Winter Garden Comes Down

I got a text just as my Zumba class was ending this morning that the Winter Garden Theatre was being demolished so I walked up North Main Street to have a look. I spent about an hour and a half in the cold (with a stop off to Labyrinth to get some coffee to keep me warm) watching the building being crumbled away. Most of the facade and part of the interior is down for now. Work stopped for the Sabres game.

Guest Spot

The next issue of the recently relaunched/revitalized Chautauqua Region Word comes out this week. I've been asked to provide the guest editorial for this issue. Those who know me best know that I generally avoid the truly controversial, so the editorial was more some observations I've made during the ten years I've lived here in Chautauqua County.

Pick up The Word at your favorite "third place" or read it online when it goes live sometime around Thursday this week. I welcome any thoughts you may have on it here. Full text of the guest editorial will be posted here after the paper has gone to print.

Plates of Colorful Goodness

Cookie decorating done for another year. And the Sabres are winning even. Good night so far.

Jamestown Jets Win 8-4!

Face off between the Jamestown Jets and Wooster Oilers for their inaugural game in Jamestown. Date night is a hockey night!

Hockey In Jamestown Iced

The season for the Jamestown Vikings has been cut short. The Mid-Atlantic Hockey League had the following announcement on their site as of today:

2007-08 season will end early with Indiana Ice Miners declared League Champion
(Canton, Ohio). Mid-Atlantic Hockey League President Andrew Haines today announced that the 2007-08 season will be come to an end immediately in order to allow all member teams to re-organize for the 2008-09 season.

As a result of this announcement, the Indiana Ice Miners have been declared MAHL League Champion based on their amazing record setting regular season record of 31-1-0 and their consecutive victories record of twenty-six.

“As the majority owner of the MAHL, after consulting with the other team owners, coaches, and general managers, a difficult decision was made that it was necessary to re-organize the league and start working towards next season,” said MAHL President Andrew Haines. “We apologize to our fans and corporate partners for any inconvenience caused. This action was necessary to ensure the long-term viability of the league and we look forward to coming back much stronger for the 2008-09 season.”

“I also want to take this opportunity to thank the managers, coaches, and players for all of their efforts during this inaugural season,” Haines continued. It was the efforts of these people, as well as our fans, that made this abbreviated year a success and a building block for better things to come. We certainly had a good product on the ice and the quality of play was recognized by higher leagues.”

All remaining 2007-08 games have been cancelled. Tickets which have already been purchased on line for the remainder of the 2007-08 MAHL season can be refunded through ClicknPrint tickets and tickets purchased at the box office can be refunded at the local arena’s box office or a credit for use next season can be issued by contacting each individual team.

The Mid-Atlantic Hockey League was successful in establishing itself as a developmental league for the three professional “AA” leagues. The MAHL saw forty call-ups to the ECHL, CHL, and IHL this season. All MAHL players under contract are now considered free agents and are free and clear to contact teams in any other professional league regarding continuing their playing careers this season.

The MAHL will announce its 2007-08 award winners later this week along with its league-wide all-star team.

For additional information on the Mid-Atlantic Hockey League go to www.mahlhockey.com.

This stinks. I use the word "stink" because something just doesn't seem right. A lot of questions are circulating about what this really means. Stay posted.

Music, Sport, and Food Trilogy

What do you get when you combine hockey, They Might Be Giants, and a hot chocolate drink?

To Do-ing

1. Braving snowy weather for the first time this season to go to Buffalo tonight
2. Making about 300 pierogi tomorrow
3. Coming back to Jamestown and collapsing Saturday night
4. Doing the news by noon on Sunday
5. Going to Warren for a dress rehearsal at 2pm Sunday
6. Hopefully not massacring music too badly for the Warren Civic Orchestra concert at the First United Methodist Church on Second and Market Streets in Warren at 4pm on Sunday
7. Rushing home to change, take out the dogs, and get to Mojo's by 6:30pm
8. Going to the Viking's game with the Forte crowd Sunday night at 7:30pm

Jamestown Vikings Hockey Starts Tonight!

The Jamestown Vikings open their first season in Jamestown tonight at the Jamestown Savings Bank Ice Arena.

We plan to be there to cheer on our new team. Smackdab will be performing in the veranda room beforehand and I hear there were will be lots of chicken wings to be consumed and excellent prices on Labatt Blue beer.

Game time is 7:30. Tickets start at $6. See you there!


(Image Courtesy of this week's Chautauqua Region WORD)

Redemption!

There was a lot of heart-clutching, superstition-invoking, hair pulling last night during the third period and overtime of the Sabres-Leafs game (Recap on BfloBlog).

We watched most of the game from the Good Time Saloon while celebrating our friend Dan's birthday with a few drinks. I honestly wasn't feeling too positive about the potential outcome of the game, especially since Jocelyn Thibault was in the net for his first Sabres game. Goal-tending was more my concern than scoring opportunities. I actually wasn't concerned about our ability to convert power plays. That's a first for this Sabres fan!

As the minutes of the third period ticked down and the score steadily went up for both teams, I took on the role of our King-Of-Superstitions friend and Red Sox Fan, Kevin, by yelling at Matt to not turn his back on the television lest he be the cause again of a Leaf's goal. Then, great relief and shouting as we watched one of the Leafs knock the puck into his own goal with 3-seconds left in overtime.

As we drove home, Matt said, "You're thinking that this wipes out what Rory did, and I'm not talking about the time the puck was at his feet in the game against the Hurricanes."

"I tried to forget that Rory had any part of that goal in the season-ending game against the Leafs back in 2004. But yeah... that goal ABSOLUTELY redeems him," I answered.

"Would've been better if Tucker had been the one to put the goal in his own net," Matt said.

"No doubt," I replied and then proceeded to call Darcy Tucker something that rhymed with his name.

Cocopresso

I decided to forgo watching the season-opener for the Sabres tonight and, instead, went to Labyrinth Press Company to hear some live music. Turns out I made the right decision based on what I just read on the BfloBlog open thread. At least I have no delusions going into this season and will be happy if we make the play-offs.

Labyrinth turned out to be a very cool time. I spent several hours chatting with Tara of "Artist Share" and acoustic guitar performer fame. It's good to see that the younger hipsters have adopted the coffee house as a hang out. Even if Tara hadn't been there, I wouldn't have needed my journal to keep me occupied. The self-conscious, yet devil-may-care conversations and antics around me would have provided plenty of entertainment. Entertainment is a word I use loosely. I've always felt more like an observer, even when I was that age. Just taking in the world around me with an element of mirth and awe.

A Journalist for a Journalist by a Journalist

To employ a new favorite phrase, the "FUN" was in full effect last night in downtown Jamestown. Matt and I took in a pre-season Erie Otters hockey game at the Jamestown Savings Bank Ice Arena (JSBIA). I was admittedly pretty rusty in my hockey-watching skills since I purposefully blocked any knowledge of hockey out of my brain after a certain final game of the season on May 19th. Ahem. But as I said to the wife of Matt's boss, "Well, I feel like I can enjoy the impending Sabres' season because I don't have any expectations. God. I guess I really am a Western New Yorker!" The game ended in a tie with no overtime or shoot-out.

SBIA is doing some cool things to enhance the facility to make spectator sports a little more comfortable. We got a peek at what will be a club lounge. Before the Rusty Nail was torn down, Arena staff bought/took out part of the bar with plans to install it in one corner of the lounge. The walls are painted a deep red with modern, wrought iron sconces. We were told by management that flat screens will adorn the walls eventually. Comfy chairs from Crawford Furniture and round coffee tables are scattered throughout the room. There's some other things planned for the Veranda Room off the club area that sound good as well. I'm not sure about the final timeline for completion of everything, but this will be great stuff for the Jamestown Vikings' season.

After the game, we headed on over to The Cherry for a bite to eat. Can I put a plea out there to Jamestown-area restaurants to extend your dining hours until 10 or 10:30 (coughs Forte)?

After some stomach buffering, we made our way to Forte to mildly harass the WORD's "Bartender of the Week".












Nick made me a gin-based drink called "The Journalist." It was quite good and I enjoyed it with caution.

A good night out before Matt's free time becomes non-existent over the next few weeks and, then, months.

I will not be a bitter hockey fan. I will not be a bitter..

I'm not pleased about what happened with Drury and Briere yesterday. As I refreshed news pages online yesterday, I shook my head. I know this is all par for the course in the game, but I can't help but think that Darcy should have done more. I'll let BfloBlog take over on this topic.

An Important Message for the Buffalo Sabres

This video was produced before Monday's game, but it still resonates for Wednesday night.

Our friend/sportscaster/Red Sox Fan, Kevin Carroll, predicted well before the play-offs began that the Sabres would be down 3 games in the series before the Stanley Cup.

"It's gonna play just like the Red Sox-Yankee series. Buffalo is going to be down three games but they're gonna come back and win four in a row, and then sweep the Stanley Cup series."

We laughed at that statement then, but half of that statement represents our only hope. And, yes, I know I just broke practically all the rules of superstition by mentioning several unmentionable words.



(HT Buffalo Pundit)

Sabres Superstition Handbook

I solemnly read the WEDG Superstition Handbook tonight. As it is play-off time, extreme measures are to be taken as to not jinx our Team.

The Sabres seem to play their best when I'm at home, with the game on, and I'm doing housework. I also have not worn a certain hockey jersey all season because we haven't been able to get to a Sabres game. All signs, I tell ya'.

My favorite rule from the book?

This one:

"If Andrew Peters scores a goal rules do not apply for the duration of the game. Anarchy ensues."

LET'S GO BUFFALO!

Two Former Buffalo Sabres Score For Vancouver

YAY RORY!!!!

Canucks 2, Senators 1
Roberto Luongo made 34
saves, Rory Fitzpatrick scored
his first goal of the season and
Vancouver won its third
straight to end Ottawa’s seasonhigh
five-game winning streak.
Taylor Pyatt added a goal
and an assist for the Canucks.
Luongo, who stopped 30
shots Tuesday in a 4-0 win in
Montreal for his third shutout
of the season, had 10 saves in
the first period and 11 in the
second before Daniel Alfredsson
scored 8:13 into the third
to pull the Senators within one.
His shutout streak ended at
154 minutes, 42 seconds.

Spontaneous Head Implosion Averted

As I sip a medium double-cream Tim Horton's coffee, I wait for my frayed nerves to achieve normalcy. Ingesting caffeine does tend to have a calming effect on me when it's in the form of tea. Crap. I'm drinking coffee, aren't I? Oh well, I can be assured that I'll be able to stay awake for the 10 pm show of The Unexpected Guests.

Matt stopped down to the Arts Council on Friday and signed me up for UG's Improv Workshop that took place today. It was under sheer duress that I gave my blessings to him to do this. I think there's a special place reserved in heaven for my husband who has to put up my random, paranoid worrying.

The verdict? I had a good time. I laughed quite a bit and enjoyed trying to come up with things that were entertaining. I turned up the Sabres' gametime song, "Hurricane 2000", on my iPod while driving downtown to psyche myself beforehand. Thinking about the Sabres kicking arse on the ice tends to put me in a good mood. And once I got to the workshop space, it was comforting to see participants who looked like they might swallow their fingers for all the nail-biting they were doing helped.

I should disclose the fact that I have performed in front of large groups of people before. The largest was my high school graduation when I played a Mozart Concerto solo on the stage of the Eastman Theatre in front of 2,000 people. But that was a one-time thing never to be duplicated. Um. Shoot. I can't say that anymore, can I? Damn. Well, only one ulcer-inducing step forward in my journey needed for now. Excuse me while I go relax to some Bob Ross.

Vote For Rory

A friend of mine in Colorado sent me an important message the other day. It seems that someone in Auburn, NY has taken up the cause of supporting NHL Defenseman Rory Fitzpatrick and created a page to get him voted onto the NHL All Star team. You too can help out by visiting Vote For Rory.

BFLOblog did a post about it. Then Off Wing Opinion added a lot more, including some articles. We're over 30,000 votes for Rory. Not bad for the kid from Irondequoit.

Sabres KILL the Flyers!

I had a chance to watch the Sabres totally crush the Flyers last night, 9-1. Fabulous game! I think what would have made the night would have been if either Peters scored or Afin had gotten a hat trick. I did miss hearing Rick Jenerette's play by play, but fortunately In Da Buff has the calls for all the Sabres' goals.

Oh yeah, and you'd be a fool not to check out BFLOblog for all the highlights and the open thread from last night.

Goalies Rock!

Take the quiz:
What famous hockey player are you?

Martin Brodeur
You are the rising superstar goaltender Martin Brodeur. You are young yet u have accomplished so much and on top of that you have plenty of time ahead of you to accomplish much more. Your style is stand-up and you have lightning quick reflexes and have a tendency to stop rebounds you have no business stopping.

Quizzes by myYearbook.com -- the World's Biggest Yearbook!