We Looked At A House

Somehow, we've become obsessed with the idea of buying a fixer-upper in a neighborhood we really like.

Now, you're probably all thinking this is a terrible idea. After all, we're the people who took months to replace a toilet (hey, it was grouted to the floor!), still haven't filled in our pool (we're waiting to hear back from a contractor!), and didn't paint our hideous pink and purple room until water damage forced some subcontractors to paint it for us.

But we've been doing better, really! I painted one bedroom before the water damage debacle. Johnny and I have been working diligently on the front yard. And we've both found reserves of willpower we didn't know we had thanks to doing this wacky Whole30 diet.

So last weekend we went to look at a house in the historic Maple Ridge neighborhood in Tulsa. The location couldn't be better. The house...Well, the house could be a lot better. We knew it was probably in rough shape, as it's being sold as a short sale and there were no pictures of the interior.

At first glance, it looks like an ordinary little bungalow that needs some love. However, the real estate agent was right when he said "I hope you have your brave hats on" before we went inside.

Front bedroom, complete with bizarre extra room.

Back bedroom, with a tampon applicator on the floor,
writing ALL OVER the walls, and "MURDER" written in
large letters. Fun!

Living/dining room.

Bizarre huge closet off the back bedroom. Totally baffled
as to its original function.

Kitchen, which has clearly seen improvements in the last
decade or so. 

As if the interior weren't terrifying enough, the exterior was somehow more frightening.

The foundation is definitely not in good shape. One of the basement walls had caved in completely, and it was easy to feel the slope of a ruined foundation while walking inside the house.

Now, the property is priced very cheaply and thus, is very tempting. But do a couple of people who have trouble not giving up on installing a toilet need to tackle a project of this scope? Sadly, the answer is "probably not". But that hasn't stopped us from reading all about home renovation...

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My Mom Was Here

As I pointed out in my last post, my mother made an ill-timed, meticulously planned trip to Tulsa for the express purpose of visiting me. I think I've finally recovered. Here's what we did:

I had to take my mom to see some of Tulsa's most interesting landmarks, so we dropped by the Golden Driller...

And the giant praying hands at ORU...

And the Blue Whale on Route 66...

She made me drive to Bartlesville for a tour of Price Tower, which was admittedly pretty cool...

I also found a buffalo with extreme, disco-ball testicles in Bartlesville...

We spent an afternoon at Will Rogers Downs, betting on races...

But most of our horses came in last.

We stopped at Lake Oologah...

Dashed through downtown Tulsa to make it to the opera on time...

And generally had a very busy week! 

I think my favorite part about the whole inconvenient visit was getting to dine at some new places around town- Dilly Deli downtown, The Wild Fork in Utica Square, Frank & Lola's in Bartlesville...All were very, very good. Our tour of the Blue Bell creamery in Broken Arrow was another highlight, especially the part where they gave us an entire gallon of vanilla ice cream. My mother also met Buttons, The G, Anne, Shari, and Kyla. I think she had a good time. As for me? I hope it's five years before she decides to visit again.

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Welcome to OK, Mom!

Well, she's actually in Arkansas at the moment, but will be here in the Sooner State tomorrow. Then the fun begins! ...Not.

My mother and I get along amicably enough. She calls me weekly (down from twice weekly when I lived in Wichita) and we have a conversation about work, cats, and mutual acquaintances. I tell her what Johnny and I are up to, she tells me what various family members are up to. As her only child, I recognize the importance these phone calls have to her, and therefore, I always answer them. While this isn't my ideal relationship, it works well enough. (For reference, my ideal parental relationship is the one I share with my father: we talk on the phone once every few months, he feeds Moe for me, and sometimes he remembers when my birthday is.)

Since I moved to Oklahoma (600 miles away from my family), my mother has doggedly disparaged the state (and all prairie states in general). She seems to think it's a tumbleweed-filled landscape populated by rednecks and rough characters. She isn't entirely wrong (and I'll be the first to admit I dislike Claremore immensely), but I'm determined to show her all that vibrant, beautiful Tulsa has to offer. (Plus, I'm pretty sure if I keep her busy, she'll be too tired to bug me about going to a casino every night. SUCCESS.)

Here's what I'm looking at:

Monday

• Tulsa classics: Crazy ORU campus (praying hands, prayer tower), Golden Driller statue, Blue Whale on Route 66
• Lunch @ Dilly Deli
• Shopping in Brookside
• Dinner @ Hideaway Pizza

Tuesday

• Morning at the barn (RSU Equestrian Center): riding lesson on The G with Anne, teaching Roscoe to jump, clipping/bathing program horses (weather permitting)
• Lunch @ The Pink House
• Horse racing @ Will Rogers Downs
• Dinner @ house (I'll be sure to share the menu & recipes soon, provided they're well-received!)
• Night @ Hard Rock Casino

Wednesday

• Tour of Bluebell Ice Cream factory
• Lunch @ Billy Sims BBQ
• Shopping @ Utica Square
• Dinner @ The Wild Fork

Thursday

• Tour of Price Tower (Frank Lloyd Wright's only skyscraper)
• Lunch @ Goldie's Patio Grill
• Tour of Oak Hills Winery
• Dinner @ TBD
• Attend final dress rehearsal of Tulsa Opera's performance of Norma. (Thanks for the tickets, Anne! You're the best!!) 

I think I've planned a pretty excellent itinerary if I do say so myself. I hope my mom enjoys her trip. Mostly, though, I hope she stops hating on Oklahoma! 

(If you're wondering where Johnny is through all of this, he's meeting us for dinner on Monday and Thursday, grilling for us on Tuesday, and chilling with Buttons the rest of the time. Hooray, Johnny!)

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2010 In Review, Part 2

Welcome to Part 2 of the Johnny & Stephanie 2010 Recap! The last six months of the year were way less exciting than the first six (and also contain far less pictures). Here's what we've been doing:

July
Johnny had a birthday (he's rapidly approaching old age) and started the (never-ending) process of moving to the house. The pool was still looked like this:

Alas, it couldn't last.

August
My friend Greer moved to Oklahoma for graduate school; this means I have someone other than Johnny to hang out with. (This is significant!)

October
While there were no exotic travels in October, there were plenty of local activities to keep us busy. We hit the Tulsa State Fair, a pre-season NBA game, and Oktoberfest. And don't forget my birthday! (I am way less ancient than Johnny.)

Building at the fairgrounds.

This is what $10 tickets gets you.

Mmm, Warsteiner.

November

I met Johnny's father's side of the family over Thanksgiving weekend in Fort Worth, Texas. Despite reminding me, Johnny forgot his Six Flags season pass, so no post-turkey rides on the Batman coaster for us. :( Highlights from weekend include Johnny's young cousin Landon asking me if I was now his [Landon's] cousin and Johnny's grandmother asking me if my parents' divorce "messed [me] up for life". 

December

December was somewhat uninspired; we traveled to Fort Worth again for a Christmas celebration with Johnny's mother's family who were all very nice and didn't ask me weird questions about my parents' divorce. (Although his grandfather did make very potent mimosas.) We saw Tron: Legacy, which was awful, and had a long chat with Johnny's cousin Jill about Ke$ha. (I blame the mimosas!) Other December highlights: I got a new job, I finally replaced The Blazer with a Subaru Forester, and my mom gave us a cat clock that meows on the hour. 

What a year 2010 was! I'm looking forward to 2011- we have some major ideas we're kicking around! What do you all have planned?

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Oktoberfest!

I did it! After approximately six months of anxious anticipation, I made it to Tulsa's celebrated Oktoberfest.

As anyone who has been acquainted with me for any length of time can tell you, I love beer. Admittedly, I am have something of a discerning palate; you will never catch me drinking PBR, Natty Ice, anything with "Lite/Light" in its name, or any sort of Budweiser. My beer of choice is usually Blue Moon- delicious, widely available, and relatively affordable. Sure, it's brewed by Coors, but it's not like it has those awful commercials.

Anyway, I have been psyched for Oktoberfest since I found out Tulsa held one. I managed to get the day off work and around 7 PM, Johnny and I headed down to the banks of the Arkansas River to indulge in some of my favorite vices- eating and drinking!

We decided to split pitchers. Commemorative glasses/mugs were nowhere to be found and although it's impossible to see in this light, the pitcher has the Tulsa Oktoberfest logo on it. (Johnny is really into souvenir cups. One day I'll take a picture of the collection of Cubs, Pudge Rodriguez, Tulsa Drillers, and Memphis Grizzlies cups we own.) The pitchers were a decent value at $19 ($18 for refills) since we got around 4-5 cups out of them. Our first pitcher was Warsteiner Oktoberfest. I thought long and hard about just getting a pitcher of Blue Moon (<3) but decided it against it because it was Oktoberfest and I ought to drink a German beer. I really liked this- it was smooth and tangy with a slightly bitter aftertaste. It wasn't heavy at all. 

With our pitcher, we had the most delicious Reuben sandwiches imaginable. Johnny and I are something like Reuben connoisseurs- we've had them at a variety of places. Some are good (like the turkey Reuben at that brunch place in South Tulsa- ask Johnny for the name) and some are merely okay (ahem, McAlister's) but this one was amazing. I have no words to describe its perfection or how well it went down with the beer. 

Here, dear friends, is where the photos stop. My phone's camera is woefully inadequate, and I forgot to make Johnny take pictures with his Blackberry's super-fancy-includes-a-flash-and-auto-focus camera. So use your imaginations! 

We wandered around the festival- it's set up very well. There are lots of different tents to explore (Das Sports Cafe, Das Bier Garten) and each features different beers. Food vendors are everywhere, selling everything from schnitzel to chocolate dipped cheesecake on a stick. 

I lied, there was another picture. This is Johnny, not me.

A variety of merchandise was also for sale. There were Oktoberfest t-shirts, chicken hats, lederhosen, and so, so many beer steins. There was a carnival with rides and games (complete with giant Ferris wheel) that didn't appear to have carnies nearly as terrifying as the state fair's. The crowd was large and good-natured (due to all the beer, I think). The staff was full of pleasant volunteers. We even ran into someone Johnny went to college with (Scott? Hi, Scott!). 

I was determined to try some local brew, so I ventured into Das Sports Cafe to get a pitcher of Marshall's Oktoberfest. The Marshall Brewing Company is based in Tulsa and I've always wanted to try their beer. This Oktoberfest beer was somewhat dark and moderately bitter. It tasted nice and was 6.0% alcohol by volume, so this is where the recap gets hazy. Johnny and I had bratwursts (amazing) and then he tried the cheesecake pictured above and brought me some sort of bizarre block of French fries. They were disappointing- too greasy and not nearly crispy enough. We listened to a band play for a bit (until Johnny was well enough to drive) and then headed out. Originally, we'd planned to catch Inception at the dollar theater, but I didn't feel up to sitting through a convoluted movie. After a stop at Wal Mart to pick up chicken for the week (I gallantly staggered around carrying some Quaker oats), we headed home. I'm pretty sure I passed out by 10 PM.

All in all, Oktoberfest was fantastic. The beers were excellent, the food was good (disappointing French fry cake aside), and the atmosphere couldn't be better. No wonder Tulsa's Oktoberfest is rated among the best in the nation! I can't wait til next year.

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