivation to keep going because you know that the phone is eventually going to ring.”

Some patients benefit from live organ donation. While typically occurring in cases where there’s a blood relationship or other close bond between donor and recipient, Conti emphasizes that it’s not something entered into lightly. “It is a big operation.

So, you have to be careful that someone is really perfectly healthy, understands all the

website and enrolling electronically.

New York State Department of Health (DOH) health.ny.gov/professionals/ patients/donation/organ

at the Board of Elections. If you complete it, the form will be sent to the DOH to complete your enrollment in the Donate Life Registry.

For more information about organ donation, contact:

Download the registry form at the New York State Department of Health website. After you fill out the form online, sign and mail it to the address indicated.

Center for Donation and Transplant

Board of Elections

The New York Alliance for Donation

You’ll have the option to register for organ donation on page 3 of the voter registration form, available

cdtny.org

alliancefordonation.org

Donation illustrations by Emily Jahn.

risks, and wants to have the procedure done. And, the recipient recognizes that as well,” Conti says. “Right now, anywhere from a third to a half of the kidneys transplanted in the United States come from live donors. The difficulty is increasing that pool, but maintaining the safety of the donor.”

While strangers sometimes offer to donate an organ, it’s an option that has to be examined carefully. “It’s unusual for someone to, just out of the blue, say ‘I want to undergo a big operation to help someone else in society that I don’t know.’ It’s incumbent on transplant professionals to make sure that that person is of sound mind, is able to really understand the potential ramifications of undergoing a big surgery, both to themselves and their family, and is not doing it for some untoward gain or some psychological need,” Conti says.

Anderson was lucky and received her match from an anonymous deceased donor in August 2012, less than a year after waiting on the list. The impact was immediate.

“As soon as you get that kidney, it’s so incredible. Everything changes. I could tell that I felt better when I woke up,” she says. “I feel amazing. I have so much energy. Before the transplant, I couldn’t get off the couch; now I can’t sit down.

You don’t realize how badly you felt, until you start feeling better.”

Now Anderson is able to spend more time with her three active grandchildren.

She emphasizes the ripple effect of her kidney transplant.

“When you’re sick like that, you depend on everyone. Family, friends, everyone would come and help you out,” Anderson says. “People don’t realize that getting an organ donation doesn’t just affect the patient. It affects everyone that’s close to you — your husband, family, relatives, friends, and anyone who’s close to you.”

In some cases, transplant recipients and donor families reach out to each other for closure and celebration. The CDT requires a year-long waiting period before communication. CDT enables the connection, allowing both parties to remain anonymous unless both desire otherwise. Anderson feels moved to reach out. “It’s so amazing and so incredible to think that somebody that you never met donated their organs just to help. It’s such a gift.”

Donation Details Eight human organs can be donated and subsequently transplanted: the heart, one or both lungs, liver, one or both kidneys, intestine, and pancreas.

Making summer fun for 50 years!

Save $1,000 on an inground pool installation

We accept Telescope Casual trade-ins!

In addition to organs, many different types of tissue can be used to help patients take advantage of medical advances in care and treatment. Donated bone, heart valves, skin, cartilage, tendons, veins, and corneas can improve people affected by amputation, cancer, trauma, heart disease, and infection.

Tissue and cornea donation can be done even if circulatory death occurs.

By agreeing to donate your organs, eyes, and tissue, you potentially can help save or improve the lives of up to 50 individuals.

50

Pool, Spa, & Patio

Experts in pool repair, maintenance, water testing and liner replacement.

Amsterdam Route 30N 518.954.2229

Clifton Park

Clifton Park Center 518.371.2211

alpinhaus.com | facebook.com/alpinhaus

Please present coupon when booking installation. Install appointments must be booked by 5/31/14.

Coupon Code:518POOL

Years Est.1964

®

Ask the Doc

Under Pressure

BY BRIANNA SNYDER | PHOTOS BY EMILY JAHN

N

early 70 million Americans have been diagnosed with hypertension, or high blood pressure, increasing their risk of heart attacks and heart failure, stroke and end-stage renal disease. That’s one in three Americans, according to Dr. Arif Asif, chief of nephrology and hypertension at Albany Medical Center.

“Hypertension is a huge issue globally,” says Asif, “and in the United States also.” Asif specializes in hypertension and will speak at our 518Life seminar on May 14. (See box.)

High blood pressure is tricky, in part, because it is virtually symptomless. Therefore it’s been dubbed “The Silent Killer” by medical professionals who struggle to get a hold of this widespread problem, which disproportionately affects minorities and the poor. Asif blames this reality on a lack of awareness and public enemy No. 1: processed foods and generally less-than-healthy lifestyles (which are easy to fall into when you live in an urban area and only have easy access to convenience stores that don’t usually sell fruits and vegetables).

106 518 LIFE

What everyone needs to know about hypertension So what can you do to prevent high blood pressure or even lower it? Eat more vegetables and get some exercise. Also, if you’re a smoker — why are you a smoker! — stop smoking and watch for sodium.

“We used to believe [too much sodium intake came from] the salt shaker,” Asif says.

“But it’s not. It’s processed food that we buy at the grocery store. And bread!” Check the nutrition label on the bread you buy — you may be surprised to find a ton of salt.

Asif says the recommended daily dose for salt intake is 2,300 milligrams. And Americans are putting away more like 4,000 to 5,000 milligrams per day, he adds. That’s got to stop if we want our bodies to be healthy.

“Try to cook at home,” he continues. “We know that when you cook at home — even if you use salt — it is way less than what is in the processed food and precooked food.”

Asif advises people to see a doctor annually.

Hypertension affects all people; the age group between 19 and 39 is the fasted-growing population in terms of hypertension, Asif says.

If you do have hypertension (which is when your blood pressure is equal to or higher than 140/90 for people under 60; after 60, that marker is more variable, depending on overall health), your doctor will prescribe lifestyle changes. If the problem is severe enough, you’ll be put on medication. Keep following up with your doctor until you’ve got your blood pressure down to a normal and healthy 120/80. You can check yourself, too, at local pharmacies and grocery stores, which typically have machines you stick your arm into for squeezing.

The good news is that more people are becoming aware of hypertension and its dangerous effects. And the even better news is that within six weeks of a healthier diet and regular exercise, most people will see their blood pressure drop and even normalize. If you suffer from hypertension and don’t want to take medicine, you can do it the natural way: 30 minutes of exercise five days a week, and no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day.

YOUR SOURCE FOR:

• Walk in Bathtubs • Walk in Showers • Home Renovations • Sunsetter

Veteran Owned & Operated Formerly Veneto Services

FREE IN-HOME ESTIMATES Call us today! 518.326.2520 www.americanhomebath.com

Homebirth – Safe, Satisfying, Sage-Femme

Helping Women And Couples Explore What They Value Most For Their Birth Experience

• Care and support during active labor & birth • Fewer interventions & unnecessary Cesarean births • Certified Midwife & Birth Assistants Sage-Femme Midwifery • Kelly McDermott • 518-813-9290

527 Western Avenue, Albany, NY 12203 • www.sage-femmemidwiferyy.com

Providing Full Care For All Three Phases Of Pregnancy:

• Prenatal • Labor & Birth Attendance • Postpartum Care for Mother & Baby

Dr. Arif Asif, chief of nephrology and hypertension at Albany Medical Center

Sunday Brunch Mussel Mondays Any Mussel Entrée $10

French Bistro Inspired Fresh, Local, Seasonally Motivated 518Life Seminar (presented by Albany Medical Center):

Hypertension: The Silent Killer Dr. Arif Asif will be joined by Elizabeth Anderson and Kelly Gowett in the free 518Life Seminar presented by Albany Medical Center. The topic is Hypertension: The Silent Killer and will be held May 14, 5-6:30 at the Desmond in Albany. Participation is free but registration is required.

Registrants will be automatically entered to win a spa getaway to the Cranwell Resort and Spa in Lenox, Mass. NewsChannel 13’s Benita Zahn will give a preview of the seminar on May 12 in the 5 p.m. hour. Register at healthylifeseminar.eventbrite.com. Call 454-5583 with questions.

456-4566 • 1839 Central Avenue, Colonie 439-3832 • 5 Vista Boulevard, Slingerlands

GardenBistro24.com

Only the finest, freshest ingredients.

No microwave or freezer.

A DV E R T I S E M E N T

Have you heard about this new technology that is FDA cleared, and non-surgical treatment for back pain?

Herniated Disc?

Non-surgical spinal decompression may be the last back pain treatment you will ever need. And you may be able to forget the pills, getting endless shots, struggling through exercise programs...and...risky surgery...because with this amazing new technology...if you are a candidate... they may be a thing of the past. You’re about to discover a powerful state-of-the-art technology available for: Back pain, Sciatica, Herniated and/or Bulging discs (single or multiple), Degenerative Disc Disease, a relapse or failure following surgery or Facet syndromes. Best of all -- you can check it out yourself for FREE! CALL 518-300-1212

I

magine how your life would change if you discovered the solution to your back pain.

In this article you’ll discover powerful new back pain technology that has the potential to be that solution for you.

This incredible technology is Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression and the DRX 9000.

Here’s the amazing story how it was discovered and why it has a chance to help YOUR back pain...

How Science Helps Back Pain The lower back is a series of bones separated by shock absorbers called “discs”.

When these discs go bad because of age or injury you can have pain. For some the pain is just annoying, but for others it can be life changing...and not in a good way.

It has long been thought that if these discs could be helped in a natural and noninvasive way, lots of people with back and leg pain could lower the amount of pain medication they take, be given fewer epidural injections for the pain and have less surgery.

Recent medical breakthroughs have led to the development of advanced technologies to help back and leg pain suffers!

Through the work of a specialized team of physicians and medical engineers, a medical manufacturing company, now offers this space age technology in its incredible DRX 9000 Spinal Decompression equipment.

The DRX 9000 is FDA cleared to use with the pain and symptoms associated with herniated and/or bulging discs. . . even after failed surgery.

What Conditions Has The DRX 9000 Successfully Treated And Will It Help YOU? The main conditions the DRX 9000 has success with are: • • • •

Back pain Sciatica Spinal Stenosis Herniated and/or bulging discs (single or multiple) • Degenerative disc disease • A relapse or failure following surgery • Facet syndromes A very important note: The DRX 9000 has been successful even when NOTHING else has worked.

Even after failed surgery.

What Are Treatments On The DRX 9000 Like?

After being fitted with an automatic shoulder support system, you simply lie face up on the DRX 9000’s comfortable bed and the advanced computer system does the rest.

Patients describe the treatment as a gentle, soothing, intermittent pulling of your back. Many patients actually fall asleep during treatment.

The really good news IS... this is not something you have to continue to do for the rest of your life. So it is not a big commitment.

Since offering the DRX 9000 in my Colonie office, I have seen nothing short of miracles for back pain sufferers who had tried everything else. . . with little or no result.

Many had lost all hope.

Had herniated disk operation 8 years ago another disc became herniated. Doctor wanted to operate have arthritis from 1st one (did not want to go under knife again) very grateful to DRX9000 (thank you Dr. Claude D. Guerra, DC) Very happy camper.

Raymond F Niskayuna, NY Age 55 This treatment was a miracle for my cervical disk herniations. Only other alternative was surgery, which I no longer have to face.

William I Schenectady, NY Age 63

I was told by a doctor I wouldn’t be able to work. I cannot afford to not work so I tried Dr. Claude D. Guerra, DC, and not only did the pain go away but I never missed a day at work.

Rick S Clifton Park, NY Age 42 I would love to shake the hand of the person who invented this machine. It was a life saver for me and a lot better than going under the knife. I HIGHLY recommend this to anyone with chronic back pain.

Dawn H Colonie, NY Age 49 Before the DRX 9000 treatment. I had no quality of life.

Couldn’t do anything for myself. Thank God for Dr. and the DRX machine. I can live again.

Yvette K Schenectady, NY Age 47 I suffered for three years, before I received treatment on the DRX 9000. Today, I can sleep and get out of bed like a normal human being. Before, I couldn’t even drive my car because the pain in my hips, legs and feet were so bad from the sciatica nerve being pinched by my Herniated Disc L4 and L5, which also prevented me from sitting in a chair or even using my computer lap top at any time. Today things have changed due to advance technology therapy on the DRX 9000. They always try

A DV E R T I S E M E N T I would definitely refer people to your office. Dr. Guerra and his staff have made this experience a pleasure.

Ed H Hoosick Falls, NY Age 70 Pain free, numbness in the left foot is gone. DRX 9000 is GREAT and does work.

Sal L Niskayuna, NY Age 50

to regulate the treatments that work. What is up with this taught process???? The world is changing and so have I. Frank A Troy, NY Age 52 Before receiving the DRX treatments, my quality of life was very poor. I could hardly do anything other than going to work and going to bed.

After the DRX treatments my quality of life has improved 90% which has resulted in me being able to go for long walks without a cane and go shopping.

Anne P Burnt Hills, NY Age 70 I am so appreciative of this method of therapy because when I came to the office I had to use a cane and had muscle pain in walking. After 2nd treatment sciatica nerve pain was gone in my left leg.

Judith W Albany, NY Age 64 Prior to this treatment my only options appeared to be invasive pain management, or surgery. After receiving 24 sessions on the DRX, I am markedly improved, relatively pain free and am able to function as I had in previous years. Highly recommend to anyone with disc issues.

Alan P Scotia, NY Age 53 I would choose this therapy again! Painless treatment that gets your life back to

normal. Stick with it-it works!

Linda G Broadalben, NY Age 53 I am so happy I came to Dr. Guerra. I was in a lot of pain and after being on the DRX I tell you I do not have pain. I feel wonderful and the staff are very nice. Dr. Claude D. Guerra, DC is wonderful. If you are in pain try the DRX it really helps.

Edith C Schenectady, NY Age 71 I think more people should know about this procedure before considering any surgery. Medications help the pain but they don’t cure the cause. I am back to my old self again.

Lorraine B Scotia, NY Age 78 I highly recommend this machine. I had my doubts but it really and truly works. Dr. Claude D. Guerra, DC is a wonderful doctor and his staff is great too.

Linda D Clifton Park, NY Age 46 I was extremely skeptical at the beginning of treatments - Progress was slow in coming - But... then it worked!

What a relief!!!

Joan K Delmar, NY Age 71 I had no where else to go with this problem. The DRX 9000 was just what I needed. Many thanks!

Burton S Mechanicville, NY Age 50

I’m able to go on long walks and get all night sleep (I’ve had 3 surgeries since 2006) Without the DRX I would be in for a 4th back surgery. I’m getting back to doing activities with my 10 year old son.

Lisa V Catskill, NY Age 45 I wish to thank you very much for all the help I received with the spinal decompression therapy. Your entire office was very helpful and compassionate. No longer do I sit at night with my heating pads, moving them from sore spot to sore spot. My knees are no longer on fire and I’m able to go up and down the stairs much easier than before.

Mable D Ballston Lake, NY Age 68

SPECIAL OFFER Call Dr. Claude D. Guerra, DC’s office at 518-300-1212 and mention to my assistants that you want a FREE back pain/DRX9000 qualification

consultation. It’s absolutely free with no strings attached.

There is nothing to pay for and you will NOT be pressured to become a patient.

Here is what you will receive: • A consultation with me, Dr. Claude D. Guerra, DC to discuss your problem and answer the questions you may have about back pain and the DRX9000 • A DRX9000 demonstration so you see for yourself how it works! Due to current demand for this technology, I suggest calling today to make your appointment.

The consultation is free.

We are staffed 24-hoursa-day, 7-days-a-week. Call 518-300-1212 right now!

It’s absolutely FREE with no strings attached.

There is ONE Big Problem: My busy office schedule will limit how many people I’m able to personally meet with...so you will need to act fast. Call 518-300-1212 right now...to be sure you are among the first callers and we will set up your free consultation today.

We have the phones answered 7 days a week 24 hours a day so call now...

518-300-1212. (Free consultation is good for 45 days) 2016 Central Ave., Colonie www.albanyDRX.com Like us on Facebook: Healthsource of Albany North

FREE seminar

5:30-6:30 PM EXPERT SPEAKERS:

HEALTHY LIFE SEMINAR presented by

ARIF ASIF, MD Chief, Division of Nephrology Albany Medical Center

HYPERTENSION: THE SILENT KILLER

WEDNESDAY, MAY 14, 2014 THE DESMOND, 660 ALBANY SHAKER RD., ALBANY 5:00pm Registration 5:00pm – 5:30pm Networking and Information Booths 5:30pm – 6:30pm Albany Med’s Expert Speakers

ELIZABETH ANDERSON MSN, RN-BC Administrator of Nursing Faculty Group Practice Albany Medical Center

Hypertension, also referred to as high blood pressure (HBP), affects more than 76 million U.S. adults and is the number one cause of stroke. If HBP is left untreated, it can lead to serious health problems such as stroke, heart attack, heart disease, congestive heart failure, and artery disease. Join Albany Meds specialists as they discuss how to recognize and control this common, serious, and often deadly disease.

WIN A GIRLFRIENDS’ SPA GETAWAY at Cranwell

One pre-registered attendee will be selected at random.

Must be present to win (value $700).

GET A SEMINAR PREVIEW on NewsChannel 13 with Benita Zahn 5 p.m. on May 12

KELLY GOWETT MS, RD, CDN Clinical Dietitian Albany Medical Center

Space is limited.

Register at www.healthylifeseminar.eventbrite.com Questions, call 518-454-5583

Trainer Tips

BY BRIANNA SNYDER | PHOTOS BY COLLEEN INGERTO

WANT TO LEARN MORE? Enhance your squat routine with some variations on the exercise. Check out our video online at YouTube.com/ TimesUnionMagazines.

Three Steps to a Perfect

Squat

with

Jeannine Trimboli

1 2

STAND TALL with your chest high, shoulders back, toes straight ahead or slightly angled outward.

SIT YOUR HIPS BACK and down between your knees, while keeping your weight mostly in your heels and your hips, heels on the floor, and knees pointing directly over your feet. Try to keep your torso mostly upright, and don’t round your spine.

3

DRIVE THROUGH YOUR FEET and stand back up making sure your knees continue to track over your feet.

Jeannine Trimboli is a certified personal trainer and weight loss specialist. She is the owner of real [FIT] life and recently opened her new personal training center in Downtown Schenectady. Find out more at realfitlife.net

SQUAT DONT’S: DON’T round your back as you sit into your squat

DON’T let your heels come off of the floor

DON’T lean forward excessively.

DON’T let your knees buckle in

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 111

Brain Drain

When to Say When How to make smart choices about drinking

BY ANNA ZERNONE GIORGI ILLUSTRATIONS BY EMILY JAHN

E

ven though it’s legal and socially acceptable to use, alcohol is a drug. Just like all drugs, alcohol changes the way your body works. With just one drink, you’re likely to feel its effects. But, how long do those effects last? Under what circumstances does drinking put you at risk for long-term damage to your brain and body?

While low levels of alcohol can cause stimulating effects, alcohol is a central nervous system depressant. When it enters your body, it’s absorbed into the bloodstream. Your liver can metabolize a small amount of alcohol at one time, so that the alcohol is changed into a nontoxic form.

However, when you drink more than your body can handle, the excess alcohol circulates through your bloodstream. It travels to your brain and other organs and causes a variety of depressant effects. As a result, your vital functions slow down, and you may have slower reaction times, loss of coordination, and slurred speech.

112 518 LIFE

The effect of alcohol on your body depends on how much you consume and at what rate.

Drinking too much alcohol for long periods of time can cause long-term, sometimes irreversible damage. A recent study reported in the journal Neurology followed a group of over 5,000 middle-aged men for 10 years. The researchers found that the men who were classified as heavy drinkers experienced loss of memory, reasoning, and attention skills at a faster rate than the groups classified as abstainers, or light or moderate drinkers.

Heavy drinking can affect the brain in other ways.

“Alcoholics can become malnourished because they’re consuming most of their calories through alcohol. There is a condition called Wernicke encephalopathy that can affect your memory. It’s actually a thiamine (vitamin B-1) deficiency. Another condition, Korsakoff encephalopathy, is a little more severe. It can cause amnesia, forgetfulness, and is basically untreatable,” says Dr. Dean Limeri, medical director of Ellis Primary Care, practicing in Glenville, and author of Medicine is a Team Sport: How to Become a Team Player in Your Own Healthcare.

Beware of Bingeing While the guidelines for moderate drinking indicate a daily and weekly limit, it’s not an entitlement. A man who has consumed only four drinks during the week isn’t entitled to make up the 10-drink balance of his 14 drinks-per-week limit over the weekend. Doing so would be considered binge drinking.

Binge drinking results in overloading your liver, and subsequently the rest of your body, with more alcohol than it can handle. “A binge drinker doesn’t drink every day, but they sit down and drink at least five drinks and that can be a problem,” David says. “With one drink, our body metabolizes it right away and in one hour, it’s gone.

If you drink too much at once, your body can’t metabolize all the alcohol, and you can create more damage.”

Limiting your consumption to one drink an hour, alternating between an alcoholic drink and a nonalcoholic drink, and accompanying your drinking with food, are ways to minimize toxic effects, recommends the NIAAA. “If you look at men who regularly drink more than 14 drinks a week or more than four drinks per occasion, or women who drink more than seven drinks per week or more than three per occasion, those folks who have that type of chronic pattern are going to be the ones at risk for the toxic effects of alcohol,” Limeri says.

Men vs.

Women According to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, moderate alcohol consumption consists of one drink per day for women, totaling no more than seven drinks per week, and up to two drinks per day for men totaling no more than 14 drinks per week.

=

/day

= /day

Why the inequality?

“The capacity to metabolize alcohol between men and women is different. The concentration of water in a man’s body is higher, about 60 percent, while women have a lower concentration, about 50 percent. So, a man is naturally equipped to handle more alcohol than a woman who has a lower water concentration. Also, women have a lower concentration of alcohol dehydrogenase, the enzymes that break down alcohol when it enters the body,” says Dr. Jose M. David, a family physician with St. Peter’s Health Partners Medical Associates, P.C., in Albany, clinical professor at the Albany Medical College, and a member of the executive board of the New York Society of Addiction Medicine.

“Body fat also is an issue. If you have a higher concentration of body fat, then the fat will not absorb alcohol and the alcohol content remains in its highly concentrated form, so women reach higher levels of intoxication sooner than men,” David says. “Birth control pills also slow down the rate at which the body can eliminate alcohol, so you can remain intoxicated longer.”

Counting Drinks If you’re trying to determine a strategy for safe drinking, 2 1 it’s important to know that the consumption guidelines define a drink as one that contains 14 grams, (0.6 fluid ounces or 1.2 tablespoons), of pure alcohol.

3 4 According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), the following servings count as one drink: 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of table wine, or a 1.5-ounce shot of 80 proof liquor.

However, you can’t assume that these sizes are the norm. Glass sizes as well as specific alcohol contents can vary. One mixed drink made with hard liquor can contain the equivalent of up to three or more standard drinks, depending on the contents and the types of liquor used.

An Early Start While the legal drinking age is 21, most people have their first drink long before that. “Some people may say they had their first drink at age 13 or 14 and their first intoxication at 15 or 16. If you continue drinking at a rate that is more than is recommended, and you’re still young, there’s more damage to the growing brain,” David says. “If they continue the pattern of drinking this way, by age 60, they’ll probably be dead from all the problems affecting the liver and other parts of their body.”

Once you start drinking, a combination of genetic and biological factors can determine whether you are likely to continue with the higher-risk behavior and how it will affect your overall health. “There are risk factors. If you have a first-degree relative that is an alcoholic or a strong family history of alcohol, you’re three to four times at increased risk for a potential problem,” Limeri says. “How long it can go on is very individual. There are some people who have been drinking since teenagers, or even below, and when they hit their 30s and 40s, you see a lot of complications. Some of them can even pass away, but for others, it may take until they reach their 50s, 60s, or 70s before you begin to see some of these complications occur.”

says. “Alcohol also can cause an inflammation of the pancreas called pancreatitis, which is one of the most painful diseases I’ve ever seen and can cause other long-term problems.”

Since alcohol travels throughout your body, virtually any area can be affected. “Nerve damage can occur, and depending on which nerves are damaged, you can have loss of feeling, which can affect your ability to walk. Alcohol also can damage the regular muscles in your body and cause weakness in your legs and arms,” Limeri says. “It can cause irritation in the stomach, ulcers, and inflammation, which can sometimes cause bleeding. In the heart, alcohol can cause abnormal heart rhythms or overall weakness in the heart, where you can ultimately get congestive failure.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heavy drinking and binge drinking also put you at a higher risk for high blood pressure and cancers of the liver, esophagus, mouth, throat, and larynx. You are more likely to suffer unintentional injuries from automobile accidents, falls, drowning, burns, and firearms. Incidents involving homicide, suicide, and other forms of violence also are more likely.

Be Honest

Body Damage Alcohol is a toxic substance that can result in a wide range of health problems. “Because you’re consuming alcohol and its increased calories, people can get overweight and develop what we call a ‘fatty liver.’” A fatty liver can set up inflammation in the liver and put you at risk for cirrhosis [scarring of the liver],” Limeri

Take a look at your habits and see where you fit in. “If you’re honest with yourself, and can say that your drinking has led to personal problems or failure to fulfill obligations, or legal issues, such as a DWI [driving while intoxicated] or DWAI [driving while ability impaired], that’s a potential thing to think about. In people who are mild abusers of alcohol, these little things start to occur, especially the drinking and driving. It may only be one incident, but that person may be a binge drinker,” Limeri says.

“In the earlier stages, you’ll see legal problems, social problems, spousal problems, and a lot of things that can be prevented with treatment,” David says.

“I don’t think social drinking is a problem until you lose control. It’s like any habit, whether it’s drinking or it’s gambling, you can lose control. And that’s when you’re going to have problems.”

Abuse vs. Dependence Alcohol abuse differs from dependence or alcoholism. “Alcohol abuse always precludes dependence. There’s always a potential for someone to abuse it, but they usually make an adjustment in their life. You don’t see the continued pattern of unmanageability and desperation that inevitably accompanies alcohol dependence,” says Ed Corless, director of outpatient programs at The Addictions Care Center of Albany, Inc. “Alcohol abuse may involve people using it in social circumstances that would endanger themselves or others, a loss of a significant job, or impacting a significant relationship with family or friends in a rift while being intoxicated. Abuse is situational, not patternistic.”

Alcohol dependence results in a pattern of alcohol use. “In these cases, a pattern of drinking is justified because of the sedative hypnotic effects or the relief that they get from ingesting it. As time goes on, and the relief drinking continues, there’s a certain amount of psychological dependence that occurs, and that dependence, neurochemically on alcohol, is acute,” Corless says. “It creates an agitation in the neurological system which prompts them to feel uncomfortable when they’re without it. It tells them that they need more to feel normal, and that is progressive.”

Do You Have an Alcohol Problem? work on Mondays,” Corless says. drink first thing in the morning down, but asks if you’ve ever Our local experts concur that one had the need to cut down. Most to steady your nerves or to get way to determine if you might Have you ever felt bad or people will say, ‘No,’ but if you rid of a hangover? have a problem with alcohol is to Guilty about your drinking? have a need to cut down, there’s take a four-question quiz based “People who drink in the morna question there if you’re re- “That’s a significant determinon the CAGE* acronym. “If you ing are generally drinking for reanswer ‘yes’ to even one question, ally in control of whether or not ing question in whether or not lief. Many people who drink in you should evaluate your rela- and how much you’re drinking,” somebody feels that they are the morning are doing it to try tionship with alcohol and deter- Corless says. powerless or are out of control to get rid of hangovers and are mine if you can abstain from it for in terms of how much and how really trying to deal with a cravHave people Annoyed you a while to see what the implicalong they drink and their ability ing for alcohol, so there’s some by criticizing your drinking? tions are for the role that it’s playto stop. Some people feel guilty physiological dependence impliing in your life –– psychologically, “Are people telling you that they for things that they did while cations for drinking in the mornemotionally, psychologically, and believe your drinking is a prob- drinking; other people feel guilty ing,” Corless said. spiritually,” Corless says. because of the harm that it does lem? Has your drinking ever to themselves and other people,” *The CAGE test was developed been a subject of argument or Have you ever felt you should Corless says. conflict with others that are close

by Dr. John Ewing, founding Cut down on your drinking? to you? This could even happen director of the Bowles Center for Have you ever had an Alcohol Studies, University of in an employment setting where “The question doesn’t ask if Eye-opener — defined as a North Carolina at Chapel Hill. maybe you’re not showing up for you actually tried to quit or cut

G

A

C

E

518LIFEMAGAZINE.COM 113

Photo Finish

114 518 LIFE

Historical snapshots from the Albany Postcard Project (albanypostcardproject.com)

oyster perpetual l ady-date jus t

rolex

oyster perpetual and lady-datejust are trademarks.

Earl B Feiden, providing the finest in home appliances for 88 years.

COMPLETE YOUR KITCHEN AND RECEIVE UP TO $1000* BACK WITH PURCHASE PURCHASE OF OF SELECT SELECT ELECTROLUX ELECTROLUX BUILT-IN WITH BUILT-IN COOKING COOKING APPLIANCES APPLIANCES VIA VIA MAIL-IN MAIL-IN REBATE REBATE FOR FOR AA PREPAID PREPAID MASTERCARD MASTERCARD® CARD CARD LIMITED LIMITED TIME TIME OFFER: OFFER: APRIL APRIL 11 -- JULY JULY 9, 9, 2014 2014 ®

Most Usable Space with with Sure-2-Fit®® Capacity

Perfect Organization System with Luxury-Glide® Drawers

BUILT-IN BUILT-IN ALL ALL FREEZER FREEZER

BUILT-IN ALL REFRIGERATOR REFRIGERATOR BUILT-IN ALL

Boil Water in 90 90 Seconds Seconds11 INDUCTION COOKTOP COOKTOP INDUCTION

Consistently Consistently Even EvenResults Results With Perfect Perfect Convect Convect33®® With DOUBLE WALL WALL OVEN OVEN DOUBLE

ELECTROLUXAPPLIANCES.COM * Via mail-in rebate. Rebate is a Prepaid MasterCard® Card. $1000 savings is for appliances as shown, excluding the dishwasher. See in-store sales associate for details. At participating retailers. Allow up to 8 weeks for delivery of MasterCard Card. Cards are issued by Citibank, N.A. pursuant to a license from MasterCard International and managed by Citi® Prepaid Services. Cards will not have cash access and can be used anywhere MasterCard debit cards are accepted. MasterCard is a registered trademark of MasterCard International Incorporated. The MasterCard expires 6 months after issuance. 110” induction burner with Power Boost, 6 qt./10” diameter pot, 1 qt. tepid water.

“Family Owned & Operated Since 1926” WWW.EARLBFEIDEN.COM

Earl B. Feiden INC APPLIANCE & TV

1771 Route 9, Clifton Park 518-383-2215

785 Route 9, Latham 518-785-8555

A+ Rated

661 Broadway, Kingston 845-331-2230