This week, starting Wednesday night, we got a record-setting 10.4" of snow on top of 1-2" of sleet, ice, and freezing rain. Tulsa's annual average snowfall is about 9". Three regional turnpikes were closed because they were impassable. Road conditions were and remain deplorable. There just isn't enough snow removal equipment.
Even now, the third full day after the storm commenced, there has not been a single snowplow go down State Highway 97. In Sapulpa, I saw a city dump truck with a sand spreader following a road grader. At 5 mph, it will take a while to clear their stretch of that highway. The other 10-12 miles of it, who knows?
Thursday, I drove Roxy to her job. She called later saying they were closing early. I made my way up a mostly single-lane I-44 into Tulsa to pick her up. That drive home was probably the worst winter driving experience I've ever had and I spent over 20 years living at almost 7000 feet elevation in Wyoming and Colorado and in northern Utah where the annual snowfall is 80" or more.
Then there's the temperatures, yesterday morning it was a record-setting 11F; this morning, another record, 8. The normal low for this time of year is 34F. And, even though we've warmed up on the highs to 37, the normal is 54
Worst yet, my company Xmas party was cancelled. And I wasn't told, so I dressed to the nines and showed up only to find the parking lot of the facility unplowed. Actually, the event was rescheduled for Jan. 5th, notice was sent out by email, which wasn't working due to some virus or something. I don't know, I've been on days off. Xmas party on Jan. 5th? I don't know if I'll be able to attend. I'm pretty sure my Xmas spirit will have waned by then.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
The movie is scheduled to open in December. Like his other recent movie, Jesus Chainsaw Massacre, all spoken parts are in some dead or near-dead language from another era, hopefully with subtitles.
Mel Gibson did not make a personal appearance at the movie screenings held at the Riverwind Casino in Goldsby, Oklahoma and at Cameron University in Lawton. He did, however, don a mask and wig when he visited Cameron University Thursday morning, according to Jhane Myers, an Oklahoma City publicist, who accompanied Gibson during the visit.
Mel Gibson was in attendance at his new movie Apocalypto's first public showing at the Choctaw Nation's Riverwind Casino Friday night. All 12,000 of the $55 seats were sold. That coupled with corporate donations of more than $150,000 totalled over $800,000 raised will go to the Lupus Foundation of America — Oklahoma Chapter, the Indian Health Care Resource Center of Tulsa, the Oklahoma City Indian Clinic and the Mayan people of Mexico.
I wonder, how many of the donors were Jews?
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
Kelsey Lundsford's car began sliding backwards on an uphill stretch of road. Kelsey got out to try and stop the backwards slide. She lost her footing on the slick road surface and the car slid over her, pinning her underneath. Ms. Lundsford was found, rescued and taken to the hospital to be treated for leg injuries and burns from the catalytic converter.
Charles Darwin unavailable for comment.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
Okay, maybe not quite, Elinor Coleman of Bristow, Oklahoma says her marriage to Gene has never been perfect, she says, "because perfect doesn't exist." The couple were married Nov. 28, 1929. Now, "we sit here and look at each other." Which is a good thing, being that they are 94 and 96 years young.
Paul Harvey strangely silent on this enduring marriage.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
When Frank Canton was eulogized by Oklahoma Adjutant General C.F. Barrett in 1927 he said Frank's tombstone should read "Here lies a man." Canton came to Oklahoma soon after the opening of the Cherokee Strip in 1889, becoming a deputy sheriff in Pawnee. He served in that capacity from 1894 to 1897, when he left to become a U.S. Marshal in the Alaska Gold Rush.
Canton returned to Oklahoma in 1901, becoming deputy marshal at Perry, then bodyguard to gubernatorial candidate Charles Haskel during his campaign to become Oklahoma's first governor. After Haskell was elected he appointed Canton to serve as the state's first Adjutant General. In that position he headed the Oklahoma National Guard despite having no military experience.
Canton did have some experience killing. He was born Joe Horner in Virginia, moved with his family to Texas as a teen, became a cowboy and drover, herding cattle up to Kansas. He turned to bank robbery and cattle rustling after killing one Army soldier and wounding another in a fight in Jacksboro, Texas. Arrested in 1877, he was sent to prison. After two years, he escaped to Wyoming, changed his identity and was hired to capture cattle rustlers by the Wyoming Cattleman's Association.
Bill Tilghman unavailable for comment.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
Edmond, Oklahoma man calls police after finding what turned out to be cocaine in the toy department at Walmart. A small baggie containing about 1 gram of cocaine was stuffed inside a pack of cigarettes left lying on a shelf.
Nosey sumbitch.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
Despite concerns of a rabid Bush supporter on the city council, the council unanimously voted to honor the rock band Flaming Lips with their name on an alleyway in the trendy Bricktown area of downtown Oklahoma City, not far from Toby Keith's I Love This Bar. Flaming Lips Street joins Vince Gill Avenue and Charlie Christian Avenue.
"I get off on Flaming Lips" said the rider to the trolley driver.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
Someone has been dropping gold Krugerrands into the Salvation Army bell ringer kettles. It's been happening since the 1970s, not every year, but for the last two years in a row. It's also in a different location each time, making it even more difficult to pinpoint who the benefactor might be. Despite receiving a coin worth $600-700, Salvation Army collections in the Tulsa Area are down by about $40K this year.
I gave at the office. No, really, I did.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
Edmond, Oklahoma jail is removing jail cell telephones after a suicide last week. An inmate used the cord to hang himself. They are going to replace the phones with a type that doesn't have a cord (speakerphone? cordless?) Inmates are allowed to make collect calls only on the phones, 40% of the fees are kicked back to the jail.
I'd like to kickback [to jail] the dipshit that called my house with those $8 phone calls.
In general, I think allowing inmates access to phones like that is a bad thing, especially if they're in jail for harassment or spousal abuse. Even if you don't take the call, it is irritating as hell to get those calls at all hours of the clock. The jailers won't do anything at all about them either.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
Someone has been dropping gold Krugerrands into the Salvation Army bell ringer kettles. It's been happening since the 1970s, not every year, but for the last two years in a row. It's also in a different location each time, making it even more difficult to pinpoint who the benefactor might be. Despite receiving a coin worth $600-700, Salvation Army collections in the Tulsa Area are down by about $40K this year.
Note, practicing dentistry without a license is only a misdemeanor in Oklahoma. However, he may face fraud and forgery charges for the forged license and diploma he showed KOTV news reporters and had on display in his living room dental office.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
Because New Year's Eve falls on a Sunday, people are stuck with Oklahoma's arcane liquor laws that, in most counties, prohibit on-site alcohol consumption on Sundays. Many will start serving at midnight, but until then you will have to "warm up" with low alcohol beer if you're partying out this year.
Sometimes I long for the olden "brown bag" days.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
Two young lesbians in Ada, Oklahoma were attacked because of their sexual orientation. In one attack Sara Kasperiet was thrown to the ground by two men who jumped out of a black truck. While holding her down, they carved the word "LESBIAN" carved into her forearm. Ms. Kaspereit is still on crutches after the Dec. 4th attack.
In the other, Brenda Johnson was taking a walk in the woods, was hit from behind and knocked unconscious. Ms. Johnson woke up blindfolded and tied to a tree with "HELLBOUND" written deeply with an ink pen on her chest. Ms. Johnson says she has no idea who did this and that she doesn't even flaunt her sexuality.
Sad commentary.
Reverend Fred Phelps would claim he wasn't anywhere near either one of them if he were available for comment, but he would say they're going to hell.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
A K-9 unit was brought on-scene as backup. The dog alerted on a stuffed toy. The police found $53,000 in the stuffed animal. Further searching revealed a total of $918,185, a sum a little hard to explain. The cash, weighing about 100 pounds, has been sent to the OBI for testing as to the type of drugs the money had been exposed to. If the money is seized, Vinita stands to get 40% of it, more than their entire police department budget for the year.
This just feeds my dream of some drug kingpin dropping a dufflebag full of money into my yard when the feds start chasing his plane. I ain't tellin' nobody why I always have a Jed Clampett size roll of hundred dollar bills on me.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
"I'm just doing my job." whines Oklahoma State Board of Pharmacy director Bryan "Mister" Potter as he is trying to force Target and Walmart stores to raise prices on their highly publicized $4 generic precriptions after a few stick-up-their-butt pharmacists complained. Both store chains claim to not be selling generic prescriptions for less than their cost. As stated above, the law only requires a 6% markup over cost.
Walmart and Target should tell Mr. Potter to go Scrooge himself.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
Ada, Oklahoma's Poor Buffalo family has had a run of bad luck recently. First, their house burned down due to faulty wiring. The Red Cross found them temporary housing while they wait for more permanent placement plus an assistance card to be used to buy necessities. The card was stolen along with Shanna Poor Buffalo's purse while she was shopping.
Then, their truck rolled out of their temporary home's driveway into a ravine. Carl Poor Buffalo had parked it in gear, but it popped out of gear, rolling across the street, striking a pipe guard around a fire hydrant, and through a fence or two before coming to rest against a sapling, which prevented it rolling into the ravine.
Don't be surprised if this story doesn't end with a: She met another and :phfft:, she was gone.
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
A Tulsa woman is just nuts over Christmas. Janet Taylor literally has at least one Xmas tree in every room in her house, including the bathrooms and the utility room. The big tree downstairs stays up all year long. In the house there are 30 trees, 22 nativity scenes, 21 snow globes, 38 sheep, nine camels, and ten donkeys according to the owner's inventory. One bathroom with a tree also has a shelf displaying gingerbread houses.
Ewww! Aren't gingerbread houses supposed to be edible?
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Sleep - the most beautiful experience in life - except drink.--W.C. Fields
Re: Only in Oklahoma...
F; this morning, another record, 8
Your comment is the best part of the story.
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