Last night, after arriving home from the Sabres game, a friend of mine texted me to tell me that there was a bed floating in the Erie Canal Terminus. "A bed?" I asked, wondering why on earth someone would even bother to tell me that a bed was floating anywhere. Did he think that fishing a mattress out of the water was a duty that my ECHDC committee was responsible for? He went on to tell me that a Sabres' fan had just jumped into the water and was climbing onto the bed... and the lamp on top of the nightstand was on. "What?" I asked. "Am I dreaming?" I wondered out loud as I fumbled for his number to call him.
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After talking to my friend for another five minutes I learned that there was not only a mattress floating in the terminus, there was also a bed frame, fitted sheets with bedspread, a nightstand, and an electrified lamp... a scene right out of a painting by Salvador Dali. "OK" I told him... "I'm heading down there to see this in person. The things I do for BRO..." When I arrived I couldn't believe my eyes. There it was - just as he had described it. I looked around and there was not another soul in sight. As I wandered around the oddity snapping photos I couldn't help but feel that I was in some sort of aquatic theater in the round. The overhead lights gleamed brilliantly on the water causing the surface to come alive. All the while the bedroom set remained motionless, which added an eerie twist to the confounded mystery.
In the end, the artistic display worked its magic and I found myself perched on a park bench next to the terminus of the Erie Canal in the middle of the night with the surprisingly warm wind blowing around me and a light rain setting in. I was completely transfixed with the out of place objects cast in front of me while my heightened awareness slowly began to tune into familiar canal landmarks. The glowing letters of the Commercial Slip sign along with The Ruins and the looming Skyway managed to anchored the image in one direction... as did the Whipple Truss Bridge and the Naval Museum in the other.
What looked like a simple stunt was most definitely not. Whoever had come up with this bizarre creation had put a lot of thought into it, especially since an audience member dressed in Sabres' garb had so brilliantly interacted with the set and not ruined it. Although my interaction was solely passive, I still felt as if I was a part of the act. For some reason I feel that my completely unexpected, intimate experience on the waterfront last night will remain with me always. I am guessing that the mastermind behind the curtain meant to do exactly that.
And somebody was questioning whether the hotel industry can handle all the new beds opening up in the Lafayette and Statler!
Gotta admit, though, the light-up bedside lamp really makes it an impressive stunt.