The excitement is building!

Our 6th annual Happyland Music Fest begins tomorrow. I can't wait!

Oklahoma birdsong

I took this short video today while walking Shiloh. I wanted to share the birdsong - it's like living in a bird sanctuary out here! You can also see Shiloh's summer haircut.

Oklahoma, my home

Friends in other parts of the country ask how I can bear to live in a place with such a high risk of tornadoes and I totally get where they are coming from. The destruction that took place in Moore, Oklahoma yesterday is truly overwhelming and the scenes of distraught parents waiting to hear whether their children are alive or dead will stay with us all for a very long time.

But I grew up in California which has its own set of natural disasters to contend with. Earthquakes immediately come to mind but mountain mudslides and wildfires fueled by Santa Ana winds are equally terrifying. In fact, as a kid it was the fear of fire which haunted my dreams, not earthquakes.

And then there's New Orleans, the city we visit as often as possible and hope to retire to someday, with its history of devastating hurricanes. I'm not sure what it says about me that my three favorite states are notoriously rife with potential disaster, especially since I'm truly not much of a thrill-seeker. Perhaps, like others who live in these places, I see beyond the risks.

I've loved Oklahoma ever since the memorable trip I took here as a child. My mom and aunt loaded four kids in an overstuffed station wagon and headed East from California for a sixteen day trip to visit relatives in Oklahoma, Missouri and Tennessee. If you've wondered how I could have taken a road trip to New Orleans with my friend, Roz, or my more recent adventure by myself without a second thought, this might be a clue. I come from a long line of independent women with a penchant for travel.

During that trip so many years ago, I distinctly recall being charmed by the "y'all come back now" friendliness of the people here in Oklahoma. And I don't just mean the relatives we visited. Store clerks, waitresses and gas station attendants (yes, I'm that old) all gave us the same farewell and this child who was already enamored with Southern literature immediately felt at home in the sultry, green land of slow-talking folks who seemed obsessed with feeding us.

Other family visits over the years did nothing to alter my love for Oklahoma so I was more than happy to move here immediately following my high school graduation. How that all came about is a story for another day but suffice it to say I took to Oklahoma like a tick takes to a hound dog. Sure, there was a bit of culture shock as I adjusted to the (very much) slower pace, tried to decipher terms like "bar ditch" and learned that there are very few foods which cannot be fried. At least I was already used to drinking iced tea sweet enough to make your teeth hurt.

I moved to a town with an honest-to-goodness Main Street and not one, but three old fashioned soda fountains, shop keepers who let my mom bring home clothes for a very sick daughter to try on, teenagers for whom Friday and Saturday nights consisted of cruising Main in the family sedan, and so many other little things which made me feel as though I had been transported back to a much simpler time and place.

I've now lived here close to 33 years and in every sense of the word, Oklahoma is home. Yes, we have our problems. Poverty, obesity, racism and a tendency to elect some very embarrassing folks to public office are a few of the issues which plague our state. And of course, we experience weather extremes which can test the mettle of the most resilient folks I know. Unfortunately these are the things which make the national news.

Oklahoma may have crazy weather and politicians but it is so much more than tornadoes and Inhofe. It's red dirt and blue skies, a forefinger lifted from the steering wheel as you pass on a two lane road, unlocked doors, overalls and tractors, sweet tea, fried green tomatoes and ranch dressing, beans and cornbread, biscuits and gravy, watching storms from a lawn chair, Gary England and severe weather drinking games, June bugs and cicadas, men who still hold doors for ladies and call them "ma'am", family and faith and neighbors who take care of one another.

Hopefully, amidst the heartbreaking story of loss which is dominating the news, the rest of the world will get a tiny glimpse of who Oklahomans really are. Within minutes after the tornado hit, people were out searching for their neighbors, comforting the grief-stricken, organizing blood drives, collecting donations, taking in lost pets, and opening their homes to those who had lost theirs.

I couldn't bear to watch very much of the search and rescue footage last night but my aching heart was encouraged by what I saw in my Facebook newsfeed. One by one, many of my Oklahoma friends changed their profile picture to some version of this:

Word of horses needing a temporary home went out and dozens of offers to take in one or two or several came pouring in. Messages were shared to help reunite people who had been separated. Helpful information of all sorts flooded the newsfeed, along with words of hope, encouragement and prayer. And not just from our fellow-Okies. I was touched by the outpouring of concern from friends all over the world and reminded once again that we are at our best when we set aside differences and live in community with one another. 

In the days and weeks ahead Oklahomans will grieve the losses and begin the process of putting lives back together. It's going to be a long and difficult road for many, especially those who lost loved ones. But little by little, with strength, determination and help from others, Oklahoma will recover. Today we hug one another a little tighter, whisper words of comfort and pray together. Tomorrow we hike up our britches and get to work. Because that is who we are and what we do. 

The calm between storms:


If you'd like to help with the relief effort, please consider a donation to the Red Cross. We will be taking up a collection during our Happyland Music Fest this weekend to send to the tornado victims. 

Tornado update

I'm getting lots of messages from friends in other areas worried about us here in Oklahoma. So far we are fine but there's a storm heading our way. David is at work and they have a storm shelter. Chris and Kadi are on their way home. Lisa and Justin are in town, closely monitoring the situation. I've got the area under our stairs ready if we need to take shelter. David put several bike helmets under there last night. As soon as it passes I'll post again. In the meantime please send prayers and good thoughts to the victims.

Family time

My aunt and uncle from California were here in Oklahoma visiting for a few days and we took a little trip to Turner Falls.  Yes, the same place where I had my excellent adventure last week. It was another gorgeous day and we all enjoyed the pretty views. 

Left to right: Dwain (my dad), Mary (my mom), 

Aunt Ruby and Uncle Carl (my dad's brother)

On our way back we stopped for lunch at the Chickasaw Cultural Center in Sulphur. The grounds are beautifully landscaped and the food was delicious. All but one of us chose the traditional Indian taco meal which came with a side dish, dessert and drink for only $6. And it was way more food than any of us could eat - a real bargain. My uncle has heart issues and wasn't quite up to touring the facility but I fully intend to go back again soon to check it out. And yes, I'll be sure to let my family know where I am. ;)

That evening we all went out for dinner. David was in Minnesota so he couldn't join us but Chris and Kadi did. We had a nice meal at a local 50s-style diner. Several had the catfish which is one of their specialties. I was still pretty full from lunch so I opted for the fried green tomatoes appetizer as my meal. I love fried green tomatoes and theirs are quite good. 

I then took Chris and Kadi back to their house and went over to visit awhile longer. Uncle Carl and Aunt Ruby stayed in the mobile home which had been my grandma's. It's a short distance behind my parents' house and one of my cousins owns it, keeping it for a weekend place for them (they live in the city) and for visiting relatives. One of my cousins and his wife were there by the time I arrived and another one came a bit later with his son. My parents were there, too, of course. We all visited until nearly 9:30 when we decided we'd better let them get some rest since they were leaving very early the next morning. It was a short visit but it's always good to spend time with family. 

May Grocery Haul

Lisa and I did our May grocery shopping last week. I was exhausted when I got home which may account for the fact that I forgot to turn the phone sideways to film my grocery haul. Or at least that's what I'm going to blame it on.




Before we started shopping we dropped off our recycling and met Lisa's best friend, Audrey, for lunch. Then we did our monthly marathon shopping.

We started out at Sprouts, which is new to Norman. There were some good sales which we took advantage of.

Sprouts

• organic milk (2 cartons)
• organic cheese
• organic frozen waffle fries (2)
• organic oven fries
• organic crinkle fries
• organic frozen sweet cherries (2)
• organic cereal
• organic tortilla chips
• organic artichokes (2)
• organic asparagus 
• organic tomatoes (2 clusters)
• organic green bell pepper
• organic red bell pepper
• organic lemons (3)
• organic strawberries

Homeland

• gallon of vinegar
• cologne for David (I had no idea they carried it but it was even 30% off.)
• Bon Maman preserves (2 jars)
• red pepper jelly
• mayonnaise (2 jars)
• frozen raw Gulf shrimp
• Pine Sol
• shampoo
• organic potatoes (5#)
• organic onions (3#)

Dodson's 

• organic raisin bran (2 boxes)
• organic mild salsa
• peach salsa
• Tillamook sharp cheddar cheese
• organic, nitrate-free beef hot dogs
• organic ketchup
• peppermints (forgot to show in video)
• organic chicken breasts

Natural Grocers

• organic cranberry juice
• organic chocolate, chocolate chip ice cream
• organic salt and vinegar chips
• organic corn tortillas
• organic flour tortillas
• organic provolone cheese
• organic colby cheese
• all natural whole chicken
• organic turkey lunchmeat (2 pkgs)
• zucchini
• yellow squash
• green onions
• mandarin oranges
• black olives (two cans)
• diced tomatoes (two cartons)
• organic avocado
• green chilis
• organic coconut oil
• organic broccoli
• organic bananas

Cellar

• red wine (3 bottles)
• Coole Swan
• champagne
• sweet tea vodka (made in Oklahoma)

Forward Foods

• spaghetti
• macaroni
• baguette 

As always, we had a wonderful time together. I feel so fortunate to have a daughter who is also a friend. You can read her version of the day here and I encourage you to do so. She wrote a lot more detail but I'm writing this in a bit of a hurry. I do want to share a picture before I close, however:

That's my Prius on the right but that gorgeous sports car to the left is a Tesla. When we came out of the store it was parked next to us and we both had to take a picture (Lisa got a better view of it which is on her grocery post). I joked that it was the expensive hippie car next to the moderately priced hippie car.

So that's it for this month's grocery haul. I'll no doubt pick up a few items here and there but for the most part this was my shopping for the month. How do you do your grocery shopping? Do you post grocery hauls? Leave me a comment - I love to hear how others buy their groceries.

A perfect day

I'm not sure what I did to deserve such a wonderful family. They totally spoiled me yesterday for Mother's Day. Flowers, lunch out, thoughtful gifts and my first pedicure - I couldn't ask for a better day...or a better family. 

Beautiful organic tulips from Lisa and Justin, a pretty serving dish with fleur de lis design and a couple of reusable glasses with straws from Chris and Kadi, and sweet cards from David, my parents and the kids. 

My sweet son paid for my first ever pedicure. Kadi, her mom, and her sisters all got pedicures, too. It was lots of fun to do it together and isn't that peace sign cute?

While we were getting pedicures David pushed baby Mia (Kadi's baby sister) in her stroller around and around the parking lot. It was a gorgeous day and the stroller has speakers and a place to plug in your phone so David played music for her to lull her to sleep. 

I am truly blessed.