Our Panhandling Paradox

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Our

g n i l d n a panh paradox

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As local nonprofits make strides to reduce or defeat homelessness, panhandlers continue to camp at some of the city’s busiest intersections. “They panhandle because it works,” said Dan Straughan, Homeless Alliance executive director. The aid of a couple of dollars too often goes into the hands of “professional” beggars, or people who travel coast-to-coast and stop here to benefit from generous residents. He estimated about 90 percent of local panhandlers are not from Oklahoma.

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P HOTOS BY M ARK H ANCOC K

Giving change Local aid groups, lawmakers and leaders work together to define panhandling while protecting some of our city’s most in-need residents.

by Laura Eastes

Rev. Tom Jones has heard all the stereotypes surrounding the homeless: They’re addicts, lawbreakers, lazy and desire the vagrant lifestyle.

When many in the community see a homeless person, they see someone poorly dressed, in need of a shower and perhaps acting out or appearing intoxicated. It’s a heartbreaking sight.

The stereotypes don’t factor into the City Rescue Mission president’s mind.

Over the past eight years, Jones has heard many stories from clients. At times, addiction or mental health contributed to homelessness, as could the loss of a family member, job or a divorce. No one aspires to live on the streets.

That’s what Jones and others remind new clients as they work to help them overcome traumatic experiences.

“We can help people rise above where they think they have to live the rest of their lives,” Jones said. “No one has ever helped them connect the dots before.”

Professional panhandlers

However, not everyone on the streets wants to connect the dots. Some just want cash. That’s why staff at City Rescue Mission and Homeless Alliance agree that, contrary to common belief, not all

homeless people are street solicitors.

As nonprofits such as Homeless Alliance and City Rescue Mission make strides to reduce or defeat homelessness, panhandlers continue to camp at some of Oklahoma City’s busiest intersections.

“They panhandle because it works,” Dan Straughan, Homeless Alliance executive director, said of many people who support the practice. “People are generous, and they want to help.”

The aid of a couple of dollars too often goes into the hands of “professional” beggars, or people who travel coast-tocoast and stop in Oklahoma City to benefit from generous residents, Jones said.

He estimated about 90 percent of local panhandlers are not from Oklahoma.

On visits to Los Angeles, he witnessed the same people at intersections there.

“They see me, and they know me by name,” Jones said of an encounter in LA. “They don’t like seeing me pull up.”

A year ago, a resident of the local Las Vegas neighborhood noticed a spike in the number of people begging at the intersection of NW 23rd Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. The location was known as a prime spot for a panhandler or two, but a recent influx of sign-carrying solicitors were aggressive toward drivers

Dan Straughan speaks inside the Homeless Alliance day center. and with each other over turf.

“It was inundated with professional panhandlers,” said Constance, who requested her full name not be used in this article. “It wasn’t safe to go to most businesses on that corner, as you got aggressively panhandled.”

Other residents noticed, too.

Neighbors took to the Nextdoor app and called City Hall to share encounters.

Safety ordinance

Councilwoman Meg Salyer received phone calls about the panhandlers at NW 23rd Street and Pennsylvania Avenue.

She also heard about activity at other intersections. Begging on city medians was a citywide issue and motivated her to propose a median ordinance in September.

Her proposal evolved during a threemonth period and was hotly debated. In three Oklahoma City Council meetings, citizens voiced concerns over the proposed law’s impact on indigent people, especially those who rely on funds collected from street soliciting. Others believed it might violate free speech protections.

Leaders, including Oklahoma City

Police Chief Bill Citty, stressed the hazards of working in medians.

In December, the bill was renamed as a median safety ordinance. Approved by the council, it outlaws standing, siting or staying on city medians less than 30 feet wide when within 200 feet of intersections. The law exempts medians wider than 30 feet or ones that feature benches, gazebos, park equipment or trails.

“The medians are dangerous for both pedestrians and drivers,” Salyer told Oklahoma Gazette. “This wasn’t directed at a single population. We have school and church groups on medians. It really came down to keeping people safe.”

She said the law does not ban panhandling or street soliciting. Instead, it moves the practice to other locations.

Panhandlers prefer city medians because they put them in the path of potential donors, said Rev. Robin Meyers, senior minister at Mayflower Congregational UCC Church of Oklahoma City. He said the ordinance was a “cleanup measure” to move continued on page 6

Walk on Dressed in boots, khaki coveralls and a traditional black cowboy hat, Gary “Cowboy” Fields looked ready to saddle a horse and herd cattle on a brisk and cloudy early January morning.

Walking slowly and carefully along the median on NW 23rd Street and Broadway Avenue, he held a sign sharing his philosophy.

As a vendor for The Curbside Chronicle, he seeks “a hand up, not a handout.” For the past two years, Fields has sold the street magazine at the bustling intersection. On good days, he leaves with $100 profit.

“A lot of good people come and buy my magazine,” Fields said. “I’ve known them since I’ve been selling.”

Before he sold for the Chronicle, he was homeless. A native Gary “Cowboy” Fields

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of southwest Oklahoma City, Fields turned his red pickup truck into his home. During the day, he traveled the streets, looking for metal to sell or odd jobs to perform. He said he never panhandled. After a year without a steady job and sleeping in his truck with his dog, Ace Domino, he decided he needed to make a change.

Through a Chronicle vendor, he learned about the magazine and its program to help homeless people earn an income.

Vendors, many of them former panhandlers, sell the latest issue from street medians and keep a portion from each sale. The monthly publication features stories, often written by displaced people, and covers social issues related to homelessness and news about local artists, people and business.

The program, housed at the Homeless Alliance, helped Fields earn enough money to rent an apartment. He sustains his home with funds he earns from selling the Chronicle. He pays utilities and buys groceries, including dog food for Ace Domino and Little Bit, who recently joined his household.

Jan. 6, Fields entered his typical work route, visiting Carl’s Jr. for breakfast before taking his spot on the median.

“Today is my last day on the median. It makes me feel bad,” he said in a horse voice. “There are a lot of good people around here. People have asked me where I will be tomorrow. I’ve said I don’t know.”

His uncertainty stems from a new safety ordinance prohibiting people from standing, sitting or staying in city medians less than

30 feet wide when within 200 feet of an intersection. Fields has witnessed accidents in the intersection and one traffic sign hit by motorists. Overall, however, he doesn’t agree with the law, which took effect Jan. 7. It directly impacts his job.

Rayna O’Connor, Chronicle editor-in-chief, said the statute pushes vendors to sidewalks, which are difficult spots to make sales. Now, they sell to the passenger side of vehicles, but to complete the exchange, vendors can’t enter the roadway. It is illegal for them to step into the road.

Magazine leaders hoped to partner with local businesses to relocate solicitors into popular shopping areas and store entrances. So far, no business owner has agreed to work with the publication.

Fields is concerned about his regulars finding him. He plans to stop by the Paseo Arts District and encouraged customers to visit the magazine’s Facebook page for updates on vendor locations.

“Passing this law isn’t going to shut me down,” he said. “I like my job.”

Not every vendor shared his optimism. There is anxiety among many that magazine sales will drop and they will go back to “flying a sign,” street lingo for panhandling.

“It’s been hard for me to hear,” O’Connor said. “We are not in a position for that to happen right now. Vendors will stick with The Curbside Chronicle as long as we are around. Right now, we are figuring this out.”

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Tom Jones left and his son Adam Jones right of City Rescue Mission chat with client Marilyn Bond. unsightly and impoverished people away from the view of drivers.

“The people who beg are going to find another place to beg, and it will be more dangerous,” Meyers said.

He predicted drivers will see solicitors stepping into roads from street corners to collect donations. He believes entering a roadway is more dangerous than standing on a raised street median.

Handout or hand up?

Like many, Meyers is troubled when a panhandler approaches him. No one wants others to go hungry. The scenario presents a dilemma: Give because the person needs help or refrain because they might be a fraud?

“It is not our responsibility to withhold a gift we would otherwise give because we are afraid of what the recipient will do with it,” Meyers said of a theory he heard from a Jesuit priest.

City Rescue Mission staff said there is an alternative to cash. The group’s compassion card is a direct line to receive a meal, shower, clothing or a place to stay and features a phone number to call for a ride. Jones said the cards garnered less than 10 phone calls.

“Be assured that the guy on the corner who throws the card [at passersby] is not hungry and not homeless,” Jones said. “He would be all over this if what he had on his sign was true. … If the community would rally together to give the card instead of cash, it would take care of the panhandling.”

Homeless Alliance operated a similar program that offered bus rides to a local shelter. Few sought the transport.

“It is not uncommon among panhandlers to want to fly the sign,” Straughan said. “I’ve heard some say they feel they are earning their handout.”

Alternatives to homelessness

While some argue the median safety law will be harmful, others see opportunities to redirect panhandler dollars to social

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services agencies.

Salyer said input from the public and private social service groups while developing the law raised awareness about complicated issues surrounding homelessness.

“Oklahoma City has social services and faith-based organizations in every corner of this community to help people in need,” Salyer said. “People are ready to help.”

The work of the organizations contributed to the decline of the city’s homeless population over the last two years. Based on data from the Point in Time count survey, 1,300 people experienced homelessness in 2015, a decrease by 12 percent from 2014.

The annual count happens Jan. 28 as nonprofits survey clients and visit homeless camps to garner a snapshot of the population.

At City Rescue Mission, caseworkers and staff help adults and families through its Bridge to Life program, which provides housing, employment, education and recovery aid. In 2015, the faith-based group helped nearly 500 people obtain stable housing.

“We can put a plan together that not only changes their life, but their children’s and grandchildren’s,” Jones said. “It happened because someone stopped long enough to say, ‘Hey, let’s talk.’”

Staff and volunteers also help at WestTown Homeless Resource Campus, home to varied social services and a day center. One such agency is Journey Home OKC, an initiative by more than 40 nonprofits, government and faithbased agencies to eradicate homelessness in the chronic and veteran populations.

In 2015, Journey Home OKC placed 262 veterans and 129 chronic homeless people into housing.

“There is no single agency that can address all the issues of homelessness,” Straughan said. “We don’t want a person falling through the cracks.”

How and why Ask anyone and they’ll have a story about a panhandler’s approach in Oklahoma City. There are versions of panhandlers rattling fast food cups in unspoken urges for spare change and cardboard signs sharing basic background information and evoking empathy. Sometimes, people proposition others for donations in grocery store parking lots or along downtown sidewalks.

For many, the issues panhandling presents are complex, a mixture of compassion and, sometimes, judgment, guilt or disgust. Being approached by a panhandler can be disconcerting. Interacting with a destitute person might also make one feel more fortunate, even placing one’s own suffering into a new perspective. A wallet opens. Change is given. Hope rises — maybe.

Here are four things to recognize about panhandling:

1. The trade Even though it might seem simple, panhandling can be a tough gig. There is no tangible product or service exchanged as dollars pass between hands. There is no way to predict collection numbers in advance. Why would someone panhandle?

Often, some believe it is their only option to survive. They exhausted other options and now rely on the financial graces of others, said Rev. Robin Meyers of Mayflower Congregational UCC Church of Oklahoma City.

“To beg in public means you have foregone any shame,” Meyers said. “People are looking at you. You can’t keep your identity a secret. It requires a great deal of desperation to beg people for money.”

2. Location, location It’s an old, hackneyed real estate phrase, but it is an essential aspect of panhandling, too.

Opportunities to collect money are best where there are pedestrians or motorists. When in traffic or waiting at a light, drivers can look away. However, that’s more difficult when stopped in the left turn lane and they’re approached by someone in the median.

Medians are prime real estate for panhandlers, said The Curbside Chronicle vendor Gary Fields, who previously sold magazines from medians. Fields is an independent contractor who earns income by selling the street paper. While not a panhandler, Fields recalled conversations with those who were and sought his spot at NW 23rd Street and Broadway Avenue.

“I get into arguments with panhandlers,” Fields said earlier this month as he stood on the median. “I always ask the panhandlers why they can’t work that corner over there. They want this spot.”

Dan Straughan, Homeless Alliance executive director, agreed.

“The reason panhandlers like the medians is that it gives them closer contact with potential donors,” Straughan said. “If you take the venue away from them, they will look for other venues that give them closer contact.”

3. Strong message Panhandlers often make their pitches through cardboard signs. Some say they want money to buy food or need a place to stay. Others admit to drivers they want funds to purchase alcohol. No matter what the sign says, City Rescue Mission leader Rev. Tom Jones said, it could be misleading in some respect.

The mission operates a ride service to pick up panhandlers and homeless individuals in need of a meal, shower, clothing and a bed. He said very few take the ride.

“They are telling you — in hopes of touching your compassionate side — ‘I am hungry, I am homeless, I am dirty,’” said Jones, who explained panhandlers often turn down offers of help because they want cash. “They are not really hungry, and they are not really homeless.”

4. Audience Panhandlers intimidate some people and make others feel uncomfortable, provoking sympathy.

Meyers said it’s difficult to look a panhandler in the eyes.

“It could be us,” Meyers said. “We could be looking at ourselves if something had gone differently — if we didn’t grow up in an intact family, didn’t get access to mental health care or didn’t work for a company that shipped jobs oversees. We might have fallen through the cracks. People fall through the cracks. At some point, all of us are capable of ending up at a public spot and begging because we are just trying to get the next meal.”

O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e | j a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | 7

news metro

Housing hurdle Oklahoma City Council adds LGBT protections to ban discrimination in housing.

By Laura Eastes

8 | J a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e

enthusiastic. Before, it was a conversation of do we want to buy in Oklahoma City.

Now, it’s very clear where folks stand. I think people at their gut are really clearminded. The conversation will continue, and I am optimistic about the future.”

Amendment’s birth

In December, the city’s planning department approached the council about updating the housing ordinance.

City staff recommended the amendment also ban discrimination based on certain classes, including disability, age and familial status. The additions would place the city in line with the federal Fair Housing Act. Additionally, adoption would qualify the city for grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

At the Dec. 8 meeting, Ward 2 Councilman Ed Shadid supported adding lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender classes to the housing discrimination law. He pushed a floor amendment specifically addressing LGBT protections and sparked a discussion on the city’s defunct Human Rights Commission.

Hot topic

The council’s close Jan. 5 vote provided a glimpse of some members’ views on other issues surrounding LGBT rights.

During the debate, council members touched on freedom for religious practice and beliefs, employment discrimination and business owners’ rights to choose their clients.

Ward 8 Councilman Mark Stonecipher said he opposed discrimination in housing and employment; however, he questioned if the amendment was redundant and unnecessary at a local level.

“When you decide to create a protected class, you have huge constitutional issues — freedom of speech, freedom of religion, right to contract — and there are articles after articles that talk about that,” Stonecipher said at the meeting. “What I was concerned about: Is there a remedy? Is there protection for housing discrimination already on the books in this area? I feel comfortable, since 2012, HUD has adequate remedies.”

Stonecipher suggested the council hear from a constitutional law scholar

Gar ett fisbeck

Despite the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling legalizing same-sex marriage, renting or buying a home in Oklahoma City remained shaky ground in the LGBT community.

With no laws banning discrimination against gender identity or sexual orientation, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender residents had no clear rights when renting an apartment or buying a house. They often faced a predicament. Some lied to landlords and real estate agents to access housing, said Troy Stevenson, executive director of Freedom Oklahoma, a statewide, political LGBT rights advocacy organization.

“I know people who are scarred to tell their landlord they are in a relationship,” Stevenson said. “It definitely happens.”

Beginning Feb. 4, OKC’s housing discrimination ordinance adds protections for LGBT citizens to its list of protections, which now also includes disability, age and familial status, specifically families with children. Under the law, it was illegal for a landlord or real estate agent to discriminate for reasons based on factors relating to race, color, sex, religion, national origin and ancestry, but gender identity and sexual orientation were not included.

After a long debate, the nine-member Oklahoma City Council voted 5-4 in favor of the revision.

“This sends a clear message to landlords and loan officers that [discrimination] is not something we accept in Oklahoma City,” said Stevenson, who advocated for the council to approve the amendment during its Jan. 5 meeting.

The council’s decision was the final encouragement The Village resident Amanda McLain-Snipps needed to complete loan paperwork to buy a home.

A newlywed, she married her partner, Kate, following last summer’s U.S. Supreme Court vote recognizing same-sex marriage. Like many recently married couples, the two dreamed of purchasing a home — specifically, in an Oklahoma City neighborhood.

“We were both born and raised in Oklahoma City,” McLain-Snipps said. “Oklahoma City is close to our hearts. We feel a lot more excited and

“I know people who are scared to tell their landlord they are in a relationship,” said Troy Stevenson about why anti-discrimination measures needed to be added to housing protection laws. before voting on the amendment.

Ward 5 Councilman David Greenwell said the amended ordinance outlined no penalty for violators.

Instead, it calls for complaints to be forwarded to the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office.

Based on his experience, Greenwell said he was unaware of any housingrelated discrimination against LGBT citizens and described his own neighborhood to illustrate his point.

He said his neighborhood is ethnically diverse and includes LGBT neighbors.

Ward 3 Councilman Larry McAtee stated the ordinance was a step in the wrong direction, as the policy goes against the belief of natural marriage.

However, councilman Pete White said it was time for Oklahoma City to protect LGBT citizens.

“It is my belief that ordinances and laws of this type have been passed for a number of years,” said White, who is an attorney. “There has been public debate on this all over the country. Statutes have been passed in numerous communities over the years. I don’t know of one time where the constitutionality question has been held against this.”

Council members James Greiner, Greenwell, McAtee and Stonecipher opposed the amendment. The council voted unanimously to add protections for age, disability and familial status.

Coming soon

The council’s decision on housing protections marked the beginning of Freedom Oklahoma’s work to advocate for LGBT rights in Oklahoma City, Stevenson said.

The group plans to pursue discussions with council members about discrimination in employment and public spaces, said Stevenson, who supports revitalizing the city’s Human Rights Commission.

With a commission in place, Stevenson and other community members could discuss gaps in civil rights laws and file complaints against violators of current laws.

“It is something that would really give this force,” Stevenson said. “It would allow us to bring forward more protections and to ensure that discrimination is banned for all in Oklahoma City.”

news education

Ga rett fi s bec k

Creative education Alternative paths: Metro Career Academy blends occupational and academic training.

Yessica Oviedo, Jessica Rios and Dalia Rios work in the horticulture class at Metro Career Academy.

By Brett Dickerson

Editor’s note: As discussions continue about discipline and whether there are enough alternative schools and programs to meet unique needs of some students in Oklahoma City public schools, Oklahoma Gazette explores alternative paths available that help students graduate high school with the skills needed to enter adulthood. This story is part of an ongoing series.

Zachary Nichols is on track to graduate from high school this year. He might not have been if it wasn’t for the occupational training at Metro Career Academy (MCA), an alternative school administered by Metro Technology Centers in Oklahoma City.

Highly motivated

This isn’t the usual high school experience. It isn’t the usual alternative school experience, either. It’s career tech blended with high school.

The result is highly motivated students who graduate from high school with employment training that gives them marketable job skills even before graduation.

“The culinary experience is something that I wouldn’t have gotten anywhere else,” Nichols told Oklahoma Gazette during a recent visit to the school.

“I’m motivated. It keeps me well in line.”

Tessa Martin is Nichols’ English

teacher. She leverages the schoolwide use of online education service Edgenuity, which offers full courses that allow students to earn credits based on their competency rather than seat time.

The online courses provide content and exercises to check for competence, which gives Martin time to work oneon-one with youth who might need her coaching on how to do the work.

It also allows her to get to know students and understand their life circumstances, creating a bond with them that becomes obvious from their conversations.

“Ms. Martin is the only English teacher that I’ve had in the last three years, so we’ve gotten to know each other pretty well and develop a connection.

[She’s] always there for us,” Nichols said as his eyes welled with tears.

Martin dabbed her own eyes and said, “Y’all are going to have to stop this.

You’re going to make me cry.”

Other classmates agreed that small classes with teachers who truly care make a big impact.

Winning combination

But it’s the occupational courses that create the unique combination that propels them toward graduation.

A love for creating was a red thread that ran through students’ narratives. The

courses allow them to do that but are also to the benefit of everyone at MCA. Culinary students create and serve family-style lunches for their peers at the school.

At each table, an assigned teacher works with groups of students to practice etiquette and interactivity lessons taught by volunteers.

Floral design students create arrangements and wall hangings that adorn the building. Yessica Oviedo said she looked forward to the class each day.

“I am creative, so my first year was really, really, really fun,” she said. “And it does pull people to school.”

Many needs

MCA hopes to develop programs that meet even wider student needs.

Superintendent Elaine Stith explained that youth must take both academic and career courses while at the school.

The MCA campus was developed with creativity and positivity in mind.

Generally, alternative schools are in repurposed venues. For example, the school’s former home was a warehouse.

“Six years ago, we made a conscious decision that these kids deserve a nice building just like any other student,” Stith said. “We went out and borrowed the money — around $14 million — to build this school for our students.”

I am creative, so my first year was really, really, really fun.

— Yessica Oviedo

Dennis Portis, Metro Tech’s associate superintendent of instruction, participated in the process of building the state-of-the-art facility. What completes its creative and positive environment, however, is school staff.

“Nothing is more important than the actual body and soul of the student,” Portis said. “We put a real, conscious, strategic effort in recruiting the very best teachers that we could find.”

That level of student care is the responsibility of Barbara Loudermilk, longtime OKCPS educator and now the director (principal) of MCA. “It has to be the right alt-ed educator, the right partners that come in and donate their time and spend time with the kids,” Loudermilk said. “You can do that under a tent.”

O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e | j a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | 9

Chicken

Fried news

Let it go

Russell Westbrook is taking a chill pill.

The Emo King of OKC, as only people who wish to be harmed call him, recently announced that he’s done getting technical fouls trying to argue bad calls.

While you spent your summer chilling out and relaxing, Westbrook was hard at work, studying game film and coming to a tough conclusion: Refs, like parents, just can’t be argued with.

“Once they make a call, they ain’t changing it,” he told ESPN. “Took me a while, but I learned it.”

Westbrook led the NBA last season with 17 technical fouls, which is just one foul shy of being able to legally vote.

Exactly none of the referees changed their minds about any of those

technical fouls.

So, instead of blowing up like whoa, Westbrook vowed to stay calm and follow the advice of Queen Elsa and let it go.

We applaud this new direction, with one minor addendum. Why not outsource Westbrook’s rage to Steven Adams? He is the Chewbacca to Russell’s Han, so give the signal and let the Wookiee loose to rip off some ref arms.

Gesundheit!

It’s a well-known fact that it’s cold and flu season. Health professionals around Oklahoma are urging people to wash their hands and load up on cold and flu medicines, just in case.

At the Chicken-Fried News desk, we agree it’s simple and easy advice. Sadly, not everyone listens, and that includes a reckless driver in northeast Oklahoma.

News9.com reported a driver led

Osage Nation police on a high-speed chase this month.

The pursuit took law enforcement through an Osage County neighborhood before the perpetrator decided to make it a foot pursuit. This criminal forgot one key factor: Germs and pollen can infiltrate the nose lining at any time.

That’s what happened as officers surrounded the sneezer and made the arrest.

Gesundheit!

Pie hold

The key to a successful standoff? One might guess patience. Teamwork, maybe.

But pizza? It certainly can’t hurt.

Watching local police outside in the cold for hours waiting to retrieve a man with an existing warrant, 4-year-old Oklahoma City resident Colt Vinson thought maybe they could use some warming up.

Colt shared his idea

with his mom, who promptly alerted Domino’s and ordered five pies. And 7-Eleven gifted 52 cups of coffee to the men in uniform.

In an adult word full of conflicting motives, leave it to a preschooler to remind everyone of the one true prize: a garlicky crust baked around hot cheese and sauce.

However, this kid might be even more than a Samaritan.

Criminal or not, who can resist the wafting smell of a freshly baked pie?

Pepperoni can be the cure for the hangriest crooks.

Even mobsters knew to make time for pizza.

It’s a wonder the man didn’t come out with his paper plate up.

Other foods have inspired crime. Hamburglar and Trix Rabbit are two notable examples. Jay Bush works tirelessly to defend the secrecy of his family’s bean recipe against Duke, his own wickedly intelligent golden retriever.

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confidence innovation opportunities 1 0 | J a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e

But pizza was made to be shared with classmates, colleagues and overworked cops in the cold.

Joe Blunt

Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt smells a skunk.

Last week, Oklahoma and Nebraska jointly filed written arguments with the U.S. Supreme Court that requested permission to sue Colorado over its marijuana laws.

“If this entity were based south of our border, the federal government would prosecute it as a drug cartel,” the brief stated.

It also argued that Colorado’s legalization of pot and regulation of the pot industry makes it complicit in the drug’s transport into bordering states, thereby impinging the rights and laws of neighboring states and skirting federal law.

Supreme Court justices must approve a sovereign state’s request to sue another before a suit can move forward. Both states made a similar request over a year ago, but it was denied.

“Indeed, targeting distributors and wholesalers, rather than street-level users, has always been the federal enforcement priority, yet here DOJ wants to give the mastermind a pass and blame the whole problem on Joe Blunt,” the document claimed.

The legal brief also argued, “The State of Colorado authorizes, oversees, protects, and profits from a sprawling $100-million-per-month marijuana growing, processing, and retailing organization that exported thousands of pounds of marijuana to some 36 States in 2014.”

We at Chicken-Fried News wanted

to read all of the 15-page document, but some dude named Joe just walked into our office asking the time. Got a minute?

Weather weary

Someday, the polar ice caps will melt and we will be forced to flee to higher ground — possibly chased there by a huge wave like those poor souls in Deep Impact and The Day After Tomorrow — and leave Oklahoma’s plains of waving wheat to become mountain people, which could be a nice change of scenery for all the bearded hipsters running around Oklahoma City. (Hey, we’re trying to look on the bright side.)

Despite lawmaker Jim Inhofe’s antiglobal warming snowball prank and his insistence that it’s all made up, most numbers don’t lie and water already is encroaching on our fair, sunshine-loving city.

According to Oklahoma Mesonet and KOCO.com, 2015 was Oklahoma City’s second-wettest year on record. It’s not exactly unexpected after the flooding in May and June, but it’s not fun to think about.

KOCO.com reported total rainfall in the state was at 55.06 inches through Dec. 29, beating 2013’s record of 52.78 inches.

An enterprising Oklahoman needs to invent rain boots that are also good for climbing before we’re set upon by the weather apocalypse and someone decides to make another disaster movie about us.

Quote of the week:

“I realize that our nation remains divided on the issue of abortion, but surely we are not divided on the procurement and sale of human organs.” — Sen. James Langford, R-Oklahoma, on the bill to defund Planned Parenthood, approved by Congress and sent to President Barack Obama (to veto) last week.

The Center for Medical Progress, which released the controversial videos claiming to show “harvesting” and “profiting” schemes, admitted they were edited. The unedited video clearly shows the family planning and health care organization had no scheme to profit from tissue donations, according to factcheck.org.

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LETTERS Oklahoma Gazette provides an open forum for the discussion of all points of view in its Letters to the Editor section. The Gazette reserves the right to edit letters for length and clarity.

Letters can be mailed, faxed, emailed to jchancellor@okgazette.com or sent online at okgazette.com. Include a city of residence and contact number for verification.

‘Money Belt’

Another large earthquake wakes us up.

Published science in esteemed peerreviewed journals the past four years have pinpointed the cause: injecting large amounts of fracking waste liquid into old gas and oil wells along fault lines in central Oklahoma.

It is clear what must be done: Ban all fracking and fracking waste injection within a 100-mile radius of Edmond.

But what are our city officials and elected leaders who are entrusted with our safety and the integrity of our property doing about this? The answer is “nothing.”

Do they not care about our safety and our property? Evidently not.

It appears all they care about are profits by the fossil fuel industry, which dictates their every move. This area is called the Bible Belt. But in reality, it appears to be the Money Belt.

Start electing officials and appointing city leaders that will stand up to the money-driven fossil fuel industry and start looking after the safety of our citizens first.

— Jay Hanas Edmond Legistator pay

In regard to T. Furlong’s letter, “Easy money?” (Opinion, Letters to the Editor, Dec. 23, Oklahoma Gazette), actually, Oklahoma’s own legislatures would qualify for having the most time off of any profession.

To enlighten readers, our own legislators are paid approximately $7,000 more than the starting salary of an Oklahoma teacher. That figure does not include the per diem salary perks and bonuses that add between $9,000 to $17,000 annually.

This makes Oklahoma legislatures rank 15 in legislator pay.

Yet they only work four months out of the year. And don’t forget they get taxpayer-paid health care benefits.

Teachers work very hard for their money. Teachers have to pay out of their own pocket at times for basic school supplies that the Legislature does not bother to adequately fund so

that they can get their own perks and mooch off of the taxpayer.

It is a cause for shame that Oklahoma is the only state in the union that has to rely on a sales tax to finally, adequately pay for its own educational system.

Before anyone speaks ill of our teachers, one needs to look no further than our own legislators for examples of those who are only seeking to enrich themselves at the expense of honest, working Oklahoman teachers.

— Edward Dempewolf Norman Wasteful spending

Jennifer Chancellor, editor-in-chief of this publication, thinks we should stop “arguing that educators are selfish, entitled, overpaid, vacation-hogging whiners” (Opinion, Commentary, “Public school teacher pay reality check,” Dec. 30, Gazette). But at the same time, Jennifer, don’t cite figures from “Scholastic’s Primary Sources report” and expect me to believe its conclusions are unbiased.

We’d go a long way toward funding raises for teachers who deserve it by employing some serious measures to reduce waste. Throwing more money at a problem that’s hemorrhaging dollars isn’t realistic.

I’m not anti-teacher, but it’s nonsense to follow the Boren Brigade and saddle Oklahoma with the highest sales tax in the nation.

— Thomas L. Furlong Oklahoma City Cost-of-living wages

On behalf of all Oklahoma educators: We need raises!

I haven’t had a raise in seven years. I haven’t had more than a 2 percent raise in 10-15 years.

I am tired of being patient. I can’t afford to be understanding any longer. I have a 2004 salary having to deal with 2015 prices. I would need a 10 percent raise just to have the purchasing power I had 7-8 years ago.

Educators need raises that, at the

1 2 | J a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e

very least, catch us up to the prices we have to pay. The banks, the utility companies, the grocery stores don’t care about the political dogma of the state Legislature. They expect payment on their terms, at their level, at 2015 prices.

Knowledge is the bedrock of any civilization. Education is the foundation of any growth, innovation, invention or success for a 21st-century technological society. Teachers and professors are the lifeblood of education. We are the ones that make it happen. In the 21st century, people have to know more than pop culture and local gossip — history, science, sociology, psychology, the ability to think creatively and critical reasoning. These are all basic skills and knowledge needed in order to understand today’s issues and make informed decisions in a 21st-century world. Try to imagine your life without having any of this information. We need education.

Education is what makes a 21st-century society successful, yet educators are treated like 19th-century schoolmarms, told we are lucky to have jobs. Luck has nothing to do with it.

I went to college; four years for my Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Kansas and three years for my Master of Fine Arts from Indiana University. I taught for six years in Kansas before coming to Oklahoma, applying for a job that called for a master’s degree as a minimal requirement. Every educator has committed the time, study and work demanded to prepare themselves for their chosen profession.

And it is a profession. I can’t pay bills with altruism. I can’t buy a car with “It’s for the children.”

I teach because I want to. I enjoy being a part of the learning process. I can’t imagine doing anything else for a paycheck. Yet I don’t have a spouse who is earning “the real money.” We both teach. My paycheck is what pays my bills, covers my mortgage, buys food and clothes and makes the car payment. It pays for me keeping up with new developments in my field, going to workshops and seminars and research and personal development that

comes back to the classroom through me. It pays for going to visit my grandchildren.

The same salary that hasn’t changed for the past 10 years doesn’t cover all of this anymore.

Two arguments I can imagine hearing are, “There are a lot of people who don’t make as much as you do now.” True, but were they required to have advanced college degrees and educations before even applying for the job they have? Second, “More money won’t make for better schools.” Of course it takes money! Of course it takes money to maintain and upgrade infrastructures, money to replace and upgrade equipment and to insure your employees are paid and compensated fairly and in a way that reflects their experience and job requirements.

We are your employees. Public education is there, has been there and, for the sake of the future of this nation, will be there for you, the people. Public education is the responsibility of the state, not just the politicians but you, the people. You desire educational and training opportunities to make your futures better.

Free education isn’t free, and either everyone pays a little or some people pay a lot. If the state isn’t subsidizing education realistically and responsibly, then school budgets are cut and tuitions go up.

Simply let educators teach; it’s what we have studied, trained and prepared for. Give us the tools to teach for the 21st century and reduce the teacher-to-student ratio so that students can get the quality time teachers want to give them.

Recognize and compensate educators for the professionals that we are.

None of us expected to get rich teaching, but we should be able to expect a fair and professional salary.

We take our role and responsibility to society seriously.

The people of Oklahoma need to take our role seriously as well and recognize and acknowledge education as the only path to a future for this state and society.

— Howard Koerth Oklahoma City

O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e | J a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | 1 3

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Schelly’s Aesthetics

okg picks are events

MARK H ANCOC K / FI L E

NOW OFFERING

recommended by Oklahoma Gazette editorial staff members.

For full calendar listings, go to okgazette.com.

Schelly Hill, R.N.

Shoppes at Northpark, 12028 May Ave. 405-751-8930 Open Mon-Sat www.skincareokc.com Gift Certificates Available

BOOKS First Folio! The Book that Gave Us Shakespeare, to see, or not to see: that is the question; published in 1623, Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies is a collection of 36 plays by ol’ Billy Shakes himself, considered to be the most reliable publication of all the plays and a leading factor in Shakespeare’s prominence today. Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, 2401 Chautauqua Ave., Norman, 325-4712, snomnh.ou.edu.

New INK, this event showcases new local authors; this month features Doug Hacking, Kristin Sims, Janay Clark, RJ Young, Rhonda Jo Jones, Mark Darrah, Maci French, Wonna Cornelson, and Karri Moroz, 3 p.m., Jan. 16. Full Circle Bookstore, 1900 Northwest Expressway, 842-2900, fullcirclebooks.com. SAT Wonna Elam Cornelson Signing, Cornelson will be on-hand to answer questions and sign copies of her book of poetry titled Echoes of Reality, which offers reflections and poems on the drama of life and the agony of the soul, 3 p.m., Jan. 16. Full Circle Bookstore, 1900 Northwest Expressway, 842-2900, fullcirclebooks.com. SAT Nicole Ford & Erica Russell Signing, Ford and Russell will be on hand to talk about their book, Gaining Wealth God’s Way, for those who wish to gain prosperity through the Lord, 1 p.m., Jan. 16. Barnes & Noble, 6100 N. May Ave., 843-9300, barnesandnoble.com. SAT Jewell Parker Rhodes Signing, Rhodes is the Sequoyah award-winning author behind Sugar, which chronicles the life of 10-year-old Sugar, who lives and works on a Southern plantation after the abolition of slavery, 6 p.m., Jan. 20. Best of Books, 1313 E. Danforth Road, Edmond, 340-9202, bestofbooksok.com. WED

FILM The Quay Brothers in 35 mm, (UK, 1986-2015, dir.

Stephen & Timothy Quay) curated by Christopher Nolan, this collection provides a rare opportunity to experience the insular, darkly poetic world of stop-motion animators Stephen and Timothy Quay, 5:30 & 8 p.m., Jan. 14. Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 415 Couch Drive, 236-3100, okcmoa.com. THU

If you haven't been to the historic OKC Farmers Public Market venue, there’s no better time than 6 p.m. Friday at the first Farm Brew. With over 50 food vendors and breweries on hand, local and imported music and a silent auction, there is pretty literally something for everyone. Regular tickets are $35, or go big with a $50 VIP package. Both are available through ticketstorm.com.

Farmers Public Market is located at 311 S. Klein Ave. Call 232-6506 or visit okcfarmersmarket.com.

Friday Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, (US, 1969, dir. George Roy Hill) with its iconic performances by Paul Newman as Butch Cassidy, Robert Redford as The Sundance Kid and Katherine Ross as Etta Place, director George Roy Hill’s sprawling comedy-drama has delighted audiences around the world, but hasn’t been seen on the big screen in nearly two generations, 2 & 7 p.m., Jan. 17 & 20. AMC Quail Springs Mall 24, 2501 W. Memorial Rd., 405-755-2406, amctheatres.com.

SUN, WED The Warriors, (US, 1979, dir. Walter Hill) directed by the same man who brought us Crossroads (the Ralph Macchio deal with the devil one, not the Britney Spears one, which should only be watched drunk), Warriors is an awesome New York punk odyssey about a gang who has to cross the dangerous streets as literally every other gang tries to kill them, 7 p.m., Jan. 19. Harkins Theatre, 150 E. Reno Ave., 231-4747, harkinstheatres.com. TUE

PR OVIDE D

Mustang, (France, 2015, dir. Deniz Gamze Erguven) inspired by Sophia Coppola’s classic The Virgin Suicides, this Turkish-language film follows five girls imprisoned by their family after they are seen playing innocently with some boys, 5:30 & 8 p.m., Jan. 15-16; 2 & 5:30 p.m., Jan. 17. Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 415 Couch Drive, 236-3100, okcmoa.com. FRI-SUN

Farm Brew

HAPPENINGS Through the Eyes of the Lynx: Galileo, Natural History and the Americas, The Academy of the Lynx was one of the world’s earliest scientific societies, whose star pupil happened to be Renaissance artist and scientist (among other vocations) Galileo Galilei; this exhibit celebrates the contributions of Galileo and the Academy of the Lynx in the areas of natural science and history, Aug. 1-Jan. 18.

Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, 2401 Chautauqua Ave., Norman, 325-4712, snomnh.ou.edu.

Floral Design Class, join Fleuriste to learn the Art of Bordeaux, 6:30 p.m., Jan. 14. The Fleuriste, 1020 NW 82nd St., 843-8700, thefleuriste.com. THU OKC RV & Boat Show, come check out all the innovations in land and sea vehicles, all day, Jan. 15-17.

Cox Convention Center, 1 Myriad Gardens, 602-8500, coxconventioncenter.com. FRI-SUN

Foundational! and Portrait to Selfie Foundational!, the first of two art openings, takes place 4-5:30 p.m. Thursday in Donna Nigh Gallery. It's a showcase featuring the art of students in Design Foundations classes.

The second opening, Portrait to Selfie: Mirror or Self Construction, runs 5-7 p.m. in Melton Gallery and focuses on the similarities of classical portraits and the modern selfie.

Both galleries are located on the University of Central Oklahoma campus, 100 N. University Drive, in Edmond. Admission is free. Call 974-3774 or visit cfad.uco.edu.

Thursday

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B I GSTOC K.COM

SHE CAN'T

HEAR,

BUT YOU Martin Luther King Jr. Day

CAN HELP.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s activism and eloquence shaped and drove the African-American civil rights movement. A Baptist minister and humanitarian, King was a controversial crusader for equal rights and an advocate for peace who was by no means willing to go quietly. Celebrate King’s legacy 3:30 p.m. Monday in the Crystal Bridge at Myriad Botanical Gardens, 301 W. Reno Ave. Admission is free. Visit myriadgardens.org or call 445-7079.

Monday Dance Lessons at Friends, country dance lessons and live country band, Friends Restaurant & Club, 3705 W. Memorial Ave., Suite 604, 751-4057. TUE

FOOD Saturday Cooking Class, health up your favorite carb with some veggies and nuts as the folks at Gourmet Grille teach you how to make roasted vegetable pasta with walnuts and sage, 1 p.m., Jan. 16. Buy For Less, 3501 Northwest Expressway, 946-6342, buyforlessok.com. SAT Tasty Tutorials, join the folks at Whole Foods for a taste test of some of the team’s favorite selections from around the world, 1 p.m., Jan. 17.

Whole Foods Market, 6001 N. Western Ave., 8793500, wholefoodsmarket.com. SUN Mustang Beer Dinner, experience your favorite Mustang beers paired with the perfect complementary dish; the menu includes caramel pork belly, shrimp eggrolls, strawberry and farro salad, each paired with a Mustang beer to bring out the flavors of both, and mango puree for dessert, 6 p.m., Jan. 20. Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 415 Couch Drive, 236-3100, okcmoa.com.

WED

YOUTH

Donate Your Used Hearing Aids Please consider donating any hearing aids you’re not using at any INTEGRIS Hospital.

We’ll clean, refurbish and personally fit them to someone in need.

That’s sure to be music to their ears.

Tape & Tunnels, get psyched for recyclables at the newest exhibit at SMO, where kids can experience an interactive wonderland with packing tape tunnels, bungee cord mazes, and cardboard clubhouses where they can climb, build, and explore. Science Museum Oklahoma, 2100 NE 52nd St., 602-6664, sciencemuseumok.org.

Crafts For Kids, they call it a “wacky scientist headband,” but with its goggles and spiky hair, this is clearly a headband designed for mad scientists and the greatest of supervillains, so use with care, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., Jan. 16. Lakeshore Learning Store, 6300 N. May Ave., 858-8778, lakeshorelearning.com. SAT Sensory Safari-Taste, snakes can smell with their tongues, and platypuses can feel electricity with their bills; come learn about all sorts of animal

integrisok.com (405) 951-2277

continued on next page

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Family Fun Night This Friday, there will be crafts, s’mores, a live DJ and Frozen characters as Devon Ice Rink stays sends off its season. Admission is $7-$12, and wristbands are an additional $5-$10. The party is 6-9 p.m. at Devon Ice Rink, 113 S. Robinson Ave. Visit myriadgardens.org or downtownindecember.com.

Friday senses with activities, crafts and more, 10 a.m., Jan. 16.

Oklahoma City Zoo, 2000 Remington Pl., 424-3344, okczoo.com. SAT Art Adventures, children can experience the world of art through stories and projects in this event series; this week’s story will be Sky Color by Peter H. Reynolds, 10:30 a.m., Jan. 19. Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, 555 Elm Ave., Norman, 325-3272, ou.edu/fjjma. TUE

PERFORMING ARTS

ACTIVE OU vs. West Virginia, cheer on the Sooners men’s basketball team as it takes on the West Virginia Mountaineers, 3 p.m., Jan. 16. Lloyd Noble Center, 2900 S. Jenkins Ave., Norman, 325-4666, lloydnoblecenter.com. SAT DrumsLive, a cardio and muscular workout class features large physioballs and drumsticks, taught by Kim Biggers, 10:30 a.m., Jan. 16. PACER Fitness

From White Plains, this play tells the story of two adults in the distant aftermath of a bully-victim relationship, 8 p.m., Jan. 15 & 16. Carpenter Square Theatre, 806 W. Main St., 232-6500, carpentersquare. com. FRI-SAT

P R OVID ED

Jersey Boys, based on the meteoric rise to fame by real life singing sensation Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, 7:30 p.m., Jan. 13-14; 8 p.m., Jan. 15; 2 & 8 p.m., Jan. 16; 2 & 7 p.m., Jan. 17. Civic Center Music Hall, 201 N. Walker Ave., 297-2264, okcciviccenter.com.

WED-SUN Ms. Pat, this upcoming comedienne is a boisterous woman from Atlanta, Georgia, who says whatever is on her mind, 8 p.m., Jan. 13, 14 & 17; 8 & 10:30 p.m., Jan. 15-16. Loony Bin Comedy Club, 8503 N. Rockwell Ave., 239-4242, loonybincomedy.com. WED-SUN Divine Comedy, join local comics such as James Nghiem, Madison Allen, Heath Huffman and more at this installation of Divine Comedy, headlined by Brett James and hosted by Aaron Wilder, 8:30 p.m., Jan. 14.

51st Street Speakeasy, 1114 NW 51st St., 463-0470, 51stspeakeasy.com. THU Whodunit Dinner Theater: Showdown at Madam Yahoo’s Saloon, Oklahoma’s longest-running dinner theater presents: Showdown at Madam Yahoo’s Saloon, an old west watering hole where they serve up beer and rotgut, and for an unlucky few, murder’s on the menu., 6 p.m., Jan. 16. Cattlemen’s Steakhouse, 1309 S. Agnew Ave., 420-3222, whodunit.net. SAT LMAO Comedy Show, join Bill Bellamy for part V of the unforgettable LMAO Comedy Show, featuring Marcus Combs, Kiana Dancie, and Special K, 7:30 p.m., Jan. 16. Rose State College, 6420 SE 15th St., Midwest City, 733-7673, rose.edu. SAT

Doc Severinsen Trust him; he’s a doctor — a doctor of jazz, that is! Doc Severinsen is a jazz trumpet legend, famous for The Tonight Show. Doc will perform 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Oklahoma City Community College’s Visual and Performing Arts Center Theater, 7777 S. May Ave. Tickets are $36$55. Visit occc.edu/PAS or call 682-7579.

Tuesday 1 6 | j a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e

usdiabetesstudy.com

Center, 5520 N. Independence Ave., 949-3891, integrisok.com. SAT Yoga in the Gardens, join instructor Lisa Woodard of This Land Yoga for an all-levels, Vinyasa-style yoga class, 5:45 p.m., Jan. 19. Crystal Bridge Tropical Conservatory, 301 W. Reno Ave., 297-3995, myriadgardens.com. TUE OU vs. Texas Tech, cheer on OU women’s basketball as it takes on the Texas Tech Raiders, 10:30 a.m., Jan. 20. Lloyd Noble Center, 2900 S. Jenkins Ave., Norman, 325-4666, lloydnoblecenter.com. WED OKC Thunder vs. Charlotte Hornets, when you hear the Thunder, lightning isn’t far behind, and the same goes for the Hornets and their sting; come find out which hurts more, 7 p.m., Jan. 20. Chesapeake Energy Arena, 100 W. Reno Ave., 602-8700, chesapeakearena.com. WED

VISUAL ARTS All in All, boasting a BFA from State University of New York College, Christie Owen’s organic abstract and modern impressionist acrylic works draw inspiration from natural and industrial textures, from both the organic and the inorganic. Verbode, 415 N. Broadway Ave. #101, 757-7001, verbodegroup.com.

Enter the Matrix: Indigenous Printmakers, exhibition explores how printmaking has become a matrix for cultural and key figures of artistic exchange. Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, 555 Elm Ave., Norman, 3253272, ou.edu/fjjma.

Haunting the Mind: Beings that Fly, Connie Seabourn works in acrylic, watercolor, pastel and prints, but is perhaps best known for her delicate watercolors and bright, bold serigraphs. The Depot, 200 S. Jones Ave., Norman, 307-9320, pasnorman.org.

Healing Studio Exhibition, the Healing Studio program nurtures and provides an outlet for the creative expressions of individuals with varying degrees of cognitive, physical, and learning challenges; the exhibition supports artistic endeavors of these individuals while providing attendees with program insight. Firehouse Art Center, 444 S. Flood Ave., Norman, 329-4523, normanfirehouse.com.

New Art for the New Year, start your New Year with a renewed eye for art and beauty; feast your eyes and soul on new art from local artists.

Contemporary Art Gallery, 2928 Paseo St., 601-7474, contemporaryartgalleryokc.com.

Do you have Type 2 Diabetes?

Petroglyphs for Modern Cave Dwellers, during his studies abroad in Kyoto, Japan, while earning a Master of Architecture from the University of Oregon, Jack Eure painted watercolor landscapes in zen gardens and studied Japanese aesthetic philosophy; the abstract, non-representational canvases in this exhibition reflect wabi sabi simplicity, asymmetry and roughness. Independent Artists of Oklahoma Gallery, 706 W. Sheridan Ave., 232-6060, iaogallery.org.

Local doctors are conducting a clinical research study evaluating an experimental drug for those with Type 2 Diabetes.

Qualified participants must: Be between 18 and 74 years old | Have history of type 2 diabetes mellitus for more than 12 months | Be on a stable antidiabetic treatment

Photography by Alan Ball, see the scenery and portrait photography of Alan Ball through February.

50 Penn Place Gallery, 1900 Northwest Expressway, Suite 113-R , 848-5567, 50pennplacegallery.com.

Those who qualify may receive experimental drugs and study related care at no cost.

Gazette

Tessa Raven Bayne/Vinton Bayne, this local couple collaborated on a new series of photographic prints on panels which have been embellished with painting and wood burning. DNA Galleries, 1709 NW 16th St., 525-3499, dnagalleries.com.

Highland Clinical Research | 801-559-3855

r e h t e Tog

Tres Blanc, prolific early 20th century painter Oscar Brousse Jacobson was inspired by mountains and plateaus to the plains and sea; over a dozen of his impressionistic landscapes are on display through January. JRB Art at The Elms, 2810 N. Walker Ave., 528-6336, jrbartgallery.com.

b etter

UCO Faculty Show, the artists featured in this exhibition are both University of Central Oklahoma art educators and active professionals; artists are Elizabeth Brown, Michael Elizondo Jr., Michael Litzau, David W. Maxwell, Shawn Meyers, Jose Rodriguez, Erin Shaw, Gayle Singer, Rob Smith, Lacye SwilleyRussell, Kelly Temple, Adam Vermeire, David Webber, Barbara Weidell and Charleen Weidell. The Goddard Center, 401 First Ave. SW, Ardmore, 226-0909, goddardcenter.org.

Unspeakable, Cynthia Brown and Brett McDanel join forces to showcase their unique 2-D and 3-D works; Brown’s pieces are bright and joyous abstract works on canvas, while McDanel’s sculptures bring life to the mechanical. Kasum Contemporary Fine Arts, 1706 NW 16th St., 604-6602, kasumcontemporary.com.

G A ZETTE FILE

James Surls, nature figures prominently in the work of sculptor James Surls, and over four decades, he has developed evocative, hybrid forms in wood, steel, and bronze inspired by flowers, the human body, and rock formations. Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, 555 Elm Ave., Norman, 325-3272, ou.edu/fjjma.

January Exhibition, Visit Paseo Gallery One to view guest artists Lawrence Naff, Olivia Ortiz Ocampo, Jason Wilson, and David Joshua Jennings. Paseo Gallery One, 2927 Paseo St., 524-4544, facebook.com/ paseogalleryone.

Spend Day

Valentineis'sYear!

7101 Miramar Blvd Oklahoma City, OK 73111 Reservations Recommended 405.478.1417 www.jbruners.com

With Us Th

OKC Thunder vs. Miami Heat Come cheer on the Oklahoma City Thunder and help them give the Heat a chill 6 p.m. Sunday at Chesapeake Energy Arena, 100 W. Reno Ave. Tickets start at $42 and are available at ticketmaster.com. Call 602-8700 or visit chesapeakearena.com. For okg

music picks

Sunday

see page 37

lunch & dinner

6014 n. May 947.7788 | zorbasokc.coM O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e | j a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | 1 7

1 8 | J a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e

p hotos by Ga rett fi s beck

life food & Drink

Shawarma combo

Sisters Mediterranean Taste

Shawarma chicken sandwich

2804 Chautauqua Ave., Norman sistersmediterraneantaste.com 686-8166

Family fare

What works: Falafel, kibbeh and baklava What needs work: The chicken was a tad dry.

Norman’s Sisters isn’t the usual gyro joint.

Tip: Halal beef and chicken are available on request.

Kebbah

By Greg Elwell

We were getting falafel one way or another.

After trying (and failing) to get ahold of a pretty well thought of Middle Eastern restaurant by phone on New Year’s Eve, we decided to drive on down to Norman anyway.

Norman is a silly little town. Ruled by the whims of college kids, the city was nearly vacant in the midst of winter break. Everything that wasn’t crimson and cream was gray — except for the restaurant where we planned to eat, which was pitch black. A sign in the window informed us that it was closed until the students returned.

The restaurant was on strike.

At loose ends, we tried another spot, only to find that restaurant was for sale.

And then we saw Sisters Mediterranean Taste, 2804 Chautauqua Ave., wedged between a Sonic Drive-In and a 7-Eleven.

Sisters has all the signifiers of a great little restaurant. There are only four seats available. It’s run by a small family (of sisters, if you can believe it). Only the pita bread looks less than homemade.

I can forgive that. Do you know how to make pita? I don’t know how to make pita. So long as it tastes okay and it holds all the stuff the restaurant puts

in it, it’s fine by me.

Oh, and what tasty fillings are used to fill in those pitas.

The chicken shawarma sandwich ($6.45) is not very moist on its own, but the slices of chicken are seasoned well and pretty tender. Luckily, the garlic mayo lubes the works well and makes for a flavorful sandwich with lots of lettuce, pickles, mint and french fries inside.

And, really, what are you going to do with french fries anyway? Are you building some kind of carbohydrate-heavy Jenga game?

Yes, most of the sandwiches come with fries inside. It is, perhaps, not the most traditional place for french fries.

But it’s not a terrible place for french fries, like Cold War-era Germany or the icy black depths of space.

And, really, what are you going to

do with french fries anyway? Are you building some kind of carbohydrateheavy Jenga game? You’re just going to eat them, probably between bites of your sandwich. So if anything, this is just streamlining the process. You can’t be eating lunch all day! This is the epitome of sandwich optimization.

If you order a beef shawarma gyro sandwich ($6.45), prepare yourself for a very different gyro than you’ve had before. Gone are the vertically shaved bits of gyro cone — you know, the kind almost every gyro place you’ve ever been served.

This is seasoned beef, still thinly cut, but far less homogenous than what you’re used to eating. And “our sauce,” which comes with it, is not the usual cucumberyogurt tzatziki, either. It was thicker and creamier.

For an extra $2.20, sandwiches become combos with added hummus, half pita and a drink.

And if you’d like to try both, let me point you to the shawarma combo supreme ($12.30), which comes with beef and chicken, hummus, tabouli, pita bread, fries, sauce and a drink. It’s a lot of food — at least three meals worth. You’ll be scrambling eggs with leftover gyro beef the next morning and loving it.

But the stars of the show were the falafel sandwich ($6.20) and the kebbah, which were a daily special.

Falafel, for those uninitiated in this wonderful treat, are fried balls of seasoned, mashed chickpeas. The outer edge is crisp, hiding a wealth of steaminghot goodness inside. The texture is not unlike a creamy cornbread, and I recommend smashing the falafel inside the sandwich before you start eating.

All too often, falafel are dry and flavorless. Sisters has some of the best I’ve had in Oklahoma, with great taste and excellent texture.

The kebbah, which come two to an order, are these gorgeous lemon-shaped fried glories full of minced onion, beef and spices. There was definitely some cinnamon in there. It’s a warm, tantalizing few bites.

Oh, and don’t leave without a piece of baklava ($1.25). Crispy, gooey layers of pistachios and phyllo dough and honey give this sumptuous dessert an addictive feel. Sisters does a good job of balancing the ingredients, so it retains some crunch without being dry.

Sisters Mediterranean Taste is the best argument yet for getting lost in Norman. What other treasures are hiding there? I’m eager to find out.

O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e | J a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | 1 9

life food & drink

Secret’s out Guernsey Park regains its buzz with new dishes and a brunch service.

Short ribs

Despite a large sign poking out on NW 23rd Street, it’s easy to understand why Guernsey Park is still one of Oklahoma City’s hidden culinary gems.

Despite a flurry of buzz and great food when it opened, the restaurant, 2418 N. Guernsey Ave., was bogged down by inconsistent hours and a location that often requires GPS to find. Since then, two chefs have moved on (Vuong Nguyen opened his own restaurant, Bonjour, and Sam Salinas helped launch sister eatery Covell Park) while a host of other competitors have come to market.

So what can the restaurant do, short of tearing down Cuppies & Joe, to get more visibility? That’s a problem executive chef Paul Langer is working on.

“The philosophy at first was that they wanted to be a word-of-mouth, hip restaurant,” he said. “That’s nice for a while, but the way the industry has grown here in the last few years, it takes more than word of mouth to sustain a business.”

Word of mouth might fill up a 30-seat place once a night. But Guernsey Park’s boldly designed multilevel space seats 150.

“There’s a lot more overhead involved,” Langer said.

And there’s another problem: Somewhere in between opening and chefs moving, the consistency in food and service tanked.

“We had guests who lost faith in us,” Langer said. “So it’s my job to make sure they still get the same quality service and food they had when they first came in.”

That has meant a trickle of changes to re-center the business and make the kitchen more fluid. Speed and quality don’t always go together, but Langer knew Guernsey Park needed to rebuild its customer base by better understanding what its customers need.

Lunch was an obvious problem.

The business crowd had abandoned the restaurant after a few too-long waits kept people from returning to the office on time. And the menu, which was fine for the leisurely dinner crowd, didn’t mesh with those seeking a filling midday meal.

“I’ve come up with about six different rice bowls and focused on proteins that are a little faster to cook

Chef Paul Langer works in the kitchen at Guernsey Park.

Okonamiyaki

without sacrificing the flavors people want from Guernsey,” he said.

Diner satisfaction is key. The restaurant will never be fast food, but Langer said it’s not fine dining either.

Visitors must feel like they’re getting something special, but still with value.

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Distinctive dishes

That’s what makes brunch such an inspired choice for Guernsey Park.

Everyone has eggs Benedict, but what makes a restaurant stand out is what it serves that is unique to the community.

Okonamiyaki ($9) is one of the boldest breakfasts in Oklahoma City.

It’s a mix of traditional early morning eats with an Asian flavor palette.

“It’s kind of like a pancake, but

in the batter is cabbage, onions and bacon,” Langer said. “Then we add tonkatsu sauce, our house aioli and an egg on top. It surprises me how many people get it. I’m not surprised they love it — it’s just so different.”

But don’t fear, brunch purists; Guernsey also has steak and eggs and eggs Benedict (served on steamed buns).

And that’s key, because the culinary explorer can find something new and wonderful, but those less inclined to striking out can find a comfortable dish at the same table.

The big biscuit ($9) might be a casualty, though. Langer said an extra-large biscuit appetizer off which everyone at the table can tear a hunk is a concept that hasn’t quite caught on.

Instead, it might be replaced with a more traditional biscuit and gravy.

Guernsey’s chefs aren’t obsessed with making “statement food.”

Langer said they are trying to find a balance between crowd-pleasing food that customers love and interesting, innovative twists and new flavors that will allow diners to discover new dishes that are just outside their comfort zone.

“The city is constantly expanding, and we want to be on the forefront of the expansion by introducing new flavors and techniques,” Langer said.

“But we don’t have a huge crowd of foodies yet. It’s getting better. But ribeye is still our best seller. It’s a great dish, but from a chef’s perspective, it’s just steak frites.”

The challenge — not just for Guernsey Park, but for restaurants of all stripes — is finding the balance, making dishes that keep chefs inspired to create while still bringing people back in.

“Especially with the local economy, we all feel it,” Langer said. “Once it recovers and people are more comfortable with going out, we want them to feel excited about coming here.”

With a mix of high-end sushi, food-forward dishes and a renewed focus on customers, Guernsey is quickly regaining the buzz it once had. Now all Langer needs is for the city to find out where the restaurant is hiding.

PHOTOS BY GARETT FISBEC K

by Greg Elwell

food briefs

M ARK HAN COCK

by Greg Elwell

New Sumo After 10 years in Edmond, Sumo Japanese Steak House has opened a second location.

Taking over the former space of Yamato Japanese Steakhouse, the new Sumo opened late last year with a similar menu to its Edmond location, said Alex He, manager at the original restaurant.

Sumo made a splash in Edmond at 1803 S. Broadway with a combination of sushi options and several hibachi tables. The new location, 7101 Northwest Expressway, expands on Yamato’s hibachi offerings with a revamped sushi menu.

Farm Brew Beer. Food. Music. It’s a winning combination and part of what has made the OKC Farmers Market District a destination for events across the city.

With the first (hopefully annual) Farm Brew, Friday at Oklahoma City Farmers Public Market, 311 S. Klein Ave., the district wants to raise money to fund improvements and shine a spotlight on the burgeoning business area.

Farmers Market attorney and project developer Bud Scott said the district is growing rapidly, but coordinating that growth is expensive. Farm Brew will raise money for neighborhood ID banners, landscaping, an increased Internet presence and more.

The event is 6-10 p.m. and features beer tastings from 25 different brands, food and live music by The Trio.

Tickets are $35 each or $50 for the VIP section, where Ludivine and The R&J Lounge and Supper Club chef and co-owner Russ Johnson will be cooking. Scott said they tried to keep ticket prices lower on the spectrum to make the event accessible for more people.

To purchase tickets, go online to okcfarmersmarket.com/farm-brew.

“Honestly, as a business owner, it’s felt like 10 years,” said Oak & Ore owner Micah Andrews.

The craft beer bar and restaurant, 1732 NW 16th St., celebrates its first anniversary with a party 5-10 p.m.

Thursday featuring different special release beers tapped each hour and $3 select Oklahoma beers. Attendees who purchase an Oklahoma craft beer are entered to win a limited edition Oak & Ore anniversary TeKu pint glass.

Andrews said it’ll be a “big blowout party” and credits a good relationship with several local brewers on the availability of some once-in-a-lifetime beers.

The bar will have more than 20 limited edition local beers for the event.

Throughout the anniversary week, ending Sunday, youth ages 12 and younger can eat free from the kids menu and customers will receive a 20 percent discount on food from the regular menu with a Keep It Local card.

PROVID ED

Oak anniversary

O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e | J a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | 2 1

Have a cow A wise, yellow, eight-fingered young man once told us, “Don’t have a cow, man.”

But that was in Springfield, not Oklahoma City. This is Steer Central, Beef Junction, The Heifer Hub. We will have a cow, man. We will, as our ancestors taught us, eat every part of the cow. And it will be delicious.

— by Greg Elwell, photos by Garett Fisbeck and Mark Hancock

Chae

Carican Flavors

Back Door Barbecue

1933 NW 23rd St. chaeokc.com | 600-9040

2701 N. Martin Luther King Ave. caricanflavors.com | 424-0456

315 NW 23rd St. backdoorbarbecue.com | 525-7427

Short ribs used to be the chef’s secret weapon, a cheap cut of beef that could transform from steak to roast to barbecue and so much more. The word is out, though. That doesn’t make short ribs any less delicious — just a little more expensive. Newly opened Chae takes tender short rib chunks cooked up Korean-style and puts them in a form all of us can appreciate: tacos. Doused with a spicy sauce and jalapeños, they are amazing appetizers.

The primary purpose of a cow’s tail is to swat away flies. The primary purpose of my hands is to swat away my dining companions when I get the oxtail at Carican Flavors. Delicately braised, these bony chunks are surrounded by a ring of melt-in-your-mouth beef.

And don’t skimp on the beef broth, which should be ladled over a side of spinach rice to soak up the rich flavor of perfectly cooked Caribbean-style beef.

Brisket seems easy until you try to cook it. It’s a big wad of muscle that supports the bulk of a cow’s weight, which requires a lot of connective tissue. Try to cook brisket like a steak and you’ll end up with the toughest shoe leather you’ve ever tasted. How fortunate for us, then, that Back Door Barbecue’s cooks know the secret to flavorful, fatty, low-and-slow beef brisket. It’s so tasty, it doesn’t need help — but try the espresso BBQ sauce anyway.

And In Store Sampling

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Junior’s

Big Ed’s Hamburgers

Ludivine

Pho 54

2601 Northwest Expressway juniorsokc.com | 848-5597

12209 N. Pennsylvania Ave. 755-2108

805 N. Hudson Ave. ludivineokc.com | 778-6800

15001 N. May Ave. 608-5054

On the opposite spectrum from brisket is beef tenderloin. This muscle gets almost no work, leaving it so easy to eat that it barely requires any cooking at all.

But at old-school steakhouse Junior’s, the filet is prepared with perfect char marks, a bright red center (You are ordering it medium-rare, right?) and a generous helping of butter, salt and pepper. This is the epitome of a classy steak dinner in one of OKC’s classiest old establishments.

What is in a cheeseburger? There are really only three basics necessary: a bun, a slice of cheese and a disc of ground beef cooked to perfection. You get a lot more than that at Big Ed’s Hamburgers when you order the jumbo cheeseburger.

Giant slices of tomato, slivered rings of red onion, pickles and lettuce leaves all join two gorgeous patties of hamburger and two melting squares of cheese.

The real question is, When is that cheeseburger going in you?

Five years in, it’s hard to believe any hard-core foodies haven’t visited Ludivine. Besides excellent seasonal, local fare and bartenders who are constantly pushing the boundaries with inventive cocktails, there is one dish that might be tossed aside at other restaurants: bone marrow. Big beef bones are cut down the middle with a band saw and roasted until the insides become “meat butter.” Make a reservation to try them tonight.

Obviously Phake Pho Phacts: » More pho is served in Oklahoma City than in Vietnam each year. » Scientists have proven that pho can replace most antibiotics. » If you order vegan pho, you get a glass of water and a punch in the face.

Now that those are out of the way, you should really go to Pho 54 and try its insanely good beef-and-noodle soup.

New Years Resolution:

Eat more Thai!

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O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e | J a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | 2 3

life community

Empowering women A local nonprofit erases borders in its efforts to educate and empower Afghan and Rwandan business owners.

By Oraynab Jwayyed

The Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women, headquartered in Oklahoma City, is celebrating its 10th year of training female entrepreneurs from Afghanistan and Rwanda. The nonprofit group aims to help them expand their businesses and prepare them for future growth.

That, however, was not its original purpose, said Terry Neese, Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women (IEEW) founder and CEO. “I actually started the organization to educate women entrepreneurs in the United States on public policy and the importance of being involved in their government,” she said.

Neese wrote a book on the topic, Power Tools for Women Business Owners.

She was then contacted by White House and U.S. Department of State officials in 2006. They wanted her to assist the newly formed Afghan Women’s Council’s efforts to educate female entrepreneurs in Afghanistan.

“That led to a trip via the State Department to Afghanistan in the first quarter of 2007 to spend a week on the ground in Kabul and visit with women entrepreneurs about their needs and concerns,” Neese said.

There, she learned that many women owned businesses before the Taliban took control. Many were forced into reclusion, and their businesses were shuttered.

Their situations improved after the war in Afghanistan.

“They were starting up companies again and really didn’t know how to do that,” she said.

IEEW was born after that trip.

“On the trip back, I started thinking about how I could assist these women,” Neese said. “I put a plan together that would include curriculum from a major university.”

Part of her strategy included an initial training period in their countries, supplemented with learning opportunities in the United States.

Learning concepts

To be considered for IEEW’s program, applicants must have a business in operation at least one year, own at least 51 percent of it and have an official business or trade license registered with

mark hancock

Plans change

Terry Neese founded The Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women to help American women but ended up expanding it far beyond U.S. borders. their government.

Students complete a 10-week course at home before they are paired with e-mentor volunteers in the U.S. Once completed, each woman presents her plan before a committee.

This first batch of recruits is then narrowed down to the final selection of 30, who make it to the U.S. Upon arrival in the United States, students are assigned to hostesses whose responsibilities include transporting them between IEEW’s Oklahoma City headquarters and Dallas, where the women receive training.

In Dallas, they learn about basic business operations, strategy and marketing through IEEW’s Peace Through Business program. This process helps women detect opportunities and risks within company environments.

“We work on financial statements,” she said, “how they put those financial statements together, how they know they’re making a profit or not.”

Satisfying challenges

IEEW’s work is rewarding, but Neese said it comes with many challenges.

First, there’s the funding required to

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fulfill the nonprofit’s goals.

“The challenge we face with IEEW, as with every nonprofit, is raising money,” she said.

Then there is the visa application process. Because the organization works in politically high-risk regions, women must pass extensive background and security checks. There’s a lot at stake when bringing students from war-torn Afghanistan and politically unstable Rwanda to the U.S. “There are always visa challenges,” Neese said, “and getting women out of those countries to come to the United States to obtain more knowledge.”

Since its inception, IEEW has graduated more than 500 businesswomen from Afghanistan and Rwanda. A student from the 2007 class, Thaj Sirag, is doing well. She was selected for the program after sending in a photograph of women sitting crosslegged, sewing soccer balls. She had 38 employees at the time, and her goal was to export her product to Germany.

“She now has over 314 employees, and her annual revenues have risen every year,” Neese said. “She’s just done a phenomenal job. She is now exporting

soccer balls to Germany.”

On average, each Afghan program participant helps create 28 additional jobs and each Rwandan student helps generate 22 more jobs. Four Rwandan graduates have been appointed to the country’s parliament and senate.

Potential expansion

IEEW expanded into Rwanda in 2008, a year after the nonprofit was launched. Neese said plans are in place for further growth.

The group has drawn requests from Kenya, Uganda, Morocco, India and Nigeria. The need for resources and funding to operate in those countries also requires the commitment of each government.

Adding a third country to IEEW’s agenda requires that resources are not taken from the countries the organization now serves.

“Our board of directors has said that we don’t want to leave the Afghan women behind or the Rwandan women behind,” Neese said.

For more information on IEEW and on volunteering, mentoring and hosting students, visit ieew.org.

Ga re tt fi s be c k

life education

Book berths Russell Westbrook’s newest reading room aids students and the community.

By Laura Eastes

Russell Westbrook doesn’t mind admitting that as a student, he picked out books, brought them home, placed them on bookshelves and never picked them back up.

Of course, that wasn’t always the case for the Oklahoma City Thunder point guard.

He’s a big fan of Ann M. Martin’s Missing Since Monday, a mystery book for preteens. Westbrook selected that novel when assigned reports as a student in south Los Angeles. As a youth, the Goosebumps books also made his reading list.

On Jan. 5, Westbrook’s taste in literature was not the topic of conversation among students at Edwards Elementary School in northeast Oklahoma City. Instead, Westbrook and about two dozen students went from bookcase to bookcase, picked up a few books and quickly flipped through several pages in each. When a student’s interest sparked, the NBA star handed it over with instructions to read the book, not to forget about it on a bookshelf.

Westbrook’s Why Not? Foundation is on a mission to get students reading, and that involves a large donation of a variety of children’s books — from classics to books based on popular video games. Westbrook recognizes that the main reason youngsters don’t read is because they cannot find books they like. This month, Westbrook furthered his mission, opening his fourth Russell’s Reading Room in Oklahoma City. He supports three rooms at elementary schools in Los Angeles.

“As I do research on schools, I want to find schools that want to help their kids read more,” Westbrook said during his visit to Edwards. “I want to find ways to impact [youth] through reading books.”

Russell Westbrook helps students pick out books during a book fair at Russell’s Reading Room at Edwards Elementary School.

Edwards Elementary joins fellow Oklahoma City Public Schools North Highland, Martin Luther King Jr. and Eugene Field with a reading room. When visitors enter, they see a life-size Westbrook decal on brightly painted blue walls. In the near future, colorful carpet and beanbag chairs will accompany bookcases shelved with elementary-school books. Westbrook, with the help of Scholastic, donated 1,200 books to the school.

On Jan. 5, the room hosted a book fair, which gave each student the chance to pick out a book and take it home for their at-home library.

Westbrook said reading at home is just as important as reading at school.

Following the book fair, Russell’s Reading Room will be open during school and after school hours. Principal Patrice Allen views the room as an opportunity for parents to get involved in their child’s learning. The room will serve as a community resource and a point of pride for Edwards students.

Westbrook’s visit didn’t go unnoticed by students, even those who didn’t get the chance to meet the famous basketball player.

“To have someone they look up to come and inspire them to read,” Allen said, “it creates a love for reading.”

That was Westbrook’s aim. In 2012, he founded the foundation with a mission to empower children who are at-risk, low-income and experiencing hardships. Westbrook selects projects that build confidence among youth. A student’s self-esteem can rise as their reading ability increases.

“It’s something I take pride in,” Westbrook said.

NAACP & TEMPLE B’NAI ISRAEL PRESENT:

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“THE DIALOGUE CONTINUES” Sunday, January 17, 2016 6pm – 7:30pm At Temple B’nai Israel 4901 N Pennsylvania

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Associate VP for University Outreach-OU

FREE TO THE PUBLIC Light Supper Provided

Sponsors:

Respect Diversity Foundation Joan & Michael Korenblit This program is made possible by the Clare and Rabbi Joseph Levenson Fund of Temple B’nai Israel

Martin Luther King, Jr. 1929-1968

O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e | j a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | 2 5

life history

Deadly mishap A shooting in the history of Oklahoma City differs greatly from ones that make headlines today.

OK LAHOMA HISTORICAL SOCIETY / PROVIDED

By Bobby Dobbs

In the 125-year history of the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Office, a total of six deputies have been killed in the line of duty.

Three of those were slain in gunfights, one died in a motorcycle accident and another succumbed to a heart attack while on duty.

The most unusual death however, was the strange case of Deputy Levi A. Ezell.

On August 24, 1914, Deputy Ezell was escorting a 17-year-old bicycle thief named Warren E. Mankin from the Justice of the Peace court back to the Oklahoma County Jail.

The young delinquent already had a rap sheet extending back three years, to when he was arrested for the ignominioussounding crime of “pigeon theft.”

Post Graduate Hospital, 401 NE Second St.

Saving grace As he neared adulthood, Mankin was one of the “smoothest criminal operators in Oklahoma City” according to contemporary newspaper accounts.

Accidental shot

As the pair was walking toward the jail near Main Street and Hudson Avenue, Mankin suddenly broke free from the deputy and ran.

Ezell drew his .45-caliber revolver from its holster, but not with the intention of firing it. Instead, he reared back his arm and hurled the large weapon at Mankin, hoping to knock him down with it.

The deputy’s aim was true, and the gun struck Mankin in the back.

Unfortunately, it failed to bring down his target or halt the escapee’s flight.

Worse still, tragically, the gun bounced off of Mankin, hit the pavement and discharged a round

This .45 Colt revolver is similar to the one carried

by Levi A. Ezell.

into the abdomen of its owner, mortally wounding him.

Ezell was rushed to Post Graduate Hospital at 401 NE Second St., where emergency surgery was performed by J.F. Kuhn and George Hunter.

Unfortunately, their efforts were unsuccessful. Ezell died from internal bleeding at 5:45 p.m.

Warren Mankin’s freedom was short-lived. Ten minutes after the shooting, he was found hiding under a porch by Sheriff Martin Binion and recaptured.

The sheriff initially believed that Mankin himself shot the deputy.

Strangely, there even were eyewitnesses at the scene who swore they saw Mankin pick up Ezell’s weapon and fire it at the deputy.

Mankin vehemently protested his innocence but was on his way to being charged with capital murder.

Luckily for him, in the deputy’s final moments of life, he was able to recount to the doctors and Sheriff Binion what had really happened. The

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dying man insisted the boy wasn’t at fault and told Binion that he shouldn’t be charged.

Fickle fate

The 41-year-old lawman was buried at Fairlawn Cemetery two days later.

He left behind a pregnant wife and two young children.

Warren Mankin graduated from stealing pigeons and bicycles to the logical next step: motorized vehicles.

In 1918, he was sentenced to prison for pilfering motorcycles. Two years later, in 1920, he was in the headlines again for yet another escape after being charged with the theft of a car.

The criminal career of Warren Mankin finally came to an end on November 21, 1923. Two days earlier, he had escaped from the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester and returned to Oklahoma City, where he, predictably, stole another car.

When Oklahoma City Police

BI GSTOCK .COM

As the pair was walking toward the jail near Main Street and Hudson Avenue, Mankin suddenly broke free from the deputy and ran.

detectives spotted him in the vehicle near the State Capitol building, Mankin, true to form, tried to flee. However, he was shot during the attempt. The bullet severed his spinal cord and paralyzed him from the waist down.

Mankin was taken to University Hospital, where his condition steadily declined. J.F. Kuhn, one of the doctors who had tried to save the life of Ezell nine years earlier, pronounced him dead Dec. 2, 1923.

Mankin was buried in an unmarked grave in Wylie, Texas, at the age of 26.

life visual arts

Limitless skies

JRB Art at the Elms presents works

by Oklahoma art luminary Oscar Brousse Jacobson and its annual Tres Blanc group show through January.

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10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday and 1-5 p.m.

Sunday through Jan. 31 JRB Art at the Elms 2810 N. Walker Ave. jrbartgallery.com 528-6336 Free

To start the new year, JRB Art at the Elms cleans its slate and introduces two new exhibitions. This month, the gallery honors Oscar Brousse Jacobson, a significant figure in Oklahoma art history, and celebrates the color white with its annual Tres Blanc group show.

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Born in 1882 in Västervik, Sweden, Jacobson was the first director of the University of Oklahoma’s School of Art & Art History, founded in 1915.

In 1936, he also helped establish the school’s first art museum, which eventually became Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art. He retired in 1954 and died in 1966.

Jacobson brought international attention to Native American art while transforming his own style.

The prolific artist also created more than 600 paintings. Jacobson’s focus was southwestern U.S. landscapes. JRB’s exhibit allows viewers an opportunity to see an array of his work and how he matured over time.

“We have 12 paintings that have not been on the market for over 50 years,” said Joy Reed Belt, JRB Art at the Elms founder and director. “He is of enormous importance to the history of art in Oklahoma.”

The exhibit also features two Jacobson paintings on loan that are not for sale, bringing the show’s total to 14.

In the earliest Jacobson work on display, “Untitled ‘A,’” created in 1916, he depicts a jagged, rocky, faded peachand-pink southwestern mountain against a blue sky. The Swedish painter used pointillism, a European painting technique utilizing multiple dabbings from a paintbrush to create a form.

In later works, many of which are on display, he became bolder with strokes and color, adding depth to the boulders, streams and fields that inspired him.

One of his lasting legacies to the state’s art history is his recognition and

provided

Enormous importance

oNliNe orderiNg NoW AvAilAble!

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Oscar Brousse Jacobson works show through Jan. 31 at JRB Art at the Elms. promotion of Plains Indian art.

Jacobson encouraged Native Americans to earn college educations, particularly in the arts. Recognizing the talent of a group of student Kiowa tribe members, he dubbed the artists the Kiowa Five.

Stephen Mopope, Jack Hokeah, Monroe Tsatoke, James Auchiah and Spencer Asah, born near the time of statehood, composed the quintet.

Lois Smoky joined as the lone female, making the group the Kiowa Six. Jacobson exhibited their works across the U.S. and Czechoslovakia, bringing them international acclaim.

The tribe named him an honorary chief.

New color

Tres Blanc runs concurrently with the Jacobson exhibit through January.

French for “very white,” the annual group show highlights the color’s beauty. JRB invited artists to use white as both inspiration and subject.

All mediums and subject matters are decided by the artist.

“It was a way to have a break from an old year to new year, kind of like cleaning your palate,” Belt said, describing the idea behind Tres Blanc, now in its third year.

The group show presents work from nine local artists whose interpretations and inspirations of the color differ wildly.

Oklahoma City artist Adam Lanman uses minuscule, cut-out pieces of notebook paper to give a map of a family farm a three-dimensional feel in his piece “Winter Farmyards.”

John Wolfe, a local resident and former art instructor in the Midwest City-Del City School District, contributed two pieces to Tres Blanc.

“I always think it’s very interesting to see how each different person interprets,” Wolfe said. “Other than it needs to be in a range of white, there were no guidelines.”

Shirley Thomson-Smith and Holly Wilson bring white to life through bronze sculptures.

Edmond artist Jennifer Cocoma Hustis primarily focuses on horses and birds and chose feathers for this show.

“I look at found feathers as gifts,” Hustis said. “The feathers dropped from these majestic birds inspire an intense feeling of gratefulness. ” She also helped introduce the exhibit concept in her own way.

“At the art opening, I hand-cut white paper dove feathers for the public to pick up in and outside the gallery,” she said. “It was funny how people reacted to them on the ground, but I hope in a few people I evoked that innate childhood curiosity to investigate what is pure, beautiful and interesting in the world around us.”

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life visual arts

Daring dames

Artwork in Furies & Graces at The Project Box

A photo exhibit by an Atlanta artist examines facets of feminine energy.

By Jack Fowler

11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday through Jan. 23 The Project Box 3003 Paseo St. theprojectboxokc.com 609-3969 Free

When asked about Furies & Graces, her new photography show at the Paseo’s The Project Box, Atlanta-based photographer and artist Jenny Bell said it’s mostly about feminine energy.

Once she started talking about her work, however, it became clear it’s far more personal than that.

“Being a woman is fucking hard,” said Bell, 45. “You’re pulled in two different directions, and you get a lot of feedback on how you’re supposed to act while you’re doing it. It can make you feel like you’re never doing enough.”

A mother of three boys, one of whom is autistic, Bell said Furies & Graces is an exploration of the way a female artist can lose herself in other parts of her life and how she can find her way back.

“Being a female can be very segmented,” she said. “My family is a big block of my life. My son with autism, that’s another big block. And as an artist especially, I think it can be hard to feel confident in your work because of the constant pushback you get on how you’re supposed to be behaving. This show is really about stepping into a place where I’m feeling confident.”

Perhaps no piece in the show is more indicative of that confidence than “Mother-GloryBox,” which Bell described as the focal point of the show. A black-and-white, long exposure shot of Bell nude from the waist down was actually the result of a nudge from

her collaboration partner on the show, Oklahoma City fabrication artist Hugh Meade.

“I typically don’t ever do that,” Bell said of her decision to be on the other side of the camera. “I look at most of my pieces as self-portraits anyway, even if I’m using models, but Hugh kept suggesting a self-portrait, more of a photographic exercise than anything.

So I decided that if I’m going to do it, I’m going to be as open as I can possibly be. By being that vulnerable, you know, showing marks and scars on your body, things like that, it can be empowering. Go big or go home.”

Descriptive frames

Bell is good at describing her work, the why of it, a skill so many artists have yet to master. Specific and insightful, she seems to have a concrete reason or theme for every piece in the show.

“The laundromat is solid behind her, and the image of the woman is blurred. It’s about that busy frenzy, about working through frenzy to try and get to the quiet moments,” she said of “Hysteria,” the blurred image of a beaming woman throwing her head back in laughter while standing in front of washing machines at a laundromat.

“That piece is about using classical imagery to represent feminine energy, recognizable feminine energy, regardless of the setting or context,” she said of “Marilyn,” a piece in which the image of the iconic star, standing in a graffitifilled rat hole of a hallway, is so blurred it could be a man in a white dress.

She said that one of her favorite aspects of Furies & Graces was bringing Meade’s energy and insight into a show based primarily on a feminine experience. Meade built the frames for three pieces, based on “glory boxes,” a

2 8 | J a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e

“Hidden Dangers of Grace” by Jenny Bell

kind of hope chest on which the vessel shape is supposed to represent the womb. Each frame represents either mother, maiden or crone, three female archetypes common in early literature, and the lid to the glory box is displayed above each piece.

Bell also said she loved working in Oklahoma City and is impressed with the openness and confidence of the artists she met while staging the show.

“I’ve been incredibly impressed with this city and so many of the artists that Lisa (Lisa Jean Allswede, Project Box owner) has introduced me to. There’s just something about Oklahoma City,” Bell said. “They’re very much more

open here, more willing to share what they’re working on with other people.

Other cities are very clique-y, but I don’t feel that here.”

She returns to The Project Box Jan. 23 to demonstrate resin techniques on photographs and said she’s looking forward to the visit.

“It’ll be my third time in Oklahoma City,” Bell said of her upcoming workshop. “Every time I come there, it gets more and more interesting.”

Furies & Graces hangs at The Project Box through Jan. 23. Gallery hours are 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. For more information on Bell’s work, visit jennybellphotography.com.

JENNY BELL P H OTOGRAP HY / PROVIDED

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N. May at wilshire | OKC MitCheNerfarraNd.COM

Tanya Bannister makes her Brightmusic Chamber Ensemble debut on Tuesday.

by Ben Luschen

Piano & Friends 7:30 p.m. Tuesday Saint Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral 127 NW Seventh St. brightmusic.org $20

Nationally renowned pianist Tanya Bannister is the featured guest performer in Brightmusic Chamber Ensemble’s third season concert, Piano & Friends, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral, 127 NW Seventh Street.

Amy Cheng, Brightmusic co-artistic director, said Bannister is a passionate, imaginative and deeply musical artist. In addition to being an accomplished concert pianist and recording artist, Bannister also is cofounder and artistic director of Austria’s annual AlpenKammerMusik chamber music festival.

This is her first time appearing with Brightmusic.

“The audience can expect to hear in Tanya’s playing earnest expressivity, beautiful lyrical lines and impressive virtuosity,” Cheng said in an email to Oklahoma Gazette.

The performance features one of Robert Muczynski’s most wellknown works, “Fantasy Trio for Clarinet, Violoncello and Piano, op.

26”; “Trio in A minor, op. 114” by Johannes Brahms; Gabriel Fauré’s “Piano Quartet No. 1 in C Minor, op.

15”; a work for solo piano by Frédéric Chopin; and other offerings that highlight Bannister’s skill.

Cheng said the Chopin and Fauré works in particular offer refined lyricism and exciting tonal scheme

and there will be an interesting presentation of many popular musical styles of Brahms’ work.

Overall, she said, guests can expect instrumental virtuosity and musical sensitivity from all the performers.

“Chamber music repertoire is vast and deep, but it is intimate in its form and presentation and powerful in its content,” Cheng said.

The night’s performers include Bannister on piano, Gregory Lee on violin, Mark Neumann on viola, Jonathan Ruck on cello and Chad Burrow on clarinet.

The show also serves as The Jeannette Sias Memorial Concert. Sias supported and contributed to the arts before her death in 2014.

“The Sias name is, and still is, well-known in art circles, so every year, we have an annual memorial concert for her,” said Sara Grossman, Brightmusic Chamber Ensemble vice president of publicity.

Grossman said so far, Brightmusic’s 13th season has been a popular one.

The season ends April 5 with Quintets, Sextets & Queen, a unique production dedicated to the music of British rock act Queen. Its annual Spring Chamber Music Festival, The Music of Vienna, is mid-June.

Cheng said those who are entertained by Tuesday’s concert with Bannister are likely to enjoy other shows in Brightmusic’s 2015-2016 season.

“This concert is guaranteed to give our audience a taste of chamber music at its best,” she said.

Admission is $20. Students and active-duty military members are admitted free with ID.

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93 Rear 94 Your of yore 95 Some protective barriers 97 “Vous êtes ____” 99 Tap things?

100 Fig. often discounted 101 Pre-curve figure 106 “Sounds likely to me” 109 Exceptionally well behaved 112 Boom box pair 117 Looked (in) 119 Lover boys 121 Sole representatives, maybe 122 Gum arabic source 123 Oakland’s county 124 Like HBO and Showtime vis-à-vis basic cable 125 Something you can believe in 126 If everything fails 127 Blues musician known as Sleepy John

programs 6 Essence 13 Chippendales dancer, e.g.

19 One in the closet 21 Band that doesn’t play much music nowadays 22 Common gas station attachment 23 2001 foreign film with five Oscar nominations 24 Radishes with long white roots 25 Nag 26 Accepted, as an offer 28 Was behind a register, maybe 30 Battery parts 31 For whom products are designed 33 Passing mention?

35 Short pants 39 McKellen of The Hobbit

40 Alternative to Facebook DOWN Messenger 1 Pointer’s request?

42 Golden Bears’ sch.

2 Ending with Cine45 Suggest 3 Brief race, in brief 47 Supreme Court justice who 4 What keys on a key ring do once said “I am a New Yorker, 5 Setting for van Gogh’s “River and 7 a.m. is a civilized hour to Bank in Springtime” finish the day, not to start it” 6 Sonny 52 Concupiscence 7 Some desktops 54 Power, so to speak 8 Running a high temperature 55 Language of Afghanistan 9 Staples Center athlete 56 The Undiscovered Self 10 Stinks author 11 Emanation from a pen 57 Filthy 12 Doctor’s recommendation 58 Low points 13 Box in an arena?

59 How curry is often served 14 One helping with servings 60 Divisions politiques 15 Start 61 Beckons through a portal 16 “You’re missing a comma” 63 “I hate when that happens!” and others 64 Cousin of a foil 17 Turkish inn 66 Dark horses 18 Orch. section 68 Capital of Gambia 20 Together again 72 Like some building damage 27 Something people do not 78 Sterile want to see outside, for short 83 One having a simple existence 29 Cartoon exclamation 85 Blowout, in sports lingo 32 Young ____ 86 To land 34 Setting not actually found in 87 Drive off Romeo and Juliet 88 Available 35 Opted for 89 Spring forecast 36 Kind of orchard 90 How silverware is often sold 37 Mural’s beginning?

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life music

Rhapsody reprised The King of Queen triumphantly returns as a celebration of Freddie Mercury and self.

The King of Queen 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday The Boom 2218 NW 39th St. theboomokc.com 601-7200 $15 21+

Don’t stop them now. Mercury-flavored performance The King of Queen is returning for two encore performances, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday at The Boom, 2218 NW 39th St. More than just a tribute to victory and struggle anthem factory Queen, the rock musical chronicles the life of a transgender man, played by Max Warner. He goes through hard times, and plot points connect to iconic Queen songs. He is also guided by his guardian angel — Freddie Mercury, naturally.

Mercury is played by Leslie Hensley, known on stage as Balthazar. Hensley’s known for more comedic performances, but King of Queen has a depth to it that left audiences demanding more after its initial run in November.

“The first response to the show, it was overwhelming,” Hensley said. “It was basically everyone just asking when we could do it again, and they wanted to make sure they could make it this time or come back and see it.”

King of Queen’s encore performance

retains nearly the entire original cast.

The show was written and narrated by internationally touring poet and Oklahoman Lauren Zuniga.

Hensley approached Zuniga about writing the musical mid-2015. She knew she wanted to do a Queen tribute, but she was also looking for something more. Hensley told Zuniga she wanted the performance to be a gender victory in some way but needed some help doing it the right way.

Zuniga, who identifies as queer and whose partner is trans, said she fleshed out Hensley’s idea with the intent of not “appropriating” the story but telling it in a way that was genuine to the trans experience.

She sought guidance from her partner and Warner, making sure they got the story right. Zuniga said she did a few rewrites after consulting them.

The production has had an impact on the cast as well as audiences. Zuniga said the first time they read through it, everyone cried. Just rehearsing through the story, Hensley said, has made those involved a tight-knit group.

Everyone is wholeheartedly immersed because King of Queen is touching on a personal level.

“It’s been a different experience having a show that not only moves when we perform it but when we rehearse it, it tears us apart and brings us closer together,” Hensley said.

P hotos by Aa ron W i lli a m s / PROVIDED

By Ben Luschen

The first response to the show, it was overwhelming.

— Leslie Hensley

Zuniga, who described the tone of the play as “victorious,” said she actually did another rewrite after their first reading because she realized the musical was too sad. It’s understandable, considering Queen’s catalogue includes heartbreaking songs like “The Show Must Go On” and “Too Much Love Will Kill You.” “If you try to flesh out some storyline that would lead up to some of those songs, you’re like, ‘This is depressing,’” Zuniga said.

Royal triumph

The cast of The King of Queen

The King of Queen showcases the life and music of Freddie Mercury and the influential music of rock act Queen.

Queen’s place in the modern musical landscape is intriguing. On one hand, the band’s music has become an absolute staple at sporting events or in bars. Songs like “Another One Bites the Dust” are guaranteed winners at karaoke night, but in the context of Mercury, his own orientation and the time period he was in, Zuniga said his celebratory lyrics represented people who were not seen as being powerful or even acceptable.

Yet Queen’s place on top of the stadium rock mountain is also part of what makes King of Queen such an enjoyable experience.

Even if you think you are not familiar with Freddie Mercury’s music, you probably are. As emotional or heartbreaking as some songs might

be, Queen’s music also can be overwhelmingly triumphant.

“It speaks to your heart,” Hensley said. “Like, Queen is rainbows and unicorns and dragons and sunsets, you know? Freddie Mercury is the king of Queen.”

Hensley said her preparation for her role as Mercury has helped put his music in a special place in her heart.

“I’ve been watching videos, listening to interviews, watching his mannerisms,” she said. “It’s more turned into a hobby. Now I’m researching and looking up all this stuff because he’s such an amazing person.”

Zuniga said it means a lot to her that King of Queen was brought back for an encore. She felt it might be risky doing a play like this, especially in Oklahoma.

She said she was also nervous about writing a fictional story like this one because for many trans people, including those in the cast, it’s their actual story.

But the feedback has been positive from nearly everyone.

“It’s like everyone’s story in the sense that it’s about heartbreak and triumph and feeling like you’re at the end of what you can handle and then being able to go on because you have somebody that you believe in or believe in some idea more than your own self,” Zuniga said.

Tickets are $15, available at ticketstorm.com.

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Joseph Wrobel recorded his one-man blackmetal EP. Now he just needs to find a band.

By Ben Luschen

During their son’s strict Catholic upbringing, Joseph Wrobel’s parents probably never envisioned him burning a Bible on Christmas Eve, much less studying the tenets of Luciferism or Thelema.

Yet, here he is, fresh off the debut of his black metal EP, Daemon Rising.

The name comes from the Luciferian idea of one’s inner-daemon — the ‘a’ represents the qualities of demons as fallen angels. You can’t have light without the dark, he explained.

“With this project being sort of a new beginning for me, I figured it fit pretty well,” said Wrobel, who moved to Oklahoma City from Topeka, Kansas, a couple years ago.

The chilling, piercing five-song effort is quite an accomplishment considering it was recorded entirely

by Wrobel with the assistance of basic gear and programs.

Before coming to Oklahoma, Wrobel spent some time drumming in a few other bands. His first had a screamo, pop-punk sound. He was kicked out because he wanted something darker. His next was sort of a Pantera hybrid. After that, he found himself in a hardcore thrash

Joseph Wrobel of Daemon Rising in his Oklahoma City home group with an exciting, aggressive, choreographed stage show that Wrobel loved, but he still felt compelled to do other things.

“I wanted to do something heavier but just couldn’t find people who wanted to do that style of music,” he said.

A move to the Sooner State provided an opportunity to build his musical vision. But moving is expensive. Painfully, Wrobel was forced to sell his drum set.

Still, he never lost his need to create music that called to him.

Wrobel began learning to play guitar and soon bought a guitar rig iPhone attachment off Amazon for $15. Band or no band, money or no money, he was determined to record his black metal debut.

Minimalistic approach

Wrobel began work on the Daemon Rising EP in April. With his guitar and headphones plugged into his newly purchased iRig, he recorded all the instrumental aspects of the album

p hotos by Ga r ett fi s b e c k

life music

before the end of the summer.

Wrobel used GarageBand software to find and pick different amps and adjust sounds to his liking.

Electronic drum tracks, a synthetic necessity that at times pained the drummer-at-heart, also were added.

“If there’s anything from that [EP] that I wish I could change, it would be the sound of the drums just because I definitely enjoy a more natural-sounding drum than anything electronic, which is what this got me,” he said.

Wrobel made do with what he had, but those limitations tempered his sound.

“When I play, I like to do a lot of fills and just kind of crazy stuff,” he said, “so on this one, I just had to tone it down a little bit so it gave it more of that droning, repetitive sound.”

Recording vocals also proved challenging — not for technical reasons, but personal ones. Wrobel worked on the project while attending the University of Central Oklahoma’s Academy of Contemporary Music and trying to find employment in a new city. Music was recorded on and off over several months as he fought to write lyrics that would fit a more philosophical tone.

Lo-fi recordings and minimalism are two traits commonly associated with the cold, black metal aesthetic.

Stories of microphones hanging in noisy basements fill the genre’s lore. In some ways, Daemon Rising represents a 21st-century version of that ideal, even if finances made the choices a necessity.

“I was kind of forced to do it that way, but at the same time, it was also a relief because I had the time to actually do what I wanted to with it

I want to have the musicians jumping off stage and moshing with the crowd. ...

‘Then we’re going to brawl for a little bit.’

— Joseph Wrobel

and just sort of like experiment with it,” Wrobel said.

Finding a scene

Part of Wrobel’s goal with this EP is to find, inspire or awaken a black metal scene — or any kind of metal scene — within Oklahoma City. He was excited about the prospect of moving into a larger city, but so far, he has not had luck finding members to complete his band.

When he does establish a personnel lineup, Wrobel said he hopes to take Daemon Rising live, bringing to life the hybrid, theatrical stage show he has always dreamed of.

He wants the black metal staples — corpse paint, inverted crosses — but with added punk flair.

“I want to have the musicians jumping off stage and moshing with the crowd,” he said. “Maybe get a buddy in there where I’m like, ‘Hey, at this point in the song, I’m going to jump off the stage and hit you in the fucking face. Then we’re going to brawl for a little bit.’”

Stream the Daemon Rising EP at daemonrising.bandcamp.com.

Joseph Wrobel of Daemon Rising sets scripture alight at his Oklahoma City home, where he recorded his one-man EP.

First Annual

FARMERS BREW FRIDAY, JANUARY 15TH, 2016 311 SOUTH KLEIN | 6-10 PM A Celebration of Food, Music, & Craft Beer Join us for a night of incredible craft beers and tasty local cuisine from local and national breweries and local food vendors. Bid for locally produced items in our Silent Auction. Enjoy sweet sounds by The Trio and more. General Admission $35 - VIP $50 which includes event t-shirt and access to VIP lounge with private beer sampling, cash bar and food samples by Chef Russ Johnson, co-owner of Ludivine. Beer and food samples are included with cost of admission.

All Proceeds go to the OKC Market District Association

TICkETS AT fARmBREwokC.Com O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e | J a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | 3 5

25TH ANNIVERSARY

early bird tickets on sale now visit www.tumbleweeDOK.com

@CalfFryOK

UPCOMING SHOWS Jan 23 - Whiskey Myers Jan 30 - Steve Rice w/ Former No Justice Members Feb 6 - Micky & the Motorcars Feb 12 - JB and the

OKLAHOMA’S PREMIER LIVE ENTERTAINMENT VENUE 500 E SHERIDAN AVE, OKLAHOMA CITY, OK, 73104, UNITED STATES

Moonshine Band Feb 14 - Cody Canada & Mike McClure Feb 19 - William Clark Green

TICKETS AT WORMYDOG.COM 3 6 | j a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e

www.CriterionOKC.com

p rovi ded

life music

Horse Thief, Opolis, Norman. ROCK Justin Echols Trio, Hefner Grill. JAZZ Karen Khoury, Legend’s Restaurant, Norman. PIANO Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, WinStar World Casino, Thackerville. POP Randy Cassimus, Full Circle Bookstore. ROCK Steve Coleman, Junior’s. JAZZ Street Kings, Oklahoma City Limits. ROCK The Bourgeois, The Blue Door. ROCK

SATURDAY, JAN. 16 100 Bones Band, Tapwerks Ale House & Cafe. ROCK Aaron Watson/Kevin Fowler/Kaitlin Butts, Diamond Ballroom. COUNTRY Banana Seat, Russell’s, Tower Hotel. VARIOUS Boombox Cartel/Tomsize, Subsonix at the Market.

ELECTRONIC Carter Sampson, The Blue Door. SINGER/SONGWRITER Casey & Minna, Hillbillies Po Boy & Oyster Bar. FOLK Don and Melodee Johnson, Twelve Oaks, Edmond. JAZZ Eldredge Jackson, UCO Jazz Lab, Edmond. JAZZ

Live Music WEDNESDAY, JAN. 13 Justin Echols, Junior’s. JAZZ Kyle Reid’s Weekly Residency, The Blue Door. FOLK Maurice Johnson, R&J Lounge and Supper Club. JAZZ Scott Lowber/Will Galbraith/Ed VanBuskirk, Friends Restaurant & Club. COVER Tony Schwartz, Hefner Grill. JAZZ

Elizabeth Speegle Band, Mickey Mantle’s Steakhouse.

JAZZ p rovided

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, WinStar World Casino, Friday

Eric Paslay, Riverwind Casino, Norman.

SINGER/SONGWRITER Frank Black/Grand National/KNOble Savage, Opolis, Norman. HIP-HOP Hail The Sun, 89th Street Collective. ROCK Hosty Duo, Belle Isle Restaurant & Brewery. ROCK

okg

music

Horse Thief Friday

pick

Fresh off a tour with Elle King, Horse Thief returns to its adopted home state for its first show of the year. Come hear these indie sweethearts crank out genre-bending deliciousness alongside fellow Oklahoman Gabriel Knight Hancock 10 p.m.

Friday at Opolis, 113 N. Crawford Ave., in Norman. Admission is $10.

Visit opolis.org or facebook.com/horsethiefokc.

Jahruba Lambeth, Othello’s Italian Restaurant, Norman.

REGGAE Jared Deck/Ryan Hutchens, Blue Note Lounge.

COUNTRY Johnny Mathis, WinStar World Casino, Thackerville.

VARIOUS

MONDAY, JAN. 18

Scott Lowber/Will Galbraith/Rick Toops, Friends Restaurant & Club. COVER Vance Gilbert, The Blue Door. SINGER/SONGWRITER

Justin Echols Trio, Hefner Grill. JAZZ

Rick Toops, Friends Restaurant & Club. ROCK

Kristen Stehr, Riverwind Casino, Norman. COUNTRY

SPINE/Run Forever, 89th Street Collective. ROCK

Max Ridgeway, Uptown Grocery Co., Edmond. ACOUSTIC

Pat Green, Sugar Creek Casino, Hinton. COUNTRY

TUESDAY, JAN. 19

Phillip Bauer as Johnny Cash, Rodeo Opry. COVER

Piano and Friends, St. Paul’s Cathedral. PIANO

Brent Saulsbury/Will Galbraith/Wayne Duncan, Friends Restaurant & Club. ROCK

RedGrass String Band, Grady’s 66 Pub, Yukon.

BLUEGRASS

Shakers of Salt, OSU-OKC Campus. COVER Madonna

Cale Lester & Friends, Wormy Dog Saloon. COUNTRY

Rusty and the Nails, Newcastle Casino, Newcastle.

ROCK

Dave Thomason Band, Grady’s 66 Pub, Yukon. COVER Justin Echols Trio, Hefner Grill. JAZZ Singing Cadets, First Presbyterian Church, Edmond.

VARIOUS Steve Coleman, Junior’s. JAZZ

FRIDAY, JAN. 15

Steve Coleman, Junior’s. JAZZ

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 20

TOOL, BOK Center, Tulsa. ROCK

Maurice Johnson, R&J Lounge and Supper Club. JAZZ

Slowvein, Oklahoma City Limits. ROCK

Horseshoe Road, The Depot, Norman. VARIOUS Karen Khoury, Legend’s Restaurant, Norman. PIANO

Annie Up, Riverwind Casino, Norman. POP

Lucky Eejits/James Bond Dracula, Your Mom’s Place.

PUNK Metro Strings, Full Circle Bookstore. ACOUSTIC

Daniel Jordan, Fuze Buffet & Bar. ACOUSTIC

Mike Hosty One Man Band, The Deli, Norman. ROCK

DJ Six, Russell’s, Tower Hotel. VARIOUS

Rob and Red, UCO Jazz Lab, Edmond. COUNTRY

Groove Merchants, UCO Jazz Lab, Edmond. COVER

Scott Lowber/Will Galbraith/Ed VanBuskirk, Friends Restaurant & Club. COVER

SUNDAY, JAN. 17

Aaron Lee Tasjan, The Blue Door. FOLK

Carter Sampson, The Goddard Center, Ardmore.

SINGER/SONGWRITER

Surfer Blood, 89th Street Collective. ROCK

Tool, BOK Center, Tulsa, Saturday

SPE AK EASY PR / P ROVID ED

THURSDAY, JAN.14

Midas 13, JoJo’s Bar, Yukon. ROCK

Submissions must be received by Oklahoma Gazette no later than noon on Wednesday seven days before the desired publication date. Late submissions will not be included in the listings.

Submissions run as space allows, although we strive to make the listings as inclusive as possible.

Fax your listings to 528-4600 or e-mail them to listings@okgazette.com. Sorry, but phone submissions cannot be accepted.

O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e | J a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | 3 7

p hotos by COHE N M E DIA GROUP / PROVI DE D

life film

Mustang

I don’t

Turkish film Mustang explores the threat of arranged marriages on the bond of sisterhood.

By Ben Luschen

Mustang 5:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 2 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Sunday, 5:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Jan. 21 Oklahoma City Museum of Art 415 Couch Drive okcmoa.com 236-3100 $5-$9

In the fight to preserve purity and maintain a status quo, who suffers the casualties? In one of the best foreign films of 2015, Turkish-language feature Mustang offers a heart-wrenching answer.

Making its debut Friday at Oklahoma City Museum of Art (OKCMOA), 415 Couch Drive, Mustang is a female-driven film if there ever was one. Deniz Gamze Ergüven impresses in her directorial debut, but the movie’s reputation has to be based on the strong performances turned in by the cast, specifically the five young and largely inexperienced actresses portraying the central group of sisters.

Mustang follows this group of orphans as they deal with life in the custody of their uncle and grandmother who place a virtual stranglehold on the sisters in an attempt to protect them from the corruptions and perversions of the world.

The movie opens with the girls giving an emotional goodbye to a teacher who is moving to Istanbul and away from their village in northern Turkey. The girls didn’t know they were saying goodbye to their school as well.

On the way home, the sisters

3 8 | j a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e

stop at the beach, where they end up playing with some friendly boys, much to the disapproval of their grandmother and uncle. The incident must have been some kind of tipping point for the pair. Both view the girls’ burgeoning sexuality as a threat that could make them undesirable to a potential husband, and they make it their mission to keep the girls locked away at home or under supervision at all times until they are married off.

We’re talking barred up windows and the confiscation of various household objects. The uncle occasionally takes the girls to the doctor to be medically certain they are still virgins.

As we all know, however, love finds a way. In this case, that way involves climbing down a drainage pipe by their second-floor window. Despite stern warnings from their guardians, the girls still manage to sneak out to meet boys and see the world.

However, they don’t find it as easy to escape their impending marriages.

One by one, strange families come in and the older sisters are paired off

with their mostly awkward bachelor sons. Lale, the youngest sister, played brilliantly by rookie actress Günes Sensoy, is particularly upset because each ceremony rips away another piece of their familial bond.

Drawing from Turkey’s natural beauty, Mustang is also a visual pleasure despite a tiny estimated budget by American standards — less than $1.5 million. The only time disbelief cannot be suspended is during a scene at a soccer match clearly not shot in a stadium as large as it is suggested to be.

Still, the budgetary limits Mustang ran into were probably a blessing in disguise. The effect of the strictly conservative world the girls live in could easily have been undone by any degree of overproduction.

Ergüven found a winning formula in allowing her core of mostly amateur, teenaged actors to create a bond audiences can only read as authentic sisterhood.

Mustang plays at OKCMOA through Jan. 21. Tickets are $5-$9 and can be purchased at okcmoa.com/films or at the box office.

PRO VIDE D

Screen time

Oklahoma City University Film Institute’s latest series examines the human need to find meaning and purpose.

By Kerry Myers

Blow-Up 2 p.m. Jan. 24 The Lunchbox Feb. 7 About Elly Feb. 21 Leviathan March 6 Kerr McGee Auditorium Meinders School of Business 2501 N. Blackwelder Ave. okcu.edu/film-lit Free, donations accepted

Oklahoma City University Film Institute continues its 34th year with a showing of Michelangelo Antonioni’s 1966 cult film Blow-Up 2 p.m. Jan. 24 in Kerr McGee Auditorium at Meinders School of Business, NW 27th Street and McKinley Avenue.

Each year, the institute chooses a theme upon which to base its lineup.

Harbour Winn, institute director and series organizer, said the theme originates

from the previous years’ film forums.

Community members express the types of movies they would like to see, and selection is based on that.

Each year, the institute shows eight features, each originating from a different country. Winn said it is important to showcase foreign filmmakers.

“People in this community have the least opportunity to view many of these films,” Winn said.

This year’s theme is derived from the 1964 autobiography Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl, which examines the psychological and physiological impacts of imprisonment in Nazi concentration camps. Frankl argued that coping mechanisms developed by some prisoners exemplify how humans strive for meaningful, purpose-filled lives, even during periods of extreme suffering.

This year’s theme is intended to help participants come to understand the

purpose of adversity, Winn said.

“The films in this series stress the importance of an individual’s attitude to existence,” Winn said in a press release. “Even when life seems restricted by external forces, we can choose the attitude with which we live and make meaning, to find value.”

The importance of these selections is that they provide a conflict that is potentially healthy, he said. They bring up the question, Is it art, or is it entertainment?

“Some films may lean more in one direction than the other, but the cinematic art form asks us to question ourselves, to re-see what it is you have already seen, be it on film or through human experience,” Winn told Oklahoma Gazette. “The hope is that you’ll leave the theater a little more open for thought and contemplation.”

Blow-Up, a British-Italian film, is

Blow-Up screens 7 p.m. Jan. 24 at Oklahoma City University. a landmark film of the 1960s. Mod fashion photographer Thomas’ (David Hemmings) vacuous life of potsmoking, abundant sex and popular music suddenly finds meaning when he believes he accidentally photographed a murder. He is then pursued by the woman, Jane (Vanessa Redgrave), who appears in the shots.

The movie questions whether we can find meaning in certain situations, Winn said.

A public discussion session about the film follows each screening. Films screen through March. Learn more at okcu.edu/ film-lit.

FOX SEARCHLIGHT P ICTURES / PROVIDE D

Oklahoma City University Film Institute

Musical Youth

Paolo Sorrentino’s Youth continues the Oscar-winning director’s love affair with Federico Fellini.

BY GEORGE LANG

When Paolo Sorrentino’s Youth played at the Cannes Film Festival last year, the audience’s response reportedly split evenly between enthusiastic cheering and equally energized booing. That polarization came in large part because introspection is a tough pill to choke down, even when prescribed by a director with Sorrentino’s immense talent.

Most of Youth takes place inside a secluded Alpine spa where composer/ conductor Fred Ballinger (Michael Caine) vacations with daughter Lena (Rachel Weisz) as well as his best friend and in-law, director Mick Boyle (Harvey Keitel). Fred tells all comers that he is retired and he will never again conduct his most beloved work, “Simple Songs,” no matter who requests it. While Fred runs away from his early accomplishments, Mick desperately tries to equal his earlier greatness as he hunkers down with a cadre of young

Youth

screenwriters to craft Life’s Last Day, a film that will be “his testament.”

As the octogenarian artists grapple with their pasts, the younger vacationers around them despair over how they are perceived. Actor Jimmy Tree (Paul Dano) is most recognized for his appearance in a big-budget robot movie, but he wants to be known for weightier roles. And when Lena’s husband (and Mick’s son) Julian (Ed Stoppard) leaves her for British pop singer Paloma Faith (playing herself), she takes it as a measure of her worth.

Sorrentino stocks Youth with characters bearing a strong resemblance to either a real person (especially true in Faith’s case) or another character from Sorrentino’s filmography. With his sweptback silver hair and thick frames, Caine appears to be channeling Jep Garbardella, Sorrentino’s protagonist from 2013’s The Great Beauty, and Fred is similarly coming to terms with age and his sense of

accomplishment. Much more on point, Dano’s character is a barely camouflaged Shia LaBeouf, castigating fans that only know him for a clanking, big-budget monstrosity and feeling that the only recourse is to take on a purely evil role in his next film.

Keitel’s character carries the greatest weight in terms of reference points.

Mick and his young scribes suffer from writer’s block on Life’s Last Day, and any resemblance to Guido Anselmi from Federico Fellini’s 8 1/2 must be purely intentional. Mick is derived from Guido, who was a stand-in for Fellini himself, whose own work heavily influences Sorrentino’s writing and compositional filmmaking style. Take a look at the extended fantasy in which Mick encounters actresses from his past or the surrealistic Roman travelogue in The Great Beauty, and prepare to experience strong echoes of 8 1/2, Roma

and La Dolce Vita.

Caine is especially great at conveying the pride and privacy of an artist who wants to be left in Garboesque isolation.

Fred rebuffs entreaties to revel in past glories, but is far more felicitous toward Jimmy Tree, who is seeking a way forward. Conversely, Jimmy’s youth and his struggle between depicting “horror or desire” in his acting proves instructive for Fred as he fitfully attempts to come to terms with his past.

Youth can come across on first viewing as unnecessarily opaque and pretentious, a case of Sorrentino taking a deep dive into his own navel, but it snaps together nicely on successive viewings as the ties between characters become more apparent and seemingly random scenes fit into place. With Youth, Sorrentino is still channeling his hero, but he chooses his heroes well.

O k l a h o m a G a z e t t e | j a n ua r y 1 3 , 2 0 1 6 | 3 9

life film

Spectral inspiration Local filmmaker Mark Williams transforms his fascination with the supernatural into award-winning film projects.

By Wilhelm Murg

Mark Williams is an independent Choctaw filmmaker who makes feature films that deal with the paranormal.

The Oklahoma City resident also launched a documentary series about paranormal activities that occur on Native American-related sites. He’s traveling the festival circuit with his second feature, Violet, and he recently premiered Our Church, the fifth documentary in his Native American Paranormal Project series.

Violet, starring Delno Ebie and Happy Frejo, is an excellent thriller, but what makes it unique is that it is an entirely Native American production in which the Native American cast never mentions being Native American.

Even the set was designed as a neutral, middle-class backdrop to the story.

While Violet is void of such references, Williams’ latest documentary, Our Church, examines a Seminole Baptist church for paranormal activity in a decidedly Native way. Williams shows respect to (possible) spirits on the grounds, edits footage in ways that tribal elders will find respectful and shows that, unlike many in the white Baptist culture, the members of this church are not so much frightened by spirits as comforted by them.

“Whenever we watched a film — like when we would go to a buddy’s house to watch a movie, or when we would sneak into a movie — it was a huge deal to me,” he said. “I remember early on just falling into that world.

It always stuck with me. When I was older, I started taking the idea of being a screenwriter seriously, and I realized I could make these worlds myself.”

He earned a finance degree in college and worked awhile in a bank, but he knew it was not his calling.

In 2005, Williams taught himself how to write a screenplay and submitted it to a competition in Hollywood.

Everyone was jumping and screaming and looking away, doing all the reactions you are hoping for.

— Mark Williams

His first feature, The Unrest, along with other documentaries in his paranormal series, also has a Native point of view, as it deals with Indian boarding schools and the emotional fallout families and communities had to deal with due to decades of abuse at those schools.

“The Unrest was my first feature, but all the short films I made before that were like Violet; they didn’t have any Native American references in them,” he said. “Back then, it was not a conscious effort like there was with Violet. I just wanted to make a cool, scary film that I would want to watch.”

As Williams got into Japanese filmmaking in the early 2000s, he was inspired by classic horror films like Ringu and Ju-On: The Grudge, which were being remade by Americans.

He grew up in a religious home.

His father is a minister who gave his children limited access to television shows and films in their house.

Though he did not win, he was a finalist out of thousands of applicants, and that inspired him to make his first short, starring his family members.

He admitted that first film was horrible, but it ended up in the hands of the director of the Red Fork Native American Film Festival in Tulsa, who wanted to screen it.

“I just shot my film with a handheld DV camera. We had to have a garage sale in order to afford it,” Williams said. “I was embarrassed; I thought everyone was going to laugh at it. But when it screened, it was a thriller, and everyone was jumping and screaming and looking away, doing all the reactions you are hoping for. I was hooked.”

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Gar ett fi sb ec k

Points of view

Mark Williams at OK Visual Studio in Oklahoma City

True stories

Williams spent the rest of the decade perfecting his craft with a series of horror shorts, and in 2012, he released his first feature, The Unrest.

It also marked the first time he used a Native American subtext in his work.

He wrote The Unrest during the time the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement was in the news.

It was the largest class-action settlement in Canadian history.

A $2 billion compensation package was approved for 86,000 Native people

forced to attend boarding schools.

Officially, an estimated 6,000 Native youths died at these schools, but some believe the number is considerably higher and as many as 50,000 children died or went missing in the residential school system.

Regardless of the number, it was a clear abuse of power that impacted the entire Native community.

“I read an article about boarding schools in Canada — ‘residential schools’ as they call them — there was this huge cover-up, and no one talks about it. I was amazed that no

The Unrest Violet

When I was older, I started taking the idea of being a screenwriter seriously, and I realized I could make these worlds myself.

— Mark Williams

churches do things.

“The presence at this church, they are not alarmed or scared by it.

If anything, they are comforted by it because it’s a loved one; it’s grandma or grandpa. To them, it is former church members who want to sing and pray and take part in fellowship.”

The film examines how the old Indian churches came from ceremonial grounds, or stomp grounds, and it includes a lot of paranormal footage from the church.

“Natives, I think, by nature, are spiritual people, and when we get together with family, at some point, someone starts telling ghost stories,” he said. “I think there is a natural interest in it for Native people, but there seems to be even more interest outside of Native communities. It’s … I don’t know what I’m looking for … but non-Natives think we’re all medicine

men or something. I get invited to a lot of radio shows and podcasts, national shows, and I’ll get questions from callers about past lives, or they had a dream.”

Violet screened last week at the Albuquerque Film Festival.

It screens again Jan. 29-30 at Trail Dance Film Festival in Duncan.

Williams also will show Our Church 7 p.m. Jan. 23 at Eufaula Community Center and March 5 at Red Fork Native American Film Festival in Tulsa.

Learn more at facebook.com/ nativeamericanparanormalproject and facebook.com/thevioletmovie.

For more

Organizations interested in screening Mark Williams’ projects can contact him through his Native American Paranormal Project Facebook page.

He said his team is happy to meet and hang out with fans and supporters.

In early 2016, Williams plans to launch a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign to help upgrade his equipment, travel more and take his films to more communities.

Digital downloads and DVDs of his documentaries will be available as rewards.

Learn more at facebook.com/ nativeamericanparanormalproject.

p hotos by Nat ive Boy Pro du cti on s / P rovided

one knew about this,” Williams said.

“I’m Native American and I had never heard about this, so I wanted to make people aware of this tragedy and injustice, and as a filmmaker, you do that though a camera.”

The Unrest is a fictional story based on true events.

“I wanted to make a thriller, but at the same time, there is a message,” he said. “During the Q&As at the festivals, I was able to tell people about what happened.”

During that period, Williams got the idea for his documentary series on the paranormal.

Williams was at a home, showing the trailer of The Unrest, when a ghost hunting cable show came on television.

The future co-star of Violet, Happy Frejo, was there, and the two started talking about how they could create a project as Native Americans on Native American sites, but they could tell the story differently, without the fake setups and with respect to the spirits they investigate.

A year later, Williams became interested in trying his hand at a documentary, and with his interest in the paranormal and the research he had done for The Unrest, it was a natural mashup of ideas.

He called Frejo, and she was up for making a documentary.

“We put a post on Facebook to put a paranormal team together, then we went to Concho Indian Boarding School in El Reno. We really just snuck in,” he said. “We showed the film in Oklahoma City, and it was standing-room only. During the Q&A, we got so many suggestions from people saying that we needed to go here and come to this place, and that’s how the second documentary started.”

The documentary, he said, turned into a series with a “pretty huge” following. More than 100,000 people follow developments via the Facebook page.

Williams said he is proud of his latest work in the series, Our Church, because it has a completely different feeling than the four previous films.

“The other locations we have been to have had a darker history — we talk about a lot of bad things that happened to certain Natives around that community and how it has affected them,” he said. “With Our Church, the focus is on one church, and like a lot of these old Seminole and Creek churches, the way they hold services are totally different then non-Native churches. I wanted people to see how amazing it is how these

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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY

by ROB BREZNY

Homework: Find, create, or arrange to be in the path of an experience that makes you cry for joy. Report results to FreeWillAstrology.com.

ARIES (March 21-April 19) You love autonomy. You specialize in getting the freedom and sovereignty you require. You are naturally skilled at securing your independence from influences that might constrain your imagination and limit your self-expression. But here’s a sticking point: If you want the power to help shape group processes, you must give up some of your autonomy. In order to motivate allies to work toward shared goals, you need to practice the art of interdependence. The next test of your ability to do this is coming right up.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) “Nothing is really work unless you’d rather be doing something else.” So said Taurus writer James M. Barrie (1860-1937), who created the Peter Pan stories.

Your challenge and invitation in the coming months is to increase the amount of time you spend that does not qualify as work. In fact, why don’t you see how much and how often you can indulge in outright play?

There’ll be no better way to attract grace and generate good fortune.

parking lot. Not the nights you called god names and cursed your mother, sunk like a dog in the living room couch, chewing your nails.” I’m giving you a good dose of Laux’s purifying rant in the hope that it will incite you to unleash your own. The time is favorable to summon an expanded appreciation for the twists and tweaks of your past, even those that seemed torturous in the moment. Laux doesn’t regret the TV set she threw out the upstairs window or the stuck onion rings she had to sweep off the dirty restaurant floor, and I hope you will be that inclusive.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) “Modesty is the art of drawing attention to whatever it is you’re being humble about,” said Alfred E. Neuman, the fictitious absurdist whose likeness often appears on the cover of Mad magazine. I’m here to tell you, Leo, that now is an excellent time to embody this aphorism. You are in a perfect position to launch a charm offensive by being outrageously unassuming.

The less you brag about yourself and the more you praise other people, the better able you will be to get exactly what you want. Being unegotistical and nonnarcissistic is an excellent strategy for serving your selfish needs.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Here’s my proposal: Get in touch with your madness.

And don’t tell me you have no madness. We all do.

But listen: When I use the word “madness,” I don’t mean howling rage, hurtful lunacy, or out-of-control misbehavior. I’m calling on the experimental part of you that isn’t always polite and reasonable; the exuberant rebel who is attracted to wild truths rather than calming lies; the imaginative seeker who pines for adventures on the frontiers of your understanding.

Now is an excellent time to tap into your inner maverick.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) “To go wrong in one’s own way is better than to go right in someone else’s,” says a character in Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s novel Crime and Punishment. I don’t agree with that idea 100 percent of the time.

Sometimes our wrong ideas are so delusional that we’re better off getting interrupted and redirected by the wiser insights of others. But for the near future, Virgo, I recommend Dostoyevsky’s prescription for your use. One of your key principles will be to brandish your unique perspectives. Even if they’re not entirely right and reasonable, they will lead you to what you need to learn next.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) Here’s an excerpt from Dorianne Laux’s poem “Antilamentation”: “Regret nothing. Not the cruel novels you read to the end just to find out who killed the cook. Not the insipid movies that made you cry in the dark. Not the lover you left quivering in a hotel

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) “I love kissing,” testifies singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens. “If I could kiss all day, I would. I can’t stop thinking about kissing. I like kissing more than sex because there’s no end to it. You can kiss forever. You can kiss yourself into oblivion. You can kiss all over

the body. You can kiss yourself to sleep.” I invite you to temporarily adopt this expansive obsession, Libra.

The astrological omens suggest that you need more sweet slippery sensual tender interaction than usual.

Why? Because it will unleash sweet slippery sensual tender emotions and sweet slippery sensual tender thoughts, all of which will awaken a surge of dormant creativity. Which you also need very much.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) “Everything has been said before,” said French author André Gide, “but since nobody listens we have to keep going back and beginning all over again.” I am happy to inform you that you’re about to be temporarily exempt from this cynical formulation. According to my reading of the astrological omens, you will be able to drive home certain points that you have been trying to make over and over again for quite a while. The people who most need to hear them will finally be able to register your meaning. (P.S. This breakthrough will generate optimal results if you don’t gloat. Be grateful and understated.)

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) Do you want more money, Sagittarius? Are there treasures you wish you could have, but you can’t afford them? Do any exciting experiences and life-enhancing adventures remain off-limits because of limited resources? If your answer to any of these questions is yes, now would be an excellent time to formulate plans and take action to gather increased wealth. I don’t guarantee total success if you do, but I promise that your chance to make progress will be higher than usual. Cosmic tendencies are leaning in the direction of you getting richer quicker, and if you collaborate with those tendencies, financial magic could materialize.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) “It’s a terrible thing to wait until you’re ready,” proclaims actor Hugh Laurie. He goes even further: “No one is ever ready to do anything. There is almost no such thing as ready.” His counsel is too extreme for my tastes. I believe that proper preparation is often essential. We’ve got to get educated about the challenges we want to take on. We need to develop at

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EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY All real estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Federal Fair Housing

Act of 1968, which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, national origin or an intention to make any such preference, limitation, preference or discrimination.

This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of this law. Our readers are hereby informed that all dwellings in our newspaper are available on an equal housing opportunity basis.

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least some skills to help us master our beloved goals.

On the other hand, it’s impossible to ever be perfectly prepared and educated and skilled. If you postpone your quantum leaps of faith until every contingency has been accounted for, you’ll never leap. Right now, Capricorn, Laurie’s view is good advice.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) Fate has transformed a part of your life that you didn’t feel ready to have transformed. I won’t offer my condolences, though, because I’ve guessed a secret that you don’t know about yet. The mythic fact, as I see it, is that whatever you imagine you have had to let go of will ultimately come back to you in a revised and revivified form — maybe sooner than you think. Endings and beginnings are weaving their mysteries together in unforeseen ways. Be receptive to enigmatic surprises.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) Good news: Your eagerness to think big is one of your superpowers. Bad news: It’s also one of your liabilities.

Although it enables you to see how everything fits together, it may cause you to overlook details about what’s undermining you. Good news: Your capacity for intense empathy is a healing balm for both others and yourself. At least potentially, it means you can be a genius of intimacy. Bad news: Your intense empathy can make you fall prey to the emotional manipulation of people with whom you empathize. *Good news:* Your willingness to explore darkness is what makes your intelligence so profound. Bad news: But that’s also why you have to wrestle so fiercely with fear.

Good news: In the next four weeks, the positive aspects of all the above qualities will be ascendant.

Go to RealAstrology.com to check out Rob Brezsny’s expanded weekly audio horoscopes /daily text message horoscopes.

The audio horoscopes are also available by phone at 1-877-873-4888 or 1-900-950-7700.

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Manufacturing Engineer II (Terex USA, LLC, Oklahoma City, OK).

Req. a master’s or foreign equiv. deg. in mech. eng. or a rel. field & 1 yr. of exp. in the job offered or 1 yr. of engineering exp. in a fabrication/assembly shop environment. Also req. is 1 yr. of exp.: performing root cause analysis & eliminating problems through design analysis, ergonomic issues, & machine/process improvements; applying lean manufacturing concepts; developing & evaluating Engineering Change Requests (ECR), Engineering Change Notices (ECN), & Special Manufacturing Instruction (SMI) proposals/ processes for production, incl. design improvements & prototyping; & utilizing pneumatic tools, hydraulics, automated production equip., & electrical systems & adhering to machining/forming/welding reqs. Apply w/resume at www.terex.com/careers. No relo. available. No 3rd party responses. EOE.

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SPORT IS A PRINCIPLE, NOT A PACKAGE.

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Janurary prices are subject to change.