Who Do I Think I Am??

This one's about Buffalo.

THE PROMPT: "Plug your city or hometown...it doesn't matter if it's where you're from or where you're at."


Snow. Chicken wings. And snow.

Chances are, those are the first three things that come to mind when I tell you I'm from Buffalo, NY. There's the four straight Super Bowl losses and the "No Goal" fiasco also. And for the old-timers, United States President William McKinley was shot here back in 1901...he'd be proud to know he's got a mall named after him now, I'm sure.

Sure, the economy has affected proud cities all over the nation and world, and we're no exception. Lots of buildings downtown are empty and the steel mills left a long time ago. Once the nation's 4th-largest city, there's still plenty to love about my hometown. Consider:

The beautiful, quaint Elmwood Village...one of my favorite spots in the city. Full of little shops and legendary bars, it might be the most interesting part of town to people-watch. Some of my favorite places have closed, but you won't be able to walk a block without finding something that catches your eye.

For the 21+ crowd, The Chippewa District is where it's at for the bars, clubs, and all sorts of alcohol-induced tomfoolery. Barhop the night away up and down the street. It's been a few years since I've been down there...I don't even know what bars are still open anymore. But if you have a copy of https://www.artvoice.com you'll never be lost for fun.

Hang on to that Artvoice when you head to The Theatre District...Shea's Performing Arts Theatre is a great venue that hosts a lot of nationally touring plays. We saw Wicked there on Mothers' Day, Jess the CWC will be going there to see The Lion King, and next February we'll be there for the return of http://www.raintribute.com/. Surrounded by lots of fine dining, http://www.sheas.org/ is a wonderful date night.

When you come to Buffalo, come hungry! But don't ask me to take you to the Anchor Bar, originator of our famous chicken wings. I can think of at least 10 little pizza places and dive bars that serve up bigger, better, tastier wings, like my favorite, http://www.thepubwebsite.com/. There's also http://www.buffalowing.com/, a nationally renowned festival celebrating the chicken wing that attracts tons of people, including national celebrities and competitive eaters. Besides wings, there's Beef On Weck and, only the world's best local taco chain, http://www.mightytaco.com/. And that's just a small sampling...Anderson's, Frank's Sunny Italy, Buffalo Chophouse...anything you can think of, it's all better here!

Can't talk about Buffalo without the Olmstead Parks and the Frank Lloyd Wright buildings and designs., and how well they tie into the infrastructure. Speaking of infrastructure, you can easily get from one outer suburb to another in about 15-20 minutes. How? Ask a Buffalonian. They'll tell you: Take the 990 to the 290, merge onto the 90, and if you don't wanna get off at the 400, stay on the 90 and take the 219. And the 90 to the 33 is the quickest way downtown, unless you live near Rt. 5 or the 190. I know that means nothing to the uninitiated, but trust me...any set of directions with five or more words per step is too much.

Sure we get a lot of snow...you don't ? But what The Weather Channel never tells you is that Buffalo sees all four seasons. The nasty winters, the gorgeous springs, the hot summers and the colorful autumns. Nobody sees their favorite season for as long as they like though...unless you're a skier/snowboarder.

I know I'm leaving out a lot of things, but the best thing about the city of Buffalo has to be the people. We're known as "The City Of Good Neighbors", and I really believe that. Where else would you be, shovelling your car out of three feet of snow, when flying over the snowbanks come random strangers with shovels ready to help you out, leaving never to be seen again? Every adult has at least 3-4 stories like that, and it seems like they add another Good Samaritan to their list every year.

That's the city of Buffalo...for every season without a major sports championship, and for every snowstorm punchline, there are a million reasons why this area is one of the best around. Many may leave, but Buffalo never leaves their hearts. Buffalo, NY...This Place Matters: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MT11IdWPvfc

MUSICAL BREAK:

They're not my favorite band, but nobody's arguing that they're the most successful musical act to hail from "The Queen City"...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdYWuo9OFAw&ob=av2e
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-kHleNYIDc&ob=av2e

And I can't find a good version of "We Are The Normal" from their 1993 breakout, Superstar Car Wash...it almost feels like a paean to the people Buffalo.

VITAL STATS:

I've got a bit of a man-crush on the Just remember when you point at someone, three fingers point back at you.

Taco night and the first preseason game of Sabres Hockey!! Whoo hoo! Sabres win over the hated Hurricanes, 3-1.

First day back at work. Every five minutes people were complaining we were "Out of this, and never have anything!" Well, you're very greedy for wanting everything, and very ungrateful for not wanting anything I have on my shelves...if we were always "out of everything", our shelves would be empty. Then your claim would have a little validation, and I'd accept you being so pissy.

(Or, I didn't almost kill anyone today, kinda.)

That's my night folks. Gonna go do some stuff that doesn't involve me chaining myself to a laptop for almost all night. Thank you, and GOODNIGHT NOW!!