Jeff flew into Albany Airport on Friday, were we picked him up. A number of other people were joining us at the Gideon Putnam for a long weekend, including Eric and Cathy Haines and Brad and Kathleen Johnson; Jeff and Patty Krasner would be arriving on Saturday.
The Gideon is the hotel located in Saratoga State Park, and its a throwback to the more genteel times (if you were a rich white dude). It had a single elevator with what appears to be the original instructions from when they were new-fangled things, weighted windows, a slate roof. Jeff had reserved a suite with a room for gaming. Our bedroom was serviceable and fun in a funky why-did-they-do-that sort of way.
 Seems vaguely "The Shining" -ish |
 Complete with giant hornet's nests outside the windows |
 This does not seem original |
 but this does |
Friday evening we ate at a dive bar in Downtown Saratoga, one of Jeff's goals for the trip, and the next morning did a food run at Price Chopper, with a resulting impromptu breakfast on the front patio of the hotel.
Next stop, the Saratoga Automobile Museum, who had a special display of Porsches, old and new, and a more permanent exhibit of other cars on the second floor.
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There were plenty of games in Jeff's side room throughout the week.
Sunday, it was off to the races. In order to make things as easy as possible for Jeff, we reserved a table at the 1863 club, which is the newest, air-conditioned (and only enclosed) viewing spot next to the tracks, and included a buffet style service and free mimosas and bloody Mary's. It was very casual; you'd sit at the table until the race was about to start, wander out of the building to stand at the patio lining the race track, watch the horses thunder by, then go back in until the next race.
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Dinner that evening was at a relatively fancy Italian place, Chianti Il. I sent this (and other) shots around to Jeff's email list, and was delighted to have someone respond that it looked like Jeff was having dinner with Gandalf.
Monday was gaming during the day and, in the evening, the Lindsey Sterling Artemis tour at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC). Lindsey Sterling calls herself a "dancing violinist" that does dubstep, a subgenre of Electronic Dance Music or EDM, which is a subgenre of "really loud noises."
But in fact we've been listening to Lindsey for almost a decade, which made the fact she was dancing her a** off for almost ninety minutes without a break seem pretty miraculous, even if she hadn't been playing the violin at the same time (which she did at one point hanging upside down on a rope while spinning around furiously).
We were up close to the stage, which made the building-sized speakers pointing directly at us a little disconcerting, but it turns out they distribute earplugs for free. You could still feel the music. Your clothes could feel the music. Seats rattled. Hair was blown back. Lives were lost.
Ok, no real loss in life but it was loud. It was great music and visuals anyway, and we enjoyed the concert tremendously.
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We left for home Tuesday while Jeff Goldsmith travelled on to NYC with Jeff Krasner to continue his multi-city itinerary.