Big Screen, Homestead and Garden, Relationships

Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch: Westerns, Blackberries, and Windfall Profits

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This was not the day I was expecting.  My school was closed in honor of Veterans Day.  I woke up at 3:00AM (my usual time), got comfortable, and managed to stay in bed ‘til 7:00AM.  My day had endless possibilities.  I walked around in pajamas, drank coffee, and watched a little TV, but a missed call from my husband plus a voicemail was how I learned that my father-in-law, Chris Allgyer, the reason we get to enjoy this beautiful country life, died in his sleep.  Chris had spent the last five days at home but the previous six weeks in the hospital fighting complications from cancer.

The rest of the day was a whirlwind of tears, visitors, and funeral arrangements.  Even the animals were confused at all of the activity.  One of my indoor cats ran outside and had still not come back in by our bedtime adding to my conflicted emotional state.  I went to bed but did not sleep.

Westerns

Chris 1
There weren't many places we went without Chris. This was before a Valentine's Day dinner at a local church.

In 2004 after we sold our house in the city, we moved in with Chris. The trailer was small, but cozy.  Well, not as cozy as it was HOT.  He kept the thermostat at 73 degrees all while running the propane heater in the living room.  I tried to watch Friends reruns, but he insisted on watching anything on the Encore Western channel instead.  Chris loved Western movies.  Gradually, the Westerns grew on me.  I loved the horses and the old-fashioned cowboy attire.  I even consented to watch different versions of the same movie…the old one…. and the really old one.  We continued the “watching Westerns during dinner” tradition even after we moved into our own house.  Most Sunday nights I would cook dinner for Greg and Chris, Chris would complain that I didn’t put enough chicken in whatever we were having (he called it “dragging the chicken through”), and I would find a Western for us to watch during dinner.  After dinner Chris would settle in the big chair, close his eyes, and ask for a blanket.  Our thermostat was not set at 73 degrees.

Blackberries

One day while I was mowing Chris’s yard, I came across some wild blackberries.  He informed me that he knew about a gold mine of the berries and promised to take me.  The next morning we gathered our buckets and I met him at the tractor.  I stood on the Bush Hog (kids, don’t try this at home) and he drove us down to the corner of his property. We picked pails of blackberries and I made my first blackberry jam and cobbler.  This past summer he was too sick to take me, so while my OSU friend Kim was visiting, I took them both to a nearby blackberry farm.  Kim complained about the thorns and Chris could not breath well enough to get out of the car to help.  Chris, sitting there in the car, reminded me of how he used to sit in his own truck in the shade and take a nap.  The cobbler didn’t taste nearly as sweet as it did the summer before.

Windfall Profits

In the summertime, it was often only Chris and I at the ranch.  If I had a little cash on me, I would text Chris and ask him to lunch.  His first question would always be to ask me where I got the money.  My standard answer would be “Don’t worry about it.  I’ve had a windfall profit.”  He always laughed and started calling any amount of cash I had on me a windfall profit. We would try to go to lunch at least once a week or two to the post office in Laconia, TN.  It was one of his favorite places to eat.  For me, not so much, but I would still go and get a little cornbread and green beans while he loaded his plate down with chicken livers, greens, and other country-fried foods.  It didn’t take me long to clean my plate so I could be the first to survey the dessert table and report back the selection.  I’d pay the tab (a total of $8.50 for all-you-can-eat) and we’d head home.  On into the evening he would walk out onto the back porch, turn on the porch light, start up the diesel (I could hear it from my house) and take off for a late night cup of coffee and a lottery ticket.  Before I went to bed I would wait for his headlights to come up his driveway.  If my husband was still awake, I’d simply say, “Dad’s home.”  The truck was parked and the porch light was turned off.


Mitchell, Christin, Chris, and Melissa at Greg's 50th birthday celebration. Chris was proud of his grandchildren.

This morning I woke up to find my missing cat scurrying on the porch past the French doors that face Chris’s trailer.  I noticed the porch light at Chris’s still on.  I know the evenings of looking for his headlights coming up the drive are gone and that porch light will stay on until one of us goes up there to turn it off.  Once I let the cat safely in the house, I thought to myself, “Dad’s home.”

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Foodie Page, Oklahoma culture, Photography

Silent Sunday: 11/14/10

Matt Duckworth, drummer for Star Death and White Dwarfs, backstage perspective. Star Death is setting off for another tour this week. Photo printed with permission from Matt.
Oh, it's just deer season in Oklahoma. Red Dirt Kelly grabbed her camera, rolled down her window, drove with her left hand and took the shot with her right hand. Shouldn't these trucks come with some kind of warning sign for passers by? "Warning, dead deer in truck. Those with queasy stomachs, please keep your eyes averted. Thank you."
And, speaking of shooting...100 years ago today, The Daily Oklahoman published a front page article about a county election Chairman declaring that he will NOT resign from his position. Further, he would shoot anyone who crosses the threshold of their office and threatens the sovereignty of the "sacred ballots." He proclaimed, "I have the keys to the boxes in which they are deposited and by the eternal gods I will protect them with my life." Red Dirt Kelly says, "Go, Judge Beall!"
And speaking of "Beale" (not Beall), little "Jesse" (Katie Beth) Beal makes a great Toy Story character for Halloween. Red Dirt Kelly saw no less than six "Jesses" this year, and all of them were great. Lookin' good, Katie Beth!
The Goddard School in Edmond gets creative with a bale of hay. When I walked around to the other side, there was a Jack-o-Lantern face painted on it. One bale of hay, TWO seasonal displays 🙂 Photo by Kelly.
Antique oil cans (jars) from a long-ago service station. Just one of the many sites to see at "The Stables Cafe" in Guthrie, Oklahoma. - Photo by Kelly

 

Poteau Ballon Festival, held Oct 22-23, 2010. Click photo to visit their website.

 

We hear the food at Poteau Balloon Fest is amazing. Mmmm, I can smell the fire, can you? - Click photo to visit the Balloon Fest website.

 

 

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Grandmother's Memoirs, Homestead and Garden, Oklahoma culture

Simple Sabbath: My Grandmother’s Memoirs

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A few months ago I asked my grandmother whether or not she would be willing to sit down with me, allowing me to conduct interviews with her about her life.  She surprised me by saying she had already written down many of her memories; her son had asked her to do that some time ago.  Weeks later, I saw her at a family dinner and she had a yellow Spiral Mead notebook with her.  On the cover written in ink was, “1988, The Life of Emma Lee Coward Bomgardner, Bennett – Tuttle, Oklahoma.”  She told me she had to look a little while for it, but had found her work.

I took the notebook and let her know I would transcribe what she had written, clean it up a bit, then send it to her for review.  The goal was to then send it out to the family.

Last night I began the task of reading her handwritten notes.  I was surprised at how much information was there and appreciated that her narrative echoed her true voice.  Not many periods, quite a few commas, and no erasing…just, freestyle.

This job is going to take quite a bit of time, but I’ve already decided the rewards will be much greater than the investment.  She began writing at age sixty-six.  Her first memory penned was how her mother took her and her siblings to visit their grandparent’s home.  She said they had to cross a bridge in order to reach their destination and the horse balked at the idea of making the pass.  She recalls being terribly frightened as her mother wrestled with managing the horse, eventually coaxing him across the bridge.

I know that adrenaline helps embed memories, and from reading through these pages I can see how and why she might have recalled and written the stories she did.  I’m about fifteen percent through the transcription, but today after reading the struggles manifested by the Great Depression…I’m very grateful for what we have.

We are certainly a blessed nation and a blessed family.  May God continue to richly bless you and yours.

~Red Dirt Kelly

**1/16/11 Note: “One Voice of the Oklahoma Prairie: My Grandmother’s Memoirs” is now being published.  Check THIS LINK to see the posts each week until they’re finished.

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Man Cave

Finding Truth In A Sea of Insanity

Here we are, nine games into this college football season and Mike Gundy has a better record than Bob Stoops.  Raise your hand if you predicted this before the season.  Anyone?  If you do have your hand up, I’m calling you a liar or a massive OSU homer.

I guess I still find it funny that a coach with one loss can be considered brilliant and “having a great year,” but a coach with two losses has suddenly lost his way.  Fans are fickle creatures, and the media only seems to add fuel to the fire.  

Maybe we’re all in need of a little perspective, and as they say in politics, a move to the middle.  A move away from the fringes of the fan bases who either view their coach as the second coming of Vince Lombardi or a no good bum who is slowly ruining their beloved football program all because a national title is out of reach. 

What some fans simply cannot grasp is the impact of players on coaches.  When a team loses or plays poorly, the coach takes the brunt of the criticism.  Does he deserve blame?  Absolutely.  But a coach’s job is to put his players in a position to succeed.  Then, it’s up to those players to execute as they’ve been taught.

Stoops' championships are quickly forgotten when the Sooners are struggling. (courtesy dixiefriedsports.com)

Take the Sooners for example.  Is it Bob Stoops’ fault when Landry Jones can’t catch a snap that hits him in the hands?  Is Stoops on the hook for Jones’ overthrow of Kenny Stills on what could have been an easy six for Oklahoma?  Didn’t Stoops dial up the perfect fake field goal call?  Should James Hanna’s inability to catch a perfectly thrown football come back to Stoops?  Of the course the answer is no on all accounts.  I think sometimes we shy away from criticizing college athletes because they aren’t paid and these coaches are making millions.  I know these kids are playing their hearts out and I would never question their will to win.  But let’s remember, most of the coach’s job takes place Sunday through Friday, and when Saturday rolls around, it’s time for the players to do their job.

Two years ago Oklahoma offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson was the man behind one of the greatest offensive juggernauts in school history.  The Sooners put up 50 or more points in nine games and led the country in scoring offense.  Sam Bradford was number one in the nation in passing efficiency and OU scored touchdowns on 85-percent of its trips to the red zone. 

Has Kevin Wilson lost the ability to coach offense, or are his players simply not getting the job done? (courtesy neilcornrich.com)

Was Kevin Wilson a genius two years ago who suddenly forgot how to coach?  It sounds that way if you listen to the Sooner Nation.  To some clad in crimson, Wilson is predictable, unimaginative, and washed up.  Yes, I agree Wilson could have shown some creativity down near the goal line in OU’s loss to Texas A&M.  But is it a bad play call to hand the ball to Demarco Murray inside the one yard line?  How many times has that play resulted in a touchdown for the Sooners?  It just so happens that this time around, the offensive line got no push and got blown off the ball by the Aggies defensive front.  Is that Wilson’s fault? 

I’m pleading for some perspective here, please.  When are fans going to wake up and realize, “You know what, maybe this team just isn’t as talented as we thought before the season started.”  DING! DING! DING!  Congratulations on entering the world of sanity!  

Gundy is enjoying one of his best seasons in Stillwater, his Cowboys are 8-1 and take on Texas this Saturday. (courtesy espn.com)

Now that we’re all feeling liberated, maybe we can also admit that Oklahoma State has far more talent than anyone realized.  Mike Gundy is a very good football coach and he’s doing a fantastic job in Stillwater, but guess what?  His players are making plays at crucial moments of every ballgame.  Gundy and his staff have recruited well, and they’ve put their players in a position to win.  Right now, the Cowboys are executing better than the Sooners.  Brandon Weeden is already mature because he’s 83 years old (actually 27), but with every game, he’s growing up as a quarterback.  No Dez Bryant?  No big deal.  Justin Blackmon is filling his shoes rather nicely.  Kendall Hunter is the back he’s always been, and the unsung heroes of this OSU season are the big boys on the offensive line.  They’re creating space for Hunter and time for Weeden.  So is Gundy all of a sudden some kind of genius?  No, but his players are making him look like one.

Justin Gent forced a fumble in the last minute against Troy to preserve a 41-38 OSU victory.  With Texas A&M driving for the winning score, Shaun Lewis intercepted a pass to set up Dan Bailey’s game winning field goal.  Johnny Thomas returned a pick for a touchdown in the fourth quarter at K-State, a play that blew the game wide open and allowed the Pokes to earn another road win.  The right plays at the right time.  OSU is getting them, OU isn’t.

For a heavier dose of perspective, consider the fact that the Sooners and Cowboys can still play for a conference championship.  Both teams have the chance to end up in a BCS bowl.  No, it’s not a national title, but it’s still better than 95-percent of the programs in the country. 

Stoops and Gundy will accept the criticism and they will also deflect blame away from the players because that’s just the kind of men they are.  Both will admit they don’t do everything right.  Stoops desperately needs to find someone who can kick a 30-yard field goal, and he needs to find a way to inspire passion in his team when it leaves the confines of Memorial Stadium.  Gundy must find a way to keep his team improving on the defensive side of the ball, and turn this recent success into lasting success.  Both men are outstanding football coaches even if their stock seems to be heading in different directions.  So before we go thinking that a loss makes a coach an idiot and win makes a coach infallible, let’s realize that the truth is probably somewhere in the middle.

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Oklahoma culture

Friday Morning Shout Out: Tippin’ Our Hat to “Old Hat Creative”

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Norman-based Old Hat (OH) Creative is a sports ad agency.  Their mission is to tell the stories of their clients, and tell them well.  And if you visit their OH website, you could probably park your hiney in a chair for the next few hours because they’ve created enough cool content to keep anyone entertained for a good long while.

But there is a difference when you see their story in person.

If you review their website, you get the impression of energy, humor, sharp and creative individuals who take their work very seriously.  Okay – maybe there are similarities between the online and in-person story.

If you review their website you get the impression that the team is cohesive, that they really care about their clients, their craft, about learning and growing…and about performing together as a well-oiled and evolving system, willing to take risks and think without boundaries.  Okay, this is getting silly…those messages are clear when you visit them in person as well.

Damn, their website is pretty good at telling their story!

Tracie Hitz and Walter Colindres pose with Lil' Duey, the Old Hat Creative mascot. Visit Duey's webiste page for more on this travels, arch enemies and lifestyle.

So what can we add for you this morning?  Perhaps a third dimension of warmth, of genuine regard for each other as a team. And of the dichotomy between a screaming football stadium of fans where their ads may be running on the big screen compared to the pristine quiet when you walk into their office – all their professionals working on iMacs with headphones on, completely focused on their task at hand.

I spoke to Tracie Hitz, their Director of Business Development, this week and she talked about why she moved from Illinois to Oklahoma in order to join OH.  She said that the Chicago area is filled with ad agencies, and a sub-group of sports ad agencies…that it’s a fast paced and challenging life, and fits the image of what you might hope to have working in their industry.  At the same time, however, she related that working for the Northwestern University athletic department was – in a sense – an established system with very little room for creative influence in terms of their mission or direction.  They already were how they were going to be.

When Tracie moved here, she got two things.  The ability to contribute and influence the way OH was developing – she said that founder Zac Logsdon listens to her ideas, considers them and frequently she’ll see them implemented.  And, she got “settled down,” a sense of stability and permanence of community.  When I listened to her “two things,” I thought… “Well, that’s Oklahoma.  Creative and homey.”  But it’s certainly OH as well.

Old Hat's "living room," AKA their reception area.

And perhaps that’s the thing we can tell you about when wrapping up our shout out this morning.  When you walk into the OH “living room,” it feels comfortable.  When you talk with their staff, they are friendly and inviting…and funny.  And when you think about their website information as a whole, you get the sense that the team is a family.

I spoke to a Norman resident Wednesday night and mentioned I had visited OH and he perked up, “Yeah, they’re making waves around town!”

“Good waves?” I asked, “What kind of waves?”

“They’re well-respected, over-achievers…a really good thing,” he replied.

So, maybe that’s the rest of the story.  A creative family of overachieving professionals who make good waves in their community….but you can get that from their website too.  And their Twitter account.  And their Facebook page.

And…you can get the chance to win a ‘Lil Duey T-Shirt and an OH hat just by Tweeting this article (see icon below), or visiting the new RDC Twitter account and mentioning us.  Just Tweet a message and “@RDChronicles” today, and we’ll enter you in the drawing…and contact you tomorrow if you won.

Here’s to you, Old Hat – we’re “tipping our RDC hat” to you and yours.  All the best!

***

Editor’s Note:  I was a high school drama teacher for eight years.  OH Founder, Zac Logsdon, was one of my former students.  He and his wife Jill played the leads (mother and father) in our first off-site play, “Cheaper by the Dozen.”  It’s interesting that now it seems they are sort of the mother and father of a dozen or so children at OH, all of whom are very special people...warms my heart to see them doing what they’re doing.

The pop machine. An integral part of the OH living room.
Win this hat and t-shirt...Tweet this essay or mention @RDChronicles on your Twitter account!

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Showcasing Red Dirt culture ~ authored and managed by contributors with connections to the great state of Oklahoma.