On the Verge of Wakefulness

Hm. Your mild mannered priest has had an interesting encounter this evening, walking the two blocks to her car from the local coffee shop (and buffalo stitch n bitch meeting – that would be the Downtown Spot).

Was it the kind man named Muhammed who was in a wheel chair on Cheppewa, and barring the possibility of getting a cigarette, or even some spare change, started to flirt with her? (No, as it woldn’t be the frist time.)

Was it the nice couple who asked for directions on Franklin, with the well-groomed but sadly inebriated (or so he seemed – I could be wrong, I’ve been wrong before) gentleman who persisted in disbelief that I didn’t know, or seem to care who he was? Yes, actually.

Our Fair City, the Queen City of Buffalo has tendered the notice of a few Hollywood actors. Isn’t that nice? I’m glad for Buffalo. The woman, an actress who I’m sure has been in several lovely dramas, but whose name sadly I cannot remember as she only said it once, was quite polite, well-mannered, and well-spoken. All was fine. I informed them that they were actually heading in exactly the wrong direction if they wanted to get to the Adam’s Mark hotel, and really, I have no idea where Hyatt’s is.

The gentleman… was a different story. As I mentioned, it’s possible he was drunk, or maybe he was just dumbfounded that I didn’t seem to care who he was. Honestly, it was a good thing he introduced himself no few than four times, or I wouldn’t have understood his name, for all the slurring of it. Not an ugly man, though neither incredibly handsome – David Beckham pulls off a completely bald head better, in my opinion – I didn’t recognize him, but even when I did, I have to admit, I didn’t care. (Which was, apparently, quite a shock to him.)

That I responded to each question (after the first time), “Don’t you recognize us? I’m Matt McConaughey!” with a slightly (okay, significantly) dismissive, “Hmm, that’s nice,” seemed to stymy him, but perhaps I’m putting words into his mouth.

::shrugs::

It was interesting.

Regardless, I hope they find what they’re looking for.

So, I totally just had a flash of either insight or madness at the Chiropractor’s office this morning. I was waiting, and I had grabbed a book from home, knowing that I’d have a few minutes this morning. I started reading City of Light by Laruen Belfer, mainly because my mentor told me I ought to.

And I should remind you, I live in Buffalo.

And as I read the amazingly complementary things that I knew, at least in theory, about my hometown at the turn of the last century, I read statistics that put Buffalo in the top ten cities of America, and in the top twenty of the world, words written based on the census of 1900 and the asthetics of people like William Dean Howells and Mark Twain, and then I read a quote from Harper’s magazine from 1885, referring to Buffalo: The whole world will pay her triibute. (Thus, I finally understand why they called her, and still do with an ironic sneer, The Queen City.)

I read that, and it was if I was reading these things for the very first time. I had this flash that was as clear and startling as when you oversleep by a signifcant amount… I figure it was either insight or madness. I thought, “I wonder if Buffalo’s been cursed.” And immediately I thought, no, cursed isn’t quite the right word, but that something – something subtle, something intentional, and yet something quietly subversive and significantly malicious happened here that sent the city into a decline, into ridicule, and then finally into obscurity.

Now, I’ll grant you that I grew up in the suburbs, but even then, even as a child, I knew that my city wasn’t like other people’s cities. There was something wrong with my city, and by association, me. It’s less strong in the outlying WNY region, but it’s present, and it has its epicenter at the City of Buffalo. Whatever it is.

It’s like a thin place suddenly becoming a thick place.

It makes me want to stay here and work for its benefit, all the more.