Well, as the song says, this is where the wind comes sweeping down the plain. This is the view from my hotel in Norman, Oklahoma, where the Evolution 2011 meetings start tomorrow. The hotel/conference center is a huge massif rising above the prairie, and there’s nothing around for miles. It’s gonna be tough to get something decent to eat.
I hear there’s a good BBQ joint in town, but, sans voiture, there’s no way to get there. Unlucky me.
I can not help but think of the obvious question – Why organise a meeting in the middle of nowhere?
Norman is not the middle of nowhere.
It’s on the outskirts of nowhere.
Until I traveled through there, I had not pictured it as being that unrelentingly flat. Kansas-lite, as it were.
Although there are a few hills around Tulsa (and a great steak place called Mahogany).
Ahem, since Kansas was once very kind to me, I must rise to its defense. It ain’t flat. As you go from east to west on I-70, the wavelength of Kansas progressively increases as the amplitude decreases. The eastern 1/3 of Colorado is flat, or rather it’s a very slightly inclined plane.
All true. But you can still pretty much prop your steering wheel at the eastern edge of any of these and go to sleep …
OK City does have the Wichita Mountains (granite hills) nearby.
And they are spectacularly beautiful, for Oklahoma.
Didn’t somebody show recently that, considered at equivalent scales, Kansas is in fact flatter than a pancake?
oops–see comment #14 below!
The story that I heard was that the administration at the University of Oklahoma was less than enthusiastic about supporting the evolution meeting, afraid of scaring away donors or something, and somehow or other this led to the meeting being held off campus at Conference Center, which also doubles as a regional hub for the U.S. Postal Service or FedEx or something.
Actually the Postal training centre is to the south of town. Embassy Suites is very new, and it’s large enough to hold the conference. I can’t think of any single site on campus that could house the entire conference. And dashing around campus, in 100 F weather, probably wouldn’t work very well.
Although it looks remote, it really isn’t that far. They have promised a shuttle service that will probably do a great job of getting people back and forth.
Some cities have this amazing invention called a “taxi”.
My bad, but the first vehicle I thought of was a surrey. And now I can’t stop humming.
Looks like it was a beautiful morning there…
I don’t think he’ll be making it to the church on time. Or anytime even. Unless they have cats, of course.
Not even if our Jer is paid.
(PS: you switched musicals there…)
Sorry my Memory is bad.
A Surrey!?
For a wedding maybe!
🙂
It’s too bad you aren’t President of The Society for the Study of Evolution or you could have chosen a better location! 🙂
I’ll have my car in Ottawa next year so we can hit all the best restaurants and dives. Hope you like poutine and beaver tails!
Poutine! Oh yeah!
My local place puts a nice tronche of seared foie gras on top as well, which is quite … what’s that technical term? … YUMMY.
tranche … finger fart
I used to have to spend a lot of time in Oklahoma City for a previous job. I feel your pain! (At least they did provide une voiture, luckily.)
Dr. C.: There was one place in the south end of OK City, a hideously designed (think the Walmart of restaurants) “Italian” place. I can’t remember the name. It was in a strip (on a N-S main drag) of similar-looking places and not very inviting. However, colleagues kept telling me to try it — so I did.
They have both a 4-cheese pasta and a hot shrimp salad that were very good. I would lsip in, sit alone at the bar with a book (the place was always packed) and have either pasta or salad and some decent wine by the glass. About as haute as the cuisine gets in OKC, as far as I could tell. Too bad the atmosphere was so deadly.
I found that in OK City there was a nice place to walk: on the eastern side of the Lake Overholser reservoire (western edge of town). I usually saw scissortail flycatchers (state bird of OK) there.
Hey, Google to the rescue! Zio’s Italian Kitchen, on S Meridian Ave at about SW 20th St.
As noted: Walmart atmosphere; but some good food.
I had a hard time finding really good food in OKC. The usual wisdom: Go with steaks or BBQ didn’t go too far with me. I’m not a steak guy (I prefer the ones I make at home, very occasionally) and I found the BBQ uninspiring. You mileage may vary and I hope it’s better than mine!
You should meet up and chat with YEC Baraminologist Todd Wood!
http://toddcwood.blogspot.com/2011/06/sediba-paper-and-evolution2011.html
My but the cognitive dissonance is strong in this one.
Just an idea: some BBQ places deliver. Check out the yellow pages.
Or rent a car? You’re crippled out there with no car.
Ugh. I had a look at Google for Norman, and it looks like only Jason’s Deli and a few pizza places advertise delivery. I’d go for the taxi to the decent BBQ place.
Flat ? Then try finding time to take a look around the famously organic & delightfully ‘Hippy’ Bavinger House, 730 60th Ave., NE, Norman
It was built in 1950 by the architect Bruce Goff from stone, steel & parts from WWII bombers. To quote from the above link:
For me Goff is ‘up there’ (well he is dead) with Frank Lloyd Wright [ Fallingwater ] & Frank Gehry [everything] who isn’t (dead that is).
I do believe that Bavinger House is open for viewing, but maybe only weekends. Check it out & enjoy !!
You will require a taxi
Are you familiar with the work of Goff’s student Bart Prince?
pretty cool stuff
Sven my man – yes !
Do you know of The House Beneath The Mountain ? Now that’s ‘spiritual’ don’t you agree ?
cool link–thanks.
As an aimless young man between undergrad and grad school I was lucky to get a job helping to build Prince’s Seymour house in Los Altos CA.
pic 1
pic 2
pic 3 (plan section)
In fact, see the curving/sloping wall at center-left in the following pic? (There is a sundeck behind it)
pic 4
I built that.
Is Norman near ERV‘s location? Perhaps she could drive you to a nice BBQ restaurant, where you could pick up the tab. Much blogging might ensue.
but where will Arnie sit?
[clearing throat]
There’s a bright golden haze on the meadow.
There’s a bright golden haze on the meadow…
Holy crap, the meadow’s on fire!
Sorry, one of my favorite musical jokes.
I think my email should be visible to you, but if not, it’s my first initial and my last name @gmail.
If you’re willing to forgo barbecue (not a meat eater) we’d be happy to take you out to dinner (though I am one of those terrible accomodationists)
In Admiral Ackbar voice, “It’s a TRAP!” ;p
I’ll refrain from telling the story of the furry with a syringe on top.
much appreciated
I’m renting a car as I’m also visiting grandparents. Happy to give people rides to the bars, but you’ll have to accept a ride from an accommodationist :-).
See my reply to #10… ;p
You must find transportation and visit Johnnie’s in OKC for a Caesar Burger with onion rings.
I remembered reading this a long time ago and thought it was Oklahoma, but it is actually Kansas. Still, some good science-of-the-flat for you to enjoy.
http://improbable.com/airchives/paperair/volume9/v9i3/kansas.html
That’s hilarious! Thanks.
If you make it into okc any time this weekend, I will buy you beer and food. Just email me and I’ll give you a phone number.
My lab is on the top floor of the tallest building on campus. On a clear day, you can see Dallas.
😛
… you can see Dallas.
Is that a good thing?
Banff it aint.
My parents met at OU, so I have at least one pretty good reason for being glad that it exists. Still, they couldn’t wait to get out of there and seldom looked back. We visited Oklahoma (grandparents)when I was young, but I can’t say we ever went to Norman.
There are a few decent places to eat in Norman, but few if any are near the convention center. There’s some decent stuff just north of campus, including Victoria’s (Italian), The Library, Hideaway Pizza, and a couple of Mexican places that are likewise decent. If the Indian place is still there (the name escapes me), skip it – it’s literally the worst Indian food I’ve ever eaten. Norman used to have my absolute favorite greasy burger joint, J. Pat’s. It was bought and absolutely ruined a few years ago – it still has the same name but the entire menu has been replaced with completely bland and uninspired faux-diner food.
Oh, the local pizza chain Pizza Shuttle is decent and cheap. It’s not knock-your-socks-off great pizza, but it’s better than most of the big chains and considerably cheaper.
If you like beer there’s a brewpub in town called Coach’s, it’s on Main Street in the middle of downtown. The beer is decent but not spectacular, and I’m pretty sure they’re restricted to the same 3.2% alcohol laws that the convenience stores and whatnot are.
Oops, forgot to mention The Greek House. Tasty gyros and fries, just off the northeast corner of campus.
I put a question about local places to eat on my Facbook (I’m a Normanian expat), and here’s what my Norman friends suggested:
Coriander Cafe (Vietnamese). Himalayas Restaurant (Indian-not that this is NOT the one I said was awful, that was Misal Bistro). Thai Raja (Thai). Mamaveca (Mexican-Peruvian). Del Rancho (chicken fried steak sandwiches, delicious and sooooo bad for you), Thai Kam Koon, the Diner, Ozzies diner (at Westhiemer) Pepe Delgado’s, Tarahumara, Full Moon Sushi. For drinking, the Deli is a good bar with live music and is just a few doors down from the Coriander Cafe (and Victoria’s). The Garage recently opened on Main (down by Bill and Dee’s) and has great burgers too. Your choice of veggie, turkey, beef, or buffalo ground fresh daily.
Thanks to my buddies Terry, Noel, and Paige!
It’s rolling hills just east of town. But, yeah, that’s a crap location for the meeting and I was astonished when I read that. Nowhere near campus or Campus Corner where all the good stuff is. A car is definitely a necessity, unless there’s a shuttle. If you take the shuttle to the dorms on campus it’s not too long of a walk to stuff.
And as for flat, Oklahoma is no flatter than Illinois.
Er, how high is the corn exactly?
Higher than Oklahoma anyway!
Jerry shouldn’t be in Oklahoma without a car. How will he escape the inevitable creationist lynch mobs?
Dr. C., the best place I found to escape the flatness of OK is in the Wichita Mountains, about 1.5 hrs SW of you: Very nice! And Bison to boot! You can get a hike in there with 800 vertical feet! Pretty little pink granite hills. Recommended.