Troy

It seems like time has sped up since I moved up here, apparently it is now June and I have been in Troy for a little more than two months. Troy has exceeded expectations, tons of cool buildings, a lot of nice people and is full of the kind of faded glory that makes Upstate New York one my favorite places. The whole Capital Region has seen better days, with parts of Troy and Schenectady as run down and filthy as anywhere in the United States



To the left here is an example of one the less desirable neighborhoods in the area, the Hamilton Hill area of Schenectady, and the first stop on Saturdays for the Veggie Mobile. If you look closely at the house on the left, you'll notice that the siding is in fact roofing shingle, a fine example of preservation ingenuity in the face of insufficient maintenance funds.




Probably the best thing about the Veggie Mobile experience so far is how nice everyone that shops on the Truck is. To the left here is Jimmy, a Hamilton Hill regular, who consistently buys 5 cucumbers, 6 vine tomatoes and 2 pounds of seedless red grapes. Jimmy usually cruises up on his bike about 10 minutes after we arrive, and in addition to being slightly crazy, is one of the nicest people I've ever met.



I discovered this little gem yesterday, a pretty dramatic waterfall with a perfect swimming area at the bottom. I'm in the process of researching whether it is in fact swimmable, which given this areas rich industrial legacy it may well not be, but it's existence less than 15 minutes from my garden plot is a bonus nonetheless, and at the very least a good spot to go hang out at.



In other news, my friend/supervisor's band, Sgt. Dunbar and the Hobo Banned is doing a June residency at Pete's Candy Store in Williamsburg every Saturday in June. They're fun to see live and since it's been a while since I've been to the big city, I'm going to drive down Saturday, June 27th to see the show then hang in Brooklyn through Monday and hopefully meet up with some of you NYC kids. Let's make plans.