Originally this place would not allow anyone to wear any kind of shoes, OR to go barefoot. Hence it…read morewas called Sockport for a long time. Then it became the capital of "saying something twice in different ways", which is why it was known as Dockport for years. Then it became "the Switzerland of WNY" and was known affectionately as "Clockport" for awhile. Then gang violence took over and it adopted the moniker "School Of Hard Knocksport." This caused everyone to put Locks on their doors... and bam. You have the present-day name. Actually think I gave Lockport a bad rap when I gave it a rap before although I didn't actually rap about it but I can rap about it as you see if you've read of my other reviews for a rap endlessly about other things that one might rap about. So here's the thing. It's a much nicer place than I thought. I might have seen the bad side of it before. I think it's actually really nice place to live. The main problem is that it's so damn out of the way like it's so far away from everything that it's hard to even fathom getting all the way up here. There's no highways that really go here except for the interstate 990 which doesn't really go all the way and then it turns into Millersport which is kind of kind of kind of a highway and then it joins Transit and it's just kind of annoying. Having said that I think it's a really cool place to live and I like the YMCA and there are some pretty decent food options and some pretty nice people up here as well. And they don't seem to be afflicted by the horrible weather to the same degree as other parts of the region are. So I have to give them a massive five star upgrade I think finally eventually now. I've been to Lockport more times than I can count. My sort-of doctor is here, my fave Italian restaurant is here, 3 or 4 good friends live here, and I used to visit a garage here. I know the town pretty well. City, rather. It's a great City. Seriously though it is named as such because of the locks. The Erie Canal dissects the heart of this charming little city which has everything from leafy estates to cozy trailer parks with Eminem lookalikes rap-battling in the bushes with little dogs named Jack. Speaking of Jack, everyone loves One-Eyed Jacks. Let me just say, on record. I don't. Sorry. Instead, try Pulp 716 for Boba and the infamous sweet sauce slices of Pizza Oven for a snack. What I do love is The Village Eatery. If not for that place, I might even give LP a 3, (although LPs were always better than singles, right?) but it's like, the best Italian American food everrrr. OK, it's comparably good along with Mulberry in Like-I-Wanna, but it's much more typical and wholesome and filling and would probably take my prize for best Italian American Food In USA. Yes. That good. Parts of LP are really pretty, and even though it's way way way out of the way, it's really cute. Taking the 990 & Millersport up here is pretty fast. If you try and go up Transit, well in the words of the late, great James Caan, "forget about it, beefcake." Oh and Lockport will soon be changing its name. It has become the heart of the gay male community in WNY, and 7-and-a-half percent of the population is now either gay, or male, or both. Oh wait I meant, is both. Experts say this will rise up very fast and impress everyone, growing to a massive, erect 69% by mid-2015. And since these strapping young (and old) (and Middle Aged) (and so on) men often send pelfies to each other, it obviously will soon be known as "C**kport."

When I heard the Bubble Man passed, I was crushed…read more Even though I don't live in Buffalo anymore, everytime I drove or walked past that Allentown/Elmwood intersection and I saw those bubbles coming from his window, it brought me joy and excitement. He became a part of the Buffalo identity...the Bubble Man and Buffalo became synonymous and intertwined. Apparently his name was Chuck. In my heart, Chuck will always remain the bubble man. I never met him, but I know him, his bubbles, and they will always be a part of Buffalo culture to me. Thank you for what you did for our city and all the joy that those bubbles have given us!

When you're walking on the street on a sunny or dreary day and you realize there's bubbles floating…read moreup towards the heavens, you stop for a second and take a look and try to find where they're coming from, truly being present in that moment, no matter what's going on in your life. When you find the source you watch as the bubbles live their short, but sweet life dancing around the air and you smile. A true Buffalo icon- the bubble man sparking genuine joy in the hearts of passerby's, making a bad day bright and a good day even brighter. You will be so missed Chuck, the best of the city of good neighbors. Cartoon in the Buffalo News by artist Adam Zyglis

I featured our local Love Canal as an example for a high school presentation on the importance of…read moretaking care of our ecosystem (I also used the Chernobyl disaster, ha). Love Canal's history is thick and ugly. You can do a quick google search if you want to read all about it, but I'll give a summary: Originally intended to be the "perfect urban area," William T. Love purchased the land and quickly abandoned his project in the span of ten years. After that the area became a landfill. Hooker Chemical eventually comes along and purchases the land in 1947, and proceeds to dump all sorts of chemical waste into the canal. Something like 21,800 tons of chemicals would sit in the canal as Niagara Falls entered a population boom. So, the Niagara Falls School Board approached Hooker Chemical, acquired the land they were dumping wastes into, and had two schools (93rd Street & 99th Street) built, along with low-income family residences. Construction would drill into the chemical drums buried here, and toxic wastes would escape when rainwater washed through them. Twenty or so years later, Lois Gibbs is a local mother who is concerned for her son's poor health, learns that her and her neighbors' homes are built atop chemical waste. She faced many barriers in attempts to expose the awful conditions in which they were living (ignored by city officials, even the mayor stated there was nothing wrong). Eventually Jimmy Carter declared a federal health emergency and sent officials to remedy the site. At that point the 99th street school had been demolished. Hooker Chemical & the school board refused to accept liability. The federal government eventually had residents relocated, and demolished most of the homes on the land. Today, Love Canal is a grim reminder of what costs we pay when dealing with chemical companies, and that it's important to know your history. The area is essentially a ghost town, with a small handful of homes still standing (some families refused to move during the evacuation). This place is creepy. Recently I decided to take a little drive through the area, and a couple of the streets have road blocks that prevent you from driving down them. You can drive down 100th St. (a completely barren road), turn down Wheatfield Ave and check out the couple of houses that still stand on 101st St. (that's what I did). The space that I assume was the dump site seems to be completely fenced off. Frankly, I think I prefer to stay outside of that fence. Day 15

Cute outdoor brick area with shops and restaurants…read more Highlights: - Adorable pedestrian area with an open spot in the middle and few side alleys to explore - Stores, cafes, restaurants, and places to have drinks - Cool art all around - Few cute photo ops like the LOVE spelled out in chains of locks and a heart to frame a pic in - Everything from a sock store to a UK souvenir store to clothing bakeries and a full distillery - When we were there they had a country festival with special events and a stage with live music - Locals and tourists can enjoy it Lowlights - Probably wouldn't be as fun in rainy weather since it's outdoors

Walking around distillery district was so fun, and the weather was amazing to stroll around. We…read moreeven got to see a free live music performance, and the vibes were immaculate because everyone was gathered around at all the open air restaurants and bars that had TVs going for the soccer matches, so we stood around and watched the games and got to react with everyone in live time.

Total tourist trap! It's cool to see tho and since we were tourists, we had to get trapped hahaha!…read moreIt's a bit pricey to go in but it's something to do, even tho it's a quick walk thru! Cute!

When I went on there it made me sick I mean it was cool but expensive per person DO NOT GO HERE…read moreunless you want to be sick

Located on the side of the Williamsville Townhall, is this fantastically large mural. It was put up…read morein 2019 by a local artist Chris Piontkowski. I couldn't find the name for it, but I drive by it all the time and stoped for a closer look today. You'll see it as you are either walking in the area or at the local farmers market, or driving down Main Street towards Buffalo, It's on the east side of the building. Williamsville's Beautification Committee raised the money for this and it's a large public art and public funded project.

As I was driving on portage Road coming in from a hike at Artpark I came across this mural. It's on…read morethe side of the B OK studio building on portage Road. Very very cute mural. It was a happy surprise to come across as I turned the corner. Looks like the artist is Olivia Carey.

This isn't a life changing attraction and I wouldn't put it on my top 10 list for Toronto visitors,…read morethis is a zen moment for those who wander by or who seek it. A beautiful quiet path on the ground, a puzzle to solve on your lunch break tucked in between the tall towers, stone and steel, of downtown Toronto. That's what I love about it the most, the decision to put it here in the first place, the choice to nestle public art here to disrupt our pathways and challenge us to think about spirals and about what's hidden in the middle.

The only thing that could make this Labyrinth any cooler is if David Bowie were there waiting for…read moreyou at the end of your walking journey. Now remember never trust a thought that you didn't get by walking.

Even if you weren't living in Buffalo in 2011 you probably have heard of Alix. She was…read moreskateboarding one night, legally, when a drunk driver hit her. She died. At 18. Doing what she loved. Hit by a man doing something illegal. The community was outraged. They came together and built a skatepark in her honor. Near UB North. Then the artist Nicole Cherry got to work and painted this mural. Her style is recognizable around town.

During the time of social distancing, I decided to take a walk on the UB bike path. I like to…read morestart at the Northtown center entrance. I happened upon this, which should tell you how long it's been since I walked the path. Very cool to finally see this.

Beautiful mural. Despite enjoying Mark Twain's books, I did not know about his friendship with John…read moreT. Lewis, whom rescued his sister in law, nice, and a nurse in a runaway buggy incident, until recently. I'm embarrassed to admit my sons thought Mark Twain was Albert Einstein at first. They have a couple books but haven't read them yet. I should read with them anyway to provide context.

These days Mark Twain and John Lewis will greet you as you enter Lombardos. Pretty awesome. They…read morehad a long friendship and ties to the Buffalo area. And a world reknown artist came to Buffalo to paint them for us. Part of the growing Albright outside art project, this is going up now. Kobra has murals worldwide. His collection of work is amazing. And he often focuses on people known for their humbleness. The Albright brought him to town, but he researched the ideas himself and arrived at this one. So come have a meal at Lombardos, get some free art while you are at it. Pretty awesome addition to Hertel.