Love Song to a Home Town

A few weeks ago I read an article that Joyce Carol Oates wrote in the Smithsonian about her hometown, Lockport NY. She told about growing up there (the glory of the public library, her poverty, having to take the greyhound to school and spend hours in the bus station with middle aged men, etc.) and then asked--would there be a Joyce Carol Oates without Lockport? It's an interesting question, as much as JCO freaks me out, with her spider limbs and her large eyes that seem to see right through people. I saw her lecture at Chautauqua a few summers ago, and she is certainly mesmerizing in an unnerving way, much as her stories are. Anyway, I hear you asking--where is Ahhna in Brooklyn "from"? How did it make her who she is? Will she ever tell us about it? Of course she will!

I am from, born, and raised in Jamestown, NY. It is what I would describe as my home town, although I haven't lived there exclusively for close to five years.

I spent most of my adolescence very ready to leave there. It felt like everyone knew me as my mother's daughter, or my grandmother's granddaughter, and it got a little old. I was bored and fidgety and wanted to be out. When I went to college, I knew that I would heartily miss many of the people, but was pretty sure I would not miss the place. That perception has been both true and not true. I've been in Jamestown for the past two weeks, hence the lack of blog posts. (I've been recouping from my skirmishes with the US Healthcare system, and have thus been drinking a crazy amount of tea, lying around, and sleeping. Lots of sleeping.) But I'm back to Brooklyn tomorrow, so I've been thinking about Jamestown and what it means to me. So, here goes.

Jamestown is the reason I can write. I don't mean this in an "I'm a good writer sense" (although I guess I do alright) but I mean when I went to college I was one of the few students I encountered who knew what topic sentences and thesis statements were. This totally surprised me. The public education system in Jamestown is (by and large) very good. For not being amazingly funded, I had some wonderful teachers--passionate, smart, literate, and literary. The "cool kids" at JHS are more along the nerd lines than a lot of high schools.

Jamestown is the reason I can play music. Again, not in a concert sense, but music is a big deal there, and there are some amazing music teachers. My piano teacher was (and is) one. It's sort of a marvel how these people end up there, but it is vitally important. The school musicals are big enterprises, as are the offerings from the Little Theater. There are always fairly good showings at local bars, too, with a variety of jazz/punk/rock/alternative/weird music. Which brings me to to...

Jamestown is the reason I can eat and drink on the cheap. Well, it's not haute cuisine, and the variety tends to be mostly American bistro, but there are some good places. Forte, which is Red Dove-ish--great decor, great food. The Taco Hut, which is Americanized Mexican, but SO good. Wings? Absolutely! (and better than Buffalo, if you ask around.) Sandwiches? Sure thing. (Go to The Pub, and you can also get a draft for $1.50.) Pizza? Most definitely. I tend toward Paces, which is near my house (go with the white garlic) but most of my friends swear by Perfect Pizza, the restaurant formerly known as Lena's. Ecklof Bakery's Pink Stripe Cookies are a local institution. And there is always Wegmans, obviously.

Jamestown is the reason I enjoy nature. Jamestown and the surrounding areas are beautiful in all seasons, except February-April when everything is wet or slushy or with grey snow. But currently, it is full of glistening icicles and snow mounds. Come summer, it will be green and the lake will be shimmering and glorious (while still smelling faintly like dead carp.) I didn't realize how much I would miss the lake this summer, the first summer I was not there.

Jamestown is the reason I can shelve books. The James Prendergast Library is the best public library I have ever been to, and I'm including alllll the NYC ones in that. It's great. The booksale is great. The renovations have been GREAT. I am biased because I worked there for
three summers, and I make all my out of town friends go there. I also make them go to the cemetary--it's a really nice cemetary!

Jamestown is the reason I can appreciate culture in many forms. Every year, my family goes to the Reuben Fenton Historical Center for the Christmas Tree Display. It's always the same--Swedish room, upside down tree hanging from the ceiling, lady in a tree dress, the string tree in the nursery, and the four story tower where you can see most of the town. I love it. The Roger Tory Peterson Institute is a fun place, for people who love Peterson and for people who love nature. The various Lucille Ball museums are cool, at least once. And the Lucy fests are people watching galore.

Jamestown is the reason I can tolerate intolerant people. I have forgotten how closeminded many people in this area are, and then I read the Letters to the Editor in the Post-Journal. And I remember. It's truly unfortunate, but you deal with it, otherwise you go crazy. Not that I never yell at the paper or anything... (and the same thing occurs with the Finger Lakes Times, too.)

Jamestown taught me to stick it to the Man. People in WNY do not like authority figures. And they love Folk Heroes. Case in point: Bucky Phillips, who killed a State Trooper, and people STILL wanted to hide him in their homes. Not that I support that. But--they are willing to agitate for things they believe in, like state parks and financial reform. Not bad stuff.

Jamestown is the reason I am content to look. One of my favorite things to do in the summer (or really, anytime/anywhere) is to drive down Baker's Hill just when the sun is setting, with some sort of rock music blaring, and all of the windows down. You crest the hill, and it looks like the opening shot of All Creatures Great and Small, albeit without the tiny stone houses, unless you drive another 10 minutes to PA. I've rode/driven that hill many times in many weathers, and it always makes me smile. It makes you slow down and just look--at the trees, cows, homes. And your home, a little ways off.