8/11/14, 10:30 am - The combination of a
late flight, getting to sleep at 2 am, and today’s ideal “CDQ” room conditions
(cool, dark, quiet), we had no problem sleeping until 10:30. We were packed up and out the door by Noon, and headed toward the OU campus. First, we drove past the house where my Grandmother Mimi lived for 40-some years, and I happily spent many holidays and vacations long ago.
We stopped for lunch at The Mont, a campus hangout frequented by my parents in the 1950s. From there, we went to the
Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, the massive shrine to Sooner Football. Incredibly, the stadium is outdated and not big enough, as the University will soon
expand and modernize.
We climbed to the top of the south grandstand
and were high enough to see the entire county. Next we walked to the
Gaylord College of Journalism & Mass Communications to see the Louise B. Moore Learning Center, named after Mimi who was the faculty advisor to the student newspaper,
The Oklahoma Daily, and Professor of Journalism. We next went to
Campus Corner for some OU swag, and an iced coffee at SBX.
2:30 pm - Leaving Norman, on I-35, we went north to downtown OKC, and we visited the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum, the site of the awful terrorist attack in 1993.
5:00 pm -
We parked the car at
Urban Johhnie, my cousin in-law Rick’s latest restaurant in Deep Deuce across from the Aloft hotel. Dianna and Rick had organized a family gathering before the Redhawks game that evening. The turnout was amazing as we got to see Kathy, Kristin, Kortney, Matthew, Taylor, Jimmy, Marianne, Olli and Charlie C. Charlie M was here with me in 2012, however, Peter has not seen the gang since 2007, and it’s doubtful he would remember much as he was only 7 at the time. Following appetizers (including homemade guacamole and chili con queso) and two tasty Irish IPAs, I had the best chicken tacos ever while Peter swooned over his chicken fried chicken sandwich and reported it was “
bangin’ like a biscuit.”
After the marvelous dinner, we went over to the Bricktown
Ballpark and took up our seats behind the Cubs dugout. There was a fairly large group of autograph-seekers hoping to catch a Manny Ramirez signature. He’s just as arrogant and self-centered in AAA as he was with the Red Sox. Sadly, for this highly-gifted right-handed batter, all fans remain invisible to Manny.
7:00 pm - The game started on time and the Redhawks quickly found themselves in a two-run hole that lasted
to the 9th inning, when the deficit was expanded to three runs.
What made the game super-special was being with Sam, Taylor and
Matthew, plus Olli and Charlie. Charlie M had a great time entertaining / being entertained by the Cieminski boys. While the game was not so exciting, the great vibe of the ballpark and sharing it with our cousins made the evening one of the best-ever BBT events.
8/12 8:30 am -
We puttered around Dianna and Rick’s house in Oak Tree until late morning and then set out for Stillwater to see Lou and Doug at their home near campus. We arrived just before noon in time to
see Ross Burnett before his “off to freshman year” moment at OSU. For the rest of the afternoon, we had a great visit with the Hales and Lisa. We then drove over to Lou’s studio were we saw her works in progress of Edward Newman (yes, Paul’s Brother) and his wife.
8/12 5:00 pm - we drove back to Edmond, and the boys played catch while I caught up on email and the blog. At 6:00, we met Rick and Kortney at West, for a grand family meal in Rick’s stupendous restaurant. Jimmy, Logan, Carson, Kristen, and Kathy also came to make for a really festive time. Everything about the gathering was perfect, from the incredible zinfandel, malbec and cabernet varieties Rick selected for us, to the appetizers and best-in-a-lifetime risotto with filet, to the selection of house-made desserts. All was so enjoyable, and greatly appreciated by me and the boys.
8/12 11 pm - Back in Edmond, we had fun recapping the evening and then settling in for the end of the OKC portion of BBT 2014.