I grew up in Buffalo and, aside from the time I spent in the service of Uncle Sam as a draftee, I've lived here my whole life. It has occurred to me, as I am sure it has to many of you, that maybe I should move someplace else like California or some other warmer more vibrant spot. For me, the timing never seemed right and "suddenly" I was here to stay.
Now, for a lot of the reasons, (many of which you will find in this blog site) it's more than just ok, it's really a great choice. To be honest, I'm a little shocked by how pleased I am with this realization, so I decided to try to figure out why I am so comfortable with living here. Certainly, there are things that are not perfect (I'm fond of saying, "I don't do outdoors in the wintertime"...it's not true but I like saying it) but something keeps me here.
I also began to realize that all the "adult" things I like I can probably find elsewhere but my memories, particularly those that shaped me as a child, are rooted here, and every so often a sight or smell or some other obscure sensation takes me back. Would those triggers find me if I lived elsewhere...maybe not. I think I'd miss that.
I decided to take inventory of my childhood Buffalo memories and maybe encourage a few others to look back as well. So in no particular order:
- The Rag Man - It was the 1950's. Every few weeks the old man would come down Baynes Street on his horse drawn wagon calling out "Raaaags...Raaaags" and our parents would bring out bundles of old clothes which he would weigh on a hook scale...and give us money.
- Reese Street French Fries - Nearly everyday in the summer we would walk to the Reese Street swimming pool (now replaced by the Grant Street pool)...a great memory in itself. The best part, however, came after the swim. Across the street was the French Fry Hut, no bigger that a Home Depot tool shed. The only thing he sold was fat french fries...5 cents in a paper cone. Soak them with lots of vinegar and tons of salt...what a treat.
- The Ferry Boat - Many of you may have heard of the Canadiana...I never rode on it. I do, however, have great memories of riding a ferry boat with my father and brother from Buffalo to Fort Erie. I was very young and what impressed me most were the life jackets stuffed in the ceilings and losing my souvenir pencils over the railing into the lake. Still this was the first time I was on boat.
Other Memories - General Bidwell arriving on Colonial Circle, Ted's Hot Dogs under the Peace Bridge, the iceman cometh to our house with blocks of ice, ice skating on Delaware Park Lake...and so it goes. No great Hollywood script here but these are the memories that shaped my sense of Buffalo.
There is, however, a point to be made. "What will they remember?" The "they", of course, being today's children. What are the memories that will be so strong that they will make staying here worthwhile and perhaps more important, what responsibility do we have to help provide these memories? A hometown is more than the architecture or the politics and, hopefully...not a place to escape from.
Many of you are likely younger than I am and so I'm wondering, "What memories are shaping your sense of Buffalo?"