OKlahoma City and beyond

Gore, OK

We left El Reno on Thursday at 9 and arrived at United Methodist Boys Ranch in Gore, OK at noon.  More on the Ranch later. I am having a difficult time staying online.

We spent most of last Tuesday and Wednesday being shown around Oklahoma City by my cousin, Bonnie, who lives in Oklahoma City and  whomI've seen only a few times in the last many, many years.

Bonnie is the younger sister of my cousin Muriel, whom we spent time with while in Benson, AZ.

On Tuesday we went to:

Reflecting pool   It was the street in front of the building

Each person killed in the bombing is represented by a chair.  The bottoms light up at night.
 Smaller chairs note the 19 children.
This area is the "footprint" of the bombed building.  The walks around it are made from concrete salvaged from the site.

Tuesday night we had dinner at Bonnie's son Bill's house.

Bonnie, her son Bill, her son Brent, Bill's wife Melinda and Leonard

On Wednesday we went to the National Western Museum.  Len loved the displays of memorabilia from his favorite western stars.  There were limited areas inside where pictures could be taken.

On Wednesdays anyone 55 or older and who joins the Players Club at the Casino where we were camping can get a $10 voucher to play the slots.   The three us of got our vouchers and hit the games.   Len quit when he had $17.75, Bonnie quit while she still had $8.50 and I stopped playing when I had $16.25.   We took our large winnings and went to a neighboring bar for dinner.

Bonnie had eaten there before and Security at the casino had recommenced it.  This place has a very limited menu.  It seems what people go for is the fried chicken.  For $12.00 you get a whole chicken, lots of dill pickles, slice onions and plain white bread.  What a strange meal.   We ordered two chickens and a side of fried okra that cost $6.00.   And glasses of iced tea.   Our winnings paid for our meal and a hefty tip.  And we all took some chicken home for the next days lunch.

So here we are in Gore, OK at the United Methodist Boys Ranch where we start our three-week NOMADS project tomorrow.   I am receiving poor Internet reception.  I am currently sitting in the truck next to the school building where I can use their WIFI.

Looks like this will be the only way to get online for three weeks.