Least Competent Victims
Two men were arrested in a suburb of Melbourne, Australia, in September after allegedly scamming four local businessmen out of a total of $160,000, but the scam may reflect worse on the victims than the perpetrators. The victims (who might have considered themselves savvy entrepreneurs to have earned that much money) were somehow persuaded by…
Recurring Themes
More Examples of Miracle Drugs: Mitchell Deslatte, 25, drove in and parked at a Louisiana state trooper station in Baton Rouge in July, staggered inside, and asked the man behind the desk for a room, thinking he was in a hotel. He was arrested for DUI. Terence Loyd, 32, pleaded guilty in Mansfield, La., in…
People Different From Us
Douglas Jones, 57, was cited by federal park rangers in September for having, over the course of a year, littered Joshua Tree National Park in California with more than 3,000 golf balls. Jones explained that he tossed the balls from his car, believing he was thus honoring deceased golfers. John Manley, 50, breathed pain-free in…
Recurring Themes
More Examples of Miracle Drugs: Mitchell Deslatte, 25, drove in and parked at a Louisiana state trooper station in Baton Rouge in July, staggered inside, and asked the man behind the desk for a room, thinking he was in a hotel. He was arrested for DUI. Terence Loyd, 32, pleaded guilty in Mansfield, La., in…
Least Competent Victims
Two men were arrested in a suburb of Melbourne, Australia, in September after allegedly scamming four local businessmen out of a total of $160,000, but the scam may reflect worse on the victims than the perpetrators. The victims (who might have considered themselves savvy entrepreneurs to have earned that much money) were somehow persuaded by…
People Different From Us
Douglas Jones, 57, was cited by federal park rangers in September for having, over the course of a year, littered Joshua Tree National Park in California with more than 3,000 golf balls. Jones explained that he tossed the balls from his car, believing he was thus honoring deceased golfers. John Manley, 50, breathed pain-free in…
Unclear on the Concept
In September, Hadi al-Mutif, 34, who has been on death row in Saudi Arabia for the last 16 years, following his conviction for insulting the Prophet Muhammad, was given a five-year prison sentence after insulting the Saudi justice system in a TV interview. Among the ramblings on the blog of George Sodini (the gunman who…
Fine Points of the Law
Landlords Prevail: In July, Chuck Bartlett was finally granted legal possession of his house in Kenai, Alaska, overcoming a squatter’s delaying tactics aided by local laws that frustrated eviction despite clear evidence of Bartlett’s ownership. (Bartlett waited out the two-month standoff by pitching a tent in his own yard.) The squatter’s final, futile challenge involved…
The Sandman: The Dream Hunters – Neil Gaiman and P. Craig Russell
creasingly complex tale of dreams and demons, one dead monkey and a 10-breasted woman. Lord Morpheus makes his appearance, although not in the form “Sandman” readers are used to; he fits snugly within this Asian-styled version. While I wouldn’t put “Dream Hunters” among the very best of the franchise, it’s a solid, spellbinding tale “?…
Unclear on the Concept
In September, Hadi al-Mutif, 34, who has been on death row in Saudi Arabia for the last 16 years, following his conviction for insulting the Prophet Muhammad, was given a five-year prison sentence after insulting the Saudi justice system in a TV interview. Among the ramblings on the blog of George Sodini (the gunman who…
Fine Points of the Law
Landlords Prevail: In July, Chuck Bartlett was finally granted legal possession of his house in Kenai, Alaska, overcoming a squatter’s delaying tactics aided by local laws that frustrated eviction despite clear evidence of Bartlett’s ownership. (Bartlett waited out the two-month standoff by pitching a tent in his own yard.) The squatter’s final, futile challenge involved…
Natural Born Killers: The Director’s Cut
“NBK” every bit as schizophrenic as its subjects. It’s a sitcom! It’s a cartoon! It’s video! It’s leftover film stock from “The Doors”! One thing’s for certain: It is violent. Not even a decade and a half of gore-soaked flicks like “Saw” or “Hostel” have done anything to lessen “NBK”‘s arsenic-spiked punch. Several sequences still…
Ch
an exercise in irresistible wickedness with “Dangerous Liaisons,” a costume dramedy with the disposition of a dagger dipped in wine. That movie also happened to costar the luminous Michelle Pfeiffer “? who is just as luminous in “Ch
Trance pioneer DJ Ti
Dutch DJ and international trance master DJ Tiësto released “Kaleidoscope,” his fourth studio album, early this month ” a diverse electronic collaboration with well-known musicians like Tegan & Sara, Nelly Furtado, Sigur Rós and Bloc Party’s Kele Okereke. Tiësto brings his world tour to CityWalk on Monday, and we couldn’t resist getting into the mix.…
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
Some of history’s worst tyrants have been terrified by kittens. Napoleon, Genghis Khan, and Mussolini all had ailurophobia, a morbid and irrational fear of domestic felines. Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar were also discombobulated by cats. I bring this up, Pisces, because it reminds me of a certain situation in your life. I’m betting…
Political blog reports Oklahoma senator questions EPA
It seems what’s good for the goose isn’t always good for the gander. At least it seems that way to Oklahoma’s U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe. The Wonk Room, a section of the political blog Think Progress, reports Inhofe and two fellow Republican senators sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency requesting information on how…
Panel discussion returns to overlooked contributions of women, ethnic minorities
Not every innovative work of architecture or structural design can be traced back to highly trained professionals. Some, rather, are the result of adaptive problem solving from generations of shared knowledge. OVERLOOKED FIELDS OF DESIGN OPEN TO ALL Abimbola Asojo, a professor of interior design at the University of Oklahoma College of Architecture, has seen…
If voters approve MAPS 3 proposal, downtown could house $130 million park
While the Myriad Botanical Gardens is an attractive and popular public space in downtown Oklahoma City, the 17-acre site is miniscule when compared to urban parks in other cities. ‘STILL A CONCEPT PLAN’ AFFECTED PARCELS ‘EXTREMELY CONJECTURAL’ PARK POLL But with the “Core to Shore” development included in the MAPS 3 proposals, recreational park space…
Where the Wild Things Are
x, who looks to be about 9, tumbles down the stairs of his house in pursuit of the family dog. The handheld camera shakes and rocks, barely keeping up with the pooch and its playmate/tormentor. The image is a flurry of energy and aggression that deftly mimics the child’s mind-set. “Where the Wild Things Are”…
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
It’s an excellent time to see if you can remove some of the neurotic twitches from your erotic itches. For example, you could use all your ingenuity to talk yourself out of the silly guilt you feel for having a certain idiosyncratic desire — a desire that, if acted out, would hurt no one, and…
Remington Park’s new owners have big plans including $12 million in improvements
Will this be the key that finally unlocks the door to financial success for Remington Park? On Oct. 15, the new owners, Global Gaming Solutions, unveiled their plans to the Oklahoma Horse Racing Commission as they applied to renew the facility’s racing license with the state. RESTORATION ASPECT RENEWED EFFORT Both the Oklahoma Quarter Horse…
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
The astrological vibes suggest that you open yourself wide, try everything, and give freely. I urge you to adapt as your motto an exhortation that once came out of the mouth of the seven-year-old cartoon character Dennis the Menace: “Hey! Wake up! Let’s go everywhere and do everything!” More than any other phase in many…
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
The astrological vibes suggest that you open yourself wide, try everything, and give freely. I urge you to adapt as your motto an exhortation that once came out of the mouth of the seven-year-old cartoon character Dennis the Menace: “Hey! Wake up! Let’s go everywhere and do everything!” More than any other phase in many…
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
The average middle class person alive today has more goodies than the kings and queens of times past. In fact, even during this time of economic retrenchment, most of us have a higher standard of living than 99 percent of all the humans who’ve ever walked the planet. In pointing this out, I don’t mean…
Local artists celebrate the one-year anniversary of DNA Galleries
ann”>ANNIVERSARY SHOW Longboards make a fitting anniversary show for DNA Galleries, since the shop is split between a handmade retail store and art gallery, giving it more of a West Coast vibe than storefronts normally seen on the streets of Oklahoma City. The Bradways have traveled nationally and internationally as artists, injecting out-of-state influences into…
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
The members of the congregation at St. Peter-at-Gowts Church in Lincoln, England had a minor crisis a few years ago. For years, they had prayed to a very old stone sculpture they assumed was a likeness of the Virgin Mary. Then a nosy archaeologist came poking around and informed them that the figure was actually…
Oklahoma man faces charges after allegedly mailing brother pipe bombs
What’s one of the most important things in life? No, not breakfast. Family. We’re thinking somebody forgot that lesson recently when, according to Tulsa’s News on 6, an Oklahoma man sent quite the explosive package to his brother in California. Vernon Dale Mustin, a 51-year-old Spiro man, has been arrested and entered a guilty plea…
Can’t Possibly Be True
Health Insurance Follies: Blue Shield California twice refused to pay $2,700 emergency room claims by Rosalinda Miran-Ramirez, concluding that it was not a “reasonable” decision for her to go to the ER that morning when she awoke to a shirt saturated with blood from what turned out to be a breast tumor. Only after a…
The Gate
day, I’m not sure how audiences would take to a kid-led film this grim; screenwriter Michael Nankin lets us know his original script was even darker. Its creatures form the basis for a pair of featurettes in the extras, and director Tibor Takacs shows up for a commentary. The box also notes new cast interviews,…
A better way
Imagine, 10 years from now, the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center announces it has discovered a cure for diabetes. A few years later, Oklahoma State University has discovered a switchgrass fuel that is a marketable, renewable and more cost-effective than ethanol and abundant throughout the world. How do we get there? Focus, commitment and…
Oklahoma music legend plans Las Vegas act
The large cowboy hat, the headphone mic and hardy deep holler are all back. But this time, it will come with more glittering lights. The biggest solo-recorded music seller of all time ” and Oklahoma’s very own ” Garth Brooks announced last week he has had enough of sitting in his living room near Owasso…
Tulsa-area park gains monument
On a hill overlooking the Arkansas River in Tulsa, an enormous oak tree grows, its roots tightly twisted through the earth after hundreds of years in the soil. Until recently, it stood in the park without commentary “? the reason for the fence around it unexplained. Finally, this fall, a monument was completed to assure…
Trance pioneer DJ Ti
Dutch DJ and international trance master DJ Tiësto released “Kaleidoscope,” his fourth studio album, early this month ” a diverse electronic collaboration with well-known musicians like Tegan & Sara, Nelly Furtado, Sigur Rós and Bloc Party’s Kele Okereke. Tiësto brings his world tour to CityWalk on Monday, and we couldn’t resist getting into the mix.…
A better way
Imagine, 10 years from now, the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center announces it has discovered a cure for diabetes. A few years later, Oklahoma State University has discovered a switchgrass fuel that is a marketable, renewable and more cost-effective than ethanol and abundant throughout the world. How do we get there? Focus, commitment and…
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
It’s prime time for intense and momentous social events. Of the gatherings you may attend, I hope you’ll find at least one that fits the following descriptions: 1. a warm fluidic web of catalytic energy where you awaken to new possibilities about how to create close alliances 2. a sweet, jangly uproar where you encounter…
Yukon church community celebrates life of one of its own with memorial fun run
When Aaron Zentz decided he was going to follow his father into marathon running, he wanted his family and friends to know he was serious. While at church, he insisted a handful of men sign a handwritten note by him with his declaration that he would run the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon. Not only would…
Oklahoma natives make waves on NewYork stage
Oklahoma ” the state, not the musical with the exclamation point ” has been making waves on the New York theater stage. Our own Matthew Alvin Brown’s rock musical “Rainbow Around the Sun” played six shows over two weeks’ time as part of the New York Musical Theatre Festival this month, directed by Nick Demos,…
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
“He who loves 50 people has 50 woes,” said Buddha. “He who loves no one has no woes.” Even if you agree with this sour observation, I urge you to override the warning it implies. Now, more than ever, you can and should attract rich benefits into your life by expanding the frontiers of your…
Oklahoma natives make waves on NewYork stage
Oklahoma ” the state, not the musical with the exclamation point ” has been making waves on the New York theater stage. Our own Matthew Alvin Brown’s rock musical “Rainbow Around the Sun” played six shows over two weeks’ time as part of the New York Musical Theatre Festival this month, directed by Nick Demos,…
Paranormal Activity
I fully expected to emerge from a viewing of “Paranormal Activity” thinking, “Is it really all that scary?” and answering with a decisive, “Well, yes and no.” That’s me: a man of strong opinions. OK, I’ve seen it, I’ve emerged and I’ve asked the question. And the answer is, “Yes! Are you frackin’ kiddin’ me?…
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
“He who loves 50 people has 50 woes,” said Buddha. “He who loves no one has no woes.” Even if you agree with this sour observation, I urge you to override the warning it implies. Now, more than ever, you can and should attract rich benefits into your life by expanding the frontiers of your…
Singer/songwriter, actress Kate Voegele shrugs humble shoulder at Hollywood
Kate Voegele’s enjoyed enough success to spin a young girl’s head, but with her feet firmly planted by a Midwestern upbringing, she’s managed to avoid the kind of pitfalls that dot the tabloids. ATTRACT INTEREST CONSISTENT THEME Signed to Interscope Records co-venture MySpace Records while only 19, she released her debut, “Don’t Look Away,” two…
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
The average middle class person alive today has more goodies than the kings and queens of times past. In fact, even during this time of economic retrenchment, most of us have a higher standard of living than 99 percent of all the humans who’ve ever walked the planet. In pointing this out, I don’t mean…
Singer/songwriter, actress Kate Voegele shrugs humble shoulder at Hollywood
Kate Voegele’s enjoyed enough success to spin a young girl’s head, but with her feet firmly planted by a Midwestern upbringing, she’s managed to avoid the kind of pitfalls that dot the tabloids. ATTRACT INTEREST CONSISTENT THEME Signed to Interscope Records co-venture MySpace Records while only 19, she released her debut, “Don’t Look Away,” two…
The William Castle Film Collection
1959-1964 Call William Castle a “schlock” director if you want, but you’d be doing a disservice to his enormously entertaining horror pictures of the ’50s and ’60s. For those who already know that, “The William Castle Film Collection” is the DVD release of the year. The five-disc set contains eight movies, including his most beloved,…
Douglass High School’s principal works to improve OKC school one student at a time
When Douglass High School Principal Brian Staples first entered an Oklahoma City public school as a student teacher almost 20 years ago, he asked if he could take over teaching the class on the second day and was “hooked.” BENCHMARK COLLEGE COURSES DAIRY FARM He spent the next five years teaching science at the same…
The Flaming Lips’ Steven Drozd, DJ Jon Mooneyham spin one-night-only dance party to close out parade
If you’re hoping to congregate with 50,000 of Oklahoma’s finest and freakiest, look no further than the Gazette’s third annual Ghouls Gone Wild Halloween Parade. In conjunction with The Flaming Lips’ March of 1,000 Flaming Skeletons, there’s sure to be plenty to terrify and delight. BRIEF STINT RECENT REMIXES New this year is a post-parade…
Toy & Action Figure Museum in Pauls Valley turns four
Selected by Time magazine earlier this year as one of its 50 Authentic American Experiences, Oklahoma’s very own Toy & Action Figure Museum turns four on Saturday. INDUSTRY START WORLD RENOWN FREE ADMISSION Just don’t call it an anniversary. As museum curator Kevin Stark is quick to point out, “birthday” sounds more appropriate when dealing with…
Oklahoma music legend plans Las Vegas act
The large cowboy hat, the headphone mic and hardy deep holler are all back. But this time, it will come with more glittering lights. The biggest solo-recorded music seller of all time ” and Oklahoma’s very own ” Garth Brooks announced last week he has had enough of sitting in his living room near Owasso…
OKC firefighter competes in World Police and Fire Games’ Toughest Competitor Alive
Lt. David Trowbridge sits down at the kitchen table and eats a small salad, while his fellow Oklahoma City firemen clean up from their spaghetti dinner. SMALL FISH INSPIRATION REMAIN IN SHAPE At 50, he recently competed in the 2009 World Police and Fire Games and placed first in the “Toughest Competitor Alive” event for…
Inexplicable
While state and local governments furiously pare budgets by laying off and furloughing workers, retired bureaucrats who receive defined-benefit pensions (rather than flexible 401(k) retirement accounts) continue to receive fixed payouts. According to a California organization advocating that government retirement benefits be changed from pensions to 401(k) accounts, one retired fire chief in northern California…
Fear(s) of the Dark
2007 Currently, there are two terrific, woefully under-released horror anthology films new to DVD. One is the more conventional Hollywood offering “Trick ‘r Treat.” The other is the rather unconventional French import “Fear(s) of the Dark.” For it, half a dozen graphic artists were assembled to deliver a tale, told in their own style of…
Mute Math negotiates near-breakup to reach a new ‘Armistice’
It’s not easy getting attention as a new band, but sometimes it just takes one good idea. In the case of New Orleans’ Mute Math, it was a video for the song “Typical,” which besides being a particularly vibrant performance that captures the acrobatic nature of its live performances, was filmed in reverse. SPACEY SOUNDSCAPES…
Local artists, Central Oklahoma Humane Society paint animal portraits
und families. The partnership between IAO and the Humane Society represents the gallery’s belief that art can be a tool for communication and a platform for discussion, while still celebrating visual expression. “I think that in the last three or four years, we started focusing more on our strategic plan and how arts organizations fit…
OKC firefighter competes in World Police and Fire Games’ Toughest Competitor Alive
Lt. David Trowbridge sits down at the kitchen table and eats a small salad, while his fellow Oklahoma City firemen clean up from their spaghetti dinner. SMALL FISH INSPIRATION REMAIN IN SHAPE At 50, he recently competed in the 2009 World Police and Fire Games and placed first in the “Toughest Competitor Alive” event for…
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
“The clouds are the most fertile part of the sky,” writes Guy Murchie in his book The Seven Mysteries of Life. Microbes with short life cycles live there in abundance, “eating, breathing, excreting, floating, swimming, competing, reproducing.” Next time you look up at a puffy cumulus, see it as a large city that hosts a…
Oklahoma City man tries to sell drugs with side of grenades allegedly
We’re all about ‘splosions here at Chicken Fried News, because here’s another entry that goes out with a bang. From NewsOK.com comes the story of Corenzo Manuel Gonzalez, just a businessman trying to make it in this economy. Y’know, sometimes you need to throw in something special to make that sale, which is just what…
Panel discussion returns to overlooked contributions of women, ethnic minorities
Not every innovative work of architecture or structural design can be traced back to highly trained professionals. Some, rather, are the result of adaptive problem solving from generations of shared knowledge. OVERLOOKED FIELDS OF DESIGN OPEN TO ALL Abimbola Asojo, a professor of interior design at the University of Oklahoma College of Architecture, has seen…
Remington Park’s new owners have big plans including $12 million in improvements
Will this be the key that finally unlocks the door to financial success for Remington Park? On Oct. 15, the new owners, Global Gaming Solutions, unveiled their plans to the Oklahoma Horse Racing Commission as they applied to renew the facility’s racing license with the state. RESTORATION ASPECT RENEWED EFFORT Both the Oklahoma Quarter Horse…
Law Abiding Citizen
After witnessing “The Ugly Truth,” it’s good to see Gerard Butler back in a movie with balls “¦ which he later severs with a box cutter. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Butler stars as Clyde Shelton, the “Law Abiding Citizen” of the title who watches in horror as his wife and child are murdered…
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
The members of the congregation at St. Peter-at-Gowts Church in Lincoln, England had a minor crisis a few years ago. For years, they had prayed to a very old stone sculpture they assumed was a likeness of the Virgin Mary. Then a nosy archaeologist came poking around and informed them that the figure was actually…
Athletes on Twitter pull back the curtain
Just for a second, before thinking about the fact that some athlete’s civil liberties are getting trampled, and before we get the American Civil Liberties Union on speed dial, maybe we should be grateful. Twitter may be taking over the world, but the newest rage is coaches banning it. Stifling a football player’s thoughts? Making…
Oklahoma History Center plans Rockabilly Weekend
In the 1950s, rock ‘n’ roll music was just an idea “? a new sound that people were learning to become accustomed to and eventually love. It was a time when fashion and cars became prominent obsessions and an that era paved the way for rock music as it stands today. This weekend, the metro…
The Flaming Lips’ Steven Drozd, DJ Jon Mooneyham spin one-night-only dance party to close out parade
If you’re hoping to congregate with 50,000 of Oklahoma’s finest and freakiest, look no further than the Gazette’s third annual Ghouls Gone Wild Halloween Parade. In conjunction with The Flaming Lips’ March of 1,000 Flaming Skeletons, there’s sure to be plenty to terrify and delight. BRIEF STINT RECENT REMIXES New this year is a post-parade…
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
It’s prime time for intense and momentous social events. Of the gatherings you may attend, I hope you’ll find at least one that fits the following descriptions: 1. a warm fluidic web of catalytic energy where you awaken to new possibilities about how to create close alliances 2. a sweet, jangly uproar where you encounter…
Yukon church community celebrates life of one of its own with memorial fun run
When Aaron Zentz decided he was going to follow his father into marathon running, he wanted his family and friends to know he was serious. While at church, he insisted a handful of men sign a handwritten note by him with his declaration that he would run the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon. Not only would…
Sugar Free Allstars stretch to kids musical performances
Successful bands are similar to thriving businesses: Once you find your niche, you stick to it. The members of metro funk duo Sugar Free Allstars found their target demographic when fans started noticing their children responding to the high-energy organ-based tunes. A few one-off kids’ performances quickly turned into lengthy library tours; 2007’s full-length album,…
Local church is repurposed to become a women’s development center
Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church sat on the corner of S.W. 11th Street and S. Youngs Boulevard for 60 years. The parish served a community that slowly transitioned to poor, homeless and immigrant over the course of those six decades. Our Lady of Guadalupe began as an outreach of Little Flower Catholic Church and,…
Inexplicable
While state and local governments furiously pare budgets by laying off and furloughing workers, retired bureaucrats who receive defined-benefit pensions (rather than flexible 401(k) retirement accounts) continue to receive fixed payouts. According to a California organization advocating that government retirement benefits be changed from pensions to 401(k) accounts, one retired fire chief in northern California…
High Moon – David Gallaher and Steve Ellis
Zuda Comics was launched in 2007 as a way for DC Comics to publish new works exclusively for the web, with visitors voting on which ones they’d like to see continue. Now, however, it’s no longer exclusive, as one of its early winners has made the leap to print. That work is “High Moon,” whose…
Paseo district hosts annual Magic Lantern Celebration
Halloween is just around the corner, and each year, new events pop up for people to celebrate the season. But one event in Oklahoma City stands as one of the most unique traditions of its time: the Magic Lantern Celebration. At the north end of the Paseo Arts District, near N.W. 30th and N. Dewey,…
Can’t Possibly Be True
Health Insurance Follies: Blue Shield California twice refused to pay $2,700 emergency room claims by Rosalinda Miran-Ramirez, concluding that it was not a “reasonable” decision for her to go to the ER that morning when she awoke to a shirt saturated with blood from what turned out to be a breast tumor. Only after a…
If voters approve MAPS 3 proposal, downtown could house $130 million park
While the Myriad Botanical Gardens is an attractive and popular public space in downtown Oklahoma City, the 17-acre site is miniscule when compared to urban parks in other cities. ‘STILL A CONCEPT PLAN’ AFFECTED PARCELS ‘EXTREMELY CONJECTURAL’ PARK POLL But with the “Core to Shore” development included in the MAPS 3 proposals, recreational park space…
Youthful cast signs energetic lease with Pollard Theatre for ‘Rent’
conventions, the deus ex machina. Why would Jonathan Larson, who wrote the score, lyrics and book for “Rent,” seem to cop out at the end? Death’s a bummer? Unfortunately, we cannot ask him, because Larson tragically and unexpectedly died on the day that “Rent” opened off-Broadway in 1996. He received posthumously both the Pulitzer Prize…
Love Can Mess You Up:
Before Arthur David Horn met his future bride Lynette (a “metaphysical healer”) in 1988, he was a tenured professor at Colorado State, with a Ph.D. in anthropology from Yale, teaching a mainstream course in human evolution. With Lynette’s guidance (after a revelatory week with her in California’s Trinity Mountains, searching for Bigfoot), Horn evolved, himself,…
Local church is repurposed to become a women’s development center
Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church sat on the corner of S.W. 11th Street and S. Youngs Boulevard for 60 years. The parish served a community that slowly transitioned to poor, homeless and immigrant over the course of those six decades. Our Lady of Guadalupe began as an outreach of Little Flower Catholic Church and,…
Oklahoma man faces charges after allegedly mailing brother pipe bombs
What’s one of the most important things in life? No, not breakfast. Family. We’re thinking somebody forgot that lesson recently when, according to Tulsa’s News on 6, an Oklahoma man sent quite the explosive package to his brother in California. Vernon Dale Mustin, a 51-year-old Spiro man, has been arrested and entered a guilty plea…
Douglass High School’s principal works to improve OKC school one student at a time
When Douglass High School Principal Brian Staples first entered an Oklahoma City public school as a student teacher almost 20 years ago, he asked if he could take over teaching the class on the second day and was “hooked.” BENCHMARK COLLEGE COURSES DAIRY FARM He spent the next five years teaching science at the same…
Oklahoma City man tries to sell drugs with side of grenades allegedly
We’re all about ‘splosions here at Chicken Fried News, because here’s another entry that goes out with a bang. From NewsOK.com comes the story of Corenzo Manuel Gonzalez, just a businessman trying to make it in this economy. Y’know, sometimes you need to throw in something special to make that sale, which is just what…
Political blog reports Oklahoma senator questions EPA
It seems what’s good for the goose isn’t always good for the gander. At least it seems that way to Oklahoma’s U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe. The Wonk Room, a section of the political blog Think Progress, reports Inhofe and two fellow Republican senators sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency requesting information on how…
Sugar Free Allstars stretch to kids musical performances
Successful bands are similar to thriving businesses: Once you find your niche, you stick to it. The members of metro funk duo Sugar Free Allstars found their target demographic when fans started noticing their children responding to the high-energy organ-based tunes. A few one-off kids’ performances quickly turned into lengthy library tours; 2007’s full-length album,…
Paseo district hosts annual Magic Lantern Celebration
Halloween is just around the corner, and each year, new events pop up for people to celebrate the season. But one event in Oklahoma City stands as one of the most unique traditions of its time: the Magic Lantern Celebration. At the north end of the Paseo Arts District, near N.W. 30th and N. Dewey,…
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
Some of history’s worst tyrants have been terrified by kittens. Napoleon, Genghis Khan, and Mussolini all had ailurophobia, a morbid and irrational fear of domestic felines. Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar were also discombobulated by cats. I bring this up, Pisces, because it reminds me of a certain situation in your life. I’m betting…
Mute Math negotiates near-breakup to reach a new ‘Armistice’
It’s not easy getting attention as a new band, but sometimes it just takes one good idea. In the case of New Orleans’ Mute Math, it was a video for the song “Typical,” which besides being a particularly vibrant performance that captures the acrobatic nature of its live performances, was filmed in reverse. SPACEY SOUNDSCAPES…
Athletes on Twitter pull back the curtain
Just for a second, before thinking about the fact that some athlete’s civil liberties are getting trampled, and before we get the American Civil Liberties Union on speed dial, maybe we should be grateful. Twitter may be taking over the world, but the newest rage is coaches banning it. Stifling a football player’s thoughts? Making…
Love Can Mess You Up:
Before Arthur David Horn met his future bride Lynette (a “metaphysical healer”) in 1988, he was a tenured professor at Colorado State, with a Ph.D. in anthropology from Yale, teaching a mainstream course in human evolution. With Lynette’s guidance (after a revelatory week with her in California’s Trinity Mountains, searching for Bigfoot), Horn evolved, himself,…
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
“The clouds are the most fertile part of the sky,” writes Guy Murchie in his book The Seven Mysteries of Life. Microbes with short life cycles live there in abundance, “eating, breathing, excreting, floating, swimming, competing, reproducing.” Next time you look up at a puffy cumulus, see it as a large city that hosts a…
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
It’s an excellent time to see if you can remove some of the neurotic twitches from your erotic itches. For example, you could use all your ingenuity to talk yourself out of the silly guilt you feel for having a certain idiosyncratic desire — a desire that, if acted out, would hurt no one, and…
