I remember reading once that Rochester NY had fewer sunny days than Seattle WA … and coming from that area, I would tend to agree. I find it is amazing how many people suffer from rampant SAD in the area.
I love the area, it can have great natural beauty, and the people can be great, and some of the area foods are great [speidies from the southern tier, grape pies, syracuse salt potatoes, fresh cheese <squeek squeek>curds, beef on weck … /drool]
Granted, people can be jerks. Weather can suck. Food can suck. But that can happen everywhere.
If you wind up in a ditch, be cool. Don’t call for help right away. There are guys who drive around in pickups with 4WD and they carry chains. They’ll pull you out for free. They enjoy doing it. If nobody shows up in 1/2 hour, then call for a tow.
Learn to love the winter. Take the kids sledding or find a toboggan run. Learn to ski.
There’s some very good skiing to be had near there in both western New York and Pennsylvania.
D’ye like hockey? The Buffalo Sabres are pretty good; much better than my local amateur hockey team out of their depth The Pathetic Remnants, I mean the Betrayers of a Proud Tradition, I mean the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Buffalo has long taken a lot of abuse that is hugely undeserved - I think they take it and keep quiet so the place doesn’t get overrun.
More fantastic stuff just across the border than I can begin to describe. Even Niagara Falls, Ontario has a second downtown that isn’t horrific - just down river there’s great theatre, good wineries that are only getting better, some of the best eating in Ontario and some really fascinating history. Not to mention some strange, glowing city across the lake that’s got some concerts and shows every now and then.
And of course, if you need help moving in, just shout and a bunch of us Ontario-based dopers will rustle through our sock drawers, dig out our passeports and watch you wrestle that couch up the stairs while complaining about the quality of the beer.
About winter - I’m with dhkendall and CatWhisperer - Buffalo winters are a piece of cake. Of course, it helps me that winter has always been my favouritest season. I’m actually jealous that Buffalo gets so much more snow that Toronto. You’ll never know how fantastic winter is until you try some!
This summer Wisconsin had only about 10 days total that were summer like. The rest were colder. Bad for the many crops that need hot weather. Good for the people that like days under 80F. The apples taste blau this year. They are not loaded with sugar and flavor. They taste like store bought that were shipped from Washington. September, October and November were nicer this year and enjoyable. I love not having hard frozen ground and snow outside this year. Had we had our near September 1 frost many farmers would have had nothing as the corn wasn’t past having soft undeveloped kernels thanks to no heat all summer.
And then there’s mud season, and those gray-rust colored weeks in November and March. I can’t find this poem my father sent me but you would appreciate it–it’s about the poet stepping out in early November in that grayness, and not feeling like seizing the day. By the end he is inspired enough by the barn and vista to “seize every second Tuesday”.
Oh, I’m sorry, but this Doper who has lived in Winnipeg for almost 30 years is just sitting and laughing his ass off. You Americans don’t know winter.
Yes, but I don’t think the snow is what us prairie dogs are laughing about.
From the Wiki article Geography and climate of Winnipeg - “According to Environment Canada, Winnipeg is the coldest city in the world with a population of over 600,000.” Compare the chart of average daily high and low temperatures for Winnipeg and Buffalo - the daily average high in Winnipeg is colder than the daily average low in Buffalo. Buffalo gets more snow most years, but Winnipeg is way harsher in terms of temperature and wind chill.
And we sneer at anyone who can’t take it, even though we bitch about it to each other.
You Americans don’t know winter. 
You Americans don’t know winter.