I had the brilliant idea to check my bank account Sunday night, despite sensible protest from a friend.
“We don’t have drinks or chocolate in here to calm you down,” she said. “Why would you do that now?”
She was right. After a weekend getaway in Buffalo, N.Y., I’m a little poorer, but it was worth it.
I rode shotgun while Drew headed north on I-90 Friday and tried my best not to become a backseat driver. It was the best thanks I could give him for planning a trip to see one of the first people I met at Gannon.
Chantal and I met before starting a chemistry lab freshman year, and we’ve been inseparable since, despite the fact life sent us in separate directions. She is one of those friends who can pick up the same conversations after seven months apart, like the Tumblr memes say.
The three of us met for dinner at The Chocolate Bar in Buffalo and started catching up. The restaurant is a chocolate-themed, one-of-a-kind, bar restaurant that specializes in chocolate. What else?
The first page of the menu was covered with probably 20 varieties of chocolate martinis. I don’t know what exactly went into these magical concoctions, but it was something between a milkshake, a cocktail and cold hot cocoa.
As if our sweet drinks weren’t enough, the waiter brought up a chocolate fondue plate to apologize for the wait on our orders. I’ve never been one to complain at a restaurant, at least not to the waiter. It’s usually not his fault.
He said our tickets never made it back to the chef, which explained why we had been eyeing all the other plates that came up the stairway to the loft we were sitting in. We watched “Willy Wonka” and “I Love Lucy” on the screens around the restaurant while we reminisced.
The Chocolate Bar wasn’t the highlight of the trip, though. Chantal and I had a half a year’s worth of stories to tell, and we were finally able to have some “girl talk” about my fiancé and life plans.
She told me about her dreams, like running a bar, working as a social media consultant and going to back to school. I told her about my latest misadventures at Gannon.
We followed her to the Buffalo Comic Con Saturday. It satisfied her inner nerd, and I got to see cosplay costumes in person for the first time.
There was a high school-age couple dressed as the Joker and Harley Quinn in the style of “Suicide Squad,” right down to the Joker’s face tattoos. It was impressive, so I asked them to take a picture with me.
They were pretty unfazed by my reaction, but my 14-year-old sister seemed as excited as I was when I sent her the picture.
After Comic Con, Drew headed back to Erie, so Chantal and I found other fun, including dinner at World of Beer and a movie at a discount theater. It was the nicest discount theater I’ve ever been to. I nearly fell asleep in the reclining seats.
By the time we drove back Sunday, I was practically sleeping in my car seat, although I’m excited for my next chocolate martini.

KELSEY GHERING
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