From Keturah Erhardt:

I hail from the beautiful mountain town of Missoula, Montana. In Missoula there are mountains on all sides, much like a bowl… a fish bowl. There are only 50,000 people there, which means that everyone knows everyone else. It’s cozy and pretty, but like many 18 year olds, I had decided that it was boring. I had also decided that my family sucked, and the only obvious solution to this problem was to move to Los Angeles. I spent a year and a half there looking for my head, which turned out to be in my rectum all along. Towards the end of my stay in L.A., I was restless and in need of some good friends. It is thus that on a chilly November day in 2003, I turned out on Buffalo’s doorstep.

I came to visit my best friend and her family. While in Buffalo, I saw the beautiful architecture downtown and in Allentown. I saw how friendly people are here… Someone actually said “Hello.” to me on a bus – with a smile! There were things to do downtown, and the University she went to (UB) seemed like a great place too. Her life seemed rich and fulfilling. Buffalo seemed like it was the kind of place you would want to call home.

By the end of my visit I had decided that I didn’t want to leave. I loved everything from the colorful houses on Elmwood to the friendly faces at Amy’s Place. My inclination to stay was so strong that on the day I was supposed to fly back to L.A. I flipped a coin. Heads: I stay in Buffalo and call work to tell them that I wasn’t coming back. Tails: I go back to L.A. like a sane rational person. Unfortunately the coin landed on tails. I went back to California. Thankfully, however, I am not the sort of person who puts a lot of stock into the flip of a coin… if it doesn’t say what I want it to. When I got to L.A., I put all of my things in my car and drove back to Buffalo, where I remain.

Having been here for a couple of years I have come to realize that I’d rather live here than anywhere else. I am a student at The University at Buffalo. I am an activist and an optimist. Buffalo has more potential than anywhere I’ve seen. I will concede that buffalo needs a lot of attention right now, but it seems to me that the opportunity to make things better in a city that’s already great should make people want to stay. Buffalo has a thriving art scene, great shows, and an uncountable number of fun things to do all of the time. It has the best people I’ve met anywhere. It’s a city that feels like a small town. Buffalo has been a better home than I could have imagined on that day in November, 2003. Moving here was probably the best decision I’ve ever made.