Long before feminism was popular, Ponca City, Oklahoma paid homage to the pioneer woman. These brave souls accompanied their men across the prairie for nothing more than the hope of a dream fulfilled, having no idea what really awaited them at the other end. Ponca City honored the pioneer woman by erecting an enormous statue of a woman and her child forging ahead into the unknown and a museum detailing the lives of the early Oklahoma settlers.
I know this, because when I was a child, we used to visit our grandparents in Ponca City and every trip included a walk first to the TG&Y, and then to the museum, where we'd gaze up at the Pioneer Woman in all her larger than life glory.
Imagine my surprise when I heard of a blog entitled "The Pioneer Woman". I took a quick look one day and discovered the chronicling of life on a cattle ranch by a woman who was raised on the golf course, lived the high life in southern California after college, came home for a visit, fell in love with a cowboy, and never left. This premise, in and of itself, holds a certain amount of interest. A little more digging and the real surprise revealed itself. This modern day pioneer woman lives on a cattle ranch in Oklahoma! While her blog doesn't reveal the exact location of the ranch, she does list a mailing address in Tulsa.
This discovery was of particular interest to me because my grandmother was also a "pioneer woman". I do not believe she was raised on a farm (though I'm not 100% sure of this), and she found herself on a cattle spread near, of all places, Tulsa, Oklahoma. An interest has been renewed to learn more about the ranch at Inola (am I right? Is this where it was?) and what life was like there. I'm hoping my dad will read this and consider telling the story of his life herding cattle perched on his painted pony.
The other interesting piece to this story is the fact that a google search of "the pioneer woman" brings up the blog first, before the museum. Not sure what that really means...
Monday, November 24, 2008
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
It's official
Dear President-elect Obama,
It's no surprise - you did it. I think the word "change" struck a resonant chord from the beginning. Nobody likes war, and particularly when the outcomes are so far removed from the realities of loss. I understand that it's hard to send our young men and women off to war when we can't see immediate rewards for their sacrifice. I think that many people have clung to the hope that you are going to change all that, and that is one of the main reasons you won. We want immediate gratification and it will be very interesting to see what we give up down the road for getting out of Iraq sooner rather than later.
I am just coming to realize that I only thought I was living in a post-Christian nation, but in reality, I'm living in a post-conservative nation as well. With you in the White House and the Democrats ruling the Senate, I think things are about to change for conservatives, and are going to get more than interesting for conservatives who also happen to be Christians. While you are busy trying to protect the rights of gays and lesbians, will my previously-protected-by-the-Constitution rights to believe that God intended marriage for one man and one woman become history? If I dare to believe that God's plan as the Creator and Sustainer of this universe was right from the start am I in danger of being guilty of a hate crime?
Yes, I see change coming, and I think it is time to REALLY clarify what it is I believe and why. Because I think that for conservative Christians, the very core of our belief system is about to be challenged. Thank you, Mr. Obama, for giving me renewed courage to articulate what I believe in the face of mounting odds.
I promise to respect your office and to pray for you. While I have obvious concerns, I will not use them as a reason to bash you, but will commit to carefully considering and articulating them in a constructive way. God will use you to accomplish His purposes. You may be President, but He is GOD.
It's no surprise - you did it. I think the word "change" struck a resonant chord from the beginning. Nobody likes war, and particularly when the outcomes are so far removed from the realities of loss. I understand that it's hard to send our young men and women off to war when we can't see immediate rewards for their sacrifice. I think that many people have clung to the hope that you are going to change all that, and that is one of the main reasons you won. We want immediate gratification and it will be very interesting to see what we give up down the road for getting out of Iraq sooner rather than later.
I am just coming to realize that I only thought I was living in a post-Christian nation, but in reality, I'm living in a post-conservative nation as well. With you in the White House and the Democrats ruling the Senate, I think things are about to change for conservatives, and are going to get more than interesting for conservatives who also happen to be Christians. While you are busy trying to protect the rights of gays and lesbians, will my previously-protected-by-the-Constitution rights to believe that God intended marriage for one man and one woman become history? If I dare to believe that God's plan as the Creator and Sustainer of this universe was right from the start am I in danger of being guilty of a hate crime?
Yes, I see change coming, and I think it is time to REALLY clarify what it is I believe and why. Because I think that for conservative Christians, the very core of our belief system is about to be challenged. Thank you, Mr. Obama, for giving me renewed courage to articulate what I believe in the face of mounting odds.
I promise to respect your office and to pray for you. While I have obvious concerns, I will not use them as a reason to bash you, but will commit to carefully considering and articulating them in a constructive way. God will use you to accomplish His purposes. You may be President, but He is GOD.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Today
The air seems heavy with waiting and anticipation. By the end of this day, we'll have change alright...
I drive 30 min. south and east to get to work, and I leave at 7 a.m. to get there on time. I arrive back home at around 5:00 p.m., which doesn't leave alot of time to vote, before having to be at church by 6:30 this evening. This is one election, however, that I don't want to miss, so I was at the polling place by 6:15 this morning and out by 7:05. I was #5 in line. I drove by last night on my way home, having heard that if I got there before 5:00 I could vote on an absentee ballot. There were at least 150 people lined up outside, so I decided to pass on that one and wait until today. I definitely have more patience for waiting early in the day than late.
While I know there are more things at stake than human rights, this most basic and fundamental issue takes top priority in my book. One of today's candidates was the ONLY negative vote in a bill designed to give medical care to babies that survive the unspeakable horror of having been medically aborted though viable. When asked at Saddleback Church when exactly he feels that babies do deserve human rights protection, he said (after umm...ing a bit) that the answer to that question was above his pay grade. And finally, exhibit #3...the comment that while he would teach his daughters morals and values, he would not expect them to be "punished with a baby" for their mistake. To think where this kind of morality will lead us is nothing less than terrifying.
I read an argument recently that by attacking poverty, said candidate will in effect be reducing the number of abortions, because those who can't afford to keep their babies make up the majority of women who have abortions. Economic reasons are not at the heart of his willingness to see his own grandchild aborted in the event of an untimely "mistake". I think it would be interesting to look at the numbers and see how many women KEEP their babies for economic reasons. A monthly welfare check might be a motivator.
I am just as concerned about the poverty in our country as any BO disciple. I'm just not sure the government is the place to land as the end all in poverty-busting. I read the following quote in another blog this morning:
"When our Lord ate with tax collectors and sinners, He did not instruct the tax collectors to organize socially to lower taxes, or to tax only the rich and give it to the poor. He called them instead to personal conversion, to sell all of their belongings and to give the money to the poor, and to follow Him. I do not believe that voting for politicians who say they'll help the poor is the same as helping the poor, nor does it alleviate our responsibility to do so. I myself cannot claim total innocence in this regard." Well, that's all the time I have for rumination this morning...duty calls. Heidi has much more personal reasons for being pro-life (which obviously, we share). My only "consolation" as I ponder the "changes" we face is that whatever we get is what we deserve - but regardless, God is still in control, and if we witness further moral degradation (and possible moral collapse), it is in His timing, allowed by Him, and for His ultimate purposes.
I drive 30 min. south and east to get to work, and I leave at 7 a.m. to get there on time. I arrive back home at around 5:00 p.m., which doesn't leave alot of time to vote, before having to be at church by 6:30 this evening. This is one election, however, that I don't want to miss, so I was at the polling place by 6:15 this morning and out by 7:05. I was #5 in line. I drove by last night on my way home, having heard that if I got there before 5:00 I could vote on an absentee ballot. There were at least 150 people lined up outside, so I decided to pass on that one and wait until today. I definitely have more patience for waiting early in the day than late.
While I know there are more things at stake than human rights, this most basic and fundamental issue takes top priority in my book. One of today's candidates was the ONLY negative vote in a bill designed to give medical care to babies that survive the unspeakable horror of having been medically aborted though viable. When asked at Saddleback Church when exactly he feels that babies do deserve human rights protection, he said (after umm...ing a bit) that the answer to that question was above his pay grade. And finally, exhibit #3...the comment that while he would teach his daughters morals and values, he would not expect them to be "punished with a baby" for their mistake. To think where this kind of morality will lead us is nothing less than terrifying.
I read an argument recently that by attacking poverty, said candidate will in effect be reducing the number of abortions, because those who can't afford to keep their babies make up the majority of women who have abortions. Economic reasons are not at the heart of his willingness to see his own grandchild aborted in the event of an untimely "mistake". I think it would be interesting to look at the numbers and see how many women KEEP their babies for economic reasons. A monthly welfare check might be a motivator.
I am just as concerned about the poverty in our country as any BO disciple. I'm just not sure the government is the place to land as the end all in poverty-busting. I read the following quote in another blog this morning:
"When our Lord ate with tax collectors and sinners, He did not instruct the tax collectors to organize socially to lower taxes, or to tax only the rich and give it to the poor. He called them instead to personal conversion, to sell all of their belongings and to give the money to the poor, and to follow Him. I do not believe that voting for politicians who say they'll help the poor is the same as helping the poor, nor does it alleviate our responsibility to do so. I myself cannot claim total innocence in this regard." Well, that's all the time I have for rumination this morning...duty calls. Heidi has much more personal reasons for being pro-life (which obviously, we share). My only "consolation" as I ponder the "changes" we face is that whatever we get is what we deserve - but regardless, God is still in control, and if we witness further moral degradation (and possible moral collapse), it is in His timing, allowed by Him, and for His ultimate purposes.
Friday, October 31, 2008
They're here!
The wedding pictures are online! Plan to take awhile to look at them, because there are LOTS. Any and all are available for purchase through the website.
Here's how to take a look. Get onto the photographer's website here, click on "clients" and type our last name (all lower case) into the little text box below the photo.
Enjoy!!! Tell us which are your favorites!
Here's how to take a look. Get onto the photographer's website here, click on "clients" and type our last name (all lower case) into the little text box below the photo.
Enjoy!!! Tell us which are your favorites!
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Happy Anniversary!
After the big wedding last month, Heather and I were reviewing the highlight reel together and she made a poignant observation. She noted that in her lifetime she has never had to experience the divorce of a family member - they are all still married to one another - and that is really something to celebrate. As our role models in marriage for life, we look to and recognize my mom and dad, who will tomorrow be celebrating their FIFTY-FIFTH wedding anniversary. This is definitely momentous!
At the wedding, there was a "married couples dance", where the floor cleared a little at a time until the couple married the longest was the only couple left on the floor. Guess who won?
You guessed it! No one else in the room had been married 55 years!
In Mom's own words, here are her memories of that special day and the years inbetween:
We were married in Ponca City Fri, October 30, 1953 about 7:30 in the eve by the Methodist pastor in the First Baptist Church. Reception following in the basement and then off we went to OKC for honeymoon and stayed at the Skirvin Hotel. Was strange checking in with my husband . It was a beautiful hotel and has been remodelled and I believe still in the same place-downtown OKC. We stopped in Stillwater enroute at a downtown cafe for a cup of coffee. We stayed two nights and went to the movie:Sat. nite The Robe in OKC. We attended the First Baptist Church downtown OKC on Sunday morning. Came home Sunday aft. and spent the night at the Overstreet (Nana and Popo) home in Ponca City-loaded up everything we had and drove to Kentucky, Vine Grove. Dad had rented a small home there enroute home to get married. Next day, we went out and bought the bedroom suite you are using, a table and chairs (4). Dad had a sack chair for the living room and a TV. He built a sofa from a slab of wood (screwed legs on it) and put a pad on top. He was stationed at Ft. Knox, Ky. for 4 mos. and then sent to Korea. I went back to Ponca City and worked til beginning of next semester and enrolled at OSU and finished my first degree-Bachelor of Science in Home Ec. Dept. Dad was gone 16 mos. One semester I took 20 hours to complete the course by the time he returned. He left March 1954 and returned end of July 1955. All our furnishings had been stored by the military and when Dad returned he was stationed in the Baltimore,MD area and attended a CIC school for 3+ months. We rented a furnished apt. there. Then stationed in Iowa for duty there. We were in an apt. where military bought all our stuff and then in about a year purchased our first home on Stamey St. in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Dad stayed in the military til Dec. 1956. He then joined the Pickwick Co. in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in their Adv. Dept. Our first 3 years were most interesting and varied and different locations.We drove home Christmas '56 in very cold weather to Ponca and spent Christmas with the Overstreet grandparents. I remember stopping at a farm house enroute to get your baby bottle warmed. We had a bottle warmer in the car you plugged in and it had quit working. What a beginning for our married life and still going!! Many memories around the world in travels and living from east coast to west and Iowa to Okla.
Congratulations, Mom and Dad for 55 years of devotion to one another! We are all thankful for the inspiration you are to us.
At the wedding, there was a "married couples dance", where the floor cleared a little at a time until the couple married the longest was the only couple left on the floor. Guess who won?
You guessed it! No one else in the room had been married 55 years!
In Mom's own words, here are her memories of that special day and the years inbetween:
We were married in Ponca City Fri, October 30, 1953 about 7:30 in the eve by the Methodist pastor in the First Baptist Church. Reception following in the basement and then off we went to OKC for honeymoon and stayed at the Skirvin Hotel. Was strange checking in with my husband . It was a beautiful hotel and has been remodelled and I believe still in the same place-downtown OKC. We stopped in Stillwater enroute at a downtown cafe for a cup of coffee. We stayed two nights and went to the movie:Sat. nite The Robe in OKC. We attended the First Baptist Church downtown OKC on Sunday morning. Came home Sunday aft. and spent the night at the Overstreet (Nana and Popo) home in Ponca City-loaded up everything we had and drove to Kentucky, Vine Grove. Dad had rented a small home there enroute home to get married. Next day, we went out and bought the bedroom suite you are using, a table and chairs (4). Dad had a sack chair for the living room and a TV. He built a sofa from a slab of wood (screwed legs on it) and put a pad on top. He was stationed at Ft. Knox, Ky. for 4 mos. and then sent to Korea. I went back to Ponca City and worked til beginning of next semester and enrolled at OSU and finished my first degree-Bachelor of Science in Home Ec. Dept. Dad was gone 16 mos. One semester I took 20 hours to complete the course by the time he returned. He left March 1954 and returned end of July 1955. All our furnishings had been stored by the military and when Dad returned he was stationed in the Baltimore,MD area and attended a CIC school for 3+ months. We rented a furnished apt. there. Then stationed in Iowa for duty there. We were in an apt. where military bought all our stuff and then in about a year purchased our first home on Stamey St. in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Dad stayed in the military til Dec. 1956. He then joined the Pickwick Co. in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in their Adv. Dept. Our first 3 years were most interesting and varied and different locations.We drove home Christmas '56 in very cold weather to Ponca and spent Christmas with the Overstreet grandparents. I remember stopping at a farm house enroute to get your baby bottle warmed. We had a bottle warmer in the car you plugged in and it had quit working. What a beginning for our married life and still going!! Many memories around the world in travels and living from east coast to west and Iowa to Okla.
Congratulations, Mom and Dad for 55 years of devotion to one another! We are all thankful for the inspiration you are to us.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Shhhhh......
It has been recently pointed out to me that I've not been updating, and therefore assumed that things must be hopping around here. On the contrary, it has been unusually quiet, and I'm enjoying a respite from the little insanities of life. It seems that for the past year it has been SOMETHING non-stop. Well, for now it's stopped (knock on wood) and for the current lull, I am extremely grateful.
Work is going well. Still loving the new job. The school calendar is as good as it gets.
Radiation will be half done by the end of the week. Outside of the "sunburn" and some early fatigue, Pete is doing well.
The newlyweds are doing great. We enjoyed a meal and an evening at their place last week. Us old folks even played Wii for the first time and actually had fun doing it. Check out this site for two "sneak peeks" at their wedding pictures, soon to be posted on same site. If you want to see them when they come up, you'll need a passcode. Leave me your email address in the comment section and I'll send it to you.
Absolutely nothing else to report. And I'm okay with that.
Work is going well. Still loving the new job. The school calendar is as good as it gets.
Radiation will be half done by the end of the week. Outside of the "sunburn" and some early fatigue, Pete is doing well.
The newlyweds are doing great. We enjoyed a meal and an evening at their place last week. Us old folks even played Wii for the first time and actually had fun doing it. Check out this site for two "sneak peeks" at their wedding pictures, soon to be posted on same site. If you want to see them when they come up, you'll need a passcode. Leave me your email address in the comment section and I'll send it to you.
Absolutely nothing else to report. And I'm okay with that.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Catching up
A few months ago, Heidi had me sign up on Facebook so I could see her page and the group they started to keep people informed of their progress in getting to England. I felt I was a little old for Facebook, but agreed for the above reasons. My page is a complete dud without a picture or anything at all interesting and I've not done a thing with it. In the meantime, somehow the word got out among the 20-somethings at church and I have a good 20 "friend" invitations in my hotmail inbox waiting for a response from me. How unfriendly is it to not respond to people who say they want to be your friend?!? Just one of the many ways I need to catch up...
Thank you notes would be next (well, actually, they're first on the list). The wedding was absolutely beautiful. And the help of a number of dear friends made the day completely enjoyable for me. We hosted a "mini-reception" between the ceremony and the dinner at the country club, and the gym looked like a garden party complete with trees, park benches, and lights. Time with family was wonderful and those who sacrificed to be here gave us a gift beyond compare. Every minute was a blessing.
We're trying to catch up at home - the morning the throngs left we headed back to work and things still are not quite back to normal, though we've made progress. Heather moved in the day after the wedding and she is trying to get settled during a few days off work without killing herself in the process. She wants to move to Arizona in the spring for health reasons and didn't want to have to sign another year's lease on her apt., so she's turning the basement into a cozy nook. She got her cable hooked up and so now we have it, too. I've decided there is something decidedly addictive about the Home & Garden channel. Heather and I figured out that there are no commercials between the end of one show and the beginning of the next. You get hooked before you ever realize what happened. Another new show (well, new to us) is the Dog Whisperer, which is pretty cool. This Cesar guy is pretty amazing.
On the cancer front, Pete goes in for his "dry run" for radiation on Thursday, and then presumably, will start soon after that. I can't wait to tell Eric that his dad got a tattoo (though you have to look really hard to find it). They marked his leg with ink in a needle (doesn't that qualify as a tattoo?) and made a mold which will be secured to the table so his leg doesn't move during radiation. He has to go 5x a week for 7 weeks. He struggled for awhile with the REAL necessity of submitting to radiation as he tested cancer free after surgery. The clincher was the revelation that if the cancer were to recur in his leg he would possibly lose the whole leg. We'd obviously rather not go there.
And not for your viewing pleasure, here is a picture from the wedding. Emy's cousin is a professional photographer and while she was too busy taking care of the flower girls (her daughters) to be messing with pictures, she somehow posted 177 of them on her website. As I understand the wedding photographer will also be posting pictures in 2-3 weeks. I'll let you know that link/password when I get it. Aren't they cute?
Thank you notes would be next (well, actually, they're first on the list). The wedding was absolutely beautiful. And the help of a number of dear friends made the day completely enjoyable for me. We hosted a "mini-reception" between the ceremony and the dinner at the country club, and the gym looked like a garden party complete with trees, park benches, and lights. Time with family was wonderful and those who sacrificed to be here gave us a gift beyond compare. Every minute was a blessing.
We're trying to catch up at home - the morning the throngs left we headed back to work and things still are not quite back to normal, though we've made progress. Heather moved in the day after the wedding and she is trying to get settled during a few days off work without killing herself in the process. She wants to move to Arizona in the spring for health reasons and didn't want to have to sign another year's lease on her apt., so she's turning the basement into a cozy nook. She got her cable hooked up and so now we have it, too. I've decided there is something decidedly addictive about the Home & Garden channel. Heather and I figured out that there are no commercials between the end of one show and the beginning of the next. You get hooked before you ever realize what happened. Another new show (well, new to us) is the Dog Whisperer, which is pretty cool. This Cesar guy is pretty amazing.
On the cancer front, Pete goes in for his "dry run" for radiation on Thursday, and then presumably, will start soon after that. I can't wait to tell Eric that his dad got a tattoo (though you have to look really hard to find it). They marked his leg with ink in a needle (doesn't that qualify as a tattoo?) and made a mold which will be secured to the table so his leg doesn't move during radiation. He has to go 5x a week for 7 weeks. He struggled for awhile with the REAL necessity of submitting to radiation as he tested cancer free after surgery. The clincher was the revelation that if the cancer were to recur in his leg he would possibly lose the whole leg. We'd obviously rather not go there.
And not for your viewing pleasure, here is a picture from the wedding. Emy's cousin is a professional photographer and while she was too busy taking care of the flower girls (her daughters) to be messing with pictures, she somehow posted 177 of them on her website. As I understand the wedding photographer will also be posting pictures in 2-3 weeks. I'll let you know that link/password when I get it. Aren't they cute?
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