Nostalgia Tour

Life is a funny thing. It never really works out the way you plan, and that's alright, I guess. Wanderings of a Girl Ryder has definitely taken the back burner for the last...oh, you know, DECADE. Shit, I'm gettin' old.

Thus, I was really surprised to see that people still find my WGR blog in the shadowy depths of the interwebs, and that made me a little sad that I had space/storage issues back then and had removed most of the photos from the posts. And, that I've lost a lot of pictures due to faulty thumb drives, so I can't add them back. You'd think after losing all of my pictures three times over the last 15 years, I'd learn to back up my work, but...

Currently bike-less, also a life concept I never would have associated with myself when I was in my 20s, but, hopefully, that will change in the future. Some things change, and some things don't. I still love exploring my local area, photography, and getting into good trouble ('xcept now it's the kind that lets me be in bed by 9PM). I have been exploring a bit in a completely different location, and maybe I'll share some of those adventures here in the future. 

On that note, I thought I'd share a little bit of a nostalgic tour. I backroad-road tripped my way over to Walters and Comanche for the first time in, well, also almost a decade. I got a tip about a little store in Comanche that has garden art, so I had to go check it out.

I have lots of great memories from coasting around WWC (Walters, Waurkia, & Comanche), and it's a loop I rode on a regular basis in one form or another. It made me a little sad, but maybe that because I was in a car. 

The car thing let me turn it into a girls trip with another photographer, and we listened to music and reminisced about the good ol' days when you could hang out at the gas station and get a date. But, maybe that was just me. I feel like that might not be the best dating advice in today's world, so DON'T DO THAT. Oh, and a cool thing about road tripping with other photographers is that they don't look at you all weird when you make a random U-turn to take a picture of something. And, sometimes they catch things you didn't see because, you know, you were actually paying attention to the road for once.

I remember Walters was a super cute little town back when the Silver Spoon was still there, but it looks like the town is going through a little rough patch. Store fronts on Main Street (Broadway St) are empty and run down. I realize, it's not just a Walters' problem as small towns nationwide (even worldwide) have been fighting a battle they may not win. But, it's still sad to see. The state of our communities reflect the state of our society. Maybe investing in our communities and actively participating in them would change the world, but I ain't no city-planner or sociologist, so what do I know? 

And, even though, I have seen Walters' experiencing better days, it still has charm and history. Hopefully, there's also hope for better days.

Walters' Main Street (Broadway St) still has a couple of independently owned gyms, a library (that makes me happy), a florist, a bank, a salon, the electric company (if it hadn't been a Saturday, I may have run in and asked about my ever-increasing electric bill and why my bills oddly went up after they switched out the meter...but, I digress) and two great murals. They even got themselves a Dollar General Market which curiosity led me to investigate. I had to know: what makes it different from a regular DG? I'm apparently naive; I was expecting some fruits and veggies... A couple of extra shelves of boxed groceries compared to the other DGs I've seen. But, if you need groceries, then maybe get 'em at the independent grocery store, eh?  I didn't make it down to Walters Hometown Grocery, but at least there's something other than a chain in town!

What's a Walters hidden-gem? I would love to know along with any stories from Walters' happier days. If you have any awesome stories, comment and share them. Oh, and where do you eat???  

Moving on. Quickly, though, 'cause jeez this is gettin' long. I also ran out of time on this trip, so I didn't grab any shots in Comanche. 

I was pleasantly surprised driving through Comanche. It's still tiny, blink three times and you might miss it, but it's definitely changed since I last rode through. I'll have to go back and visit the diner and check out Main Street when I have more time. Cowtown Corner is worth the trip, so if you're in the area, sure you'll find something worth buying. Owners are super friendly, too. 

I'm pretty sure the whole town was at the school (sporting event?) when I drove through. Some cool things I never knew about Comanche, OK:

-It was formerly known as Tucker. As in Mother Tucker, just kidding. It had a post office in 1887. When the Rock Island Railroad came to Indian Territory in 1889, the townsite was moved and eventually renamed Comanche in honor of the Comanche Tribe. Apparently, the annual Comanche Carnival was a big deal from the early 1900s to the 1920 (I'll have to see if the Oklahoma Historical Society has some pictures of this event). I'm talking' up to 25,000 people allegedly came to this event - that's an insane number for me to wrap my mind around. Especially, for the early 1900s. Apparently, Frank James (Jesse James' bro), Geronimo and Quanah Parker had attended the event at some point of its run. Frank James settled down near Cement and Fletcher if my memory serves me right. They've has a newspaper since before the 1900s, and still have one.

-Comancheans include athletes (Alvin Dark & Boyd Franklin Morgan), writers (Clifton Adams, Wynona Morris Nations & Arlene James), artists (Terrence Clark & Shelby Myers, Jr.), singer Hoyt Aston, actor Silver Moon, the oldest known living survivor of the Tulsa race massacre (Viola Fletcher), and a lot of rodeo champions & barrel racers.

Know somethin' cool 'bout Comanche? Share it with me! Anybody been to the diner? Tell me how it was!

Thanks for stopping by!

Stay Curious & Stay Kind, y'all!

Long time no update

I've officially dubbed myself a motorcycle slacker. However, in my slacking time I've been contemplating riding destinations.

Three weeks of not having my bike in my garage has me seriously jonesing. As soon as Blueberry is back home, it's game on! Got some riding to catch up on.

Meanwhile...

Yoga & coffee on the creek!

That is all...until hell breaks loose when I'm back on 2s.

This blog is brought to you by the lovely (biased opinion, we know) Stone Turtle – Lodging, a small family owned and operated hotel / lodging business near Lawton, Oklahoma, Fort Sill,  the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, Meers and Medicine Park. Yeah, that’s right we’re a small lodging business close to all the awesomeness Oklahoma has to offer!!

A Small Trip Down Memory Lane

As I was scrolling through the few files saved from my hard drive...the one with seven years worth of pictures that are now all gone...I came across this picture of me on my 1st bike. Ah, the old FZR. The frustrating times we had. I do, however, fondly remember learning to ride. Zipping through my yard, dust flying. Occasionally taking a grassy turn a tad to fast and skidding through the dust and grass on my back (sometime stomach) shortly followed by my bike, dust and grass also flying. *sigh* Those were the days...before power outages while traveling on the interstate and lights constantly drooping to the ground underneath the bike. That reserve tank was pretty handy, too.

Throwback Thursday...two days late. WeverTF Throwback Thursday is...

Blueberry finally got an oil change! As I lay on the ground one foot clenched to the seat the other pushing against the rear tire while I tried prying off the baked on oil filter I realized that consistency isn't one of my mechanical strong points. Either I'm getting weaker or my bike is getting stronger.  After much pleading, begging, apologizing, and a few explicit terms, the oil filter was finally in my oily hands. When it comes to mechanical and painting hobbies, I've learned that oil and paint are magnetically drawn to me. There is no staying clean. It goes against gravity. Nice to know the universe thought of me while planning out universal laws. Somewhere in between the begging and pleading, probably during the sobbing, I noticed just how much TLC Blue needs. After a couple of rides throughout the week, Blue has been retired to the garage until things get done. *blubbering* On the bright side, I now have an excuse to buy a couple of tools I've been wanting for a while.

So after the five stages of grieving were done, Blueberry and I went to check out an old cemetery on the other side of the Wichita Mountains. I think only a few people know my fascination with old country cemeteries. Well, until now. So anywho, there I was cruising down a dirt road with bumps (those were consistent) the size of surfable waves going somewhere under 10 mph being passed by ratty old farm trucks. Okay, so it was only one ratty old farm truck, but one was enough. I probably could have pushed Blueberry faster. Hm, there's that hindsight again. I was surprised by the cobblestone gate some community members had taken the time to construct. Wind chimes were hanging in the cemetery. Next to the cemetery in Cement which houses a car cemetery right next door, this was the best country cemetery. How nice to have a resting place in such a peaceful setting with such an amazing view of the Wichitas. Speaking of cemeteries, there's one in OK somewhere that states the woman was killed by werewolves or something creepy like that. I think that one and the grave of the horse which played Mister Ed are going to be worth the trip. Moving on to less creepy things...

Lately my rides have been limited to the Wichita Mountains and to school. I'm at the point, schedule wise, that 50 miles is 50 mile no matter if there's a pesky class in between. But, when you're riding around at 10 PM and you tend to freeze to death when temps drop below 65 degrees, 50 miles feels like 50 miles. You don't realize just how airy summer gloves are until you're wearing summer gloves at 10 PM in 30 something degrees because you couldn't find your winter ones. At that point, 50 miles sure does seem like 50 miles. Thankful all my fingers and toes are still functioning. It did make me wonder just how I survived without proper riding gear all those years. Mind over matter, I'm assuming.

In other nonrelated news, I've been working on my other blog Beauty in Oklahoma. If you're interested in local type stuff and all that jazz, check that out. I'll probably be focusing on it a little more while Blueberry is grounded. You'll probably read about my DIY mechanical adventures. Not sure I'm ready for those. Wish me luck and no extra parts.
Fasching is here once again! It's already been another year! I've been offered another short belly dancing spot in the Fasching schedule. Super excited to be part of the 2nd annual Fasching event hosted at Mutti's German Restaurant. Well, I probably ought to go practice my routine considering the Fasching party is tonight.

Until next time,  keep calm and ride on!


WGR


This blog is brought to you by the lovely (biased opinion, we know) Stone Turtle – Lodging, a small family owned and operated hotel / lodging business near Lawton, Oklahoma, Fort Sill,  the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, Meers and Medicine Park. Yeah, that’s right we’re a small lodging business close to all the awesomeness Oklahoma has to offer!!

Because who laughs these days?

It's been another glorious week filled with adventure, laughter, and paint. The weather has been toying with my emotions, dragging my warm-weather loving heart through the dust of Oklahoma. I guess that's what they made winter gear for, right? I probably should have skipped the holiday chocolates. Since October. Maybe I could fit another layer under my gear if I had. C'est la vie, at least the chocolate was good. So last weekend I had the awesome pleasure of riding out to the refuge to go hiking with a happy group. I love happy people! There aren't too many happy people. Have you noticed? Seriously, participate in my little experiment. When ever you're out and about cruising through town, on the highway, in the store, on the beach, wherever, look around at the people you see. Most people have a frown plastered on their face. Wow, that saying "Your face will freeze like that," seems to be true, or maybe it's just a self-fulfilling prophecy. Get ready, get set, observe. Oh, and remember that observing isn't staring or stalking.

The Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge always fascinates me. It doesn't matter where I travel to, I always realize just how special my little corner of Oklahoma is (...In my own little corner, in my own little world...). Not saying that the mountains in Cali or the Alps aren't bad-ass, but the Wichitas have their own special flare. The nice, day-long hike brought us into uncharted territory for me. It's funny, the places one comes across without ever expecting it. A person can look upon an area of land for years and the mind estimates what it's probably like. Finally when one wanders through, it's completely different. Who'da (Who'd a) thunk? Vernacular grammar drives me insane. My obsession of climbing things only got me separated from the group once. Half an hour of seeing no one. No big deal...

The best part was that Blueberry was still standing, dirt parking lot, wind and all. Life is good.

The following day consisted of road tripping. I do love road trips! All the wonderful things one sees when one's just randomly driving about. I had the tip of checking out Freedom, OK from one of my readers. So that's where I happened to find myself, by chance, actually. FYI, if you go to Freedom, eat before since the only diner closes at 2 or 3 pm. Barely made it! The tiny downtown is right out of an old western movie. Saloon and all. The diner is also the town's motel. Warning, don't expect a room during a town festival or travel season; they only have two rooms. Beef, wheat, and salt are what the town was built on. Maybe even literally. My favorite part of visiting Freedom? The old jail! A jail in Freedom. Oh, the irony. The people, however, seem festive, though. Saw two cedar trees decorated for Christmas in the middle of nowhere.


On an unrelated note, I'm completely jealous that the college campus in Alva is 10x nicer than the one in Lawton. Okay, maybe 5.5x nicer.


So I'll stop my ramblings and leave you with a social reflection I've been mulling over this past week:
 A little while ago, I was road tripping with some friends. We were strolling down the streets of a ginormous city late one night (a city that actually has a night life) laughing, conversing, and having a good time. We turned down a side street to check out a mural still laughing and talking. A man passes us. Upon reflection, a perfect case study for the happiness level experiment. We're minding our own business, when he turns around in a huff and asks us what's so funny and why we were laughing at him.

Vain. Table for one.

At the time, I just thought how sad it was that people can be so involved in their own lives to think that the world revolves around them. It's a common human trait, but to such an extent to accuse complete strangers in a confrontational manner, was something else. After explaining to this man that it had absolutely nothing to do with him, I dealt with the idea that such confrontation can often go wrong and how vain people can be.

Today, I find it sad that people are so unhappy that they find laughter and smiling to be strange. The world we have created. Yes, I know, the world is full of sad moments, hate, and crazy,shocking happenings. But, the world is also full of beauty, happiness, and good people. I choose to see the beauty in the world. What do you choose to see in the world? What do you choose to be in this world?
Pictures from the Wichitas, Freedom, and whatever else are on Facebook.
This blog is brought to you by the lovely (biased opinion, we know) Stone Turtle – Lodging, a small family owned and operated hotel / lodging business near Lawton, Oklahoma, Fort Sill,  the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, Meers and Medicine Park. Yeah, that’s right we’re a small lodging business close to all the awesomeness Oklahoma has to offer!!

Another Amazing Year

Hello, 2014! And, hello lovely readers!

Looking back on 2013, it was an amazing year filled with many wonderful people and impressions. November and December are a blur, but the year ended and started with many adventures (some with Blueberry and some without) and good times. 

So my first thoughts for 2014, besides the never-ending, fun, work related stuff, include the following:

1. Possible riding destinations.
2. Blueberry TLC.

In the past, I've just been randomly exploring small towns and different locations. We're doing things a little differently this year. I'm thinking themes! So the following themes will possibly become my obsession this year: geocaching (geocaching motorcycle adventures!), doors, and mailboxes. Yep, the photographing nut in me has developed a crush on doors and mailboxes. Soooo....suggestions? Tell me about some awesome doors and/or mailboxes!

Besides being my longest, and best, relationship, Blueberry has been a God-send these past years. From learning to be a better rider and driver, having Blueberry has honed my ability to see small details (and in record time) while providing many interesting adventures. It's high time I paid back.

What are your riding plans for 2014? Tell me about one place you'd really love to check out this year; I'd love to hear about it!

Attack of the Cupcakes

I don't believe I've ever mentioned my escapades in the kitchen. I'm no Martha Stuart or Rachel Ray, that's for sure. In fact, most of my baking/cooking attempts are labeled with the word disaster at the end. Some of the highlights:

The Schnitzel Disaster of 2008
The Waffle Disaster of 2009
The Biscuit Disaster of 2009
The Waffle Incident of 2010- Not quite as bad as the Waffle Disaster of 2009.
The Potato Disaster of 2007 - This involved a microwave fire.
The Noodle Disaster of 2011- Where'd all the water go?
The Pancake Disaster of 2009
The Pound Cake Disaster of 2010- it weighed a whole heck-of-a-lot more than a pound

Those were the highlights. Cooking usually involves a fire alarm. I haven't made it through very many cooking attempts without a fire alarm going off. It's not cooking until the fire alarm goes off, at least that's what I thought while growing up watching my mom cook...

Practice makes perfect, right? God, I sure hope so!

Recipes and I don't get along very well. Recipes want to do one thing, I want to do another. Since I'm usually on a coffee (and coffee song) high, I'm usually able to rationalize why not to follow the recipe. And off into experimentation I drift. 

So what was I doing standing in the kitchen at an ungodly hour jamming out to Frank Sinatra, Tom Waits, and the Balkan Beat Box? I just couldn't resist a recipe for snickerdoodle cupcakes. Who could? I didn't know what a snickerdoodle was, but it sounded whimsical and fun, so I snickered and doodled it up. Turns out that snickerdoodling got a little more complicated than I thought when the recipe (there's that pesky business again) called for scooping balls of batter (batter can be balls?) out and rolling them in cinnamon butter. I have to make cinnamon butter?!? 

Um, I think not. So instead of rolling batter in butter, I decided to fill the muffin tins and pour cinnamon butter over the muffins. I stuck the butter in the microwave and zapped it fluid. It wasn't long before a funky smell permeated the air and a rumbling sound emitted from the microwave. I can't say I was surprised, but I really wasn't expecting the volcanic buttery eruption which I encountered. I guess leaving the butter lava in the microwave would actually be an easy way to butter my next meal. I'm sure I'm not the only one who despises working with butter. Such a microwave would allow a simple way to dispense butter on any meal. Where's a patent office when you need one?

Since I have no idea what snickerdoodles taste like, I can't compare and contrast. Considering my guinea pigs I mean friends haven't dropped dead, I think the recipe's a keeper. Motorcycle cupcake holder please! Ya know, so the cupcakes only attack my hips and not my riding time. 

And there went March pt1

Goodbye, March!

It's been ages since I've updated, I know, but [insert lame excuse here.] Actually, I have been staying pretty busy, and you can read all about it. Aren't you excited? To give you a taste of the delicatessen to follow, here's a slight preview of March: little red mite invasion on Quetone Point (those little buggers almost won), drooling over custom choppers, finding Nowhere (hard, since a lot of Oklahoma is nowhere), almost went to where the vegans live, and since you are reading this, I survived the paper rebellion of Spring 2013. Yup, it's been an interesting month with some awesome weather and fun adventures.

It's only fair to start at the beginning. After putting all bets on awesome weather over an upcoming weekend, I motivated a small group of brave souls to go hiking. Now, I hate gambling because Luck is never a lady for me; therefore, I had some concerns that the weather would suck. Luck must be toying with my emotions; it was a gorgeous Saturday morning. Blueberry and I pulled out the light summer Icon jacket, packed some water and were on our way to the curves of Meers. What a gorgeous morning! It was a fun, not too challenging hike. Probably the easiest Route anyone will go on with me. We started out at Parallel Forest where the trees are parallel; A place which is haunted by rumors of Satanic worshipers. Even without these legends floating around in my mind, the place still creeps me out. At least, I wouldn't want to be there at night to be run over by a buffalo ghost.What's worse, if that did happen, who would believe me? Yeah, that's what I thought.

We slowly but surely made our way over to Mount Scott. In the process, we found a lot of neat stuff and lost two hikers who have probably labeled me as crazy (not the first time and certainly not the last time). We saw a rock duck, a rock snail, an owl in a rock (owl shape that is), we found a nice rack (not mine), and found some neat places to explore even though we didn't make it as far as I had hoped. Somewhere along the way as I low-crawled through some trees, I picked up a couple of travelers. Millions, to be exact. I had been attacked by millions of miniscule little bugs. Chiggers? I don't know, but those little devils sure did like to bite. Unfortunately for me, I was the only one on the defensive. My hiking partners were not attacked. Is that one-sided or what? Talk about sexism. Okay, it could be that I was the only one who crawled through that one section of trees, but the others went through trees, too. Usually, bugs do not affect me, but when they're tiny, I'm way out numbered, and they bite then I have an issue with bugs. After a quick striptease (where's music and a tip jar when you need it?), I shook out all my clothes.Happy with the results of having made it into the hundreds on the mite count. Having a hundred little bugs is better than a million. I was itching all over. Once we maneuvered our way around an observant longhorn on our way back to the vehicles, we took our sunburned selves to Stone Turtle Ranch to enjoy some coffee and cake on the farm in the amazing weather. Itching is contagious, and some of the others began to look for little red bugs. If only I knew then that I would have the last laugh it may have made the itching more bearable. 

The next week... Still sunburned...

My enthusiasm for bikes tends to rub off on people. I'm so obsessed with motorcycles that if a person hangs out with me long enough, he or she will be browsing Craigslist in no time. I'll have just about anyone considering the idea of buying a bike. Of course, my motorcycle charm does not hold for mothers. Otherwise, I'd have been able to get mine on at least a scooter. Still working on that one. My mother's a tough nut to crack. Then again, it might be best if she didn't ride anything. I think I'd be worried to death every time she left the house.

One of the regular hikers has taken it upon himself to get a bike. I was invited to go browse local bike stores. I haven't turned down a chance to drool over bikes yet and I didn't intend on starting that day. I got the last laugh when I was informed that my friend's office was invaded during the week by the same little pests who had so unfairly targeted only me on the hike. He made it sound like he had not believed my plight with the bugs as though I had cried wolf. Thus, I had no pity for his mite infestation.

 Most of you know I'm strictly a sportbike kind of girl. You couldn't drag me onto a cruiser...now choppers are a little different. As we ambled through a custom bike shop, I seriously considered switching over to choppers. A chopper would be pretty nice. However, I might have issues getting around a corner because I do love to lean. I can't really see myself on a chopper...at all.

It's kind of amusing to note the differences between sales personnel at different shops. From "please leave your email address and number" requests, what are you doing here looks, "if you need anything let me know", to "would you like a beer?", we heard it all. Kind of sad when your pay is based on a quota and you need names and numbers to prove you were working. I really liked the family business atmosphere at Journey Custom Cycles in Duncan. I found it a bit disturbing that the mechanics at one of the other independent shops were consuming beer while working on motorcycles. Missing screws? No problem! Now I do love beer, but drinking while working on vehicles being sold is a no-no in my book. At the pushy shop, I was also called crazy for starting out on a 600cc bike. I wonder if they call guys who start out on a 600cc crazy. Probably not. As a matter of fact, while I was in there they were making a sale to a newbie rider. To him they also recommended a 1000cc bike. Who you calling crazy, yo? Found it unprofessional that our presence was not even acknowledged by the guys sitting in Yamaha. Not even a "Hey. How's it going?" Just an evil look that we wandered in a few minutes to closing. I'd say closing was the reason, but every time I've been in there, I'm never greeted - just stared at. Guess, quotas aren't an issue for them. Don't have any complaints about Yamaha's service department; they've always been very friendly and helpful. From one extreme of almost pushy and desperate (no pay for no sales) to another extreme of who cares about you(pay with no sales). Guess that fancy MBA is starting to pay off; I notice a lot of things when it comes to how a business is run. 

It was a successful outing. A little Harley Davidson was bought, a new rider was awfully happy, and I got to go on a small roadtrip on someone else's dime.

Pictures can be found on WGR Facebook page. Look for part II!

Getting Back into the Shimmy of Things Part II

What a wonderful weekend it was! The day... I mean the DAY was finally here. I took it as a sign that the weather wasn't too pleasing. It was a rainy, dreary day which knocked that little hope to ride right out of my noggin. Riding when I should be practicing my belly dance songs probably wouldn't have been the best idea, but would have been completely inline with my standard operating procedures. The day included an extra cardio session...not like that would help me wiggle into my costume- but, at least I was all stretched and ready to go. Yup, yup, I'm ready. Let's go,let's go!

Of course, when I'm finally ready to do something time goes by slowly. Not ready to do something and time's gone like water in a waterfall. Swoosh! Gone! Not ready to take a test, why, "Hello test day. Where did you come from?!?" I'm ready, and time is gone like dripping out of a water faucet where the water supply has been shut off. Dri.........P................................................ddddddddddddddddrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr...iP. Since I had decided that eating after a certain time would be a bad idea (doing belly rolls on a full stomach isn't pleasant), it made the dri..........P process torturous.

I did my make-up early since I had a dream that I didn't have time to put on my make-up before leaving for the gig and that made my mask look a little silly. Mr. Beer baseball cap and some Sophia Loren style sunglasses in place so the rain wouldn't ruin my 5 minutes of eye shadow work while feeding horses and running from a mad rooster. Who gave that guy the Godzilla video?

Our designated driver came to pick us up scratching his head when I greeted him in a thick bath robe and a beach bag. No questions were asked, but I answered the quizzical look with "I'm going casual." To our surprise we found a great parking spot right out front of the establishment where the Fasching party was hosted. I put on the rest of my costume in the car before entering. Pulling my robe extra tight. I don't believe I really gave an idea of what Fasching is in my last post. Fasching is the German version of Mardi Gras. Before I go any further, I'd like to say that the ladies who took time out of their busy schedules and organized this event did a stellar job! All the people who participated also did an amazing job. It was fun all around, and I'm so happy to have been a part of it. Thank you!

The skits were a hoot! We had a few ladies do verbal skits typical for the main Fasching areas in Germany. One of them was fine tuned for Lawton specifically. Basically babbling/ranting combined. Very well done. We also had our own Dancing with the Stars skit. It was a tango...pig style. The pig costumes were super cute. It was almost my time to get up on stage so I went to the back, put on my mask and when my intro music came. I jiggled out where everyone could see me in all my bathrobe glory and dismantled. Like BAM! Watch me shimmy. I think the ladies who had to watch me fool around in my pink-laced combat shoes let out a sigh of relief. All those hip figure eights on Blueberry paid off. Yes, I incorporated figure eights into my swerving/tire warm ups. It's all in the hips, baby. After 8 minutes of shimmying, I shimmied off the super hot stage sweat dripping down my hard make-up work. 5 minutes of make-up work in my world is a LONG time. And, a test of my patience. There was another verbal skit of simple Gisela, a farmer's wife. And, then came the crown jewel of the event.

Heavy metal music came blaring, and six men came in wearing trench coats, combat boots, beanie caps,...and pink bandanas. With their backs to the audience, the music changed. As Joe Cocker's You Can Leave Your Hat On came out of the speakers, the shoes came off. The bandanas dropped to the floor. The hats came off (contrary to the song, I know). Hips were wiggled, and the trench coats started coming off. The hysteria in the audience was high. All the ladies were excited. The men probably uncomfortable. And then... there were six brave men standing on stage in white tights and tutus. Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake started playing and off they were -the men, not the fluffy pink tutus. They went up in white-socked tiptoes and scooted forward and scooted back. They twirled, they smiled, and they continued on. The audience went wild with laughter. Pandemonium was near. The guy who was lifted had the cutest, most appropriate tutu matching little wings glued to his shirt. The fanned butt slap, first one way then the other, had quite the impact. Literally. The guys did an AMAZING job with their skit! After seeing rehearsals so many times and spending the first one doing nothing but laughing for an hour, you'd think the skit would lose a little of its amusement. Nope, not one ounce was lost. The music changed again, and oriental music floated out of the speakers. Shirts were rolled up and bellies popped out. I shimmied back out and we did a little impromptu belly dance session. I had told the guys in advance not to worry and just follow my lead. Awesome, helpful instructions, no? Those guys probably wondered how they'd been wrangled into the skit by some crazy German ladies. We're that awesome. We can convince anyone that they want to do something a little unconventional.Then again, they probably wondered that during rehearsals when we went through plies, spins, graceful arms, lifts, leaps, and spirit fingers. Not to mention the "open leg" issues we had. "Offene Beine, Jungs!" which was often shouted by the choreographer ("Open legs, boys!").  That alone produced 10 minutes of laughter from the rest of the Fasching crew. Ballet is all about open legs...or so we were told.  

After the skits were over, the beer continued to flow and the music kept going. There was dancing and just good conversation. Even I danced; the person who is creeped out by partner dancing. I'm not even good for a waltz, and don't even get me started on that bump-and-grind junk they do at some clubs. I danced with one of the ballerinas. I've never danced with a ballerina before. I also did the wobble for the first time ever...It'd be nice if I could push that on alcohol consumption. I ended up driving our designated driver home. I don't think that's how the DD job usually goes.

After a couple hours of sleep, I enjoyed my coffee and got ready for a ride/hike. The weather was amazing. Absolutely perfect for a ride and hike. Other than buffalo tracks in odd places and signs of wild hogs we didn't see any wildlife. I once again heard the comments of "not being able to, in my right mind, call what we are doing hiking." They'll have to take that up with the complaint department which works ungodly hours, so actually getting that complaint taken care of may be a little tricky. By the time I got home, the weekend had caught up with me and I was cooked like stick a fork in me done.

Of course, of all nights I had issues with my camera, it was Fasching night. A few pictures can be found on WGR Facebook album and I will also try to post an excerpt of my skit. Going to start choreographing a couple of songs for next year's Fasching. Helauuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!

Hiking Bootcamp

Since the weathermen predicted a gorgeous weekend, I pulled out my best salesperson skills and pitched the awesomeness Oklahoma's hiking adventures has to offer. A couple people showed interested in going on Saturday; the same guys who probably thought I was trying to kill them on the last hike (Eagle Mountain). It turns out that when most people hear "hike," they understand something different from what I consider a hike. I've learned this early on, so to make the decoding process easier and more accurate, I usually offer the explanation that hiking means no trails, lots of climbing, and potentially some low-crawling. Oh yeah, and amazing views! They bailed on me. On Friday, I was able to convince some others to go on Sunday. After the Sunday plans were made, I even managed to sweet-talk the bailees into going. Plus two unsuspecting victims. They later suggested that I should add blisters and muscle soreness into my decoding help. But, I just don't think that's a great way to convince people to go.

Sunday rolls around, and, wouldn't you know it, the weathermen had actually predicted accurately. I guess that is possible once in a while, or maybe it was just a lucky chance happening. Either way, I pulled my Ballistic pants over my hiking jeans and rode out to the visitor center on the Wildlife Refuge. I have to say that the ride all the way to the hiking spot was one of the best rides through the refuge in a long time. On the way to the visitor center I passed through many herds of longhorn. Everyone and everything seemed to be enjoying an awesome chillaxin' Sunday morning. Arriving early, I seriously thought about getting gas since I was really starting to run low. Laziness won, and Blueberry and I stayed put. Eventually, I wasn't waiting alone; four of the guys had shown up. Just before we decided to leave, one rider pulls in. After turning on the road heading to headquarters, the last rider joins us. Impeccable timing, if I do say so myself. We saw all kinds of coolness. Buffalo were chilling on the road in many spots. I slowly cruised through as quietly as I could. Had an elk run out in front of me, too. I slowed down because I figured there were more. A few seconds later, a huge elk with a gigantic rack runs out to join the others on the side of the road. He was an amazing sight. Saw some deer on the side of the road, too. I was surprised that they didn't run out over the road. The only animal we didn't see on the road that morning was turkey.

The hike was a blast. We didn't do a big round, but enough for the suggestion that I should offer a hiking bootcamp. Now, there's an awesome idea! I think it was meant more as a dig and came from a decoding process gone haywire.

Victim Hiker #1:"I thought we were going on an easy hike!" 
Me: "This is an easy hike."
Hiker #1:"My foot!"
Hiker #2:" On a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being the hardest, how would you rate this hike?"
Me:" A solid 2."
Hiker #2:" The hike the other guys went on last time?"
Me:"Three. It would have been a 3.5 if we'd scurried up the other side of the Narrows."
Hiker #1 and #2:"You're crazy!"
Me:"I have yet to be diagnosed."
  
Our group divided into three groups. One group stayed back, and the other two split up half-way up the mountain to take different routes to the top. We ran into a buffalo half-way up (and half-way down), I managed to get stuck in a little opening (I was,however, determined to get out the way I wanted), we didn't run into any hiding serial killers or angry wild hogs, didn't run into any treasure hunters looking for Jesse James' loot or the Spanish Gold (people are so unadventurous these days),and I had a porcupine scare the living daylights out of me. Yes, I saw a porcupine! Those who made it to the top ended up saying that the hell I put them through was worth it just for the view. I even got asked when we'd be going again. Who'da thunk that?

After a greasy cheese burger, Blueberry and I actually made it home with the little fuel we had left. Figured we'd baby it to a gas station another day. Pictures can be found on Facebook album.
This blog is brought to you by the lovely (biased opinion, we know) Stone Turtle – Lodging, a small family owned and operated hotel / lodging business near Lawton, Oklahoma, Fort Sill,  the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, Meers and Medicine Park. Yeah, that’s right we’re a small lodging business close to all the awesomeness Oklahoma has to offer!!