By Joe Williams
When we started planning Education Reform Now’s retreat next week up in historic Lake Placid, NY, we had no idea how much interest there would be, and we ended up busting the fire code (even before the New York State United Teachers tried to crash it.)
For those who didn’t make the cut, you are invited to join paid NYSUT staffers and their advocacy arm, the Alliance for Quality Education, in picketing the parents, teachers, education activists and elected officials who will be participating in the retreat.
You can register to Picket In The Pines via NYSUT here. But hurry, the deadline is today!
For those NYSUT staffers who will be making the trek, we hope that you will join in the spirit of the event (promoting tourism in upstate New York) by flexing your expense accounts at some of the great local establishments in the Olympic Region.
May we suggest:
1. Grab a local beer at the Lake Placid Pub and Brewery. The beer (Ubu, especially) is excellent, as is the food. (If you like it, buy a Growler and haul it back down to the NYSUT office.)
2. Do you believe in miracles? Head over to the Olympic Center downtown and take in the scene where USA won the gold medal in hockey in 1980. Or the outdoor speed skating rink next door where Eric Heiden won five gold medals that year. For that matter, the Olympic ski jumps and the bobsled/luge runs ain’t too shabby either.
3. Knock down some pins at Bowlwinkles.
4. Bring home some Adirondack pasta sauce from Villa Vespa. Trust us. Like buttah.
5. If you want to have a drink along Mirror Lake, it is hard to beat The Cottage. Inside is cozy as hell too.
6. Didn’t anticipate the chilly air in early May? Stop by Eastern Mountain Sports on Main Street to buy a jacket. The kind of store where you could spend hours dreaming about all the outdoor gear that could be yours someday if you hit the Powerball…
7. Cake Placid. Boom!
8. Party Hearty at Wiseguys. Caveat: We haven’t been here since the late 1980’s, when it was called Mudpuddles and we got thrown out following the .38 Special concert at the Olympic Arena.
There are so many great places in Lake Placid. Explore! Enjoy!
“The NYSUT expense accounts, united, will never be defeated!!”
Please help the local economy and spend early and often.