You may find this surprising, but not everyone is familiar with Dyngus Day. And when people hear about Dyngus for the first time, they often laugh. 
Well, CNN's Anderson Cooper did a segment on Buffalo's Dyngus Day history last night during his recurring feature, The Ridiculist, and boy did he think Dyngus Day was funny. He made it through the first couple minutes of the segment without laughing but, once there was mention of girls hitting boys with pussy willows, Cooper lost it. 
And a minute-long gigglefest ensued. Now, this

Where are you from originally? 
Buffalo
What is your medium?
I'm mostly known as a painter, oil and acrylic.
How has Buffalo influenced your work? 
Buffalo has influenced my work in unexpected ways. First, Buffalo has a rich art environment.  So many artists, so many great institutions, so many pockets of creative energy. If you want to be a serious artist, there are plenty of resources here. But Buffalo is a terrible art

In late March, the Seneca Nation of Indians and Seneca Gaming Corp. ="In late March, the Seneca Nation of Indians and Seneca Gaming Corp. unveiled a re-designed $130 million Seneca Buffalo Creek Casino on the Nation's 9.5 acre territory in the Cobblestone District. When complete in the summer of 2013, the new casino will replace the current, slots-only casino that opened on the territory in 2007. The new design features a main stone-faced building containing the newest and highly popular slots, table games and a small, American-style restaurant and bar facility. A four-story parking

For anyone who has had an interest learning about demographics from our neighboring Canadian market, there is an event that you might want to attend. We are all very much aware that a huge number of Canadians already frequent this city for shopping and sporting events. The hope would be to expand upon those markets and to attract more Canadians to more areas throughout Greater Buffalo. Niagara Tourism and Convention Corporation and Visit Buffalo Niagara state that "In the past three years, Buffalo Niagara welcomed 3.1 million Ontario shoppers annually who spent more than $900 million in local retailers,

Seeing that the last Buffalo Rising update on Mutual Riverfront Park was only back on March 2, the amount of progress that we are seeing since then is astounding. The overhead sign has been installed, which features one of the pontoons from the ice boom. The massive pontoon, with the shiny metal sign affixed to its front, makes for an impressive main entranceway to the park, and one that pays homage to the park's industrial surroundings. On top of the brick entry piers sit old ship bollards, while

Clutter Indie Market has become a big hit in a short period of time. Even though Clutter's original home, Sugar City, is looking for new diggs, the 'Do It Yourself' market has found a replacement space over Main ST(udios). If you're not familiar with the bi-monthly curated Clutter event, then click here to get a refresher. It appears that the market is not only off to a good start, it's morphing a bit by incorporating even more unique products

There are all sorts of ways to raise money for charitable causes, though some are yummier than others. Dining Out for Life is celebrating its 10 year anniversary, and in that time cities all over the country have raised millions of dollars to fight AIDS. In 2011 3,001 restaurants in 52 cities raised $3.4 million for HIV/AIDS. Each person that decided to dine out on the designated night helped to contribute to the staggering number. This year will be no different. On Tuesday April 24, 2012 restaurants from all over

Every so often we have (and will again) featured a Kickstarter rally for a business that we felt was deserving enough to warrant attention (and money) from the public. As most of us are aware, there has been a growing coalition of urban farmers who have been getting back to the basics... back to the land, in a landscape that is rather unusual and totally inspiring. Some of the most progressive cities in America recognize these types of grassroots entrepreneurs for their desire to reclaim abandoned plots

Expansion of the Peace Bridge Plaza is suddenly on a fast track.  Governor Andrew M. Cuomo last week announced a $15 million infusion of state money for the $85 million project.  Meanwhile, the Public Bridge Authority continues efforts to rid itself of the properties it purchased along Busti Avenue, including the landmarked circa-1863 Wilkeson House at 771 Busti, while using eminent domain to acquire others. 

Leading the plaza push is former assemblyman Sam Hoyt.  He was elected chairman of the Authority board of directors in February and also serves as regional president

While many of us find it frustrating when we think of the lack of connectivity between the Inner and Outer Harbor, the real frustration lies in the fact that the problem stems from a series of events that dramatically altered the way that we utilize the harbors. It was around the time of 1964 when a freighter took out the South Michigan Draw Bridge, never to be replaced for unexplained reasons. Instead of rebuilding the bridge, the industrial area was left to sit stagnant (some say at the request of General Mills).

By Amanda Gabryszak:
Buffalo State College is hosting a protest against SUNY's recent contract with EnergyMark. The contract will provide five SUNY schools with hydraulically fractured gas for three years. The deal totaled over $22 million dollars, and the schools include Buffalo State College, UB, Fredonia, Alfred State, and the New York College of Ceramics at Alfred State. The protest is scheduled to take place on April 19th on the Buffalo State College Campus, from 12:15-1:30 pm. Weather permitting, demonstrators will gather between Butler Library and Campbell

Each year, the annual Dyngus Day Party at the Buffalo Central Terminal is the largest celebration within the city, attracting over 10,000 party guests. This year's party will include a contemporary twist on the traditional celebration, featuring the world's first ever "polka rock concert" with music by the band "Those Idiots."
The band will be starting off their show with two sets of traditional polkas at 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Their last set, "The Polka Meltdown," will start at 8:30 p.m. and will consist of 2 hours of continuous rock-polka fusion. 
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By Michael Hargrave and Shayna McKie:
Beekeeping may be finding a home here in Buffalo, at least in some small way. Discussion on whether to permit beekeeping within the city limits is rekindling after quieting down at the end of last summer. "So far there's been a couple meetings (about beekeeping)," said Patti Jablonski-Dopkin, general manager at Urban Roots on Rhode Island Street. "But, no resolution has been passed." Honeybees are important for pollinating flowers

Milwaukee might be the one Great Lakes city that most closely resembles Buffalo. Both cities are former industrial hubs. Both suffered precipitous decline and both sit in the orbit of prosperous mega cities. Milwaukee is a slightly larger metro than Buffalo at 1.7 million (MSA) to Buffalo's 1.2 million (MSA - plus another 400K nearby Canadians). Milwaukee was built with less wealth than Buffalo and as such lacks some of the historic architectural elegance of Buffalo. However it currently outstrips Buffalo's annual economy by about 50%.  Milwaukee has an impressive 14 Fortune 1000 companies

Representatives from the Allentown Association, the Preservation League of New York State, and the NYS Historic Preservation Office will be on hand to dedicate the newly enhanced Allentown Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. For over 30 years, only a portion of Allentown was listed on the National Register and through the new One Allentown effort, the entire local Buffalo district boundaries are on the National Register.  
The dedication ceremony will take place at 2 PM Thursday April 12 at 18 Plymouth Avenue, an 1892 Queen

The Arts Services Initiative of Western New York today announced a Request for Proposals (RFP) for assisted programming along the Buffalo River between May 26 and October 31, 2012.  A total of $82,500 is available to qualified organizations and individuals to conduct programs and events at several sites along the River corridor, including:Buffalo River Fest Park;Silo City grain elevators and site;Mutual Riverfront Park ("Ice Boom Park");Father Conway Park; andThe Buffalo River itself.
Funding for

Where are you from originally?  I am originally from Milwaukee, Wis. But I have lived many places since leaving there, Including Chicago, and New York City. What is your medium? I am a Sculptor and all materials are fair game, I do  a lot of casting of metals and of glass, But I almost always take a mixed media approach to the work. The combining of the voices found in different materials is a lot of what my work is about. How has Buffalo influenced your work?  That's

At one point in your life, if you're interested in art creation, you should take the time to attend an iron pour. Rarely do these public events occur due to the controlled environment needed to regulate safety of the artists and the attendees. But when they do the scene is dynamic and intense. We are lucky to have artists such as Ken Payne*, an internationally recognized sculptor, living and working here in Buffalo. When there is an iron pour, you are sure to find Ken involved with it, if not running the show. On April 21, at the Buffalo State College campus, Ken is hosting an event that will

Where are you from originally?  
I was born and raised in WNY.
What is your medium? 
Photography
How has Buffalo influenced your work? 
Buffalo has raised me. I identify with its underdog mentality and tough love approach. 
Where do you draw your inspiration from?  
The beautiful world we live in.
Who is the artist that most

Submitted by DanaSaylor:
This past Tuesday, April 3rd, the Facebook group "Preservation-Ready Sites" met up in person once again. The third installment in their series of preservation-related mixers was held at Bacchus on Chippewa from 5:30-7:30, a change from their previous breakfast meetings. The group, founded by Frits Abell et. al. of the Buffalo Expat Network, has been getting together to collaborate and share ideas on best practices.  This month, Daniel Ash from Farmers and Builders presented a brief talk on the topic, "Aligning Preservation, Conservation,