Wild Weather Adventures

Even the most mundane-sounding trip can be adventurous when the weather conditions indicate that staying inside is the best option. OK. So, on Wednesday, February 27th, the forecast was for snow, rain, sleet, slush, and all things yuck. Nevertheless, I decided not to let unpleasant weather deter me from traveling into the City of Buffalo on a mission to obtain art supplies. So, I put on my hiking boots, my winter coat, hat, scarf, and gloves, slung my camera around my neck, picked up my purse, and headed out into a wet, white world.

The walk to the bus stop was approximately three miles. The most interesting part of the walk was along a portion of Grand Island’s Linear Bicycle Path. That path goes from Bedell Road to Buckhorn Island State Park. I was itching to go to the park to take pictures of the river but… well, I was headed to Buffalo.

So… the bike path… As I was walking down the bike path, the snow started falling. Before long, I was covered with snow. I got out the camera, set it to black and white, and I started taking pictures. Here are some views of what it looks like in winter:

foot bridge over Woods Creek

Another view of Woods Creek and the foot bridge.

A third view of the footbridge and Woods Creek.

Trees along the bike path

Because the bike path is on land that is predominantly wetlands, cattails are one of the more common types of vegetation that grows in this area. By wintertime, the cattails are dried, but they still stand in the snow.

Another view of the bike path in winter

After I arrived at the bus stop, I waited for my chariot to take me to downtown Buffalo. Although the bus runs very infrequently (funding mass transit is a low priority for state and federal governments), I didn’t have to wait too long for the aforementioned chariot. And that was a good thing because there’s not too much to look at here:

This is where I waited for the bus to take me to Buffalo.

The bus came, and I rode into the city. When I got off the bus, I went to the above-ground station on Main Street to wait for the subway. I call it the “Tunerville Trolley” because I once worked for an attorney who liked calling it the Tunerville Trolley. The attorney, Luke Owens, was in general practice, and he had a whole series of very colorful clients. I worked for several months for him as a part time secretary in the late 1980s. Luke Owens (1923-2010) was also an interesting person. As a young man, he had been a bat boy for the Buffalo Bisons. Later, he was a baseball player for a minor league team. During World War II, he served in the U.S. Navy. After the war, he became an attorney. 

Church Street station in color

A black and white view of the same station. Notice the wonderful one-point perspective

When the train arrived, I rode it to the Allen-Hospital station, where I got off. I was almost at my destination, Hyatt’s, an art supply store. I crossed Main Street and then I noticed that the sidewalk was “closed,” and that there was all sorts of construction stuff in the “closed area,” but no one was doing any work. I walked around the “closed area,” making sure not to get too close to any vehicles. I went into Hyatt’s and got some help in finding various art supplies for an online painting class that I am taking through the Strathmore art paper company. This painting class is titled “Abstract Fine Art Painting in Mixed Media,” and the instructor’s name is Robert Joyner. I’ll share my work in my art blog, titled Sun, Moon, Stars.

After I left Hyatt’s, I returned via subway to the Church Street station. My next destination was Saint Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral. This cathedral in downtown Buffalo has an interesting and long history. The original structure was a church built in 1817. But, even prior to the church’s construction, Episcopal missionaries had visited the area. The first Episcopal missionary priest to visit was the Rev.
Davenport Phelps in 1802. Here is an interesting story about the original Saint Paul’s Church. The cathedral was built in 1870, and the main material used was Medina Sandstone.

Window at Saint Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral

Door at Saint Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral

The Cathedral in black and white on a winter day

Saint Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral has a very active music program. They have a variety of choirs and they also present a weekly series of recitals. The recital that I heard featured Roland Hayes on the lute, playing music by Sylvius Leopold Weiss (1685-1750). The composer was considered the greatest lutenist of the Baroque era. He worked as court lutenist to the Elector of Saxony in Dresden. As a composer, he was very prolific. He composed more than 700 pieces for for solo lute. He was a contemporary of J.S. Bach. Here is some more information about Sylvius Leopold Weiss.

The two pieces that Roland Hayes played were titled “Sonata No. 1 in D from the London ms. for solo lute” and “Passacille in D from the London ms.” Interesting music. I enjoyed it. Lots of notes and flourishes, definitely baroque style.

Roland Hayes playing the lute at Saint Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral. Mr. Hayes, when not playing the lute or the guitar, works as a public defender in City Court.

After the recital, I walked back to the bus station and got on a bus to Grand Island. I got off the bus and walked home, wet and happy about my Big Adventure.