Why Did You Move Away From or Stay In Buffalo?

[GilPerreault]

I moved to Illinois because I wanted to get my doctorate degree in Adult Education and Higher Ed Admin. and a good program was at Northern Illinois University. I received an Assistantship, which gave me a scholarship and a paycheck so I gave up my solid Erie County job to pursue this challenge. Since NIU is close to Chicago, 60+ miles away, I figured it wouldn't be too bad a choice. I miss Buffalo but I make it home 6-7 times a year. It is a cheap flight from Chicago to Buffalo so not a bad choice there.

I just couldn't work for the county the rest of my life with two master's degrees. Everyone there seems to be counting down the days to retirement. That is not how I wanted to live. I now work in Athletics at NIU and am one class and a dissertation from my doctorate and Buffalo is still close to my heart.

[JLB]

Moved to Rochester for work.
Retired from Kodak years ago.

[35Pete]

I needed to eat.

[Buffalo1]

grad school

[imontoya]

a woman

[dmbfn40]

Moved to Virginia for one reason . . . $$$

[TRIPLE P]

Moved to Columbus, OH when i was in middle school because my Dads job... stayed because Columbus is awesome.

Plus I can make it back to the B-lo in under 5 hours so I get back 6 or 7 times a year.....

[35Pete]

Moved to Columbus, OH when i was in middle school because my Dads job... stayed because Columbus is awesome.

Plus I can make it back to the B-lo in under 5 hours so I get back 6 or 7 times a year.....

The Great Lakes Region is the armpit of the United States. The proverbial rustbelt.

Columbus is an abscess in that armpit. LOL.

*ducking and hiding*

[Billsman]

WNY is truly great.

[GilPerreault]

WNY is truly great.

It sure is and I will be home for Thanksgiving and then a few weeks later for Christmas. I will be tossing 'em back on Allen Street, Virginia St., Chippewa and all places in between.

[35Pete]

Yeah I miss the town.

Don't miss the winters. And everyone is counting down retirement there. Even my sister. "Can't wait to retire in Sarasota...blah blah blah".

[Billsman]

The people here have been great! Everyone is super nice and approachable. The fresh crisp smell of fall, the changing of the leafs, smelling fresh cut grass.... I can go on.

I think WNY is the best kept secret hands down. Pete, keep on finding excuses not to return, I'll keep making reasons to stay and return.

[Billsman]

"Don't miss the winters".. Waaa! Put on a freaking dress will ya! lol

[TRIPLE P]

The Great Lakes Region is the armpit of the United States. The proverbial rustbelt.

Columbus is an abscess in that armpit. LOL.

*ducking and hiding*

I have yet to find anything wrong with this city... great economy, growing city, businesses moving here and staying here, not crowded, diverse, not expensive, Ohio State, less than 6 hours driving distance to Buffalo, Chicago, Cleveland, Cinci, Indy, Detroit, St Louis, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Toronto, etc...

its a great town, but its still not Buffalo.

[unklechucky]

I moved to Sarasota for a short bit. For the weather and just a change in everything. Weather was way too hot, and you miss WNY....so her I am back 5 years later.

[Chewbacher]

I was screwed when Empire went under, found work in SoCal.

[pabstman]

Moved away when I was young but always returned to spend summers/holidays with grandparents.
Military brought me to the south Charlotte was as far north as my southern bride would go.
God I miss Buffalo. Maybe I'll reverse the trend and retire there.

[GilPerreault]

Another aspect of Buffalo that should be mentioned is the food. Here in DeKalb, IL you can't find good food. You would think being is a distant suburb of Chicago they would have some good restaurants but it is bland and boring here. I miss the good Greek, and Italian restaurants in Buffalo as well as places like Jim's Steakout, ETS, Mighty Taco and the numeroud great pizza places. They have Dominos and Pizza Hut here. I never ate at those places in Buffalo.

[pabstman]

Another aspect of Buffalo that should be mentioned is the food. Here in DeKalb, IL you can't find good food. You would think being is a distant suburb of Chicago they would have some good restaurants but it is bland and boring here. I miss the good Greek, and Italian restaurants in Buffalo as well as places like Jim's Steakout, ETS, Mighty Taco and the numeroud great pizza places. They have Dominos and Pizza Hut here. I never ate at those places in Buffalo.

If you want Bar-b-que come to Charlotte, other than that not a lot of good local places to eat, mainly chains.

[stevenj966]

Born and lived in Buffalo for over 30 years. But the same old story in a declining local economy forced me away. Even a degree didn't get me anywhere there. Doing much better in the sunshine state now. Do I miss it? Sometimes. But not enough to draw me back. Warm weather all year round helps too.

[stevenj966]

If you want Bar-b-que come to Charlotte, other than that not a lot of good local places to eat, mainly chains.

Love the Bar-b-cue in Carolina. One of the best in the country!

[BanditsRock11]

Been in WNY all 20, almost 21 years. Decided to stay here for college, dont know what im going to do after. I like it out west, so that would be a choice, I'll be fresh off a degree too.

Never would move to the south, way to hot and especailly humid, and most all the food, except some BBQs suck.

[pabstman]

Love the Bar-b-cue in Carolina. One of the best in the country!


It is good, I want to try Memphis. Like you I'm also a huge Waylon Jennings fan.

[unklechucky]

lets face it...we do have some of the best food in the country.

[BillyT92679]

Oddly I was one of the very few people to move HERE, for grad school, ended up getting a really good job too, again counterintuitive.
I moved here from the ROC where I spent the previous nine years. I grew up in CNY.
Central NY was quaint and charming, a beautiful place to grow up, but very small and less work than even here. Rochester is much more white collar and the Monroe County suburbs make the Erie County 'burbs (unless you're talking E. Amherst, Clarence or E. Aurora/O.P.) look completely unremarkable. But the City of Buffalo is far more interesting and culturally significant than the City of Rochester, which comes across as some bland midwestern place more than anything else.

I like it here and have found a new girl I really love, so I don't plan on leaving any time soon, even if Upstate is run by a bunch of ninnies.

[SabresFan220]

Well I'm a few years from making the decision to stay or go. I have about 3 years or so until I should have a Masters degree if all goes my way. Then I have to find a teaching job, hopefully its here because I want to stay. But if the job is somewhere else I've gotta take it. I'll still be a Bills, Sabres, and Bandits fan. I'll have to invest in a sling box and NHL Center Ice then.

[migrandl]

Hubby and I moved EAST to the Capital region for the job situation many moons ago... still visit home, miss the food a lot!!! We either have my dad bring 'rations' out when he visits, or order online. We really miss "home cooking"... there's no such thing as a beef on weck out here - and don't even think about ordering a fish fry in a restaurant here - you'll get a fish sandwich! The first time that happened, I told them that if I'd have wanted a fish sandwich, I'd have gone to McD's. We try to get 'home' as much as possible, and have treated our kids to as much as possible from home - the youngest has been a Bills and Sabres fan since he was in the womb! LOL

[Billsman]

I was at the Big Tree bar last night for hours talking with Dan the owner and the regulars there, what great people. In a matter of 5 minutes they made me feel like a regular.

[Merc]

Graduated from Canisius in '82 and joined the Navy to fly jets. Flew Jets (Tomcats) in the Navy for nearly 20 years, based out of Virginia Beach, retired early and got a job running the flight simulators at NAS Oceana. Still here in VA Beach but luckily there are a lot of displaced Buffalonians here and we have a great Bills Backers Club where I watch every game with 40 plus of the rowdiest fans to ever leave Buffalo.

[kritter65]

Lived here all my life, that's 42 years and 1 day. Sometimes I hate this town (October 12, 2006 anyone ? How about November 20, 2000 ?), most of the time I'm busy defending it. As someone said, this place is the best kept secret in America. First off, there's the AWESOME food. Then there's the friendliest people in the land. And of course, there's family. I don't think I'd ever leave, unless I had no family left. If that ever happens, and I have no one left, then I'd move somewhere warm like Arizona !

Sure, the economy blows, our politicians are horrible, and our weather is nasty, but somehow, I just don't care. I realize I can get more money elsewhere, but I'd miss everything. A friend of mine moved to North Carolina recently (girlfriend got an awesome job there), and I talk to him weekly. He HATES it there. He hates how SLOW everything is, and he hates the people. He misses is SO badly and wants to come back. And this guy moved TO Buffalo from Florida !

[McD]

Air Force took me away now for almost 19 years (damn, that as quick!) Still not sure where I'll wind up, I have another 5 years before I punch.

Buffalo has never left me...although last year, while home on leave, a girl at a pizzeria asked me where I was from because of my "ACCENT". I was like "WTF!?!?", "what accent"? But I guess after spending almost 8 years in Europe, 1 year in Texas, 2 in South Carolina, 6 in North Dakota, 1 in Korea, and 2 years in Alaska, I guess I was bound to lose some of my Buffalo attributes. Funny though, get me back home in a local bar and I seem to "find" my Buffalo accent again, lol.

[Fallsnative]

I joined the AF after graduating from HS. I didnt have my act together and needed to learn a trade and get an education. The service offered this plus health care and the opportunity to travel and serve my country. Now, 22 years later, I am a military retiree living and working in Colorado Springs. The AF sent me here in 1997 to work at NORAD and I've never left (minus 1 year remote in Korea). I am staying here because the money is good, the area is clean and the folks are nice. I deeply miss WNY and my home town, Niagara Falls. I hope to someday get back, as soon as I can afford to live there.

[Sabres Cutie]

I grew up in WNY and after receiving my MS I had to move to Virginia because we all know what it's like to find a teaching job here. After 4 years I got sick of the people, dating scene or shall I say lack there of, NO SPORTS, hicks etc etc I moved home, got to spend the last year of my Grandpa's life with him and now 2 years later have that elusive district job. I bought my season ticket seat while unemployed and have been to 70 consecutive home games since coming back. I had alot of games to make up for!

Actually all I missed was Sabres hockey. ;)

[Billsman]

Theres jobs here, first place I went to I landed it. Word of mouth does wonders. WNY Rocks!

[M76]

buffalo is the pwnt i will never move hopefully you gotta stay for the bills at least.. nothing like sunday at the ralph in the lot in the rockpile god its heaven.. i copped a yob with the irs i just graduated from b state in may.. i couldn't imagine living anywhere for a long period of time buffalo is coming back and i can't wait

[C Darwin]

Moved to New England for a good paying job. Started searching IMMEDIATELY for a job back in Buffalo. A few years later, I moved back to North Buffalo and I began to feel "settled".

If you don't care about the Red Sox, the Patriots or UCONN, never move to New England. Killington is great, but everything else sucks.

[Carl J. Ironsides]

Fact: Buffalo/WNY owns Florida, which is a ****ing shithole.

[GilPerreault]

Theres jobs here, first place I went to I landed it. Word of mouth does wonders. WNY Rocks!

That is so true. Guess the percentage of jobs that are found via the internet? 2%. Most jobs are found via networking or as Bills Man said word of mouth.

[trink]

I left WNY for the Navy and have never officially moved back. My wife is from the south, so this is where I will stay for now. We make annual trips back home, and miss everything when I leave. The best thing about WNY is the lifelong friends and neighbors. A previous poster "Merc" was a neighbor of mine who I could call up today and stop by to say hi in VB. I go back to the old street and knock on doors, and everyone welcomes me with open arms and refrigerators. This is what you do not get living in other areas. I spent a few years looking to relocate back to Buffalo, but we could not make it work. We plan on having two homes when we retire, one down south and one in WNY. BUffalo is great, i jsut wish the unions and the career politicians would move out of the way and let BUffalo breath again. Long live WNY

[TonyT]

I moved from N. Tonwanda in 1982 to Rochester to work at Kodak. 25 yrs later I'm still there now with a beautiful wife and two great sons , I miss not being close to family and Sabres and Bills games but I take in a couple of Bills and Sabres games a year and get up to NT once a month. NT is nothing special , parts of Buffalo, north Buffalo , Elmwood, Delaware Allentown are great , alot of historial interest in Buffalo , you can tell that Buffalo was a big city at one time , Rochester isn't quite like that , but it probably is a better place to bring up a family. Plus WNY is so affordable compared to the rest of country, and with globle warming we'll have great weather and still have alot of water.

[nehemiah]

grad school

[35Pete]

Fact: Buffalo/WNY owns Florida, which is a ****ing shithole.

Yeah, OK. LOL.

[35Pete]

Been in WNY all 20, almost 21 years. Decided to stay here for college, dont know what im going to do after. I like it out west, so that would be a choice, I'll be fresh off a degree too.

Never would move to the south, way to hot and especailly humid, and most all the food, except some BBQs suck.

Three things you'll immediately notice if you move.

1. You'll be able to earn a living.
2. The people are not as nice.
3. No food is better than Buffalo Mom & Pop food.

[35Pete]

I left WNY for the Navy and have never officially moved back. My wife is from the south, so this is where I will stay for now. We make annual trips back home, and miss everything when I leave. The best thing about WNY is the lifelong friends and neighbors. A previous poster "Merc" was a neighbor of mine who I could call up today and stop by to say hi in VB. I go back to the old street and knock on doors, and everyone welcomes me with open arms and refrigerators. This is what you do not get living in other areas. I spent a few years looking to relocate back to Buffalo, but we could not make it work. We plan on having two homes when we retire, one down south and one in WNY. BUffalo is great, i jsut wish the unions and the career politicians would move out of the way and let BUffalo breath again. Long live WNY

Great post.

[stevenj966]

Three things you'll immediately notice if you move.

1. You'll be able to earn a living.
2. The people are not as nice.
3. No food is better than Buffalo Mom & Pop food.

Number 1 on that list is all that's important to me.

[SweetLee8 3PlayaWha?]

The Great Lakes Region is the armpit of the United States. The proverbial rustbelt.

Columbus is an abscess in that armpit. LOL.

*ducking and hiding*

To each their own.

If I could do what I do in Buffalo, I would be there right now. Unfortunately, the only place to do a job as easy as watching sports and taking an occasional legal bet is Vegas.

I love the change of seasons in places like B-Lo and even the grit.

I can see why a person would want the sun shining 350 days a year, but it gets old for me.

People that live in trendy places like Vegas seem to be grasping for happiness in all the wrong places.