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COVER P. 10 Marijuana plants notoriously require considerable attention — growing tomatoes is nothing like bringing a sativa plant to fruition. Oklahoma Gazette looks at the stages of growing medical marijuana, from germination to full flower.

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NEWS 4 EDUCATION school report cards 5 CITY Hotel Habana renovation

7 CITY Brockway Center demolition

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NEWS

Grade schools

Oklahoma State Department of Education rolled out a revamped school report card system.

By Miguel Rios

Oklahoma’s schools will have a new way to analyze their work and see how they stack up. After going without school report cards for two years, the state board of education unanimously approved a revamped system that launched last Thursday.

Previous school report cards came on a single sheet of paper, with a large, bold letter grade at the top. The A-F grade was the main focus, offering little context. Though it did include data on student achievement and growth, state superintendent Joy Hofmeister said the system did not reflect the work schools were doing in proper context. “[The old system] was treated as a scarlet letter where the focus was on a single indicator,” she said. “You cannot reduce down the important work of schools to a single indicator.”

The new report cards still include an overall letter grade because it is required by state law, but it de-emphasizes that grade through an online interactive dashboard that offers more detail.

“We believe it’s very important to tell a more comprehensive story about the work that schools are doing,” Hofmeister said, “and be able to tell that in a way that’s more meaningful and that will give the user the kind of information that is important to them. So the dashboard is really a place where families, school leaders and community members can see important work that’s been missed in the past. So for the first time, we are measuring the growth that is occurring within individual students. This is very often underappreciated, especially in our schools that have the most challenging of learning needs.”

The online dashboard will also display school information and student demographics. Maridyth McBee, interim deputy superintendent, said they plan to add even more information in the future, like teacher qualification, class sizes and school spending.

Low performers

The new system will use four indicators for elementary and middle schools and five for high schools, all of which can receive up to 90 points. Elementary and middle school indicators are academic achievement (35 points), academic growth (30 points), English Language Proficiency Assessment (ELPA) (15 points) and chronic absenteeism (10 points).

High schools will get up to 45 points State superintendent Joy Hofmeister revealed the revamped school report card system at a media event Feb. 26; it was approved and launched last Thursday. | Photo Miguel Rios

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for academic achievement; they will use the same indicators, except for academic growth, in addition to graduation (10 points) and postsecondary opportunity indicators (10 points).

To not unjustly penalize schools, they are graded only for the amount of points they can get. So schools without English-learning students, and therefore without the ELPA indicator, would be graded on a scale with 15 less points. “[The Every Student Succeeds Act] requires that you rank-order schools based on the total number of points they earned; that’s all the indicators totaled together — all those points across indicators — to a total overall score,” Hofmeister said. “And that score then is measured from the highest score to the lowest, and the lowest 5 percent performing are federally designated as needing greater support. Those are schools that received the lowest letter grade.”

The last time school report cards were released was for the 2015-2016 school year; a little more than 200 schools received an F grade. This year, only the bottom 5 percent of schools — about 90 — will receive an F. Those schools will get federal funding to help improve their operations. The money will come from federal school support dollars, which were spread over nearly 300 schools in the past.

“We made certain that we would not over-identify because we wanted to take

those funds and resources that will be given to the state of Oklahoma and not dilute that across many schools, but instead isolate those funds to go to the schools that have the greatest learning challenges at their school or greatest needs in terms of progress,” Hofmeister said.

“We will provide for them from the funds that are given to the state of Oklahoma to support this work. …

They’ll have an immediate amount of money that will come as a planning grant so that they can begin to assess their schools and ... then begin to fashion a plan for how they would want to use funds in the future. And then there will be a competitive piece that will also go to about a third of those schools, which will be a large amount of money each year of a three-year designation period. That will be given through a competitive grant process.”

Hofmeister has already spoken to district superintendents of those 5 percent low-performing schools, who she said are ready to partner. Those schools will become part of a three-year cohort and can continue using funding for the three years. After three years, another cohort of schools will be identified as the lowest-performing and be eligible for federal funds.

“We want time for those plans to actually produce the kind of outcome intended,” Hofmeister said. “We are also then working with a team of support staff here that are coaches in particular areas of expertise that will be matched with those districts.”

Officials also identified a top 5 percent of schools to recognize for their work. Since this is the baseline year, Hofmeister said there is a natural bell curve, with 90 percent of schools receiving a B, C or D grade.

No shame

Though the revamped school report cards offer more context and go into more detail than ever before, Hofmeister said there is always a danger for people to use the tool to “blame and shame.”

“We do not want schools to have an evaluation in a snapshot that misses the context of the work they’re doing,” she said.

“We think it’s very important that we not think about them as a labeling of schools.

That is something we do not support.”

Instead, Hofmeister said the new system is about providing contextual information and interactivity so schools can productively use the data.

“Schools will have capabilities that they haven’t had before to examine data in a new way, and we think that that’s always good. We want to act on evidence and make strategic decisions based on evidence. This is one piece of that.”

Stakeholders across the state provided input and ideas that helped develop the new system. The guiding belief of the new system is that “all students can grow and all schools can improve.”

“We are grateful for the work that so many people have contributed,” Hofmeister said. “We know this is also part of a continuous improvement model for ourselves, and this is the first year. There will be improvements, and we will learn from feedback that we’ve received, and we’ll be able to make adjustments and provide a greater tool in future years. So it’s the beginning, and it will, I think, become something that will be more useful with each year that comes forward.”

Visit oklaschools.com.

CIT Y

Hotel potential

Hotel Habana’s new owners are undertaking a major renovation to help fulfill the resort’s potential as a city centerpiece. By Miguel Rios

The self-proclaimed “largest gay resort in the Southwest” is under new ownership and ready for a complete makeover.

Hotel Habana, 2200 NW 40th St., was known as Habana Inn until Los Angelesbased Alternative Resorts acquired the 170-room hotel in January.

Thomas Lagatta, director of the renovation project, said if all goes according to plan, the hotel will be fully renovated in 18 months. Room bookings will stay open, but not all rooms will be available while renovations are taking place in certain areas.

“Some things we’re starting on now like the west pool, we’re starting around there, and then quite a bit of our renovations we’re putting off until fall,” he said.

“The exterior will be renovated, but that won’t start until [October or November].”

The hotel is home to two courtyard pools, The Copa nightclub, Finish Line country bar and Jungle Reds gift shop.

It sits in the city’s “gayborhood” and has served as a major regional LGBTQ+

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destination. Alternative Resorts saw inherent value on a general business basis, but Lagatta said it also saw its potential as a “huge, unique venue.”

“Unique almost to the entire United States as far as what it can be, kind of an oasis for people … who are not the mainstream and actually the entire 39th [Street] District here in Oklahoma City,” he said. “We want to help it be what it can be. Even beyond that, we think that most people who come here don’t realize what a wonderful, unique place this is.

We intend to make it fulfill its potential.”

Arnold Greenspan, marketing coordinator, said the hotel is Alternative Resorts’ first major acquisition.

Alternative is a holding company that Greenspan said intends to have several facilities like Hotel Habana throughout the country. Greenspan said the hotel’s new owner actually owned several other properties in the state.

“He knows this area very, very well,” he said. “He’s frequented this hotel, and

when the opportunity came up to buy it, thought, ‘Why not?’ And he bought it with the intention of upgrading everything. This place hasn’t had much upgrades in a long time.”

Fulfilling potential

The renovations will be all-inclusive.

The hotel lobby will be completely redone, rooms will be redesigned and both pools will get several upgrades.

Some of the smaller renovations, like the installation of four hot tubs around the west pool, are already taking place.

The hotel receives more guests during the warmer months, officials said, but renovation plans, some of which are being kept a secret, would make it more of a year-round destination.

“Depending on how much money we have to operate with in terms of construction, the first thing that we will do

Early Hotel Habana renderings show a completely redone facade and lobby. | Image Harold E. Fulton Design & Consulting / provided

is something I can’t tell you about,” Greenspan said. “We will be gutting and renovating all the rooms around the east pool. We have extensive plans for the east pool. … We’re hoping, if we get the money that we’re hoping we get, then we will renovate the entire east courtyard pool area. If not, there are some renovations that we will make that I am not at liberty to tell you at this point, and then we will renovate rooms as we can.”

Early renderings have been released of the building’s facade and different room layouts, but Greenspan said they’re still weighing whether or not they will commit to them. Room renderings have an Alice continued on page 6

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“Some of those are pretty involved in terms of what you would have to uniquely construct for a room, and so we’re looking at them like, ‘They look really cool, but is that how we want to spend our money or do we want to spend it in some other manner?’” he said. “Are we going to fulfill that? We don’t really know, but yeah, that’s what we’d like to see.”

Officials are also focusing on improving the hotel’s banquet room and potentially adding another event space.

“We’re going to have at least one banquet room, 2,500 square feet, so it’s a pretty good-sized banquet room,”

CIT Y

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Giving back

The two event spaces will help Habana give back to the community, something Greenspan said patrons don’t currently expect from the hotel.

“The community that we serve … is used to this facility not giving back, only making money from it,” he said.

“That’s going to change in a big way; we’re going to be philanthropic.”

Officials have already met with various organizations in the city to discuss potential fundraising event ideas.

Greenspan said one person in particular is interested in having a quarterly event to benefit local charities.

“It’s my goal — I don’t know how long it’s going to take, but it’s going to happen — that we have an event every weekend here. Obviously, they’re not all going to be charitable, but a lot of them are going to be,” he said. “We hope to do a lot of that, and we hope to make up for the long time that this facility has not been supportive.”

Despite continuing the hotel’s legacy as a major destination for the state’s LGBTQ+ community, Greenspan said they don’t like labels.

“When we use things like ‘LGBTQ,’ why are we dividing ourselves with that?

It doesn’t unite us. It might unite the people under those individual labels,

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With KGOU’s Dick Pryor & eCapitol’s Shawn Ashley Thomas Lagatta, director of renovations, said the group wants to make Hotel Habana an oasis for patrons. | Photo Miguel Rios

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Greenspan said. “We will have an event space that will be fairly unique to Oklahoma City, and that’s the project that we are trying to keep as quiet as we can. … But that will give us another event space.”

The Copa and Finish Line have a different owner; Greenspan is unsure if those will be renovated. However, they are working on a way to make Habana nonsmoking, which could potentially create another club/lounge area.

“We’re adding a sky lounge onto one of the roofs here, so that we will have an outdoor smoking area and club up on the roof as well,” Greenspan. “We don’t know how feasible that is — like would everybody kick up their heels and say, ‘Forget it; we’re not coming’ — but we’d really like to make it nonsmoking if we could.”

In planning the renovations, Lagatta said they also wanted to make sure Habana is not just “a party hotel.”

“We want to accommodate business people that are passing through that need a place to work,” he said. “We’re putting in fiber optic Wi-Fi, so everybody will have free fiber optic Wi-Fi. … We’re fixing up some rooms in the quieter areas away from the clubs, so it’s like any given night it’s a good place to stay.”

Arnold Greenspan, Alternative Resorts spokesman, said Hotel Habana is the group’s first major acquisition. | Photo Miguel Rios

but it doesn’t unite us as a community,” he said. “So from this facility from now on, you will not hear those labels. To us, it’s just the community; it’s our family.

That’s how we’re going to treat it, and we hope everybody will join us.”

Though it is not yet confirmed, the team is planning a big Fourth of July block party to celebrate the hotel’s future.

Additionally, once they complete a major renovation project, they plan to throw a grand opening celebration, which is likely to be a charitable event.

CIT Y

The Brockway Center was home to the Oklahoma chapter of National Association of Colored Women’s Club from 1968 to 2011. | Photo Alexa Ace

CARE for history

Two organizations are working to find the best solution for a historic house’s potential demolition. By Miguel Rios

Two nonprofit, pro-social organizations are working to find compromise when it comes to the demolition of a historic home. The Oklahoma chapters of National Association of Colored Women’s Club (NACWC) and the Child Abuse Response and Evaluation (CARE) Center are in conversations to find a happy medium to respect a historic building.

CARE Center purchased the house, known as Brockway Center, 1440 N. Everest Ave., in early 2018. The house sits behind CARE’s five-building campus. Stacy McNeiland, CARE chief executive officer, said it performed its due diligence by having an architect and engineer examine the building.

“You start to walk through the house and an engineer’s pointing out, ‘See how your foundation’s dipping, see how this isn’t to code, see all these problems — you have asbestos, you have bad plumbing, you have bad electrical,’” McNeiland said.

“So the engineer and architect at that point said, ‘Your best solution is to demolish and to build from the ground up.’”

Jackie Gates, president of the state NACWC chapter, said the organization purchased the Brockway Center house in 1968 and sold it in 2011. CARE became the fourth owner of the building after it was sold two more times.

“We attempted to have that building, while we still owned it, listed as a historical landmark,” she said. “We could not get help

from the city; we just couldn’t get any help.

It became too much for us to maintain, so we sold the property. … The ladies that actually negotiated that are all deceased.”

Though Gates was not a part of those negotiations, it was reported that the women and the first new owner agreed to keep their sign on-site, which she said did not happen.

“We just wanted it to be recognized and not erased,” she said. “Just because we don’t currently have a building doesn’t mean we’re not still working for the community, because we are. We have an endowed scholarship through the Communities Foundation of Oklahoma that we’re taking applications for right now. … We don’t own the property, but really we just want our history out there. We don’t want to be forgotten because we’re still here.”

The women’s organization no longer has a clubhouse, but it continues meeting regularly at Arvest Bank.

Deferred resolution

Ward 7 councilwoman Nikki Nice presented a resolution at the Jan. 29 Oklahoma City Council meeting to acknowledge Brockway Center’s historic and cultural significance. The resolution states that the council recognizes the house as having “great historic and cultural significance and should be maintained as a testament to merging of the old and the new.”

“The Oklahoma City Federation of Negro Women’s Clubs has long served as a beacon in this community — not only for women and youth, but also for all who have had the opportunity to benefit from the efforts of the courageous and devoted women who established the Brockway Center in 1968,” the resolution reads.

There were no representatives from CARE or the women’s organization CARE CEO Stacy McNeiland said the organization is trying to find a good compromise for Brockway Center. | Photo provided

present, so the council voted to defer the resolution. The resolution was brought up again at the Feb. 12 council meeting, in which CARE Center representatives, including the architect and engineer who recommended demolition and leaders of the women’s group, gave presentations.

McNeiland and other CARE representatives told the council they had looked into renovating but found it to be infeasible after learning about problems the house had; McNeiland said they also need a space almost three times the size due to the increased number of clients. Leaders of the Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs presented some of the history of the organization and the house.

Due to a discrepancy in the resolution’s title, which mentions that the “structure should never be demolished” even though the resolution does not, it was again deferred so Nice could ensure the wording reflected her goal.

“We’re not being asked here, in the plain language of the resolution, to weigh in on the demolition or not demolition;

that’s in the title, which arguably is an error really, a staff error,” mayor David Holt said at the Feb. 12 meeting.

Finding compromise

After that meeting, McNeiland told Oklahoma Gazette that Nice toured CARE Center and had a discussion with representatives. No conclusion was reached, but they planned to keep having conversations.

“We also had a really great conversation with the women of the Brockway Center, just kind of out in the hallway after [the Feb. 12 council meeting],” she said. “They were super kind and said, ‘We want to work with you.’”

The resolution was deferred a third time, without any discussion, from the Feb. 26 meeting to March 12, which is when the council aims to vote on it.

“We understand the property has cultural significance, and we want to work with the women of the Brockway Center who previously used that property and did such amazing things for our community,”

McNeiland said. “We want to honor their legacy and tell their story. We want to work closely with them, and we were excited to hear that the meeting was deferred once again to March 12. So hopefully that will give us more of an opportunity or another opportunity to be able to reach out to the women of the Brockway Center and say, ‘How can we meet in the middle?’ I know those ladies believe in the work that we’re doing. They’ve made that clear.”

The women’s organization plans to meet soon to discuss exactly how it is willing to compromise. After that, it will meet with CARE representatives to talk through both parties’ objectives and try to reach a conclusion.

“There’s an opportunity for us to come together and go united in front of city council and hopefully say, ‘We figured out some solutions,’” McNeiland said. “We already have someone who is willing to help us with the financial part. … She’s anonymous and is a great supporter of the CARE Center but even said, ‘If some of this donation needs to be used to help memorialize the women of the Brockway Center, so be it.’”

Though the city council’s resolution will not prevent the demolition of the

The CARE Center’s five-building campus sits behind Brockway Center. | Photo Alexa Ace

building on its own, McNeiland said they want to work to find compromise because they respect the council and the history of Brockway Center. Their expansion plans began in early 2017 but have been halted due to the resolution.

“We pressed pause, I mean, on everything. We have moved forward in terms of we really do believe that the demo of the property is the best solution. That doesn’t mean the building can’t look like the other building or that we wouldn’t invest. I mean, goodness, we’re willing to negotiate with anything,” she said. “What the ladies of the Brockway Center did really does matter and our missions truly are so similar. … It’s super important to us that we’re working together, and I can’t imagine doing it any other way.”

Councilwoman Nice did not respond to Oklahoma Gazette’s requests for interview.

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Political detention

Well done

Two bills filed by state Sen. Mark Allen, R-Spiro, take aim at teachers for having the audacity to ask for more funding and become politically active. The bills are retribution for last year’s teacher walkout and subsequent elections that saw educators swept into office and incumbents who came out against the funding largely defeated.

In total, 16 newly elected educators (nine Republicans and seven Democrats) won legislative seats this year, and Senate Bill 574 sponsored by Allen would ban teachers from discussing their former colleagues under a proposed “code of ethics” that each of the state’s school boards would be required to adopt.

The bill says that teachers, regardless of contract status, would be prohibited from endorsing candidates or legislation on a state, local or federal level. It would also prevent them from engaging in activity that might hamper or impede access of military recruiters to campus. Is this an actual problem or just a way to gain traction because “support the troops”?

Strangest of all, the bill would prohibit teachers from introducing any subject matter deemed controversial “that is not germane to the topic of the course being taught.”

The final point of the bill opens up more of a slippery slope than a 20 percent grade covered in ice, oil and soap.

Can you imagine what might be deemed “not germane”?

“Why did the colonists throw the tea into Boston Harbor?”

“I’m sorry; I can’t answer that.”

History books are already inherently conservative in their telling of United States story, whitewashed through a narrative of constant progress that is overwhelmingly written by men. It might surprise some at the Capitol that Oklahoma existed before 1907.

Another bill proposed by Allen — Senate Bill 592 — would require a gathering for more than 100 people at the state Capitol to have a $50,000 bond, which is another shot at last year’s teacher protests and harkens back to “antibunching” laws employed by industrial barons during the country’s previous Gilded Age that banned four or more coal miners or steelworkers from gathering.

connect

Oklahoma City mayor David Holt completed a “personal mission” and made national news last month when he convinced Will Rogers World Airport to stop selling shirts reading, “Nothing Tips Like a Cow.” In a pair of celebratory tweets dated Feb. 21 (you’ll have to scroll past a bunch of junk about street repair and something called MAPS 4 to read them), Holt wrote, “For the last decade or so, our redesigned OKC airport has made a beautiful first impression on visitors, with one notable exception: the awful cow-tipping T-shirts that bear no relation to actual life in OKC. … I am pleased to report that the great team [at Will Rogers Airport] worked with me the last few months to sell out of the t-shirts & it was just reported to me they are officially gone forever.

Efforts will continue to sell unique

products that reflect the things that truly make OKC special.”

Sure, cattle across the city can rest a little easier now, but what about Oklahoma’s rich, fake history of shoving over sleeping cows? The Associated Press story about Holt’s quest calls cow-tipping “a largely debunked legend,” but whenever we have out-ofstate visitors, we like to deflect questions about our absurdly high incarceration rates by telling them that our official state beverage is fresh milk squeezed from a recently inverted udder. We even made up a fake Rodgers and Hammerstein song about pre-statehood settlers racing to get to Oklahoma sooner while some cows still remain upright called “Goin’ Hooves Up.” Thanks for spoiling the joke, Mr. Mayor.

Caffeine slinger

A man we assume was already sufficiently over-caffeinated stole an 18wheeler Pepsi truck late last month.

The soda truck thief, Steven Allen Hart, jumped into the truck and drove off with it while workers were unloading product from the back. The truck’s actual driver had to jump out as Hart made his getaway.

The man’s girlfriend called police to report her boyfriend was driving the truck around a parking lot and looking

to

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for her. Hart later told police they had an argument and he stole the truck to get to the airport. Don’t feel too confused; we don’t understand his plan either.

Once police spotted him, Hart — probably with a fresh Pepsi in hand — led them on a 30-minute chase around Tulsa.

“The back of the truck was still open, and the lift was down,” Tulsa Police officer Jeanne Pierce told Tulsa World. “One officer said he was following the trail of soda.”

“He was just slinging soda pop through every intersection he blazed through,” Tulsa Police Department sergeant Glenn Uhren told KOTV. Police caught up with the Pepsi truck at a

stoplight, where they jumped into the back of the vehicle. Hart, probably still wired on soda, jumped out of the truck while it was still in gear. The truck rearended a school bus, which was thankfully empty, and Hart was taken into custody.

Just when it seemed like Hart was coming down from his caffeine rush, he tried to escape from the jail’s sally port, a controlled entry between the booking and pre-booking areas of the jail. This time, officers took him to a holding cell “at Taser point.” Still not content, Hart tried to seal himself in the sally port.

Maybe he gave up, though, because getting locked in is kind of the whole point of jail.

Now Hart is being held with a $26,000 bond. Larceny: $1,000.

Attempted escape: $25,000. Wasting Pepsi products: priceless.

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THE HIGH CULTURE

Growing green

Oklahoma Gazette talks to two growers about how medical marijuana plants are grown. By Matt Dinger

Chris Brady and Cesar Herrera developed their cannabis green thumbs more than 1,500 miles from each other but rubbed digital elbows on the online forum of International Cannagraphic Magazine.

Brady is now the co-owner of Redbud Soil Co. and grows his plants in organic, no-till soil. He started in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, a decade ago and resides near Denver, Colorado. Herrera was born and raised in San Francisco and began growing cannabis in his mother’s closet as a teen. He owns NorCal Genetics and has brought his hydroponic growing expertise to BCC Collective.

Both businesses are a stone’s throw from one another on NW First Street on the western edge of downtown Oklahoma City. To this day, Brady and Herrera have never met.

Both shared their expertise with Oklahoma Gazette. Brady’s method can be duplicated at home, while Herrera’s techniques are designed for commercial operations.

Cannabis is a finicky plant, and years or even decades of experience doesn’t ensure a successful grow every time.

Piles of books have been written about marijuana cultivation, and the information contained herein has been drastically simplified. For best results, consult a veteran grower along the way.

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Potting seeds

First things first: What kind of seed do you want to plant?

“What kind of seed are we using? Are we using an autoflower seed, which seems to be popular here in Oklahoma? Are we using a regular seed that’s going to be male/ female, so we have to distinguish are these males or females? Or are we using feminized seeds and we already know, most likely, this is going to be a female,” Brady said. “Autoflowers are just going to grow. ... If you’re going to do an autoflower, I would suggest you plant that seed in what it’s going to flower in completely. So that’s just a one-and-done kind of thing. That’s why people kind of gravitate towards it.

It’s simpler. Regular seeds, male/female, you’re gonna have to wait, depending on strain, things like that, eight to 10 weeks to even find out if they’re male or female.

And so you’re going to have to have them go from a Solo cup after, you know, six weeks or whatever, into one- to two-gallon and then you’re just going to have to wait and pick out your males and females before you even get to the point of wanting to flower them. Feminized seeds, obviously, you’re going to assume that they’re females. Most likely they’re going to turn out to be females, so you don’t necessarily have to wait as long.”

Once the seeds are selected, it is time to select the starter growing medium.

“We just germinate them in the rock-

Cesar Herrera brings his hydroponic growing expertise to BCC Collective. | Photo Alexa Ace

wool cubes,” Herrera said.

Rockwool is basalt rock and chalk that is heated to 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit, spun and cooled. They’re Herrera’s preferred growing medium because they’re sterile, which means less worry about plant diseases.

“If it’s my seeds, I usually have a good amount of them. I literally just put them in, and for me, it’s more or less like the strong survive,” Herrera said. “So some are not going to germinate properly and some are not going to do well, but honestly, there’s different ways of germinating the seeds. Some people put them in paper towels, let them start showing their little tails and they start planting them in a certain things like that. With me, I soak the seeds overnight, sometimes in a hyperpyrexic solution, and then I pop them into small little rockwool cubes and then I just put the dome over them, let them do their thing and whichever ones survive are going to be, you know, more than likely in my eyes, the more vigorous ones.

“When you prepare the cubes, you water them initially to flush out all the residual salts. And just prep them. I call it charging the cubes. You hit them with a light nutrient solution. So as soon as the seed starts showing a taproot, it’ll start having nutrients to be able to absorb within the block.”

Once they reach 3-4 inches, he’ll transfer them into a larger rockwool cube. He tends to stick with 6-inch blocks until harvest.

“It’s just an ideal material that the roots tend to thrive in,” Herrera said.

By contrast, Brady starts with soil in small containers and then moves his plants to much larger pots.

“I use a personal blend that I make, that we will sell, and it’s basically going to be peat moss-based with a few micronutrients, kelp, some Azomite and some compost, and that’s about it,” Brady said.

“You’re going to get that pre-moistened because peat moss is hydrophobic. It doesn’t want to accept water, but once it does accept the water, ironically, it will retain the water. So you’re going to want to pre-moisten it, make sure it’s retain-

ing the water, and plant the seed in there.

You can do it in red Solo cups — it’s kind of the generic grower thing to do — or you can do trays with the different cell sites and do different seeds in there. I think a lot of people go towards the Solo cup though because it can actually grow up out of it for a while.”

Growing ‘veg’

At that point, the plant is in what is known as vegetative state, or “veg.” Depending on a variety of factors, including the strain, Brady said the plant should reach 12-16 inches in about six weeks.

“Vegetative stage is when you are actually just growing the plant up in size and you’re not producing flowers,” Brady said. “I literally go from the Solo cup to my finished pot, which is 25 gallons. It saves room because you don’t need a very big veg area and home growers save space. You can have a little 2-by-4-foot veg area and that can supply your whole grow.”

The amount of light you give the plant determines how long it stays in vegetative state versus when it begins producing flower, or the buds you will eventually smoke.

“In vegetative state, you have a certain light cycle so that it won’t want to bloom and start producing flowers.

Some people do 24 hours full, like always on. I prefer an 18/6, just because I’ve read enough studies that say that six hours of a dark period and your plant resting will actually promote a healthier plant and it will produce a better quality,” Brady said.

Herrera agrees that 18 hours of light and six hours of dark is ideal for vegetative state.

“I like the plants to have some sort of a night cycle, like a rest cycle, where they actually have sleep, where they have no light,” Herrera said. “Just like people, I feel like they need rest.”

Flowering state

“You’re going to keep it on that 18/6 until you get it to the point where you do want to flower. At that point, you’re going to Seeds can be planted in a variety of cups and pots and transferred to bigger vessels multiple times. | Photo Alexa Ace

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COV E R

switch to 12/12, which will initiate flowering and producing buds. It’s all going to depend on how tall you want the plant, how wide you want the plant,” Brady said.

During the flowering period, the plant has to be fed and watered routinely, and the temperature and humidity where the plants are being grown must be constantly monitored. Brady suggests consulting a vapor deficit chart.

“You’re going to, at some point, either want to feed it something, or once you get the plant up to a certain height, you can actually put it in some living soil,” Brady said.

Brady feeds the plants liquid fish, liquid seaweed, lactic acid bacteria serum and fermented fruit juice.

“We feed the soil, and the soil is so jampacked with shit, our plant chooses what it wants out of the soil,” Brady said. “We don’t push anything into the plant. We’re not intentionally trying to Keylate anything or force-feed it into a root at all. The soil is so over-abundant with everything that plant could ever need, it just takes what it wants and it does it naturally and it lives very happily.”

Meanwhile, Herrera feeds his plants on a certain schedule.

“Essentially, hydroponics is when you’re g row ing plants [and] you’re supplying the nutrients to the medium, which means

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what you’re using is an inert medium, which is basically the fact that it has no nutrient content,” Herrera said. “It doesn’t matter whether it’s cocoa or whether it’s the rockwool box we use; they’re all media that doesn’t really have anything initially in it. As far as nutrients, you have to supply the nutrients to them via water.”

The nutrient solution is pumped into the cubes from 100-gallon tanks, which can be automated, but Herrera said it’s better to have a grower keep an eye on them.

“There’s no definitive formula as to how much you want to give them. It’s just more of how big they are and what they need at the time of their life stage,” Herrera said.

For a room containing about 400 plants, Herrera goes through about 300-400 gallons of nutrients and water a day, but different strains and sizes of plants get different amounts.

Harvesting buds

Fast-forward about eight to 10 weeks, and with luck, you have averted pests and plant diseases and the thick, full buds will be plentiful. But how do you know when the plant is ready to be chopped?

“It’s going to all be strained-dependent.

Me, personally, I’ve always gravitated towards sativas,” Brady said. “Sativas take longer to flower. A lot of the hybrids on the market that are going to be indica-dominant that are going to be short, squatty, bushy plants. You can get away with 60, 62, 63 days on those; sativas, 75-90 days.

They’re not really commercially viable, so you don’t see a lot of pure sativas at dispensaries, and I understand that. It’s a business. It makes perfect sense. I would never talk bad about that at all. You have to make a profit. But for the home grower, I think sativas are where it’s at. I think that extra time transfers into the terpene profile. It transfers into the effects. ...

It’s able to draw off the soil a lot longer, and it just is a more robust, well-rounded product. Most people are going to check the trichomes to know when

Chris Brady is co-owner of Redbud Soil Co. | Photo Alexa Ace 12

M A R C H 6 , 2 0 1 9 | O KG A Z E T T E . C O M

NOW OPEN! “Veg” is left to grow to 12-16 inches tall in the span of about six weeks and is set on a light/dark schedule to prevent flowering. | Photos Alexa Ace

they’re done, and there’s different levels of what people feel comfortable with considering trichome color as being done.”

Trichome is a Greek word meaning “hair,” and they are tiny outgrowths found on the outside of the flower.

Just like people, I feel like they need rest.

Cesar Herrera “Trichomes are clear, they turn cloudy, they turn amber and some people will wait until there’s 10 percent amber trichomes,” Brady said. “I’ve seen people do 20 percent amber trichomes, 25 percent amber trichomes. It’s going to come down to what you feel comfortable with, and you’re gonna have to test that out a few times and see what you like, assuming you keep growing the same strain.”

When the trichomes are clear, the high will generally be more clear, and Herrera said as they start to turn brown, the flower have more indica high, or “couch-lock” feel.

Drying and curing

The plant is chopped at its base, near the soil or growing medium.

“You’re gonna chop that, and you’re just going to hang it up and dry it. If you have a tent, you can hang it in the tent. It’s going to depend on what your setup is. Hang them upside down. Drying time is going to be dependent on humidity, temperatures, things like that. In Oklahoma, it can be 7-10

days. Summertime, it could be 14-18 days.

You just never really know,” Brady said.

“Once you get it to a dry stage, you want your little stems to be able to just snap in half. Big stems, you would like them to bend and then finally snap a little bit. And then at that point, you can do a trim on them.

“When you hang it up, you can pull off all the bigger fan leaves. The little ones that still have trichomes on them, leave them on there, hang the plant up, let it dry. Once it’s dry, then you can go through and you can cut your buds off and then start trimming it. You trim it to whatever degree you want to trim it to. Obviously, I like a very well-manicured bud, hand-trimmed,” Brady said.

Then it’s time to cure them. Herrera puts them into tubes and stores them in a climate-controlled room for a week or two.

“As long as you dry them for about two weeks, by the time they get trimmed, they’re usually going to have a decent cure by that point,” Herrera said.

Brady prefers longer cures and recommends doing so in glass containers.

“You’re going to do what you call burping it. So the buds are in there for a day, you open the top and you burp it. You let it sit for 10, 15, 20 minutes. Let it air out and you close it. And you do that for seven to 10 days. And then after seven to 10 days, you do every two or three days, and you do that for a week or two. And then after about three weeks or so, you don’t have to do it at all. You might do it once a week or something like that,” Brady said.

Brady likes to cure his plants for a month — two months if he’s patient enough.

At that point, the buds are ready to be sold or smoked.

Between the two of them, Brady and Herrera have been growing for three decades. Their expertise is a culmination of their experiences and tips shared among other growers, many of whom were renegades and outlaws, and many of whom frequented message boards like those of International Cannagraphic Magazine. The forum still exists, but neither Brady nor Herrera are still active on it.

“There’s so much stuff that we had to learn on our own without having actual science behind it,” Herrera said. “That’s why the forums with all of our friends were so helpful, because we all share information with each other. People don’t do research on this plant.”

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13

M A R I J UA N A

THE HIGH CULTURE

Human relations

THC

Oklahoma’s medical marijuana legalization creates new questions about employment law. By Matt Dinger

Evan Way is an associate attorney with Crowe & Dunlevy and a member of its Cannabis Industry Practice Group. He recently took time to answer Oklahoma Gazette’s questions about State Question 788’s legalization of medical marijuana and how it pertains to employment law.

Oklahoma Gazette: How did the law treat a marijuana user before SQ788?

Evan Way: Before the passage of SQ788, medicinal or recreational marijuana use was a criminal offense. Now, medical marijuana use by a licensed patient is legal under Oklahoma law. An unlicensed marijuana user is still subject to criminal action, although many Oklahoma jurisdictions have reduced unlicensed use to a misdemeanor offense. To be clear, SQ788 in no way affects federal law, which still criminalizes the use, possession and sale of marijuana.

OKG: What protections did SQ788 provide? What rights did it change for employers?

Way: SQ788 provides protections for physicians, patients and employers.

Physicians cannot be unduly stigmatized for recommending medical marijuana use. A licensed patient cannot have his or her parental rights altered, lease terminated, school enrollment denied, state license revoked or have restrictions placed on qualifying for medical care (to include being listed on the organ transplant list) solely because of medical marijuana use. Licensed patients also receive numerous employment protections. But these patient protections do have limits. For example, | Photo bigstock.com

a landlord can terminate a licensed patient’s lease if he or she fails to pay on time or otherwise violates the lease.

And an employer can still terminate a licensed medical marijuana patient/ employee for failing to meet employment expectations. These protections simply prevent action against a licensed patient solely due to that individual’s status as a licensed patient.

Employers also receive protections under SQ788. If an employer, e.g., a federal contractor, would lose a monetary benefit for allowing employees to use medical marijuana, that employer could lawfully terminate employees that use medical marijuana. This employer protection is very narrow, however, and most likely won’t apply to many Oklahoma employers.

But an employer still has the ability to make employment decisions — to include termination — that are not solely related to an employee’s status as a medical marijuana patient. Just like an employer could prohibit heavy equipment use by an employee taking a narcotics prescription during work hours or even before work if the effect of that drug continues during work hours, it may also prohibit a medical marijuana patient from operating heavy equipment while under the influence of THC. There most likely will be legislation this session that more clearly defines employers’ rights, including how to handle safety-sensitive positions.

What is known at this point is that the presence of an intoxicating substance in an employee’s body is no longer a bar to workers’ compensation benefits in Oklahoma.

Evan Way OKG: How did medical marijuana change workers’ compensation law?

Way: Every state that has legalized medical marijuana has enacted different laws that implement, oversee and regulate medical marijuana. And although very similar, the workers’ compensation system also differs from state to state.

Employers are, thus, in a difficult position to determine how this emerging law will

14

M A R C H 6 , 2 0 1 9 | O KG A Z E T T E . C O M

apply to them. New Mexico was the first to require an employer to reimburse an injured employee for medical marijuana treatment. New Jersey, Minnesota and Maine have made similar rulings. But other states have taken the opposite position because marijuana remains federally illegal. Oklahoma’s approach to medical marijuana for workers’ compensation claims remains to be seen. What is known at this point is that the presence of an intoxicating substance in an employee’s body is no longer a bar to workers’ compensation benefits in Oklahoma.

OKG: Should employers be concerned about SQ788, and what can employers do to maintain safe workplaces while adhering to state law? What advice would you give an employer who suspects an employee is impaired on the job? How does SQ788 affect the average employee?

Way: An Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals opinion last fall made it clear that presence of an intoxicating substance in an employee’s body doesn’t necessarily mean that the individual was intoxicated when a workplace injury occurred. This undoubtedly presents much uncertainty for employers because there isn’t a brightline test (like a blood-alcohol level) for THC impairment. But employers can continue to use current policies and procedures to detect impairment. Keep in mind that tests often confirm impairment [but do] not serve as a screening test before an employee begins his or her workday. If an employee appears impaired — regardless of the source — an employer should follow its internal policies regarding workplace impairment.

OKG: What kinds of tests are available, and when can an employer demand an

Attorney Evan Way has closely examined how companies are dealing with legal medical marijuana among their employees. | Photo Crowe & Dunlevy / provided

employee take one?

Way: There are many tests (hair follicle, nail, blood, urine, etc.) that can detect THC or CBD in an individual’s body, and most employers can generally demand employee drug testing. As mentioned above, the issue with current tests is that Oklahoma has not established a threshold for impairment. Until this is done, employers should rely on current policies and procedures regarding impairment.

OKG: Is SQ788 going to prompt employee discrimination litigation? How many employment relationships are affected by SQ788?

Way: Generally speaking, when employees are granted additional workplace rights, there is an initial increase in litigation while the contours of that right are defined. Unfortunately for employers, this financial burden often falls on them as a consequence of our judicial system. Most, if not all, employers are willing to adapt their policies and procedures to comply with medical marijuana legislation. But there’s no silver bullet to compliance. Every employment relationship will face different obstacles.

And what works for one employer won’t necessarily work for another. The best approach is for employers to work with their human resources, legal counsel, medical resource officer and other applicable offices to implement policies and procedures that work best for their particular employment relationship.

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15

EAT & DRINK

REVIEW

Brown rice with grilled eggplant, salad and a tofu bánh mi at Magasin Table | Photo Jacob Threadgill

Fresh take

Magasin Table offers a new take on Vietnamese classics at 8th Street Market. By Jacob Threadgill

Magasin Table 3 NE Eighth Street, Suite 120 | 405-212-2751 WHAT WORKS: The vegetarian options, presentation and pho broth are standouts.

WHAT NEEDS WORK: The portion size options for pho could be better.

TIP: Don’t dismiss the eggplant.

There are some days when pho is the only thing that will satisfy a craving, especially when it is as cold as it has been in the Oklahoma City area in the past week.

Instead of venturing to one of the many great locations around Classen Boulevard in the Asian District, my craving took me farther south to 8th Street Market, where Magasin Table opened last year next to Prairie Artisan Ales as the first restaurant in the mixeduse development.

Magasin Table is a partnership between Oklahoma City native Leon Hoang and Kim Nguyen, who operates Magasin Café and Magasin Kitchen in New Orleans. The two met when Hoang worked in Dallas as a day trader and Nguyen sought refuge there from Hurricane Katrina. The Magasin brand is an homage to Magazine Street in New Orleans, where the original Magasin Café is located.

Hoang said he wanted to bring a Vietnamese concept into the downtown nexus and was attracted to 8th Street Market, where it pairs well with Prairie 16

M A R C H 6 , 2 0 1 9 | O KG A Z E T T E . C O M

Artisan Ales, which does not serve food.

Hoang trained in Louisiana to get down the Magasin concept, which features familiar Vietnamese concepts with a slightly elevated twist. It offers salmon or shrimp with its rice bowls, vermicelli noodles and bánh mi. Pho can be ordered with oxtail and filet mignon, and it even has an occasional braised short rib pho special.

What makes Magasin Table stand out is its commitment to offering fresh salads with the rice bowl and plenty of vegetarian options. There is a dedicated vegan pho broth filled with tofu and plenty of vegetables, and grilled eggplant can be added to any dish in addition to garlic-fried tofu. It also has brown rice and noodle options to provide a healthier starch.

I was tempted to order the vegan pho on my first visit, but I went with the combination pho ($10), which includes brisket, steak and Chinese meatball. The counter-service model of the restaurant works well to accommodate crowds when Prairie Artisan is packed, and there were a few folks coming from downtown in suits to eat, even on a cold day.

The bowl was huge, and I cannot believe I am saying this not even a month after attempting the 6-pound pho challenge at VII Asian Bistro, but I wanted more. The meatballs were a pleasant surprise for me because I have not had pho with them

before, and they held up well in its delicious broth, which had a depth of flavor that I would put on par with anything in the Asian District. I know some consider adding sauce to a pho broth a faux pas because the broth should stand on its own after hours of cooking. Purists will tell you that sauce should be on the side for dipping, but I’ve had a few pho broths in my life that desperately needed the kick of Sriracha. Luckily, this wasn’t the case at Magasin, which had star anise grounds settling at the bottom of the bowl.

My only complaint was that I was still hungry after finishing the bowl and it didn’t come with very many bean sprouts to add to the broth. I would have liked the option to get a larger bowl with more noodles.

After a meal full of meat, I returned to Magasin to try some of its vegetarian options. I ordered com (a rice bowl) with grilled eggplant ($8.50) and a garlic tofu bánh mi ($5.50). I substituted brown rice on the com for an extra $1.50, and that was my favorite dish of three Magasin Table experiences. It is served with a sunny-side egg and topped with microgreens and fresh salad or cabbage, romaine, carrots and cucumber with a fish sauce dressing. The eggplant was perfectly cooked, not too mushy (which can sometimes be a problem with the vegetable) and had good sweet and spicy notes. I didn’t miss jasmine rice, as the brown rice was hearty and stuck to my stomach, and the salad was a nice touch.

A bánh mi is only as good as its bun, and Magasin uses La Baguette rolls baked at Super Cao Nguyen, which are tremendous. Instead of slathering the bánh mi with a spicy mayo, it uses French butter, which is perhaps the bite I remember most from my meals — the crusty roll with the high-quality butter. The tofu was good, and the sandwich was something I would order from them again.

I returned for a final meal to complete the menu with a vermicelli plate ($9) with an egg roll and try one of its recently added bao bao (steam buns). I got a steam bun with lemongrass chicken ($3.50), and it was very good. It did not have the plasticlike

taste I get sometimes with an undercooked steam bun, and it was not too thick. Fried onions provided a nice extra crunch in addition to a salad.

The vermicelli with pork and egg roll is one of my go-to orders at Vietnamese restaurants, and Magasin’s version was good but not my favorite of the three meals. I was surprised to see they offered a different vermicelli noodle that was slightly thicker than normal.

The sliced pork had good marinated flavor, and the egg roll was freshly prepared and fried. I mixed all of the ingredients together, and it hit the spot, but I wanted some extra herbaceousness provided from mint and cilantro that was not there.

All in all, Magasin is a much-needed lifeline for folks working downtown who do not want to go up to Classen Avenue and wait for a Vietnamese lunch.

It also offers easy access right near Interstate 235 and quick service to get back to your desk on your lunch break.

I love that it offers a variety of healthy and vegetarian options in addition to indulgent items like salmon and braised short rib. It is very much worth a visit if you are hungry from a few beers at the Prairie Artisan Ales taproom or want to venture out of the Asian District for Vietnamese food. below Grilled pork vermicelli with an egg roll bottom Combination pho | Photo Jacob Threadgill

F E AT U R E

Dinner diversion

Banquet Cinema Pub offers first-run movies and a large pub experience. By Jacob Threadgill

Oklahoma City’s newest movie theater is also its trendiest full-service bar complete with shuffleboards, a pool table and a projection screen showing sporting events.

Banquet Cinema Pub, 800 NW Fourth St., is the brainchild of The Bleu Garten founders Hunter Wheat and Lacey Pritchard, who turned a 12,750 square-foot retro 1930s building that featured a showroom for Chryslers into a large, full-service pub and kitchen with two 75-person capacity theaters.

“We want it to be like you go to a pub and a cinema broke out,” Wheat said, noting that the biggest confusion since the pub opened in mid February is that customers need a movie ticket to eat and drink in the large pub space.

Wheat admitted that the concept of a cinema pub has been on his mind since before he opened The Blue Garten in Midtown in 2014, but they could never find the right location to fit everything they wanted in the space. After opening Anatomy Wine Club in the Plaza District two years ago, he was traveling south and noticed the current space, which had recently gotten its large exterior windows redone.

“It was just kind of perfect,” Wheat said. “We loved the industrial look and feel to it. We kept the original 1930s flooring. I loved the space as soon as we walked into it.”

The wall behind what is now the kitchen was already semi-soundproof because it housed a mechanic shop for the automobile showroom, which made it a perfect place to install a pair of theater screens.

Eat and drink

The kitchen and its menu devised by Jeff Patton — formerly of Mary Eddy’s Kitchen x Lounge — is built around a large deck oven that features pizza with sauces drizzled on top, nachos, a pretzel with onions and poppy seeds, chicken wings and salads.

“I wanted to do pizza because we wanted to keep it to food that you can eat with your hands so that we’re not having to bring silverware back into and out of the cinemas,” Wheat said.

There are the requisite cheese, pepperoni and sausage pizzas in addition to more adventurous pies like Pineapple Express with barbecue sauce, pineapple, jalapeños and bacon and the Chick N Chong with chicken, bacon, ranch, caramelized onion and Buffalo sauce.

There are a pair of white pizzas: Field of Dreams with Yukon potatoes, roasted mushrooms, pickled beets and a kalepistachio pesto and True Grit with Taleggio cheese, speck ham and Neon

Sunshine beer jelly. All are sold by the slice ($3-$5) or as huge, 20-inch pies ($24-$40).

Since opening, it has added a vegan pizza with cremini mushrooms and garlic chives.

“Our [original] crust isn’t vegan, so we had to make a new crust,” Wheat said. “We didn’t start with one because we didn’t know what the demand would be, but the day we announced it on social media, people arrived and it sold out real fast.”

A weekend brunch menu is bolstered by breakfast sandwiches, vegetarian eggs, sweet and savory toasts and its best-seller, Motor City Breakfast ($9.50), a Detroit-style personal pan pizza with bacon, sausage, egg and maple syrup.

“The Motor City pie is my favorite thing on the menu,” Wheat said. “That was a big debate before we opened; we almost did nothing but Detroit-style, and we might do more and more as we get going. It’s my favorite because you get that caramelized crust.”

Wheat said the menu will continue to evolve, and they hope to open for lunch during the week. He envisions taking advantage of the deck oven with sandwiches like a Cuban sandwich cooked under a brick like the Jon Favreau movie Chef.

The bar features six signature cocktails ($6-$9) and 11 beers on tap, including local breweries Stonecloud Brewing, Lively Beerworks, Angry Scotsman Brewing and Elk Valley Brewing Company. It also serves wine by the bottle or glass.

Drinks and food can be brought to the customer’s seat in the movie theater, and guests can order from a separate

bar once the movie starts. Comfortable chairs imported from an old movie theater in Arkansas are seated in front of a counter for food and drink.

Watch and relax

Banquet Cinema Pub shows a mixture of first-run, recent and classic films. Its opening was built around the major studio release Isn’t It Romantic starring Rebel Wilson and Liam Hemsworth.

The studio required a dedicated theater to show the film at release, and it is indicative of the complicated process to secure first-run releases.

“It’s a different negotiation with every movie and studio,” Wheat said. “The movie Greta is from Universal [Studios], and they don’t even know the terms until they see how it does opening weekend, so it is a backwards negotiation.”

Wheat said Banquet will show director Jordan Peele’s Us for its premiere March 22 in addition to his first film, Get Out, during March. Banquet built its first few weeks around romantic movies like When Harry Met Sally, Moonstruck and Annie Hall in honor of Valentine’s Day. Wheat said March features Irish movies for St. Patrick’s Day. “When you get to April, you have to play stoner movies, right?” he said.

“We’ll mix and match.”

Banquet Cinema Pub shows a mixture of first-run, recent releases and classic movies. | Photo Alexa Ace

Movie tickets are $10 regularly and $6 for 5 p.m. screenings. Wheat wants to host more events like a successful Oscars watch party for which guests showed up in tuxedos and gowns. He wants to do watch parties for big Thunder games and host politicians like councilman-elect James Cooper, who will host a Q&A in conjunction with the biopic Milk about Harvey Milk, the openly gay member of the San Francisco board of supervisors.

“That’s the perfect film for [Cooper] because he’s a film buff and he’s breaking the glass ceiling [as the city council’s first openly gay member],” Wheat said.

Wheat said that when talking to film buyers, it can be difficult to get independent films at movie chains to Oklahoma because they typically don’t sell well.

“If we can sell a lot of tickets, we can get movies that don’t normally release here,” he said. “Our goal isn’t to try and compete with AMC or any of the other cinemas; we’re trying to be our own thing.”

Visit banquetcinema.com. left There are two 75-person screening rooms. | Photo Alexa Ace below Banquet Cinema Pub’s poppy seed and onion pretzel, pepperoni pizza | Photo provided

O KG A Z E T T E . C O M | M A R C H 6 , 2 0 1 9

17

GAZEDIBLES

EAT & DRINK

Peanut pride

Allergens be damned, we are celebrating the peanut because March is National Peanut Month, a designation in place since 1974. As a savory topping, a burger condiment or part of a sweet dessert, the mighty peanut can be used in a variety of ways.

By Jacob Threadgill with photos Gazette / file and provided

Stella Modern Italian Cuisine

1201 N. Walker Ave. stella-okc.com | 405-235-2200

The candy bar at Stella is one of the best desserts in all of Oklahoma City. It combines chocolate ganache with peanut butter mousse and caramel sea salt gelatos and a vanilla honeycomb. The peanut butter mousse is a standout, but the entire dish comes together when you mix and match the components.

S&B’s Burger Joint

Thai House

The addition of peanut butter on a hamburger can be traced to central Missouri, where it got the nickname “the goober,” but S&B’s pays homage to another peanut butter fan, Elvis Presley, with its burger called The King. If you might be adverse to the combination, the peanut butter adds a sweet and textural component that makes for a great burger.

Peanuts are prevalent on many Thai restaurant menus as a nice crunch, but its addition to Thai House’s papaya salad is much more than a garnish. The combination of the peanuts adds a muchneeded salty element to this dish that is dominated by the sweetness and acidity of lime juice and the papaya itself. It is a unique dish that you can’t find at every Thai restaurant in the metro area.

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Woody Candy Company

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Bistro 38

Jimmy’s Egg

Woody Candy Company has stood the test of time since 1927 thanks to its commitment to Aunt Bill’s Brown Candy and its caramel pralines, which are available at retail outlets across the country. There are plenty of sweet peanut options like plantation clusters and brittle available online and in its store near Western Avenue.

Peanut pie isn’t as famous or as prevalent as the pecan pie, but it is a dessert unique of its own accord. According to Southern Living, the dish was inspired by the tradition of mixing peanuts in a bottle of Coke, and the sweet bottom layer — similar to that of a pecan pie — is meant to mimic the intoxicating dark soda with a flaky crust and crunchy peanuts. Sunnyside tops it with a dollop of whipped cream for a perfect finish.

The combination of the savory and spicy aspects of a peanut sauce are perfectly highlighted with Bistro 38’s chicken satay appetizer paired with marinated grilled chicken and a cucumber salad.

You can also experience peanuts as a nice crunch on many other dishes at Bistro 38, which adds extra vegetables to every dish for a nice nutritional boost.

Is there a better candy than Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups? Is there a better breakfast than pancakes? Possibly, but when combined together, it is sure to please as long as you’re not worried about going into diabetic shock. Since its founding in Oklahoma City, Jimmy’s Egg has opened more than 60 total locations in six states and recently opened a Midtown OKC location.

922 NW 70th St. woodycandy.com | 405-842-8903

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O KG A Z E T T E . C O M | M A R C H 6 , 2 0 1 9

19

T H E AT E R

ARTS & CULTURE

Historic engagement

Southern Nazarene University celebrates Women’s History Month and the campus’ blossoming diversity with a one-woman show. By Charles Martin

Every suburban university worth its salt has at least one firebrand professor pushing big ideas to rattle the norms of its sleepy campuses. Pam Bracken is that firebrand for Southern Nazarene University (SNU), and she is reveling in the dramatic swing to interculturalism that has reshaped the campus from back when she began her career as an English professor in Bethany 25 years ago.

To celebrate Women’s History Month as well as the university’s growing spirit of diversity, she helped organize a trio of events on Tuesday featuring Ain’t I a Woman, a one-woman show about the lives of abolitionist Sojourner Truth, civil rights worker Fannie Lou Hamer, novelist and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston and folk artist Clementine Hunter.

“We’ve been doing a lot of concentrated effort at SNU to talk about diversity, to own the need we have as a campus,” Bracken said, adding that SNU really hasn’t hosted an event like Ain’t I a Woman that addresses issues of race and gender so directly. It is part of a concentrated push by SNU to move the campus into something more reflective of the surrounding community. In 2001, 83 percent of traditional students at the university identified as white compared to 56 percent in 2018.

“We are sitting at 38 percent AfricanAmerican and other minority students, which has never been a part of what SNU was like in its previous existence,” Bracken said. “We created a racial diversity taskforce a couple years ago, and we also had a group of university forums.”

Bracken also said that the addition of Lena Crouso as the inaugural vice president for Intercultural Learning & Engagement was critical to the continued evolution of the campus. On its website, SNU describes Crouso’s role as providing leadership for the “design and implementation of institution-wide efforts to ensure diversity, inclusion, equity, respect, and the way of reconciliation is lived out in the SNU community.” That is a tall order for any campus, and certainly for one that has been largely homogenous for over a century.

Novelist and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston is one of the women portrayed in Ain’t I a Woman. | Photo Wikimedia Commons / provided

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M A R C H 6 , 2 0 1 9 | O KG A Z E T T E . C O M

“Those two years through the racial diversity task force led us to bring in an administrator who values interculturalism where we are informing one another through our cultures,” Bracken said. “Bringing her in helped with that sea change. ‘Intersections of identity’ is one of Lena’s phrases that I’m now hearing in conversations throughout the faculty and on the campus. In four years, we’ve come a long way in being willing to discuss issues having to do with race, gender and ethnicity.”

Highlighting diversity

Ain’t I a Woman was written by Kim Hines and named after an extemporaneous speech by Sojourner Truth, a freed slave and renowned abolitionist.

Truth spoke about gender equality and race. Shinnerie Jackson is the lone actress adopting all four roles in the one-woman show that explores the struggle of African-American women in U.S. history and the role they played in changing the perception of gender and race relations.

“My mom is African-American, so I heard about a lot of this when I was a kid,” said Evetta Soma, a current student at SNU who is helping with the event.

“But I don’t think a lot of other people know this kind of thing, so it is important to teach people the various stories of our history that they might not otherwise know. I’m not Nazarene. I’m not from Oklahoma. I’m not the majority of who would normally go here. When we

see things like this event, we get to have a common experience which helps us find connections with other people.”

Sidney Jones is a graduate of SNU and an intern with SNU Creative. Jones said that she has seen a big change in the culture of SNU from when she first arrived as a freshman.

“There is more openness about race now,” Jones said. “Representing diversity as a photographer had been, ‘Oh, let’s find two Hispanic students and two African-American students and four white students and put them in the picture,’ but that’s not really a natural way to capture actual diversity. As a photographer, I need to be willing to say, ‘Yes, this does seem awkward, but if you have an idea of how to better do this, let me know.’”

Jones also contributes to Humans of SNU, named after the popular Humans of New York photoblog. She helps collect stories from students with the hope of portraying the diversity of experiences and cultures that coexist on the campus.

“I don’t know how sensitive I’ve been to diversity in my life because I never really had to think about it,” Jones said. “But being an RA, I was immersed in so many levels of diversity.”

Creating conversation

Bracken is also hopeful to inspire deeper conversations with the event, so there is a lecture at 6:30 p.m. with Dr. Catherine JohnCamara in the Marchant Center Hearth Room before the performance. After the performance, there is an Ain’t I a Woman Coffee Shop Conversation that will feature a panel discussion 9:30 p.m. in the SNU Library Coffee Shop.

“It’s a way for our students and anyone else that came to the per-

Ain’t I a Woman is named after a speech given by abolitionist Sojourner Truth. | Photo Wikimedia Commons / provided

formance to talk with a panel of two women and two men,” Bracken said. “We can ask questions like ‘Do I need to know these women’s stories?’ ‘Do they have any impact on my life living where I live today?’”

Bracken added that SNU hasn’t always been able to engage with its local community and its changing demographics, but she hopes that Ain’t I a Woman might help knit the campus and Bethany a little tighter. SNU’s move to diversity reflects the changes in neighborhoods around the school, including the election of Amanda Sandoval-Lopez to Bethany City Council.

“Whenever you bring young people to the table, that really changes the ball game,” Bracken said. “Even though I teach young people every day, I still have to work on being less the boss and more of a listener. The energy they have is amazing, the ideas and how quickly they flow; we’ll have just started talking, and someone is typing and before you know it, there is a Facebook event going, then an Instagram post and they’re emailing as we’re talking.”

Ain’t I a Woman is just the first of what Bracken hopes will be many events that use performances to spur conversations about the significant cultural changes happening on campus and in the wider community.

“It’s not just about the event, but the story of what we are trying to do,” Bracken said.

Visit snu.edu/aint-i-a-woman.

Ain’t I a Woman 6:30 p.m. Tuesday Southern Nazarene University 6729 NW 39th Expressway, Bethany snu.edu/aint-i-a-woman | 405-789-6400

FILM

Screen pride

The Queer Film Continuum from Herland Sister Resources aims to bring LGBTQ+ films to Oklahoma City moviegoers. By Jo Light

I was not exposed to queer cinema until my freshman year of college.

I had just moved to New York, and one of my gay floormates gathered several us together in a suite to watch But I’m a Cheerleader, a 1999 romantic comedy starring Natasha Lyonne as a cheerleader sent to a conversion therapy camp when her parents suspect she is a lesbian.

It is campy and ridiculous and features several indie darlings, including Michelle Williams, Melanie Lynsky and Clea DuVall in supporting roles.

RuPaul is in the mix, too.

The film has become something of a classic queer film and a cult hit, but at the time my friends and I watched it in 2005, it felt underground. Even now, when I mention it, most people have no idea what the movie is.

It is this lack of awareness surrounding queer cinema that Queer Film Continuum, operating as an extension of Herland Sister Resources, 2312 NW 39th St., hopes to correct with its upcoming lesbian independent film series.

The series is held at Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center, 3000 General Pershing Blvd., beginning Saturday. It focuses on indie films of the ’80s, ’90s and early 2000s by lesbian directors and about lesbian characters.

Herland is a nonprofit organization that has operated since 1983. According to longtime member Ginger McGovern, Herland began as a book and music

The Incredibly True Story of Two Girls in Love starring Nicole Ari Parker and Laurel Holloman is the first film in Herland Sister Resources’ Queer Film Continuum series. | Photo Fine Line Features / provided

store and grew into a collective that now holds weekly discussions and monthly supper clubs.

“Herland has a cool history,” McGovern said.

In 1995, McGovern said, Herland was involved in the Supreme Court of Oklahoma case Fox v. Fox. Herland helped raise the legal funds for Donna Jeane Fox, a mother who was initially declared unfit because she was a lesbian. Fox lost custody of her children but regained custody on appeal.

Herland’s assistance earned it the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Oklahoma Human Rights Award in 1997.

Historically, Herland has been female-focused, but more recently, McGovern said the group is making outreach efforts toward growing its community and attracting a new generation of members. The film series is part of that.

Although LGBTQ+ communities often coalesce around nightlife and politics, Herland would like to build community around art. It hopes that this will, in turn, boost Herland’s reach and funds, allowing the organization to continue creating a safe place for continued on page 22

O KG A Z E T T E . C O M | M A R C H 6 , 2 0 1 9

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ARTS & CULTURE continued from page 21

FILM

LGBTQ+ members.

At Oklahoma Contemporary, visitor services associate Liz Sholar is a member of Queer Film Continuum and is helping coordinate between the organizations.

One thing the group learned quickly is that distributors charge hundreds of dollars for the rights to screen films, and even as a nonprofit, Queer Film Continuum initially hit that speed bump.

“The ones we have right now were all donated to us by directors and producers,” Sholar said of the film lineup.

“So it was really great to be able to reach out directly to the people that owned their own films and express how grateful we were for the work that they’ve done and their creativity and [be] able to share that with our community.”

I’m excited to see the representation that I don’t normally get, just on a personal level.

Liz Sholar

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Herland and Queer Film Continuum hope to raise money throughout the series and put funds toward paying for movie licensing so future iterations of the event can afford fees for desired films.

Sholar emphasized the impact of representation in film and the importance of showing stories written and directed by members of the LGBTQ+ community.

“I think that so often, LGBTQ people are portrayed in film by people who are not in the community,” Sholar said. “So we really wanted to focus back on directors and writers, in this case, who are lesbians, who are queer women, so that we could highlight our own voices, essentially, rather than letting someone else speak for us and give us our own reflection back in a warped view.”

Sholar admitted that even she hadn’t seen many of the films they have lined up for Queer Film Continuum because some of them are slightly obscure and a little older.

“I’m excited to see the representation that I don’t normally get, just on a personal level,” Sholar said.

Sholar expressed enthusiasm especially for the May 25 screening of The Lesbian Avengers Eat Fire, Too, a documentary about a lesbian activist collective that grew out of the ACT UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) advocacy group.

A panel discussion will follow this screening with representatives from various community organizations, including different levels of education and local government, a community religious leader and more. The goal is to discuss the state of LGBTQ+ rights in Oklahoma.

James Cooper, Oklahoma City’s first openly gay city councilmember, is confirmed to attend.

Sholar also hopes to get OKC Pride involved in the event as a way to sign up volunteers for this year’s Pride Parade. She would like to see the film inspire activism and action within the LGBTQ+ community.

All screenings begin at 7 p.m. and are free to the public. Audience members of all backgrounds are welcome. Queer Film Continuum recommends that guests be age 13 and older.

Short films and discussions will be a part of every event.

After the series concludes, the films will be donated to Metropolitan Library System to help make LGBTQ+ film more accessible to Oklahomans.

“I just want people to feel comfortable and really enjoy themselves,” Sholar said, “and have a good movie experience where they’re not thinking about, ‘Where am I?’” Herland and Queer Film Continuum are also hoping to spark more political action, conversation and advocacy with the film events. Long-term goals include the creation of a queer film festival in Oklahoma City and an LGBTQ+ advisory council to the Oklahoma City mayor’s office.

Queer Film Continuum is open to ideas and collaborations for future movie events. Those who are interested in volunteering at any upcoming film screenings can contact Sholar at Oklahoma Contemporary.

With Oklahoma Contemporary’s upcoming move to its new campus near downtown Oklahoma City, Queer Film Continuum will be actively seeking a new venue for its fall film series.

To learn more about the screenings and Herland’s other events, visit herlandsisters.org.

True stories

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The series’ first film on Saturday is The Incredibly True Story of Two Girls in Love. It’s a romantic coming-of-age story from 1995 in which two high school students fall for each other.

April 6’s film is All Over Me, a dramatic love story from 1997 set against New York’s Riot Grrrl music scene. The film on May 4 is 2 Seconds, which was released in 1998 and follows a former racing cyclist relegated to courier work in Montreal.

Queer Film Continuum screening of The Incredibly True Story of Two Girls in Love 7 p.m. Saturday Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center 3000 General Pershing Blvd. herlandsisters.org Donations accepted

CO M E DY

Poundstone politics

Paula Poundstone gets serious about her comedy in the Trump era. By Jeremy Martin

One of the many things altered by the contentious political atmosphere that helped put Donald Trump in the White House is Paula Poundstone’s standup act. Poundstone, whose comedy career turns 40 this year, said some of her audience interactions have been more contentious in the past few years after “the Russians have had their way with us” with targeted social media campaigns designed to spread misinformation and division.

“I believe that it’s been far more effective than it’s being given credit for because there was a time with my audience — which is, sure, largely Democrats, but not entirely, and certainly not by design — when people just came out and they laughed, and if they didn’t agree with me on something, they just waited for the next thing,” Poundstone said.

“There was no rancor. Every now and then, I’d get a letter from somebody who told me that they were a Republican and they were so upset because I said, ‘Blah, blah, blah,’ but in 37 years, that might have happened twice.

Then, after his election, I

had the occasional people who would stand up and walk out. It didn’t happen frequently, but it happens occasionally, and I don’t remember it happening in the 37 years before. The other thing is they didn’t just leave. They had to make a show of the fact that they were leaving. It was very strange. I don’t know. I just feel like something has shifted.”

Poundstone, a frequent guest on the National Public Radio quiz show Wait Wait ... Don’t Tell Me! and host of the podcast Nobody Listens to Paula Poundstone, performs 8 p.m. Saturday

at Oklahoma City Community College’s Visual and Performing Arts Center Theater, 7777 S. May Ave. The standup, known for combining observational humor with quick-witted crowd work, said even occasional angry outbursts from audience members are worth noting because her audience has typically been supportive and considerate.

“My manager used to say to me — and this was long before Trump — she would say to me when I’d be booked to work, like, Oklahoma or Kansas, she’d go, ‘Oh, I don’t know. That’s a very red state.’ I’d go, ‘It doesn’t matter,’” Poundstone said.

“Partly because I talk to the audience the way I do onstage, but also partly because I’ve been doing these meet-andgreets for years; I probably know a lot about the people that come to see me, and by the way, it’s good news. It’s refreshing, the people that come to see me. They’re nice people. At the end of the night, when

I’m totally wrung out like a washcloth, I say to the people that run the theater, I go, ‘I have the best audiences, don’t I?’ And m aybe t hey ’re saying it appease to me, but they do generally say, ‘Yes.’”

Personal politics

Her apolitical bit about eating an entire box of Pop-Tarts from her 1980 HBO special Cats,

Cops and Stuff made Vulture’s list of “The 100 Jokes That Shaped Modern Comedy,” and Poundstone said her material is still more personal than political.

“I don’t do tons and tons of political material onstage,” she said. “My act is largely autobiographical. I talk about what I’m reading, what I’m paying attention to. When I was raising a house full of kids and animals, I talked a lot about that. When I first started, I talked about bussing tables and riding the [subway] in Boston, and now the truth is I do spend a lot of energy paying attention to what’s going on in the world.

And so it comes up more than, perhaps, it used to. When I first got really interested in politics, it was because I was riveted by the Iran Contra hearings years ago. I started paying attention then, to greater or lesser degrees.

Sometimes, when people asked me to describe my act years ago, I would say I talk about the news or politics in direct relation to how dramatic my home life is. If all hell’s breaking loose with my kids, then guess what; I didn’t watch the NewsHour that night.”

She added, however, that she finds herself increasingly concerned with the stories on PBS NewsHour and MSNBC, which she said is making her “mentally ill.”

NewsHour won’t even use the word ‘lie.’

They’ll say ‘falsehoods.’ There’s a guy from a Canadian newspaper [Toronto Star’s Daniel Dale] that’s keeping track of how many lies Trump has told, and they had him on one time. Judy Woodruff said to him, ‘Why do you use the word “lie?”’ It was like a Lost in Space episode where Will Robinson met a princess from another planet and he asked her if she wanted to play, and she said, ‘What is “play,” Will Robinson?’”

While she’s upset by much of what she sees in the world around her, Poundstone said she is still mainly making observations about politics onstage for the same reason she used to read from the instructions on the back of a box of Pop-Tarts — she finds humor in it.

“It’s definitely changed my job in some ways because it’s made me more reflective about that sort of thing,” she said. “But I think in the end, I come up with the same answer, which is, ‘I’m just a little joke-teller.’”

Cracking wise about political realities does little to change them, Poundstone said, but as a professional comedian, she said she doesn’t really think she should be the one to initiate change anyway.

“We all think we’re George Carlin or

The unreality of the nightly news can be reminiscent of something from an old science fiction show.

“The real estate in my head is really taken up a lot lately,” she said.

“Part of it is social media, for sure, which I do waste some time on, and part of it, I think, is just the legitimate cause for alarm. We have a president who lies to us every goddamn day, and that should be more concerning than it is. The

Will Rogers,” she said. “We all think that we’re somehow changing the landscape by speaking truth to power in our funny little tweets, and the truth is we’re just entertaining ourselves while all hell breaks loose. … It’s not my intention, certainly when I’m on stage, to change anyone’s mind. I’m not the person. First of all, heaven forbid I be the person people decide things based on. How fucked up would that be?”

Tickets are $35-$43. Visit tickets. occc.edu.

Standup comic Paula Poundstone, a frequent guest on the National Public Radio quiz show Wait Wait ... Don’t Tell Me!, performs 8 p.m. Saturday at Oklahoma City Community College’s Visual and Performing Arts Center Theater. | Photo Michael Schwartz / provided

Paula Poundstone 8 p.m. Saturday Visual and Performing Arts Center Theater Oklahoma City Community College 7777 S. May Ave. tickets.occc.edu | 405-682-7579 $35-$43

O KG A Z E T T E . C O M | M A R C H 6 , 2 0 1 9

23

ARTS & CULTURE

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Triumphant Ark The Little Ark boutique and community space in Nichols Hills is a gathering spot for family and friends. By Jo Light

The Little Ark, 6425 Avondale Drive in Nichols Hills Plaza, is a bright and airy boutique filled with gifts for all ages.

About half the shop is geared toward a younger customer base with trendy clothing for kids hung on racks in eyecatching color coordination. There is a small, house-shaped reading nook at the front, just one of a few special areas for the boutique’s toddling clientele.

A second kid-centric space is in the back, where a large mirrored room is available for classes and events. In there, families and children can learn and socialize together.

On this afternoon, owner and founder Nina Westbrook works on the children’s side while manager Ashley Black handles the register and customers admire the baby clothes. There’s a delightful “Thunder Up” tee that is one of the store’s most popular items.

Westbrook, a former collegiate basketball player at University of California Los Angeles and a marriage and family therapist, has put down solid roots in Oklahoma City. She was practicing as a therapist here and enjoying her work but decided she wanted change. The idea for The Little Ark came to her on a drive one day.

The store’s name is in honor of Westbrook’s son, Noah, a wink to his biblical namesake. After his arrival, Westbrook recognized a need for a place that could provide both stylish family goods and the connections of a local community.

The Little Ark, a combined meeting place and shopping boutique, was born soon afterward. While the retail side is inspired by Westbrook’s eye for style and a love of shopping for her kids, the gathering space grew out of her background as a therapist.

“I also wanted to incorporate the classes because I’m so used to — in my career as a marriage and family therapist

— working with groups of people, with kids, adults, students,” she said. “I wanted to somehow have a space where I could incorporate that aspect of my life.”

Westbrook said the whole shop’s vibe takes inspiration from Noah’s Ark, as well.

They try to have something for everyone, although not necessarily two by two.

Along with the wide range of baby products, there is an eclectic mix of home goods and décor. Customers will find clean beauty from Austin-based Milk and Honey, Luxuriate candles in handmade stone holders, loungewear

by Splendid and sweets by Lolli & Pops.

There is also a sense of sustainability and environmental awareness in many of the shop’s products. Amongst the infant gear are eco-friendly toys from Blabla Kids and reusable silicon bags by Stasher.

Tables are arranged with books for readers both young (like Just Breathe

by Mallika Chopra) and old (like Style Drivers, the coffee table book by Westbrook’s husband).

“I wanted to be more of a lifestyle boutique, where anybody coming in could find something that they like,” she said.

With the women’s clothing offerings, Westbrook chose to focus on cozy leisurewear and a limited lingerie and sleepwear selection. The Little Ark neighbors another clothing retailer, CK & Co., but caters to a niche with the comfy outfits for active women, especially moms.

Westbrook said she enjoys getting feedback and learning about what the areas of need are in her shopping clientele.

“I’m very open,” she said. “It’s a journey that happened quickly, and we’re all here just learning as we go.”

The shop’s classes are meant to foster a community and support system Nina Westbrook started The Little Ark after a successful career as a family therapist. | Photo Alexa Ace

for repeat visitors. She hopes both the kids and families make meaningful connections.

Regular events include weekly story time, music instruction and dance classes. Registration for the classes is available on The Little Ark’s website.

Westbrook pointed out that the gatherings are especially beneficial during the harsh Oklahoma winters, providing a safe space for energetic toddlers to play and make friends.

“They’re typically called ‘mommy and me’ classes, but I’m more inclusive of whoever wants to bring the kids,” she said.

So grandparents, dads and other family members are welcome, too.

During her first pregnancy, Westbrook was told she should take a CPR class.

Realizing the importance of this for others, she included it on The Little Ark’s schedule, and CPR certification is held monthly.

The class’ focus is on child and infant safety and first aid, and the instructor is certified through American Heart Association. The next CPR certification class is on March 9.

Seasonal events like cookie-decorating classes for winter holidays and Valentine’s Day are held in the space, as well. Lan McCabe from Sweets on the Side, a custom bakery in Oklahoma City, leads those events. After the class’ delectable decorating activities, participants are sent home with McCabe’s cookie and icing recipes.

Westbrook is considering some adult cookie-decorating events too because she said it’s always fun for the grown-ups who come. She hopes to one day host other small groups for women and men or potentially rent the space to other clients who want to hold events or parties.

She credited her staff as a big part of the brainstorming process and said she is willing to experiment and find what works.

No matter what, Westbrook wants her visitors to take a deep breath and relax when they come in.

“It’s OK if your kids run around and play and have fun,” she said. “It’s normal.

I just want everybody to feel good when they come here. I want it to be social and a good place to get out to.”

Visit thelittleark.com.

CALENDAR

List your event in

are events recommended

by Oklahoma Gazette editorial staff members For full calendar listings, go to okgazette.com.

BOOKS Mid-Oklahoma Writers a meetup for local writers featuring guest speakers and literary discussions, 7-9 p.m. the second Tuesday of the month. Eastside Church of Christ, 916 S. Douglas Blvd., 405-7320393. TUE Norman Galaxy of Writers author William Bernhardt will discuss the The Seven Secrets of Bestselling Books, 10 a.m.-noon March 9. Norman Library, 225 N Webster, Norman. SAT Second Sunday Poetry hear the works of a variety of local poets, 2 p.m. second Sunday of every month. Norman Santa Fe Depot, 200 S. Jones Ave., Norman,, 405-307-9320, pasnorman.org. SUN

FILM Art Moves at the Paramount see a selection of short films at this screening presented by Arts Council Oklahoma City and deadCenter Film, noon-1 p.m. March 7. The Paramount Theatre, 11 N. Lee Ave., 405-637-9389, theparamountokc.com. THU Blockbusted Video: Teen Witch (1989, USA, Dorian Walker) a high school girl uses her newfound magic powers to gain popularity, 7-9 p.m. March 6.

The Paramount Room, 701 W. Sheridan Ave., 405887-3327, theparamountroom.com. WED West Side Story (1961, USA, Jerome Robbins, Robert Wise) star-crossed lovers find romance in a New York City street war in this classic musical, 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. March 11. Harkins Theatre, 150 E. Reno Ave., 405-231-4747, harkinstheatres.com. MON Willow (1988, USA, Ron Howard) caring for a baby sets a farmer on a fantastic quest in this cult classic, presented as part of a toy drive for the Children’s Hospital, 7-10 p.m. March 12. The Paramount Room, 701 W. Sheridan Ave., 405-887-3327, theparamountroom.com. TUE You People (2018, USA, Laron Chapman) a black man adopted by a liberal white family struggles with his identity in this satirical comedy, 5:30-8 p.m. March 10. The Paramount Room, 701 W. Sheridan Ave., 405-8873327, theparamountroom.com. SUN

OKCine Latino Film Festival ¡Veamos más películas! See short and feature-length films made by local and international directors at this annual film festival, now in its fifth year. Features and documentaries from Spain, Mexico, Brazil, Puerto Rico and more are slated for screening as well as shorts created by local high school filmmakers in a four-week workshop taught by Rogelio Almeida Jr. and Victor Caballero. The festival is 6-10 p.m.

Friday and noon-5 p.m. Saturday at Capitol Hill Library, 327 SW 27th St. Tickets for Friday evening are $20-$25, and admission on Saturday is free. Visit historiccapitolhill.com. SATURDAY Photo provided

HAPPENINGS Art Walk LGBTQ+ Drag Show host Keosha Simone presents a show featuring performers from across the state, 7 p.m. March 8. Bluebonnet Bar, 121 E. Main St., Norman, 405-928-4550. FRI Bad to the Bone Dog Show canines compete in categories including Best Costume, Best Vocal, Best Smile, Best Underbite and more, noon-4 p.m. March 10. OSU OKC Farmers Market, 400 N. Portland Ave., 405-945-3326, osuokc.edu/farmersmarket. SUN Building Community & Youth Participation in Politics Rose State College professor Nyla Ali Khan discusses methods for engaging young people in the political system, 6-7:30 p.m. March 8. Nappy Roots, 3705 Springlake Drive, 405-896-0203, facebook. com/pg/nappyrootsbooks. FRI Drunken Spelling Bee test your ability to spell words correctly while under the influence at this event hosted by Sam Higgins, 9 p.m.-midnight.

Othello’s Italian Restaurant, 434 Buchanan Ave., Norman, 405-701-4900, othellos.us. THU Flower Power Market shop for vintage and handcrafted items from local vendors and sample food and craft beers, 6-9:30 p.m. March 8. Stash, 412 E. Main St., Norman, 405-701-1016, stashok.com. FRI Indie Bride shop for dresses, cakes and other wedding accessories and meet with wedding planners at this bridal show and market, noon-4 p.m. March 10.

Farmers Public Market, 311 S. Klein Ave., 405-2326506, okcfarmersmarket.com. SUN

Grand Hotel: The Musical University of Oklahoma (OU) artist-inresidence Adam Cooper received a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for choreographing Grand Hotel: The Musical for The Donmar Warehouse in London’s West End, and he worked with OU students to choreograph and direct this production for the university’s theater department before he went back to England. You can see his handiwork here for a limited time, and you can read an interview with Cooper, who appeared in the film Billy Elliot and was nominated for a Tony Award for his portrayal of The Swan in Swan Lake, online at okgazette.com.

The show runs Friday-Sunday at OU’s Elsie C. Brackett Theatre, 500 W. Boyd St., in Norman. Tickets are $10-$30.

Call 405-325-4101 or visitou.edu/ finearts/universitytheatre.

FRIDAY-SUNDAY Photo provided

Junior League of Norman Charity Ball walk the red carpet and sample food from local restaurants at this Hollywood-themed fundraiser, 6:30 p.m. March 9. Marriott Conference Center & Hotel, 2801 E. State Highway 9, Norman, 405-329-4532, cc.nced.com. SAT Mary Ann Jung as Clara Barton the actress and Smithsonian scholar plays the founder of the American Red Cross in a living history presentation, March 6-7. Oklahoma History Center, 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive, 405-521-2491, okhistory.org. WED-THU NE OKC Storytelling Project a lecture series exploring identity and ideas in Oklahoma’s black neighborhoods, 10 a.m. March 9. The Douglass at Page Woodson, 600 N. High Ave., 405-601-1989, facebook.com/thedouglasspagewoodson. SAT PoetryAndChillOKC Anthony Crawford Jr., RichMusiq, TayythePoet and Vatla are scheduled to perform at this celebration of art, poetry and music hosted by Gregory II, 1-4 p.m. March 9. Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center, 3000 General Pershing Blvd., 405-951-0000, oklahomacontemporary.org. SAT Rally to Save the Egg! a demonstration to support classifying First Christian Church as a historic landmark to prevent it from being torn down, 5-7 p.m. March 6. First Christian Church, 1500 N. Randall Ave., 580-225-7801, ecdisciples.org. WED Red Tie Night a dinner and auction raising money for the Oklahoma AIDS Care Fund and featuring music from the Jordan Khan Orchestra, 6 p.m.midnight March 9. National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, 1700 NE 63rd St., 405-478-2250, nationalcowboymuseum.org. SAT

Risky Business Party an ’80s themed party featuring games, drinks and music from DJ Navi, 9 p.m.-1 a.m. March 9. FlashBack RetroPub, 814 W. Sheridan Ave., 405-633-3604, flashbackretropub.com. SAT Women’s Empowerment Symposium speakers including Tahira Taql, Jessica Martinez-Brooks, Christina R. Kirk and Jennifer Gray discuss women’s issue, 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. March 9. Metro Technology Center, 1900 Springlake Drive, 405-844-8324, metrotech.edu. SAT

FOOD Customer Appreciation tasting event sample products from Leonard Mountain and Trader Dave’s Gourmet Treats, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. The Gourmet Gallery, 1532 S. Boulevard, Edmond, 405-715-3663, thegourmetgallery.com. SAT Omelette Party sample egg dishes created by local chefs and restaurants, bid on an art raffle and listen to live music, 7 p.m.-midnight March 8.

Bricktown Events Center, 429 E California Ave., 405236-4143, chevyeventscenter.com. FRI

YOUTH Academic Enrichment Reading Clinic children in grades 1-12 can receive free tutoring and homework help in reading, math and history and learn about nonviolent conflict resolution and success-building habits at this weekly clinic, 11 a.m.

Wednesdays through April 27. Nappy Roots, 3705 Springlake Drive, 405-896-0203, facebook.com/pg/ nappyrootsbooks. SAT Andy Griffiths book signing the author will autograph copies of his children’s book The 104-Story Treehouse at this event also featuring crafts, treats and face painting, 1-3 p.m. March 10. Best of Books, 1313 E. Danforth Road, Edmond, 405-340-9202, bestofbooksok.com. SUN

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.

Lisa Graff book signing the author and National Book Award nominee will autograph copies of her middle-grade novel, Far Away, 6 p.m. March 13. Best of Books, 1313 E. Danforth Road, Edmond, 405-3409202, bestofbooksok.com. WED Middle Grade Author Panel writers Kim Ventrella, Brad McLelland and Melanie Sumrow will discuss and sign their latest children’s novels, 1-2:30 p.m. March 9. Best of Books, 1313 E. Danforth Road, Edmond, 405-340-9202, bestofbooksok.com. SAT Spring Break in the Gardens children can learn about gardening and crafts through hands-on activities including fruit-and-vegetable stamping, making weather wind sticks and seed planting, 10 a.m.-noon Tuesdays and Thursdays, March 12-21. Myriad Botanical Gardens, 301 W. Reno Ave., 405-445-7080, myriadgardens.com. TUE-THU Storytime Science the museum invites children age 6 and younger to hear a story and participate in a related scientific activity, 10 a.m. Tuesdays and Saturdays. Science Museum Oklahoma, 2020 Remington Place, 405-602-6664, sciencemuseumok.org. TUE

GO TO OKGAZETTE.COM FOR FULL LISTINGS!

Submit your listings online at okgazette.com or e-mail them to listings@okgazette.com.

Sorry, but phone submissions cannot be accepted.

continued on page 26

O KG A Z E T T E . C O M | M A R C H 6 , 2 0 1 9

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CALENDAR C A L E N DA R

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PERFORMING ARTS A Bronx Tale a young man is conflicted by dueling loyalties to his bus driver father and a local mafia boss in this musical adaptation of the film and one-man show, through March 10. Civic Center Music Hall, 201 N. Walker Ave., 405-297-2264, okcciviccenter. com. TUE-SUN

Dan Alten the Louisville, Kentucky, comic performs and local standup Alex Sanchez shares the bill, 8-11 p.m. March 7. The Paramount Room, 701 W. Sheridan Ave., 405-887-3327, theparamountroom.com. THU Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Dr. Jekyll’s alter-ego Hyde is played by five actors in Jeffrey Hatcher’s adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novella, through March 9. Carpenter Square Theatre, 806 W. Main St., 405-232-6500, carpentersquare.com. FRI-SAT

Sauced Comedy Showcase comics including Adrian Corwin, Seth Fisher and Caleb Collins are scheduled to perform, along with magician John Shack and musicians Wait And Shackle, Parkway & Columbia and Giraffe Massacre, 7-11 p.m. March 10.

Sauced on Paseo, 2912 Paseo St., 405-521-9800, saucedonpaseo.com. SUN

ACTIVE Adult Open Play Half Court Basketball play four-on-four basketball weekly, 6:30 p.m. Mondays.

Cole Community Center, 4400 Northwest Expressway, 405-418-7636, okcfirst.com. MON Monday Night Group Ride meet up for a weekly 25-30 minute bicycle ride at about 18 miles per hour through east Oklahoma City, 6 p.m.

Mondays. The Bike Lab OKC, 2200 W. Hefner Road, 405-603-7655. MON Wheeler Criterium a weekly nighttime cycling event with criterium races, food trucks and family activities, 5-8 p.m. Tuesdays. Wheeler Park, 1120 S. Western Ave., 405-297-2211, okc.gov. TUE

VISUAL ARTS The Art of Collection an exhibition of outsider and anonymous artworks from the Anonyma Fine Art collection owned and curated by Emily Ladow Reynolds, through March 14. Artspace at Untitled, 1 NE Third St., 405-815-9995, 1ne3.org. THU Bert Seabourn opening a reception celebrating the opening of an exhibition of Seabourn’s art works, 2-4 p.m. March 10. 50 Penn Place Gallery, 1900 Northwest Expressway, 405-848-5567, 50pennplacegallery.com. SUN Black Moon Collective artist panel artists from the Tulsa-based collective discuss their methods and work, 3-5 p.m. March 15. The Art Hall, 519 NW 23rd St., 405-231-5700, art.theriseokc.com. SAT Eggtion Figures an exhibition of sculptures by Norman-based artist Tomoaki Orikasa, through March 22. Paseo Studio Six, 3021 Paseo St., 405528-0174, thepaseo.org. FRI La Luz y La Sombra (Light and Dark) an exhibition of photographs by Alan R. Ball, through March 31. Contemporary Art Gallery, 2928 Paseo St., 405-601-7474, contemporaryartgalleryokc.com. FRI-SUN

International Women’s Day Open Mic What better way to celebrate International Women’s Day than by actually, you know, listening to women?

Anyone identifying as female is welcome to play a song, tell a story or make some jokes at this open mic hosted by musician and comedian Elecktra (pictured), and money and supplies (clothing, hygiene products, baby items, bedding, medicine and more) will be collected for YWCA Oklahoma City and Women’s Resource Center. The show is 7-10 p.m. Friday at The Root, 3012 N. Walker Ave., Suite B. Admission is free. Call 405-697-0718 or visit facebook.com/therootokc. FRIDAY Photo Justin Waits / provided

Girlfriend two high-school students find love, soundtracked by Matthew Sweet’s music, through March 17, Through March 17. Lyric Theatre, 1727 NW 16th St., 405-524-9310, lyrictheatreokc.com.

THU-SUN

Love Jonz Spoken Jazz poets Kenyetta La’Cole Richard and Cordney McClain Mba and musician Forrest Yasharahla combine spoken word, dance, comedy and live music in a multi-genre performance, 8-10:15 p.m. March 8. IAO Gallery, 706 W. Sheridan Ave., 405-232-6060, iaogallery.org. SAT National Theatre Live: King Lear Ian McKellan plays the title role in this filmed presentation of Shakespeare’s tragedy prerecorded at London’s West End, 6-9 p.m. March 10. OCCC Visual and Performing Arts Center Theater, 7777 S. May Ave., 405-682-7579, tickets.occc.edu. SUN Oklahoma City University Broadway Revue students in OCU’s American Spirit Dance Company perform to music from Footloose, West Side Story, The Greatest Showman, La La Land and more, March 7-9. UCO Jazz Lab, 100 E. Fifth St., 405-359-7989, ucojazzlab.com. THU-SAT Pick-A-Tune with Lucas Ross learn to play a song on the banjo; instruments provided, 2 p.m. March 9.

American Banjo Museum, 9 E. Sheridan Ave., 405604-2793, americanbanjomuseum.com. SAT

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Roland Miguel exhibition view the artist’s oil paintings and pen-and-ink works, through March 30. Paseo Art Space, 3022 Paseo St., 405-5252688, thepaseo.com. FRI-SAT A Ship Named Atlast an exhibition of paintings and sculptures by multimedia artist and author Tammy Nguyen, through March 15. The Lightwell Gallery, 520 Parrington Oval, Norman, 405-3252691, art.ou.edu. MON-FRI Skip Hill, Irmgard Geul, John Wolfe an exhibition of paintings and mixed-media artworks, through March 31. JRB Art at The Elms, 2810 N. Walker Ave., 405-528-6336, jrbartgallery.com. FRI-SUN Sonic Bloom see works created by local artists and hear live music at this event hosted by Spaced Out Arts Norman, 11 p.m. March 8. Resonator, 325 E Main St., Norman, resonator.space. FRI Symbiotic professional and student artists teamed up to create the works on exhibit, through March 14. Melton Gallery, 100 N. University Drive, Edmond, 405-525-3603, uco.edu. THU Tatyana Fazlalizadeh: Oklahoma Is Black an exhibition highlighting black history in Oklahoma City, through May 19. Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center, 3000 General Pershing Blvd., 405-9510000, oklahomacontemporary.org. FRI-SUN

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.

For OKG live music

see page 29

GO TO OKGAZETTE.COM FOR FULL LISTINGS!

MUSIC

EVENT

Ray Wylie Hubbard plays 8 p.m. March 15 at Tower Theatre. | Photo Mary Keating-Bruton / provided

‘Mother’ Hubbard Ray Wylie Hubbard brings his literate outlaw songs to Tower Theatre. By Jeremy Martin

Hold onto your hats. The guy who wrote the unofficial Lone Star State national anthem “Screw You, We’re from Texas” is actually from Oklahoma.

“I was born in Hugo, Oklahoma, and then I lived in a little town called Soper,” said singer/songwriter Ray Wylie Hubbard. “My dad was the coach-principal-teacher up there in a little onebuilding, first-grade-through-highschool, and then we moved to Dallas, I guess when I was about 8 or so. So I got my Oklahoma roots.”

Hubbard plays 8 p.m. March 15 at Tower Theatre, 425 NW 23rd St. His “Up Against the Wall, Redneck Mother,” which describes an Oklahoman “kickin’ hippies’ asses and raisin’ hell” after getting drunk on Wild Turkey, became an anthem for Austin’s outlaw country scene when Jerry Jeff Walker recorded

it for his 1973 album ¡Viva Terlingua!, but Hubbard said his early years as a budding bookworm in Oklahoma were important for his development as a songwriter.

“It was a very rural, small-town community,” Hubbard said, “and so growing up, it was pretty much Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, and you know, your first eight years are pretty influential. Then, of course, when we moved to Dallas, it was quite a shock and quite different. Coming in from a country environment into the city, I didn’t make friends very well, so I read a lot, so of course that’s bound to have an influence on me. … My dad got me into literature very early, even though we were kind of out in the country in a small town — I think the population was 350. Instead of reading The Three Little Pigs to me, he read The Raven. … He got his degree in English from Oklahoma A&M, which is, of course, now Oklahoma State [University], and so we would go up there during the summers, and he’d go to summer school to get his degree, and being in a college town, I’d spend a lot of time at the library there. So I feel very fortunate and very proud of the fact that I grew up there in Choctaw County.”

Hubbard, who got sober in the late ’80s with the help of Stevie Ray Vaughan, likes to keep track of everything that makes Hubbard’s latest album, Tell the Devil I’m Getting There as Fast as I Can, was released in 2017 | Image Jason Wilbur / provided

him feel fortunate. The autobiographical song “Mother Blues” from his 2012 album The Grifter’s Hymnal begins “When I was a young man, about 21 years old, y’all/All I wanted was a stripper girlfriend/And a Goldtop Les Paul/Be careful of the things you wish for/You might get ’em,” but it concludes “the days that I keep my gratitude higher than my expectations, well, I have really good days.”

He said he feels fortunate to still be playing music and touring at age 72.

“I’m an old cat, but I’m very, very grateful that I’m still writing songs and I’m able to travel around and play them,” Hubbard said. “And I’m very grateful for places like the Tower Theatre, which is just a great venue, to be able to come there and play my songs and hopefully have a few people come out and listen to them. Gratitude is a very important part of my day.”

Hubbard, who most recently released Tell the Devil I’m Gettin’ There as Fast as I Can in 2017 on his own Bordello Records label, said he’s also grateful that he can make music on his own terms.

“I feel very fortunate, you know, to be able to write kind of whatever I want to write,” he said. “I’m not writing because I have a publishing deal, you know, where I have to give a publisher 12 songs a year, and not where I’m trying to get someone to record them. I’m just kind of, you know, ‘Oh a snake farm; what about that?’ I can write about some kind of rock ’n’ roll fable, or I can write about some old blues singer. … I’m not writing thinking about the future of the song.”

Memorable appearances

He published his memoir, A Life … Well, Lived, in 2015. Though his lyrics can be autobiographical, Hubbard said he tries not to “waller” in his previous mistakes.

“A lot of times, I can write a song and kind of talk about the wreckage of the past,” Hubbard said. “I mean, I can use some experience of some times in my life when it was dark. There was a dark period there, and so I can kind of go back and write about it, but I don’t dwell on it. I can’t do that old thing of ‘coulda, woulda, shoulda.’ I can’t dwell in the past, and then I try not to project in the future, and that way I can treat each day with the respect it deserves; you know what I mean? I try to stay in the now. I try to stay in today. The future will take care of itself, and the past, well, there’s some regrets there, but hopefully I try to keep my side of the street clean today.”

But he does still have that Les Paul Goldtop guitar.

“A lot of people want to see that guitar as much as they want to see me,” Hubbard said. “It’s a real crowd-pleaser. I pull out that Goldtop and they say, ‘Ah, there’s that guitar from “Mother Blues.”’”

His wife, Judy, who also makes a memorable appearance in “Mother Blues” as the 16-year-old working the door at the titular dive bar, is his manager, and his son, Lucas, often plays guitar in his band, but Hubbard plans on playing March 15 as a duo with drummer Kyle Snyder.

“It’s kind of a White Stripes, only we’re not probably as loud and maybe not as good,” Hubbard said. “I really enjoy that because it kind of lets me showcase the songwriting but still have a deep groove. … It still rocks.”

Classically trained Arkansas singer/ songwriter Bonnie Montgomery — who co-wrote Billy Blythe, an opera about Bill Clinton’s youth, and who Hubbard describes as “a hoot” — is scheduled to open.

Decades after being harassed at a honkytonk for his long hair inspired Hubbard to call out the “redneck mother … who has raised her son so well” in the breakthrough song that still often serves as the encore to his sets, Hubbard said he remains particularly appreciative of one specific part of the songwriting process.

“Songwriting, to me, is still a very mysterious thing,” Hubbard said. “It’s such a joy and an anguish. You anguish over it to make sure you get it right, but then it’s a joy when it works. … I feel very grateful when a song is done … but then there’s always another one.”

Tickets are $20-$45. Visit towertheatreokc.com.

Ray Wylie Hubbard 8 p.m. March 15 Tower Theatre 425 NW 23rd St. towertheatreokc.com | 405-708-6937 $20-$45

O KG A Z E T T E . C O M | M A R C H 6 , 2 0 1 9

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MUSIC Greyson Chance performs Saturday at The Vanguard in Tulsa. | Photo provided

Matrix (Avril Lavigne’s “Complicated”) and Danielle Brisebois (New Radicals, Natasha Bedingfield). Chance arrived just in time for every major label to want its own Justin Bieber 2.0, and executives at his new label thought they had one.

Hold On ’til the Night certainly had big guns behind it; the video for its second single, “Unfriend You,” even featured Nickelodeon star/future queen of pop Ariana Grande. But nothing took hold like Chance’s covers of “Paparazzi” and Augustana’s “Fire.” He toured like mad, opening for Cody Simpson in the U.S. and mounting several massive tours of Asia, but by the time his fourth single was released, “Take a Look at Me Now,” Interscope/eleveneleven had ended its domestic promotion of the album and was only releasing his material overseas.

I was 16 years old with no one around me anymore, and I had to figure out what I wanted to do.

EVENT

Greyson Chance

Second Chance

After his rise as a pre-teen YouTube sensation, Greyson Chance now has his sights set on the long game. By George Lang

YouTube was four years old and Greyson Chance was 12 when his cover of Lady Gaga’s “Paparazzi” blasted its way onto the internet zeitgeist. A student at Edmond’s Cheyenne Middle School, Chance’s performance in front of classmates was fueled by Juilliard-ready piano filigrees and a voice that could match Gaga note for note.

Within days of its May 2010 posting, Chance was on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and then he was on again a few days later as DeGeneres announced the launch of eleveneleven, a boutique record label with Interscope Records that would feature Chance as its first signing. By that time, the “Paparazzi” cover had generated 30 million views 28

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on YouTube. Today, the total stands at 64 million.

“That video changed my entire life — every aspect of my life,” said Chance, now 21.

“I signed my first record deal after that video with Interscope and immediately started to live as a full-time artist. From 12 to 16 years old, I was on the road probably nine months out of the year.”

Chance was in the studio as soon as it could be booked, and recorded his debut album, Hold On ’til the Night.

Executive produced by DeGeneres, Night was co-produced by “Like a Virgin” scribe Billy Steinberg and featured songs from songwriting trio The

Ready to take a second run with a sophomore release, Chance also wanted to explore writing his own songs. Major record labels historically balk when artists previously beholden to professional hit makers want to exercise their songwriting muscles, and Chance said he felt a palpable reduction in his label’s enthusiasm.

From that point, things fell apart.

“Just as quickly as our team came together in the beginning moments, the second there was a decrease in attention, popularity or numbers, that team very very quickly left,” Chance said. “I was 16 years old with no one around me anymore, and I had to figure out what I wanted to do.”

Square one

While there is probably a star in the sky for every musician who suffered a similar fate as Chance’s, it is especially problematic when it happens at his age.

In response, Chance doubled down on songwriting, the industry be damned.

“That was a really difficult time for me, because you’re also 16 years old and you’re trying to figure out who you are,” he said. “I was still writing a lot and basically got to 18 years old and had a body of work I was really proud of as a songwriter. I went around to every label in L.A. and no one was interested in it.

That was also a difficult moment for me. I was 18 years old, very unhappy, living in L.A. by myself. I said, ‘You know what? You’ve had a good run, but it’s time for something else. Time for something new.’”

At 18, he retired. Chance enrolled as a history major at University of Tulsa

and was convinced that he would never return to music. A lot taller with a muchchanged voice, he could blend into the student body and build a new life. He would be something other than a former teen idol.

“I was able to go to shows once a week and listen to music and see what my friends were listening to and sort of be a normal college kid for once,” he said.

Because of that newfound freedom, the pressure was off. Chance began to write again, without any deadline pressure or notes from executives. He tapped into his experiences and tastes as a young adult, and the songs started pouring out.

“I needed to start creating things that I actually enjoyed,” Chance said.

Self Portraits

Nearly nine years after “Paparazzi” and the ensuing gold rush around Greyson Chance, any attempt to land on eleveneleven’s website will route to a cartoon of DeGeneres making an “Oh no!” face accompanied by the following message: “Oopsy daisy … we can’t seem to find the page you’re looking for. It might be in our other pants.”

Chance, on the other hand, is still around. He releases his second album, Portraits, on March 15 and performs Saturday at The Vanguard in Tulsa. His first single, “Shut Up,” features a falsetto reminiscent of Justin Vernon on the chorus and a confident baritone on the verses. The video for “Shut Up” features couples with different sexual orientations and reflects the changes in Chance’s own life, having come out to friends and family at 16 and to Instagram in 2017.

“The song really only covers only one stage of love, the infatuation phase,” he said. “I wanted the video to showcase what happens after that, which is often a deeper sense of love but also the fights and the forgiveness process. I was very careful about the actors I wanted to choose, and I wanted it to resonate across the board. I wanted it to be inclusive and diverse, for people to watch it and see a little bit of everyone.

“I think being out has definitely made it easier to talk about these issues and bounce them off other people in a creative sense.”

With Portraits, Chance is looking to make a full reintroduction and will soon mount a global tour to promote his new music. This time out, everything will be on his own terms.

“I’m definitely not the same kid I used to be,” he said. “For me, this album truly feels like a debut.”

Greyson Chance 7 p.m. Saturday The Vanguard 222 N. Main, Tulsa thevanguardtulsa.com | 918-561-6885 $15-$45

LIVE MUSIC MENTAL/ELECTRONIC

These are events recommended

by Oklahoma Gazette editorial staff members. For full calendar listings, go to okgazette.com.

Mad Honey/Bunny Boy/Brooding, Classen Coffee Company. POP Watsky, Tower Theatre. POP

MONDAY, MAR. 11

WEDNESDAY, MAR. 6

Jason Hunt, Sean Cumming’s Irish Restaurant. FOLK

The Annie Oakley, Saints. FOLK

Stonecutters/Salems Bend/Mountain Tamer, Blue Note Lounge. METAL/ROCK

Elvis Depressedly/Nights/The Cordial Sins, 89th Street-OKC. ROCK

Violet & the Undercurrents, Red Brick Bar. ROCK

THURSDAY, MAR. 7 Arron Goodvin, JJ’s Alley Bricktown Pub. COUNTRY Clayton Roffey, Saints. JAZZ John 5/Jared James Nichols, 89th Street-OKC. ROCK Make Out Spot/High Dive/Tripsitters, The Deli.

ROCK/PUNK

Swim Fan/Private Island/Twinsmith, Opolis. ROCK

FRIDAY, MAR. 8 Buddy South/Ken Pomeroy/Cavern Company, KOSU Radio. ACOUSTIC Wiz Khalifa/Curren$y, The Criterion.

TUESDAY, MAR. 12 LCG & the X OKC’s LCG & the X has not released its debut album yet, but you can already buy it. A donation of $20 or more on the band’s gofundme.com page that is raising funds to cover production costs will get you a copy when it is finished. If you want a free sample first, you can also stream the unshakeable single “Runaway” or watch its wonderfully wackadoo music video. You should absolutely do all of these things and go see the band live because it’s exactly the kind of act you’ll want to brag that you knew about before everybody else. Dream poppers Softaware, Kite Flying Robot and Labrys (featuring Broncho’s Penny Pitchlynn) share the bill. The show starts 9 p.m. Friday at 51st Street Speakeasy, 1114 NW 51st St. Admission is $3. Call 405-463-0470 or visit 51stspeakeasy.com. FRIDAY Photo Ryan Magnani / provided

HIP-HOP

Chris Trapper, The Blue Door. SINGER/SONGWRITER

SATURDAY, MAR. 9

Creeping Toms/Amanda Howle, The Root. ROCK

Born in November, Sanctuary Barsilica. SOUL

DelektronidiscO, Bison Witches Bar & Deli. ELEC-

Clutch/Big Business/Inspector Cluzo, Diamond Ballroom. ROCK

DMX, Farmers Public Market. HIP-HOP

Jahruba & the Jah Mystics, Othello’s Italian Restaurant. REGGAE

TRONIC

Lost Highway/Plastic Smile, Blue Note Lounge.

ELECTRONIC

Mad Honey/Bad Jokes/Gloom Cruise, Sauced on Paseo. POP/ROCK

The Toasters, 89th Street-OKC. SKA

Mt. Joy/Widerado, Tower Theatre. FOLK

SUNDAY, MAR. 10 The Brother Brothers, Norman Santa Fe Depot.

FOLK

Grün Wasser/Laine/DJ Bi-Furious, Opolis. EXPERI-

Jared Cathey, The Blue Door. JAZZ Kyle Reid, Scratch Kitchen & Cocktails. SINGER/

SONGWRITER

WEDNESDAY, MAR. 13 Alexander Gregory/Maya’s Illusion/Bannister Chaava, The Root. SINGER-SONGWRITER/ACOUSTIC Amelia White, The Blue Door. SINGER/SONGWRITER

Live music 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 to listings@okgazette.com.

Sorry, but phone submissions cannot be accepted.

GO TO OKGAZETTE.COM FOR FULL LISTINGS!

The American Spirit Dance Company Jo Rowan, Director

Magic Mike

NIGHT

Broadway Revue Showtimes

Thurs. 3/7 Fri. 3/8 Sat. 3/9

8:00 p.m.

8:00 p.m.

2:00 & 8:00 p.m.

For Tickets Call (405) 208-5227 okcu.edu/tickets

All Seats $21.85 Group Rates Available

O KG A Z E T T E . C O M | M A R C H 6 , 2 0 1 9

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PUZZLES NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE CROSSWORD PUZZLE D.J.’S SPINNIN’ | 0310

By Tony Orbach and Andrea Carla Michaels Puzzles edited by Will Shortz ACROSS 1 Praline ingredients 7 Error at a bridge table 14 Graduated 20 Sci-fi classic made into a 2004 film

starring Will Smith 21 “Your money’s no good here” 22 Trig function 23 Strauss opera with the “Dance of

the Seven Veils” 24 Strains to hear, perhaps 25 Being affected by yeast 26 Vacuum-cleaner blockage?

28 Sign at a restricted area of the

Playboy Mansion?

30 San Joaquin Valley city 31 All-Star pitcher Severino 32 Some, in Sevilla 33 Not shipwrecked, say 34 Actor James 35 S .O. S. first responders 36 Where G.I.s shop 39 End of some lists 42 Driving through some off-road

terrain, say?

46 Moves around aimlessly 48 Ages and ages 49 Fix 50 Artist Joseph Wright’s “A View

of Catania With Mount ____ in the Distance” 51 “Who ____ kidding?”

52 Cheerios 55 This, e.g.

57 Letter opener?

58 San Francisco Giant, for example?

61 Yahoo alternative 64 Land and such 65 Land, to Livy 67 Like Samuel Beckett’s “Endgame” 70 Iranian money 72 Overly serious Irish dancers?

75 Tons 78 Name on a green toy truck 80 Stag 81 Individual’s segment of a 4 x 400 relay 82 Fur 83 Sicken with sweetness 85 Uncle Jorge, e.g.

86 Bergman or Borg 88 Write an order to replenish

inventory of Levi’s?

94 Alpine climber 95 Chummy pair?

96 Sitarist Shankar 97 Smackers 98 D.C. bigwigs 100 Suffix with billion 101 Memory problems 102 Garfield’s girlfriend in the comics 105 Throwaway vault at a gymnastics meet?

109 Shower gift for a Gemini baby?

112 Glaciologist’s concern 113 Native New Yorkers 115 Beep again 116 Back-and-forth 117 What a record collector might flip over 118 Like Cheerios vis-à-vis Corn Flakes 119 Divisions of the Westminster Dog Show 120 Launched 121 Hairnets

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69 Masonry, e.g.

71 Japanese room divider 73 Morlock victims, in sci-fi 74 X-ray ____ 75 Top 76 Fertile dirt 77 Twelvesome in “Gone With the Wind” 79 Spot 83 Tesla needs 84 Protective bank 85 48 in a cup: Abbr.

87 Figure out, informally 89 Prioritized in a hospital 90 Tree-lined walk 91 More chilly 92 About 4,200 feet, for the Golden

Gate Bridge 93 Caped fighters 99 Eddie Bauer rival

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Simple Food” 43 Jacob’s first wife

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100 Subside 101 Put the pedal to the metal 103 Mystery writer Marsh 104 Did a “rotten” Halloween trick on 105 Barry, Robin or Maurice of the Bee Gees 106 Rent-____ 107 French director Clair 108 Kind of stick for incense 109 Plain ____ 110 Imposed upon 111 Gen ____ (millennials) 114 Indicator of staccato, in music notation

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SUDOKU HARD | N° 8138

Fill in the grid so that every row, column and 3-by-3 box contains the numbers 1 through 9. www.printmysudoku.com

Tony Orbach is a construction manager and musician in Upper Montclair, N.J. Andrea Carla Michaels is a professional namer (of companies and products) in San Francisco. They worked together on this puzzle by email — bouncing theme ideas, crossword fill and clues back and forth.

Tony sneaked in Andrea’s favorite word at 75-Down. (Note her initials.)

This is their second collaboration for The Times. — W.S.

Stumped? Call 1-900-285-5656 to get the answers to any three clues by phone ($1.20 a minute).

SKULLDUGGERY LANE By Ingvard Ashby

NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE CROSSWORD PUZZLE ANSWERS

Puzzle No. 0303, which appeared in the Feb 27 issue.

C H E W D E V I S M A L L P A S S I M P G E A R S C R E T H E F Y E S S I S N N A A K I T L I F O O U R N M M A B O L L O T E N V

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B A L S A M

W A I S O T N S E S T N A R G E U S Y

A T T U N E D R R A T E D O V E R

C C A I O N O W N S S O L T Y U W L R O I T P L U M M T E A S N G T O O O I N T R E O D O F I F A T E F O E L N E W W H A E A S S P U

C R A D L E B M W T P S N E S T E D

L U B I F E L O N S E E I N D D A R G A A G I N G V O Y O R O T Y R I G A T S A D T A Y A R E L O A W

P R E T O R I A

W I P E

L I N G O E S A S P E R L E C T H S E K W

L I D E L I I L S U L M O R I D O N G L A I E T N G S I G E N I O N T P O E S O L A D A T T L E E W A R R O E O D D S L E E A F I N C H A I R S

S E T T L E R A N S T R A N D S P A

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY Homework:: Think of the last person you cursed, if only with a hateful thought if not an actual spell.

Now send them a free-hearted blessing.

ARIES (March 21-April 19)

Genius inventor Thomas Edison rebelled against sleep, which he regarded as wasteful. He tried to limit his time in bed to four hours per night so he would have more time to work during his waking hours. Genius scientist Albert Einstein had a different approach. He preferred ten hours of sleep per night, and liked to steal naps during the day, too. In my astrological opinion, Aries, you’re in a phase when it makes more sense to imitate Einstein than Edison. Important learning and transformation are happening in your dreams. Give your nightly adventures maximum opportunity to work their magic in your behalf.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20)

The Danish flag has a red background emblazoned with an asymmetrical white cross. It was a national symbol of power as early as the fourteenth century, and may have first emerged during a critical military struggle that established the Danish empire in 1219. No other country in the world has a flag with such an ancient origin. But if Denmark’s Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, who’s a Taurus, came to me and asked me for advice, I would urge him to break with custom and design a new flag— maybe something with a spiral rainbow or a psychedelic tree. I’ll suggest an even more expansive idea to you, Taurus: create fresh traditions in every area of your life!

GEMINI (May 21-June 20)

On June 7, 1988, Gemini musician Bob Dylan launched what has come to be known as the Never Ending Tour.

It’s still going. In the past 30+ years, he has performed almost 3,000 shows on every continent except Antarctica.

In 2018 alone, at the age of 77, he did 84 gigs. He’s living proof that not every Gemini is flaky and averse to commitment. Even if you yourself have flirted with flightiness in the past, I doubt you will do so in the next five weeks. On the contrary. I expect you’ll be a paragon of persistence, doggedness, and stamina.

CLASSIFIEDS

CANCER (June 21-July 22) The otters at a marine park in Miura City, Japan are friendly to human visitors. There are holes in the glass walls of their enclosures through which they reach out to shake people’s hands with their webbed paws. I think you need experiences akin to that in the coming weeks.

Your mental and spiritual health will thrive to the degree that you seek closer contact with animals. It’s a favorable time to nurture your instinctual intelligence and absorb influences from the natural world. For extra credit, tune in to and celebrate your own animal qualities.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22)

Between 1977 and 1992, civil war raged in Mozambique.

Combatants planted thousands of land mines that have remained dangerous long after the conflict ended. In recent years, a new ally has emerged in the quest to address the problem: rats that are trained to find the hidden explosives so that human colleagues can defuse them. The expert sniffers don’t weigh enough to detonate the mines, so they’re ideal to play the role of saviors. I foresee a metaphorically comparable development in your future, Leo. You’ll get help and support from a surprising or seemingly unlikely source.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)

Imagine a stairway that leads nowhere; as you ascend, you realize that at the top is not a door or a hallway, but a wall. I suspect that lately you may have been dealing with a metaphorical version of an anomaly like this. But I also predict that in the coming weeks some magic will transpire that will change everything. It’s like you’ll find a button on the wall that when pushed opens a previously imperceptible door. Somehow, you’ll gain entrance through an apparent obstruction.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)

Not all of the classic works of great literature are entertaining. According to one survey of editors, writers, and librarians, Goethe’s Faust, Melville’s Moby Dick, and Cervantes’ Don Quixote are among the most boring masterpieces ever written. But most experts agree that they’re still valuable to read. In that spirit, and in accordance with astrological omens, I urge you to commune with other dull but meaningful things. Seek out

CLASSIFIEDS

HOMES

JOBS

low-key but rich offerings. Be aware that unexciting people and situations may offer clues and catalysts that you need.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)

Many of you Scorpios regard secrecy as a skill worth cultivating. It serves your urge to gather and manage power.

You’re aware that information is a valuable commodity, so you guard it carefully and share it sparingly. This predilection sometimes makes you seem understated, even shy. Your hesitancy to express too much of your knowledge and feelings may influence people to underestimate the intensity that seethes within you. Having said all that, I’ll now predict that you’ll show the world who you are with more dazzle and flamboyance in the coming weeks. It’ll be interesting to see how you do that as you also try to heed your rule that information is power.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)

Sagittarian actress and producer Deborra-Lee Furness has been married to megastar actor Hugh Jackman for 23 years. Their wedding rings are inscribed with a motto that blends Sanskrit and English, “Om paramar to the mainamar.” Hugh and Deborah-Lee say it means “we dedicate our union to a greater source.” In resonance with current astrological omens, I invite you to engage in a similar gesture with an important person in your life. Now is a marvelous time to deepen and sanctify your relationship by pledging yourselves to a higher purpose or beautiful collaboration or sublime mutual quest.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

In 1997, a supercomputer named Deep Blue won six chess matches against Chess Grand Master Gary Kasparov. In 2016, an Artificial Intelligence called AlphaGo squared off against human champion Lee Sodol in a best-of-five series of the Chinese board game Go. AlphaGo crushed Sodol, four games to one. But there is at least one cerebral game in which human intelligence still reigns supreme: the card game known as bridge. No AI has as yet beat the best bridge players. I bring this to your attention, Capricorn, because I am sure that in the coming weeks, no AI could out-think and out-strategize you as you navigate your way through life’s tests and challenges. You’ll be smarter than ever. P.S.: I’m guessing your acumen will be extra soulful, as well.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)

At regular intervals, a hot stream of boiling water shoots up out of the earth and into the sky in Wyoming’s Yellowstone National Park. It’s a geyser called Old Faithful. The steamy surge can reach a height of 185 feet and last for five minutes. When white settlers first discovered this natural phenomenon in the nineteenth century, some of them used it as a laundry. Between blasts, they’d place their dirty clothes in Old Faithful’s aperture.

When the scalding flare erupted, it provided all the necessary cleansing. I’d love to see you attempt a metaphorically similar feat, Aquarius: harness a natural force for a practical purpose, or a primal power for an earthy task.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20)

Who was the model for Leonardo da Vinci’s iconic painting Mona Lisa? Many scholars think it was Italian noblewoman Lisa del Giocondo. Leonardo wanted her to feel comfortable during the long hours she sat for him, so he hired musicians to play for her and people with mellifluous voices to read her stories. He built a musical fountain for her to gaze upon and a white Persian cat to cuddle. If it were within my power, I would arrange something similar for you in the coming weeks. Why? Because I’d love to see you be calmed and soothed for a concentrated period of time; to feel perfectly at ease, at home in the world, surrounded by beautiful influences you love. In my opinion, you need and deserve such a break from the everyday frenzy.

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.

CLASSIFIEDS

HEALTH

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CLASSIFIEDS

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