John Ostwald's Then & Now column: Western New York: It's like another country - The Saratogian
I went out west for a few days. I went southwest of Buffalo to visit relatives. They live in a small town with a population of 1,200. On the way there I passed through Horseheads, Big Flats, Clyde and East Otto. I also saw tons of trucks. Ram this, Ram that and 1500 this, and 1400 that and many Silverados. After I spent a few days at my cousin’s house, I became aware that the residents of many of the small towns out west seem to hunt, fish, drink, smoke and eat more than we do. There are a hardy bunch who weather serious winters and economic... We went to the casino in Salamanca and shot craps, played blackjack and saw a great concert featuring the old rock group, Grand Funk Railroad. On another night we listened to some great jazz in downtown Ellicottville, a ski resort frequented by locals and many visitors from Canada. On my last day my cousin’s wife took my to the top of one of the local ski resort mountains and I swam in a pond right next to a chair lift. No matter where you live there is always something interesting to do if you just look around. After the long weekend visit I headed up to Hamburg, just outside of Buffalo, to visit a friend, Ken, who is a retired Fransiscan Brother and Viet Nam veteran. Source: www.saratogian.com
