Monthly Archives: March 2014

Turkey Mountain in the Rain – Our World

Saturday I went to Tulsa’s popular Turkey Mountain park and did a little hiking. It is never very crowded once you get a quarter mile from the parking lot but what few people there were seemed to vanish when it started raining. The temperature was in the sixties and I didn’t care about getting wet. I did care about lightning so I took the above shot and got away from those powerlines.

The park has a surprising number of ponds (for some reason ponds are lakes on the mountain). Last summer they dried up. It is nice to see water in them.

I spent about two hours and found three of the seven new geocaches in the park and then left. Two hours well spent in my book.

Our World Tuesday

Scavenger Hunt Sunday – Blue Doorway Edition

Doorway

On the east side of downtown Tulsa there is a blue doorway. I don’t know who owns it or where it goes but lots of people show up to to take pictures of it or pose people around it. I love it.

Candid

Saturday night and Logan is performing with other teens at Tulsa’s Clark Theater. Lots of fun and candid shots on show night.

Open

Several years ago Tulsa converted their downtown mall back to streets with a traffic circle around a fountain. The fountain has taken dings from various drunk drivers. Lately the latest high tech drunk driver proof fountain, within the circle, at the square opened up. We locals are keeping our fingers crossed that it makes it through Saint Patrick’s Day. I’ll keep you posted.

Look Up

The Arch in Saint Louis is something to behold.

Stuffed

Because of Oklahoma’s strange liquor laws we can’t get New Belgium Brewery products like Fat Tire beer. So I stuff my shopping cart when I am out of state.

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

A City in Four Photographs

Downtown Tulsa from the south. It is a different view than most. It actually has a little bit of a big city feel to it.

Thursday was a whirlwind day. Heather and I had some personal business to attend to first thing in the morning so we drove Logan up to his school in east Tulsa and then drove to south of south Tulsa to the ‘burb of Bixby. Bixby is growng really fast and they have done a piss poor job of planning (“‘excuse my French”) because they have only one major north south street and so things get pretty tied up. We got there a little late but then we had to wait. So guess we were early not late.

@thedianasblog #DianaPhotoApp #DianaPhoto #DoubleExposure #Diana #photoApp #myEdit #like #camera #vintage #art #insta #instaphoto #hipster #gradient #yolo #niceone #pinkphoto #friends #alternative #oneokplaza #downtowntulsa #igersok

This is a double exposure. I used an Ipod Touch App called “Diana.” It takes two random photographs and mashes them together. You just keep shaking the device until you get something you like. I would say that only about one out of twenty combinations is halfway interesting. Still kind of fun to play with.

Then we drove back home and I drove downtown to work. And then to north Tulsa to Tulsa Country Club for the Natural Gas and Energy Association of Oklahoma Meeting and some networking. There I met our just retired CEO in the parking lot. I think he was going golfing, it was strange seeing him all casually dressed. Nice guy, very intense but a very nice guy.

I don’t know what it is but I love the fire escapes in the old buildings downtown. I just wonder what they would be like to actually use. I don’t think women in heels would do very well on these.

Back to the office and then back to south Tulsa for a meeting to clear up some confusion with a customer. Confused customers are not happy customers in my opinion. My coworker that drove was just winging it on the location of the customer’s office so we went round and round for a bit. We drove by Logan’s friend Doc’s house at one point. We got there, and unconfused the customer I think.

Downtown Tulsa from the "Spider" on Turkey Mountain

Downtown Tulsa from the south end of Turkey Mountain Park. I love Turkey Mountain and how it is a wilderness in the middle of the city. We need wilderness in the middle of our cities.

And then back downtown and a bunch of people stopping by saying “Did you read my email?” No, I didn’t read your fricking email dude. I get about 150 emails a day at work a day. I don’t really read them.anymore. I’ve checked, there is actually no company policy that says you have to read your email. Our policies and procedures cover everything under the sun so if they wanted me to read email they would have a policy in place telling me to do so. Do you feel less of me for not reading my work email? Information Overload is what I call it. The youngin’s don’t bother with email either. They “Instant Message” all their stuff. But only with cool, hip, people. So I don’t get IM’d

Do you read all your email at work?

Skywatch Friday – First Run of the Year on Turkey Mountain

Daylight savings time is here and so I went running on Turkey Mountain after work for the first time since the Fall. I loved it. It was very windy and cold down on the river trails where I had been running but the woods on the mountain cut the wind to nothing. I did a slow and comfortable 3 miles or so and stopped and took lots of pics. As usual once I got a half mile from the parking lot I saw only three or four other people. It was great.

I saw a couple stringing up hammocks next to what I call “Wagon Wheel Lake” near the old parking lot. I don’t know what is up with that. Camping is a no-no on the mountain. Oh well!

Skywatch Friday

A Noon Walk in Four Photographs

This work tickles me. I have no idea what it is about or why it is there so I call it Tulsa’s Tribute to Exotic Dancers. I mean exotic dancers need love too right?

I’m not one of those who can just work all morning and then grab a sandwich and work while eating and then keep on working. I know people like that and I feel sorry for them. Working your fingers to the bone gets you bony fingers is my motto. Especially on a beautiful day like Tuesday. So after I ate my lunch I fired the Hipstamatic app on my Ipod Touch and off I went to the Brady District, just over the tracks from downtown for a little walk.

I’m going to go into the Hunt Club in the Brady District one day after work and get me a beer. I’m going to do that even though I am not near enough a cool person enough to go do that.

In addition to my Ipod I took along my wide brimmed hat. You see I have a little touch, (non serious, and treatable) of skin cancer on my forehead, face, and hands. So I got the big trifecta treatment (that is what I call it). I got a bunch of lesions froze off and then last week I had a little “burn and scrape” on my forehead and then I got the “chemotherapy cream” that I put on my forehead three times over the weekend.

It tickles me that the Woody Guthrie Museum is in Oklahoma. Oklahoma is in bad need of Woody Guthrie therapy.

So now my forehead looks horrible. It is all broken out and red and draining a little. I’m getting stared at in meetings and a young lady asked me in the elevator today if I was okay. I’m great and getting better every day is what I told her. I told her that it looked worse than it felt. I told her that the old skin is peeling and new skin is underneath. Dang, what is it taking so long to get to the first floor!? I could tell she felt really sorry for me and that I was just trying to be positive about it. She told me as we got out that she hoped everything was going to be okay. Yeah, well I do too.

I have to tell you, I love almost everything there is about trains and railroads.

So, I really am okay! But I’m putting on extra sunscreen and wearing my big ole funny looking wide brimmed SPF 50 hat when I’m outside. My dermatologist tells me that she and I will be seeing each other twice a year or so for many years to come. Makes me glad that I picked such a young pretty one is what I say.

What kind of precautions are you taking these days?

A Tale of Woe in Four Photographs

#snapseed #spooky #creepy #apartments #downtowntulsa #igersok

How can a place be sunny and dark all at the same time?

Sunday was a great day, cool, sunny, and clear. Heather went shopping with her Mom.

Logan and I decided to go close to downtown to see what what we could see. I took along my Holga 135 PC Pinhole Camera.

Logan at #cainsballroom in the #bradydistrict #tulsa #oklahoma #igersok

Kid has never heard of Bob Wills.
Did you know that Bob Will’s grave is a virtual geocache here in Tulsa?

We checked out Cain’s Ballroom, or at least the sign and Reunification Plaza, the Meadowgold Sign on Route 66, and ONEOK Field.

We never figured out what the deal was with the shopping carts. We liked the color though.

We checked out the murals behind the Living Art. I shot a whole roll of 36 exposures.

I dropped them off at Walgreen’s and then came home. Heather came home and we went to the Rib Crib for some Q.

#selfie by Logan at #livingarts #mural #art #publicart #downtowntulsa #oklahoma #igersok

How do you like my new girlfriend?
She certainly has a full set of teeth.

After the Q, I went back to Walgreen’s and not a single exposure was usable.

Bummer.

It was still a good day though.

Thank Goodness for Smart Phone Cameras and Ipods.

Our World – Cold, Wet, Rainy and Skunked – More Geocaching at Tulsa’s Mohawk Park

(Selfie at the end of my geocaching jaunt)

Saturday it was about 36F and rainy. I had some time after dropping the kid off at his Improv class so I went back to Mohawk Park to do some more geocaching. The forecast was cold and rainy but I thought they were just kidding about the wet part. They weren’t kidding. The joke was on me but I didn’t mind. I got to for a long walk in the woods and that was the whole point. I was warm enough even though I was wearing too much cotton. I have all sorts of high tech clothing to keep me dry and warm in the rain. I don’t wear any of it when going into the woods. The thorns tear that expensive stuff right up. Let them tear up old cheap cotton is what I say.

I met Pepe LePew. He didn’t stop to chat and that was okay with me. He looked injured to me. You don’t generally see these critters moving out in open country in the middle of the day.

A creek was up. I love the sight of rain drops hitting water. Reminds me of when I was just a little kid in central Utah fishing for trout in the rivers and streams. It seemed like the trout were easier to catch under such conditions. Plus the rain seems to amplify the solitude and dampen out outside noise there was. I’m all about the solitude when I’m in the woods.

I found the cache I was looking for. The one at the farthest reach of the park. I’m wanting to find caches like these before the weather warms up too much bringing with it ticks, chiggers, poison ivy, and snakes. Late Fall and Winter is really the golden time for woods geocaching. The reduced leaf cover makes for better Global Positioning System Receiver (“GPSR”) readings necessary to find the caches.

If the weather had been better I had enough time to find a few more caches but I was getting cold and I’ll be back another day. There are over two million geocaches in the world. I don’t have to find them all. That reminds of a joke but since I’m really trying to keep this humble blog G rated I’ll pass on telling it for now. Just take it from me, it is a good joke.

Geocaching 101

Our World Tuesday

InSPIREed Sunday – Tulsa Bible Baptist Temple

I’ve been meaning to stop and take a few pics of the Bible Baptist Temple on Apache Street close to Tulsa’s Airport for a while. I waited until it was raining to do so.

What has always attracted me to it is the unique A Frame structure. You might see A Frames in Brighton, Utah or Aspen, Colorao but not too many of them are in Tulsa. There is also no windows, at least that one can see from the street. They have a web site and a facebook site with a little bit of information (I love how they incorporated “aframe” into their web address). So I really don’t have much information about what they are about.

The grounds and parking lot are kept in pretty good shape at least.

Do you have any “A Frame” style churches near where you live?

InSPIRed Sunday

Scavenger Hunt Sunday – Mini Edition and Birthday Hints

Mini

Mini, Mini, what could be mini? I like mini skirts but I don’t have one single picture of one. Cuz I may be a lech but not so bad as to where I go take pictures of women in mini skirts. So for mini I am going for my Diana Mini film camera. It is a plastic 35 mm camera that I use a lot. Above is a picture of Heather riding a bicycle beside me. And it is March so hopefully bike riding weather will be back!!

Shoes

This Heather and I at the movies. I post lots of pictures of my boots on Instagram with the tag “#cowboybootsfornoncowboys” You see I grew up out in the sticks of the mountain west with cowboys. I have relatives who are cowboys and I like cowboys but I am not one. I knew that from a very early age that I liked the big city. I like cowboy boots though. I love’em as a matter of fact. My 59 days of birthday is coming up next month and I could use a another pair of boots just in case you are wondering what to get me. Just saying.

Hey by the way if you are on Instagram lets be friends!! I am yogiab if you want to link up.

Mirror Mirror

I love mirrors and taking pictures of myself and others in mirrors. I know that it is suddenly fashionable to say you don’t like selfies. I have never been fashionable. Above is Heather and I at a restaurant. I always have at least three cameras with me these days. A small point and shoot, my android smart phone, and an ipod touch. No selfies for about three weeks though. In the continuing saga of my skin issues I started a three day regimen of stuff on my forehead that will kill any remaining bad cells. I can tell that my appearance is going to get worse (if that is possible!!!) before it gets better. Buy hey its all good.

Shopping

Shopping, I hate shopping unless I am doing a Kohl’s run. This is from Country Club Plaza in Kansas City. They have a huge multiblock outdoor type shopping center. Don’t these people look like they are having fun. My favorite is the blonde girl in the black outfit with her arms folded, the strange socks and the black boots. I’m guessing that she is with her parents. I love the girl’s boots. I would like a pair of black Doc Marten boots (note another Birthday Hint!!). I have a pair of “dress” Doc Martens and I love them. It took a while to break them in and now I wear them a lot.

And yes I have a bad habit of inventing stories about random people. Sitting on a bench in a busy area like an airport or shopping center and making up stories about the people I see is fun for me. Heather doesn’t like it. So I do it here from time to time.

Just Because

This is a “Tiny Planet” photo of downtown Tulsa taken from the northwest side. Tiny Planet photos are folded around on themselves. If you are smart and have photoshop you can make them. Or you can download an App on your smart phone if you are not so smart and don’t have photoshop. I just love tiny planet photos. I can tell my Instragram friends are tired of them. So I’m inflicting them on you. I don’t feel sorry for you though. You already put with a lot from me. And I appreciate it!

Scavenger Hunt Sunday

Skywatch Friday – Golden Glow on and above the Arkansas River

Another photograph of the sunset from my old office. I know that I had a similar photograph last week but hey I’m doing it again. The “second” sun left of the “real” sun is is a reflection from window that I am taking the picture through.

The season for these kind of shots is coming to a close when daylight savings time starts. I love the sunset shots but I already work until six. I’ll have to get out and find something else to take pictures of until late Fall.

Skywatch Friday