In February of 2015, a terrible fire ravaged downtown Barnsdall, Oklahoma. It wasn't the first time - many buildings in town have been lost to fire over the years, actually - but this one had a very specific family connection. My great-aunt Estelle ran a beauty parlor in town for most of her life. Her … Continue reading The Barnsdall Letterpresses
It's odd how the days in 2020 seem to stretch on forever, yet at the same time they become a compressed, jumbled mess in my memory. A lot of that is COVID, sure, but part of that is grief and other stresses. The last few months I've done some scattered traveling but all of my … Continue reading Pieces of the Road
It's been a little over seven years since I received that terrible phone call, the one that signaled a new age of my life. It's a little surreal to look back at my world at the time of my father's sudden passing. I feel like I was just a kid then, even though I was … Continue reading The March of Time
Thursday was my 35th birthday. Over the last few years, I've developed a tradition of taking a road trip on my birthday. Last year I drove up Route 66 to see Afton Station for the first time. The year before that was also spent on 66; I ate at Clanton's Cafe in Vinita for the first time. … Continue reading A Day in the Osage
In the middle of February, a fire gutted a couple of buildings in downtown Barnsdall, Oklahoma. Oddly enough, this was not a surprise; I feel like a good chunk of my memories tied to that town are related to burning. I remember staying with my grandparents as a kid when the old church at the end of School … Continue reading Pressing Luck
Rhys' Pieces 