See me? Okay, the city I'm in is not actually on the map, but we'll forgive whoever made this little map. I'm about in the "r" of "Bartlesville". And, it's gorgeous outside! The sun is shining! It's cool!! There's a nice, pleasant breeze and I can drive around with the windows open!!!! I love my home state.So, I drove up on Sunday and stopped at my beloved in-laws' house for supper (thank you, again!). They always feed me. Then, I drove the rest of the way because a storm was moving in and I didn't want to get stuck in it. I wish I'd had my camera handy. As I drove into Ponca City, the storm front was plainly visible and it looked -- I kid you not -- like that image of the shark on the Jaws poster turned sideways. Remember the dark, gaping jaw and the jagged teeth? The outer edge of the storm front was white against a darker sky, v-shaped. That was the Great White outline, you see. And, inside was black and ominous. Along the edge of the white front and the interior storm was the ragged fuzz of cloud that looked like teeth. And, of course, I was driving right into the jaws of doom, there. Wait till you've seen Jaws with lightning in his mouth. Creepy. After 10 1/2 hours of driving, the storm didn't faze me when I got myself unlaoded. I just slept right through it.
I'm still recovering, though. I look a little like I was in a fight. Like these guys, kind of puffy and black around the eyes (only I don't think I'm very green, apart from my shirt):
I should have plenty of reading time, since the TV is unplugged in my mother's house and there's nobody around to chat with (and no internet -- I'm at Burger King). More on that, later. I leave you with a bumper sticker that made me laugh (just before my son's driving made me scream):
Finished reading: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
Still plan to review, in spite of having to leave home without it: Sway by the Brafman Brothers . I will not let the fact that my husband stuck it in his briefcase and left his briefcase at work stop me. But, I have to find a second block of time to spend at Burger King.
Wahoos may be delayed. The camera hasn't come out of the bag because I've been so busy boxing and sorting, but I hope to get out, soon. You know, apart from the BK jaunts.
Happy, happy, joy, joy!
Bookfool, surrounded by big, blue sky
Holy crap. That Jaws thing probably would've done me in. I'm a big weenie when it comes to storms.
ReplyDeleteLove me some lizards. More and more all the time.
ANd LOL at the bumper sticker. As for the kiddo's driving, did you do an "air break?" I "air break" all the time when other people are driving.
I've only been in Oklahoma once, but what I saw of it was truly gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteGood luck.
LOLOL! And I love the bumper sticker!!
ReplyDeleteI've been through a little piece of OK once. Couldn't tell you where any more but I know I was there.
ReplyDeleteLove your description of the storm front! We had thunderboomers here today when I got up. Riley joined me on the love seat, which really doesn't work all that well but what do you do? Now it's just blowy and chilly.
Wish I could be there to help you.
cjh
Oklahoma is beautiful, isn't it? Although I've driven through some nasty storms there--glad you were able to snooze through it.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I've been thinking about you and your parents--mostly in regard to your response in your comments last week. My great aunt passed away a few years ago and since she didn't have any children a lot of that responsibility of selling her house (which I still miss everytime I travel to Utah since she was like a third grandmother to me), and distributing her things, and settling her accounts/life/etc fell upon her nieces and nephews. My mom had a really tough time with everything, so I saw a little bit of what she went through--Bottom line is that I hope everything goes well for you during this time of transition. It's not much--but there you go. :D
I hope that you have a good trip and can get some reading done.
ReplyDeleteThat one lizard with his mouth open is kinda freaking me out. He looks like he's hissing and not a morning person.
Glad you're safe and the storm didn't toss you into Kansas! Be well, dear friend.
ReplyDelete*waving* Hi from Kansas! (You're almost close enough to arrange a meet-and-greet, huh?)
ReplyDeleteI was happy when I saw the map. Got a little lump in my throat when I saw Lawton.
ReplyDeleteDid you enjoy that book? I have read its name everywhere and yet I have no clue what's it about, but I always forget to check it for a synopsis.
ReplyDeleteAnyways I finally managed to update myself on my trip around Blogsville and you are one of my pit stops. I see you are on the move as well and what a frightening move.
PS: Happy Reading time!
Have fun!! I haven't been to Oklahoma since my brother left Ft. Sill! I used to have relatives in Miami, but I think most have moved on. Pretty little town, though!
ReplyDeleteHey Andiloo,
ReplyDeleteI'm not such a storm wienie, having grown up here. I guess you get used to it, although I do go out of my way to avoid driving in rain. People are so stupid on slick roads.
LOL Me, too. Love those lizards and I'm still working on ya.
I do a lot of air braking, but that time I just screamed and grabbed the door handle. I remember it well. Kid needed sleep. :)
Debi,
Parts of Oklahoma are spectacular. Some bits are rather boring, but I happen to love wide, open spaces so even the boring parts thrill me.
Thank you. :)
J. Kay,
It's a hoot till you find that your son is rushing up toward the bumper sticker a bit too fast. LOL
CJ,
ReplyDeleteLet's pretend you drove through a different part of Oklahoma than my hometown because, obviously, my home would be memorable. ;)
I'm picturing you and Riley crammed together the thought made me chuckle. Too cute. I wish you could have seen that storm front. It was really amazing.
Aw, thanks. My sister came over for a few hours, today, and we made some progress. She didn't particularly like the fact that I had several boxes ready for her to haul right out the door ("Take them, take them!" I said), but we throw away a lot of junk when the two of us are together and that's good. :)
Trish,
I think Oklahoma is beautiful. I have a particular fondness for the rolling hills around Tulsa and the big, waving fields of wheat. The storms I can do without, but they're just part of life. You duck if you have to, sleep if you can.
That is so sweet, thanks. It's definitely a huge job going through 40+ years of living. My mom was, in general, not cluttery. But, still . . . lots of things crammed in closets and stuffed in drawers. And, I've never signed so many pieces of paper in my life. Sometimes, I just walk away for a while. Thanks, I really do appreciate the thoughts. :)
Nikki,
ReplyDeleteI'm squeezing in lots of reading. Wahoo! :)
The lizards . . . wow. That was such a fascinating sight. They puffed up and circled each other and bit at each other till one fell off the wall. Then, the victor puffed up his pink dewlap thing to gloat and the other guy just looked pissed. It was fascinating. And, it was evening. I doubt either of them are morning people (so to speak).
Les,
Thank you, babe. You can see it wouldn't take much to get tossed into Kansas. I think I'm about 15 miles from the state line. :)
Melissa,
Waving back! Yes, as a matter of fact, we're pretty close. Wichita is just a 90-minute drive from PC. We used to go to Wichita all the time; my great-aunt Martha lived there (and the parents shopped there, since PC was kind of pitiful when we were young).
Bybee,
ReplyDeleteYou have fond memories of Lawton, huh? I love Oklahoma and I'm always thrilled to come back, no matter how long or short a time I'm away. It's a lump-in-the-throat memorable kind of place, definitely. :)
Daydream,
Hmmm, are you referring to Sway or Eat, Pray, Love? I loved both. Sway is about irrational behavior and it's excellent. My husband said he's going to buy a few copies to pass around at work. Eat, Pray, Love -- loved it. I'll bet you're asking about Sway. Am I right?
I'm a pit stop? I like that. LOL Yeah, I'm going back and forth. I wish it was for better reason. I'm having to clean out the house I grew up in to prepare it to sell and it's a miserable, painful job. Plus, those storms are a nuisance. I hear we're going to be stuck with storms most of the next week. Argh. I'll have to see where you're moving. I'm low on time and can't really blog-hop, right now. I can peek in on a couple, though, if I'm fast. :)
Stephanie,
ReplyDeleteFt. Sill! I have a bumper sticker from my childhood that says something about "My Man is ?? in Today's Army at Ft. Sill". I'm not sure whether Ft. Sill is still even in operation, with all the closings in recent years. Someone will probably correct me.
I know of Miami (including the weird way it's pronounced) but I've never been there. I'll just take your word for it. Sorry you don't have relatives in OK. So sad. It's a great place. I wish I could keep my mother's house and just use it as a place to escape in the summer. Wishful thinking.
You made it! A nice Sunday drive?
ReplyDeleteDid you finish Dreamy Dreams? Did the new cover make sense?
No net? Still? And, duh. Sorry.
Oh! I got the book in the mail Tuesday - I keep forgetting to let you know.
Carrie,
ReplyDeleteI made it! Yes, thanks, it was actually quite a pleasant, easy drive. I actually listened to an audio book!!!! It was awful, but it helped make the time pass. :)
I'm almost done with Dreamy Dreams and there's mention of a kimono twice in one story. That's it. I think they made an artistic faux pas.
Nah, no net. Just Burger King. And, I keep running out of battery power, whenever I'm here. Sigh.
Oh, good! Hope you like the book! Thanks for letting me know it arrived. :)
I was actually referring to Eat, Pray and Love. The title is quite catchy and that is what my attraction with it is.
ReplyDeleteAnyways I am sorry about the fact that you would have to sell your childhood house. Miserable indeed and I am not moving anywhere physically, just hopping around people's blogs to see what they are up to.
Howdy Bookfool!
ReplyDeleteJust stopped by to let you know the Sense of Place Contest is ready for entries! Good Luck if you choose to participate! :)
You sound so happy (especially for having a near death experience with the "Jaws" thing)! I love the energy coming from this post, like you're a ray of sunshine. Listen, I can think of something to do at Burger King: Get a Whopper with cheese! This from a girl who's trying to take off a few pounds this summer. Oh, and Eat, Pray, Love? Didn't love it, myself.
ReplyDeleteDaydream,
ReplyDeleteThat's what I thought. I really enjoyed Eat, Pray, Love. There was one section that bored me a little, but I liked the way that particular portion ended.
Emptying one's childhood home is not fun, but I'm glad I can at least be here to work on it. I'd hate to totally miss going through all the mementos.
Maggie,
Thanks! I'll join in if I can. :)
Bellezza,
Well, not so much today because I set my mother's alarm off, last night and then couldn't sleep (it is ear-shattering, let me tell ya) but I love my home state. I'd move back in a heartbeat. I'm sometimes a little wistful, but usually happy to be here.
I just had a Tendergrill. Yes, I'm really American but I don't eat hamburger. I've *always* hated hamburger!!! :)
The 'r' in Bartlesville is not far from where I mostly grew up in Fort Scott Kansas. I love the Midwest.
ReplyDeleteWish you could have had a pic of the storm. Glad you are safe. Love the bumpersticker.
Hope things are going well for you. We sure have had some awful storms. Last week was pretty scary. We spent a long time in the basement the night the four Boy Scouts were killed in a tornado in Little Sioux, Iowa. As much as I love summer, this weather can settle down any time now. My heart is breaking for all those affected by the floods!
ReplyDeleteVickie,
ReplyDeleteVery cool! My sister lives in Bartlesville. I love the area -- lots of great prairie critters to watch and photograph. Ponca City was a terrific place to grow up. I always love coming back. Me too -- love the Midwest. I wish I could have gotten a photo of that storm! It was quite an awesome sight. I won't forget that for a while. And, thank you. :)
Les,
Things are going great, although I finally realized it's the dust from all the sanding my BIL has done in Mom's house that's triggering a little asthma trouble, so I just bought an air purifier. Hoping that helps.
The storms have been unbelievable, haven't they? I'm glad you had a basement to hide in. I haven't seen photos, but a friend in Iowa said there was nothing left of the building the boy scouts took shelter in and that she was amazed anyone at all survived. Scary. Glad you guys are okay. Floods are always heartbreaking. I really need to get involved in the Katrina recovery effort when I'm all finished with work on my mom's house. There are still thousands of people living in tents on the Gulf Coast. Water ruins absolutely everything. I feel for those who are dealing with it right now, too.