The Tao Of Paul

Remember that when you were a kid? Unable to sleep Christmas Eve and waking up at 4 in the morning to check under the tree?
Woke up at 4:30 this morning to try and be voter #1. I know my chances are slim because I have a number of retirees near me who have nothing better to do that beat me to the polls.
My next logical step would be to exhort my readers to vote. Both of them. But I firmly believe that people who read blogs, those who are active out here in the ozone, already have voting on their to do list. So I ask that you remind your friends, neighbors, co workers, to vote.

I believe Pundit and the Mother ship will both be doing liveblogging tonight. See you there.

UPDATE:
As I was typing the above, I heard my beloved getting into the shower and I’m thinking “Great! She’s into this too and wants to get in line early”. I’m pouring the coffee as she gets out of the shower and heads into the bedroom. Suddenly I hear “WHAT THE SHIT???”
We have 2 alarm clocks in the bedroom. One of them was not set back on Sunday because the alarm is broken (hence the second clock. That works).
Guess which one she looked at when she first awoke?
It’s little things like this that make my life so enjoyable…

Grand opening going on at the home of BUFFALO ReUSE . And if that isn’t enough, Saturday morning is the annual spring cleanup at the Terminal, from 9 until 1.
I am there, you should be too.

Bring Home the Herd!

You are invited to attend the Buffalo Homecoming Launch Party

We’re hosting a party for Buffalo enthusiasts!

Become an Ambassador, give your input on Homecoming events and

be the first to join our campaign to BRING HOME THE HERD!

Goal: 5,000 Buffalonians each invite 5 friends to Buffalo for Homecoming (June 26-29, 2008)

Join us on Wednesday, March 26 between 5:00-8:00 p.m.

at the Pearl Street Grill & Brewery 76 Pearl Street

Join me. I will be the one probably wearing a bowling shirt. Honest.

Questions? Contact us at info@BuffaloHomecoming.com or call 903-7155

Please forward this invitation!

Even if you can’t make it to the party, please take a moment to sign up for Buffalo Homecoming

and invite five of your favorite friends and family members to sign up, too!

It’s fast, simple and free.

Geek wants your story.
You know, the warm fuzzy “Why I left Buffalo but came back, I never lived here before but just had to come to Buffalo” type stories. And as Buffalo Homecoming (FKA Old Home Week) approaches, we will see a slew of these.
But I would like to hear the other stories. You know, the “I never left WNY/Buffalo because” stories. And I count those who returned to the area immediately after serving in the military in this category.

What I would like to know:

Why did you stay? Family? Loving the 4 seasons? Had a Great job? A general sense of belonging?

Were there any hardships you faced by staying? Any opportunities that you willingly passed on in order to stay?

I would like to hear from the people who stayed to keep the lights on so Chris could find his way back. The ones who formed a welcoming committee for pundit when he came here to settle.

The best thing about working with Chris, Marti and the others on Buffalo Homecoming is that I get to meet people that fit in all the categories. It is great to be a never left working with transplants, repats, whatever you want to call them. And every single one is there to celebrate today’s Buffalo, to promote Buffalo, and share Buffalo.

Oh yeah, my story? I’m here because a higher power has pushed me here:

I joined the service right out of Williamsville South high school to “See the world”. My first duty station was in Pennsylvania. Pretty close to home. So I put in a volunteer statement for overseas, still trying to “See the world”. I received orders shortly thereafter.
For a small radar site located in Lockport NY.
20 Minutes from my family.
Where I met my wife.
I got out of the service and almost immediately found a decent job with decent salary and benefits. Next year I will be eligible to retire from said job.
Sometimes when you try to leave, you just get closer.

Disclaimer:
The following is my personal opinion and does not necessarily reflect the views of any other member of WNYM.
Seems that there is a little brouhaha over at Pundit’s place.
Let’s face it. we have had plans, coalitions, more plans, public forums, ad nauseum. What we haven’t had is a whole lot of progress. Some people are opposed to a project, some aren’t. If some folks at WNYMedia choose to use a little parody to voice their opinion, fine by me. But to insinuate that these people are any less interested in the betterment of Western New York simply because they don’t engage in dialogue in the manner that you prefer, is pretty freaking arrogant.
These people work their asses off for the area. If you don’t like the medium they use for their message, then you have issues. Perhaps we need to be a little more vocal, ruffle a few more feathers to get things moving.
So to bastardize the Bard, “Cry havoc, and let slip the dogs of WNYM”

Update 12/20/05:37
After waking up and reading my post this morning, I realize my anger directed at those commenters not happy with the parody is borne of frustration. I could have stated it to them more clearly with “Be thankful that those who did the parody care enough about the renewal of Western New York to be active participants. And I will be thankful that they also have a sense of humor.” It may behoove them to add a sense of humor to their repertoire as well.
And thanks to DougK for the great quote to start the morning.

Yeah. Get out of bed a little early and do the right thing. Or stop on the way home from work.
If you don’t have to work, you have all day to squeeze this in. it is your chance to do something constructive. Do it.
And if you want better coverage than the crawl on the bottom of your screen whilst watching the local affiliates, click on that little button on the left that says “WNYMedia Election Night 2007″.
Coverage by people who actually feel they have a vested interest, not just talking heads.

Here’s a good reason to get up early Sunday morning.

This just in from the fine folks that brought you Buffalo Old Home Week :

We are happy to announce that our Happy To Be Here Hours will resume this month at WJ Morrisseys (30 Mississippi, between Perry & South Park, behind HSBC Arena) in the Cobblestone District, on Monday, September 17 from 6:00-8:00 p.m. These events are where those of us who are fortunate enough to already be in Beautiful Buffalo come to celebrate all that is great about this town and come up with creative ways to address things that could be better. We’re a roll-up-your-sleeves-and-get-the-job done group, and working together to make Buffalo even better is a great goal.

Our HTBH speaker this month is Dr. Mark Donnelly, the genius behind CulturalNiagara.com, Surfbuffalo.com, Where2When2.com, and countless other valuable Buffalo Niagara initiatives. He will shout over the din for 10 or 15 minutes to extol the virtues of Buffalo Niagara’s culturals and the opportunity that exists in this community – were we all to pull together. We should all be inspired by him to be personally responsible for making something terrific happen here! The $3.00 HTBH Special on Guinness, Jameson and Murphy’s, plus some tasty Irish Toasties, compliments of our host Dennis Brinkworth, ought to add to the convivial spirit! Please plan to join us.

I can’t make it, but I hope all of you will, and come back to tell me what a great time you had!!!

Contrary to what some people believe, Seneca is not the southern boundary of Buffalo. South Buffalo is a gem unto itself. And some of the improvements going on down there are due in part to the activist we know as Fedup. Armed with a digital camera and determination, she brought the condition of Cazenovia Street to the attention of the city. Now it’s looking pretty good. And she has teamed up with SouthBuffaloblogger to take on the Caz St bridge. No small task, but I have confidence in our South Buffalo girl.
She can spend all day singing the praises of South Buffalo, but she is not blind to its faults. And she is not afraid to do something about them.
Nice to have someone like that around.