Western New York

 Mad Magazine used to do parodies of TV shows and movies. Everything I knew about birds came from their take on the Alfred Hitchcock movie “The Birds”. It scared me beyond belief. Anytime I see a large flock of birds, I must admit I start to worry. Lately, though, that seems to have changed a bit. I'm finding them to be rather interesting and eye-catching. Is this a sign that I am now an old person? 

Back in the day, if you wanted to know or identify birds you went to the expert, John Audubon. He was known for his detailed paintings of North American birds. In the 1930's, along came Roger Tory Peterson who wrote the Guide to the Birds which is considered to be the first modern field guide. It has sold millions of copies. Peterson was from Jamestown, New York and this is where the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History was built in 1993. I had never heard of Peterson but when I looked at his book, it made so much sense to me. For example, he would group birds that were similar, such as red breasted birds. Then he would break them out into more individual traits such as 'if the bird had a black back, it was probably a robin'.

Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History

The New Revised Edition

Jamestown is also the birthplace of Lucille Ball. Last time I was here, I visited her statute, also known as Ugly Lucy. They replaced the statue in 2016 with a more appropriate one. Ugly Lucy was a gift from the sculptor and later in life he said that it had ruined his life because of all the hate he received. 

What better place than Jamestown to have the National Comedy Center. It has consistently been named one of the Ten Best Attractions in the country. This establishment opened in 2018 and has more than 50 immersive experiences. When you first walk in, you get a wristband with an electronic chip in it. You go to a kiosk where you pick the type of humor you like. It is quite extensive, you go through tons of comedians, tv shows and movies selecting which ones you like. Then as you go through the center, content is presented according to your tastes. Three hours later, I had only just scratched the surface. There was everything from slapstick to internet memes to a 'Blue Room' which was an adult only area.

Hologram Jimmy would introduce the Johnny Carson films, which were a real treat!

The Seneca-Iroquois National Museum is located just a little bit east of Jamestown. The Seneca Nation is a matriarchal society made up of eight clans. They call themselves the “Keepers of the Western Door”. It was interesting to learn about the clans, see the art work and become again saddened to learn of a another broken treaty. The Federal government needed to build a dam on the Allegheny River to control flooding down in Pittsburgh in the 1960s. The proposed dam was to be built right through land that was given to the Senecas in a 1794 treaty. Even though several engineers came up with alternate 'better' plans that would honor the treaty, the dam was built, forcing the relocation of 600 Senecas from 10,000 acres of their land.