"Brush Up Buffalo" written by Tiburon1724 on estrip.org

04/12/08 11:36 - 44ºF - ID#43989

Brush Up Buffalo

I know it's two months away, but I'd like to take part this year. It's Saturday, June 14. Time and place TBD. I thought maybe we could get several volunteers from (e:strip)? Check out their website for more info and let me know if you're interested.

Permalink: Brush_Up_Buffalo.html
Words: 46
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: house

04/03/08 08:29 - 53ºF - ID#43888

becoming domesticated

So I finally closed on my house Thursday. The family came and helped me move on Saturday and helped me get things setup in the house. I absolutely LOVE IT!! I love living in N Buffalo....not far from anything really, and my neighborhood is very nice. The inside of the house really needs no work, all updated very recently. I do have some work cut out for me outside though...need a new roof, privacy fence along the back, and now the insurance company wants me to replace the driveway/walkway?! Screw them, that's 3rd on the list! :) Also have some work I can do myself...scraping and painting the sides of the garage, replacing gutter downspouts, repainting the trim (I don't like the color), etc. My parents bought me a washer/dryer which was a HUGE boost and picked myself up a lawnmower yesterday.

I'm finally at that point where I get just as much if not more out of spending money on something for my home as I do the latest video game :) It's weird to be grown-up!

Permalink: becoming_domesticated.html
Words: 181
Location: Buffalo, NY

03/18/08 09:16 - 40ºF - ID#43725

what happened!

So this morning I'm at work, probably about 8:30 and I notice a Buffalo Police car sitting in the closest parking spot to the store. I guess I noticed because it's Amherst and not Buffalo. He was sitting there for a bit....fast forward about 10 minutes and he was joined by what had to be 20 cop cars, mostly K-9 units...Amherst Police, Buffalo Police, Lockport Police, NFTA Police, Border Patrol, Lewiston Police, you name it. The secretary said they threw a guy into the back of a car behind the building so I figured...something like this will be on the news for sure. Alas, I can't find a thing on it!! But we get news about how well the super draft dodger works on your door. Anyone know what was up?

Permalink: what_happened_.html
Words: 131
Location: Buffalo, NY

03/16/08 12:29 - 33ºF - ID#43691

St Patty's Day

So I'm really happy to see that a big deal is made here out of St Patrick's Day. It seems Buffalonians love every holiday! In Florida you wouldn't even know the day happened...no mentions of it anywhere. We'd get in a little bit of st Pats merchandise at my store down there and barely anything would sell but up here it flew off the shelf!! I guess there aren't many Irish folks down there, but it's not just Irish people celebrating it! Again evidence of the culture and history present in this area. Wish I could check out the parade today from what I hear it's great, but now that I've broken it off with the g/f I have nobody to go with...plus I told my crazy aunt & uncle I'd meet them at some dive on grand island at 2.

Permalink: St_Patty_s_Day.html
Words: 143
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: work

03/16/08 12:23 - 33ºF - ID#43690

No Change for Now!

So I had the Bed Bath interview and the guy was very straightforward about what they were looking for. Basically I'd start 2 levels below store mgr and maybe within 3 years work my way back up. The only new store opening in the area is in Batavia later in the year but that's the reason for the job posting. When he asked me how much $$ I'd need I jacked it up an additional $5k over what I was originally thinking because honestly I wasn't too thrilled about the job at that point...BUT if they'd have offered me that salary it would have made me consider it. I wasn't too sure about having someone else write my schedule and reporting so directly to someone else after a few years of being in charge of my own store. Then the very next day I get a rejection letter. My interview was at 1pm so that means as soon as I walked out he printed it out and dropped it in the mail!! At least make it look like it took some thought :( oh well I really didn't want it anyway :)

Permalink: No_Change_for_Now_.html
Words: 188
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: house

03/15/08 04:26 - 36ºF - ID#43679

Buying a House Sucks!

So in much of the country you can close on a house within 2 weeks. Here it takes 45-60 days on average. There are so many people involved...the attorney, paralegal, both realtors, buyer & seller, processor, adjuster, and many more I'm sure I'm leaving out....so a simple thing takes dayyysss.....my parents said in Florida there are no attorneys involved so that explains that.

My target close date was Fri 3/14...yesterday. On Wednesday I get a message.."oh, we need proof of homeowners insurance" so I send that in. Then later Wednesday PM I get another.."oh we need a receipt proving you've paid the insurance for a full yr" so I send them that...

Thursday.,..."we're ready to close, HOWEVER....."
Great, however. Turns out the FHA inspector wants a little touch-up painting done and 2 downspouts repaired. arghhhh. So we end up getting the ok to setup an escrow so those repairs can be done later...i.e. in better weather. So we're ready to close then!!! Oh, wait...the realtor still needs another document from the seller, who's out of town. He has dropped it in the mail. Regular mail. Not overnight, regular. So now I have to wait probably until the end of NEXT week. I just want to move :(

So I know National Grid is the one to contact for power and I think it's National Fuel for gas, but who do I contact for water service in the city? And didn't I hear people in the city have to pay for trash pickup? Is that something I have to setup or will it just get picked up when I put it out and I later get a bill?

On the other hand, my plasma TV was delivered today and is MIND BLOWING!!!! :)

Permalink: Buying_a_House_Sucks_.html
Words: 297
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: work

03/10/08 11:53 - 24ºF - ID#43613

Time for (Another) Change?

So Friday I have an interview for store mgmt at Bed Bath & Beyond...I submitted my resume one night when I was especially burnt out from a hard couple days at work and actually got a prompt call. Not completely sure about it yet, but really that's what an interview is for...for both sides to evaluate their fit. I'd say if I can get an additional $10k/yr out of it, I'll jump ship, provided I don't find anything I object to and get a good feeling in the interview.

I do like my job don't get me wrong, and I know there will be hard frustrating times everywhere, but I don't like when my labor budget has been cut so dramatically I have to be the only one in the store for hours a day with a huge laundry list of tasks that need to be done and hordes of miserable, overly needy customers who think their shit doesn't stink because they live in Williamsville/Amherst.

Plus today I got my review..3.4% raise and $9300 bonus. Hello new roof for the new house! 3.4% is good for my cheap company, and that bonus is very atypical. In fact, next year if I stay I'll probably get no bonus. Anyone ever heard anything from current or former BB&B employees?

Permalink: Time_for_Another_Change_.html
Words: 221
Location: Buffalo, NY

03/09/08 10:14 - 20ºF - ID#43598

New TV!

I finally bit the bullet and bought an HDTV. Decided on the new
Panasonic 42" Plasma with 3 HDMI inputs. Of course it's not available in local stores so I have to wait for it to be delivered!! Very exciting. With this I will sell my old 32" Sony Wega Trinitron SDTV. It has served me well for about 10 years and has been a great TV!! Anyone looking? :)

The old guy.

The new one!

tiburon1724 writes at 11:47:12 03/10/08 - Comment #32555: well I have another smaller TV too so I'll have one for my bedroom as well even if I sell this one...difference would be no TV in the guest room. The real problem with keeping this one is it weighs about 250 pounds and has smashed through every TV stand I've put it on except the current one. And I've lived in 5 different places since owning it...moving it gets tiresome!

metalpeter writes at 06:27:37 03/10/08 - Comment #32541: Don't get me wrong some people don't have a TV and get by fine, it would be kinda cool to be like. I mean if you have one. For example There Have been times that I wished I had another TV in my living room. I like Shows and sports so I would love to watch a show and then Have the Sabres on with no Volume. If I was a gamer I would have to have a special one just for that. Or if I was a Bigger Hockey Fan have one game with sound one with out or the same with the NFL.

jbeatty writes at 06:08:08 03/10/08 - Comment #32538: I don't know metalpeter. My brother and sister-in-law haven't had a TV since they lived in FL and they seem to be getting along alright. As much as I would love to ditch mine I would go nuts without PBS.

metalpeter writes at 05:54:01 03/10/08 - Comment #32537: I hate to say this but don't get rid of the TV you can never have to many TVs. You can watch the bills on normal cable and watch a good team on the HD, HA or use it for video games or put it in a room that isn't for company. But that is just me.

tiburon1724 writes at 11:17:39 03/09/08 - Comment #32517: ..and then I realize you mean my existing TV, haha. I was thinking $300

tiburon1724 writes at 11:15:01 03/09/08 - Comment #32516: Circuit City and Best Buy both have it for $1099 this week.

drew writes at 10:30:23 03/09/08 - Comment #32515: how much?

Permalink: New_TV_.html
Words: 75
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: weather

02/26/08 06:26 - 30ºF - ID#43474

Wusses!!

I really can't believe this. There's a ticker on the bottom of the local channels showing all these places closed. CLOSED. For a little snow...in BUFFALO. I always heard how even with a ton of snow and bad weather everything in buffalo kept on going as usual but we get a dusting of snow and it's A) hyped up beyond belief even though it's BUFFALO and B) results in near shutdown of the entire county. WTF!!! Hell my drug store in Orlando stayed open during hurricanes....and we close businesses due to snow in the snow capital? Very disappointed.

Permalink: Wusses_.html
Words: 100
Location: Buffalo, NY

Category: sports

02/26/08 06:13 - 30ºF - ID#43473

Breaking News

The Sabres are a bunch of assholes!

That is what the headlines should read. Ok team, playoffs are on the line, we play the Rangers.....oh let's get our asses kicked. Okay another chance against the Devils. Leading 3-0...alright we can stop playing now and allow one of the stars we chased out of town to score the winning goal against us. Our defense needs help...let's allow our star defenseman to leave town and then NOT REPLACE HIM ON DEFENSE but instead trade him for a no-talent left-winger and draft pick.

EVERYONE RUNNING THIS TEAM SHOULD BE FIRED IMMEDIATELY!!!!

tiburon1724 writes at 11:20:12 02/26/08 - Comment #32142: The cap in the NHL is still pretty low though it won't be for long. Golisano could spend to the cap but he's already said he doesn't want to. He also said even selling out every regular season game won't turn a profit, he needs a deep playoff run for that. Well if you miss the playoffs entirely because you have a team of Andrew Peters', you're not turning a profit then. I'm not really blaming Golisano since yes, without him sweeping in last second we'd have no NHL team..but I do blame Regier and Quinn! 2 years in a row we had a deep playoff run....you screwed up boys! I do realize Miller and Max become UFA's next year...we need all the cash possible to keep Miller.

metalpeter writes at 08:40:52 02/26/08 - Comment #32137: I have to agree with you on how the team is playing. But what people have to understand is that The Sabres are a Small Market Team and will always be a small market team. The point of the Battle over the entire "CAP" issue is the same for every sport. You can't over pay players more then you can should so that your team goes broke you make no money and buy the championship. The problem is that it still winds up hurting teams like Buffalo because since they are small they don't get all the extra money that you can get from say like The Rangers or Penguins or Kings based on the size of the city. I think people should boo Briere because he was unloyal. No one knew who he was and then he plays for Buffalo and becomes a big star then leaves for the money, that is one of the problems with free agency is that it kills both team and player loyalty. Eventully it will kill the game of hockey. People will get sick of seeing there favorite player moving to another team so they will just stop watching, I think it is allready starting to happen in football that is why they are trying to go international. I do think that the sabres could have worked things out with Campell over the summer when it should have been done instead of during the season. In terms of the trade maybe they could have done better but if he is going to leave you anyways you might as well get something for the guy. One thing people forget is the sabres went broke and had no money and if it wasn't for Golisano we either wouldn't have a team or who ever bought the team if we could have found anyone would have tried to move it someplace. That being said the Sabres are about profit first and putting good product on the ice with out taking a chance of losing money. I think this team has forgot that what makes a team good isn't how many good players you have it is about how good you play together. I think that team that was so good for two years were not the best team in the league talent wise. It was the fact that they knew how to play together. One guy goes down put another guy in his place. That is the same way the NFL Pats used to be except the giants kicked the ass of a tired team who wore the wrong hoodie. My main point is people have to except we are a small market team who builds talent from the minors and players who are no names and become starts need to learn to be loyal and the team needs to see that they need to be a little bit more loyal also.

Permalink: Breaking_News.html
Words: 101
Location: Buffalo, NY