What To Do in Tulsa This Weekend

Catch the goods on what's doin' in Tulsa this weekend on this morning's edition of the KRMG Morning News with Joe Kelley? Good, because here's your second helping, plus a little something to wash it down:

Tasha's Picks for the Weekend of Aug. 14

Friday
1964: The Tribute
When: Tonight, 8 p.m.
Where: Tulsa Performing Arts Center, Chapman Music Hall
Celebrating their 24th consecutive summer in Tulsa, this group of Beatles impersonators are back to pay tribute to the Fab Four. This show has been hailed by critics and fans alike as the most authentic and endearing Beatles tribute in the world; in short, if you're a Beatles fan, you can't miss this show. Tickets are $23-$46. Whip out your mobile device and check out even more about the show and how to snag some tickets at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center mobile site: TulsaPAC.mobi.

Saturday
Miss Center of the Universe
When: Tomorrow night, 8-10 p.m.
Where: Nightingale Theater
Think you've got what it takes to represent the spirit of downtown Tulsa's most cherished, mystic landmark? Or, maybe you think you've got what it takes to watch Nightingale Theater's take on the modern beauty pageant. The little theater at 1416 E. Fourth Street is the place for you Saturday night.

Boats-Melons-n-BBQ
When: Saturday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.
Where: New Mannford Ramp Campground in Mannford
Cardboard boat races, a BBQ contest, and a watermelon seed spitting contest, oh my. Get it all in Mannford Saturday at the Boats-Melons-n-BBQ festival. Be sure to stick aorund for the hot dog cookout, kids' fishing derby, and games like a three-legged race, a hula hoop contest and a water balloon toss. Admission is free, and live music will play all day.

Sunday
Free Family Summer Picnic
When: Sunday, 3-7 p.m.
Where: Mohawk Park, 5701 E. 36th St. North
Grab your family, grab your friends and come out to the green, shaded expanse that is Mohawk Park. Get a healthy dose of the splash pad and playground, ice cream and contests and games before summer says sayonara. Don't forget to stop for some face painting, arts & crafts and a bite to eat in the shade of the trees, too. Bring the kids, bring your pets and bring blankets, chairs and your swimsuits. Note: Parking is $2, but the festival, which benefits the orphanage in Zelenograd, Tulsa's Russian sister city, is free.

Monday
Paul McCartney in Concert
When: Monday, Aug. 17
Where: BOK Center
If you didn't get enough Beatles action Friday night at 1964: The Tribute at the Tulsa PAC, pull up to the BOK Center to celebrate the one-year anniversary of its opening with a concert by Paul McCartney himself. Even if you don't have the cash for what promises to be one of the biggest shows to come to Tulsa in years, there's still some great music to be had at Third and Denver. Find a spot on ONEOK Plaza to catch to some tunes by Radio Radio, a favorite among local acts with a style influenced by U2, Cheap Trick, Queen and Depeche Mode. The four-man band was most recently featured at Dfest 2009. Good stuff.

Festivals

Crosbie Heights 101st Birthday Block Party
When: Tomorrow, 12-4 p.m.
Where: Newblock Park, 1414 W. Charles Page)
Crosbie Heights Neighborhood Association will celebrate the 101st birthday of this historic neighborhood with a smashing block party. The celebration and events will include food and live entertainment by Tulsa acts Gwen & Larry, Ernestine Dillard, Kelli Lynn and the Skillet Lickers. Mayoral candidates will be at the event to answer questions and discuss city issues, and kids can enjoy the end of summer with a Jupiter Jump, water slide, face painting and more.

Illinois River BalloonFest
When: Today, 6 a.m.-11 p.m., Tomorrow, 6 a.m.-11 p.m.
Where: Tahlequah Municipal Airport
It's a bit of a drive from T-Town, but Tahlequah offers two days of hot hair balloon competitions, balloon glows, live entertainment, arts and crafts, carnival rides, a jeep rock crawling competition, a tractor pull competition and food vendors for families all over Green Country this weekend.


Music

Rhythm on the River
When: Tonight, music starting at 6:30pm
Where: 41st Street Plaza at RiverParks
Like the outdoors? Love free, live music? Get it all at the new 41st Street Plaza at RiverParks tonight. If you forget to pack dinner and drinks, don't worry – concessions will be available at the park.

RiverWalk Crossing Summer Concert Series
When: Tonight and Tomorrow, 8-10pm
Where: RiverWalk Crossing in Jenks
Jared Tyler Band goes on stage tonight, and McTeggart Irish Dancers of OK is up tomorrow night. If you're on the prowl for something to do Sunday evening, RiverWalk's Wine & Jazz event is Sunday at 6pm, where for $20 you can sip your wine, savor some good food and relax the Monday's-a-comin' blues away.

Stars Go Dim Album Release Party
When: Tomorrow night, doors at 7, event at 7:30.
Where: Cain's Ballroom
Get the new SGD album, Love Gone Mad, for free with each ticket to this show at 2nd Stage in Cain's Ballroom. Pay $8 in advance to get through the door, or $10 at Cain's.

Lynyrd Skynyrd
When: Tomorrow night, doors at 7, event at 8
Where: SpiritBank Event Center in Bixby
The droves of Oklahoma Lynyrd Skynyrd fans will be crowded around the front doors of SpiritBank Event Center in Bixby tomorrow night to see the southern boys' and girls' favorite rock band. General admission on the floor is $25; reserved tickets are $45.

Wild Women of Oklahoma Jazz Concert Series
When: Sunday, 5-8 p.m.
Where: Jazz Depot, 111 E. First St.
Brenda Johnson and her trio perform. Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for seniors and college students, $5 for high school students and younger. Tables for eight may be reserved for $20 per person.


Theater and The Arts

David Sedaris
When: Tickes on sale to the general public today, show is Oct. 12 at 7:30 p.m.
Where: Tulsa Performing Arts Center
The literary world's super rockstar is coming to Tulsa again this fall. Don't waste time; these tickets will go fast.

Wizard of Oz, Opening Weekend
When: Tonight at 7:30pm, tomorrow at 2:30pm and Sunday at 2:30pm
Where: Tulsa Spotlight Theater, 1381 Riverside Drive
With Tulsans pining for more Oz after Wicked split last weekend, Tulsa Spotlight Theater comes to the rescue with its stage production of Wizard of Oz. Tickets are $10 for adults, $9 for seniors and $8 for children. They're available by calling 587-5030 or by visiting spotlighttheater.org.

Crazy 'bout Patsy
When: Tomorrow night, 7:30 p.m.
Where: The Tulsa Little Theatre, 1511 S. Delaware
Sherrill Douglas pays tribute to the famous songstress through what's being called an uncanny sonic and aesthetic interpretation. Tickets are $25 and are available by phone at 430.5364 or online at sherrilldouglas.com.


Other Stuff

Tulsa Drillers Six-Game Homestand
When: Tuesday, Aug. 12-Monday, Aug. 17
Where: Drillers Stadium
The Tulsa Drillers are hosting the Frisco RoughRiders (Texas Rangers) and the Midland RockHounds (Oakland A's) in a six-game homestand at Drillers Stadium that began its run August 12 and will continue through Monday night. All games in the stand will begin at 7:05pm with the exception of the game on Sunday, August 16 that will start at 6:05pm. The promotions schedule will feature HD Night/50¢ Hot Dogs/DAV Card Sets tonight and fireworks tomorrow night. Tickets are on sale at the Drillers Stadium Ticket Office or online at TulsaDrillers.com.

Great Grand Bobber Drop
When: Saturday
Where: Grand Lake
Driving around Grand Lake this weekend, you might spot 5,000 fishing bobbers being dropped from a helicopter into the water. Those bobbers will be numbered and dropped in the Honey Creek, Sailboat Bridge Shangri-La and Elk River areas by whirly bird. The lucky Okies who dip them out of the water over the course of the next couple of weeks stand to win some serious prizes, including a trip for two to the Bahamas. Admission is free.

Green Country RV and Boat Clearance Sale
When: Today, noon to 9 p.m.; Tomorrow, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. And Sunday, noon to 6 p.m.
Where: QuikTrip Center at Expo Square
This show of anything and everything in the world of summer recreational vehicles will feature 260,000 square feet of exhibits from the leading RV dealers in this area. Look for $50 million in the latest in deluxe motor homes, travel trailers, fifth wheels, camping trailers and more outdoor gear. Admission is $7 for adults and kids 12 and under are free.

Keeping Up With Keepers
When: Tomorrow and Sunday
Where: Tulsa Zoo, 6421 E. 36th St. North
Sponsored by the Tulsa Chapter of the American Association of Zookeepers, Keeping Up With Keepers is an educational program offered each year at the Tulsa Zoo. Kids and adults alike can get a behind-the-scenes look at what a typical workday is like for a Tulsa zookeeper. Proceeds benefit various wildlife and conservation groups.

LGBT Families Initiative @ Oklahoma Aquarium
When: Tomorrow, 10 a.m.-12 p.m.
Where: Oklahoma Aquarium
Join Tulsa's LGBT Families Initiative at Oklahoma Aquarium. Bring the whole family and experience the thrill of the shark tank and more. If you think you'll be coming out (pun totally intended), e-mail volunteer Tara Saylor.

Nationwide Kiss-In
When: Tomorrow, 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Where: Dennis R. Neill Equality Center, 621 E. Fourth Street
All you need is love – at least, that's what the Nationwide Kiss-In is all about. The Tulsa incarnation of this event, sponsored by Oklahomans For Equality, will host couples, friends, family – anyone looking for a good smooch, really – who want to say loud and proud that there's nothing wrong with public displays of affection, no matter who you love.

Is It Breakfast Time Yet?

Ever hear of that little diner in downtown Tulsa - you know, the one at Second and Elgin?

No, no. Look the other way.

Ah. That's better: The Blue Dome Diner, famous for a breakfast and lunch service for suits and the blue collar crowd alike.

It's as blue and classically Tulsa on the inside as the landmark dome across the street. And, good news: Blue Dome Diner is now open for supper, starting at 5pm Thursday through Saturday.

This place is famous for its chicken fried steak, but I also like the breakfast sandwich with the works, with homefries on the side.

Homefries. Of course.

Speaking of homefries:

This little homefry doesn't fall far from the potato. He digs the Blue Dome Diner as much as I do.

He likes it so much, in fact, that he needs three (3) pacifiers to subdue his excitement to a level that is socially acceptable.

Yeah, little buddy. I'm talking about you.

The Blue Dome Diner is great for folks with kids. Even though it tends to be packed out, there's still plenty of room in the hundreds of square feet-worth of event space to the north of the dining room for kiddos to work off a case of the wiggles.

Plus, there's a stage. My kid loves a good stage.

I'm just saying, in case you forgot.

This kid had better get used to eating breakfast with his good ol' Mom. If I keep up this kind of fun-poking on the Interwebs for too much longer, I'll be the only woman he'll share his breakfast with for a very long time.

At least, with me, he can be confident he's eating the best breakfast in town.

Blue Dome Diner is open for breakfast and lunch 7am-2pm Tuesday-Friday, 8am-1:30pm Saturday and Sunday.

Tasha Does Tulsa Run Training

Well, folks, it's that time of year again: It's the time about two months before the Tulsa Run when I decide to put my calves through hell by picking up where I left off from training for last year's TR - because I haven't, of course, trained a single day since - and driving it home until race day.

Ah, grueling physical challenge, how apparently I must love thee. Last year I started training for the TR 5K with an extra 30 pounds slung around my waist and thighs and upper arms and, well, anywhere else maternity fat can accumulate. By race day I weighed less than I did when I found out about the little blonde, curly-headed boy taking shape in that part of my body I hadn't thought much about since "girls' week" - five days of science class devoid of our male classmates who were down the hall learning about testes and chest hair and cracking voices - in fifth grade.

Plus, I felt really good. Mostly. By that I mean, my calves and knees and hips hurt like hell, but I was sporting a racing sock tan. Ahem - I said tan. Generally, I don't tan. I burn like Queen Elizabeth in Ecuador. Then I call my little sister over to peel the crusty skin off my shoulders, an experience totally worth the pain of the sunburn and smelling like aloe vera for four days.

Something tells me I'm not alone in hitting the training track cold turkey like this, with actual expectations of being able to run the 5K or 15K without suffering myocardial infarction. For those of you like me, check out the training schedules on the TR site. I'll be using the one for those running the 5K.

Well, looky there. I'm supposed to be on week three already. So, basically, I'm practically a month behind at this point.

Oh, Runner's World...Runner's World? Help. Please help me, Runner's World.

The Runner's World 8-Week Beginning Runner's Training Program: 8 Weeks to Your First 5K

Ah, that's better. In fact, this means I can continue to procrastinate and wait to start training for another couple of weeks. I feel so much better.

Know what makes running a little easier? Running with others. It's very motivational. I know runners in the 5K race can't officially form teams, but in case you haven't noticed, I'm not really into the official way of doing things.

Who's with me? Who wants to race with the unofficial, awesome t-shirt-donning TDTR team in the 5K race come October?

E-mail me before the end of the month - the time when, according to the angels at Runner's World, you can wait until to get off your behonkus to start training - if you have the guts to run with a team organized by some blogger chick who can barely break a 12-minute mile.

See you on the track. That is, in a fortnight - a fortnight of not giving a second thought to the well-being of my calves, poor things. And don't forget to register for the Tulsa Run on the TR09 Web site.

Image of the Tulsa Run starting line from TulsaRun.com.

Veg Out

I've used a bunch of real estate in this paper talking about how we can all save money on that line item in our budgets that continues to rank in the top three most expensive aspects of staying alive: our food.

With finance whizzes telling us to spend anywhere from 5-20 percent of our take-home income on munchies, second only to the price of the roofs over our heads and the transportation we use to get to the place where we work to earn the money for everything else we have to buy. All the tips I've given in this column about grocery shopping bear repeating: Learn to use coupons strategically. Plan meals around the sales printed in weekly grocery circulars. Never shop when you're hungry. And so on and so forth.

After going on for the months since this column began about such money-saving tactics, I predict that what I'm about to recommend will, then, cause more than one of you to balk.

To get some of the best deals in town on produce, head to the closest farmers' market.

Read the rest of this story in Consumer Watchdog in this week's edition of Urban Tulsa Weekly.

Shooting Stars

In case you missed Carly Rush's reminder on the All Request Lunch Hour on 92.9 KBEZ about the Perseid Meteor Shower peaking this evening, I'm here to tell you that, hey, people, the Perseid Meteor Shower is peaking this evening.

It's a show not to be missed. When its that time of year for this sky-wide light show to come around, right at the end of each summer, my little family and I evade the city lights by heading for my old stomping grounds along Highway 97.

After about 30 minutes of watching the sky in a place where there is no light pollution whatsoever, the heavens look like more than just a starry sky. They eyes adjust and a dusty-looking Milky Way and billions of stars start to peep out from their hiding places in the night sky.

Then, the show starts. Shooting stars start coming so fast that you have to chuck the idea you and your star-watching buddies adopted earlier in the evening when things were slow goin's of counting them on your fingers and toes.

Problem for you fine folks is, not everyone grew up in a ranch house in the middle of BFE. Folks with no parents and grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins and step-aunts twice removed with star-watching pads in the country deserve a good light show, too.

Depending upon what part of Tulsa you call home, check out one of these spots to spread out on a blanket with some snacks and a loved one or two (having the kids out would be nice, as long as they're not Broken Arrow or Union Public School students and have to head back to school tomorrow) to watch the shooting stars.

And I don't mean my old Sand Springs softball team, The Shooting Stars. Because that would be a miserable experience for you. Mostly because the sight of me sitting on my behonkus in the outfield playing in the sand and picking flowers as a line drive blows by my head would be more intense than the climax of an especially tense I Love Lucy show - you'll want to stomp and shout, and that's not what we're all about here. Not today.

Before you head out, check out what KOTV weatherman Travis Myer has to say about when and where to watch for these rogue dust particles in the night sky. Hint: If you want to see up to a meteor a minute, it's gonna be a very, very late night. Or, a very, very early morning, depending on how you look at things.

North. Lake Yahola, a reservoir near Mohawk Golf Course. There's good fishing to be had at Lake Yahola, too. Just be sure you have your state-issued fishing license before you go anglin'.

South. Skyline Park by Skyline Lake, another reservoir, located a mile and a half southeast of Jenks. It's dark there. Really dark.

East. The Village at Stone Wood Hills in Broken Arrow, home of the Tulsa area's Bass Pro Shop location along Highway 51. Head for the north side of the highest hills on the north side of the development to catch the least light pollution. Don't balk; if it's good enough for the Astronomy Club of Tulsa's Sidewalk Astronomy events, it's good enough for us.

West. Near Keystone Lake, or anywhere west of Sand Springs and far enough from the Keystone Expressway where you can park and mosey about without getting a 12-gauge shoved into the back of your neck. Try also the grounds of Discoveryland!, home of our local, nightly Oklahoma! production.

If you head out to any of these public places at the ungodly hour of the highest meteor shower activity, don't trespass in the name of amateur astronomy. Just don't. I can't have the weight of your unruly actions pressing down upon my shoulders. I just won't know what to do with myself.

I really, really won't know what to do with myself in the middle of the night when you call me from jail asking me to come bail you out because, heck, this was all my cockamamie idea in the first place. I'll probably just wake my ex-Army sniper husband, who can track a praying mantis through a spring rain in the woods, and ask him what he thinks about it.

For even more places to scope out the stars, check out this light pollution map. Hint: Look for places on the map in yellow or green rings for the locations with the best viewing-to-drive-time ratios. Be sure to install Google Earth before you try to view the map. You won't regret it.

Know of a great, legal place to do some star watching? Leave details in the comments.

Happy viewing, everyone.

We Have A Winner

Yesterday I kicked off a fight for two tickets (a $30 value) to tonight's Absolute Best of Tulsa Music Awards, hosted at Cain's Ballroom by those bafty crastards at Urban Tulsa Weekly.

I asked contestants to tell me the five bands up for Best Band of the Year. Everyone answered correctly, but the names of these five stellar bands bear repeating:

Callupsie

Web site: http://www.callupsie.com/

About (from the Callupsie Web site): Callupsie is an indie rock band from Tulsa, OK. The group was formed in July of 2005. Callupsie is a band that plays shows in and out of their hometown week in and week out. They are close friends that have based their band and ideas upon a strict work ethic and a mutual respect for each other and those who work with them. The are inspired by the friends who have supported them as well as other musicians past and present. Callupsie mixes genres, lyrics, rhythms, and energy into their own sound that's as original as the name they go by.

Dead Sea Choir

Web site: http://www.deadseachoir.com/
About: Sonically, it's something akin to Mozart, Aphex Twin, Radiohead and Philip Glass battling each other in space. A complex mix of organic and synthetic percussive elements providing the backbone for crooning vocals, sweeping piano arpeggios, atmospheric guitar and electronic girth.

Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey

Web site: http://jfjo.com/

About (from the JFJO Web site): JFJO is pianist Brian Haas, drummer Josh Raymer, upright bassist Matt Hayes, and guitarist Chris Combs. To say that JFJO's music transcends boundaries and expands minds is an understatement. Since 1994, JFJO has brought their impressionistic and improvisational vision from the Midwest's Bible-Belt to many of the world's finest music festivals and clubs. Music listeners are blown away by JFJO's instrumental creativity, musical risk, and near telepathy on stage. In the past 18 months, JFJO has travelled to Europe four times and have played at major jazz festivals all over the world.

My Solstice

Web site: http://www.mysolsticeband.com/

About (from the Dfest 2009 Web site): An idea in the minds of two guys looking for their own personal "solstice" in life, has grown to become what Tulsa World calls, "a full on indie rock experience", along with many other media publications across the midwest shouting praises of their own. Always staying open minded and socially conscious in all aspects of writing, My Solstice seems to create music that anyone can relate to.

Vandevander

Web site: http://www.myspace.com/vandevandermusic

About (from the band's Web site on Myspace): The initial Vandevander release, The Great State of Emotion, is the first of a trilogy of EPs that will tie together to relate the cycle of emotional upheaval, inner turmoil and redemption. Raw Emotion. For anyone who has experienced heartbreak, betrayal or a painful breakup, the effect is similar to ripping your heart out and showing it to you, like the scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark

The lucky TDT reader, selected from the comments on the contest post that were actual entries and that slid in under the deadline, who has won the free-of-charge chance to see which of these bands take home the biggest prize of the evening is:

Xylo, from the blog Electrocore: Living Like Music! Congrats. E-mail me to collect your prize.

Thanks to all for playing. Tickets to the ABoT MAs are still available for a mere $15, a small price to pay for admittance to one of the rockin'-est parties of the year, at Cain's Ballroom, Ida Red on Brookside and Starship Records at 13th and Lewis.

See you all there. I'll be the one standing by Urban Tulsa arts writer Holly Wall, doling out some seriously tasty tweets from the red carpet.

Want Tix to the Absolute Best of Tulsa Music Awards?

Downtown Tulsa is about to turn glitzy with a Hollywood-caliber party: The inaugural Absolute Best of Tulsa Music Awards.

The host of this little party is Tulsa's own Zac Maloy, a songwriter working with the likes of Train, Bowling for Soup, Our Lady Peace, James Blunt and Daughtry. He also penned the current single for T-Town's adopted son David Cook, "Come Back to Me," and wrote several songs for the forthcoming Carrie Underwood album.

Backing up Maloy will be the ABoT Music Awards Orchestra provided by Tulsa Symphony Orchestra's Tulsa Rock Ensemble. Plus, each of the five bands up for the title of Best Band of the Year will have its chance to rock the house down to its spring-loaded dance floor.

Red carpet arrivals of Tulsa music celebrities begin at 7 p.m., with the awards ceremony kicking off at 8.

Urban Tulsa Weekly created The Absolute Best of Tulsa Music Awards to offer greater coverage of the vibrant music scene in Tulsa. Nearly 85,000 votes have been counted, and all that's left is to get down with our bad selves as the winners of dozens of categories are announced under the roof of Tulsa's most treasured musichouse.

All you rockers headed to the ABoTMAs should tune in on your mobile devices to Twitter for a live tweeting of the night's red-carpet shenanigans, provided by me and Urban Tulsa Weekly arts writer Holly Wall. The fun won't stop at the door, though - we'll continue to show you our tweets throughout the awards ceremony.

Everyone can score tickets to this first-annual event online at protix.com, by phone at 1-866-9PROTIX or in person at Cain's Ballroom, Ida Red on Brookside and the inimitable Starship Records at 13th and Lewis. Spots at a reserved table are $25, and general admission is $15 - a rock-bottom bargain for a star-studded evening of live, down-home rock and roll.

Before you pull out your billfolds, though, give this little game of chance a shot:

If you can scan to the comments section of this post and name the five Tulsa bands battling for the biggest title of the evening, Best Band of the Year, you will have a good chance at winning a pair of general admission tickets to one of the hottest parties of 2009.

You have until this time tomorrow (Saturday) morning to enter; I'll announce a winner hand-picked by Random.org by noon.

Good luck! And don't forget, for all of your weekend mosh pit and general hip-swaying needs, Cain's Ballroom for the ABoT Music Awards is the place to be. See you there.