Music, Art and Optometry
I went for an eye examination and got new glasses a few weeks ago (more on this soon), and I got another reminder that there aren't even six steps of separation between most of us in Buffalo/Western New York.
After some tests and talking with some staff, the optometrist, a doctor I'll refer to by his first name, Bert, as he asked me to call him, came in to continue the exam. After he asked me about my book "Armageddon: The Battle for Germany 1944-1945," a fantastic book by Max Hastings about the end of the Third Reich, we spoke about national politics a bit when he found out I work in government, and then asked about my hobbies or previous vocations. When I mentioned this blog and our related Buffaloroots web site, as well as my previous journalism career, he asked about what I had most recently been writing. I told him that we had been writing about Mark Freeland and the events and effects of his recent death. Bert said he didn't know that Mark had died and asked me if I knew Rob Lynch.
I immediately smiled and replied that yes, Val and I knew Rob well from his musical and artistic endeavors. Rob had played drums with Mark quite a bit over the last few years and Val and Rob teach photography and painting, respectively, at the Buffalo Arts Studio, where both are resident artists and Val is a member of the board of directors.
Bert said that he knew Rob and has bought several of his paintings, and asked me if we had ever attended any of Rob's Christmas/holiday parties. He added that he was at Rob's Christmas 2005 party and had not only encountered Mark, but listened to him play some Alvin Lee songs on guitar; being a fan of Lee, Bert said he asked Mark if he could borrow his guitar and played another Lee song.
Before I left, he was kind enough to link our web site to his MySpace site.
After some tests and talking with some staff, the optometrist, a doctor I'll refer to by his first name, Bert, as he asked me to call him, came in to continue the exam. After he asked me about my book "Armageddon: The Battle for Germany 1944-1945," a fantastic book by Max Hastings about the end of the Third Reich, we spoke about national politics a bit when he found out I work in government, and then asked about my hobbies or previous vocations. When I mentioned this blog and our related Buffaloroots web site, as well as my previous journalism career, he asked about what I had most recently been writing. I told him that we had been writing about Mark Freeland and the events and effects of his recent death. Bert said he didn't know that Mark had died and asked me if I knew Rob Lynch.
I immediately smiled and replied that yes, Val and I knew Rob well from his musical and artistic endeavors. Rob had played drums with Mark quite a bit over the last few years and Val and Rob teach photography and painting, respectively, at the Buffalo Arts Studio, where both are resident artists and Val is a member of the board of directors.
Bert said that he knew Rob and has bought several of his paintings, and asked me if we had ever attended any of Rob's Christmas/holiday parties. He added that he was at Rob's Christmas 2005 party and had not only encountered Mark, but listened to him play some Alvin Lee songs on guitar; being a fan of Lee, Bert said he asked Mark if he could borrow his guitar and played another Lee song.
Before I left, he was kind enough to link our web site to his MySpace site.
posted by Kevin J. Hosey at 11:51 PM
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