February 22 Random Observations Of The Grand Lake Bum
Good grief! I hope we’re done with winter for the year. It was short, but it sure was brutal. Snow, ice, gas shortages, electricity shortages, freezing-ass cold temperatures including a week where the temps never got above freezing – all on top of a pandemic. Just to emphasize the point, last Friday morning broke with blinding, freezing fog and, as if to add one last little shiver from the sub-freezing temperatures, Oklahoma shuddered with a 4.8 magnitude earthquake, and marked the end of the deep freeze with a meteor streaking across the Oklahoma sky. Let’s hope we have all of that out of our system. Now, we look forward, instead, to Welcome Back Weekend, the return of Daylight Saving Time, and the first day of Spring – all within the next three weeks. We’re due!
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I guess Texas had things about as bad as anybody in the country. U.S. Senator Ted Cruz has caught a lot of grief for taking his family to Cancun while Texas was in a state of total shutdown in a freezing natural disaster. I don’t really think all the criticism is justified. After all, he was just crossing the border in search of a better life for his children. He’s now officially in that category we’ve talked about for so long – a heroic father crossing the Mexican border in search of running water, warmth, reliable electric power, and a comfortable place for his children.
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Finally, the Covid-19 numbers are a little more encouraging. We might make it through this after all. I got my second vaccine two weeks ago, so I’m one of those willing to stick my head out a little. The weather ruined my Fat Tuesday feasting plans, so I had to settle for four Marie Callender pot pies – but by Saturday, I made it out to Monkey Island Pub to celebrate Mardi Gras! Now we’re well into the period of Lent. With all the happenings around the lake in the month of March, it’s hard to decide what I should give up for Lent. I thought long and hard, and finally made the commitment. Somebody else will have to eat my share of kale. I’m giving it up!
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The year of Coronavirus brought on interesting challenges, for sure. But it also brought on some new and innovative crimes. How about those two young ladies in Orange County, Florida who were arrested for falsifying their birth dates and dressing up as old grannies to try to sneak in line for Covid-19 vaccination shots? It worked somehow on their first shots, but they got caught attempting to get their final dose. They were arrested and charged with trespassing. Unfortunately for them, the shots were being given at the convention center, and part of their penalty is being banned from that building. That not only means no shots. It also means no conventions, no concerts, and no sporting events. That and, an eternal listing in the Florida Coronavirus Hall of Shame!
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The ladies don’t have a lock on the strangest Florida crime of the month, though. That goes to the guy in Jupiter, Florida who showed up at Wendy’s drive-thru to order a little food and drink. After receiving his drink, he shoved a three-and-a-half-foot-long live alligator through the drive-thru window. Alligator skin is supposedly valuable, all right, but I’m pretty sure you can’t use it as payment for food while the alligator is still in it!
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As we wrap up the month of February, the twists and turns of the Oklahoma legislative session continue. One piece of legislation caught my eye when it was approved in a committee last week. HB 2030 would require students to pass the U.S. Naturalization Test before being allowed to graduate high school. Oh sure, I understand the patriotic hoo-ha over this additional load on public schools, but have you ever seen that test? One good way to make sure it never passes is to require members of the legislature to pass it before they can vote “yes” on the bill.
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DINING AND DRINKING UPDATE: Monkey Islanders Tammie Koehler, Kim Brady, and Debbie Mitchell will be teaming up as the featured Guest Chef Trio Wednesday night at The Shebang. There’s another new venue opening at Shangri-La Resort this week – The Monkey Grind Coffee shop in the resort hotel opens Friday, proudly serving Starbucks coffee. The Blind Swine is now open only Thursday, Friday & Saturday. Doc’s Bar & Grill features Prime Rib Thursday night and all-you-can-eat ribs Friday night. The Road Hog Saloon now offers breakfast service Wednesday-Sunday. Sunday Brunch is served to the public at Doc’s Bar & Grill (9:00-2:00) and Mulligans at Patricia Island (10:00-2:00).
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BEST EVENTS OF THE WEEK: Cherokee Casino Grove has reopened following their closure to reduce power usage during the recent threat of outages. Friday is the Grand Opening of The Monkey Grind at Shangri-La’s Resort Hotel. Next Wednesday (6:00-8:00) is the drive-through Home of Hope Chocolate Affair on Safari. That is also the first night of a six-week Wednesday night Texas Hold ‘em Tournament at Blind Swine.
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BEST WEEKEND LIVE ENTERTAINMENT: Thursday Night Karaoke with Jason Morgan kicks off the weekend at Doc’s Bar & Grill at Shangri-La this week. Friday night, Jamey Hooper provides the live entertainment at Doc’s. KJ Flip will lead the karaoke fun Thursday night at Blind Swine and Erin Fitzgibbon will entertain early Friday night (6:00).
On South Grand, Laron Simpson will be on stage Saturday night at Mooney’s Sunset Bar & Grill in Disney.
Indigo Sky Casino this week presents Eastbound in the Echo Bar Thursday night, followed by Encore Friday and Constant Chaos Saturday. At Downstream Casino’s Legends Sports Bar Travis Kidd provides Friday night’s music. Accidental Moguls will be on stage Saturday night. At Cherokee Casino Grove’s 1897 Bar, Brett N Terri will be performing both Friday and Saturday nights.
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RANDY KREHBIEL’S RANDOM FACTOID OF THE WEEK: Camp Gruber, Oklahoma, is named for Gen. Edmund Louis "Snitz" Gruber, best known for writing "The Caissons Go Rolling Along," which John Phillips Sousa adapted as the march "The Field Artillery Song," the official song of the U.S. Army.
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FUN FACT OF THE WEEK: You will lose a lot of friends trying too hard to be successful. That’s why a Ferrari has two seats and a bus has 56.
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BEST FACEBOOK POST OF THE WEEK: Remember when people had diaries and got mad if someone read them? Now they post it all in social media and get mad when people don’t.
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BEST SIGN SEEN THIS WEEK: 2020 – The Year of Hell! 2021 – Hell Froze Over.
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TWEET OF THE WEEK: A baby can drink an entire bottle and fall asleep, and people think it’s cute. But, as soon as I do it, I’m a drunk!
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BEST PUN OF THE WEEK: Cow farts come from the dairy air.
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OBSERVATION OF THE WEEK: The key to getting along with people is to either lower your expectations or learn to drink.
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FEEL-OLD MOMENTS OF THE WEEK: Ultra-conservative America lost its loudest voice last week. Iconic radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh was 70 years old. If you’re not feeling old yet, try this one. Leonardo DiCaprio is now the same age that Steve Martin was when he starred in “Father of the Bride.” But, yes, he wears 46 a little better than Steve did. Legendary U.S. Senator and former Presidential nominee Bob Dole has announced that he’s entering treatment for stage four cancer. Senator Dole is 97 years old. If still don’t feel old, there’s this: Michael Jordan, arguably the greatest NBA player of all time, turned 58 years old last week.
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GRAND LAKE BUM SHOUT-OUTS: Happy birthday wishes go out this week to Jennifer Reed, Winston Connor II, Leta Carson, Peter Graf, Gary Sisco, Bob Rush, Bryan Hendershot, Glenna Whitehead, Don White, Debbie Totty, Joyce Maxson, Amanda Tinney, David Brauckmann, Diane McPeters, Deanna Snyder, and Mary Lou Manley.
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UNANSWERED QUESTION OF THE WEEK: Why are all the instruments used to search for signs of intelligent life always pointed away from the earth?
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BUM MUST-SEE TV: It’s a big television week ahead. The 78th Annual Golden Globe Awards ceremony airs live Sunday night at 7:00 on NBC. Season 10 of The Walking Dead also premieres Sunday night at 8:00 on AMC. Monday night at 7:00 marks the return of The Voice on NBC followed by the series debut of Debris at 9:00. Tuesday night, New Amsterdam returns for another season at 9:00, also on NBC.
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BUM MUST-SEE MOVIES: There are some good new movie releases this week. The United States vs. Billie Holiday premieres on hulu. Close Enough is available on HBO Max; and Minari and Night of the Kings are available in virtual theaters.
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “Think about how stupid the average person is, then realize half of ‘em are stupider than that.” – George Carlin
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SAVE THE DATE: Wednesday-Friday, March 3-5 – MLF College Fishing National Championship out of Wolf Creek Park. Thursday-Sunday, March 4-7 – Grand Lake Boat & Sport Show at the Grove Civic Center. Friday, March 5 – Quarterdeck Café at Tera Miranda reopens for 2021 season. Friday, March 5 – First Friday Wine Share at Rustic Rehab in Grove. Friday-Sunday, March 5-7 – “Welcome Back Weekend.” Saturday, March 6 – Welcome Back Weekend Poker Run, by land or by Grand. Saturday, March 6 – “Pisces Rock Sock Hop” at Big Shots Rhythm & Booze. Saturday, March 6 – Anglers In Action (Wolf Creek). Friday March 12 (7:30) and Sunday, March 14 (2:00) – only two live performances of the comedy “Slow Food” at Playmakers in Grove. Saturday, March 13 -Glow Golf at Shangri-La Golf Club. Saturday, March 13 – St. Patrick’s Day Comedy Show at Big Shots on Monkey Island. Sunday, March 14 – First day of Daylight Saving Time. Friday-Sunday, March 19-21 – Big Meat Run at the offroad area below the Pensacola Dam in Disney. Saturday, March 20 – Official First Day of Spring. Saturday, March 20 – St. Patrick’s Day Party at Monkey Island Pub. Saturday, April 3 – South Grand Chamber’s “Bootleggers’ Ball” at Shangri-La Resort.
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SPORTS WATCH: The NBA regular season rolls on with the OKC Thunder at home for a while. They host Miami Monday (8:00), San Antonio Wednesday (7:00), Atlanta Friday (7:00), and Denver Saturday (7:00) before heading to Dallas next Wednesday (7:30). All games are on Fox Sports Oklahoma.
In college hoops, it’s the final week of the regular season – and we’re doing it up in style. Su OSU hosts Texas Tech Monday night at 8:00 (ESPN2) and OU is at Kansas State Tuesday night at 8:00 (ESPN2) before wrapping up the season with back-to-back Bedlam Basketball games – OSU is at OU at 2:00 Saturday (ABC) and OU heads for Stillwater Monday night at 8:00 (ESPN2). Kansas is at Texas Tuesday night at 8:00 (ESPN) before hosting Baylor in a regular season finale at 7:00 Saturday night. The Big XII Tournament begins March 10.
PGA players are scattered across the western hemisphere this week. The WGC Workday Championship at The Concession is in Bradenton, Florida this week. Coverage is on The Golf Channel beginning at noon Thursday & Friday and 11:00 a.m. Saturday & Sunday. NBC picks up the final two rounds at 1:30 Saturday & Sunday. This weekend is also the Puerto Rico Open with exclusive coverage on The Golf Channel at 9:00 a.m. Thursday & Friday, and at 1:30 Saturday & Sunday.
NASCAR drivers are still hanging around Florida this week – but this time they’ll be at Homestead for the Dixie Vodka 400. Coverage begins at 2:00 Sunday afternoon on Fox.
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It sure is nice to have weekend weather that we can actually look forward to! We may have a few showers Saturday, but other than that, we’ll have sunshine and high temperatures in the low-to-mid 50s and nightly lows above freezing – mid-30s. It’s time to get outside and play again to wrap up a miserable month! Remember, though, wherever you party, be sure to buy a drink for the guy next to you. It could be me!
GRAND LAKE BUM
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Looking for places to go, things to do, services to use or property to buy in the Grand Lake area? Here’s a starter kit listing of “open to the public” fun places to spend time at Grand Lake.
Ailey’s Café in Langley
Artichoke Restaurant & Bar in Langley
Balcony Bar at The Shebang (Smoking – open Friday & Saturday nights)
Big Shots on Monkey Island (Open Friday & Saturday nights)
Blind Swine on Monkey Island
Blue Bluff Café at Blue Bluff Harbor
Buffalo Bar at Shangri-La on Monkey Island
Buffalo Run Casino in Miami (smoking)
Café at Har-Ber Village
Café Yum in Grove
Cesar’s Place in Vinita
Cesar’s Place in Langley
Checkered Past in Grove
Chickanella’s in Grove
Chicken Coop West of Langley
Clanton’s Café in Vinita
Copper Penny Bar in Ketchum
Coppers Tea & Coffee House in Grove
Cosby’s Catfish on Highway 28 in Eucha (East of Disney)
Doc’s Bar & Grill at Shangri-La Resort Hotel
Docks Bar at Harbors View Marina
Domino’s in Grove
Downstream Casino in Quapaw (smoking)
Drake’s on the Lake at Blue Bluff Harbor
Drake’s Restaurant in Grove
Eddy’s Lakeside Bar at Shangri-La Marina (smoking)
Gabby’s Place in downtown Grove
Goodfella’s Pizza (Cleora and Grove)
Grand Lake Casino, north of Grove on Highway 10 (smoking)
Grand Lake Public House in Grove
Hatfield’s Saloon in Grove
High Winds Casino east of Miami (smoking)
Honey Creek BBQ in Grove (south of Honey Creek bridge)
Indigo Sky Casino west of Seneca, Mo. (smoking)
Juan Montez Restaurant & Cantina at Red Arrow Marina
La Casita de Martin in downtown Grove
Lester’s Third Street Diner in Grove
Lighthouse Supper Club in Ketchum
Los Garcias in Langley
Lupe's Mexican Restaurant in Grove
Marina’s Place at Littlefield Corner
Matt’s Place in Grove
Monkey Island Pub (Smoking)
Mooney’s Sunset Bar & Grill in Disney (smoking, etc.)
Monkey Island Trail Rides
Monkey Island Winery
Mulligan’s at Patricia Island Golf Club in Grove
Nu Taste Restaurant in Grove
Pappy’s Bar on Hwy 10 east of Grove
Pickles at the Lake in Langley
Pit Stop Café in Grove
Quarterdeck Cafe at Tera Miranda Harbor (smoking on the deck)
Raggedy’s in Grove
Rancho Viejo in Grove
Riggs & Company in Langley
River Bend Casino in Wyandotte (smoking)
Road Hog Saloon at the entrance to Monkey Island (smoking...but not at lunch)
Rusty Anchor (next to the cliffs at Dripping Springs)
Sharky’s at Hammerhead Marina (smoking)
Stuffn’s Restaurant in Ketchum (Smoking on patio)
Summit Restaurant at Shangri-La on Monkey Island
The Grill at Indian Hills Resort & Marina in Bernice
The Landings Market and Grill on Monkey Island (smoking on the patio)
The Parrot at Honey Creek Landing in Grove (Smoking on the patio)
The Pourhouse at The Regatta in Grove
The Stables Casino in Miami (smoking)
The Shebang on Monkey Island (smoking on patio and Balcony Bar)
Ugly’s Grill & Bar, Thunder Bay Marina (smoking)
VIP Pizza at Hammerhead Marina (smoking on deck)
Water Side Bar & Grill in Grove
Waterway Café, Harbors View Marina (smoking on breakwater dining deck)
Wolf Creek Diner in Grove