I was startled awake Tuesday morning by a strange sound. As I stirred from a deep sleep, my brain tried to assign a source to this sound. At first, it sounded like the crackling of wood burning...which was slightly alarming. Then, I thought it was someone knocking on the bedroom door. As the last bit of fog … Continue reading Eastward Ho!
I get antsy before a big trip. What if I have a lousy time? What if I don't get any good pictures? What if I don't get to meet any new people? As with several areas in my life, I tend to go to worst-case-scenario in my brain before anything actually happens. One of the things … Continue reading The End is the Beginning
My rotating weekend schedule gave me Thursday off. Having a weekday off has its pros and cons. It sucks to not be able to spend time with my friends and family, and often the events I want to attend occur on the weekend. But, it does afford me the opportunity to hop in the car … Continue reading To the Chickasaw Capitol
Saturday was a special day! Not only did I get to take a drive, not only did Samantha join me, but I was able to start introducing her to some of my Route 66 family! Over the last six months, I've met dozens of people from all over the world that have become 'Friends for Life' … Continue reading Sharing my Route 66 World
On May 16th, I was halfway between Tulsa and Oklahoma City when the Mustang had a massive coolant system failure. After several hours of unproductive roadside assistance, I was towed back to Tulsa and out of commission for nearly a week thanks to a busted water pump and thermostat housing. Couple that event with the … Continue reading War Eagle & Crystal Bridges
Father's Day has been an ordeal for the last few years of my life. Back in January of 2011, my father died suddenly and unexpectedly. I wrote about it extensively on this blog and curled up in a hole for a while, consumed by my grief. I look back on that time as a strange … Continue reading Legends Never Die
Last week, a coworker approached me and mentioned that they were looking for some new artwork for the Call Center. He mentioned a few things they were looking for and asked if I had anything that he might be able to present for consideration. A few days later, I was looking at half-a-dozen poster size … Continue reading The River’s Edge
I love spending time in Guthrie. The first time I visited Oklahoma's original capital city, I came down with several friends to camp out at Cottonwood Flats to experience the Gentlemen of the Road outdoor music festival. About 35,000 people descended on a town of 10,000 for Alabama Shakes, Mumford and Sons, and a ton … Continue reading Queen of the Prairie
Most of my road trips lately have been solo journeys. My days off don't align perfectly with Samantha's currently, so I have been without a co-pilot during my jaunts down Route 66 or my exploration of forgotten bridges in the rural Oklahoma countryside. Sunday, however, was a different story. We both had the day off and spent … Continue reading Home of the Cherokee
My original plan for this weekend was to venture north to the Tallgrass Prairie with a few friends for a cleanup project, but that didn't pan out for me due to a high chance of rain and a cold that was trying to gain strength. Still, I had already taken Saturday off of work and found … Continue reading Change of Plan
Rhys' Pieces 