Oakie's Heart To Heart

21 April 2001, Vol. III, Iss. 16

Jet, Oklahoma Murals...

In my travels last week I found another great small town mural on the eastside of Jet, and the eastside of Alfalfa County, Oklahoma. Check out these other web sites concerning Jet, Oklahoma, Oklahoma Cities & Towns.

According to the info on one of the murals, since 1893 to 1906 -- Jet was established in three town sites - The original townsite in 1893 - The second town site in 1895; The third town site in 1906.

There are five murals lined up on the northside of hwy. 64. One shows a scene of the "old downtown main street" of Jet around 1895. Run of '93 | Jet Mural #2
Jet, Oklahoma | The Jet Community
Present Main Street Scene

Besides murals on their eastside, just north of Jet is the Salt Plains National Wildlife Refugee, the Great Salt Plains and the Selenite Crystal Festival.

Salt Plains & Crystals...

The Great Salt Plains is located in north central Oklahoma, east of Cherokee, in Alfalfa County. The Salt Plains is derived from the thin layer of salt which covers the flats. The salt was used by the Indian tribes and early pioneers who first settled the area.

It was established in 1930 as an important feeding and resting area for migratory waterfowl and endangered species. There are seven miles in length and approximately 3 miles wide and lie within the boundaries of the Salt Plains National wildlife Refuge. The Reservoir was constructed by the US Army Corps of Engineers in 1941.

Selenite Crystals.... If you are in the mood to be a prospector for selenite crystals, you might check out The Great Salt Plains Association web site or give them a call at area code (580) 5966-3053..

Crystal digging is allowed starting the 1st of April through 15 October, sunrise to sunset.

There are no special permits required. Collectors are permitted to remove up to 10 pounds of crystals plus one large cluster for their personal use in any one day.

They have prescribed lanes of travel for you vehicles. Because of the white salt surface, sunglasses and protecteive clothing are recommended.

What is... & How are Crystals Formed...

Selenite is a crystallized form of gypsum (hydrous calcium sulfate). It is a common mineral which takes on a variety of crystal forms and shapes. At the Salt Plains they are formed just below the salt encrusted surface and are seldom found deeper than two feet below the surface. They take on the characteristics of their environment. The finer the soil, the more clearer the crystals. Iron oxide in the soil gives the crystals their chocolate brown color.

How Do You Collect Crystals?

1. Use a shovel to dig a hole about two feet deep and two feet across until you reach wet sand. You may feel the shovel break through the crystals as it goes down. This cannot be helped as there is no way of predicting exactly where a bed of crystals is located.

2. Allow two or three inches of water to seep in from the bottom.

3. Use your hand or a container to splash water gently against the sides of the hole. The agitated water will wash the soil away from the crystals.

4. When you find a crystal formation, continue splashing to wash it free of the supporting sand and clay.

5. At this stage of the process, the newly- exposed crystals are wet and fragile. Use great care in removing them.

6. After removing crystals from sand, place them where sun and wind will dry them. Egg cartons or other containers may be used for transporting the crystals.

Above the Storm...

A friend FWD me the following article that I thought interesting about Eagles & Life. It is interesting to me, because the soaring eagle is my OkieLegacy logo... AND.... I have this fascination with eagles. The author of this article is unknown to this writer....

ABOVE THE STORM --- Did you know that an eagle knows when a storm is approaching long before it breaks?
      The eagle will fly to some high spot and wait for the winds to come. When the storm hits, it sets its wings so that the wind will pick it up and lift it above the storm.
      While the storm rages below, the eagle is soaring above it. The eagle does not escape the storm. It simply uses the storm to lift it higher. It rises on the winds that bring the storm.
      When the storms of life come upon us - and all of us will experience them -- we can rise above them by setting our minds and our belief toward God.
The storms do not have to overcome us. We can allow God's power to lift us above them. God enables us to ride the winds of the storm that bring sickness, tragedy, failure and disappointment in our lives. We can soar above the storm.
      Remember, it is not the burdens of life that weigh us down, it is how we handle them. The Bible says, "Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles." Isaiah 40:3

Oakie's NW Corner...

Well! The roses are blooming beautifully in Southern Oklahoma. AND... The wind keeps whipping, waving & whistling through the air. The waving wheat fields create their own artist canvas as the winds continue across the plains of the heartland.

We have recouped our windy minds, dusty eyeballs and senses to some extent. Last week's disappearing photos have been safely uploaded to the website. AND.... Everything seems to be working. Knock on wood!

If you are lucky and happen to be passing through the NW parts of Oklahoma, don't be surprised if it seems a bit crowded with dune buggies, rattlesnakes and snake charmers. The snake charmers will be the ones toting around the gunny sacks, long snake handling tools, wearing high top boots and equiped with some sort of snake-bite kits. You can get caught up in the festivities, crowds in downtown Waynoka, Oklahoma to taste the chicken flavor morsels of cooked rattlesnake.

Yep! The community of Waynoka, home of the Little Sahara State Park & Sand Dunes, the remodeled Harvey House & Museum is having it's Annual Rattlesnake Hunt this weekend (21st. April).

Don't forget to stop by Waynoka's museum and see the restored Harvey House. On Thursdays thru Saturdays you can dine at "Chicken Roscoe's" located inside the Harvey House. "Chicken Roscoe's" is owned by a Woodward couple (Mr. & Mrs. Roscoe Hill) who operated the same popular restaurant in Woodward until their move to Waynoka in the last few months.

I don't think you will find Harvey House ladies dressed in black, long dresses w/white aprons, but.... that was the past and this is the present and tomorrow is the future. Who can predict what is yet to come.

When you get tired of sampling the Rascally Rattlesnake Rarebites at the Snake hunt, maybe the German restaurant downtown the street will quench your thirst with a stein of beer and German cusine.

Many of you have sent in poems of Dandelions and early 1900 postcards of NW Oklahoma. Those can be found in the Mailbag section and all you have to do to see a larger view is.... Click on the picture.

I have been hanging out with my horses, as usual. I have also been reading this book, "Resistance Free Training," by Richard Shrake. We are in the stage of learning each others body language and building an equal partnership. The book says, "If you blame everything on a stupid horse, you'll have a whole barn full of stupid horses."

My Mare is still expecting any day. As soon as I found out when, there will be photos of the new 2001 colt to follow in the Quarterhorse section.

-- Linda - "Oakie"

Linda K McGill Wagner
c/o WWW Publishing Co
PO Box 619, Bayfield, CO 81122

Thanks! You can also view The OkieLegacy online. Copyrighted © 2008 by WWWPubCo & OkieLegacy. 
All Rights Reserved.

Mailbag & Links....

"These are from Friday (first week in April). The CNS Internet Working Group, who are a group of friends that help out the webmaster manage our more than 1,000 page website, Americorps.org, decided to take off at 5 PM and head over to the Tidal Basin to see the cherry blossoms. They where in mid-bloom (cherry blossoms). I have them in full bloom that Sunday that I will get developed and send to you later. The CNS Webmaster, Cheryl, is the woman with short blond hair. The red-headed woman is our printing & publications coordinator, Abbey. The guy with curly, blond hair is the AmeriCorps Information & Technology Coordinator. The other two are me (with the beard) and Jeff who works with Planning, Programs and Implemntation. " -- Michael
MORE PICS....
DC Cherry Blossoms
Jefferson Memorial
Michael & Friends
Michael

Carmen, Oklahoma Postcards...
"When I was a kid, my family used to tell about a circus that wintered at Augusta (NW Oklahoma). My grandfathers side lived in that area, and there was 'courting' over the distance from Carmen to Capron. The picture of the Odd Fellows Home was a card sent from my grandfather at Carmen, to my grandmother at Capron on Jan 5, 1912. They were married 12/24/12, so guess things were beginning to get serious.

The more 'pastoral' of the Carmen cards was sent to my grandfather Dacoma, by a cousin living at Aline. The post mark on that one is May 5, 1909. "

Watonga - Dorns Trading Post...
"Here is another one of Watonga's landmark back when I was younger. My grandfather had remarried after my grandmother died and was living in Watonga. Whenever we went to visit, we always had to go to Dorn's Trading Post. The back of the card is captioned: DORN'S TRADING POST, Owned by Dorn Plaster, 'Home of the World's Oldest Well', See 'Navajo,' recently captured wild stallion from the Navajo Reservation, Indian Pottery-Curios-Bead Work. I never remember seeing 'Navajo' the recently captured wild stallion, however."

"Linda, Your comment this week about Capron prodded me to get the postcard I have scanned. My grandmother's family lived east of Capron, and she attended a college in Odessa, MO. I have this postcard which was sent to her in Missouri, postmarked FEB 11,1909, 10 AM. Am not certain just who it is from. Enjoy the news each week and again thank you for jogging the 'old' gray matter. " -- M. Henry

"I have search several sources but have not found 'An ode to Dandelion' - I'll keep looking." -- Ernest

To A Dandelion - That Little Golden Devil
"What is a lawn without a dandelion!
It may look trim and proper, but that's all.
To tell the truth, it has no character.
Nothing to save it from the common place.
The eye is lost with so much greenery
Until, at last, its focus comes to rest
Upon the little jewel in the grass.
Those tiny heads of gold, amongst the green,
Should bring an instant joy to human heart.
This, you may say, is the positive view.
But even from the negative approach:
See how the owner of the lawn enjoys
His bout...to keep those little devils out!
It gives him ample opportunities
To brag and show, to all, how smart he is.
He digs and poisons the intrusionist,
And thinks that he has seen the last of him -
Until the morning sun reveals more gold.
Myself, I hold no grudge against the weed.
Especially, since I don't own a lawn."
By Volodimir Barabash

"Nah, Nah, Nah -- We all got blown into Canada -- Maybe even Alaska. Hey, Horse Lady, your Okie and my Gypsy on Arden's page look a lot like Gypsy and Snostar a long time ago. Your Cindy and Okie sound much like my Gypsy and Snostar. Gypsy is a King Quarterhorse, and Snostar was half Quarter and half Arabian. He was a beauty with a temper like that. He would recognize my car when I went to the barn, and immediately start heading for the gate. I don't see Gypsy as much so she has turned into a snob. I think she thinks she belongs to the lady that boards her for me. She was a beautiful 2 yr. old when Larry got her for me. He tells everyone that I have never seen an ugly horse! Gypsy will be 34 the end of this month."

"New photos of the girls!! (choose Easter 2001) Hope everyone had a fun weekend, Pam, John and Kids"

This bit of information was in the NYTimes.com and sent to me by another reader.... "Ellis Island Goes Online With Immigration Lists , By Susan Sacha...

Now, for the first time and online, Ellis Island brings you... your ancestors. Beginning today, if all goes as planned, anyone with an Internet connection will be able to search through old passenger manifests from the ships that ferried 17 million immigrants into New York Harbor, and the New World, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The database, extracted from microfilms of the original paper manifests, covers arrivals at Ellis Island from 1892 through 1924. To find records, the curious can go to ellisislandrecords.org. Seen on a computer screen, the ship manifests are prosaic documents: page after page, column after column of names, ages and other dry particulars. Some were typed, the letters fat and slightly uneven. More are filled with the dense florid handwriting popular at the turn of the last century and barely decipherable now. Concentrated within them is the force of memory. And a trip through the records, either at home or at the Ellis Island museum, can be emotionally harrowing.... In many cases, they're going to have to come to the center with substantial information. The manifests also tell much about the times.

21 April - Happy 52nd Birthday, Amber!