Fall from Grace

by Peter Koch

A few short months ago, an anonymous man marched through the front door of Artvoice’s editorial offices and presented himself at the front desk. He reached into his pocket, withdrew a slate tile, set it on associate editor Katherine O’Day’s desk and, with gravitas, told her, “These are falling off the roof of Transfiguration Church onto the sidewalk, and if anyone gets hurt, now the blood is on your hands.”

At the Tops Market I frequent, I saw a young child looking at the cover of the Artvoice. It’s displayed on a stand of free publications by the grab machine and the quarter toy and candy machines, at the child’s eye level. The boy noticed the candy, and pointed it out to his mother. She picked up the issue, commented that it must be some candy festival, and told him that she’d look into it and maybe they could go. Always on the lookout for something fun to do, after they left I picked up an issue myself.

Money Doesn't Grow on Trees, Right?

by Cara Gallivan

In the aftermath of last October’s freak snowstorm, the Federal Emergency Management Agency offered Buffalo funding to assist in the removal of damaged trees. More than 4,000 trees were marked for removal this spring and summer, and thousands more were cut down in the months immediately following the storm. Private contractors were the principal recipients of the federal cash. (Money may not grow on trees, but one shouldn’t underestimate their value, as these contractors could surely attest.) The city has lost many trees needlessly—trees that merely needed trimming were instead cut down because the city’s contract with FEMA only provided funds for removal. Now, with thousands of stumps left behind and no money from Uncle Sam to pay for their removal, we might consider how better to handle things next time around. We took to the streets to see what ideas you might have.

Bad Metaphors, Bad Government

by Bruce Jackson

In Buffalo, as in many cities, politicians and developers are always talking about the “silver bullet.” Usually the politicians and developers are rhetorically putting it in the negative, saying that they aren’t claiming the project they are presently trying to justify or get the populace to buy into is the silver bullet that will save the city, after which they go on to explain how this project will save the city if only the populace will buy into it.

by Rob Brezsny

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Barbara Sher’s self-help tome is called I Could Do Anything If I Only Knew What It Was: How to Discover What You Really Want and How to Get It. In one sense it’s designed for beginners—young people who are just learning how to identify meaningful goals to pursue. But in my opinion, every one of us periodically needs to revisit the mode described in the book’s title. For instance, maybe you’ve accomplished a dream you’ve worked on for months or years, and require a jumpstart as you seek your next big project. Or maybe some desire that motivated you for a long time has faded in its intensity, and you’re feeling blah and apathetic, in need of redirection. Does any of this apply to you, Leo? I bet it does.

by Chuck Shepherd

■ A New Delhi, India, glaciologist said in June that global warming in the Himalayas is at least partly responsible for the melting of the stalagmite in the Amarnath cave in Kashmir, which is one of Hindus’ holiest pilgrimage sites because the giant icicle is said to symbolize Lord Shiva (the god of destruction and regeneration), who is typically represented by phalluses. A caretaker of the site told Reuters that the stalagmite is melting rapidly, though it has varied in size from year to year, with the lean years thought to represent Lord Shiva’s displeasure about something.

It's August... It's Pennant Chase Time

by Andrew Kulyk & Peter Farrell

For true baseball fans, this is the best time of the year. The final month of the regular season. The time of year where some teams play meaningful baseball as they make the final push for a coveted playoff berth.

A Good Omen in Lovejoy: Madame Mocha's Espresso Pub & Tea Room

by Bridget Kelly

You might say that Madame Mocha’s is something a little out of the ordinary. It’s not a coffee shop, it’s an “espresso pub.” It’s not in Allentown or on Elmwood, it’s in Lovejoy. And while it has live music on Saturday nights, in the traditional, intimate coffehouse manner, the rest of the time, rather than normal coffeehouse fare, they play recordings of tansaigne, the traditional music of the Roma people, better known as Gypsies.

One Week In, One Weekend Left

I think the Infringement Festival is fantastic—including and sometimes because of the bumps and jolts it endures as dozens and dozens of events miraculously go up and perform to laid-back and appreciative audiences.

by M. Faust

by Donny Kutzbach

If you’ve kept an eye on the Buffalo music scene for the last few years, there’s a good chance that you will be aware—and perhaps even have caught in action—the bands responsible for the current bumper crop of local releases.

by Amy Alkon

On New Year’s Eve I met the only man I ever wanted to marry. We have the same likes and dislikes, his family loves me, mine loves him, and he wants to marry me. Still, he finds ways to make me feel I may not be the perfect girl for him (like a knock-down drag-out fight where he smashed my phone and iPod against the wall because I’d kissed his best friend before he and I met). Also, he doesn’t want me being some big career-minded woman (what he initially claimed to love about me). I just got my dream job, which requires overtime and travel. He’s pushing me to go for something less demanding so I can be home to cook him dinner and care for the kids (which I do want…someday). He reminds me that his mother quit being a lawyer to help his father run his restaurant and so they could have “a beautiful life together and two adorable kids.” How much is too much to sacrifice for love?