Grocery Shopping Has Never Been So Much Fun

So, on this continuing adventure that is Buffalo, I thought I would write about one of my new favorite places… Wegmans!

Yes, a supermarket.  What of it?

Back in college, my grocery shopping was pretty minimal.  My diet was pretty much whatever my dining card at school could get me and, if I had a little extra money lying around, easy mac and cheap beer.  But now, having to be a responsible adult and eat healthy, blah blah blah, Wegmans has become my mecca.

I mean, seriously, they have like 20 kinds of mushrooms alone!!

Plus, every timeI am there, I either see someone who I know and eat up going to the cafe area to get some coffee, or I see a wonderful Buffalo celebrity (like Ryan Miller) shopping.  It’s effin fantastic!

So I would like to give my thanks to my first favorite western new york institution…

Thank You, Wegmans, for having so much variety of every kind of item I’m looking for that you turn a 20 minute shopping trip into a 2 hour event.

I Heart Buffalo

I thought I’d write when I started to completely love Buffalo. (instead of unpacking..)  At the end of the Sabres 2005-06 season and during the entire 2006-07 season, Buffalo went absolutely CRAZY for their team.  People put signs in front of their houses, every other car had a sticker or flag, everyone you saw around the city had some kind of Sabres shirt or hat on, stores and businesses had signs and banners up saying ‘Go Sabres’. . . it was UNBELIEVABLE!  I have never seen anything like that; a whole city and community getting behind a sports team.  Everyone talked about all the games, and everyone was completely heartbroken when they lost those two years in the conference finals. (including me!)  When Drury and Briere left, people took it as a personal insult, rather than a business thing which a lot of other cities would.

It just goes to show how Buffalo has this small town mentality that no other place that I’ve been ever has.  I remember trying to explain it all to my family back home and they just didn’t get it.  The thought that everyone in a city would be crazy about a hockey team is not something an everyday resident of California could get.

I was told it was also crazy when the Bills went to the super bowl for those four years . . .  After going to a few Bills games, I can definitely believe it!

The other time I had an ‘awe’ moment for Buffalo was during the October Storm.  Everyone suffered. . . it was horrible!  But everyone was helping out everyone else!

I refuse to believe that riots would ever happen in Buffalo.  Blackouts, blizzards, ice storms . . . no problem!  Everyone would just build bonfires in cleared areas and make large potluck dinners in the center of town.

Well, unless one of the sports teams won a championship…

Finding Buffalo… the beginning…

Wow.  So, I am officially, today, a Buffalonian…  I’m not going to lie, I’m completely terrified!  So, here’s the story of how I am here, with my things all in boxes in my new apartment, alone in a city I barely know.  I am from San Francisco, a city that is completely different from the one I am currently in.  I grew up there and I love it completely, however, when I was applying to colleges during high school, I thought it’d be fun to go someplace really different.  My family (well, specifically my mother) was so upset at me when I applied to four colleges, all of which were out of state.  I really didn’t think about it that much, honestly, before I jumped right in and ended up enrolled at Canisius College in Buffalo, NY.  I was so excited, even though I knew NOTHING about Buffalo except that they had a football team (good education, right?)  So before I knew it, I was on a plane to a place that was impossible to get a direct flight to with all my boxes being shipped to me.

Now, I’m going to say that I love Buffalo right now.  I don’t want to offend anyone but I want to be really honest.  When I first got here, I hated it.  Completely.  At first glance this city looks…well, terrible.  I was so upset and I missed home.  Canisius was great, though (even if it probably was in the worst neighborhood I had ever been in!  Seriously!  There were shootings, muggings, robbery and God knows what else on the streets around the dorms.)  Slowly, though, my friends started taking me out and I started to see the other side of Buffalo.

So right before graduating I went on a job interview (I’m not going to say where… this is the internet, after all) and I got the job.  It was really a dream job offer and too good to be true, really.  I didn’t start this job until September and so I had to go home and break the news to my family who practically disowned me (I’m joking, but they are pissed!)

So, now I’m in Buffalo.  Most of my college friends have moved on and out of Buffalo and I’m feeling like it’s a fresh start.   I still don’t know a lot about the city.  I mean, I know where fun bars are, where great dive bars are, and all about Elmwood. So, really, my only view has been through a college kids eyes.  I’m sure there’s more to the city then alcohol and I’m definitely going to check it all out!

That’s where this blog comes in. (I’m so sorry to bore you with that story but it was pretty unavoidable) I thought it would be fun to write down all my experiences as a newbie to Buffalo.  This city is really unique!  It may not always be pretty but something about it makes you feel like home and the people are AMAZING!  I’m really looking forward to this…and I’m scared to death about this.

Oh, and one more thing…

Somewhere along the line during my sophomore year at school, I completely fell in love with the Buffalo Sabres.  I know, how does a girl who grew up in a place where hockey is pretty much nonexistent go to a place for only a few years and become a huge fan?  I have no idea!  Three of my friends and I split season tickets last year and are doing it again this year, so I’ll be going to a large number of games and I’m sure I will talk about them at long lengths.  My only problem with the NHL (besides shoot-outs and terrible marketing) is that the merchandise people make such God-Awful women’s apparel for teams!  I mean…glitter shirts? Pink Jerseys? HIDEOUS! But people are buying them!