The CNN article about GE legally becoming two companies isn’t like it’s wiped from face of Earth, and will they keep the big GE light at end of Erie Boulevard? Gotta be a landmark – 1892, right? GE doesn’t sell lightbulbs, say what?
Last year, the house on Lakewood we grew up in was still a well-situated half-block from Central Park, with playground and Rose Garden, barely a block from Gershon’s Deli at corner of Upper Union St. Mom got every nickel of the $125k she expected as a FSBO. The maple out front is gone, the Diamond’s house looks the same. Where I grew up, that’s Schenectady to me.
I hope Scott Grayman makes it to 50th reunion next year (you too, Mazz, Joey G., and former KK., S.Luscier?). Fingers crossed its more like August-Sept. warmth for once. I like the casino there now, won $1500 last August, but partied at Siro’s and beyond in Saratoga.
Telling others where you’re from has always been a natural part of introductions in Charlotte. Then-young nephew Ian often said, ‘We still think of you as Yankees,’ but Memorial Day starts my Year 30 here, he’s getting married in July, and he certainly hasn’t thought that way in a long time.
85-15% of people is a legitimate split between Elsewhere-Homies here. My three outstanding nephews here constitute ‘real’ Charlotteans in cultural terms. I continue telling people to shake hands with natives, even passing through a network mixer and turning into the Spoke Easy http://www.thespokeeasyclt.com shop to get a $3-16 oz. PBR and excellent advice about my Miyata needs.
With a church-related group’s annual dinner tonight, and plans for mingling at Mint Museum’s Kick Back Party Sunday afternoon (1:00-5:00), things are moving well on Social Goodness front in Charlotte. Mental health-wise, get as much Good as you can before election fever starts.
I remember how earlier on, GE shipped the division that made toasters out to Greenville, SC, and in HS some guys talked about being a third shift floor sweeper, because you could sleep on the job. My Dad was a RIF casualty in 1958, about the time third of four boys arrived. All the people from his GE Apprentice Alumni Association group camped together, got pregnant together, got old together.
50th Reunion – Linton HS
I’m unsure how many know that Schenectady and GE had primary parts, as Illium Electrical Works, in Kurt Vonnegut’s ‘Player Piano’ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Player_Piano_(novel). Journalism legend Ray Patterson included several Vonnegut books as required mid-70s reading, but producing Linton Highlights every two weeks remains a journalistic point of pride. Ray sent many of us off to college for Journalism degrees, the most popular major in the post-Watergate, Woodward and Bernstein righteousness. At reunions, I’m always recognized as ‘one of those Journalism guys.’ Close enough. Books written? Sure. I include Charlotte in mine.
In 1975 our graduating class at Linton was 540, which merged in 1992 with crosstown rival Mont Pleasant (at Linton campus) to become Schenectady High. It currently has 2,815 in grades 9-12 (even distrib.,76% grad. = 535). I was working in scholastic fundraising then, and General Electric pauperized three school districts when a tax judgement case forced return of years of previously paid company assessments, and included knocking down a quantity of no longer needed buildings, even historic, to reduce future assessment.
At reunions, I’m often recognized as ‘one of those Journalism guys.’ Close enough. Books written? Sure. I include Charlotte, not Schenectady, in mine.
https://www.wattpad.com/myworks/218725526-a-triple-shot-of-karma-&-platinum-fury-focus –April 13, 2024.
Employment with, or GE stock, was certainly a good thing, but I was never on the payroll. Brother David, new MBA guy in mid-90s, had a short manager gig there, got hit with a wildcat strike early on – 23 workers checked in and left. Perhaps he wasn’t convinced their promise to ‘give him 120% of what third-shift did’ was a best effort, or he might have compared them to a crew in South Korea as being out-produced at every level.
History? Everyone has it
My first job out of college was a direct result of running in the Schenectady Stockade-athon (15k) in 1979. Of all the training things I didn’t do well, running ten miles in cotton shorts gave me hellacious strawberries on inner thighs. For second interview with TIME, Inc., walking in kind of funky, the VP Recruiting said, “Looks like a story goes with that walk.” I told my runner’s story well – job was 20 cold calls a day, road guy with a company station wagon who could talk as soon as they walked in the door was a match.
Schenectady was just part of my territory (the Hudson Valley and Vermont) and where I continued living the first couple jobs out of college.
A favorite hang out was the Electric Grinch bar on Erie Blvd. One evening a bunch of ruggers came through, and I recognized Kush, a guy from Brockport. Don Kushine was literally that guy *everybody* knew. I hadn’t played college rugby, but liked thumping people, comradarie, lifestyle, so I started in 1980. The Schenectady Reds had a significant history, based on a lot of foreign engineers who played while passing through GE headquarters. There was also a feed from Union College for similar smart types who stayed around.
A SuperFund site (or two) discovered as being hazardous buried GE barrels, I think we even covered it in our well-rounded mid-70s school paper, Highlights. The environment was big then, mostly why I keep thinking all the problems GOP is muddling now – like Roe v. Wade overturned and poisons in the water – the whole PCBs in Hudson fiasco from Waterford GE – was checked on back then. (Dredge it or leave it alone at bottom of Hudson? lol Ask Chris Boehm…)
My folks leaving Schenectady was the toughest day of my life. No more stopping by and finding a piece of available pie, or having a beer (or racketball!) with Dad. I cried while hacksawing the basketball rim down, had to use Norm Diamond’s, Dad’s stuff was packed.
–Sept. 1988. The folks leaving Schenectady was a way bigger deal than GE not being ‘First, second, or forget it GE.’
As part of Karen Johnson’s 1984 Project 5000 campaign, I wrote about the prospect of using the former ALCO railroad assets at far end of Erie Blvd. from GE Main Plant, thoughts considered but never disturbed. Former City Councilman Dave Roberts opined back then, “GE was the proverbial dog in the manger – it can’t eat the hay, but it won’t let the cow get to it either.” It’s housing and casino now, so I guess its okay.
The debacle that was GE Capital just about took out the whole company in 2008; June 19, 2018 General Electric was dropped from Dow Jones Average, 30 select companies that had represented the economy since November, 1907. There was the period of time they owned NBC, and Tina Fey got to make fun of them in ’30 Rock.’ There was the inside joke about how GE bought high and sold low. Jack Welsh was selected as ‘Manager of the Century’ in 1999.
Truthfully, I lost track of GE missteps after I came to Charlotte, with brother David and nephew Curtiss, for folks 40th anniversary (up from Tampa) in 1995. 34 days later, Memorial Day plus one, I rolled into Charlotte, having extended my drive time down by making a wrong turn in Roanoke, VA. Driving across a lot of southern Virginia to 85 in Greensboro and south again, hey, nice weather, relax.
My nephew Ian hasn’t mentioned anything about Yankees in a while. In fact, all nephews have worked on regular basis with same, business verdicts linking smarts and money, fuggaboudit on any other consideration. They’ve spent time in NYC, the belly of the Beast Yankee-wise. One was familiar with the sale of property Panthers started their HQ in Rock Hill at. Blowing matters up during construction funding hoo-hah! is not a fact everyone has forgotten. Smart guys, proud to know them. I like walking in my neighborhood too, just up the hill to Queens University.
Where I’m From…
It’s not Stallone doing Brooklyn, or Wess-chestah, or Lang Giland Nuu Yawk, its 90% rest of the state.
–Almost 30th year here, I still made that New York distinction. Now I’ll say, “Schenectady, where GE used to be.”
Albany-Schenectady-Troy became the Capital District and eventually the Capital Region, so nobody felt slighted by being mentioned last or badly (like Gastonia around here, wink nudge). Albany was the capital and legislative center, Schenectady was second mention because it had GE. Just sayin’.
When I hear people say ‘We’ while discussing the Panthers, I sort of resemble that part of the population now. Blogging and online work involves feature style into sports proposition material, betting on my knowledge of Big East hoops worked pretty well during NCAAs. Marquette was a flameout, I liked Creighton too. If the Hornets could get a stud guard like Kolek, well, good wishes for the home team as NBA season ends.
Its been a long, hard slog for years with sports teams in Charlotte, so now its more a deserved Show us! attitude than anything else. That’s both legit and expected by The Powers That Be as the draft is almost here. Prediction is even more serious topics Panther-wise coming, #MrTeppers$ still isn’t making public commentary on football matters. FYI – he’s got two teams, Carolina Panthers and Charlotte FC, with significant presence here in an older, refurbished stadium.
Here’s hoping the local news about Morgan, Canales, and Tillis stays positive. I consider myself a Charlotte guy on most matters, been here exactly as long as Panthers, even have a burial plot here. Maybe 50th reunion will include fun time in Saratoga, no sense worrying about getting back to Schenectady about other event though.
S-C-H-E-N-E-C-T-A-D-Y. Its Alogonquin for, “Place where two rivers meet, and GE will be built.” Yeah, Schenectady. I’m from where General Electric used to be.
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