Do our ballots really matter?

If you are like me, and tend to discount about half of what the news reports say about the upcoming election process, check out what recently happened to my father’s mail-in ballot.

Town Talk

I was watering on Main Street last Friday morning and got to visit with some nice people who were visiting our community. The first two ladies I met, pictured to the right, were Gracie Szakin (left) from Coffeyville, Texas and Joey Hoecker (right) from Edmond, Oklahoma.

Consequences of vacation

They say every vacation has it’s consequences and I am suffering through mine. Last week, I went to Phoenix, AZ to surprise my sister for her birthday. I had a great time catching up with family, seeing old friends, exploring new canyons and trying new foods.

Vegetarian stew

Tuesday may have been the nicest day in the history of weather. Sunny, just a hint of coolness early in the morning. A perfect day for anything you want to do outside. But wait. What’s that hovering just over the horizon? Why, it’s chilly weather, that’s what it is.

Let the Games… Begin! Again!

This is the Fifty-Third article in a permanent column for Stroud Arts that appears in the Stroud American. The mission of these articles is to inform, educate and inspire you, the reader, to Make Art Happen in your life and the life of our community.

Town Talk

It’s Farmer’s Market time. September’s market will be held this Saturday at the Main Street Route 66 Pavilion. The event will begin at 8:00 a.m. If you would like to set up a booth you may contact Mandy Clark via Facebook or call me at 918-527-9833.

Working at the Cordell Beacon

Each of the last two weeks I’ve spent three days in Cordell helping out The Cordell Beacon, the city’s weekly newspaper. It’s a sister paper to The Tri-County Herald, the Lincoln County News and the Stroud American and several others across the state and a few in Texas.

Town Talk

A big thank you to Jim Hodgens, David Evans, Andrea Thompson, Cathy Terry, Larry Henderson, Alfreidya Webster, Joshua Cheek and Julie Bivin for helping spruce up Main Street last week at Town Talk’s “block party.

Editorial

As if things weren’t hard enough for Oklahoma’s small businesses, news comes that the Trump administration plans to claw back a chunk of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds legitimate businesses have used as a lifeline to keep their employees on the payroll.

Town Talk

Things are happening at the Skyliner Motel. If you haven’t driven by lately, you need to take a look. There is a new buggy on display outside the front of the motel. I’m sure there’s some interesting history associated with it.