I was recruited by a headhunter for a company based in Buffalo and after taking the job and spending a month of training there I began to question the sanity of the execs who chose to locate headquarters there even tho' I would be based back home. Apparently much of the city was located below lake level as every time you stepped off the sidewalk the water would squish over your shoes.
The sky was literally criss crossed with power lines from Niagara headed to places down south so there was a low level constant hum.
The waterfront, which should have been the showcase of the town, was instead a hulking, rusting remnant of what once was Rich Industries.
Driving up the expressway to get a glimpse of Rich stadium where the Bills play, the signs kept announcing the stadium exits and we were like 'where'? All that was visible were the top of two goal posts out in a field, turns out the stadium was buried to protect against the lake winds which we experienced several days of those 50-70 mph sustained winds.
We were excited when we learned of the grand opening of Buffalo's first ever Bob Evans breakfast joint. Two of us were looking forward to a little bit of home until we pulled up that sunday morning and couldn't even get close as the cars were piled up on the highway waiting to exit for the opening. We passed, apparently this was one of the most anticipated events of the winter in Buffalo.
Never did have any Buffalo wings which was our bad.
On a night off I went to a nearby strip club with the two other guys in training with me. It was in January and the club was freezing, the strippers, all around 4'!0"-5'0" and 170 lb,s or so all wore what looked like their boyfriend's Woolrich plaid shirts with bare legs hanging out the bottom. This isn't a dis, simply an observation, but they all sounded and looked a bit Native American. It was a weekday night and we were three of maybe six people. We stayed for one very watered down very expensive drink and left a bit more depressed for the experience.
One highlight on another day off we took a drive south down along the lake when after an hour we came upon a cinder block joint painted high skrool bathroom green sitting right on a wide expanse of sand. the "Bar & Grill' sign showed promise of grabbing a beer and sammy. Turns out the grub was surprisingly good, serving full course dinners later that evening, as it turns out we later tried the prime rib. It was the only unlikely balmy day that month in the 50's, so we sat on a rooftop terrace over looking the lake and got absolutely blewie numbing ourselves for the final week in Buffalo. Suddenly a guy in a little 15' fiberglass boat with fins, the kind that was popular in the jet age of the 60's, with a green Evinrude appears out of the haze and beaches right in front. A bunch of people sitting in Adirondacks on the beach down below swarm around him then go inside. So we go downstairs to check it out only to see everybody in the joint seems to know this guy and are apparently happy to see him. After an hour or so of kibbitzing with others in this happy event we are invited with about 20 others to this huge banquet table on a raised platform at the back of the room. Boat boy orders bottles of wine for all and tells us to order what we want, all on him. The waitress seemingly on cue sets two large silver platters in front of him which he pours a large pile of toot on each divided into dozens of lines and passes each down either side of the table. This was repeated so many times that I don't know why we bothered with food. I wished I could have asked for a doggie bag, but didn't. The guy had himself a cozy little business running across from Canada and we had unknowingly been rubbing elbows with his regulars all day.
When we finally made it to the falls we had been told the strippers were far classier on the Canadian side, but when we drove over after ogling the falls we looked at each other and nearly in unison said "nahhh" and instead took a two hour drive along the Canadian waterfront. The strippers weren't the only classier things on the other side, put the American side to shame.
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