Friday, December 4, 2009 | by nathan

DEER FIGHT!

My dad very much enjoys his retirement in western Arkansas, just over the Oklahoma border. One of his favorite pastimes, especially this time of year, is to sit and watch the deer traipse through his land. For the times when he isn’t able to be out watching them, he has trap cameras set up all over his acreage to catch the wildlife as it passes through. He’s caught a zillion deer, whole herds of turkeys and, occasionally, a bear. I’m still waiting for him to catch a glimpse of the Boggy Bottom Monster on the cameras, but that’s only because I want to meet Josh Gates and stick my tongue in his eye.

In the meantime, this is probably the best trap camera photo he’s ever sent me. To paraphrase my dad, this is basically a deer bitch fight. Doe, a deer, a female deer, taking off her earrings and putting a bitch in check. I mean – to paraphrase. That’s not *exactly* how my dad described it. But you get the idea: Lady Deer is pissed at Other Lady Deer and wants her to get her Other Lady Deer Hooves (paws? Hooves.) off Lady Deer’s man and out of Lady Deer’s territory. It’s sorta like that one time in New York City when I saw that hooker getting beaten up by that other hooker.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009 | by nathan

From The Air: An Open Letter to Mrs. Kathy Mattea

I’ve been meaning to post this photograph forever. It’s from the beginning of November, when we flew from Raleigh/Durham to Nashville, then to Kansas City, then home. This was our landing in Nash-vegas. Their airport greeted us well, despite the fact that I was sick with Alien Flu From Hell and felt like a total douche for getting on a plane at all, but hey, a guy’s gotta get home, AMIRITE? And so to all the passengers on all my flights, including one Mrs. Kathy Mattea, who, my iPhone informed me just before I was legally required to shut it off lest it single-handedly send our plane face-first into a mountain or Opryland, was performing THAT VERY NIGHT in Kansas City and probably didn’t need to be trying to belt out "Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses" while feeling like her sinuses were being raked across an industrial cheese grater.

So – I’m sorry, Mrs. Mattea. I’m very, very sorry. I hope you didn’t catch my AFFH. I don’t believe in bothering the famous in inescapable places like airplanes, bathrooms, or their dressing rooms. Also, I can’t imagine what it feels like for someone to hear "I used to listen to you when I was a kid!" It must sound something along the lines of, "Wow! I didn’t know you were still alive!" or "Hey – you know you look like Kathy Mattea? What the hell ever happened to her?" So I didn’t say anything to you on our flight. And I don’t have any of your music on my iPhone, but I listened to "Love at the Five and Dime" when I got home. Only, I listened to the original version by Nancy Griffith. I’m sure your cover version is fine. But that Nancy – wow. Which is another thing I would never say to a "famous" such as yourself. "I like you – but you know who I really like is that Nancy Griffith. Do you know her? Do you have her number in your cell phone? What about Reba? Do you know Reba? Boy, she sure is something. But you’re great, too, you know. In your own way." 

All that is to say – break a leg out there on the road, Mrs. Kathy Mattea. I really did think "Time Passes By" was a good record.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009 | by nathan

Snow Glowb

One of our big projects this weekend was to hang Christmas lights on our house. This is especially daunting in our neighborhood, as people really take a whole lot of pride in their holiday lights, creating pieces of visual – and occasionally performance – art that should be installed in some major museum. One designed by Frank Gehry. One house in our neighborhood was featured prominently on UglyChristmasLights.com one year, though for the life of me I can’t find that photograph now.

All that is to say, there was some Jones-keeping-up-with that needed to happen this year, as our previous attempts at Christmas decoration have bordered somewhere between "pathetic" and "Christmas is so fucking canceled, nerds." So we went all out, spending four hours hanging lights on our front porch, which drew positive comments from our neighbors and the current residents of the International Space Station, as well as a couple alien civilizations, who have begun to worship the new light that has appeared in their skies. It’s possible we went a little overboard. It’s possible we almost killed each other. And while it’s still not as grand as some of our neighbors’ homes, we’re pretty proud of the finished product.

Monday, November 30, 2009 | by nathan

Son and Father

I hope you had a great holiday; I did. A gaggle of our extended family gathered at my mom’s house in south Oklahoma City on Thanksgiving, where we wrangled dogs and children, planned mischief for the Christmas season, and frequently teased my grandmother, who is on a Caribbean cruise right now, about which bikini she was going to wear on the beach in Jamaica. When she told us – with no lack of certainty – that she wouldn’t be wearing a bikini, we said OH I GET IT GRANDMA, WINK WINK WINK. Then she tried to act like she didn’t think it was funny, but she did. We’re on to you, Pearl.

All that aside, this photo is my favorite of all the ones I took on Thanksgiving day. It’s my little brother, John, and my dad. I love these two guys, and my entire family, more than life itself, and I’m glad to have captured this.

Monday, November 23, 2009 | by nathan

Mfg. Co.

I wrote about it the other day, but the revitalization of downtown Oklahoma City via the Core to Shore projects and MAPS3 are very, very exciting examples of urban renewal in a city that, for too long, has been defined more by life in its suburbs than in its heart. Flying over OKC recently on a flight to Kansas City, I got my first good look at where the city’s development is heading geographically, and it thrilled me to no end. This plaque is on the Fred Jones Building I wrote about last week; I was down there recently and got to walk around Main Street and the new Film Row district taking some pictures. This is one of my favorites.

Monday, November 23, 2009 | by nathan

Weekly Reader – 23 November 2009

Best TV of the ’00s
The Onion’s AV Club does a rundown of the best television of the decade. While I’m of the opinion that this decade has had some of the best television in history, and while I wholeheartedly agree with the inclusion of such personal favorites as Veronica Mars, Firefly, and Futurama, not to mention such obvious choices as 30 Rock and The West Wing, there are some notable omissions. Buffy (arguably more of a ’90s show than ’00s) but no Angel? No Wonderfalls? No Malcolm in the Middle? Oh, well; TV geeks will disagree, after all.

A Creek Runs Under It
"But the creek isn’t all above ground; five blocks of it run under Lewistown. When the town was constructed, part of it was built over the creek, inspiring a unique thrill ride that has become a rite of passage: floating through the town, underneath Main Street, in the pitch black."

Beer In A Box
YEAAAHHH! USA! USA! USA! USA! I think that with the advent of Beer In A Box, our country has completed some kind of transformation, from one type of society into another, wholly unrecognizable one, but the specifics of our new world are too terrifying to postulate.

New Cookie Baking Method
I am SO doing this for my Christmas party. That means it’s time to go get my waffle iron from the shop. Stupid waffle iron’s been in the shop forever.

Friday, November 20, 2009 | by nathan

Kweezin-Art

It’s so funny the things I see when I’m walking to work. Like this, for example. Sure! Leave the blade to your food processor lying in the grass! How would this even get there? 

Thursday, November 19, 2009 | by nathan

Descending!

Last night’s sunset was really sort of indescribable. For the next few weeks we’re enjoying the last gasps of autumn in Oklahoma, the best time for taking walks, listening to music, listening to yourself. Come the New Year the cold gets mean, windy, wet, and you don’t get to do as much walking as you do in October, November, and early December. This is from the end of my street as I walked home from work last night, looking toward the west, toward home.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009 | by nathan

Model-Ts and Law Degrees

Any professional affiliations I may or may not have put aside, I find this incredibly cool. I hope all the OKC denizens who read this website are planning on voting for MAPS3 on December 8. 

Wednesday, November 18, 2009 | by nathan

Clear Blue Autumn Morning

I caught this shot while walking to work the other morning. I walked past this sign, and something just stopped me and said, "Go back and get that photograph." I did it – ALWAYS FOLLOW THE MUSES – but rolled my eyes at myself, thinking, "That was so stupid. That’s gonna be such a throwaway photo." 

Except that I LOVE THIS PICTURE. I love the shades of blue, the barely-legible sign, the silhouette of Shepherd Mall, and especially the little tricks of light in the upper right of the photo that look like little UFOs or angels. This one will have a place of honor in my house.