Author: Drew

I’ll confess. Even though I do not plan on being at the In-Rem auction, I have been scanning the list, and have even thought about pulling together some cash “just in case.” The idea of a great deal in a great neighborhood is tempting enough to get a real estate rookie like me thinking about buying property.The book of Leviticus, a sacred text for Christians and Jews, contains law for the ancient nation of Israel, and commands the people to celebrate a “Sabbath Year” every seven years, and a “Jubilee” every fifty. Every Sabbath year, the land is to rest,…

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An assortment of brief thoughts about food floating around in my head… *Most of the times that I drive by Amigo’s on Kenmore Avenue, the parking lot is packed. I haven’t been there yet. Am I missing something? What’s good there? *I try not to go to chain establishments but occasionally I relent. I go to Moe’s once in a while for the Art Vandalay burrito. I get a kick out of workers half-heartedly saying “Welcome to Moe’s” in unison. There’s a Moe’s opening soon in the Target plaza in North Buffalo. That’s dangerously close to my house. *Went to…

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Image by Getty Images via DaylifeAs we celebrated St. Francis’ day in the rain last week, praying for our pets, one BRO commenter questioned the integrity of praying for some animals, without speaking out against the eating of other animals.It’s a fair question, and one that different people of good faith can and do approach differently.And, just for full disclosure, I am a pet owner and meat eater. Even though I was a vegetarian for about 8 years. My decision to become a vegetarian was rooted in the inefficiencies and ecological problems that go with the meat industry, and my…

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It was a big party last year, on the Feast Day of St. Francis, when I gathered with about 30 animals and their people, seeking blessings for the pets.We will celebrate again this year, on Sunday Oct 4, at 1PM, at Lafayette Presbyterian Church. The Church, located at 875 Elmwood Avenue at Lafayette. We’ll have a short reading of scripture, a reflection on who St.Francis was, and how his love for animals was rooted in the divine, and end with individual blessings for each pet.This event is open to all people, regardless of belief. (Even if you don’t believe, you might…

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Finding beauty in broken things is a theme in Bill Mallonee’s music that might resonate here in Buffalo.Proclaimed by Paste Magazine to be number 65 among the 100 Greatest Living Songwriter’s (between Frank Black and Sting), this singer songwriter will play at Lafayette Ave. Presbyterian Church on Saturday, Oct 3, at 7:30. Tickets are $10, $5 with student ID.New York Press says that he’s “…the best folk-rock act nobody’s ever hear of…The intelligence and intensity of Mallonee’s writing has elicited comparisons to Dylan from his loyal underground admirers.”According to Rolling Stone, “Bill Mallonee… [has] remained fascinated with the shadowy emotional…

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When a church building is moved to Georgia to face continual use as a church, is it an example of a wealthy neighborhood taking away from a poorer neighborhood, or a beloved church finding new life with similar people in a different location?When the Elmwood Village draws additional development, does it create momentum that overflows into the West and East Sides, or does it consume capital that might benefit somebody else better?Are the city and the suburbs in it together, or are we competitors? Though we may not like it, there has been a human instinct from the start to…

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By Kait MunroThe Performing Arts Center at Buffalo State College’s Rockwell Hall announced the 2009-2010 Great Performers Series, presented by M&T Bank and WBFO. The series will feature the following performances:Josh Tesh Saturday, October 10th at 8 PMPaula Poundstone Friday, October 16th at 8 PMThe Rippingtons featuring Russ FreemanSaturday, November 21st at 8 PMGeorge Winston on Solo PianoFriday, December 4th at 8 PMJesse CookWednesday, December 16th at 8 PMMarc CohnTuesday, February 16th, 2010 at 8 PMSuzanne Vega Friday, April 9th, 2010 at 8 PMRoger McGuinnFriday, April 23rd, 2010 at 8 PMTickets for the Great Performers Series are on sale now. The Performing Arts Center will…

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Last Monday I rushed home from a meeting because I had heard that – against all odds – our Bills were beating the Patriots.As a Buffalo transplant, I was not raised to love the Bills, but I have adopted them as my “other” team. On Monday night, however, I was not hopeful that the Bills would win; I had made the sports-fan transference that non-fans just don’t get, and I was hoping we would win. I was in it.And though I was not here for “wide right” or “no goal,” last year’s fast start by the Bills taught me not…

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Ujima Theater, at 545 Elmwood Ave presents a special performance of “Do You See What I’m Saying” On Thursday, Sept 24, to benefit the Homeless Alliance of Western New York. Tickets are $35, and can be purchased at wnyhomeless.org or by calling 853-1101. Based on personal interviews with homeless women living on the streets of Chicago, Do You See What I’m Saying? is, according to Chicago Magazine and Arts Weekly, “A heartbreaking lyric poem …” but Megan Terry also recognizes the humor in the human situation and highlights the nobility that can survive all kinds of blows to the human spirit.…

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On Saturday, September 12th, the Buffalo Arts Studio (2495 Main Street) will host an opening reception for three new exhibitions from 7 PM until 10 PM. The event will also feature talks by the artists from 7 PM until 8 PM. Exhibitions by the following artists will be on display until October 31st. Ricardo Miranda Zúñiga’s two-part exhibition, Breaking News, explores the re-interpretation of constant information we know as “current events.” The artist’s interest in how living in a media saturated world affects us lead to a new literacy workshop with children between the ages of 6 to 9-years-old at Buffalo’s Gloria J. Parks…

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