Sunday Afternoon Escape

Jeff came down from Missouri to see Jenny and the kids. After church Susan, Smokey, and I decided to give them some space and we drove up to Bartlesville to have lunch and visit Wolaroc. We had a really nice Sunday afternoon.


The last time we were up here we discovered a little Chinese restaurant that had all 3 of the most important qualifications to be one of my favorites. It has really good food, reasonable prices and nice service. I ordered shrimp with lobster sauce and Susan ordered Hunan pork. Of course we shared with each other and both were delicious. Our server Heidi was very sweet and we enjoyed it very much.


After this nice lunch we drove west from Bartlesville to Woolaroc. Tulsa is at the far western edge of the foothills of the Ozark mountains. When we drive north to Bartlesville then go west from there, we are at the far eastern edge of the Great Plains. The land is flat and rolls off in the distance as far as you can see. The farther west you go, the flatter it gets. It has an open quality and the sky looks huge. There is a lot of breathing room here.


Woolaroc is the ranch of Oklahoma oil man Frank Phillips, one of the brothers who created Phillips Petroleum. He named it Woolaroc because it contained Woods. lakes and rocks. There is a lot to see here. Frank had his home here, a log cabin mansion. There is a terrific museum with Native American and Western art and historical artifacts. Several new galleries have been added since the last time we were up here maybe 4 years ago. The ranch itself is an animal park with all sorts of exotic animals. I took so many cool photos that it is too much for one post. I will share them over the next few days. Stay tuned for Smokey meets the big chickens.

Sunday Jigsaw Puzzle

On the deck of the Holland America ship the Maasdam, just off of Halifax, NS. Enjoy!

Sycamores

A soft green tunnel of Sycamore Trees in mid-town Tulsa.

Yellow Trumpet Vine

Trumpet Vine is indigenous to this part of the country and grows very quickly. It is often seen growing on a wall or a fence. It can easily grow to the top of a utility pole. This home owner has built a little trellis and trained the vine to arch across the entrance. It is best to plant these where they are limited in where they spread as they will take over a garden.


The more common color is orange but there are yellow and red varieties as well. The flowers produce a lot of nectar and are a favorite with hummingbirds. After the blooms mature and wither large seed pods or "beans" hang down. I remember playing with these when I was a kid.

Dinner with Gavin

Mike and Amber brought Gavin over for dinner tonight and I cooked some pork steaks on the grill. It is always nice to see young Mr Gavin.

Wordless Wednesday

A mild summer evening at Tulsa's Chandler Park.

More Wordless Wednesday.

Tulsa Animal Shelter

It is a little hard to find the City of Tulsa Animal Shelter or the Dog Pound as we used to call it. It is in the far north of the city up near the zoo. This is where animals of all sorts are taken when found loose.


Several years ago Smokey got out of the yard one afternoon and before I knew it he had been nabbed by the dog catcher. I immediately ran up there to fetch him and was told that the truck with the day's catch had not returned and that I would have to come back the next day after he had been processed. I went back as soon as they opened in the morning to bail him out.

There he was sitting in one of the cages looking very sad and a little embarrassed with a big yellow number tag on his butt. No matter that my name and phone number was on his collar, or that he was wearing his vaccination and registration tags, he was out of his yard and breaking the law. It cost me $90 to bail him out and I had a hard time getting the sticker off.


Smokey was very embarrassed and promised he wouldn't do it again. I was just glad he was safe and that I got him back. Animals that are picked up by the city are only kept for a week or so. Unclaimed dogs and cats are available for adoption and the lucky ones find homes or are reclaimed by their owners.

Sunday at Chandler Park

Yesterday the weather was exceptionally fine so after church we decided to have a little picnic. We picked up some fried chicken and sodas and drove up to Chandler Park. There is a nice playground with swings and slides for Molly and Will to enjoy while we old folks watched.


Smokey is a proud dog but not above some purposeful begging. The bad news is that Molly was eating a dill pickle. Smokey does not much care for pickles. We had a pleasant afternoon.

Sunday Jigsaw Puzzle

Entrance to old Booker T. Washington High School, Tulsa

Molly's Landing

Last weekend Susan and I drove over to eat dinner at Molly's Landing. We had heard nice things about it and decided to give it a try. It is a bit off the beaten path. If you drive north of Catoosa on old Highway 66 and come to the double bridge you have gone too far. Turn around and go back to the next road on your right.


Molly's Landing is a rustic old place with various dining areas on two levels. It has a steak and seafood sort of menu; Sue had a steak and I had fish, both very good. It is a little pricey but the food is excellent and the atmosphere rather romantic. We enjoyed it.

Cast Iron Cat

Last weekend Susan and I drove up to Molly's Landing, a restaurant on old Highway 66 just north of Catoosa. They had lots of funny art objects sitting outside the entry. I rather liked this cat fashioned out of iron plate cut and welded with an acetylene torch.

Breakfast at the Blue Dome

Susan says that breakfast is her favorite meal to eat out. Since she offered to buy I was easily persuaded. Of course we went downtown to see my son Luke at the Blue Dome Diner.


I ordered my favorite, a sausage and mushroom omelet with a fruit bowl instead of fried potatoes and instead of toast Luke made a pair of his wonderful walnut blueberry pancakes. Oh! they are SO good. It is more than I can eat so I cut it in half and will enjoy the rest of it tomorrow. Two breakfasts for the price of one.


Susan had a pair of eggs over easy, bacon, fried potatoes, and biscuits and gravy.


My friend Anne thinks biscuits are cookies. Anne, THIS is a biscuit and it is eaten with savory cream gravy made from the sausage drippings. Yum!

Tulsa Skyline from The Village

The view of Tulsa's skyline from The Village at Central Park.

The area immediately south of Tulsa's old Central Park had succumbed to urban blight. Beginning in 1994 the City of Tulsa began to buy up the nine acres between the park and Oak Lawn Cemetery. In 1999 a developer was selected to build town houses in the area. The result was The Village. These residences are both ultra modern in construction and convenience yet are very traditional Georgian-style town homes faced in brick. They have been purchased and occupied as quickly as they come on the market. They have a web site if you are curious to know more. See it HERE.

More Wordless.

Railway Underpass

Sue and I were out and about Saturday afternoon and discovered an interesting little underpass. We were looking for Molly's Landing north of Catoosa on old highway 66 and overshot the turnoff. The next side road was on the other side of the bridge (Sunday's jigsaw). When we took the turnoff we noticed that the road went under the railway that parallels the highway on the west. It appears that the little one-way tunnel was constructed around a very large corrugated tube. Simple but effective.


We drove through out of curiosity and found a cluster of 6 or 8 mailboxes which told us that there a group of homes hidden away on the other side. This is the view back the other way toward highway 66.

The Bead Merchant

Fifteenth Street between Peoria and Lewis is home to a number of interesting shops and one is the Bead Merchant. The walls are covered with stands of glass beads in every size and color imaginable.


They have a variety of silver chain sold by length, and great bowls of silver charms to hang from them. You can buy tools for jewelry making and even take lessons on the art. I bought some silver a few years ago and used it to make charm bracelets for my granddaughters Hannah and Sarah.

John Angotti Concert at St Bernards

Sue and I joined our friends Ed and Lois for dinner at Ruby Tuesday's then attended a concert performance at their church. It was very well done and we enjoyed it.

Sunday Jigsaw Puzzle

Bridge over old Highway 66 just north of Catoosa, Ok.

Come Get Potted

You can find almost anything in Tulsa.

Smokey and Molly

Smokey wishes Molly would quit playing with the Legos and give him a belly rub.

Downtown Tulsa from Central Park

Unlike New York City's Central Park, Tulsa's is rather small. Tucked in between 8th and 11th Street just west of South Peoria, it is a lovely little expanse of rolling lawn and shade trees, and frames a fine view of the downtown Tulsa skyline.