I am on the Board of Directors of the UB Alumni Association, which meets quarterly, and due to my being abroad this past academic year, I've missed the other meetings. I was excused from them, but I missed them. So I knew many months ago I'd be up in Buffalo for this very meeting. Of course, a meeting is just enough to get me to Buffalo. But a nice dinner for the Board the night before, coupled with the opportunity to see friends from my undergrad days, and a sweet hotel deal, all made it happen.
Oh Jetblue, how I love you so. Reminiscing back to the days of being a student. All the NY area students gathered at the gate at JFK, going up to school each fall, and all the Jews gathered in the Buffalo airport to go home for Rosh Hashanah. Then all over again for Thanksgiving break, winter break, spring break, any break! This time, when I went to the Jetblue terminal, it was completely different. To state the obvious, I was by myself. To state the not-so-obvious, it was a brand new terminal! I guess I haven't flown on Jetblue for a while and I had no idea what kinds of improvements they had made since my last trip. I was very impressed. As usual, and for the most part, the flight was a pleasant experience. The only exception to that was that my TV did not work on the way up to Buffalo, but I since received a $15 or so voucher toward my next flight for it not working properly. I landed at Buffalo Niagara International Airport (probably international only because they fly to and from 1 Canadian city), and went over to Hertz where I had a rental car reservation. I was a bit early, so I had to wait a bit longer than I had hoped just to get the keys to my car and head out. But I finally did, and I drove to the hotel that the UBAA had reserved under a block and a great rate: $29. For that little cost, I figured I wouldn't inconvenience a friend and crash on a couch or guest bedroom. It was just perfect. I knew some other members of the board would inevitably be staying there as well.
Desperately needing a nap, I crawled into the huge cushy comfortably bed with way too many pillows. I took some time for me that afternoon and just rested. By the time my alarm went off, it was time to get a little gussied up (but not too much) for the annual board dinner, which was held near downtown Buffalo at the Jacobs Executive Development Center, UB property which I had never been to before. I only got turned around once, because I wasn't sure which entrance led to the parking lot. The grounds were beautiful, and as I walked in, the cocktail hour was underway, and the foyer of the building was bustling with people - familiar faces and new ones. Patty, my former USAB adviser was the first one to greet me with a huge hug and a smile on her face! I made my rounds to the many faces in the room, and sat when invited to join the group in the dining room. Salads and bread were served; I have to say it was very classy. After the dinner portion of the evening, there was a brief presentation (aka mini-roast) for the outgoing president of the UBAA. It was sweet, it was funny, and we moved on to dessert during the presentation. It was a pleasure to meet new people at my dinner table during the evening, including Jason who graduated the same year as me, but joined the board last year (so never met him until this moment) and Mary who has been on the board for many years but because the board is so big, I had yet to meet her. It was a great evening!
The next morning was the meat and potatoes of the weekend, the Annual UBAA Board of Directors meeting. First order of the day was to get my headshot done for the UBAA site. I had attempted to straighten my hair that morning after my shower, so I could try and look nice in the photo, but we'll see what the proofs look like and if it really worked. The meeting was efficient and we had plenty of time for breakfast and lunch during the day. I made sure to introduce myself to some of the board members who were brought on last summer who I did not have the chance to meet yet this year. Some older than me, and one I think younger than me. So maybe I am not the youngest any more! We'll see about that.
Once the meeting was over, I went back to the hotel to print out my boarding pass for my flight later that evening (didn't want to have to worry about it that morning when I was almost late as it was) and decided to go walk around the campus for a little bit. Cause, that's what ya do when the weather is gorgeous in Buffalo! While I was walking around campus, I did feel very nostalgic. As always, I'm flooded with memories of being at UB. Mostly positive ones, and many related to living in Governors (hey I was there for 3 years!). It was pretty quiet and pretty empty, and the Student Union was even closed (technically, although the doors were unlocked!). I guess I had a nice walk down memory lane, and I still say that if I could re-live any single year of my life again, it would be freshman year of college, hands down. There'd be no question about it. Meeting great friends, starting my life of 4 years in Buffalo, getting acclimated to a new class environment, working with professors and para-professionals in residence and campus life - it all added up to a great year. And being back at UB always makes me miss it. Thankfully, I made a lot of effort to live up my 4 years of school there, and left on such a positive note that I will almost always have those positive memories with me.
After my walk around campus, I went over to Target and EMS to do some shopping, off of Niagara Falls Boulevard. This is why having that rental car was so great! I was free to do anything I wanted! And I knew I would have the time to spend in Buffalo to go shopping, and the space in my luggage to take it back to NYC. A few Hanes t-shirt packs and sandals later, I was all set to go and meet my friends for dinner at my fave Buffalo restaurant, My Tomato Pie. My parents even remember it from my days there. Filling up way too quickly on tomato basil soup and pizza bread, I had to take most of my leftovers with me to the airport.
Car rental returned, and into the airport I go. Knowing the security regulations, I try to find the restroom before going through the metal detectors, and on the way I find a huge group of people, sporting their red, white, and blue proudly. Many of them are waving or wearing flags, and many holding signs. It seemed as though a group of soldiers were returning home. It was a bit moving to see how many people were gathered on the arrivals side of security to greet these folks. I was the only person passing through security at that time, so I made mention of it to the security guard from TSA checking my board pass, "Lots of people coming home today?" "Veterans." "Wow, I guess they are in for a warm welcome!" I went through security and sat at the gate, finishing up some of my leftovers so as not to have any more bags to carry on board. I was definitely on edge a bit while I was sitting and eating my dinner, to see if the soldiers would be passing by at my end of the airport, or if they'd be going down the other way. The airport isn't all that big, with only a few gates, so I was pretty hopeful I'd see or at least hear the excitement. After waiting for my delayed flight quite a bit, I finally started to hear some music and noise approaching. The music sounded like a Sousa march, one I probably played in high school, totally appropriate for soldiers returning home. I was expecting to see men and women in uniform, happy to be returning home to be with their families, and instead, I heard someone say energetically, "World War II Veterans, returning from Washington DC!" Then, there came many an old man in a wheelchair, being pushed by a partner each, down the corridor toward the exit of the airport. We all clapped and cheered for them as they went by. It was the least we could do to honor their service, this many years after. What a special moment.
I'll be back in Buffalo some time this fall, maybe even a few times if I am lucky. More memories to make!
