June 30 Random Observations of The Grand Lake Bum

Here we are at the biggest week of the year at Grand Lake. This weekend we will have a population equal to the third largest city in Oklahoma! WELCOME! I know we have a lot of folks coming in for the weekend who may not be familiar with my official Grand Lake Bum Holiday Rules of Behavior, so here they are again: No fighting, no puking, no hitting on someone else’s date, no griping at over-worked servers and bartenders, no bragging about how much money you have (or your parents have), no drunk driving, no public nudity (private nudity is okay), no yelling, no discussion of religion - and especially no politics! 

As with all holiday weekends, you may have a little longer wait for a seat, a drink, or some food. Be nice to everyone who is working so you can play. Everyone is always understaffed for the influx of holiday weekend visitors. If everybody who’s coming to the lake over the holiday weekend would come every weekend, all the businesses could staff up for those giant crowds. If I get my drink before you do, it’s because I’m there every day all year long. Bartenders already know what I want – and they know I’ll be sitting on the same stool in December. So, maybe you should buy a house and a boat while you’re here and come join us for the party all year!

*****

With all the narrow, winding roads around the lake, there are special driving rules at Grand Lake, as well: 1) Use your turn signals (those are controlled in most vehicles by a little handle on the left side of your steering wheel – push up if you’re turning right, push down if you’re turning left; 2) If there is no one in front of you, but a line of cars behind you, YOU are the problem.

*****

Congratulations to all the high school kids from all across the country (and as far away as Africa) who competed in the World Championship High School Fishing Tournament last week. With the fishermen, their captains, and their families, we had more than 3,000 visitors in that one group. The kids were all outgoing, polite – and a joy to be around. Let’s hope our tourism experts are successful in making Grand Lake a permanent home for that great tournament.

*****

Last Saturday’s “Grand Jam” music concert on the water in Duck Creek was delayed by more unwanted rain – but only for an hour. The skies cleared just in time for another fun afternoon of music on the water. Great show! Great fun!

*****

 A couple of Grand Lake promoters won some big honors last week. The RedBud Awards are given out annually as the highest honor in the state awarded by the Oklahoma Travel Industry Association – and Grand Lake had TWO big winners. The Shangri-La Marketing Department took top honors for the “Best Brochure or Publication” and the Grove Convention & Tourism Bureau was awarded the RedBud for “Tourism Organization of the Year.” The presentation of the award to Grove was pretty funny. Convention & Tourism wizards Brent Malone and Jeff Lovelady were busy at the lake with the High School World Championship Fishing Tournament. Grove City Manager Darren Cook was at the awards ceremony to accept the award – and in their absence, he hopped onto the stage with two giant life-size cutouts of Brent & Jeff. Well done, Darren! It was the highlight of the Oklahoma Tourism Conference – and damn creative, I must say!

*****

Remember when Dollar Tree became Dollar-and-a-Quarter Tree? Well, they didn’t even get their signs changed before another price hike. They’re now Dollar-and-a-Half Tree. They have already started. If you see a red tag on an item, it’s now $1.50.

*****

GRAND LAKE BUM SHOUT-OUTS: Happy birthday wishes go out this week to Grand Lakers Janet Sheeler, Alana Williams, Gary Harkreader, Dick Seybolt, Bob Beine, Alyson Aberle, Velma Mullen, Lisa Kucera, Virginia Gibson, Patsy Williams, Stephanie Young, Jack Doney, Rod Wadel, Elaine Stansfield, Sheri Stoner, and Kyle Mecklenburg.

*****

BEST GRAND LAKE EVENTS THIS WEEK: Fireworks, fireworks, fireworks. The holiday fun begins with Vinita Fireworks at Craig County Fairgrounds Wednesday night. Grove Fireworks at Wolf Creek are Thursday night. Duck Creek Fireworks, the Huckleberry Fireworks in Jay. and Miami Fireworks at Buffalo Run Casino are all Friday night. Saturday night, choose between the Monkey Island Fireworks at Shangri-La, Grand Lake Fireworks at Disney, Blue Bluff Harbor Fireworks or Horse Creek Fireworks near the unfinished bridge. Next week, there’s another great Junior Golf Camp at Shangri-La Monday-Wednesday (8:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. daily).

*****

RANDY KREHBIEL’S FACTOID OF THE WEEK: Tony Romo is the Dallas Cowboys' career leader in completion percentage, yards passing and touchdown passes.

*****

FUN FACT OF THE WEEK: The 2025 Women’s College World Series averaged more viewers (1.3 million) than the 2025 Men’s College World Series (1.2 millions). Softball viewership was up 24% and baseball viewership was down 22%.

*****

ODD FACT OF THE WEEK: Sea turtles can hold their breath for up to 10 hours. They slow their heart rate to stay underwater that long, sometimes to just one beat every 9 minutes.

*****

BEST FACEBOOK POST OF THE WEEK: The meteorologist who devised the wind chill factor has died. He was 86, but he felt like 75.

*****

WORD FUN OF THE WEEK: “Live not on evil deed. Live not on evil” spelled backwards still spells “Live not on evid deed. Live not on evil.”

*****

BEST SIGN SEEN THIS WEEK: RESERVED PARKING for veterinarian staff only. All violators will be neutered.

*****

BEST BLUESKY POST OF THE WEEK: Whoever came up with the spelling for “receipt” was an idiopt.

*****

PUN OF THE WEEK: NASA is launching a satellite to say “sorry” to aliens. They’re calling it the Apollo G.

*****

UNANSWERED QUESTION OF THE WEEK: When TV shows say they contain “adult situations,” why don’t they ever show anyone going to work, paying their bills, or cleaning up after their kids?

*****

OBSERVATION OF THE WEEK: I long for a better, simpler time when TV commercials didn’t actually show me people spraying their junk with deodorant.

*****

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “I drink to make other people interesting.” – Ernest Hemingway

*****

FEEL-OLD MOMENTS OF THE WEEK: Actor/director/producer Sylvester Stallone turns 79 Saturday. Actor, comedian & witer Mel Brooks turned 99 over the weekend, award-winning actress Kathy Bates (Matlock) turned 77; and actor Kevin Bacon turns 67 next week.

*****

BEST WEEKEND LIVE ENTERTAINMENT: It’s a holiday weekend so there is no shortage of entertainment options! On Monkey Island, Sundown Entertainment hosts Thursday night karaoke at Doc’s Bar & Grill at Shangri-La (6:00-9:00 p.m.) and Ryan Graham performs live Friday night at Doc’s Bar & Grill at Shangri-La. Broken Aces will provide the music Friday night at Eddy’s Lakeside Bar and Travis Kidd will be on stage before and after the Monkey Island Fireworks show Saturday night. There’s musical Bingo fun with Sundown Entertainment Wednesday night at The Monkey Bar, and there will be live music from William Tedford Saturday night.

In Grove, Magic J Featuring DJ Joe will provide the music Friday night at Cherokee Casino Grove’s 1897 Bar followed by The Beaty Creek Band Saturday night. There’s musical Bingo every Wednesday night and DJ Laidback Larry will provide the musical entertainment Saturday night at R-Bar Dance Hall & Saloon.

On South Grand Lake, Mike Barham & the Honky Tonk Prophets will kick off the weekend Thursday night at Sharky’s at Hammerhead Marina followed by One Night Stand Saturday night and Jon Moody Sunday afternoon. Clayton Ussery starts the weekend music Wednesday night at Mooney’s Sunset Bar & Grill in Disney followed by Ryan Graham Thursday night, The Travis Kidd Band Friday night, The Barrett Lewis Band Saturday night, Jacob Dement Sunday afternoon (4:00), and Barrett Lewis Sunday evening. Next Wednesday, Ayngel Dust entertains Wednesday evening. Lil’ Red & COBE will entertain at Blind Swine Duck Creek Thursday night and Lil’ Red will be back with more music next Tuesday. Glam R Us will provide the musical entertainment Friday night at The Drunken Rooster in Cleora followed by The Stars Saturday night.

It's a star-studded weekend at Buffalo Run Casino’s Peoria Showplace. Kaylee Rose starts the music Friday night along with a big fireworks show, followed by The Voices of Rock Radio Saturday night featuring John Elefante (Kansas), Kevin Chalfant (Journey and The Storm), and Fran Cosmo (Boston).

There are three nights and an afternoon of live music at Indigo Sky Casino this week. Brett N’ Terri kick off the weekend Thursday night followed by Encore Friday night and the Buster Clifton Davis Band Saturday. A&E provides the musical entertainment at Indigo Sunday from 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. Blues Doctors will entertain Saturday night at River Bend Casino’s Club 60 West.

*****

DINING & DRINKING UPDATE: Eddy’s Lakeside Bar has holiday weekend hours – opening at 4:00 Thursday, 11:00 a.m. Friday, Saturday & Sunday with live music Friday & Saturday nights. Due to the Duck Creek Fireworks, Blind Swine Duck Creek has moved their AYCE Friday Crab & Shrimp Boil up an hour – 4:00-8:00 p.m. this week. Bar service, but no food service from 8:00-11:00. No reservations accepted for fireworks.

*****

BUM MUST-SEE TV: Bachelor in Paradise airs next Monday night at 7:00 on ABC; and a new series, Survival Mode debuts next Monday night at 9:00 on NBC.

*****

BUM MUST-SEE MOVIES: Jurassic World Rebirth and Superman both open in movie theaters this weekend. Heads of State is available Wednesday on Prime Video and Madea’s Destination Wedding is available Friday on NETFLIX.

*****

SAVE THE DATE: Thursday & Friday, July 10-11 – “A Grand Adventure” youth camp at the GRDA Ecosystems and Education Center in Langley (9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.). Friday, July 11 – Wolf Creek National Boat Races “Show n’ Shine” event on the Grove Community Center lawn (5:00-9:00 p.m.). Saturday & Sunday, July 12-13 – Wolf Creek Nationals Boat Races at Wolf Creek Park (8:00-5:00). Saturday, July 12 – Cobalt Splash Bash in Ketchum Cove (1:00-4:00 p.m.). Monday-Tuesday, July 14-15 – Racquet Club Kids’ Tennis & Pickleball Camp at The Anchor at Shangri-La (8:00 a.m.-noon). Thursday, July 17 – Grove Chamber of Commerce Annual Banquet at Shangri-La (6:00 p.m.). Thursday-Sunday, July 17-20 – Oklahoma Legislative Grand Lake Getaway at Shangri-La.  

*****

The summertime sports focus is here – WNBA basketball, MLB, PGA golf, and NASCAR.

PGA Players are in Illinois this week. Coverage of the John Deere Classic begins at 3:00 Thursday & Friday and noon Saturday & Sunday on the Golf Channel. CBS picks up the final two rounds at 2:00 Saturday & Sunday.

NASCAR drivers are in Chicago this week as they continue the four-week “challenge.” Coverage of the Grant Park 165 is exclusively on TNT Sports with coverage at 1:00 Sunday afternoon.

WNBA coverage is focused on Caitlin Clark. Indiana hosts Las Vegas Thursday night, Los Angeles Saturday, and Golden State next Wednesday. The Sunday prime coverage game on CBS features Seattle at New York.

There are some fun Major League Baseball games this week. The Mets host the Yankees Saturday afternoon at 3:00 and Houston is at L.A. to face the Dodgers at 6:00. The Cubs host the Cardinals at 5:00 Sunday afternoon, and Texas is at San Diego Sunday night at 8:00.

*****

We finally get a little reprieve from the never-ending rain this week, just in time for the holiday. We’ll see sunshine this weekend with high temperatures around 90 and lows in the low-to-mid-70s. There’s an incredible line-up of really cool things happening around the lake this weekend in addition to all the fireworks shows everywhere you look; so get out and enjoy the wonder of a holiday on Grand! Remember, though, wherever you party, be sure to buy a drink for the guy next to you. It could be me!

GRAND LAKE BUM

If you would like to join the growing list of sponsors of The Grand Lake Bum e-blast and the Bum’s page on both  Grand Lake Living and www.360grandlake.com, the cost is only$50 a week and the list of readers continues to grow.  E-mail grandlakebum@gmail.com to sign up. The Grand Lake Bum column is also published in The Grand Laker newspaper.

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.

Anchor Sports Bar & Activity Park at Shangri-La

Big Shots on Monkey Island (Open Thursday, Friday & Saturday nights)

Billy’s Burger Bar & More in Ketchum

Blind Swine on Duck Creek at Safe Harbor Harbors View Marina

Blue Bluff Café at Blue Bluff Harbor

BOOM at The Regatta (at Sailboat Bridge)

Bradford BBQ in Ketchum

Buffalo Bar at Shangri-La on Monkey Island

Buffalo Run Casino in Miami (smoking)

Casa Gutierrez in Gro

Cesar’s Place in Vinita

Cesar’s Place in Langley

Checkered Past in Grove

Chickanella’s on Monkey Island

Chicken Coop west of Langley

Chubby’s Grill at On Target in Grove

Clanton’s Café in Vinita

Copper Penny Bar in Ketchum

Cosby’s Catfish on Highway 28 in Eucha (East of Disney)

Cove Club in Langley

Cregan’s Confections & Ice Cream (Ketchum)

Doc’s Bar & Grill at Shangri-La Resort Hotel

Domino’s in Grove

Downstream Casino in Quapaw (smoking)

Drake’s Restaurant in Grove

Drift at the Regatta (at Sailboat Bridge in Grove)

Drunken Rooster Bar & Grill (Cleora)

Drunken Rooster – on the Water (Grove)

E&H Liquor Store at Littlefield Corner, Monkey Island

Eddy’s Lakeside Bar at Shangri-La Marina

Fire Pit at Wildwood Cove Resort in Drowning Creek

Galley at The Anchor, Shangri-La Resort

Gambino’s Pizza in Ketchum

Goodfella’s Pizza (Cleora and Grove)

Grand Getaway Mercantile (north of Grove)

Grand Lake Casino, north of Grove on Highway 10 (smoking)

Grand Lake Coffee Company in Grove

Hero’s Deli in Grove

Hero’s Deli in Langley

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)

Island Bar & Grill at The Landings Marina

Juan Montez Restaurant & Cantina at Red Arrow Marina

Keagan’s Coffee at Littlefield Corner

La Casita de Martin in downtown Grove

Legacy Eatery in Grove

Lighthouse Supper Club in Ketchum

Los Garcias in Langley

Lupe's Mexican Restaurant in Grove

Matt’s Place in Grove

Monkey Bar on Monkey Island

Monkey Island RV Resort

Mooney’s Sunset Bar & Grill in Disney

Monkey Grind at Shangri-La Resort Hotel

Monkey Island Trail Rides

Monkey Island Winery

Mosa Hibachi and Sushi in Grove

Mulligan’s at Patricia Island Golf Club in Grove

Nu Taste Restaurant in Grove

One-Eyed Monkey at Littlefield Corner, Monkey Island

Pappy’s Bar on Hwy 10 east of Grove

Pickles at the Lake in Langley

Pier 13 Liquor Store in Langley

Pistol Pat’s on Honey Creek in Grove

Pit Stop Café in Grove

Poppin’ on Grand in Cleora

Quarterdeck Cafe at Tera Miranda Harbor

R Bar Dance Hall & Saloon in Grove

Raggedy’s in Grove

Rancho Viejo in Grove

Rise-N-Dine, Ketchum

River Bend Casino in Wyandotte (smoking)

Road Hog Saloon at the entrance to Monkey Island

Royal Liquor Store in Grove

Scissortail Lounge at Scissortail Marina

Sharky’s at Hammerhead Marina

South 125 Bar & Grill on Monkey Island

Speedy’s Chophouse in Grove

Stuffn’s Restaurant in Ketchum (Smoking on patio)

Sugar Shack at Lee’s Grand Lake Resort

Summit Restaurant at Shangri-La on Monkey Island

The Artichoke Restaurant in Langley

The Grill at Indian Hills Resort & Marina in Bernice

The Stables Casino in Miami (smoking)

The Shebang on Monkey Island (smoking on patio and Balcony Bar)

Ugly’s Grill & Bar, Thunder Bay Marina

VIP Pizza at Hammerhead Marina (smoking on deck)

Wolf Creek Diner in Grove