So Long, Syracuse!
It comes as no surprise to anyone that I would someday want to leave Syracuse, and to quote Don Geronimo mangling Jimmy Stewart, "Shake the dust off this one-horse town and see the world... Italy, Greece, Bowie..." Well I'm not going to Bowie, but somewhat close. Tomorrow morning I shall load up the U-Haul, and be bound for Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.
OK, please stop asking, I'm of perfectly sound mind in this decision. I can hear you all now: "So you're leaving Syracuse, a town where nothing ever happens for a town where less than nothing ever happens." Well yeah, but see there's a point to all this. I got a better job than the one I have now, so I'm outta here. That's all it was really going to take, after all. No offense to all the friends I've made here, especially since my return here after college (the first return in '97 and second over a year and a half ago). This is a pretty nice town when you slow down for a sec and look around. I've had plenty of opportunities to do that lately, as my car IS IN THE F%&#ING REPAIR SHOP!!! So I've taken the bus to work the last few days, and I've seen about as much of the city as anyone running for mayor lately I'll bet. I saw both the good and bad of this town. I walked around Clinton Square and saw how close they're getting to finishing that (won't get to see it open, though). I saw a nice downtown on a nice day. I also saw vacant store and office-fronts in other parts of downtown, and I rode on the bus through a very depressed West Side. Boarded-up houses, run down houses, a big mess. Sometimes you don't believe how bad things are until you see them for yourself, and it's pretty bad.
As I've noted before, of course, efforts to change things are often rebuffed by the locals, and that's another reason I can't get out of here fast enough. I'm just the latest in an entire generation that is fleeing for better climates, more welcoming climates, ones that are forward-thinking and progressive (and no Rush fans, that doesn't necessarily mean liberal).
Another reason I'm leaving, and perhaps most key is, to quote John Landecker in his last show on WLS (well, his first stint there anyway), "you can guess I wasn't getting everything I wanted". I want to be a DJ. The "big picture" for me of course is to someday attain morning drive superstardom somewhere, or to do a talk show which would be a mix of Landecker, Don & Mike, and Local Talk Host. I wasn't getting that chance here in Syracuse, and the only real way I could do it would be to go across town to another station and another company and radically reduced hours. It wasn't worth it, so I sought my fortune in another market. And as such, I am on the verge of invading market #165, Hagerstown, Maryland. Chambersburg is where the station is, a half-hour north of Hagerstown on the other side of the Mason-Dixon Line. Starting next weekend, I go back to entertaining the masses.
I would like to state some things for the record before I leave, however. First of all, this column sure as hell ain't going away. I have been told on many occasions lately that this is the best way for people I know to get a quick idea of what's on my mind lately or what I'm doing, my various misadventures and such. This won't become a running travelogue on south-central PA and western Maryland, but you all know if the locals do something that strikes me as interesting, I'll write about it here; god knows I did it enough with Average Syracusan.
Nextly (and if that's not a word, I just invented it), I'd like to say how great it was working with some great people in Syracuse. The many members of the staff who have come and gone or were here the whole time that I was at my former workplace over the past 19 months were usually nice people to be around (not always; we all have our bad days, after all). The support was always good and it was generally a great atmosphere to work in, and yes, I am being serious (I can hear the ex-co-workers snickering now). Even Local Talk Host was a pleasure to work with (seriously, PLEASE STOP LAUGHING). Don't doubt that I'll have the occasional thoughts to add to his interactive site in the future, although I won't be able to hear the show.
Which reminds me, I'm sorry to interrupt this lovefest with one of my rants, but I must. The RIAA has done it again, folks. They once again have denied the benefits of the Internet to the millions who use it, first by suing Napster out of existence, and now they have succeeded in preventing radio stations from broadcasting over the Web. They want to be paid double royalties, one time for regular over-the-air broadcasting, and a second time to go over the Net, and that is insane. They have single-handedly prevented local stations from reaching former residents (like myself) or general fans of the radio and music in general from surfing through a variety of other cities' best stations. Instead, the Internet is now solely the domain of Web-based radio, and while some people like my former housemate are thrilled at this prospect, the point is conventional radio stations are cut out of the pie because of greed. And this is what it has all been about from the beginning-- greed. The desire for record companies to squeeze a billion more out of a lagging music industry, which is not lagging due to the Internet, but more due to the fact that most of the music out right now SUCKS. -End of rant-
To everyone I have befriended in my over two decades in this town (geez, that's a long time), I wish you all the best in your future endeavors. You'd all better keep in touch and get down here to visit me (preferably in the winter, we get less snow down in Chambersburg, another plus). To everyone I am about to befriend in the greater Chambersburg-Hagerstown area (definite oxymoron there), you have no idea what's about to descend on your area. LOOK OUT WORLD, HERE I COME!!!
OK, please stop asking, I'm of perfectly sound mind in this decision. I can hear you all now: "So you're leaving Syracuse, a town where nothing ever happens for a town where less than nothing ever happens." Well yeah, but see there's a point to all this. I got a better job than the one I have now, so I'm outta here. That's all it was really going to take, after all. No offense to all the friends I've made here, especially since my return here after college (the first return in '97 and second over a year and a half ago). This is a pretty nice town when you slow down for a sec and look around. I've had plenty of opportunities to do that lately, as my car IS IN THE F%&#ING REPAIR SHOP!!! So I've taken the bus to work the last few days, and I've seen about as much of the city as anyone running for mayor lately I'll bet. I saw both the good and bad of this town. I walked around Clinton Square and saw how close they're getting to finishing that (won't get to see it open, though). I saw a nice downtown on a nice day. I also saw vacant store and office-fronts in other parts of downtown, and I rode on the bus through a very depressed West Side. Boarded-up houses, run down houses, a big mess. Sometimes you don't believe how bad things are until you see them for yourself, and it's pretty bad.
As I've noted before, of course, efforts to change things are often rebuffed by the locals, and that's another reason I can't get out of here fast enough. I'm just the latest in an entire generation that is fleeing for better climates, more welcoming climates, ones that are forward-thinking and progressive (and no Rush fans, that doesn't necessarily mean liberal).
Another reason I'm leaving, and perhaps most key is, to quote John Landecker in his last show on WLS (well, his first stint there anyway), "you can guess I wasn't getting everything I wanted". I want to be a DJ. The "big picture" for me of course is to someday attain morning drive superstardom somewhere, or to do a talk show which would be a mix of Landecker, Don & Mike, and Local Talk Host. I wasn't getting that chance here in Syracuse, and the only real way I could do it would be to go across town to another station and another company and radically reduced hours. It wasn't worth it, so I sought my fortune in another market. And as such, I am on the verge of invading market #165, Hagerstown, Maryland. Chambersburg is where the station is, a half-hour north of Hagerstown on the other side of the Mason-Dixon Line. Starting next weekend, I go back to entertaining the masses.
I would like to state some things for the record before I leave, however. First of all, this column sure as hell ain't going away. I have been told on many occasions lately that this is the best way for people I know to get a quick idea of what's on my mind lately or what I'm doing, my various misadventures and such. This won't become a running travelogue on south-central PA and western Maryland, but you all know if the locals do something that strikes me as interesting, I'll write about it here; god knows I did it enough with Average Syracusan.
Nextly (and if that's not a word, I just invented it), I'd like to say how great it was working with some great people in Syracuse. The many members of the staff who have come and gone or were here the whole time that I was at my former workplace over the past 19 months were usually nice people to be around (not always; we all have our bad days, after all). The support was always good and it was generally a great atmosphere to work in, and yes, I am being serious (I can hear the ex-co-workers snickering now). Even Local Talk Host was a pleasure to work with (seriously, PLEASE STOP LAUGHING). Don't doubt that I'll have the occasional thoughts to add to his interactive site in the future, although I won't be able to hear the show.
Which reminds me, I'm sorry to interrupt this lovefest with one of my rants, but I must. The RIAA has done it again, folks. They once again have denied the benefits of the Internet to the millions who use it, first by suing Napster out of existence, and now they have succeeded in preventing radio stations from broadcasting over the Web. They want to be paid double royalties, one time for regular over-the-air broadcasting, and a second time to go over the Net, and that is insane. They have single-handedly prevented local stations from reaching former residents (like myself) or general fans of the radio and music in general from surfing through a variety of other cities' best stations. Instead, the Internet is now solely the domain of Web-based radio, and while some people like my former housemate are thrilled at this prospect, the point is conventional radio stations are cut out of the pie because of greed. And this is what it has all been about from the beginning-- greed. The desire for record companies to squeeze a billion more out of a lagging music industry, which is not lagging due to the Internet, but more due to the fact that most of the music out right now SUCKS. -End of rant-
To everyone I have befriended in my over two decades in this town (geez, that's a long time), I wish you all the best in your future endeavors. You'd all better keep in touch and get down here to visit me (preferably in the winter, we get less snow down in Chambersburg, another plus). To everyone I am about to befriend in the greater Chambersburg-Hagerstown area (definite oxymoron there), you have no idea what's about to descend on your area. LOOK OUT WORLD, HERE I COME!!!
Labels: moving, Pennsylvania
posted by Dave | 11:01 PM
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