Sad day in Buffalo

[Kathy]

I just found our Mondo Video, a small local place to meet and discuss DVDs, will be closing in Oct. Mike, the owner, will still have his internet store "a Web site specializing in obscure foreign movies" but the local haunt is a goner. Buffalo will not be the same.

Riding the internet tide is enjoyable but the casualty it leaves in its wake is distressing. I can not tell you the numbers of small personal stores that have closed in the Buffalo area. I love these types of stores and miss them more than I can say. 

[Najemikon]

It is a shame. Here in the UK it's been going that way for some years. We have a lot of towns that are simply dying, because some big supermarket opens just outside. Local butchers, green grocers and bakeries obviously suffer, but more recently, supermarkets now also sell clothes, TVs, well, basically anything.

A few weeks ago I needed some cable clips and found this tiny little hardware shop. Can't see it surviving, but I bet it's been there since the 1950s at least, and that goes for some of his stock! No computers in sight, cramped, dark and dusty, even a dog asleep in the doorway waiting to trip people up. But I'd take that health and safety nightmare over B&Q any day. The village will be a lesser place when it goes.