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INSIDE COVER P. 4 Oklahoma Gazette checks in with teachers and parents to find out how Oklahoma City Public Schools’ Pathway to Greatness plan is going.

oct 4th

$ 35

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By Miguel Rios Cover by Ingvard Ashby

NEWS 4 COVER Pathway to Greatness update 7 STATE climate change

8 CITY The Theodore hotel 10 CHICKEN-FRIED NEWS

EAT & DRINK 12 REVIEW Coolgreens

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NEWS

Wayward path

With an overhauled school district, OKCPS leaders try to deal with issues arising early in the year. By Miguel Rios

It has been almost two months since classes began for Oklahoma City Public Schools (OKCPS) under Pathway to Greatness, which made this academic year vastly different than previous years for all involved.

Pathway to Greatness, a consolidation plan meant to save money while improving district equity and performance, led to 15 schools being closed, with most of those buildings already repurposed for other uses. Additionally, grade bands were made more consistent, feeder patterns were altered and some schools reconfigured to serve different grade levels.

That means thousands of students and employees are attending different schools with different peers and different programs.

Last year, OKCPS Teacher of the Year Christina Kirk taught at Rogers Middle School, but she now teaches at Star Spencer Mid-High School because of Pathway to Greatness. While there have been some difficulties, Kirk said teachers and administrators work hard to make the changes as positive as possible.

“Everyone has gotten behind it and tried to make the best out of it because ultimately, everything is done through the eyes of what’s best for our kids, what’s going to be best for the population of Oklahoma City Public Schools,” she said. “The kids are getting along where they fit in. They really have just embraced it. It’s their new norm, and kids are so much more adaptable than adults are. … The kids are leading.

Northeast Academy is now Classen School of Advanced Studies at Northeast due to Pathway to Greatness. | Photo Alexa Ace

They’re great examples of resilience.

“It was a lot for some people — the idea of changing so much at onetime — but it’s kind of like ripping a Band-Aid off. You do the shock, and then you fix it as you go. And we’ve had some great response from the district in terms of immediate responses to things that needed to be altered. So once we’re all coming together and we keep the fact that our kids and their education is the most important thing, everything else will figure itself out.”

Courtney Morton, OKCPS director of communications, said a media roundtable is planned for mid-October to provide an update, so they are currently not “doing any media” with superintendent Sean McDaniel related to Pathway to Greatness.

There’s a lot of problems. I don’t even know where to start. It’s just super frustrating.

Steven D’Avis

School ‘hiccups’

With so many changes to all district schools, issues have come up.

In early August, fights broke out at John Marshall Middle School, which resulted in an injured teacher. Two weeks into the school year, McDaniel replaced the school’s principal and, during a press conference to address the issue, said the school would have a

“reboot” of the schedule due to overcrowded classes.

“I actually went over to John Marshall Middle School, and I spent hours over there,” Kirk said. “I was just letting the teachers know, ‘Hey, your Teacher of the Year supports you. Your Teacher of the Year cares about you, and if there’s anything that you need from me, then let me know.’ … The way that Pathway to Greatness is going to succeed is with all of us working together.”

Kirk said Star Spencer has not had as many issues as other schools. However, since Pathway to Greatness altered school grade bands, Star Spencer remained the only mid-high left in the district. This creates timing issues when it comes to students that play middle school sports because Star Spencer students are on high school hours, so they are released an hour and a half before middle schools.

“For us, that’s probably been our biggest hiccup,” she said. “But even with the schools that had more hiccups than us, those hiccups were immediately addressed. It’s one of those things where

OKCPS Teacher of the Year Christina Kirk, a Star Spencer Mid-High School teacher, said Pathway to Greatness created more collaboration between teachers. | Photo Miguel Rios

you can do all the planning in the world and there’s always going to be something that didn’t get covered or something that got left out.”

But Steven D’Avis, a parent of two OKCPS students, refers to the plan as “Pathway to Destruction” because he feels it actually made schools worse. He doesn’t feel like the district has successfully solved many issues that arose at the beginning of the school year.

“My next door neighbors literally moved and sold their house because they knew that this was going to be such a disaster, and they were right. They moved up to Edmond,” D’Avis said. “We can’t do that. My family can’t afford to do that. … I would sell my house and move in a heartbeat.”

Both of D’Avis’s children have special learning needs, so he’s actually trying to find a private school that can better serve his daughter.

Transportation problems

D’Avis said one of the biggest issues is the bus routes and lack of drivers. A Facebook page for OKCPS parents also reflects this, with several posts from parents about children missing classes due to a late or completely absent bus.

D’Avis said his children didn’t make it to school on time for the first couple weeks.

“There were days that my junior high son was picked up at 11 or 12 o’clock to go to school, which started at 9 a.m.,” D’Avis said. “He had advisory first hour, so it wasn’t a big issue, but last week, they changed his schedule to where he had math the first hour. That becomes an issue because my son has learning disabilities in math and reading. … We’re a couple months in school, and he still isn’t getting any of the extra help he’s supposed to.”

D’Avis has spoken with the transporcontinued on page 6

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NEWS OKCPS superintendent Sean McDaniel told media in early August that the district still needed special education teachers and bus drivers. | Photo Miguel Rios

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tation department, which now sends a bus to pick up his son before other students and make sure he makes it to class on time. While he appreciates the accommodation, he said that particular solution seems like a waste of resources.

D’Avis attended the various community meetings at which parents asked specifically about bus routes and said they were told the district would be prepared.

“They said that they had a plan,” he said. “We couldn’t see that part of the plan, but they said they had it handled.

Now, last year, we knew they were short bus drivers, so busing that many kids, we didn’t see how they were going to fix it. … Mr. McDaniel said they had a plan, but that was a lie because they’re still short close to 40 bus drivers from what I understand. … I don’t feel like he listened to anything that we said. I don’t think he cared how we felt.”

Shortly before classes began Aug. 12, McDaniel updated media on the progress of Pathway to Greatness. He said they were still looking for special education teachers and bus drivers for the estimated 120 routes.

Path forward

“There’s a lot of problems. I don’t even know where to start. It’s just super frus-

trating, and I’m trying to get my children what they need for the education that they’re supposed to be getting in a public school,” D’Avis said.

Because Pathway to Greatness overhauled the entire district and made many changes at once, D’Avis doesn’t see how they could fix all the issues efficiently.

“We asked them to do [Pathway to Greatness] on a smaller scale so that if there were problems, they could fix that.

But because [McDaniel] didn’t do that, I don’t really know what they can do to fix

this,” he said. “I don’t see any short-term repair for this because they did it on such a large scale. I mean, you can’t go back and open up schools and move half the kids. So what do you do? … Even if we get school board members voted out of office and put new members in, they still have to take a long time to fix this.”

Kirk maintained that it would take everybody working together to see the true benefits of Pathway to Greatness and said that, even then, it would take longer than a year.

“For parents, the No. 1 thing, I would say, is get involved; become a fixture at your child’s school. Every school, even middle school and high school, we still need parental support,” Kirk said. “We still need parents to come in and just show their face or mentor or assist teacher because there’s a lot that we could use that assistance for. So for those parents that are still concerned and may have some worries from things that they’ve seen on the news or the stories they may have seen on Facebook or things like that, get involved because there’s nothing like firsthand information. And if you’re there and you’re a part of it, then you know exactly what’s going on in your child’s school.”

Jace Kirk, District 7 board of education member, announced his resignation Sept. 9. Applications are being accepted for his position through Nov. 1.

OKCPS officials will appoint a candidate to fill the vacancy by Dec. 8. That person will serve until an election in 2021. The winner of the election will serve until February 2022.

District 7 schools include Lee Elementary, Cesar Chavez Elementary, Southeast Middle School, Capitol Hill High School and Southeast High School.

Visit okcps.org.

Hell is for Snowballs.

The climate is changing and our next generation is stepping up to speak truth to fossil-fueled grandstanding. It’s time to act, and OKG will continue to be Oklahoma’s news source unafraid to call bullshit on science deniers.

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S TAT E

Hundreds of Oklahomans took to downtown last week as part of the global youth climate strike to call attention to the climate crisis. | Photo provided

Changing conditions

While Oklahoma already reckons with effects of climate change, a primarily youth-led movement seeks sweeping reform to address the crisis. By Miguel Rios

Ninety-seven percent of climatologists agree that human activities result in a warming climate. That’s why late last month, hundreds of Oklahomans took to downtown as part of the global youth climate strike.

Now, lead organizers of Oklahoma’s strike are rebranding their efforts to push for more revolutionary reforms.

Matthew Salcido, a former youth climate strike state lead, has a tattoo that reads, “liberate, agitate, revolt” — his general strategy for successful organizing.

“First, we need to liberate the folks who are being disproportionately affected by climate change and who can’t fight the battle against the climate crisis because they’re too busy surviving everyday things like flooding, like food scarcity and like water availability,” he said. “Then we need to get people agitated about the climate crisis by educating them on what the effects of climate change will look like in their communities. … Then the last thing is revolt, and I think that’s a word people are scared to use. But sans revolution, the planet as we know it will no longer exist.

Everything we do fundamentally and structurally as a nation has to change if we hope to continue at all. There is no tomorrow without revolution.”

While the climate strike movement brings more attention to the climate crisis, Salcido said there is a lot more work that needs to be done. Salcido, along with Gant Roberson, another former climate strike state lead, are using the momentum from the strike to launch Enviro Justice OK, an “anticapitalist, anti-fascist” organization demanding more action to address climate change.

“We’re going to file for our nonprofit status and hopefully the following that was interested in youth climate strike will just follow us over,” Salcido said. “There was a little bit of hesitancy from the local team because I think people are scared of saying things like, ‘We are anti-capitalist.’ … But, frankly, the climate problem is so pervasive, that the answer is going to have to be an answer that overwhelms us. Any kind of answer that doesn’t shock or surprise us is probably not going far enough.”

There is no tomorrow without revolution.

Matthew Salcido Salcido encourages people who are passionate about environmental justice work to join Sierra Club of Oklahoma.

They can also follow the new organization on Twitter and Instagram (@envirojusticeok).

‘Political divide’

Salcido said the public needs to start having tough, uncomfortable conversations, particularly with elected officials, about big local corporations like Devon Energy and Chesapeake Energy.

“Anti-capitalist work is going to look like, specifically here in Oklahoma, is having harder conversations about what regulations are going to look like on corporations that are large carbon emitters,” Salcido said. “We have Devon, we have Chesapeake, we have Chase — these are all corporations that have a vested interest in doing something that hurts

us. What hurts us is that they pollute freely with little to no consequences and with no financial penalties.”

While climatologists overwhelmingly agree on and support the evidence of climate change on a purely scientific basis, the conversation is political to some who deny the evidence and instead call it a hoax. For example, Oklahoma Sen. James Inhofe, who notably brought a snowball to the Senate floor in 2015 as an attempt to discredit global warming, spent last week “recognizing some of the most notable climate hypocrites” on Twitter.

But a thermometer won’t give you a different number based on how you vote, said Dr. Barb Mayes Boustead, alluding to a common maxim from award-winning atmospheric scientist Katharine Hayhoe.

“The data that comes from our temperature records are the same no matter who looks at it, and it shows the same story of temperature changes and weather pattern changes through the years,” said Mayes Boustead, a meteorologist and climatologist serving as an instructor at National Weather Service in Norman.

Climate change is a complicated issue that requires a lot of layers of society to address. However, the first step is to accept that there is a problem that requires deviation from the status quo, which she said can be hard for people with particular worldviews.

“That’s where this political divide really stems from. It’s not a matter of people being dumb or smart about science,” she said.

“It’s a matter of making our very scientific observations fall in line with what we want our worldview to be, and that is a really difficult leap in some circumstances. … It’s hard to convince somebody to change that which their livelihood depends on. Well, what does a lot of our livelihood in Oklahoma depend on? Oil and gas. So it’s very natural that there’s a lot of resistance to understanding and accepting the evidence of climate change.”

Effects in Oklahoma

Climate change affects everything from infrastructure to vegetation to how far diseases can spread, Mayes Boustead said. She said it’s difficult to find an area of society that would not be affected by climate change.

“There are five key takeaways about climate change: it’s real, it’s us, we’re certain, it’s more bad than good — a lot more bad than good — and we can still fix it,” she said. “By bad I mean two things. I mean expensive. First of all, climate change will be very, very expensive — it already is, and it will continue to be. And it will cause casualties.”

Climate change already underlies every weather event that happens, Mayes Boustead said. However, it takes a long time to be able to pick apart the exact impact on weather patterns.

Oklahoma City’s climate is now very similar to what it used to be 30-40 years ago by the Red River.

“And in about 50 years, if we keep changing on the current track, the climate in Oklahoma City is going to look a lot more like what it is in Houston right now. If this is the climate you really love that we have here right now, you’re going to have to go all the way up to about Lincoln or Omaha, Nebraska, to follow it in 50 or 60 years,” Mayes Boustead said. “The coldest locations are changing the fastest, so for example, the poles are changing faster than the equator. The coldest times of year, so winter, is warming faster than summer.”

Oklahoma’s winter outlook depends on various factors, but Mayes Boustead said there is a tilt toward this winter being warmer than normal. In terms of severe weather, the research as it relates to climate change is still in its infancy.

However, Mayes Boustead said scientists look at trends in environments that support tornados.

“Researchers are starting to see some of the tornado trends,” she said.

“For example, later winter to early spring tornado activity may be increasing a bit, but the activity is cutting off a little earlier than it used to. Here in Oklahoma, it is the bull’s-eye of tornado activity for the country, and it’s always going to be. But some other parts of the country are getting an increase of tornado activity, where this area might be getting a decrease.”

Matthew Salcido hopes people become more willing to demand sweeping reforms to save the planet. | Photo provided

Mayes Boustead and Salcido said changes have to happen at national and global scales to truly address the issue as a human species. However, Mayes Boustead said there are small things people can do every day to reduce their carbon footprint, like carpooling, eating less meat and relying slightly less on A/C and heating.

“I want people to give themselves a little forgiveness for what we have to do to live our lives but at the same time look for the opportunities that would be healthier for the environment,” she said. “I’d like to steer people toward well-researched sources of information about climate change, and one of the best of those is climate.gov. You also have information at noaa.gov and nasa.gov. … You’ll notice I didn’t once use the phrase ‘believe in climate change,’ and I hope you don’t either because it’s not a belief system. It’s evidence.”

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

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NEWS

School hotel

A development proposal would convert a former school into a boutique hotel destination. By Miguel Rios

The former Oklahoma City Public Schools (OKCPD) administration building could be restored and converted into an entertainment and hospitality concept.

Three different proposals were submitted for redevelopment of the building at 900 N. Klein Ave., which also formerly housed Roosevelt Junior High School. Oklahoma City Redevelopment Authority recommended The Theodore, a hotel concept from development group Carpathia, be selected.

“The historic property will become a welcoming, school-themed hotel with a pool, performance space, and three food and beverage concepts. The other administration building will become a creative workspace with open floors ideal for local businesses,” reads Carpathia’s proposal. “The hotel at The Theodore will blend historic architecture with contemporary finishes, playfully emphasizing the property’s scholastic heritage. The Theodore’s restaurants and nightlife will provide a range of accessible to exotic cuisines, from New American to ethnic fusion to local beer.”

The building’s redevelopment would be taken on by a team of mostly local companies. Carpathia, a newly formed group, would be the developer, and McNellie’s Group would serve as operator. Mass Architects is the design company and Ross Group is the construction company.

Rosin Preservation will serve as the historical consultant, and while it is based in Kansas City, it has consulted on more than 20 Oklahoma projects.

Oklahoma City Redevelopment Authority recommended the OKCPS board of education pursue Carpathia’s proposal. | Photo provided

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Representatives from Carpathia and McNellie’s Group did not respond to requests for comment.

The proposal

There are two structures on the property; the main building would become a 109-room hotel, while the smaller building on the property would be future creative space. The project will also include at least three food and beverage concepts, retail and office spaces, performance space and a pool lounge.

“Not only will our redevelopment create a unique boutique hotel, unparalleled gastropubs, a brewery, performance space, and year-round pool club,”

reads the proposal, “it will also provide business travelers and family tourists market rates in close proximity to the Arts, Plaza, and Midtown districts.”

The proposal emphasizes accessibility to accommodate “visitors of all backgrounds and abilities.” The group intends to make several structural changes to add a second elevator and construct walkways and lifts. Six design objectives are listed in the proposal: destination creation, adaptive reuse, street-level pedestrian engagement, high quality, sustainability and flexibility.

“Hotel rooms on the third and fourth floor will be developed with the capacity of becoming multi-family apartments if the local market demands it,” according to the proposal. “The performance space will have a sound system and retained stage that allows the venue to serve as a movie theater, community meeting space, concert venue, or lecture hall.”

Carpathia expects it will take at least three public hearings to discuss the scope of the project and other logistics.

The former OKCPS administration building at 900 N. Klein Ave. has been vacant for years, but a development proposal could mean restoration into a hotel. | Photo Alexa Ace

After that, it anticipates a 180-day preconstruction phase and approximately 18 months of construction.

“Given the amenities that will be provided at The Theodore and the amenities of the nearby area, we have determined that our market rate will be $130 per night and our average occupancy will be 68 percent,” according to the proposal. “The redevelopment team anticipates a stabilized occupancy by year two.”

The group hopes to open The Theodore by January 2022.

However, Oklahoma City Public Schools board of education must approve the proposal before Carpathia moves forward. The board’s next meeting is 5:30 Monday at Metro Tech Conference Center Auditorium, 1900 Springlake Drive.

Other proposals

Far Wespen, a New York investment group, and developer Marva Ellard also submitted their own proposals for the property.

Far Wespen already owns property adjacent to the building, so it would develop the two properties as a whole. That would entail renovating the building into residential units and amenity space. Ultimately, the group would create more affordable housing units, retired teachers’ housing, senior housing, commercial offices and commercial/retail space in the two properties.

Ellard’s proposal would restore and adapt the historic school into “multifamily residential” with the main building “as a central hub.” The project would include construction on a new four-story residential building atop a parking structure and construction of seven “contemporary bungalows.”

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chicken

friedNEWS

Mullet over

Free the nipple

A ruling out of the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver has set a precedent that is sure to result in a lot of pearl-grabbing while screaming, “Won’t somebody please think of the children.”

It’s now legal for women to go topless in Oklahoma, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Kansas and New Mexico — the states under the jurisdiction of the 10th Circuit Court — after the city of Fort Collins has decided it won’t appeal the lower court’s decision to end the prohibition of public exposure of breasts by women and girls over 10 years old to the U.S. Supreme Court, according to NBC News.

The decision is a victory for Free the Nipple, an international group pushing for women’s equality. The 10th Circuit Court made its decision based on “negative stereotypes depicting women’s breasts,

When a reporter asked a flippant question about recently deceased oil billionaire T. Boone Pickens during a teleconference interview last month, Oklahoma State football coach Mike Gundy wasn’t having it.

“Don't hurt the real journalism world,” Gundy said. “It's jackasses like you that cause problems, OK? They shouldn't even let you call in.”

Gundy’s response was aimed at Austin reporter Mark Rosner, who asked whether Pickens, the namesake of OSU’s football stadium who donated hundreds of millions of dollars to the university, had bequeathed Gundy a barbershop gift card so he could get his infamous mullet cut. The angry retort predictably made headlines, but it’s notably not an actual answer but a “fake news”-style deflection. Based on Gundy’s 2007 “I’m a man, I’m 40” press conference rant, we know that he doesn’t read the newspaper “because it’s garbage,” but in case he really does have a $30 Supercuts credit burning a hole in his pocket, we’d like to offer a few suggestions for different but equally distractingly ridiculous-looking ’dos: a mohawk, a faux-hawk, the Rachel from Friends, the Kid ’n Play, the Guy Fieri, the 1800s president haircut that’s a handlebar mustache connected to mutton chops.

Gundy said he felt Rosner’s question was disrespectful to Pickens, but in the reporter’s defense, he was only referencing a social media joke and not an actual legacy-tarnishing Pickens incident, such as the time the energy tycoon, corporate raider and unapologetic Trump supporter donated $2 million to help finance the “swift boat” attack ads seeking to discredit John Kerry’s military service during the 2004 election or the 2007 op-ed Pickens wrote for National Review endorsing Rudy “Truth isn’t truth” Giuliani for president. You might call it business in the front, morally dubious party politics in the back, but maybe don’t say that to Gundy.

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but not men’s breasts, as sex objects.”

The city of Fort Collins argued that it didn’t want women “parading in front of elementary schools or swimming topless in the public pool,” which seems like the kind of thing that would only happen out of protest if they didn’t change the law. Denver and Boulder allow female toplessness and have had no such cases, according to NBC. Oklahoma City hasn’t made a statement on the precedent set by the 10th Circuit Court, which is at odds with rulings from other appeals courts on the matter. The U.S. Supreme Court will announce later this year if it will hear a case out of New Hampshire that challenges top-less prohibition in other states.

Church in state

Fresh off his, uh, “win” in the historic opioid trial, Oklahoma attorney general Mike Hunter is now leading a fight against the Montana Supreme Court.

Along with a coalition of state attorney generals and governors from 18 other states, Hunter wants U.S.

L LINDA RONSTADT: THE SOUND OF MY VOICE

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Ronstadt is our guide through growing up in Tucson singing Mexican canciones with her family; her folk days with the Stone Poneys; and her reign as the “queen of country rock” in the ‘70s and early ‘80s.

MOONLIGHT SONATA:

Deafness in Three Movements

Director Irene Taylor Brodsky once again turns the camera on her deaf parents and, now, her 11-year-old deaf son Jonas, who has cochlear implants and is discovering a profound world of hearing and music.

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MISTER AMERICA

An extension of the cult Adult Swim show, “On Cinema” , follows Tim Heidecker’s delusional attempt to enter the world of politics. Fueled by ego and ignorance, he tried to surmount a lack of experience, funds and likability by personally connecting with unsuspecting constituents. It does not go well.

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Supreme Court to overturn a Montana Supreme Court decision that required the state to exclude religious school options for parents participating in a state tax credit scholarship program.

Well, forget separation of church and state because the coalition is essentially asking the court to force the state to underwrite religious education with taxpayer dollars.

“The ruling by the Montana Supreme Court discriminates against and punishes parents who choose to send their children to religious schools,” Hunter said. “If upheld, it has far-reaching consequences that could threaten school choice programs na-

tionwide, depriving religious, low-income and disabled children of a quality education of their choice.”

The ruling most definitely does not discriminate or punish parents who want their children to go to a religious school. It just doesn’t force taxpayer money to indirectly provide aid for religious education, which is against the Montana constitution and our own.

“No public money or property shall ever be appropriated, applied, donated, or used, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit, or support of any sect, church, denomination, or system of religion, or for the use, benefit, or support of any priest, preacher, minister, or other religious teacher or dignitary, or sectarian institution as such,” according to Section II-5 of the Oklahoma Constitution.

Unfortunately, religious schools are overwhelmingly more likely to participate in the kinds of programs in question, including the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarship Program, which gives scholarships to students with disabilities.

We’re all for students getting the education they need to best serve their unique learning styles, but how about going about it in a constitutional way?

Or better yet, how about funding public schools so they can become robust institutions that can accommodate a myriad of students with different learning needs?

WATERFALL FE ST IVA L

310 SW 1st St., Moore, OK 73160

OCT. 4th -5th 2019

Fr i-Sat 9 : 0 0 am - 9 : 0 0 pm

COME ENJOY FREE ADMISSION FOOD TRUCKS BREWERIES WINE TASTINGS CHARITY RAFFLES LIVE ENTERTAINMENT FUR BABIES

Come stroll through multiple waterfall displays, listen to live music, eat good food from popular food trucks, taste wine and brew from local wineries and breweries! Take a chance to win from our charity raffle. All proceeds will be donated to The Central Oklahoma Humane Society. Come Join in on the fun! What could be better than fur babies, live music, waterfalls, food, and drinks?

Benefits:

FOR MORE INFO: www.OKwaterfallfestival.com @OKCwaterfallfestival ®

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REVIEW

EAT & DRINK

Salad days As Coolgreens expands its regional footprint, it’s still providing healthy options with customer service in mind. By Jacob Threadgill

Coolgreens 6475 Avondale Drive coolgreens.com | 405-841-2665 WHAT WORKS: Salad customization and grain bowls provide protein without being heavy on calories.

WHAT NEEDS WORK: Flatbreads aren’t as appealing in big portions.

TIP: The build-your-own salad option now includes unlimited toppings.

Coolgreens is the latest Oklahoma Citybased restaurant concept to expand its wings regionally, joining the likes of Orange Leaf frozen yogurt and some of Hal Smith Restaurant Group’s most popular brands by pushing not only into Texas but also Nebraska and as far away as the Boston area.

Last year, Coolgreens opened in Tulsa, and it is in the process of opening its second store in South Lake, Texas; a third in Richardson/Plano; and will expand to Omaha, Nebraska, and Waltham, Massachusetts, by early 2020 as it talks with potential franchisees in Dallas and Houston.

“There’s excitement, nervousness and so much happening,” said Todd Madlener, vice president of operations for Coolgreens, while seated in its flagship Nichols Hills location at 6475 Avondale Drive, which is one of six metro area locations. “How many companies can say they’re going to double or triple in size over a year?”

Adding locations isn’t the only thing that has changed at Coolgreens this year. The company pared down its potential salad toppings from 55 to 35, gave customers an unlimited amount of salad additions and added a kiosk ordering system for its employees and a mobile ordering app, all with an eye to decrease customer wait time.

“We know that we took away some people’s favorite topping, but there was a science to it,” Madlener said. “We took away the 15 lowest performing toppings and kept the top 35. We’ll reevaluate at the end of the year. … [Going to unlimited The salmon club served on marble rye bread | Photo provided

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toppings] hasn’t been a [financial] impact to us, and it’s been a positive because guests can get down the line quicker.”

Another way Coolgreens is looking to reduce wait times — especially during its busy lunch hours — is the addition of vending machines that will dispense premade salads and wraps. The company did a beta program during this year’s Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City with two machines that Madlener said were a “rousing success.”

The company will add a vending machine to its downtown location in the coming months, and it’s in talks to add them at standalone locations downtown as well as on campus at University of Central Oklahoma. Salads are served in jars with a ramekin of dressing on top so that customers unscrew the lid, add a desired amount of dressing, reapply the lid, shake and eat. The vending machines are designed to shut down if the internal temperature rises above 40 degrees Fahrenheit, and individual slots are designed not to sell if a product is expired.

We know that we took away some people’s favorite topping, but there was a science to it.

Todd Madlener I know that I certainly would have liked the option to get a salad when studying late in college rather than relying on pizza delivery, and I wish more offices installed vending machines with healthy options rather than the standard unhealthy and insatiating candy bars and chips. Madlener said the vending machine should be operational at the 204 N. Robinson Ave. location by the end of October.

In early 2019, Coolgreens unveiled new menu items devised in part by consulting chef Vuong Nguyen, who owns Ur/Bun and Café de l’Asie in The

Collective food hall. The biggest menu overhaul impact occurred in the quinoa bowl section, where three new bowls (Sweet Kale, The G.O.A.T. and Sesame Crisp) were added to the already-successful California bowl.

On a recent visit, I tried the Sweet Kale that includes a red quinoa and brown rice blend, roasted sweet potatoes, kale, red onion and red pepper and checks in at only 180 calories, thanks in part to the use of an oil-free avocado and cilantro dressing. I enjoyed the flavor of the dressing, but the lack of oil made it difficult to evenly distribute throughout the bowl. It’s kind of like smearing guacamole throughout the bowl, but it’s a small inconvenience for so few calories.

During a visit with Madlener, he made a preview version of a seasonal bowl that includes diced chicken breast, kale, carrots, almonds and cranberry mixed with farro, which would be a new addition for the menu. Coolgreens is still testing things out, but we’re currently overexposed to quinoa. Although farro doesn’t have as much protein per serving as quinoa, it has a healthy dosage for a grain and comes with an additional nutty flavor and heafty bite. I hope farro is added to the menu full-time.

Madlener said sandwiches are selling more since the menu change, and in markets in Texas, sandwiches are actually outselling salads, which isn’t the case in Oklahoma.

“We’re in a nice middle ground because we’re not a Salata or Sweetgreen that are only salads and bowls,” he said.

He admitted that the salmon club was poten-

The Sweet Kale bowl checks in at just 150 calories, thanks to the use of an oil-free avocado dressing. | Photo provided

tially on the chopping block for when the new menu debuted, but they kept the item on the menu, and it has outperformed expectations. I ordered the club and thought it was a nice option for a fast-casual restaurant. It pales in size comparison to one of Coolgreens’ huge wraps, and that’s by design. At first, I thought I might have ordered a half sandwich with the Sweet Kale bowl, but Madlener said that the marble rye bread is cut to fit the six-ounce portion of salmon.

“If you used a full piece of the marble rye, the first few bites, you aren’t getting any salmon,” he said. “I’m buying that sandwich for the salmon, and that’s what we want to showcase. The rye is trimmed for size, but it also reduces calories and fat.”

The expedited ordering process is a win for customers at Coolgreens, and I’m a fan of menu additions except the f latbread options. I don’t go to Coolgreens to get a version of pizza, especially when it’s a higher calorie content than its other items. I think the flatbreads would work better as an appetizer that could serve as a vehicle for some fresh greens after it’s baked with a little bit of cheese.

It’s exciting to see the expansion Coolgreens is undergoing, and it’s good to know that a concept from Oklahoma City is focused on providing healthy options from the heart of cattle and fried food country.

Visit coolgreens.com.

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Urban Teahouse celebrates 10 years of providing flavorful, healthy whole-leaf blends and pours.

By Jacob Threadgill

For the first time in a decade, Urban Teahouse’s owner arrives for a meeting fresh off doing some volunteer work with Restore OKC, a nonprofit working to bridge the city’s poverty gap.

After opening Urban Teahouse at its original location at May and Grand avenues 10 years ago and opening its current location at 519 NW 23rd St. in 2015, Kristy Jennings finally felt like the store would survive if she takes some time to give back to the community.

“It’s a nice milestone that I can leave,” Jennings said. “When I got to January of this year, I realized that I wanted to do something and not just work every day.”

She has been a member of Restore OKC’s board for a few years but finally has the time to work hands-on, like her recent visit to a community garden.

“It’s reciprocal giving, for sure,” Jennings said.

It makes sense since Jennings has been the city’s leading advocate for the taste benefits of whole dried tea leaves compared to its commercial bagged variety and of the health benefits of tea compared to coffee.

Kristy Jennings is the owner of Urban Teahouse. | Photo Alexa Ace

“Regular tea bags are ground up, not as fresh and don’t taste as strong,” Jennings said. “It’s better quality, and you can tell when you drink it. If you buy from a big company, it has to sit in a warehouse and truck, but with me, the supply chain is so much shorter.

We have so many people that come in and say, ‘I’ve never had tea that tastes as strong.’ I don’t make the tea; I’m just a purveyor that is good at finding it.”

Urban Teahouse celebrates its 10th anniversary with a party 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Saturday as a way to honor past employees and regular and new customers. Jennings said there will be games and giveaways during the celebration.

The teahouse has a wide array of tea options, everything from traditional chamomile to blends like Pitta, which is lemongrass, mint, raspberry leaves, cardamom, licorice, mallow and rose petals. There are savory and sweet mixtures, like black tea with caramel pieces or black tea with cocoa beans and chili pepper pieces.

Jennings’ customer base has expanded in recent years, as more people are looking for an alternative to coffee

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F E AT U R E

— something that provides a metabolism boost without the harsh effects on the stomach.

“People are more aware of things like matcha and how much caffeine it has and how much more focus they achieve,” Jennings said. “It’s super-focused energy and not scattered and fuzzy energy.”

Matcha has one of the highest levels of antioxidants on the market and is especially high in epigallocatechine gallate (EGCG) , the antioxidant that fights inflammation and helps maintain healthy arteries, according to Healthline. It also provides a caffeine boost that lasts three to four hours, compared to the crash of coffee.

Jennings said she isn’t one to overpromise on the health benefits of tea, lamenting how often she is asked for a specific weight loss tea, but notes that all teas are a good source of antioxidants, which fight against diseasecreating free radicals.

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that use tea rather than juice or sodabased mixers. ”Bartenders are crazy creative,” Jennings said. “I love those guys’ brains, and they don’t just use the tea; they’ll make a tincture with it or infuse the tea without using the heat process because the alcohol naturally extracts the flavor.”

Jennings’ mother instilled a love of tea in her at an early age. She said a semester

I don’t make the tea; I’m just a purveyor that is good at finding it.

Kristy Jennings abroad in Europe increased her interest in tea, but she didn’t really start to embrace drinking it again until her career in mental health work with a background in psychology.

“It was a comfort thing to start the day,” she said. “I never got into coffee because it’s harsh for me and my stom-

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The blend of tulsi mint is great for sore throats and respiratory issues. Tulsi, or Holy Basil, as it is known in India, is revered as an immune support herb. The blend also includes spearmint, rose hips, lemon myrtle and linden blossoms.

“I’m pretty conservative when people ask for weight loss tea,” Jennings said.

“All tea is really good for you and boosts your metabolism as long as it has caffeine. Americans want to be told what to do, and that’s not how it works. I do it carefully and thoughtfully. We have people going through cancer treatment and things like that. Ginger and mint helps soothe the stomach, but I just don’t overpromise because some people can go crazy with it.”

In the last year, Urban Teahouse has added online ordering to its website.

Jennings said it has helped with customers who are away at college and has made it easier for her more than 30 wholesale clients to reorder product.

She lists coffee shops, salons, restaurants and bars among businesses stocking her products, but it is the use of tea in cocktails that gets her most excited.

Bars like nearby Ponyboy, Bunker Club and The Pump Bar offer cocktails

Whole-leaf tea provides more flavor than the bagged variety. | Photo Alexa Ace

ach’s more sensitive.”

After working in the mental health field for 18 years, she decided to look for a change. She worked with an alternative therapist for more than a year and credits the Richard Nelson Bolles self-help book What Color Is Your Parachute? for helping her find her new career.

“It’s for people who need a fresh perspective on how to know what you’re innately good at and not just what you’re good at because it’s what you’ve been doing for 18 years,” she said. “That’s where most of us are when we get to the age of 35.”

Visit urban-teahouse.com.

Urban Teahouse anniversary party 10 a.m.- 2 p.m. Saturday Urban Teahouse 519 NW 23rd St. urban-teahouse.com | 405-606-7005

F E AT U R E

EAT & DRINK

Craft Capital

Social Capital’s love of craft beer does not end with its 120 taps, as beer-can pulled chicken and beer ice cream highlight its food menu. By Jacob Threadgill

As guests arrived at the grand opening of the first phase of Scissortail Park in downtown Oklahoma City, Social Capital was ready to offer the city’s largest commitment to independent craft beer with an inventive food menu.

Founded by Community through Beer LLC, the same group behind The Patriarch Craft Beer House & Lawn in Edmond, Social Capital, 517 S. Hudson Ave., celebrated its grand opening Sept.

21 after a two-year process that transformed an old filling station and transmission shop into a 30,000 square-foot space with multiple patios, two kitchens and 120 beers on tap.

Community through Beer is the product of friends who bonded at church through a love of craft beer, said co-owner Brad Mullenix. They opened The Patriarch as a side project and a labor of love because they wanted the city to have more craft beer options.

Social Capital expands on the concept started by The Patriarch but adds more dining options and more taps.

Mullenix left his full-time job in the oil and gas field to work with The Patriarch full-time and find its next location. Community through Beer took over the space that is now Social Capital two years ago with the idea of getting it ready for Scissortail Park’s grand opening weekend.

Outside The Patriarch and Oak & Ore, Mullenix said there isn’t another concept in the city that offers a 100 percent selection of independent craft beer.

“Even five years ago when we opened The Patriarch, we had only 13 Oklahoma breweries,” Mullenix said. “We’ve lost one (Mustang Brewing Company), and we’ve gained 25 more. It’s crazy how it’s blown up.”

Social Capital celebrated its grand opening with all 120 taps pouring Social Capital is located on Hudson Avenue, across from the western edge of Scissortail Park. | Photo Alexa Ace

Oklahoma beer, but that selection will add out-of-state brewing as long as they’re independently owned and haven’t sold a portion of their businesses to a large brewing company.

“I think Oklahoma’s brewing scene per capita is one of the best in the country,” Mullenix said. “We’re supporting people we know that are in a 15-block radius of here. We’d rather put money in their pockets than somebody who has sold out of Anheuser-Busch or Coors or whatever.”

Oklahoma’s craft beer scene was the third fastest growing in the country between 2015 and 2018, according to C+R research, and there is still plenty of room to grow. The overall market share for craft beer in the country is just over 13 percent, according to Brewers Association. Mullenix said Oklahoma’s market share for craft beer is still well under 5 percent.

“It’s happening slowly,” Mullenix said.

“Places that were medium-sized like COOP [Ale Works] are now getting grocery distribution deals and see them highlighted on the shelves instead of Bud Light.”

At Social Capital, large digital screens display the day’s beer selection complete with its origin and alcohol by volume to allow customers to choose from such a wide selection. The focus is on the beer and conversation. There are no large television screens, except for big sporting events, and Social Capital doesn’t offer complimentary Wi-Fi access because they want people off their phones and meeting people.

Its non-beer alcoholic offerings extend to five white wines, three red wines and a collection of house cocktails that focus on gin. It also offers standard cocktails like margarita, Manhattan and Moscow Mule, plus drinks made by customer request.

“All of us owners really like gin,” Mullenix said. “We drink beer 95 percent of the time, and it seems like if it’s not bourbon or beer, it’s a gin and

tonic. There’s not anyone doing it, and it’s a chance to be different.

The food menu is the product of A Good Egg Dining Group alum Grant Clements, who joined Social Capital after working at The Drake Seafood & Oysterette. There are two registers and kitchen sections separated into hot and cold offerings, but any of the menu items can be ordered at either register.

Social Capital has debuted with four salads, including a tortilla salad with spinach, honey and piquillo vinaigrette, pulled chicken, black beans, roasted corn, queso fresco and crispy tortilla strips, but it’s only a starting point.

“We’ll eventually get to 10-12,” Mullenix said. “We’re trying to have the most extensive salad menu in the city, and we want a lot of variety for vegan, vegetarian crowd, and they all have protein options.”

There is a Spanish-style charcuterie board along with cheese from Lovera’s in Krebs. The kitchen is making chocolate, vanilla, blueberry acai and a seasonal ice cream in addition to a pair of beer ice creams: Stout Ice Cream, made with

Al pastor, beer-can chicken, cotija and carne asada tacos with Nashville hot fried cauliflower and elote roasted corn at Social Capital | Photo Jacob Threadgill

Prairie Artisan Ales’ Chocolate Bomb! and Everything Rhymes With Orange IPA from Roughtail Brewing Company.

“I had to remind everyone to I.D. for those two flavors,” Mullenix said.

Beer is involved on the hot side of the menu, too. Pulled beer-can chicken is showcased on a taco while beer cheese is highlighted on the nachos and Nashville hot fried cauliflower. There are three additional varieties of taco: double caramelized carne asada, roasted al pastor that cooks on a spit for everyone to see, and seared cotjia cheese.

“I’ve always loved cotija cheese, and I’ve heard of grilled cheese tacos during my travels,” Clements said. “I’ve always done this weird cheese taco with a crust [from the flattop] and sauces. It’s cool, different and pretty fun.”

Clements is excited for the opportunity to run the kitchen. Mullenix said he has free range to change the options as he sees fit.

“It’s a great group of people, and I like the challenge of a large restaurant with nice, high-end food,” Clements said. “It’s why we went with a small menu so that we can execute, and once we get the flow, we can build from there.

A larger menu will come.”

Visit socialcapitalokc.com.

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

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GAZEDIBLES

EAT & DRINK

Fresh noods

Noodles can be found in a variety of cuisine, so we’re highlighting some of our favorite places to enjoy pasta, which now include some expanded choices for fresh options.

By Jacob Threadgill with Gazette / file and provided photos

Sparrow Modern Italian

Piatto Italian Kitchen

Tamashii Ramen House

This elevated Italian concept from the folks behind Cafe 501 has been an immediate hit since opening earlier this year.

It is making some of its pasta, like mushroom-stuffed agnolotti and blistered tomato and ricotta ravioli, in-house while the rest of its pasta selections come from the stellar Della Terra Pasta company.

Sparrow’s 100-layer lasagna takes three days to make, and it’s well worth the effort.

This recent addition to Oklahoma City comes from owner Enis Mullaliu (former general manager at Vast) and chef Bill Forster, and it has strengthened Oklahoma City’s options for fresh pasta.

Cacio e pepe is one of the most classic pasta dishes and includes butter, black pepper and Parmesan cheese. It is a dish that is as scrumptious as it is simplistic and does it with bucatini pasta, which is basically spaghetti with a hollow center that fills with flavor.

There are seven ramen options that represent a favorite of styles and flavors at this Midtown favorite. The popular pork-based tonkotsu broth is joined by a spicy option, miso butter and corn, vegan, curry and tsukemen, the latter of which is served with a thicker noodle known as “dipping noodles” in Japan.

507 S. Boulevard, Edmond sparrowitalian.com | 405-815-3463

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Victoria’s The Pasta Shop

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While the original location is in the process of moving in downtown Norman, the second Victoria’s is holding things down on the housemade pasta front.

Choose from spaghetti, linguine, fettuccine and tortellini or maybe get an order of some of Victoria’s lasagna rolls. If you order pesto, it’s served with spaghetti and the type of pesto changes daily.

Peter and Mandy Liu, the husband-andwife duo behind popular Tsubaki Szechuan that unexpectedly closed last year, have returned with this humble noodle shop. It’s delivering the same traditional and authentic flavors that made Tsubaki Szechuan popular, but with streamlined options that include a variety of noodle options — both with broth and without — and, of course, soup dumplings.

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In addition to baked pasta favorites like lasagna, manicotti and ravioli, Moni’s has fun weekly pasta specials and a few house favorites likes linguine broccoli, fettuccine Alfredo with made-to-order cheese sauce and two types of orecchiette — the pasta known as “little ear” that soaks up sauce and acts as a saucer for toppings like mushrooms and bacon.

Everyone has their favorite spot for pho in Oklahoma City, and there are many options, but there is only one reigning winner of Oklahoma Gazette’s Best of OKC reader’s poll, and that’s Pho Lien Hoa. It has delivered piping-hot bowls of the Vietnamese noodle soup to the table almost as quickly as you can order them since 2000. In addition to pho, you can get vermicelli noodle bowls topped with your favorite protein and egg rolls.

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ARTS & CULTURE

Interactive Horror

The Rocky Horror Show returns to Lyric Theater of Oklahoma with a spooky makeover. By Jeremy Martin

Now best known as a cult-classic midnight movie during which viewers throw toast and yell “asshole” and “slut” at the screen, Richard O’ Brien’s The Rocky Horror Show first came to life as an experimental musical theater production in London’s West End. Critics have compared its themes and plot — which finds newly engaged couple Brad and Janet stranded by car trouble and seeking assistance in a castle occupied by mad scientist Dr. Frank-N-Furter and a sexually adventurous cast of hangers-on and freaks — to the works of William Shakespeare.

“If anyone thinks it’s sacrilege to compare Rocky Horror to the Bard,” wrote New Line Theatre artistic director Scott Miller in Inside Rocky Horror, “let him not forget that Shakespeare’s plays were full of dirty jokes, improbable plots, supernatural events, and lots of drag. … As in many Shakespearean comedies, Rocky Horror uses the devices of gender-bending, surprises at the end, arrogance deflated, and the idea of servants becoming masters. Like Shakespeare’s comedies, Rocky blurs the line between sanity and insanity, good and bad, love and lust.”

A live stage production of The Rocky Horror Show runs Oct. 9-Nov. 2 at Lyric Theatre, 1727 NW 16th St. Director J. Robert Moore, who has previously played Frank-N-Furter and henchman Riff Raff in other productions, said the

theatrical experience offers the audience thrills not replicated by the bigscreen version.

“I think the experience is much more exciting onstage because it’s happening right there in front of you,” Moore said.

“The actors are real; we’re right in the audience with you. You can almost reach out and touch us at that certain point.

Some audience members do, or at least try to. … It still has all of your favorite things from the movie in the stage version. … Get wild, wear your costumes and come have a great time with everybody.”

“All your favorite things” includes the raucous audience interactions popularized in late-night movie screenings.

“If you want to yell and scream at us, that’s terrific,” Moore said. “We’ll roll with it. All your favorite things that you yell and scream and call back to the movie, we’re ready for it, and we’re looking forward to it.”

I think this show is going to be its own beast, so I’m looking forward to seeing what everybody brings to it.

J. Robert Moore Moore said the audience interactions give the show a singular feel for the cast as well as the audience.

“It adds a very live theater, very almost improv-y type layer to a scripted show, “ Moore said. “But I think that, unlike any other show that I know, Rocky Horror really creates a great bond between the audience and the performer, and there’s really a very cool community that develops in the theater when we’re all in there together and we’re all celebrating this sort of liberation and freedom and all of these great rock ’n’ roll moments that everybody loves.”

Though Moore played Frank-NFurter in Lyric’s 2016 production of the show, he wants actor Eric Ulloa to have the freedom to create his own version of the mad scientist.

“I don’t think anybody wants to be told, ‘This is the way that I did it,’” Moore said. “Sometimes there’s little moments like that, like, ‘Hey, watch out for this,’ or, ‘You might want to think about this at this point because this change can be difficult’ … but I’m mostly trying to let them figure this show out Janet Weiss (Emily J. Pace) and Brad Majors (Antonio Rodriguez) in a mansion full of sexually adventurous weirdoes in The Rocky Horror Show. | Photo K. Talley Photography / provided

for themselves because their versions of these characters are going to be great and totally different than mine.”

Haunted story

In addition to a new combination of cast members, Lyric’s current production features a different aesthetic by set designer Jon Young, which Moore said changes the overall feel.

“This production is also very different than any that you might have seen before, just because it has this really cool kind of New Orleans haunted mansion feeling about it that is unique to our production,” Moore said. “I think this show is going to be its own beast, so I’m looking forward to seeing what everybody brings to it. It’s going to feel very original. … I think this show has a lot more pizzaz and sparkle and glitz than some other things that that a director might work on, but that’s right up my alley.”

Without spoiling any big reveals, Moore said the show boasts a debauched Mardi Gras feel and “very cool technical moments that will wow the audience,” but he added that it is always meant to be delivered tongue-in-cheek.

“The script was really written as a spoof of American sci-fi movies, so the campiness is in the script no matter what,” Moore said. “It expects to be played for laughs. It’s our job to recognize that and just play it for all it’s worth. … We’re just outwardly funny and looking for the laughs. It’s not the kind of show that needs a real subtle touch. I think the audiences really come into Rocky Horror looking for some heavy-handed glitz and glam and some sex and camp comedy.”

However, comedy and the truth are not incompatible.

“The characters have to be based in reality and have to believe the reality of what’s going on around them, as crazy as it is, for the show to work,” Moore said. “There is a real message in the show. It talks about what happens when society and culture changes. That’s what’s going on with Brad and Janet, a very stereotypical 1950s male-female couple, that throughout the course of this evening with Dr. Frank-N-Furter, realize that maybe this is not all there is to life and maybe there’s something more to be than what you thought the beginning of the show. It really is a journey of selfexploration and kind of a loss of innocence for these two characters, so even though this show has this kind of glossy, glitzy veneer of sex and rock ’n’ roll, there really is a pretty impactful story underneath. … As a director, I’m really trying to give the audiences both a story that is told really well and a lot of fun and camp and sex.”

Janet Weiss (Emily J. Pace), Dr. Frank-N-Furter (Eric Ulloa) and Brad Majors (Antonio Rodriguez) form an unconventional triangle in The Rocky Horror Show. | Photo K. Talley Photography / provided

As the modern conversation surrounding sexuality and gender becomes more complicated and nuanced, Moore said the show’s message continues to resonate with audiences.

“People love to come and celebrate what this show is about — sexual freedom and liberation from traditional roles and traditional mores,” Moore said. “I have seen the most conservative people just party like it’s 1999 at this show. For some reason, it just really speaks to a wild party animal moment in all of us. I think that’s what people come to see over and over again, that celebration of inner self.”

Tickets are $25-$63. No one under the age of 13 will be admitted. Visit lyrictheatreokc.com.

The Rocky Horror Show Oct. 9-Nov. 2 Lyric at the Plaza | 1727 NW 16th St. lyrictheatreokc.com | 405-524-9312 $25-$63

Eric Ulloa plays mad scientist Dr. Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Show Oct. 9-Nov. 2 at Lyric Theatre. | Photo K. Talley Photography / provided 19

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Proud return Edmond Pride returns to Hafer Park for its second year. By Jeremy Martin

Now in its second year, Edmond Pride is 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Oct. 12 at Hafer Park, 1034 S. Bryant Ave., in Edmond.

Though students, staff and faculty at University of Central Oklahoma (UCO) organized the event, everyone is invited to attend.

“We wanted to bring Edmond Pride to life as an acknowledgement of the LGBTQ community of Edmond and at UCO,” said John Stephens, Edmond Pride chair and director of UCO’s undergraduate admissions and president of its LGBTQIA+ Faculty and Staff Association. “We had it off of campus at Hafer Park, so that way it was available to all residents of Edmond and not just the UCO community. Since there had never been an LGBTQ festival in Edmond, we really wanted to make that a reality, to see the advancements that Edmond has made as a community.

There’s a lot of citizens, both allies as well as within the LGBTQ community, that were excited about the event.”

To avoid conflicting with larger Pride events held in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and Dallas during the summer, Edmond

Edmond Pride 2018 board members Jane English and Catrina Buchanan pose with Edmond Pride chair John Stephens at last year’s event. | Photo provided

Pride is held in October, which is also LGBT History Month. Stephens said waiting until fall to celebrate Pride also means milder temperatures.

“It’s cooler weather,” Stephens said.

“It makes for a better experience and a longer experience for individuals because you’re not sweating bullets.”

Returning visitors will find a more diverse entertainment lineup than last year.

“One thing that we took from the feedback from last year was that we were more heavy on drag,” Stephens said. “We had a variety show, but they wanted more bands, so we have a lot of great singers and performers coming in.”

The performance schedule — headlined by RuPaul’s Drag Race season nine contestant Farrah Moan, who performs at 4 p.m. — still features several drag performers including Scrappy Legacy, Kitty Marie Legacy, Hemi Starr, Crystal Beth, Alotta Vajeen and Shalula. However, many other activities and performances are also scheduled. The day begins with yoga led by Heart Shine Yoga & Eats owner Scott Bartel. The Clips n Hips dance troupe takes the stage at 12:45 p.m., and Lincka performs at 2:30 p.m., followed by Lez Jaaam at 3:15 p.m.

The event also features a variety of activities appropriate for young visitors, including the popular Drag Queen Story Hour led by Shantel P. Mandalay at noon and 2 p.m.

“We’re a family-friendly festival,” Stephens said. “There’s going to be a children’s area that has children’s performers and acts. All music will be clean versions, so no cussing. There’s no Edmond Pride 2018 headliner Trinity Taylor poses with event chair John Stephens. | Photo provided

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alcohol served; it’s just refreshments — food trucks, but no alcohol. So the emphasis is really on education, bringing the community together, obviously highlighting LGBTQ history as well as just members of our community.”

In a 2018 interview with Oklahoma Gazette, Mandalay emphasized the importance of making Pride events accessible to families.

The emphasis is really on education, bringing the community together.

John Stephens “I think it’s important to relate to the community and the people that are out there,” Mandalay said. “You have to realize that it is a family event, and so there’s kids involved. … You have to make sure that you’re professional and that everyone has a good time and they’re able to laugh and enjoy themselves as well.”

In addition to live performances and food trucks, visitors can browse booths set up by local vendors and nonprofit organizations and read educational information about LGBTQ+ issues from signs written in English and Spanish. Speakers will offer information about LGBTQ+ organizations and ongoing efforts in Edmond and the Oklahoma City metro.

Neighborly feedback

Judging by the response to last year’s Pride, Stephens thinks the event was popular with the Edmond community.

“I heard nothing but positive feedback, from both vendors and from spectators that were excited to see this festival

Shantel P. Mandalay leads Drag Queen Story Hour at noon and 2 p.m. in the children’s area. | Photo provided

occur,” Stephens said. “They enjoyed the performances and the variety of different activities that we had for the spectators. … I have not heard anything, personally, negative. I have heard that there’s been things seen on neighborhood chats where they may be afraid of it, but I haven’t seen it personally.”

When he first proposed Pride to the Edmond special events office, Stephens said the event was unanimously approved. Even if there might have been some online complaints on sites such as notably grumpy Nextdoor, there was no real-life resistance.

“There were no attempts to kibosh it, and there was nothing, actually, the day of — no picketing, no protestors or things of that nature — so it was a really great festival,” Stephens said. “I’m hoping for the same this year.”

The feedback most important to Stephens came from a student who said she is “still here” because of Edmond Pride.

“It brought new life and energy to her during a really depressive state, and that was just encouraging to know that just the festival alone changed the trajectory of her life,” Stephens said. “That level of acceptance is so necessary in the present day.”

Admission is free. Visit facebook.com/ edmondokpride.

Edmond Pride 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Oct. 12 Hafer Park 1034 S. Bryant Ave., Edmond facebook.com/edmondokpride

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Oklahoma Gazette no later than noon on Wednesday seven days

Free Edmond Pride is 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Oct. 12 at Hafer Park. | Photo provided

before the desired publication date. Late submissions will not be included in the listings.

Submissions run as space allows, Submit your listings online at okgazette.com although welistings@okgazette.com. strive to make the or email them to listings as inclusive as possible.

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m

Oklahoma Tribes Are

INVESTED

in Oklahoma Schools

in Contributions to Oklahoma Education

in ADDITIONAL, VOLUNTARY

Through Exclusivity Fees in 2017 Alone—

CONTRIBUTIONS to Oklahoma

ENOUGH TO FUND THE COMPLETE

Education Programs, Schools

SALARIES OF 2,194 TEACHERS, MORE

and Scholarships in 2017

THAN 4 IN EVERY SCHOOL DISTRICT*

“We can look across the state and see towns that have lost their schools and eventually that causes the erosion of that community. Allowing the partnerships we share with the Kiowa Tribe to help our students flourish, from athletics to academics ... it allows our school to stay strong.”

RANDY TURNEY Principal, Carnegie Middle School

“I was Gov. Fallin’s Secretary of Education. Every time there was a large education initiative, the tribes were there saying, ‘how can we help?’”

NATALIE SHIRLEY President and CEO, National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, Oklahoma Secretary of Education (2015-2018)

* Calculation based upon current average Oklahoma teacher compensation of $53,600 SOURCES: Oklahoma State Department of Education and National Education Association

Committed to mutual respect, shared strength and productive partnerships that benefit every Oklahoman.

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ARTS & CULTURE This year, Fiestas de las Americas kicks off with the parade at noon Saturday. | Photo provided

CO M M U N I T Y

Community fiestas Fiestas de las Americas celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month with a parade and festival.

By Miguel Rios

One year shy of its quinceañera, Fiestas de las Americas builds on its foundation with more representation and new entertainment. Calle Dos Cinco’s premier event showcases Oklahoma’s multicultural heritage through a parade and festival as a celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.

“We’ve added four different countries that will be represented at this festival,” said Miriam Ortega, Historic Capitol Hill promotions coordinator.

“To add to the entertainment, we try to add different components like a tacoeating contest, and now we have a big scholarship pageant, which will give the winner a scholarship to the university of their choosing. … We’re hoping to continue to empower our youth, educate our communities and continue to do that by adding different components each year.”

Fiestas de las Americas kicks off with Parade of the Americas at noon and continues through 10 p.m. with activities and live entertainment for the whole family. Ortega said the parade features more than 60 entries, including schools, nonprofits, small businesses and corporations.

“Over the years, we’ve noticed that there have been more cultural groups around the greater Oklahoma City area that have come together as a group and started their own organization,” she said.

“We want to be able to support them by giving them a platform where they can showcase their performances, their dances, their colors, their flags, and that’s really what the Fiestas de las Schools, nonprofit organizations, small businesses and corporations participate in the parade and sponsor the various components of Fiestas de las Americas. | Photo provided

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

Americas mission came to be. We wanted to bring these various communities together to not only preserve but to promote and celebrate.”

The organization is always recruiting more representation and adding activities to its annual celebration. This year, 12 countries are represented through the parade and festival — an increase from last year’s eight.

Representatives from those locations will also participate in Travel the Americas, an activity in which parents can buy $1 “passports” to explore and learn about unique aspects of the various countries.

“One of my favorite parts is the Travel the Americas exhibit,” Ortega said. “In this area, we have the 12 different countries that will either have an activity, a traditional artifact or it may be teaching a dance. Families … will be able to explore the Americas and really learn from different countries. Then after-

wards, whenever they made the trip around the Americas, they’ll be able to enter and win gift cards.”

Organizers were also conscious about diversifying the stage entertainment, Ortega said, so they included performances by region.

We wanted to bring these various communities together to not only preserve but promote and celebrate.

Miriam Ortega “We’ll have North America, we’ll have South America and the Caribbean and then we have Central America, and we have different performances that will be representing these regions,” Ortega said.

“Throughout the day, we’ll have different bands. For the first time, we’ll be having the Stars Band, which will just add to the fiestas atmosphere. We’ll have our traditional mariachi performances, we’ll have Adolfo Urias [y Su Lobo Norteño] closing it and Banda La Excesiva.”

Capitol Hill High School Academy of Arts kicks off the stage performances after the parade. Two of the newest ad-

ditions to Fiestas — the crowning of two Miss Fiestas de las Americas Scholarship Pageant winners and a taco-eating contest — also happen on the stage.

“In the past, we’ve done Fiestas Royalty, and this was community nominations,” Ortega said. “But what we wanted to do this year is really make it into a pageant that we can showcase the wonderful things that our youth is doing in the community.”

The pageant, which will recognize two individuals for their hard work, academic achievements and dedication to the Latinx community, is Thursday at Yale Theater, 227 SW 25th St. Contestants participate in two age categories, and winners are announced during Fiestas de las Americas.

“We wanted this to be an experience that will help them grow as individuals on a personal level as well as a professional level,” Ortega said. “They’ve been working very hard on it through August and all September with their etiquette class, with their career coaches just to prep them not only for the contest itself but really for whenever they’re getting ready to join the workforce or when they have college interviews.”

The taco-eating contest, sponsored

by Taqueria Y Tortilleria Lupita, will be at approximately 5:30 p.m.

“We’ll have 8 minutes of taco-eating to see who will take home the trophy and the title for the whole year,” Ortega said. “That should be really fun. We really wanted to bring something fun, something engaging, something to showcase on the Fiesta stage this year.

This is the very first time we’re doing that, so we’re very excited to see how it goes and continue to grow that.”

Organizers have spent the past year planning Fiestas de las Americas and have already begun thinking about next year, which will mark the event’s 15th anniversary.

“It really takes a whole team to bring this festival together with all the different components. We have around 200 volunteers for the day of, but also the planning that really does the whole year. It’s always great to see the outcome — the kids on the floats and families enjoying and having a great time at the different exhibits we’ll be offering,” Ortega said. “It’s a great way for Oklahoma City to come together and really enjoy Hispanic Heritage Month with this event.”

There is no cost for admission, but various food trucks will be selling food at the event.

Visit historiccapitolhill.com and facebook.com/calledoscinco.

Fiestas de las Americas noon Saturday Calle Dos Cinco in Historic Capitol Hill SW 25th Street and S. Harvey Avenue historiccapitolhill.com | 405-632-0133 Free

O KG S H O P

Justin Brooks and his wife Jenna opened You and I Apparel + Gifts last year. | Photo Alexa Ace

Buy-in A Bethany retailer bets on the district trend reaching the suburbs to breathe new life into the area. By Charles Martin

Justin and Jenna Brooks bought in early on the idea that downtown Bethany is set to explode into the next bustling district within the Oklahoma City metro.

Their shop, You and I Apparel + Gifts, has entered its second year of business nestled into a strip with good walkability and plenty of parking flanked by neighborhoods boasting a surge of young families. Poised to be a trendsetter in the neighborhood currently dotted predominantly with antique shops, You and I is more akin to Automobile Alley’s Shop Good and 16th Street Plaza District’s Out on a Limb, which aim for a hip, locally focused, casual shopping experience.

And it just so happens that You and I faces a huge resource of potential young buying power located across the street at Southern Nazarene University. But getting those college students to cross the street isn’t quite as easy as Justin thought it would be. Instead, a different demographic proved to be more potent.

“We always joke about how we thought the university kids would be just a huge influx of our customers,” Justin said. “And they are a good base, but our main customer base is Bethany moms from the high school and middle school.

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We’re in our 30s, we have a daughter, we have a daughter in the elementary school, so we kind of know everybody in that clique of the community.”

“Our regular business frequently comes from moms waiting to pick up their kids from school,” Jenna said. “So in that gap between 1 o’clock and 3 o’clock, we’re getting these women coming in, walking around, killing time and then realizing, ‘Hey, I like this stuff. I’m going to keep coming back.’ And so this is kind of their pit stop before they go pick up their children, and we totally didn’t know that that was going to be a market for us.”

Jenna said they kept watching sales and engaging with the clientele to figure out how to shift focus and better serve them. They want to retain a focus on small vendor products so they can get items unique to their shop that often have an Oklahoma-centric vibe not found in big-box stores or shopping malls but nudge their focus toward families.

“I think realizing that is where our money was coming from, we’ve tried to cater more to that,” Jenna said. “Originally, You and I Apparel + Gifts carries a variety of Oklahoma City Thunder shirts. | Photo Alexa Ace

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we were geared more towards college girls, but we’ve shifted now towards the people that are actually coming in so maybe a little more modest dress tops and things like that.”

Justin does believe that the district has untapped potential that would be a perfect area for a food-forward restaurateur to open a fun and affordable concept to further drive traffic into the downtown area.

“You take the Plaza, for example,” Jenna said. “You get to the restaurant and put your name in for a table, then you’ve got a 30- to 45-minute wait. You’re going to go walk around and pop in all the little stores down there. There may be a ton of stores in the Plaza now, but when it first began, there were only a handful of people there. And those shops have stayed and grown because more and more traffic has come to that district.”

“So, A Good Egg Dining,” Justin said, “if you’re reading this story…”

An unexpected challenge You and I faced this summer was the tumultuous NBA offseason that made some of the shop’s most popular T-shirts suddenly irrelevant. After trading away Russell Westbrook and Paul George, the Brooks had to reassess their strategy for shirt designs, moving away from playerspecific shirts to more general team apparel. Despite the absence of the Thunder’s foundational point guard, Jenna said that You and I will continue to sell through the Westbrook shirts because he isn’t viewed with the same animosity as a certain other MVP.

“It was a much different territory than Kevin Durant when people were burning their T-shirts because they were so angry with him for how he left,” Jenna said. “This was such a different turn that people were like, ‘I still love Russ. I don’t care who he plays for.’ And I do too, and I want to see him get that ring, even if he’s not with us.”

Making it past the one-year mark is an important milestone for You and I, Justin said, adding that they knew going in that they were coming in at the ground level. Jenna added that the highly rated Bethany public school system continues to draw in more young families and their very presence will shift Bethany. She believes that the time has come to start attracting other businesses that will make the area more attractive to those young families as well as finally attract the college students across the street.

But those amenities need to exist first, and Justin said that right now, most of You and I’s clientele is driving to the shop specifically rather than strolling through the area. It’ll take more than just one restaurant or another retail shop; there have to be other options to continue driving traffic throughout the day.

“I would love to see a kind of Roxy’sstyle ice cream shop,” Justin said, “a place for people to drop by after school.

There’s a coffee shop that recently reopened, and we’ve already seen an influx of their customers come in here too. We want to help create an area where people can just hang out and not feel like they have to get into their cars to head somewhere else to eat or to shop.”

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CALENDAR are events recommended

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

BOOKS Howard Stein book signing the poet will sign copies of his collection Centre and Circumference, 2-3:30 p.m. Oct. 6. Full Circle Bookstore, 1900 Northwest Expressway, 405-842-2900, fullcirclebooks.com. SUN 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., 405-732-0393. TUE Oklahoma Voices hear featured poets read from their works at this monthly event, 2 p.m. the first Sunday of every month. IAO Gallery, 706 W. Sheridan Ave., 405-232-6060, iaogallery.org. SUN

FILM Moonlight Sonata: Deafness in Three Movements (2019, USA, Irene Taylor Brodsky) the story of Beethoven losing his hearing is interwoven with a personal memoir about the relationship between a deaf boy and his grandfather, through Oct. 3. Rodeo Cinema, 2221 Exchange Ave., 405-235-3456. FRI-THU The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975, USA, Jim Sharman) an interactive screening of this cult-classic sci-fi musical sex comedy, through Oct. 30. The Boom, 2218 NW 39th St., 405-601-7200, theboomokc.com. FRI-WED VHS and Chill: Blockbusted Video riff along with comedians and film fans at this monthly movie screening where audience participation is encouraged, 7-9 p.m. first Wednesday of every month. The Paramount Room, 701 W. Sheridan Ave., 405-8873327, theparamountroom.com. WED

HAPPENINGS African Drumming and Dance Workshop a workshop for all skill levels led by Gordy and Zoe Ryan, who have toured with Babatunde Olatunji’s Drums of Passion, Oct. 4-6. Modern Dance Arts, 1423 24th Ave. S.W., Norman, 405-201-9991, normanculturalconnection.org/drumming-and-dance-workshop. FRI-SUN Art & Victory: Producing a Podcast podcasters offer tips and advice for launching and recording a podcast, 6:30-8:30 p.m. Oct. 7. Resonator Institute, 325 E. Main St., Norman, resonator.space. MON ArtOnTap a beer tasting event with food and live music to raise funds for the museum’s special programs and exhibits, 7-10 p.m. Oct. 4. Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 415 Couch Drive, 405-236-3100, okcmoa.com. FRI Banquet Cinema Bingo Night buy a card for a chance to win cash prizes, 7-8:45 p.m. Wednesdays.

The Banquet Cinema Pub, 800 NW Fourth St., banquetcinema.com. WED

Board Game Day enjoy local craft beer while playing old-school board and arcade games with friends, 5-8 p.m. Sundays. FlashBack RetroPub, 814 W. Sheridan Ave., 405-633-3604, flashbackretropub.com. SUN Curiosity Fest a humanities festival featuring live performances, panel discussions and presentations about literature, history philosophy and ethics, noon-7 p.m.

Oct. 5. Oklahoma City University Law School, 800 N. Harvey Ave., 405-208-6400. SAT Educating America Tour learn about Alzheimer’s disease, brain health and dementia caregiving at this conference sponsored by Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Oct. 2. Renaissance Waterford - Oklahoma City Hotel, 6300 Waterford Blvd., 405-848-4782. WED Families, Advocates, Resources and Exonerees Oklahoma Innocence Projects hosts this even commemorating National Wrongful Conviction Day with guests Elizabeth Fritz Clinton and Dennis Fritz, featured on John Grisham’s Netflix series The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town, 7-9 p.m. Oct. 2. Oklahoma City University Law School, 800 N. Harvey Avenue, (405) 208-6400. WED Film Row Trivia Night test your cinematic knowledge at this monthly competition hosted by VHS and Chill, 7 p.m. the second Tuesday of every month. The Paramount Room, 701 W. Sheridan Ave., 405-8873327, theparamountroom.com. TUE Freedom of Information Oklahoma 2019 Awards Dinner an evening honoring people and organizations who fight for transparency and First Amendment rights with a keynote speech by journalist Mike Walter, 6 p.m. Oct. 2. UCO Nigh University Center, 100 N. University Drive. WED Hair of the Dog Oktoberfest 10 Oklahoma breweries provide craft beer at this fundraising event for the Heartprints Animal Rescue Organization, 6-9 p.m. Oct. 4. Stash, 412 E. Main St., 405-701-1016, stashok.com. FRI The Head Doctor Show an interactive comedy show written by and starring Jessica Holter from HBO’s Real Sex, Oct. 5. 4502 Event Center, 4502 NE 23rd Street, 405-427-2941. SAT International Observe the Moon Night an evening of appreciation and observation for the moon, 7-10 p.m. Oct. 5. Wheeler Ferris Wheel, 1701 S. Western Ave., 405-655-8455, wheelerdistrict.com/ ferris-wheel. SAT Jackbox.tv Game Night play interactive party games with host Alex Sanchez, 8-10 p.m. Sept. 9.

Oak & Ore, 1732 NW. 16th St., 405-606-2030, oakandore.com. MON Landscaping With Natives learn about planting native species in your yard and garden at this three-part series hosted by the Central Chapter of the Oklahoma Native Plant Society, 6:30 p.m. Oct. 3 and Nov. 7. OSU-OKC Campus, 900 N. Portland Ave., 405-947-4421, osuokc.edu/home. THU Mid-South Wrestling Alliance watch several matches at this local wrestling promotion, 8 p.m.

Oct. 4. VFW Post 9265, 4605 S. Pennsylvania Ave., 405-604-0264, vfw9265.org. FRI

Misunderstood! Indigenous Art and Poetry as Political Resistance Featuring poems and artworks from 1894 to 2017, this exhibit highlights more than a century’s effort by Native artists and writers to raise awareness and understanding of their communities in American culture. The works in Misunderstood! are divided into four subcategories: Stereotype Threat, Undoing History, Proud to Be an American, and Love/d. Hopefully, despite signs to the contrary, this century will eventually become more empathetic than the one preceding it. The exhibit is open Friday-Dec. 29 at University of Oklahoma’s Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, 555 Elm Ave., in Norman. Admission is free. Call 405-325-3272 or visit ou.edu/fjjma.

FRIDAY-DEC. 29 Photo Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, The University of Oklahoma, Norman; The James T. Bialac Native American Art Collection / provided

The Musical Swings Montreal-based Daily tous les jours installed this swing set where operating each swing triggers a different set of notes so that, through cooperation, visitors can play a song, through Oct. 13. Bicentennial Park, 500 Couch Drive, 405-297-3882, facebook.com/pages/Bicentennial.

WED-SUN

Norman Groovefest a celebration to promote human rights awareness and the right to peaceably assemble, featuring guest speakers and musical performances, noon-9 p.m. Oct. 6. Andrews Park, 201 W. Daws St., Norman, 405-366-5472. SUN The Odyssey Project learn about the nonprofit City Care’s mission in Oklahoma City and watch a short film about a single mother experiencing homelessness in Oklahoma City, 7-10 p.m. Oct. 5.

Tower Theatre, 425 NW 23rd St., 405-708-6937, towertheatreokc.com. SAT

FOOD

Oklahoma Regatta Festival a festival featuring rowing, kayaking, and whitewater rafting races and family activities, Oct. 4-6. Boathouse District, 725 S. Lincoln Blvd., 405-552-4040, boathousedistrict.org. FRI-SUN

Paseo Farmers Market shop for fresh food from local vendors at this weekly outdoor event, 9 a.m.noon Saturdays, through Oct. 19. SixTwelve, 612 NW 29th St., 405-208-8291, sixtwelve.org. SAT

Tarot Talk a discussion of Aleister Crowley’s Thoth Tarot deck and how it relates to astrology and Western mythology, 4-6 p.m. Oct. 5. Sekhet Bast Ra Oasis, 2714 N. Pennsylvania Ave., 405-706-7379, sekhetbastra.org. SAT

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

Waterfall Festival a Hawaiian-themed fundraiser with food trucks, wine tastings, raffles, and pet adoption opportunities benefitting Central Oklahoma Humane Society, Oct. 4-5. Garden Ponds & Aquariums Unlimited, 310 SW First St., 405-799-7663, gardenpondsunlimited.com. FRI-SAT

Oklahoma Food Truck Championship 20 vendors compete for top honors at this annual competition now in its second year, 10:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Oct. 5.

Downtown Chickasha, 102 N. Second St., Chickasha, 405-474-6108. SAT

Pets on Paseo bring your pet to this inaugural event featuring a costume contest, adoption opportunities, doggie makeovers and a scavenger hunt, 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Oct. 5. Paseo Arts District, 3022 Paseo St., 405-525-2688, thepaseo.org. SAT

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Wanderlust Pop Up Shops shop more than 80 vendors and food trucks, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Oct. 5.

Wheeler Ferris Wheel, 1701 S. Western Ave., 405655-8455, wheelerdistrict.com/ferris-wheel. SAT

Oklahoma Czech Festival celebrate Czech culture with a parade, traditional food, music, dancing and craft beer 10 a.m. Oct. 5.

Yukon Czech Hall, 205 N Czech Hall Road, Yukon, 405-324-8073, czechhall.com. SAT

Open House tour the new space for the Weavers Guild of Oklahoma City, and see weaving and spinning demonstrations, 1-5 p.m. Oct. 6. Weavers Guild of Oklahoma City, 2905 Epperly Drive. SUN

Down Syndrome Festival & 5K Now in its 25th year, this event raises funds and visibility for Down Syndrome Association of Central Oklahoma with a 5K race, an awareness walk and a festival featuring food trucks, face painting, carnival games, a DJ and more.

“More than 900 individuals are living with Down syndrome in central Oklahoma,” said the association’s executive director Sarah Soell in a press release. “This event is not only our largest fundraiser; it is also meant to celebrate individuals with Down syndrome living within our community.” The 5K begins at 8 a.m. Saturday at Myriad Botanical Gardens, 301 W. Reno Ave., followed by the awareness walk at 9:30 a.m. and the festival immediately after that. Registration for the 5K is $40; the walk and festival are free. Visit dsfestivaland5k.com. SATURDAY Photo provided

Walk4Water walk three miles to simulate the experience of people around the world who must walk miles to get clean drinking water at this inaugural event, Oct. 5. Wheeler Park, 1120 S. Western Ave., 405-297-2211, wheelerdistrict.com. SAT

Teach-In: Japanese Internment a three-part weekly series about the history of Japanese Internment and its relevance to the present day, 6-7:30 p.m. Wednesdays through Oct. 9. Mayflower Congregational Church, 3901 NW 63rd St., 405-842-8897, bellavoceokc.org. WED Trivia Night at Black Mesa Brewing test your knowledge at this weekly competition hosted by BanjoBug Trivia, 6:30 p.m. June 18. Black Mesa Brewing Company, 1354 W. Sheridan Ave., 405-778-1865, blackmesabrewing.com. TUE Trivia Night at Matty McMillen’s answer questions for a chance to win prizes at this weekly trivia night, 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays. Matty McMillen’s Irish Pub, 2201 NW 150th St., 405-607-8822, mattymcmillens.com. TUE Viva Las Sisu Casino Night a Las Vegas-themed fundraiser for Sisu Youth, a charity providing homeless teens with food, shelter, clothing and other necessities, 7-10 p.m. Oct. 4. Credit Union House of Oklahoma, 631 E. Hill St., 405-445-1511, creditunionhouseok.com. FRI

GO TO OKGAZETTE.COM FOR FULL LISTINGS!

YOUTH Art Adventures children can enjoy story time and related activities, 10:30 a.m. Tuesdays. Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, 555 Elm Ave., Norman, 405-3253272, ou.edu/fjjma. TUE Day Out With Thomas Steam Team Tour 2019 children and families can take a ride with Thomas the Tank Engine, meet Sir Topham Hatt and enjoy crafts and other Thomas-related activities, October 4-6.

Oklahoma Railway Museum, 3400 NE Grand Blvd., 405-424-8222, oklahomarailwaymuseum.org. FRI-SUN Max Brallier book signing the author will autograph copies of his new book The Last Kids on Earth and the Midnight Blade the fifth book in a sci-fi series currently being adapted for Netflix, 6-7:30 p.m. Oct. 3. Best of Books, 1313 E. Danforth Road, Edmond, 405-340-9202, bestofbooksok.com. THU Sankofa Chess Club children 7 and older are invited to learn chess in this club meeting weekly, 6-7:30 p.m. Wednesdays. Nappy Roots, 3705 Springlake Drive, 405-896-0203, facebook.com/pg/nappyrootsbooks. WED Signing Time Sign Language Class children can learn American Sign Language at this class taught by Mrs. Stacy, 4-5 p.m. Sept. 12. We Rock the Spectrum, 64 E. 33rd St., 405-657-1108, werockthespectrumoklahomacity.com. THU

PERFORMING ARTS Bert Kreischer the comic and reality show host performs on his Body Shots Tour, 7 p.m. Oct. 3.

The Criterion, 500 E. Sheridan Ave., 405-308-1803, criterionokc.com. THU

Cabaret University of Oklahoma music students will perform this musical set in Berlin during the lead up to World War II, Oct. 4-13. Elsie C. Brackett Theatre, 563 Elm Ave., Norman, 405-325-4101, theatre.ou.edu.

Midwest ArtFest enjoy artists and craftsmen, face painting, dance performances, games and more at this local arts festival, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Oct. 5. Charles J. Johnson Central Park, 7209 SE 29th St., Midwest City, 405-739-1293, midwestcity.org. SAT

FRI-SUN

Divine Comedy a weekly local showcase hosted

by CJ Lance and Josh Lathe and featuring a variety of comedians from OKC and beyond, 9 p.m.

Wednesdays. 51st Street Speakeasy, 1114 NW 51st St., 405-463-0470, 51stspeakeasy.com. WED

Paseo Arts District’s First Friday Gallery Walk peruse art from over 80 artists with 25 participating business for a night of special themed exhibits, refreshments and a variety of entertainment opportunities, 6-10 p.m. first Friday of every month. Paseo Arts District, 3022 Paseo St., 405-5252688, thepaseo.org. FRI

Don Quixote Open Mic a weekly comedy show followed by karaoke, 7:30-9 p.m. Fridays. Don Quixote Club, 3030 N. Portland Ave., 405-947-0011. FRI Iron Horse Open Mic and Showcase perform music on stage at this show open to all experience levels, 7-10 p.m. Wednesdays. Iron Horse Bar & Grill, 9501 S. Shields Blvd., 405-735-1801. WED

Thoughts on Africa an exhibition of Don Nevard’s photographs of native African wildlife, through Oct. 31. Inasmuch Foundation Gallery at Oklahoma City Community College, 7777 S. May Avenue, 405-6827579. SAT-THU

Joel Forlenza: The Piano Man the pianist performs variety of songs made famous by Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra and, of course, Billy Joel, 5:30-8:30 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Othello’s Italian Restaurant, 434 Buchanan Ave., Norman, 405-701-4900, othellos.us. TUE-SAT

Traditional Cowboy Arts Exhibition and Sale a showcase of saddlemaking, bit and spur making, silversmithing and rawhide braiding, Oct. 4-5. National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, 1700 NE 63rd St., 405-478-2250, nationalcowboymuseum. org. FRI-SAT

Kendell’s Open Mic play up to four songs at this weekly music open mic, 8-11 p.m. Tuesdays. Kendell’s, 110 S. May Ave., kendellsbar.com. TUE

The Wounded Eye an exhibition of works by photographer, singer, poet and guitarist Cherryl Seard, Oct. 4-Nov. 2. Nappy Roots, 3705 Springlake Drive, 405-896-0203, facebook.com/pg/nappyrootsbooks.

Lumpy’s Open Mic Night play a song of your own or just listen to the performers at this weekly show hosted by John Riley Willingham, 9 p.m.

Wednesdays. Lumpy’s Sports Grill, 12325 N. May Ave., 405-286-3300, lumpyssportsgrill.com. WED Mark Normand the standup comic will perform, with local support from OKC comics, Travis Phillips and Damon Detroit, 8-10 p.m. Oct. 3. The Paramount Room, 701 W. Sheridan Ave., 405-887-3327, theparamountroom.com. THU Monday Night Blues Jam Session bring your own instrument to this open-stage jam hosted by Wess McMichael, 7-9 p.m. Mondays. Othello’s Italian Restaurant, 434 Buchanan Ave., Norman, 405-7014900, othellos.us. MON A New World: Intimate Music from Final Fantasy a chamber ensemble and piano soloist Benyamin Nuss perform music from the popular video game franchise, 8-10 p.m. Oct. 5. OCCC Visual and Performing Arts Center Theater, 7777 S. May Ave., 405-682-7579, tickets.occc.edu. SAT The Oklahoma City Improv Festival troupes from Oklahoma City, Denver, St. Louis, Dallas, Florida and New York City will perform at this three-day event, Oct. 3-5. Oklahoma City Improv, 1757 NW 16th St., 405-456-9858, okcimprov.com. THU-SAT Rebels & Royals Drag King Show hosted by former Mister USofA Damian Matrix-Gritte, this monthly show features local drag kings and special guests 10:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. first Saturday of every month. Frankie’s, 2807 NW 36th St., 405-602-2030, facebook.com/frankiesokc. SAT Sanctuary Karaoke Service don a choir robe and sing your favorite song, 9 p.m.-midnight Wednesdays and Thursdays. Sanctuary Barsilica, 814 W. Sheridan Ave., facebook.com/sanctuarybarokc. WED The Skirvin Jazz Club a monthly live jazz show presented by OK Sessions, 8 p.m. Oct. 4., Nov. 8 and Dec. 6. Park Avenue Grill, 1 Park Ave., 405-702-8444, parkavegrill.com. FRI The Tempest Prospero the magician shipwrecks his enemies on an enchanted island in this fantasy by William Shakespeare, Oct. 3-26. Shakespeare on Paseo, 2920 Paseo St., 405-235-3700, oklahomashakespeare.org.

THU-SAT

FRI-SAT

FEAST 2019 Support the arts, eat a tasty meal and cast a vote for OKC’s creative future at this micro-granting program managed by Paseo Arts Association. Artists make five-minute pitches to diners over dinner, and the artist with the most votes receives the evening’s proceeds as a grant toward realizing their vision. This year’s finalists range from children’s books to a collection of nude photos, so choose wisely.

The event is 6-8 p.m. Tuesday at Picasso Cafe, 3009 Paseo St. Tickets are $30 and include dinner and a ballot. Visit thepaseo.org/feast. TUESDAY Photo provided Trae Crowder, Drew Morgan and Corey Ryan the stand-up comics will perform on their wellRED: From Dixie With Love​tour, 7 p.m. Oct. 6. Tower Theatre, 425 NW 23rd St., 405-708-6937, towertheatreokc.com. SUN

Twisted Coyote Brew Crew a weekly 3-mile group run for all ability levels with a beer tasting to follow; bring your own safety lights, 6 p.m. Mondays.

Twisted Spike Brewing Co., 1 NW 10th St., 405-3013467, twistedspike.com. MON

The Voyage the Oklahoma City Philharmonic performs compositions by Benjamin Britten, Claude Debussy and more; featuring guest vocalist Bombay Jayashri, 8 p.m. Oct. 5. Civic Center Music Hall, 201 N. Walker Ave., 405-297-2264, okcciviccenter.com. SAT

Walk to End Alzheimer’s participants walk to raise awareness and funds for people affected by Alzheimer’s disease – the sixth-leading cause of death in the U.S., 7:30 a.m. Oct. 5. Bicentennial Park, 500 Couch drive, 405-297-3882, facebook.com/pages/ Bicentennial. SAT

What We Are Fighting For Susan Marie Frontczak stars as First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt in this History Alive! living history presentation, 2 and 7 p.m. Oklahoma History Center, 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive, 405-521-2491, okhistory.org. THU

Yoga with Art workout in an art-filled environment followed by a mimosa, 10:30 a.m. Saturdays.

21c Museum Hotel, 900 W. Main St., 405-982-6900, 21cmuseumhotels.com. SAT

ACTIVE

VISUAL ARTS

Adult New Modern Square Dance Lessons learn the basics of square dancing at these classes led by Jeff Holley; no partner required, 7-9 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays, Sept. 9-Oct. 3. Mitch Park, 1501 W. Covell Road, Edmond, 405-359-4630, edmondok. com/parks. MON-THU

Imperfect Exchange an exhibition of Patrick Earl Hammie’s artwork exploring race, gender and identity, Through Oct. 10. Melton Gallery, 100 N. University Drive, Edmond, 405-525-3603, uco.edu.

Botanical Balance an all-levels yoga class in a natural environment; bring your own mat and water, 5:45 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays and 9 a.m. Saturdays. Myriad Botanical Gardens, 301 W. Reno Ave., 405-445-7080, myriadgardens.com. SAT-TUE

MON-THU

Leviathan I: The Aesthetics of Capital an experimental exhibition created by artist Pete Froslie exploring climate change, moral and political philosophy through electro-mechanics and game engine-based digital projection, through Dec. 31.

Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, 555 Elm Ave., Norman, 405-325-3272, ou.edu/fjjma. WED-TUE

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 31

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30 & N OCTOBER LLOWEEN NIGHT HA CLOSED

EVENT

MUSIC

Aural interludes

X Ambassadors aims for unique, interactive audio experiences in an effort to be more inclusive.

By Jeremy Martin

X Ambassadors’ second album is also a second try.

“We wrote some great songs,” said keyboardist Casey Harris of the New York three-piece’s first attempt at recording a follow-up to platinum-selling full-length debut VHS. “I love some of the material we came up with during that time, but we weren’t really able to come up with a cohesive body of work that we thought also would be, for lack of a better word, relevant enough to make a splash and for fans to actually listen to.”

X Ambassadors plays 6:30 p.m. Oct. 13 at The Jones Assembly, 901 W. Sheridan Ave. Though the band released singles “Joyful” and “Don’t Stay” from the unreleased album, Harris said X Ambassadors was only able to record a satisfactory second full-length — Orion, released in June — after taking a longdelayed break from the road and connecting with a new producer.

“After VHS, we were touring pretty heavily,” Harris said. “We toured for a solid three-plus years off that album, and so we were trying to record the next album kind of in between tours and a little bit on tour here and there. That’s how we did VHS, pretty much exclusively on tour. … It took us finally biting the bullet and saying, ‘Let’s get off the road for a while and actually focus on writing and recording.’ We were in lots of different studios and in people’s houses, but it was dedicated writing and recording time. We also started working with Ricky Reed toward the end of that process, and he really helped us figure out what the sound of that record was going to be, that it was going to be alterX Ambassadors plays 6:30 p.m. Oct. 13 at The Jones Assembly. | Photo Lauren Kallen / provided

native-rock-leaning rather than the sort of soul-pop-leaning that we had done with ‘Joyful’ and ‘Don’t Stay,’ and I think that ended up being a really smart decision because I think as much as those were great songs and we’re able to write like that, I think it might have been a bit too strange of a departure for a lot of our fans and, I think, for us as well.”

X Ambassadors met Reed while working with Lizzo on Cuz I Love You. Harris and his bandmates — brother and frontman Sam Harris and drummer Adam Levin — are credited as cowriters and producers on “Jerome,” “Heaven Help Me” and the album’s title track, all of which Casey Harris said were recorded in three or four days in “kind of a whirlwind” after his brother asked their agent to connect them.

“Sam knew about her long before she started blowing up on the scene,” Casey Harris said. “He was a fan, and he played her music for us and we all became fans. … We were in the mode of writing with whoever we possibly could at that time, and we were lucky enough that she was one of the few people who said, ‘Yeah, I’d be willing to work with these guys even though I’ve never heard of them before.’ … She is such a powerhouse, man. She can sing and rap, writes so fast and then also is not only like a concertlevel flautist, but she also has this deep knowledge of music. She was referencing some, I don’t even know, like a Tchaikovsky piece that I’d never even heard on ‘Cuz I Love You’; that little descending horn line on the very end, that was completely her idea. … I’d never even heard of this classical piece, so I had to go look it up.”

Musical range

The band’s ability to effectively collaborate with artists ranging from Lizzo to Imagine Dragons to Eminem is indicative of its comfort level in multiple genres, which Casey Harris said is the band’s “greatest strength and weakness.”

“We can write and perform, not anything, but we have a wide range of musical styles we’re well versed in,” Casey Harris said. “We grew up listening to lots of different types of music. That was one of the things that Ricky helped us with, is that we love doing so many different styles, but it’s hard for us to pick one and stick with it.”

Training as a piano tuner, Casey Harris said he “fell in love with a wide range of sounds the instrument can make and how versatile it is and how many different types of music you can use it in.”

“Guitar is extremely versatile as well, but the piano, if you have no electricity on in your house but you have an acoustic piano, you can put on a full performance with no amplification. You don’t have to turn it on ever at all. You just sit down and play and it sounds rich and full. … Definitely being a tuner gave me a huge appreciation for just what a powerful instrument it is, especially in this day and age of everything being synthesized and amplified.”

Casey Harris, visually impaired since birth because of a rare genetic condition, sometimes has difficulty using modern software synthesizers and plug-ins due to their inaccessibility.

“I’ll pick one or two softsynths and just focus on painstakingly learning the controls for those,” Casey Harris said.

“I’ll try to find the ones with the best presets on the greatest range of sounds, and then I’ll just take my time and learn those and make a lot of my own presets. … It is a shame though. I used to be really into synth programming back when I used hardware synths, and now I tend to just use whatever the presets are.”

The band collaborated with Microsoft

Orion, the band’s follow-up to its platinum-selling full-length VHS, was released in June | Image provided

to create an audio-only music video for the single “Boom.” Through field recordings and spatialized sound technology, an app available on Apple, Google and Microsoft mobile devices guides listeners on an interactive audio tour around the Harris brothers’ childhood home in Ithaca, New York, and the streets surrounding their former rehearsal studio in Bushwick, Brooklyn.

“We were talking about how to make the audio for our music video more interesting, and then we went down the whole rabbit hole of, ‘If we can make the audio so interesting, why have visuals?’”

Harris said.

2015’s VHS also featured brief interludes of recordings from the Harris brothers’ past, but Orion, named for Casey Harris’ son John James Orion Harris, looks toward the future.

“VHS was an album about where we came from and what made us into who we are today, and this album is more about who we are now and who we’re looking to be,” Casey Harris said. “We were talking about what really represents where we’re going in life, and Sam was the one who actually suggested that John was one of the newest, most amazing things in our lives, so it fit. It made sense. … He loves music, man. It’s the funniest thing. Usually if he’s getting fussy or just a little over-antsy, we’ll have him settle down just for a second and play him music, definitely some of the tracks from the album. He’ll sit there mesmerized most of the time.

A lot of times, he’ll take his little maracas and he’ll play along. He’s very musically gifted.”

Tickets are $37.78-$125. Bear Hands and LPX share the bill. Visit thejonesassembly.com.

X Ambassadors 6:30 p.m. Oct. 13 The Jones Assembly 901 W. Sheridan Ave. thejonesassembly.com | 405-212-2378 $37.78-$125

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

29

EVENT

MUSIC

Evolving experience Kali Ra prepares for the release of The Monarch and the uncertainties of the future. By Jeremy Martin

Just before we called Kali Ra frontman David Goad for this interview, he was practicing what he calls “angry yoga.”

“I stand bending back, and I flash my genitals and scream for, like, an hour,” Goad said. “I feel refreshed.”

The practice is cathartic, but “a little painful.”

Now based in California’s Bay Area, Goad returns to his former hometown 8 p.m. Oct. 11 at 89th Street – OKC, 8911 N. Western Ave. Kali Ra’s latest single, “Breathless,” was released Sept. 27. Goad said the song is “a bit darker thematically but also stylistically” than “funky” 2018 single “Sunset Boulevard.” Electronicsheavy “Neon Vein” is scheduled for a November release; all three songs will be included on The Monarch, scheduled for a January release. The album, following 2013 debut Electric Living and 2015’s Cocoon, will be Kali Ra’s third full-length release. The “not-so-subtle” symbolism of following Cocoon with The Monarch is intentional.

“My songwriting was improving,” Goad said of Cocoon. “It wasn’t exactly where I wanted to be, but I noticed a significant shift in how I was writing. I was getting better at it, and I was kind of evolving as an artist too, and I thought, ‘I’m going to use the opportunity to develop myself and emerge later as an improved person,’ and I continue that analogy in Monarch.”

The albums share thematic similarities, but Goad’s songwriting is continuing to evolve.

“Stylistically, they all have some sig-

Kali Ra plays 8 p.m.

Oct. 11 at 89th Street – OKC | Photo Jonathan Shahan and Cait Brasel / provided

30

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

nificant differences,” Goad said. “Every song is some sort of commentary, politically or social. I started out in Kali Ra, when I split from my old band Of the Tower, doing songs that were kind of more introspective … but I’m becoming more politically outspoken, I guess. That just seems to be more prevalent in my way of writing. I feel like I need to comment on a lot of things, and there’s a lot of things to comment on.”

Goad said Cocoon’s lyrical themes were inspired by “a lot of life changes, and a lot of stuff that sent me into very deep depression.”

“When I was finishing the lyric writing, some significant stuff had happened to me personally,” Goad said. “And on my trip through Europe, I’d seen some telltale signs of rising nationalism, so I was experiencing some pretty significant loss and seeing, additionally, the world around me was shifting for the worse.

This was years ago, and I’d seen this and knew it wasn’t going to end well. …

That album was pretty morose.”

T h e Monarch, recorded at Norman’s Bell Labs, is inspired by the birth of

Goad’s daughter Jazz and the associated concerns with the “exponential amounts of crises” in the world: “shootings, climate change, the polarization of American politics to the extreme … the refugee crises.” As a parent, Goad said he identifies with people fleeing dangerous situations to seek out a better life for their children.

“The concept of trying to escape literal hell on earth to go somewhere unknown to you,” Goad said, “that theme comes up a lot in the new album, just the sort of braveness, the heroism that it takes to pack up your whole family and go somewhere else overnight to save them.

Of course I didn’t like them being vilified. … It is a very bleeding-heart sort of statement, but I think it’s important. I think that telling the story is a way to further humanize them to people who maybe are not thinking about this perspective. They’re not empathizing.

They’re not putting themselves in those shoes. I think if people did perhaps the energy toward this would be a lot different, but maybe some people are incapable of that.”

Having a small child has also increased Goad’s anxieties about humanity’s potential prospects.

“Now that I have Jazz, my daughter, and the world is still changing, I fear for her future and her safety and everything, and that also comes up thematically in the lyrics,” Goad said. “How are things going to be for her when she’s an adult? Very heavy shit since there’s not a lot I can do to really dictate the future of the earth. …

Songwriting is a coping mechanism.”

Goad wants to develop healthy stress management strategies that he can pass on to his daughter.

“When you become a parent, it doesn’t automatically make you emotionally mature, but it definitely drags you towards that,” Goad said. “You can’t get along very well doing parenting, even the bare minimum, without having some kind of emotional maturity or working on your personal growth because they depend on you to be able to care for their needs but also help them develop emotionally too, to develop their emotional intelligence, so they can have coping mechanisms, so when the shit eventually hits the fan for them, and it will, they can deal with it to some degree at least.”

The Monarch’s title track, named for an unconfirmed government mind-

The single “Breathless” was released Sept. 27. | Image provided

control program, is about veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and loosely based on a friend’s experiences.

“Monarch was a program used by military as a way to condition soldiers to be able to kill people, to mentally condition them so they can murder people, so in conjunction with the analogy of growing as a person, I also kind of wanted to lean into sometimes we can be a bit delusional and there’s sort of a collective delusion,” Goad said. “You can catch yourself doing that, but I do also reference, directly, brainwashing.”

When Kali Ra began, Goad played with one or two other musicians to backing tracks, but he currently plays with “small orchestras” of eight to 10 people. Someday he hopes to tour with a full orchestra. As he gets older, Goad said his stage presence, known for its physicality, is becoming more subtle.

“I do more acting in the performance of the song itself, more emoting, rather than just doing the Iggy Pop stuff all over the stage,” Goad said. “I still do that to some degree, but the songs have changed. Everything kind of lends to a different performance. For example, there’s a song on the new album that is like an entirely orchestral song. It’s piano and strings, and the dichotomy of that and me jumping around shirtless, hurting myself, would be interesting, but it wouldn’t really sell the lyrical ideas effectively. I think that would just be spectacle and not necessarily the art I intended, but I might try that, just halfway through the song fucking rip off my clothes and beat myself with a pipe or something.”

Admission is $10. The Lunar Laugh and Fresh Juice Party share the bill.

Visit 89thstreetokc.com.

Kali Ra 8 p.m. Oct. 11 89th Street - OKC 8911 N. Western Ave. | 89thstreetokc.com $10

LIVE MUSIC These are events recommended

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

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 2 AHI, The Blue Door. SINGER/SONGWRITER Blackberry Smoke, Diamond Ballroom. ROCK Thunder Jackson/Laine, Opolis. POP William Matthews, The Paramount Room. SINGER/

EvErything New Tribe/Locust Ave., Opolis. ROCK Ryan Ross/Z Berg/Dan Keyes/Palm Springs, 89th Street-OKC. ROCK Sarah Peacock, The Blue Door. SINGER/SONGWRITER

SUNDAY, OCT. 6

MONDAY, OCT. 7 Earth Groans/Comrades, 89th Street-OKC. HARDCORE Jason Hunt, Sean Cumming’s Irish Restaurant. FOLK

THURSDAY, OCT. 3

Teen Divorce/Call Boys/Rubes, Khaos House. ROCK

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Motionless in White/We Came As Romans/After the Burial, Diamond Ballroom. METAL

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Old Crow Medicine Show, The Jones Assembly.

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Twiggs After spending a decade struggling to find footing in Nashville, Twiggs’ Abbey Philbrick and Joe White III returned to Oklahoma City, where they’ve found new inspiration in the music scene. “Here, it just now seems like it’s starting to happen and it doesn’t really know what it is yet,” White told Oklahoma Gazette last month. “And it’s cool to be a part of the beginning of something because everyone knows each other and it’s tighter.” As a result, White said the new music is “natural” and “effortless,” and Philbrick described its “homey vibes.” Recent singles “Shady” and “Can We Get Back” are evidence OKC is lucky they’ve returned. The band celebrates the release of its album III, joined by OKC’s Special Thumbs, which released the infectious single “Moonbow” in September. The show is 8-11 p.m. Friday at 51st Street Speakeasy, 1114 NW 51st St. Admission is $5. Call 405-463-0470 or visit 51stspeakeasy.com. FRIDAY Photo provided

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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.

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Certified chaos

THC

A requirement by the state legislature for cannabis businesses to have certificates of compliance filed with their application is causing headaches throughout the industry. By Matt Dinger

Starting in September, all Oklahoma cannabis businesses are required to have “certificates of compliance” from the municipalities or counties in which they do business. However, it has left the deluge of companies who were among the first to apply for licenses fearful that they will lose them due to the short timeframe they have to acquire them.

The relevant portion of House Bill 2612, or the “unity bill,” reads, “A license … shall not be issued until all relevant local licenses and permits have been issued by the municipality, including but not limited to an occupancy permit or certificate of compliance.”

The new compliance certification required by Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) requires that businesses comply with zoning, safety, electrical, plumbing, waste regulations and building and fire codes.

“Frankly, I expected it to be a bit of an ordeal. I urged — and I was not the only one who urged — to lawmakers that it would create significant bottlenecks in the application process if the certificate of compliance were required in advance of applying for a license, and I

think that’s exactly what we’re experiencing now,” said J. Blake Johnson, founding partner of Overman Legal Group and Climb Collective. “The timing is a significant cause of the problem. ‘Unity’ took effect on August 29th, and I expect that lawmakers thought reasonably that providing the industry that extra time after sine die to get compliance matters in order would be advantageous, and I think that was a reasonable thought, but they overlooked, I fear, that if the rules took effect on the 29th, it would result in a situation where there was only a matter of days before the earliest licenses would be required to renew, the consequence being that there are new regulatory compliance components that didn’t exist early enough to provide industry participants sufficient time to get their affairs in order before their renewal application was due to be submitted.”

An instance in which the process has been exceedingly simple is counties do not have the requirements that many municipalities do to attain that certificate of compliance.

“There are plenty of municipalities and counties that have taken a relatively laissez-faire approach to these businesses, and so, in many cases, those folks don’t have any clue what they’re being asked to provide. And that’s caused some confusion,” Johnson said.

For instance, some counties — like Johnston and Washita — have issued letters to businesses operating within their boundaries stating that they are in compliance, circumnav-

igating the issue altogether.

“As of the date of this certification, Washita County has no planning or zoning commission or other body, and accordingly has enacted no building or zoning ordinances, safety, fire, electrical, plumbing, waste, or other codes, rules or regulations that would affect an applicant seeking certification from this County,” a letter certified by Washita County clerk Kristen Dowell reads.

However, large cities like Oklahoma City are where the stress and pressure upon the cannabis business owners is the strongest.

OKC issues

“In Oklahoma City, where there are a great number of applicants, what we’re dealing with is the city is actually incapable of providing the necessary inspections, permits, etc. in the time frame required for those folks to get their renewal applications in to the OMMA,” Johnson said.

The City of Oklahoma City first learned about the certificate of compliance requirement on June 5 and has worked to have a system in place to deal with them by Aug. 30, said Mike Miller, supervisor of inspection services.

The timing is a significant cause of the problem.

J. Blake Johnson “It is brand-new, and we didn’t have quite as much test time as what we would like to have, like we do with our normal programs, like just an electrical permit or mechanical permit or any other kind of business license that’s been in effect for long periods of time where we’ve had a chance to work out the kinks,” he said.

Miller said the city does comparable inspections for 110,000 to 120,000 businesses a year. He estimates that there are upward of 1,200 cannabis businesses operating in the city. The fee for the certificate of compliance in Oklahoma is $615 for a dispensary and $750 for a grower or processor. If a business is doing all three in one location, they can now expect to pay an extra $2,115 each year to conduct operations in Oklahoma City, not including the state license fee and other regula-

tions such as food licenses.

“I know dealing with any municipality or any government agency for that matter, in a lot of cases, it’s not a fun event,” Miller said. “The reason why we do permits and, of course, the certificate of compliance now and everything else is for the safety of citizens. That’s why we exist.”

Miller said the city is not trying to be any more burdensome than necessary to get the certificates of compliance. After a request for a certificate of compliance, inspectors are usually on-site in one business day; however, the plan review portion of the inspection can take 10 working days for a remodel and 15 working days for new construction. There are currently 48 available inspectors in Oklahoma City.

“I reached out to all my inspectors and said, ‘Hey, we need to extend whatever grace we can because a lot of these people have gone out there and spent their savings on putting one of these businesses in,’” Miller said. “‘We need to try to help them be successful in that.’”

While many cannabis businesses are still rushing to renew their licenses and get the accompanying certificate of compliance, there might be one way to buy more time.

“It has been suggested to us that the easiest way to kick the can down the road at a minimum would be to submit the application absent the certificate of compliance, so as to get rejected, trigger the 30-day resubmission timeframe and, in so doing, buy ourselves several additional weeks to hopefully get our affairs in order with local government,” Johnson said. “I expect that for a lot of operators, this is going to be a significant cause of frustration going forward.

To be clear, though, I don’t blame Oklahoma City or the OMMA for this bottleneck. It is a creature of state law.

It is undeniably a part of the statutory law under which OMMA operates. The City of Oklahoma City had nothing to do with its creation, nor did OMMA. I think both of those authorities are probably experiencing frustration similar to what industry folks are experiencing.

I don’t think they’re the cause of it.”

All Oklahoma Cannabis businesses are now required to have a certificate of compliance. | Photo Phillip Danner

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THE HIGH CULTURE

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Theoretical activist

Lawrence Pasternack earns his living as a professor of religious studies but has become known as a cannabis activist. By Matt Dinger

Lawrence Pasternack approaches his cannabis activism as a moral imperative.

Pasternack is a professor of philosophy and the director of religious studies at Oklahoma State University.

While he has supported cannabis legalization for decades, it was not until 2017 that he began writing and speaking publicly on the matter.

“I grew up in Canada, where marijuana use was just never that big of a deal in the way that it has been in United States with the massive war on drugs,” Pasternack said. “While it was illegal in Canada for most the time I was growing up, it was not something that really mattered to people. It was not really a major social concern and was legalized for medical use more than twenty years ago. I never really had any interest in it. I just like having a clear head. It’s not something that I was particularly drawn to, but in terms of my own personal worldview, I’ve always thought that the war on drugs is egregiously bad. It’s an awful public policy.

It’s basically a war of the government against its own people, the government 36

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Lawrence Pasternack | Photo provided

having control over our bodies, denying own personal and medical autonomy.

It’s a profound violation of what we think liberty is supposed to be because if you can’t have liberty over your own mind, what liberty do you really have?

Drugs, like anything else, could be used for good or ill, but drugs can provide people with a means to alter their mental state, which allows them to explore other ways of thinking and being. Similarly, Native Americans use peyote and ayahuasca in order to enter states of mind and explore ideas that otherwise are difficult to access. This is a matter of liberty over our own bodies and minds. The government does not authentically want that or they don’t believe that these substances can offer for some a better life. Rather, they paint their use with a singular deprecating brush.”

Pasternack received his bachelor’s degree from York University and continued on page 39

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earned his master’s degree from Yale University before going on to complete his doctoral work at Boston University. He publishes a large amount of academic work each year. His inquisitive nature led to him to delve into the academic literature surrounding medical applications of cannabis.

“I have scoliosis, and I’m in constant pain from it,” he said. “I finally got to a point where it was just getting to be too much for me, so I needed something to step away from my desk, and I became aware of the state’s medical marijuana movement. Initially, I didn’t know anything about medical marijuana. I knew that people made the claim that it had such benefits, but I never read anything about it. So I actually started to read.”

From sociological and medical studies to epidemiological data, Pasternack read hundreds of articles.

“I was blown away because people say there’s no research. That’s not true,” he said. “There’s around 40,000 publications, and so I just went from one to another to another to another. I started to send emails to cannabis researchers, and I began to get a much more complete picture of the medical benefits.”

His research eventually prompted him to reach out to activists like Norma Sapp and Frank Grove, offering to organize talks and debates and donating to the local cannabis legalization movement. This led to Pasternack writing editorials when the pain did not allow him to work the long periods he was used to.

I was blown away because people say there’s no research.

That’s not true.

Lawrence Pasternack “It was just getting harder and harder for me to spend the ten to fourteen hours a day, seven days a week that I’m used to writing. And I just started to write these op-eds because I could write an op-ed when the pain was too much to do any serious academic writing that day,” Pasternack said.

His editorials have now appeared in The Oklahoman, The Journal Record and Tulsa World, among other publications.

Affecting policy

Those editorials led to Tom Bates, the former commissioner for Oklahoma State Department of Health, reaching out to Pasternack just after the passage of State Question 788 when the department had announced the ban of flower.

“Basically the sense of that meeting was they just felt lost,” Pasternack said.

“They were getting so many people telling them so many different things that they didn’t know who to believe. So I think they saw me as a fair broker, an honest broker, of

information. They wanted to know what’s true. What does it really mean when a state legalizes marijuana? What really happens?”

A bit of misinformation had led the board to want to prohibit the sale of cannabis flower.

“Someone was telling them all this, for example: Two people are walking down the street. One guy lights up a joint. The next guy is downwind. The wind blows the marijuana smoke over to the next guy, and he gets stoned as well,” Pasternack said.

“So the board of health was being told that if you don’t ban flower, everybody around on the street when people are smoking are going to get high as well.”

Pasternack provided Bates with a 2015 Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine study to set the record straight.

The study showed that even with seven people smoking marijuana beside one not smoking in an enclosed room, the nonsmoker doesn’t get high or have a detectable level of THC. Despite now becoming one of the most recognizable activists in the medical cannabis sphere in the state, Pasternack still does not feel comfortable enough to use cannabis.

“If and when the federal law changes, then that will have a cascading effect. That will make me far more comfortable,” he said.

In the meantime, he will continue to write editorials about various facets of its medical application, work with legislators and activists and promote patient interests.

“We philosophers complain about how bad public policy is and how little reason, how little data is used in forming these policies. Well, guess what. We philosophers can do something about it. We have the skill set to do something about it. So let this be a call to arms. Let there be an army of philosophers out there who go down to their state capitals, like I have, and say, ‘Here’s the data. You need good policy that reflects the data,’” Pasternack said. “When we’re talking about something like cannabis or other banned substances that are safer than many pharmaceuticals, it’s completely inappropriate. These bans from the start were never based upon medical or sociological research. Cannabis had been used for thousands of years in Asia and the Middle East, and was being prescribed by physicians in the United States for nearly a century before Congress, against the advice of the American Medical Association, banned it. Why? Not because of the data. Instead blame racism for the 1937 ban; and blame Nixon, who overrode his own medical experts, for the 1970 ban. That it remains illegal at the federal level while nearly 50 other countries have legalized it for at least medical use is a testament to how far this country is from being the beacon of liberty it claims to be. My need to fight against bigotry and promote rational public policy has found expression in the 788 movement.”

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FLOWER REVIEW

Cannabis effects vary wildly from patient to patient based on a multitude of factors, including THC tolerance, brain chemistry and personal taste. This review is based on the subjective experience of one patient.

Strain name: Sour Diesel Grown by: Sweet Weed Acquired from: Project Releaf Date acquired: Sept. 21 THC/CBD percentages: no testing available Physical traits: Light green with few dull orange stigmas and moderate trichomes

a different curing process that results in buds that were dense, but fluffy and dry all the way through but not dried out. The taste was excellent, with no harsh throat hit from the beginning through the end of the bowl and a strong buzz that remained mellow through the duration of the high with no sativa jitters. This is the perfect strain for tasks that are tedious but do not require intense attention like running errands or housework.

Bouquet: Sweet and sour with gassy undertones Review: I had not dropped back by Project Releaf since it became a 24-hour dispensary — it’s where I tasted my first Boys from Oklahoma strain — but had seen the dispensary’s Weedmaps score and number of reviews increasing consistently. I picked up a number of strains it carries from Sweet Weed. My favorite was its run of Soul Diesel, a classic sativadominant hybrid. (For what it’s worth, its Pineapple was a strong second-place finisher). Sour Diesel is a classic thought to have derived from a cross between Chemdog 91 and Super Skunk. Owner David Liebensohn said the grower uses

Sour Diesel | Photo Phillip Danner

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PUZZLES NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE CROSSWORD PUZZLE ON THE UP AND UP | 1006

By Tracy Gray Puzzles edited by Will Shortz ACROSS

1 Large decorative letter at the start of a chapter 8 Wood for crafts and rafts 13 Rapper Azalea with the 2014 hit “Fancy” 17 Farm stat 18 Weep for 19 Competitors in a classic advertising “war” 21 Salon bed acquisition, perhaps 22 Give a nudge 23 Discarded computers and such 25 Maintain the impression of well being 28 [Grrr!]

29 General on Chinese menus 32 Put in order, in a way 33 Online instigator 35 “____ minute” (“Be patient”) 36 Ancient region of Asia Minor 38 Lopes of R&B’s TLC 39 Reconciled, as a couple 41 Ab-targeting exercise equipment 43 To the point 45 ____ Chex (old breakfast cereal) 46 With 12-Down, “Isle of Dogs” director 47 Work at a music school 49 When doubled, band with the 1984 No. 1 hit “The Reflex” 51 MGM rival of the ’30s 53 Money handler on a ship 55 Amber, originally 56 Miniature spring bouquet 60 Pummel with snowballs, say 61 Roulette choice 63 “I believe,” in Latin 65 Something that comes with a sock 66 Screen-minimizing key 67 Method for identifying mystery callers 70 MLB stat 71 Downed 72 O’Connor’s Supreme Court successor 73 Futuristic deliverer of packages 74 Flank or shank 75 Athlete’s knee injury, familiarly 77 Bitter fruits 79 – 82 Material for classic hockey sticks 83 Bouquet offerers, maybe 84 Deep distress 85 Article in Paris Match 87 Animal mimic?

89 Response to “Who’s there?”

91 Some cheesecake photos 95 Accelerated alternative to broadband 98 “Poppycock!”

100 Rainwater diverters 101 Diez menos nueve 102 “Au contraire!”

103 Hairstyling icon Vidal 105 What it is to kill a mockingbird, in To Kill a Mockingbird 106 “I feel the same way!”

108 Voltage-increasing electrical device 111 Animal mimic?

113 Ask too much 114 Brand in the dessert aisle 118 Character in Grease who sings “There Are Worse Things I Could Do”

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123 Puts to rest, as rumors DOWN 1 2010s dance move involving dipping the head to the elbow 2 Inits. on 30 Rockefeller Plaza until 1988 3 Surgery sites, for short 4 Christmas Eve no-no 5 Large waterfalls 6 Slack-jawed 7 Distant correspondent 8 Oktoberfest locales 9 Mideast capital once known as Philadelphia 10 Tender ender?

11 Holy, in Latin phrases 12 See 46-Across 13 Treat to reduce swelling 14 Run amok 15 Flamboyant rock genre 16 Woman’s name that’s one letter off from a fragrant flower 18 Prepare, as pot roast 20 Roadside produce sellers 24 Cheese with a red covering

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26 Top-drawer 27 Sammy with 609 career home runs 29 Bard’s contraction 30 Cry a river 31 A quarter to four?

34 Ignore for the time being 37 Like xenon or neon 39 Popular moisturizing lotion 40 Subj. of Article 86 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice 42 Paint choice 44 Solved 48 Foe of Austin Powers 50 Dried chile peppers 52 ____-Aid 53 Tagliatelle topper 54 Reason for some bellyaching?

55 Got up again 56 Outer layer 57 Weapons that are about 3 1/2 feet long 58 Five books of Moses 59 Whack 60 Fuel common in Scotland 62 Doc at a clinic 64 Red-headed friend of Harry Potter 67 Losing Super Bowl LIII team 68 Former leader of the Sinaloa drug cartel 69 Door openers for journalists 74 Family name?

76 “A bit of talcum/Is always

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walcum” writer 78 Set (down) 80 Chill in the air 81 Host of the Oscars, Grammys and Emmys 83 Apiarist’s hazard 84 Oil painter’s primer 85 One-dimensional 86 Act of self-aggrandizement 88 They might get collared 90 Like a jammed printer 92 KOA visitors 93 Waipahu wreath 94 Form 1099 fig.

95 Distinctive part of a zebu 96 Kind of button 97 Feature of many a Cape Cod house 99 Played (around) 103 Little brats 104 Muscat citizen 107 Pasta also called risoni 109 Lhasa ____ (dog) 110 Aid for getting a boat in the water 112 Little ’un 115 Many an alibi 116 This may shock you 117 It’s twice twisted

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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY Homework: “Privilege is when you think something is not a problem because it’s not a problem for you.” Comment. FreeWillAstrology.com ARIES (March 21-April 19)

In 1956, the U.S. federal government launched a program to build 40,000 miles of high-speed roads to connect all major American cities. It was completed 36 years later at a cost of $521 billion. In the coming months, I’d love to see you draw inspiration from that visionary scheme.

According to my analysis, you will generate good fortune for yourself as you initiate a long-term plan to expand your world, create a more robust network, and enhance your ability to fulfill your life’s big goals.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20)

Taurus-born Youtube blogger Hey Fran Hey has some good advice for her fellow Bulls, and I think it’ll be especially fresh and potent in the coming weeks. She says, “Replacing ‘Why is this happening to me?’ with ‘What is this trying to tell me?’ has been a game changer for me. The former creates a hamster wheel, where you’ll replay the story over and over again. Victimized. Stuck.

The latter holds space for a resolution to appear.”

GEMINI (May 21-June 20)

“The soul has illusions as the bird has wings: it is supported by them.” So declared French author Victor Hugo. I don’t share his view. In fact, I regard it as an insulting misapprehension. The truth is that the soul achieves flight through vivid fantasies and effervescent intuitions and uninhibited longings and non-rational hypotheses and wild hopes—and maybe also by a few illusions. I bring this to your attention because now is an excellent time to nurture your soul with vivid fantasies and effervescent intuitions and uninhibited longings and non-rational hypotheses and wild hopes.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) I know people of all genders who periodically unleash macho brags about how little sleep they need. If you’re normally like that, I urge you to rebel. The dilemmas and riddles you face right now are very solvable IF and only IF you get sufficient amounts of sleep and dreams.

Do you need some nudges to do right by yourself?

Neuroscientist Matthew Walker says that some of the greatest athletes understand that “sleep is the greatest legal enhancing performance drug.” Top tennis player Roger Federer sleeps 12 hours a day. During his heyday, world-class sprinter Usain Bolt slept ten hours a night and napped during the day. Champion basketball player LeBron James devotes 12 hours a day to the rejuvenating sanctuary of sleep.

my entire past, as if watching a movie starring me. It’s not possible to remember every single scene and feeling, of course, so I allow my deep self to highlight the moments it regards as significant. Here’s another fun aspect of this ritual: I bestow a blessing on every memory that comes up, honoring it for what it taught me and how it helped me to become the person I am today. Dear Libra, now is an excellent time for you to experiment with a similar celebration.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22)

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)

Actor and dancer Fred Astaire was a pioneer in bringing dance into films as a serious art form. He made 31 musical films during the 76 years he worked, and was celebrated for his charisma, impeccable technique, and innovative moves. At the height of his career, from 1933 to 1949, he teamed up with dancer Ginger Rogers in the creation of ten popular movies. In those old-fashioned days, virtually all partner dancing featured a male doing the lead part as the female followed. One witty critic noted that although Astaire was a bigger star than Rogers, she “did everything that Fred Astaire did. She just did it backwards and while wearing high heels.” According to my reading of the astrological omens, you may soon be called on to carry out tasks that are metaphorically comparable to those performed by Rogers.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)

Your number one therapy in the coming weeks? Watching animals. It would be the healthiest thing you could undertake: relax into a generously receptive mode as you simply observe creatures doing what they do. The best option would be to surrender to the pleasures of communing with both domesticated AND wild critters.

If you need a logical reason to engage in this curative and rejuvenating activity, I’ll give you one: It will soothe and strengthen your own animal intelligence, which would be a tonic gift for you to give yourself.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)

Every time my birthday season comes around, I set aside an entire day to engage in a life review. It lasts for many hours. I begin by visualizing the recent events I’ve experienced, then luxuriously scroll in reverse through

“Depression is when you think there’s nothing to be done,” writes author Siri Hustvedt. “Fortunately I always think there’s something to be done.” I offer this hopeful attitude to you, Scorpio, trusting that it will cheer you up. I suspect that the riddles and mysteries you’re embedded in right now are so puzzling and complicated that you’re tempted to think that there’s nothing you can do to solve them or escape them. But I’m here to inform you that if that’s how you feel, it’s only temporary.

Even more importantly, I’m here to inform you that there is indeed something you can do, and you are going to find out what that is sooner rather than later.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)

“How inconvenient to be made of desire,” writes Sagittarian author Larissa Pham. “Even now, want rises up in me like a hot oil. I want so much that it scares me.”

I understand what she means, and I’m sure you do, too.

There are indeed times when the inner fire that fuels you feels excessive and unwieldy and inopportune. But I’m happy to report that your mood in the coming weeks is unlikely to fit that description. I’m guessing that the radiant pulse of your yearning will excite you and empower you. It’ll be brilliant and warm, not seething and distracting.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

I envision the next twelve months as a time when you could initiate fundamental improvements in the way you live. Your daily rhythm twelve months from now could be as much as twenty percent more gratifying and meaningful. It’s conceivable you will discover or generate innovations that permanently raise your long-term goals

to a higher octave. At the risk of sounding grandiose, I predict you’ll welcome a certain novelty that resembles the invention of the wheel or the compass or the calendar.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)

Modern literary critic William Boyd declared that Aquarian author Anton Chekhov (1860–1904) was “the best short-story writer ever,” and “the first truly modern writer of fiction: secular, refusing to pass judgment, cognizant of the absurdities of our muddled, bizarre lives and the complex tragi-comedy that is the human condition.” Another contemporary critic, Harold Bloom, praised Chekhov’s plays, saying that he was “one of the three seminal figures in the birth of early modernism in the theatre.” We might imagine, then, that in the course of his career, Chekhov was showered with accolades. We’d be wrong about that, though. “If I had listened to the critics,” he testified, “I’d have died drunk in the gutter.” I hope that what I just said will serve as a pep talk for you as you explore and develop your own original notions in the coming weeks.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20)

Pisces-born Dorothy Steel didn’t begin her career as a film actress until she was 91 years old. She had appeared in a couple of TV shows when she was 89, then got a small role in an obscure movie. At age 92, she became a celebrity when she played the role of a tribal elder in Black Panther, one of the highest-grossing films of all time. I propose that we make her one of your inspirational role models for both the coming weeks and the next twelve months.

Why? Because I suspect you will be ripening fully into a role and a mission you were born to embody and express.

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

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

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