Medicine Park, Oklahoma

Well, y'all, in all my years of Wandering of a Girl Ryder blogging and the MILLIONS of times I rode through this tiny little community, I never actually wrote about it. Go me. And, I mean millions of times. It was on the way home, so I generally detoured through it because anything for a little extra riding time.

I've been around Medicine Park my whole life. I volunteered as a kid when they added the riverwalk. My first job was at a small shop (now long gone) on Cobblestone Hill. I remember when there was a small coffee shop called the Mercantile, and it was in the shop the Chaps My Ass took over until the Mercantile moved to the Music Hall (before that became an event center for the Old Plantation and after it was the Music Hall). I remember when there was a tiny little coffee shop on cobblestone row in the late 90s, and I spent Y2K's New Year's Eve there with my family and best friend. I remember when that coffee shop's owner opened up 10 years a new coffee shop later at the Medicine Park Y next to a restaurant called the Master's Kitchen. I worked at both of those. Anybody ever stop in there? The coffee and brownies at Buffalo Ground were the best. And, the food at Master's Kitchen was phenomenal. That's actually where and how Blueberry got the name. Did I ever share that story? 

Is Medicine Park part of your history? Tell me about it in the comments! I have a picture of the Old Plantation from the 80s from my mom that I posted somewhere (here or on another blog of mine), and the owner of one of the cars in that old picture said hi in the comments. Sometimes the world is F'n small, y'all.

Watching the community go through its phases (some good, some bad) has been interesting. Medicine Park has definitely been working hard to become one of the top destinations in Oklahoma. It's worth the drive from wherever you are. 

Hands Down. No questions.

Badass history ✅

Cool aesthetics ✅

Swimming hole in a river ✅

Dining Options ✅

Riverwalk ✅

Live Music ✅

A vegan restaurant ✅

Aquarium (...kind of) ✅

Harley Davidson Shop ✅

Seriously. What more do you want? I've even heard about escape rooms. 

It's true, Medicine Park is a pretty tiny little community. And, if you're breezing by on HWY 49 or HWY 58, you're likely to miss it as it's tucked along Medicine Creek. But, if you're on top of Mt. Scott, and you look down, you'll see it. 

It's high time I get into a little bit of Medicine Park's history on this blog, so the following posts will be more about Medicine Park. I hope you'll have a seat and stick around!

7.1.16

Things I have learned in the past week:

-Dual citizens are unwanted. At least when it Comes to applying for jobs on US Military bases in Germany.

- American food Quality sucks. A lot of my weirdness (Skin rashes, Panic attacks, etc.) has disappeared. I Attribute this to the good food and the even better Beer here in Germany.

-One must have Patience and follow specific protocols. Hello German bureaucracy.

- German Keyboards want to capitalize all words perceived to be nouns.

And lastly:

-I never knew how awesome Oklahoma´s air Quality was.

Maybe I should start at the beginning. With another degree in my Hand, I packed my bags (one suitcase, actually) and hit the air. I crammed all of my precious belongings and a couple of clothes in that suitcase and was surprised that I still had a couple of Pounds to spare before I hit the sell-some-organs Limit.

At this particular Moment, I should be creating a German resume. Something I could have done months ago, but procrasinator Habits die hard. So here we are, you reading this and me debating whether or not to have that 7th Cup of coffee.

You know, I always thought Oklahoma weatherwas bipolar, but, Boy, this German weather is worse. Take today for example, the sun was shining in all it´s glory as I sped down the forest paths Stripping away the layers. Before I knew what happened, the sun had done gone and left, the temperatures plummeted, and the Clouds done started to cry.

Out of so many impressions it´s hard to choose which one left the greatest mark. Since I´m missing the Stone Turtle, I´m gonna say it´s the taste of home I found this week:

Missin´ that fresh Okie air,

D
P.S. More Pictures can be found on my Facebook Page.

Last days of 2015

I always say it's been a while, but it's been a while. Quite a bit has changed. 

Blueberry has found a new owner. And I gave away all of my bike gear...okay, so I kept a jacket and helmet (just in case). Life works in funny ways. My plans for Blue didn't pan out, but I believe the right option appeared. I have faith the new owner will take good care of Blue and vice versa. I hope they have many wonderful adventures! Blue was my therapy and my lifesaver. For that I will always be grateful.
              It was time to pass the blessing on to someone else.

What have I been up to? I wish I could say I've been riding and exploring, but it's the end of an era and I've been reflecting on my time in Lawton, OK. It's been something else. It's been frustrating. It's been crappy. It's been amusing. It's been wonderful. It's been thought provoking. It's been something else.

Lawton, OK is the perfect place to figure out who you are. That much is for sure. So if that's where you're headed, I wish you all the best.

Me? Well, I'm out of here. It's time for new adventures. Goodbye, Wanderings of a Girl Ryder.