Wing Tour!

Based on a recent Buffalo Eats post, I decided that it was HIGH TIME that I embark upon a Wing Tour. I've only eaten wings about three times since I moved back to the WNY region almost NINE MONTHS AGO, which is severely unacceptable. Luckily, my old high school acquaintance/new adult girlfriend, Kate, is a great dinner adventure pal. Here is our map, to be tackled very, very soon. I won't rest until I eat all of the wings.



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Beginning in East Aurora, at: Bar Bill Tavern, 185 Main St, then traveling into South Buffalo for three joints really close to each other: Nine Eleven Tavern, 9 Bloomfield Ave, Doc Sullivan's, 474 Abbott Rd, and Charlie O'Briens, 865 Elk St (this would be great way to see South Buffalo, somewhere I hardly get to go!). Then moving out to the 'burbs, to Rocco's Wood Fired Pizza, 5433 Transit Rd, then up to Getzville: Amherst Pizza and Ale House, 55 Crosspoint Pkwy, then finish up in North Tonawanda: Dwyer's Irish Pub, 65 Webster St.

Downtown.

 

 

Had a good meeting downtown today, then did a little top floor sightseeing...

Oh, Bother!

Oktoberfest at the Central Terminal.

I am continuously letting this blog get away from me, it seems. See, I started it back in the winter, when I was living with my parents in the country, and had all these big, fun plans in my head and knew I wanted to write 'em all down. I think I was also off of Facebook at the time of my Big Blog Ideas, and so needed every  other communication outlet possible to help fill the deafeningly silent unnetworked social void. And Twitter wasn't cuttin' it. So, blog.

Well, those big, fun plans came to fruition, just like clockwork. Days blended into weeks, and before I knew it, I had a pile of photos on my memory card and a silent blog for weeks. I periodically dump these photos into folders named such things as, "Buffalo Summertime Fun Part I," "Random Buffalo Stuff," "Buffalo Misc." I don't remember being such a careless archivist, but it's begun. I just can't keep it all together, anymore.

And so it's the same for this blog. I realize too late that I've already done 3,941 cool ass things in town, and have written nothing thoughtful or vaguely amusing or boringly informational about them, or anything. And then time passes and puts a wedge in relevancy (and interest, on my part).

Well, and then all of this is compounded by the fact that I took on a project/position that is starting to ramp up, and then I decided I wanted to resurrect my magazine, so that's coming hard and fast and soon, and also, I'm months behind on completing this project, with at least two more installments in the hopper, and then there's the Tumblr where I actually communicate with others in a back-and-forth manner, rather than this one-way passive manner, and it's just a bit more satisfying to throw up some pics, say, "Yay, Buffalo!" and have multiple persons agree with my assessment that Buffalo is, indeed, yay.

Anyway. I'll be around periodically here and there, but mostly I'll be on those things listed above. I've been getting to know a lot of cool kids in town lately and am excited to communicate more and more with everyone. This is just another place where we can land, learn, think on, plan for, etc.

Ramble on, and ramble soon, I'm sure!

Chard.

Here's a mini-movie about harvesting Chardonnay grapes, shot at Eveningside Vineyards by writer, filmmaker, and winemaker Bryan Calandrelli. Sometimes when I think too much about it, I get absolutely astounded that these dudes are my friends. People who do these kinds of things are my friends. What world is it that I'm living in these days?

I keep forgetting to mention (not exactly forgetting, just letting the days turn into weeks as they tend to), that I am now officially the Managing Editor of BuffaloComedy.com. This is because Comedy will never leave you, and, apparently, you can never leave Comedy. I haven't been able to really sink my teeth in yet, but we've started the dialogue and there are interesting ideas and projects simmering on the burners, and the network dots are being connected. I'm excited about this winter. Helium's also moving into town. Have I mentioned this? On a personal note, here's the thing about this: I'm good pals with the soon-to-be general manager, and, even if I weren't, I would still recognize as a fellow comedy person that her sensibilities align with my own, and with the creed of Doing Comedy Right. Creating atmosphere, believing in your talent, treating audience members with respect... When clubs are done right, it can be magic for the art. While I will never not love my little punk rock underground rooms, having a space set aside for purely comedic efforts is important. This club is going to be a very good thing. And, here's something else: while I love Buffalo with all of my heart, I can't just convince my pals now headquartered in Chicago, Los Angeles, NYC, and elsewhere, to just come up for a weekend to hang out and maybe get up once or twice around town, for no pay. Not when the weekends are their money-making days of the week. But with a club in town? There's a very real chance that some of my pals will get hired to work. Which means I get to see them. Which makes me very, very happy. And also: I love to show them off, and brag, and preen about them. So, the club. It's going to be great for Buffalo, and it's going to be really great for me, my soul.

Well, and I haven't even mentioned National Chicken Wing Festival, the Queen City Ferry, watching a bluegrass band in a massive communal backyard, seeing a conceptual theater installation in an abandoned grain silo, etc. Let me just sum up by saying that I have been adequately utilizing my New Town energy this summer. I can't get enough of anything. It's all so shiny and new, and I want it all.

Tonight I'm attending the opening black-tie gala of Curtain Up! on the stage of Shea's Theatre (in a $7 thrift store dress, because I haven't totally sold out to the man just yet), tomorrow I'm going to be around all day at the Music is Art festival, and Sunday I'll be riding 30+ miles out in the country for the third installation of Wino on Wheels. In between these activities, I expect that I'll be kissing a boy I like.

Yeah, I think I've been doing things right. I just wish I could gossip with her about it all. Next weekend is Chicago.

Star Parties

Sometimes I just wish my Northeast/Midwest friends would consider my sky. It's really not that far. And the sky can be so big, here.

August 31, 2012.

Today is the last day of August. That makes it officially the last day of summer, in my personal calendar. And I am HAPPY about it. The summer is winding down, and so am I, big time. This has been a huge, long, intriguing, horrific summer. I moved back into my own place for the first time in over a year. I refound a comedy clan. I dated a dude for a little while. I drank more white wine than I knew they made. I drank with 20somethings until 5 o'clock in the morning. I rode my bike at least 100 miles until its seat got stolen and I didn't bother to fix it. I went on my first long-distance solo highway trip approximately two months after relearning how to drive for the first time in 8 years to attend my best friend's funeral. I'm tired. It's been a huge, long, intriguing, horrific summer.

I'm looking forward to October. By then, I'll be back in Buffalo after a weekend in Chicago, where I'll have produced a benefit comedy show in honor of my deceased best friend. It will be a little colder, and hopefully I'll be fitting into my leggings a little better. Maybe my heart will fit a little better, too. The days will be shorter. I'll have more money.

The band in the park across from my house is now rocking out that time old tune, "Everybody's Working For The Weekend." Aren't we just, though? Aren't we? The weekends, to me, mean I don't have to drive anywhere and I have to buy coffee from the shop across the street, because I don't have a coffeemaker. That's about the only difference. Sometimes I'll start drinking at 2 p.m. instead of 6 p.m., too. That's also something different.

It will be colder. It won't be as stuffy in here. I'll probably have more seating in my apartment, which means I could spend time upstairs, in the loft. Where my art supplies sit, dormant, as they have for over a year. I need to do that again. It's time.



I'll be home for the holidays. For the full duration of the holiday season. For the first time in over 11 years, I'll be able to take part in all holiday-type celebrations, in the country, with my family. In the country, near the wine trail. Mulled wine on the stove. Mulled wine on the stove.

Food Food Food Food

I live just off the Elmwood Strip ("Village", excuse me). My bar-hopping days are over, but I still want a purpose for getting out in the neighborhood. I generally don't like to spend an entire week's grocery bill on one evening's meal, but after walking a mile stretch tonight to get to the newly opened Go Veggies, I realized that maybe taking myself out for dinner right in my neighborhood once a week would be a great way to re-acclimate to the area. And if I combine it with a 2-3 mile walk, then I don't feel *quite* as bad not having my usual salad and/or broth soup dinner at home.

I also noticed there's at least two of everything. Three sushi places, two vegan/organic places (three if you count the salad and hot bar inside the co-op), three (and a fourth on the way) fancy chocolates/ice cream places, four Greek places, two dive-y pizza places (probably more than that), two dive-y hamburger/hot dog places, and I don't know how many pub fare bars. I don't necessarily want to figure out which one is my favorite, my go-to, but it might be fun discovering some things. Either that, or I'll be mad at myself for spending all of this good wine money on food I could make at home.

So which ones are up first, should I decide to make this a weekly venture?

Acropolis (Greek), followed by a bite of candy at Watson's

Ambrosia (Greek), followed by a bite of candy or an ice cream at Fowler's

Bistro Europa, followed by gelato or a baked good at Dolci

Blue Fin (sushi), followed by some Lake Effect Ice Cream from the Cakery

Blue Monk (upscale pub; I've only ever drank here), followed by a cake from Zilly Cakes

Casa di Pizza (dive-y pizza)

Cecilia's Ristorante and Martini Bar (Italian, but who am I kidding... I'm just getting the martinis)

Cozumel Grill and Tequila Bar (upscale? Mexican... probably a skip)

Jim's Steakout (dive-y hamburgers/hot dogs/subs, usually eaten at 3 a.m.), followed by an extra-long walk

Louie's Hot Dogs (dive-y hamburgers/hot dogs/subs, usually eaten at 3 a.m.), followed by an extra-long walk

Kuni's (sushi)

Mezza (Mediterranean)

Mythos (Greek)

NoNoo Ramen (upscale ramen... for real)

Sole (South American, but I'll likely only try the Cubano sandwich)

Tokyo Shanghai Bistro (sushi)

Vera's Pizzeria (known more so for their cocktails)

Wasabi (sushi)

I left off all the restaurants that priced the majority of their entrees over $20. Because that is where I draw the line. I spend about that much to feed myself breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the entire week. And no, I don't eat out of boxes or cans. But, I do eat a shit ton of stir fry/salad/casserole/soup. Hence the need to get out every now and again... I also left off my staples, those being Zetti's, E.T.S., and Cole's.

Does anyone wanna go eat with me?