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BuffaView - Deleware and Elmwood

This stretch of Elmwood is almost purely residential on the left side and commercial on the right. This is a good block to live on. Even though Latinas is gone, there is Wilson Farms, Walgreens, and the Elmwood Market to help you get what you need. And if that’s not enough, the 22 Summer bus can get you to Tops and back.

Thanks to Nina (who’s boyfriend lives in Buffalo, though she’s in Texas for school) for the #snap.

BuffaView - Elmwood and Summer

Walked out the house to this view of a pummeled silver Sunfire, I feel like I should head back inside and lock the door. The entire stretch from summer to north is blocked off; catching the bus meant a jog to Deleware.

Want: Kozik Anarchy Plush Labbit

I’ve been a wee bit absent about designer toy posts for a bit, ok, pretty absent about a lot of stuff.. to think I let BRO beat me to the punch on the Elmwood Strip Updates because I was too lazy to get the info out first. I’m approaching that point right now where blogging is getting harder and harder because i’m working more and more. I’ve got some tricks up my sleeve though…

Anyways, the Vinyl Toy Network was May 4th, an occasion full of collaborations and new customs and release teasers, like the one DKE Toys put out: a plush Anarchy Labbit. No word on price or release date, but I’m getting one.

• via ToyCyte

MMM Tacos

Ever since before ETS moved from the corner of delavan and elmwood to the remodeled Burger King Location down the block, tacos have become a Friday special, much to the chagrin of Angel’s diet, and my slightly emerging belly.

Angel says I eat like a beast, and i guess its true. here’s a video documenting the destruction…

Elmwood Tacos and Subs

Snap! Lacoste makes me think of Steve

• So this isn’t exactly what im doing right this second, im in angels room on the computer. And its kinda dark and boring here. So, Im sending a photo from the last place I was at: Firebrand on Elmwood. Miss Jessica has worked so hard making her store a success, its been a few months but she finally has a hot new logo & sign from Hero Design. Hit her up on 715 Elmwood and buy some sneaks, Yo!Thanks to “MeowMeow” for snapping me, and uh, telling me to “fuck a duck.”>

Productive Morning

• I feel a little accomplished this morning. Normally Im up no earlier than 4pm, hung over, sweating out the Jack Daniels from the night before. Today however, I was up an at em by noon, still a little hung over, but feeling a lot more alive than I should be.Beginning my stroll down Elmwood, I bumped into some folks from the New Bank of America Elmwood Branch, and started the accounts that I was planning on moving. Im used to BofA from the South and im tired of how dodgy HSBC gets with authorizing cards at kiosks like the ones for the metro. The Elmwood BofA branch should be open next week, and the inside is simply amazing and very spacious. Im excited to bank there.

  I also stopped by Firebrand on to pick up some relief for my feet. Found nice pair of white with brown Converse sneakers that you can see from the pic above.

  I’m going to my first Lacrosse game with the Buffalo Bandits tonight. I have a media pass, so ill be in the press box with my friend and co WNYMedia rascal, Andy Kulyk. Ill post a few pics tonight.>

Elmwood Market: What It Is And What It Isn’t

The grande opening (March 17th) for the Elmwood Market & Grill was a success; everything (mostly, save for the beer and some organics, the credit/EBT system was yet to be activated) in place and ready for the steady stream of customers wishing them success and of course, buying things. I was there Monday morning, and seeing as I live accross the street, I’ll be there every day no doubt. The atmosphere is a whole lot more inviting than Wilson farms, and less of a chore than Walgreens. I also had a chance to chat a bit with the owners: Dale, Alex, and Tony. The guys are very excited to be on Elmwood and are eager to fit in with the community, asking for suggestions to stock (organics and conventional) and basically trying to get a feel for the area.

Since Latina’s closed last spring, the community has been longing for a new place to shop. Unfulfilled talks of Dash’s, Tops, and Whole Food’s filling the void that Latina’s left put despair in the area. No one wants to be let with a crummy Wilson Farms; the added burden has had a negative effect on the store, overcrowding at times and leaving the store more haggard than it has been in years. Thus, the Elmwood Market has many shoes to fill… have they picked the right ones to tackle? We’ll see.

Read on for my initial assessment of the store and its role for the community.

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Elmwood Market: Customer #2

The staff at the new Elmwood Market deli & Grill could be seen scurrying around last night till the wee hours of the morning, preparing to unleash a much needed asset to the Allentown end of the Elmwood Village. The weekend pushback of their open date proved just enough time; they were ready like they said, 7am Monday morning.

I walked in behind a fellow bus commuter and quickly scanned the shelves as I headed to the back to gather my morning caffeinated goods. the clusterfuck that seems to plague most mini grocers was not to be seen. the shelves were heavily stocked but the gap between the aisles rivaled Wegman’s.

They had no deli sandwiches ready yet, but they assured me that once things got into a groove, I would be able to grab a fresh sub even as early as I come in (7-7:30).

For a quick stop in the morning, I am very pleased. This will be the first of many reviews as well, taken from a general customer with a focus on the community needs and concerns.

The Elmwood Market can be found on the corner of Elmwood and North, in the old DVDdot location. There is (blessed) adjacent parking as well.

Buffalo Homecoming: How I ended up here.

As Buffalo Old Home Week Homecoming approached, BuffaloGeek is asking around to find out why the hell you’d wanna live in Buffalo, let alone come back. Here is my story.

People ask me how I get around, seeing as I don’t own a car and still seem to get from point A to point B pretty well. I tell ‘em “boys and bus passes.” I pride Buffalo for a fairly manageable public transit system, and I guess part of that is why I stay here. As for the boys, that’s what landed me in Buffalo.

I was raised in Rural North Carolina, injected into the South by my father’s Air Force career. The air was fresh and the beach (think ocean not lake, goddammit) was only a couple hours away. However, I soon began to loathe the culture, I felt like a city boy and the cotton fields were like padded walls, keeping me protected from myself and the rest of the world.

Turning 18 and a heightened sense of the world thanks to the good ole intertubes made me crave something new. I received my first chance when I began dating a good natured, yet slightly simple boy living in Raleigh. He would travel to see me, and I’d spend weekends in the city with him. The concrete hustle and bustle attracted me, living in a machine of commerce and humanity. I was hooked. The horrible occasion of his dad’s stroke led us up to West Virginia and the opportunity for me to move in to help take care of him. Back in NC, I spent 3 months playing wet nurse to the most ornery old man I’ve ever encountered, who’d just rather piss on himself then try to get off the couch to walk three steps to the loo.

Thankfully he recovered and we took him home. I was able to Lysol the couch, but Jimmy and I weren’t able to patch our relationship, strained by having to play “straight” for three months around a loopy old man. I learned a lot from Jimmy, though, like how hard it is to keep living with someone you are no longer with romantically while trying to find romance elsewhere. West Virginia boys are conflicted and very jealous I suppose. The need for me to stay in North Carolina had ended. My family had all fled moved on (save my mum, but this was in the early stages of none of us wanting anything to do with her) and another opportunity arose.

Dad had just moved back to Bradford, Pa(mid 2004), into his girlfriend’s house. All of his family were scattered all around Northwest PA; I had never had a connection with many of them do to the distance and an imposed alienation via my mom. After one too many post relationshipal fights with Jimmy, I moved up in February of 2005 with Dad and Jerrie to spend some much needed family time, and to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. Once again, I was in the sticks.

Bradford has three main employment options: Zippo, Walmart, or the oil fields. Each one will suck you in, and you will never get out of Bradford if you take the bait of steady employment. I was soon restless, and began to harness the web to escape the reality. Don’t get me wrong, Bradford is a beautiful town, but I couldn’t bring my self to settle here. I decided to use the method of dating to explore the area.

I went all over the Southern Tier trying to find a fit. Marienville, Jamestown, Fredonia, Erie, Oil City, Olean, none really appealed to me. After realizing I had slept with essentially every applicable Bradford gay, I turned my eyes to NY. I admit Buffalo attracted me for one thing: the Buffalo Chicken Wing. Never actually eaten a real chicken wing, the idea of a city who’s food tastes influence the whole world intrigued me. I started my quest to find out about this city, and looked around for a guide to show me. I found this gentle and passionate bear named Jamie, who one night out of the blue drove up to show me his world. After rocking his world, natch, the relationship grew and once again the opportunity to start fresh and move to a new place arose.

Ahh, Buffalo! I fell in love immediately. I wanted to know more, I wanted to learn what made this city tick. I saw a bit of every town I’ve ever been to in Buffalo, and the people with their manic attitudes and over busy lifestyle just sucked me in. I started to assimilate, first with the chicken wing, then I gave the Sabres a try. Niaevety soon fell away however, like taking the case off of a swiss cuckoo clock, I saw the inner workings of Buffalo. I noticed that many gears were missing, and even some just ground against each other, going nowhere; yet the clock kept ticking.

Turns out a few gears are missing from the gay male population in Buffalo, as well. Jamie turned out to be nuts and after 11 months in a codependent controlling relationship, I broke his ribs in a drunken fight and that was the end of that.

I had created a trend: every so often pick up and start fresh. “Learn from your mistakes and get the hell out of there” was the motto.Where was I to go? Rochester? Did I wanna go back to bradford and start the hunt again? I couldn’t. Buffalo had me, I felt like belonged after only a year, and I couldn’t bear to leave. So I stayed and broke my trend, starting a new life down the street, instead.

I actually have a job here, its not the best, but it pays the bills and I have them there benefitos that the old people worry about. I don’t own a car and I don’t ever want one as long as I’m here. I get around just fine, like I said, boys and bus passes. Sure, the metro rail could do more than run in a straight line, but relying on public transportation has made me a Elmwood Village boy. I love it. I shop “local” because I don’t have a choice, I rarely go to the malls despite my love for the commercial. I feel like one of those gears, My impact is small, but I exist here.

Sai One: Valentine’s Day Contest

With February now amongst us, that means that Valentine’s Day is in just two short weeks. With that said, Angel has a drawing over at his store for a V-day bundle worth about $125!

The rules:

1. Head down to Sai One (818 Elmwood, across from the Lexington Co-op), and take a gander at the glass jar full of Hershey Kisses.
2. Guess the amount of Kisses in the jar and write the number down on a slip of paper with: your name and your phone or email address, which ever gets a hold of you first. Slip it in an envelope and go about your business.
3. On February 13th, Angel will pick the entry with the closest (or exact) number to the actual count of the Kisses without going over. In case of a tie, a random draw will decide the winning slip. You’ll get a ring or a ping, and you can pick up your prize.

The prize:

1. One-of-A-Kind Spring handbag, made especially for the contest.
2. Angel’s custom Chocolate body line: lotion, body wash, and bath salts; all infused with the rich and lucsious scent of chocolate.
3. A Sai One red Ladie’s Tank/Panty set.

No purchase necessary, just head over and take a guess. Since the drawing is on the 13th, that gives you the opportunity to gift this as well if you win, making you look super special with your lady and possibly securing third base.

• SaiOne (818 Elmwood, Buffalo, NY) - Blog