Oklahoma

[sabrinamari]

I feel GREAT! I'm home after what feels like endless weeks, but in actuality has only been six days. I'm so content with my life at this moment I could burst...

I plan to do a number of posts about what I've learned on this trip, but first, here are some of my favorite quotes and photos:

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From a middle school student paper, carefully saved by my dad:

"Mr. Chase is such a weird old man. UGH! I don't want to be old!" My father's response to this writer: "If you don't plan to be old, you have mighty few options."

Photos of my dad:












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From S., an awesome and clever professor at Oklahoma Baptist University and wife of an old friend:

Me: "It's really disappointing when students don't take you up on extra credit assignments, but they have their own agency. They can make their own choices."

S: "My students can't make their own choices. Most of them are Calvinists."

[If you don't get it, go here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Predestination]

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Quote on S.'s office wall, from a modern edition of the Bible: "Those who are wise will be revealed by their speech, but the stupid will be beaten with sticks".

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Also from S.: "I have actually had a student take several days of medical absence due to injuries sustained from dragging a bathtub behind a car."

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Phyllis, on Oklahomans in general: "Football is our religion. Weather is our hobby."

Photos of Phyllis and her daughter Gina:


Lovely Phyllis: Because I was visiting, it was a special occasion, so there was only the tiniest speck of concrete on her shirt:



This is Gina, roaring like a lion. Notice her carefully drawn on fur, whiskers and paws:



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Dorothy, describing the struggles of the small Unitarian Pagan group she just inherited: "We're from Oklahoma, where all the streets run in planned sections from north to south and east to west. OF COURSE we can find north. We just can't remember what it's associated with or what to do with it."

Assorted pictures from my trip:

My mom, who would only let me take one photo of her:



My dad's cross-stitch, done in Western Kansas as a child of ten:



For catpaw67:





For eoma_p:



General culture:

For infant girls, birth to six months:



"Testamints," found at Hobby Lobby, the Oklahoma equivalent of Michael's or A.C. Moore's:

front:


back:

Comments

[mage-imbroglio.livejournal.com]

Ya know, the fish mints come with a bible quote under the lid.

[sabrinamari.livejournal.com]

Wow. I didn't know.

[onyxtwilight.livejournal.com]

Fish mints. Holy crap.

[evcelt.livejournal.com]

At least they don't taste like fish.
...
...
...wait for it...
...
...
Then it would be holy carp!

[showingup.livejournal.com]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!


*rushes off to use this*

[shades-of-nyx.livejournal.com]

PINK John Deere socks! Awesome. I'd be the envy of all Vermont for hunting season. Must have.

[sabrinamari.livejournal.com]

Sadly, they are for infants, birth to six months.

[tigira.livejournal.com]

I'm sure ther's other pink John Deere stuff, though.

[sabrinamari.livejournal.com]

Lots!

[showingup.livejournal.com]

So glad it mostly worked out well :)

Give your parents our regards - it was really nice to see their photos, even though we only met them the once.

I was thinking of your Dad while listening to the archives of Utah Phillips's 'Loafer's Glory' - Phillips's dry delivery and sense of absurdity reminds me so much of my father-in-law's humour and your Dad's.

[sabrinamari.livejournal.com]

Damn, sounds like my dad would love that, whatever it is.

And thank you, honey.

[showingup.livejournal.com]

Hold your horses - you're not familiar with Utah Phillips??

[sabrinamari.livejournal.com]

Nope.

[showingup.livejournal.com]

Utah Phillips should be an American national treasure!

He collected songs, stories, poems and folklore from workers, strikers, hobos and activists, and spread them about all over the place. He and Bob Seeger and co made a huge contribution towards preserving the histories of working Americans.

He was a soldier in the Korean war before becoming a Christian pacifist anarchist, a hobo, a labourer, a singer-songwriter, a labour organiser, an activist for equality, a mentor to poets and performers (like Ani diFranco), and later a radio presenter on a Nevada City, California, local radio station (see the link to the archive of his Loafer's Glory programme up above).

He was a gem.

[evaelisabeth.livejournal.com]

Your family sounds like a hoot.

[sabrinamari.livejournal.com]

Yup. Among other things.

[tigira.livejournal.com]

Ro-Tel! I miss that stuff.

[spiffnolee.livejournal.com]

Most of them are Calvinists.
Made me LOL. So sadly true (though they don't know it), and the potential for abuse is enormous.

Thanks for sharing the pics, they're great!

[wgseligman.livejournal.com]

This is just a technical issue, but: It's taking longer to download all those pictures than it did to download the latest World of Warcraft patch. I'll teach you about resolution scaling sometime.

[sabrinamari.livejournal.com]

OK. I'm always happy to learn something new.

[citabria]

Hmm, for some reason I'm not getting any of the pics -- I'm getting spots for them, but not the pics themselves. Hopefully that'll clear up later. But....

Quote on S.'s office wall, from a modern edition of the Bible: "Those who are wise will be revealed by their speech, but the stupid will be beaten with sticks".

I'm not exactly one for bible quotes, but that's one that I could see myself posting someday.

[sabrinamari.livejournal.com]

We laughed like demons!

[evcelt.livejournal.com]

S: "My students can't make their own choices. Most of them are Calvinists."

hee hee hee hee hee hee...

[arielmn.livejournal.com]

Love love love the Calvinist joke! I'm reasonably certain I could find a Pink BB or other gun.

I am glad you had a good time.