With the arrival of the NFL season, the focus of many Western New Yorkers is squarely back on the Buffalo Bills. The hopes and dreams of many fans are slightly more palpable this year, with a new first-round-drafted quarterback, a new head coach and staff, and a pretty good marketing campaign for the "Recharged" Buffalo Bills.This year is going to be interesting. There is some sort of expectation for playoffs, despite all the new moving parts. The true likelihood is probably pretty slim, but that doesn't stop those of us who #Billieve. With season tickets in hand, hopefully we will make it to December with relevant games still ahead.

bills lead the charge

Living in Buffalo is kind of bittersweet, and we are reminded of this nearly everyday. Watching the arbitrary episode of How I Met Your Mother, we were reminded that "No cute girls come from Buffalo" (something Ellie took particular offense to, Neil Patrick Harris!).  I suppose we get picked on because Buffalo has a high level of name recognition, and that is probably attributed to having two professional sports teams that haven't been great or even really good for many years now. Even still, the consistent battering grows a little bit tiresome, and I must admit that it is tough to always be cheerful and proud of where we live.

I wonder if our sports teams define the value of our city. On the national level, I think they probably do, which in our case is unfortunate. It is tough when the only air time on ESPN is talking about what a joke our QB situation is having two rookie quarterbacks going into the season, one of whom is undrafted . . . or how our franchise safety is actively begging for a trade outta here. I suppose all we need to do to fix all of this is to break our playoff drought and climb our way out of obscurity. Consistently. Who knows? Maybe this new "Recharged" Buffalo Bills will be able to. I sure hope so, because maybe then people will talk about the actual great things in Buffalo, beyond chicken wings and snow storms (which don't really happen—see exhibit A). 

Exhibit A: it's not that snowy or cold.

Notice that only ONE is in NEW YORK STATE and that NONE of them are BUFFALO.
 10 Snowiest Cities

  1. Blue Canyon, CA
  2. Marquette, MI
  3. Sault Ste. Marie, MI
  4. Syracuse, NY
  5. Caribou, ME
  6. Mount Shasta, CA
  7. Lander, WY
  8. Flagstaff, AZ
  9. Sexton Summit, OR
  10. Muskegon, MI
 10 Coldest Cities

  1. International Falls, MN
  2. Duluth, MN
  3. Caribou, ME
  4. Marquette, MI
  5. Sault Ste. Marie, MI
  6. Fargo, ND
  7. Williston, ND
  8. Alamosa, CO
  9. Bismarck, ND
  10. St. Cloud, MN
 10 Windiest Cities

  1. Blue Hill, MA
  2. Dodge City, KA
  3. Amarillo, TX
  4. Rochester, MN
  5. Casper, WY
    [and]
  6. Cheyenne, WY [tie]
  7. Great Falls, MT
  8. Goodland, KA
  9. Boston, MA
  10. Lubbock, MA
Source: Williams, Jack, The USA Today Weather Almanac, New York: Vintage Books, c1994, p. 125

Exhibit B: the summer here PWNS wherever you live.

Percent of Sunshine
June through August 

  1. Buffalo: 67
  2. Boston: 65
  3. New York City: 64
  4. Baltimore: 63
  5. Washington, DC: 63
  6. Philadelphia: 62
  7. Albany: 61
  8. Pittsburgh: 58
 Average Rainfall, Inches
June through August 

  1. Buffalo: 8.69
  2. Albany: 8.99
  3. Boston: 9.39
  4. Pittsburgh: 10.47
  5. New York City, 10.65
  6. Philadelphia: 11.90
  7. Baltimore: 12.05
  8. Washington, DC: 12.27
 Average Temperature
July afternoon 

  1. Buffalo: 80F
  2. Boston: 81F
  3. Pittsburgh: 83F
  4. Albany: 84F
  5. New York City: 85F
  6. Philadelphia: 87F
  7. Baltimore: 87F
  8. Washington, DC: 88F
Source: Vogel, Mike, "Buffalo is Sunshine Capital of Northeast," Buffalo News, May 18, 1989, p. A-l, based on figures from the National Weather Service 

Either way, Buffalo is "a drinking town with a football problem" . . . and I am all-in this year. Hopefully it won't be too gut wrenching and disappointing!

(Charts Pulled from http://www.buffalofilmfestival.com/buffalo/buffalosnowmythexposed.html)