Order Xanax No Prescription Our first official “no” was discussed as we exited the driveway. Glancing back at the two-story white house, I knew the owner had a story to share. But there were hints of physical frailties, and wrinkles on his brow that, coupled with his own perspective, kept those stories from strangers. Continue reading EPOTM: Payne, OK→
Purchase Tramadol Without PrescriptionThe reasons people choose to use our RDC Contact Form are vast. Recipes…questions about relationships…companies asking us to review a product, etc. Yesterday, however, we fielded a question about native Oklahoma fruit trees that led me to a phone conversation with my father. I thought it might be helpful to pass the information along to others looking for the same information.
source If you want to grow trees that have a good chance of survival and are native to our great state, here is a fairly comprehensive list created from using the “Forest Trees of Oklahoma” book by Dr. Elbert L. Little Jr.
go to link List of Fruit and Nut Trees Native to Oklahoma
Persimmon 60 ft.
Paw Paw 10 – 30 ft.
Red Mulberry 50 ft.
Prairie Crab Apple 20 ft.
Plums (American, Hortulan, Mexican, wildgoose) all 20 ft.
Black Cherry 50 – 70 ft.
Choke Cherry 15 ft.
Pecan 70 ft.
Hickory (several varieties) 60 ft.
Black Walnut 50 ft.
You can also eat the berries from a Hackberry tree, but I’m not sure they are native to Oklahoma. They definitely grow here!
There are several fruit trees that have been introduced into our forests and Oklahoma landscape, but are not native to Oklahoma. An example of this would be a small, wild pear tree my Uncle found on his land in Clayton. It appeared as a small, slightly roundish fruit with the texture close to an Asian pear. It’s pretty cool to happen upon something like this, but isn’t “purist” if you want your trees to fit naturally with the original climate and environment.
There are quite a few grapes and a currant bush native to Oklahoma as well as several berries. I don’t have an exhaustive list, but I can point you to a wildcrafting website that is educational. The information on THIS PAGE isn’t delineated between native, and what simply grows naturally in our state because it was introduced. You can, however, learn quite a bit by just scrolling through the info and photos.
Please make sure that you are well informed if you decide to go wildcrafting for fruit in Oklahoma. There are many “look-alikes” across our landscapes and I want you to stay healthy!
As Rachel and I sat on a porch in Dibble, on another porch in Criner, and in the living room of a couple who had been married 65 years in Payne, we weren’t aware of something that had been happening. Our brains had been filling up with stories of the Oklahomans with whom we were interacting. They were filling up with the histories, and mysteries, of those we had just begun to know. Continue reading EPOTM: Preview of Dibble, Criner and Payne, OK→
Okay, so we completed our pilot run. I mentioned we had a few hiccups.
That was probably an understatement.
Going into a project as a novice, I knew there would be corrections. In order to be completely open about our learning curve, here’s the list:
https://www.sierrarealestate.net/2017-women-of-influence-ali-haralson/ Problem #1: I ordered an HD camera I thought was a good deal. The camera was high quality, but didn’t have the capacity to record directly onto a SD card. It used tapes, and had to be converted to digital files. This would have cost us a huge amount of time in transferring files. So, we sent it back. That mistake cost the project $70 is shipping penalties. OUCH.
follow url The fix for #1: The first video was shot completely using an iPhone and a condenser mic. We were actually pretty pleased with the quality, but we may also order a GoPro Hero 4. I’m not ordering it until I make sure we can get the sound we want, because evidently they don’t have a portal for lapel mics and we’ll need to make sure our condenser mic will work as well as it did on the iPhone. If we rule that out, we’re back to the drawing board on a larger Sony HD camera again. I just found that it’s laborious setting up so much equipment, and timing is a key issue. However, with larger cameras, you can set them on your shoulder and take video while walking without bounces. You might notice several bounces in our first piece.
The learning curve was steep. Our final cut isn’t where I’d like it to be. But, our first documentation piece for Every Point on the Map has reached the “good enough” standard. Now, we’re ready to share it with you.
We’re grateful to Assistant Volunteer Fire Chief Robbie Clark, and self-described “rookie” Micheal “June Bug” McCorkle for their time and thoughts. And, we hope you enjoy this glimpse into the lives of two citizens of Carney, Oklahoma.
[kelly]
If you’d like to read more about Carney, check out THIS LINK written on Carney history from OSU. To read demographics about the town, and other general information, here is the Wikipedia link. And, here is a KOCO video of the tornado from last year.
Julie Kennedy was wearing an orange and white Chevron print apron her grandmother had made her when she took our order for breakfast. She welcomed us warmly, accommodated all our special requests, chatted about the restaurant and quickly went about her business. It was Saturday morning, and Ya-Ya’s Place in Carney, Oklahoma was filling up fast.
It wasn’t long before our order came, and I must say, the food rivaled any breakfast cafe around the area. The décor was managed with a sense of humor The kitchen was clean, as was the bathroom. And, we were checked on during our meal not too many times, and not too few.
Julie’s husband and child were in one of the booths enjoying their own breakfast. Her mother-in-law owns the business, and her sister-in-law was cooking that morning. I think it’s safe to say the entire family is invested in making Ya-Ya’s succeed. The locals appeared comfortable and were all cleaning their plates as the morning progressed. Continue reading Every Point OK Food: Ya-Ya’s in Carney, Oklahoma→
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly were all part of our pilot run to Carney, Oklahoma this past Saturday.
Rachel has some beautiful photos, we have some very special video footage, and we’re working diligently to honor the essence of our first “point” on the Oklahoma map. While those pieces are being polished, however, we thought we’d share this little “behind the scenes” video about Pilot Day. Enjoy!
As a family scientists, I’ve written for – and received, over 1.5 million dollars in federal funding to run theoretical or applied research. Some scientists reach the hundreds of millions by the time they retire. There are also, however, new scientists who are just starting their careers and dreaming of their first grant award…and that’s where I come in.
Standing in front of classrooms full of graduate students, I have painstakingly answered questions on what it takes to write a successful grant proposal. And, during the budgeting information, I ALWAYS tell them this: “Please…please for the love of all that you cherish, build in some breathing room. No matter how detailed and accurately you think your budget has been prepared, you will run into surprises. And, sometimes those surprises are costly.”
I had flashbacks to those classroom sessions when I opened our camera case this morning. In the case was everything I had ordered and paid for. One camera; some wires to connect to a computer; one battery. Wait. ONE battery? Oh, this can’t be good…
A few minutes go by while I order a package of back-up batteries and a car charger. We’re going to be miles from people and plug-ins. We need a car charger. I completed my order and went back to the camera case.
A tripod. I need a tripod. I KNEW I needed a tripod, but for some reason when I made my list of inventory and sat down to research prices and place all the orders, tripods just didn’t come up. Cripes. Continue reading EPOTM: Doorbells Ringing; Mailboxes Bursting→
To begin, we followed the Kickstarter suggestions to the letter. They suggested we run our campaign for no longer than 30 days so as not to wear down those who might support the project.
Okay, well…we probably DID wear our friends down, but we got it done.
But then, there was the matter of the fine print. The fine print which eluded me. The fine print which was evidently on one of the several pages…of the several agreements…wherein I clicked the “Yes, I agree!” box.
Oh, the limits of what a person will click know NO bounds when they want something good to happen.
So, somewhere embedded in that fine print was this message: You don’t get your money until 16 business days after you’ve completed your Kickstarter campaign.
I want to order our equipment. I want to roll out our pilot run. I want to see what it’s going to be like for the next ten years. I want to see how hard it is to approach a stranger and ask them to open up to someone they’ve never met. I want to see Rachel’s photographs. I want to hear the stories. And…
But, we’ll have to wait three more business days. And THEN, we’ll begin making progress.
Love, kisses, and cyclothymic tendencies…
[kelly] & Rachel J. Apple
P.S. We thought our pilot run would be this upcoming Saturday, March 1. Evidently, it won’t. It will most likely take place 1-2 weeks after that date that we wanted NOW. However, we DO know that Carney, OK is our first stop. We know that won’t change…right?
Five minutes into our meeting with Rachel Hubbard of KOSU, I had almost finished my oatmeal. I glanced at Rachel Apple sitting next to me, and she had barely started her flaxseed banana bar. She was listening.
(see photo at left: Rachel Apple)
Rachel Apple, my daughter and partner in the “Every Point on the Map” (EPOTM) project, excels at listening. Her large brown eyes fixate on the source of information, and there is no breaking that “listening-beam.” At this moment, her listening beam was directed toward Hubbard talking about the art of sound gathering. And, about “Sonic IDs.“
Sonic IDs are a format developed by Atlantic Public Media. They are a derivative of the wildly popular Moth Radio Hour, only very very brief. Generally, 60 seconds or less.
Public radio stations have begun to use them for small fillers between regular spots. They’re stories told at “sonic” speed. And, they were the initial thought Hubbard had when she considered how we might partner with KOSU once we begin our journeys.
We learned about particular microphones we might order and attach to our iPhones. We learned that video files can be used for audio files if necessary. We learned that the new KOSU studio on Historic Film Row in Oklahoma City has a cool vibe. And, we learned that there might be something of value we could share on the radio from our project.
Medium news: our meeting with KOSU was cancelled by the weather. Good news: it was rescheduled for this week!
Cool news: we were sent a suggestion to use a new software available to the public called “MapJam.” No-so-good-news: it didn’t quite have the capacity we needed to manage our whole project.
REALLY GOOD NEWS? The CEO of the company is calling me tomorrow, wants to partner with our project, and thinks we can work our the kinks in order to add all the sub pins (little posts for each spot we visit) we need, as well as attach all the media we are using.
And THAT, our dear readers, is the end of this update.
Have a good one…and please share our info with your friends who might be interested!
I just checked our Kickstarter crowd funding site for “Every Point on the Map” (EPOM). When I look at the Dashboard information I feel mixtures of fear, hope, anticipation, motivation…and then a wave of calm washes over me. I let those feelings go and my tense spine relaxes.
“It’s fine,” I tell myself. “We were going do this whether we get the money or not.” I lean the top half of my body from an upright position toward the back of my chair. “Now, what else can I do to drum up support?” And then I begin thinking.
We have conducted a small TV appearance. We have set up a meeting with an associate producer at KOSU who is interested in some audio pieces from our work. We’re working with Oklahoma Horizon TV who has offered training and technical assistant to help capture good quality video for future feature work. And, long-term I’m going to investigate turning EPOTM into a non-profit entity so I can apply for grants.
So, what about right now? Well, I know from studying the topics I have that most of the projects supported, or events attended, or products purchased are due to “word of mouth.”
So, since you have a mouth, please share the good “word” about Every Point on the Map. Seven-hundred dollars worth of good words, and we’ll be on our way!
Using my lunch hour efficiently, this Thursday I managed to get to the KSBI-52 studio, complete a short interview, and get back to the precepting room at work with a little time to spare. But not without sweating a few bullets.
I’ve only been on TV three times in my life. The first was when Cherokee Ballard interviewed me at my home because there was “a rash of car thefts” in the area where we lived. I won’t mention that the main reason our car was stolen was that I left the keys in the ignition and didn’t quite close the doors. Therefore, the overhead light was a beacon for the thieves, and when they peeked in – bingo! Keys! I did get a little ticked off when two nights later they came back and stole my husband’s truck as well. But, they had the keys and I can hear their logic:
Hey – we’ve got this set of keys and need two cars…
Are you thinkin’ what I’m thinkin?
Yeah. Let’s go back and steal that truck.
Like taking candy from a baby…
Later I had a chance to say my piece to the thieves as they sat handcuffed in the back of a police car. The cops had called after finding my car at a 7-11 and “could we come and identify it?” As Mick and I pulled into the parking lot in our rental, I felt compelled to walk up to the window and make darn sure the thieves knew “that truck was my father-in-law’s, and he just DIED a few months ago!” Well, I told them, huh? I will say the one closest to the window looked a little frightened. Not sure if it was because he just got arrested or because a crazed person just verbally accosted him about his bad deeds…
Where was I? Oh yeah…TV. I’ve only been on TV three times. So, number one was about car thefts.
Numbers two and now three were on KSBI covering information highlighted right here on the Red Dirt Chronicles. This week it was about Every Point on the Map (EPOM). Number four will be next week. Our friends at Oklahoma Horizon TV will be covering EPOM in a slightly different way, and they’ll be partnering with our project by lending us a bit of equipment.
It was a big step, more than a little scary, and now the hard work begins. We need to raise $3100 in 30 days or we get nothing. It’s that simple.
Or, maybe…it’s that hard.
Since the first year of my marriage I’ve been buying cookies from Girl Scouts, and buying popcorn or sausage from Boy Scouts. We’ve donated money to our children’s schools, to our church, to organizations we believe in… but I’ve never personally had a project where I ask for money. I’ve never personally had to tell people: “Look, I really believe in this project. Would you be willing to support it?”
I’ve never had to learn how to ask. You have to have personal buy-in at a level where no doubt exists. We’re there. Now we need to convince other people we’re there.
Giving is so much easier…
Our goal is relatively modest. We asked for just enough money to get through the first year. We’ll have a better idea of the costs at that point, but to roll out the project we know having support will free us up to focus on achieving our goals.
So, for those of you who are reading this post, please know this: We’ll take care of your money. We’ll do the very best we can to achieve optimum “Every Point on the Map” with minimum monetary expenditures. And, we’ll do all we’re able in order to produce read-worthy, think-worthy, consideration-worthy, life-changing-worthy pieces.
What kind of documentation are you going to do (I like video best; or, I like photos best; or, you’re going to write, right??)?
Could I ride with you during one of your trips?
Are you going to write a book? Make an installment at a museum?
What about passing along a gift from one stop to the next, kind of like geocaching, only different?
Holy Road Trip, Batman – we have some decisions to make, eh?
I will say that we’ve begun to sort many of these decisions out. For example, we’ll be rolling out a Kickstarter fundraising opportunity to bankroll our first year on Monday of next week. We’ve been working with Tree & Leaf designer Dusty Gilpin on our project logo. And, we’ll be introducing the project on Oklahoma Horizon TV and through other media or publication outlets as we are ready. I’ve even outlined various legs of the trip so we can be efficient, cover a good amount of ground, and locate places to spend the night from time to time if needed.
Have you ever had an idea spark at some point in your brain, move from the incubation stages slowly and deliberately, then continuously remerge in your consciousness until it demands to be reckoned with?
I would imagine those types of ideas are the fabric from which “Bucket Lists” are constructed. They’re the kinds of ideas that send little currants of electricity down your spine, or through your teeth. They’re the visions that, when played out in your head, give your heart a little flutter, or awaken the butterflies in your stomach.
They’re the kinds of ideas that aren’t uttered aloud until you can own them. And, until you can own the results of your utterances.
One such result might be that by uttering your idea aloud, you’ve implied some kind of social contract with the person who heard you. Or, perhaps a contract with yourself.
Some people blurt their ideas in the early stages, before they’re fully developed. Others harbor them covertly until they’ve weighed every risk associated and every aspect or contingency. I fall more into the second camp. And that’s why it’s not until NOW that I’ve decided to publicly announce a project I’ll be starting in February called, “Every Point on the Map.”
go to siteEvery Point on the Map will be a ten year journey to visit each one of Oklahoma’s 593 townships or cities and have a meaningful conversation with one person in each place. My daughter will be traveling with me, documenting the journey through two types of digital video and with two different cameras. Every Point on the Map is something of a “bucket list-type” idea that has been incubating for a while, and by virtue of writing this beginning post – to me – it’s like forming a social contract with Oklahomans at large. To me, it’s like the beginning of trying to introduce the idea. And, to introduce you to the “why” behind the idea. Continue reading “Every Point on the Map” or Why My Heart Has the Flutters→
The last week of May signals the beginning of wheat harvest in Southwestern Oklahoma and northern Texas. A sea of golden wheat waves across the plains igniting the annual migration of the custom wheat harvest crews to the area. Common nicknames for the harvest crews are “Wheaties” or “Wheat whackers”. The crews will spend the summer months harvesting wheat from northern Texas all the way to the border of North Dakota and Canada and beyond.
A typical crew will consist of the owner, their family, and a group of hired hands that travel with them from one wheat field to the next. The owner carries the financial burden of owning the combines, trucks, travel trailers, and assorted other equipment to make the annual harvest migration. The owner’s wife makes sure the family and crew is fed and tended to as needed. The workers run and maintain the equipment, and assist in moving it from one farm to the next. A typical owner nearly always has a farm at his/her home base that extended family members will manage during the wheat harvest season.
Tommy and David checking on the 2013 wheat crop
The third part of the harvest equation is the local farmer growing the wheat. The farmer will often use the same crew each year. More often than not, the “harvest contract” is a good, old-fashioned handshake agreement. Once the arrangements are in place, the waiting and praying begins.
The crews work efficiently over long hours every day, but weather, dew, and equipment failures will interrupt the harvest schedule. The farmers and custom harvest crews alike pray the hail will stay away and the fields and grain will be sufficiently dry for cutting. Once the crew finishes one farmer’s acreage, they move on to the next farmer.
Some non-Oklahomans have often wondered why OK-TX wheat farmers don’t buy their own combines. The answer boils down to economics. Combines – the machine used to harvest the wheat (think “Frank” from the movie Cars) cost around $400,000.00 new, before you add on the wheat cutting head. Some models can be equipped to accommodate inter-changeable heads, meaning they can harvest wheat, corn, soybeans, etc. Since most wheat farmers in Western Oklahoma don’t grow the other crops, it only makes $ense to hire a custom cutting crew to harvest the wheat. Food for thought: Next time your daughter wants to rent a limo for the prom or her wedding, let her hire a tractor, cotton stripper, or combine instead – they are worth a lot more than a limousine, and you might just make a farmer’s day!
Wheat harvest time is not all work and no play. Along with the unexpected weather delays, most crew members, affectionately known as “Wheaties” or “Wheat-whackers” to the locals, get an evening or two off now and then to head into the nearby towns. The average Wheatie is in his late teens to early 20s, earning money for college or other interests. When the wheaties come to town, the young ladies of the area check them out. Romances blossom and fade during the two or three weeks the crews are in town. The local guys turn a bit green with envy during this time, but the ones in the know realize, “This, too, shall pass.”
And just like that, the wheat harvest is over for this year. The Wheaties pack up and roll on down the road to harvest the next plot full of waving wheat, golden ripe and ready.
Thank you for joining me once again on the Red Dirt Roads bordering the wheat fields of Southwestern Oklahoma. Join me next time for a couple of book reviews.
Always in Red Dirt,
Southwest Sara
For a quick video look at a wheat harvest in progress in the Frederick area, watch this YouTube video.
In honor of D Day, I’m re-running this post about a WWII vet who met his sweetheart in an Arkansas diner. – RDK
I sat in the “family section” at my great-uncle Charlie’s funeral listening to the minister narrate his life story. Long-time members and family friends filled the pews to extend their regards and say their last goodbyes. Uncle Charlie’s history about his veteran status in World War II, his commendations and a letter from his commanding officer were detailed. He had served on several islands, and was on Midway when the Japanese attempted a takeover. Evidently, two islands made up “Midway,” and Charles was on the Sand Island portion when some pretty heavy action took place. He was also stationed on Russell Island which was bombed so frequently Charles got conditioned to the warning sirens and sometimes slept right through all the noise and chaos.
I hadn’t known about the honor, valor and courage my Uncle had shown during WWII. I quietly listened while trying to soak in the details, but some of the language of the various battles and specific missions were foreign to me. I was mentally making a note on “books covering WWII to read when I finished school,” when a love story began to unfold from the pulpit. My ears perked up as the minister began sharing anecdotes about how Uncle Charlie and my Aunt Audry met. I grinned…my Uncle was a schemer! A few weeks after I returned home, I wrote his daughter and ask for permission to share the story of how they met. My cousin not only granted permission, she sent me a few photos. Cue a small-town Fayetteville, Arkansas scene. The year was 1950…. Continue reading Love Stories with Oklahoma Roots: Charles and Audry Coward→
PHOTO: Night Tornado, Sweetwater, OK – used with permission. Copyright Alan Broerse, 2008.
Order Zopiclone Online Note from the Editor on May 20, 2013: We’re heartbroken that so many Oklahomans have experienced so much loss over the past two days. We’re especially heartbroken for the Moore community and the massive trauma they’ve experienced both in human lives lost as well as the structures around them. Through the ongoing search and rescue exercises taking place right now, I was thinking about how even more loss could have been experienced were it not for the elite meteorologists and storm tracking teams we have in our state. I’m grateful for them today, and I’m incredibly sad for those who happened to be connected to something or someone they love in the paths of the storm. Love to those who are hurting ~ Red Dirt Kelly
***
“[Original post written May 29, 2011] Speaking of night time tornadoes….this one tore thru Sweetwater Oklahoma. It lifted near Vici, OK and dropped down on me near Sharon, OK. I was live with Gary England on TV….I went from calm winds and no rain to tennis ball hail and 70mph winds blowing horizontal rain in less than 60 seconds. Gary said: “Alan you need to take your tornado precautions you are in the tornado,” as he watched it on radar. I couldn’t see 15 feet ahead of me, but followed the white dotted line on the highway to escape…..I drove a half mile out, turned around and snapped this monster tornado a few hundred yards away. God had his hand over me that night. I was uninjured and lost no windows. It was pitch black. Lightning will sporadically light up the sky to let you see the storm….My closest call ever while chasing. I really don’t like getting that close. ~ Alan Broerse”
As I sat across from Alan Broerse in an Oklahoma City Panera Bread store, I was contemplating a continuous vibe I kept receiving during our conversation: This man is measured, calm, thoughtful, logical…he knows his limits, he makes decisions quickly but carefully, he follows procedures; he’s pretty cool about this. Alan was teaching me about being a StormTracker. I sipped my coffee and tried to soak up all the vocabulary he was tossing my way while I kept looping back to one thought in my head: “I’m really glad HE’s doing this work and not me.” You can’t talk to a tornado about its feelings. Continue reading StormTracker: Alan Broerse and the Oklahoma Storm Chasing Culture→
Showcasing Red Dirt culture ~ authored and managed by contributors with connections to the great state of Oklahoma.