Amber Waves of Coronavirus?

Before I begin extolling any of Oklahoma's virtues, I'd be remiss not to provide a short intro reminding our future selves what a truly bizarre year this has been.  In early March, during Daniel's spring break, we set off to New Mexico to explore that great state.  My intention was to write a full blog post and upload lots of wonderful photos as soon as we arrived home.  Instead, we arrived home to one unsettling piece of news after another, and by the following weekend, Daniel was moving back home for the rest of his freshman year.

Now it's June 9th, and the country has been reeling from not only the virus itself, but everything it has left in its wake (from the loss of jobs to the systemic racism that has been spotlighted as never before).  A few weeks ago, after we had all been in "self isolation," largely quarantining at home, seeing others only through FaceTime and House Party apps, the country began to tentatively "open," with different states (and cities within those states) entering a series of phases in the order that makes most sense for them, based on criteria provided by the CDC.  Which leads us to this trip...

When Dana first suggested we consider a vacation this year, after our initial plan to take a cruise for my mother's 75th birthday had to be indefinitely postponed, we all thought he was a bit nuts.  Still, Maddie was in Los Angeles and we were in South Florida, two of the places hit hardest by the virus, so when he proposed that we could finally plan our trip to Kansas - whose "amber waves" of wheat  inspired this blog and my quest to visit all 50 states over ten years ago and would be in prime harvest readiness in early June - I sprang into research mode.  Yes, it seemed we could take a trip in a way that would be very cautious, renting a car from and booking hotels with companies that had instituted thorough cleaning regiments and working our way through three states - Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska - that had much smaller and less dense populations and far fewer cases of the virus.

So here we are.  As the children sleep, I wanted to get this blog entry written after last night realizing that, despite the fact that it worked when we tried it at home, we can't seem to get the photos off of my new camera into Dana's computer.  Luckily, I still took quite a few with my trusty old iPhone, so the others will just have to wait until we return home!  (Maybe I'll finally get around to writing that New Mexico blog I so owe the state that quickly rocketed to the top of all of our lists and inspired us all to use the excuse of isolation to finally delve into the entire series of Breaking Bad :)

On June 7th, Dana's birthday, we left our respective cities and reunited in Dallas, TX.  While the initial leg of each of our trips left something to be desired (so much for American Airlines not selling the middle seats!), our Core Four eagerly boarded the small plane for the short trip to OKC.  Loaded into our Jeep Cherokee, which, just now as I typed this, did I realize is a freaking crazy name for a car!  How a) did they ever make that decision and b) did it never occur to me until this very moment was intended to reference Native Americans?!  I guess it may be the most appropriate car to travel through the land we stole from them twice.  If you want a glimpse into some of the history I share with the family on our drives, feel free to delve into any of the links I share in this post.

My first impression of Oklahoma City was just how clean it is.  Not sure why I expected it to be otherwise, but it is practically pristine, with historic buildings sitting next to high rises, but all of the sidewalks looking as if they'd just recently been set.  We are staying in the Colcord Hotel, completed in 1909 and, at 14 stories, considered OKC's first skyscraper.  This city has done a wonderful job of honoring its history as it looks to the future.  One of our favorite districts thus far is called Automobile Alley, where building that housed the home offices and dealerships for Buick, Pontiac, and so on have all been transformed into boutique law firms, restaurants, bars and shops. Yesterday's breakfast was at the adorable Hatch in the Buick building and dinner at Packard's New American Kitchen.  I had forgotten there ever was a car called Packard, but boy were they great looking.  As were, of course, the Buicks, which you can see below.

After a lovely, socially distant, birthday dinner in the Plaza district on the night we arrived, we were stunned to show up for our breakfast stop yesterday morning and find there wasn't a parking spot available.  When I entered the restaurant and quickly realized I was the only one wearing a mask, we started what was probably the most surreal hour of our trip thus far.  As Maddie put it, she felt as if we had either entered (or exited) the Twilight Zone.  We've all been so consumed with how to protect ourselves and each other from the virus that it was utterly bizarre to be in a relatively full restaurant where not a single person was wearing a mask, condiments were on the table, and so on.  We asked the waitress if they had closed, and she shared with us how they had for a few days and done curbside delivery for a time after that.  We remained calm, had our wipes and masks at the ready and enjoyed one delicious breakfast, even sharing a pancake they make in the shape of their state. :)

The Buick building made an awesome space for a restaurant

Yesterday was our day to explore the smaller towns in Oklahoma, so we headed down to Tishomingo, home of Blake Shelton and, on the way back to the city, to Davis, a small town that had recently been lauded for being the best such small town in the state.  We headed to Turner Falls Park first, thank goodness, as it seems that lovely spot is what earned Davis the distinction.  The state is as you would likely expect it to be, relatively flat and green.  The majority of the few hour (round trip) drive was pretty but not particularly interesting; still the drive from Tishomingo to Turner Falls, which is in the Arbuckle Mountains, had a bit more character.

We had fun singing to the largely country music set that Daniel provided as the soundtrack to our drive, imagining Blake and Gwen Stefani going into the local Dairy Queen, and having lunch at Ole Red, the restaurant Blake owns and where live music performs each weekend.  We may have even come up with a brilliant idea for our own restaurant.  After exploring Tishomingo, we headed to Turner Falls Park, where Dana and Daniel opted to fully submerge themselves in the natural spring at the foot of Turner Falls, while Maddie and I found a nearby spot to wade and chat.  When Davis the town proved to be an under construction disappointment, Daniel's selection of the always lovely "Our Town" quickly lightened the mood.

There are our boys treading water and keeping their distance from others.

One of Blake's ranches in Tishomingo, not 30 minutes away from the town of Ada, where he was born.

Back in OKC for the night, we had a great late dinner in a quiet restaurant where the entire staff was wearing masks (as was the staff at Ole Red, thus determining we had ENTERED the Twilight Zone when we went to Hatch for breakfast), hopped up to the rooftop bar to see the skyline at night, then headed back to our hotel and a nighttime stroll through the botanical gardens situated just across the street from us.

The Colcord Hotel at night

Today we will explore several more districts in this city before heading to Wichita, KS, where we will sleep tonight.  Tomorrow, if all goes well (and I am not so foolish as not to knock wood and cross my fingers as I type this), we will see wheat!