Posted By Patrick ~ 3rd April 2013
The University at Albany’s college radio station last month celebrated a milestone 50 year anniversary. Started as an AM station based out of a re-purposed janitor’s closet in Brubacher Hall while the Uptown Campus was still being constructed, the call letters WSUA would eventually become WCDB when it switched to FM 15 years later. Below are some pictures, new and old:
WSUA group picture from 1963 Torch Yearbook
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Posted By Patrick ~ 22nd February 2013
Note: this interview is part of a series done by St. Rose students in Daniel Nester’s ENG251 class. Meet Kevin, Waiter at Ruby’s Asian Bistro, as interviewed by Danielle Shine:
So here I am on your daily dog walk while you’re off duty from your job at Ruby’s. Thank you for inviting me on this walk through scenic Washington Park with you and Jackie. [Kevin looks to his 3 month-old Jack Russell terrier, Jackie, with admiration]. She looks so young.
Yes, I got her in August.
It makes me miss my dog back home…his name is Sunny Shine and very similar to Jackie in size and energy level.
Has Albany been your home your whole life?
No. I moved here from China in 1999.
What is your opinion of Albany?
It is quiet.
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Posted By Patrick ~ 21st February 2013
Note: this interview is part of a series done by St. Rose students in Daniel Nester’s ENG251 class. Meet Julia Byron, General Manager at The Ginger Man, as interviewed by Seamus Cunningham:
So you’re the general manager here. Just from hearing that title, it seems that you have a very busy day. What do you do?
Honestly it just depends. There is, you know, there’s payroll, but the primary focus, especially during the daytime is helping everybody out with lunch and making sure that the food is coming out on time. You know, just making sure the normal operation of the restaurant is going smoothly. We have the liquor, the soda, the beer, the wine, you know, for everyone and
I can sense by looking around that you offer a nice, relaxing place to hang out. Perhaps that feeling reflects in your service as well. When your customers enter the Ginger Man, is there a certain way you connect to your customers, or interact with them?
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Posted By Patrick ~ 8th January 2013
Note: this interview is part of a series done by St. Rose students in Daniel Nester’s ENG251 class. Meet Mike Caplan, bartender at Washington Tavern, as interviewed by Danielle DeMichele:
I work in a daycare where I have become very accustomed to children peeing on themselves or vomiting everywhere, do you get a lot of that at the bar?
Not a lot, no. Probably once every couple of months someone will throw up in the bathroom, but not a lot of people are peeing on them or throwing up in public.
Well that’s a relief! It seems that both of us work in a field where crazy ridiculous things happen each day, what would you say is the craziest thing you have ever seen while at work?
Man, this is a tough question. Someone sprayed pepper spray in the bar trying to clear it out. That was crazy. Also when the cops spray people with pepper spray in front of the bar, that’s pretty crazy, too.
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Posted By Patrick ~ 2nd January 2013
Note: this interview is part of a series done by St. Rose students in Daniel Nester’s ENG251 class. Meet Mike Valente, Owner of Bogie’s, as interviewed by April Zwack:
You’re a local and this is the place for local bands to play. I have a bunch of band friends who’ve played here: Restless Streets, The Alaskan, I Was A Hero, etc…. Dalton from The Alaskan had something cool to say: “ I’ve played there probably a dozen times…it feels like home to me because it’s got character. I love playing at Bogie’s. They’ve never treated me like I don’t matter because I’m in a local band.” I know those guys. I’m in a local band, so I get where the local bands are coming from.
Your mission states that Bogie’s is “run by musicians for musicians” and it aims to “provide an experience that will bring memories for a lifetime.” Do you think because this venue is ran by musicians you have an advantage with how you operate?
It can affect it on the business end, but we care. We don’t screw the bands over because we get what it’s like to be in a band. Bands aren’t dollar signs to us. The bands are taken care of.
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