Pony is a recently released children’s novel from RJ Palacio, author of the hugely popular Wonder. The target age range for this book is listed as 8-12, but it does include some larger words and more intense scenes. It is very well written though, so teens and adults can certainly enjoy reading it as well.
Pony takes place in Ohio in 1860 and tells the story of 12-year-old Silas, who lives alone with his father after his mother died in childbirth. The action starts just a few pages in, with Silas’s father being taken in the middle of the night by three horsemen who want to exploit his knowledge about photography. Silas, joined by his best friend Mittenwool – who happens to be a ghost – and a very intelligent horse, Pony, then sets off to go find his father. They meet up first with a marshal and then later a sheriff and his deputy, and the journey culminates with a shootout in a canyon with a counterfeit gang.
This book is a coming-of-age adventure story with a lot of heart. It teaches about bravery and courage, but also love and friendship. There are beautiful parts and sad parts both – and enough twists throughout to keep you on your toes. As we get closer to the holidays, this would make a wonderful present for kids who can tackle 300 pages and handle some tougher subjects. The author set a very high bar after Wonder, but Pony certainly matches it.
Visit us in Sunset Plaza or call 580-297-5089 to get your copy of Pony today!
Enid Wrestling had a successful tournament at the Union Open Saturday in Tulsa. Thirteen kids from Enid came home with medals, including two champions and seven runners-up. Seth Melvin, who won his first championship at Heavyweight, pinned his way through the bracket, finishing with 4 pins, 2 of which were under a minute. Shae Salinas, the 107 pound champion in the girls division, also won all of her matches by pin, and all in the first period. Overall, the high school team had 20 pins for the tournament!
Trinit Zweifel (145), Vinney Vandiver (132), Carlos Alvarado (220) and Rhyan Rader (114-Girls) all made it to the finals of their individual high school brackets, and finished 2nd overall. Vandiver was especially impressive, as a Freshman, wrestling in the high school division. Vandiver had two pins, before falling in the final match to Kaden Paslay from Ponca City.
Not to be outdone, the youngsters had a good showing, with Ryan Ibtu (113), Zarion Sanders (HWT) and Holden Beliele (140) all finishing as runner ups in the Junior High Division.
Coach Holland was very pleased by the performance. “I’m really happy to see what we have been working on in the room translating to the mat during competitive matches. This was a decent open tournament with some quality teams from the east side of the state like Broken Arrow and Ponca City. The freshman group is really progressing, and all of our wrestlers wrestled well.” Holland said.
The Plainsmen and Pacer wrestlers will be wrestling in the Pre-Turkey Open at Edmond Memorial on Wednesday, November 24th before their first dual on December 2nd here in Enid.
Staying up to date with trends and new releases in the social media and search engine marketing realm is a top priority at Wordy Girl Creative.
New features are often celebrated, but sometimes they’re a cause for pause. As Jeff Goldblum said in Jurassic Park, “[They] were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.”
As Facebook continues its takeover, the company recently announced a $50 Million investment into the Metaverse. This was a timely announcement in our socially distanced culture. TikTok unleashed the Creator Marketplace, a spot for content creators to become influencers and brand ambassadors. Twitter began testing professional profiles in April. Does anyone really Tweet anymore? Meanwhile, I’m suddenly 30 and wondering why Gen Z dresses and poses the way they do on Instagram.
Here’s my deep dive into the ever-evolving social media landscape:
Facebook’s Metaverse Plans Unveiled
“Facebook will invest $50 million to help develop the so-called Metaverse more responsibly,” per a company blog post on September 27. The company has begun defining the vague term “Metaverse” as “a cross-device digital world where people can explore and communicate with others they’re not physically with.”
Picture Virtual Reality coffee dates with a Facebook friend you haven’t seen since college. The more I dive into the recent press release, the more I picture scenes from Black Mirror.
At first glance, this concept sounds like a lofty, unlikely goal on Zuckerberg’s end. But consider the technology currently in place. Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality are extremely accessible and affordable now. Tie this concept with the long-standing plethora of interactive video games. The same technology that allows players across the globe to connect, chat and fight zombies in virtual worlds can be applied to the social media realm. All it takes is time and money, and the social giant lacks neither.
From a business standpoint, will we be paying for Metaverse “locations” in 10 years? A virtual Davinci’s and Callahan’s? Time will tell.
I think I’ll sit this one out and keep hugging my friends in real life as long as I can.
TikTok Enters the Business Landscape
At the TikTok World event in September, the company shared new tools and concepts on how it plans to monetize its billion-plus audience.
The app’s Creator Marketplace connects brands with creators, unleashing opportunities for both businesses and the new generation of TikTok experts. This is one of the first opportunities to “apply” to be an influencer. Back in the days of Vine, we watched the funniest and coolest Vine creators get invited by companies to use products in their videos. Suddenly, the Modern
Influencer was born. Now, TikTok has created a robust virtual space to connect these savvy creators with the businesses that need their services most.
Personally, I do not offer TikTok services or use the platform. From a business standpoint, it’s exciting to see that a new generation of social media gurus can be found and hired easily within the app. Before you make this investment, ask your marketing team if your target audience is on TikTok.
Twitter Gets a New Professional Wardrobe
After purchasing Revue (my favorite newsletter software) last year, the News, Weather, Sports platform continues to step into the professional realm.
Twitter’s new feature allows businesses and bloggers to choose the About, Shop, and Newsletter modules. This allows them to label their profile and publish business ads.
The company also announced “future efforts around shopping,” perhaps implying they will join the Instagram and Facebook Shop world – allowing retailers to tag products on their page with online shops for a seamless browsing and buying experience.
Apply for a business profile at business.twitter.com.
Instagram Gets Chatty
Facebook purchased WhatsApp in 2014 for roughly $19 Billion, according to Forbes. The texting app seems to finally be growing in popularity.
When recently booking a reservation, I chatted with the hostess via WhatsApp to find the best available time. Talk about easy and efficient modern customer service!
Taking business use to the next level, Facebook/Instagram have been sending alerts, asking users to connect their WhatsApp accounts to their business pages. In September, Instagram announced a new WhatsApp button for professional accounts.
Why not use Instagram chat instead? I’m not sure, but I won’t turn down another avenue for connecting with customers. Try it out by adding a WhatsApp business number under your profile settings. You can even create ads with a WhatsApp call to action!
What new social media developments are you most excited about? We’d love to hear from you on Facebook or the blog.
Welcome to fall, y’all! It’s the most wonderful time of the year. If you are anything like me, Saturday mornings are spent in a tree with critters scurrying around below while your afternoons are spent yelling at the patio television watching your alma mater struggle on the gridiron. (GO CYCLONES!) I reckon many of you have spent the last few months setting up new stands, cutting shooting lanes, filling feeders, or planting food plots. You’ve also been religiously checking your SIM cards from your cameras or having the photos sent directly to your cellular phone (what a luxury that is!). You’ve somewhat been able to pattern your deer and hopefully have one or two that gets your blood pumping and keeping you awake at night. (Don’t worry, the patterns will all be changing soon, new bucks will emerge and your “shooter” may never have been seen.)
Deer archery season opened October 1 and runs through January 15, 2022. While you might still fight the gnats and mosquitos (and heat), I prefer archery for two reasons: 1) it’s entirely more difficult to kill a deer than it is with a firearm, and 2) there isn’t a hunter with a rifle every half mile. I have a lease near Wakita and a lease southwest of town (plus my own little twenty acres in which I live) that have plenty of deer and I have yet to see another bow hunter which suits me just fine.
While I still prefer a compound bow, many archers have now switched to a crossbow. Previously only designated for hunters with a disability, crossbows provide the ability to reach out to a further distance than your compound, recurve, or longbow. Modern crossbows can even be fitted with a scope so essentially the hunt is similar to hunting with a firearm.
If you are like me, sitting in a tree stand for hours upon end watching and listening to the wildlife (whether you get a shot or not) is the perfect serenity after a stressful workweek. While I certainly enjoy taking a buck, I enjoy being alone letting my mind be at ease. The occasional “buck fever” is a feeling that’s hard to explain, but once you see that shooter buck everything else fades away.
If I had a piece any advice to give to someone new to the sport it would be this: PRACTICE. Bowhunting takes a great amount of skill, patience, and precision. Practice shooting from your stand. Practice at various distances and in various directions. I’d imagine most of you (like me) hate wounding an animal and not being able to recover it. Spend the time to make sure your equipment is ready and sighted in, and with a little luck and good fortune perhaps you’ll be able to have a new wall decoration.
As always, check your local regulations to ensure compliance, and respect the land the good Lord has given us. GOOD LUCK!
You work hard to keep your home clean, so the last thing you want is for your decorating choices to contribute to a messy-looking space. Although de-cluttering is the first step to a polished, orderly look, the way you furnish and decorate the room is also hugely important to its overall neatness. Sometimes simple decorating mistakes can make the design appear awkward, disheveled, or downright chaotic. When something isn’t quite right, it can detract from the design and interfere with the mood of the room. Luckily, these decorating problems are often easily fixable with just a few tweaks. Simply swapping out accessories or rearranging furnishings can help bring order to the room and maximize your tidying efforts.
To help you create a space that looks clean and organized, here is a list of six decorating mistakes that could be making your home appear messy.
1. Relying Too Much on Open Storage
Open shelves are a great place to store books and display collectibles or art, but this type of storage works best when it’s not overcrowded. When accessorizing bookshelves or built-in shelves, don’t pack every inch of space with books and accessories. To achieve a cleaner look, edit down the arrangement so you can leave some open space between items. You should also avoid using open storage for electronics and cables or to hold games, movies, and toys. These items are best stashed away inside cabinets, boxes, or baskets for a less cluttered effect.
2. Using Too Many Colors
Decorating with too many colors is guaranteed to make a home look cluttered. Use one or two hues mixed with neutral colors to give your home a cohesive, relaxed look.
3. Adding Too Many Accent Pillows
Avoid a haphazard and untidy look by limiting the number of accent pillows on a sofa or bed. Rooms look more pulled together and well-decorated when the furniture isn’t laden with piles of decorative pillows. Two or three accent pillows on each end of the piece are typically the perfect amount to decorate a room with beautiful colors and patterns.
4. Pushing Furniture Against Walls
Arranging all your furniture up against the walls will make the space look cluttered and messy. The solution? Pull the furniture away from the walls and toward the center of the room. Group chairs around a coffee table to create the perfect conversation area. Ground the furniture with an area rug to tie the arrangement together.
5. Placing Too Much Decor on Tables
Too many decorative accents on the surface of a table will make a room look cluttered. Instead, edit the number of accessories, then decorate the table with one or two groupings of items. First, pare down what you already have on the tabletop. Only display what you love and what is functional (for example, a small dish for storing car keys and sunglasses) and remove the rest. Group many small objects in a jar or bowl. Elevate small objects on a stack of two or three books to give it a purposeful look.
6. Hanging Pictures Randomly
Art hung haphazardly across a wall creates a chaotic look that can overwhelm the space. Instead, group pictures in an arrangement to instantly make the room appear more organized and balanced and demonstrates how several pieces can be hung to create a visually pleasing and curated look.
By steering clear of these common issues, it’s easier to maintain order and achieve an immaculate look! Happy organizing!
If you are a beginner, or it has been a long time since you’ve worked out, you are probably wondering where you should start. Here are some upper body moves to help get you started.Push-Ups (Modified): Start on your hands and knees and walk your hands forward until your back is flat and the hands are wider than the shoulders. Bend your elbows and lower into a push-up going as low as you can.
Tricep Dips: Sit on the edge of a chair, weight bench, or step. Grip the edge next to your hips. Your fingers should be pointed at your feet, your legs extended, and your feet about hip-width apart. With your heels touching the ground, look straight ahead with your chin up. Press into your palms to lift your body and slide forward just enough that your back clears the edge of the chair. Lower yourself until your elbows are bent between 45 and 90 degrees, then push yourself back up slowly until your arms are straight. Repeat.
Dumbbell Side Rows: Grasp a dumbbell in each hand and row them to your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together at the top of the movement.
Side view of sportive man training back muscles with dumbbell doing row while bending over
Crunches: Lie down on your back and plant your feet on the floor hip width apart. Bend your knees and place your hands across your chest. Contract your abs and inhale. Exhale and lift your upper body making sure to keep your head and neck relaxed.
Bicep Curls: Begin standing tall with your feet about hip-width apart. Hold one dumbbell in each hand. Keep your upper arms stable and shoulders relaxed. Bend your elbows and lift the weights so that the dumbbells come towards your shoulders. Your elbow should stay tucked in close to your ribs. Be sure to exhale while lifting. In the beginning try 10 reps on each move, 3 times each. When that seems easier, increase to 12 reps.
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars
-Old fashioned rolled oats (no steel cut or instant oats) -All-natural peanut butter -Honey -Cinnamon -Dark Chocolate (only 1 ounce)
Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Transfer to a cookie sheet and cut into bars.
My husband, Doug, and I met in 2007. I was in my late 20’s, he was in his early 30’s. When we met, we were both at the point of our lives of wanting to settle down, get married and start a family. We were married within the first year of meeting. I quickly learned that he came from a long line of outstanding cooks. His mother, Marilyn, always made a full-blown spread for dinner as he was growing up. When I learned of this, I knew I had big shoes to fill!!
On our second or third date, Doug took me to meet his family at the lake. This was especially exciting for me because growing up, I’d always wanted to go to lakes on the weekend with my family, but time never allowed. We arrived at the campsite early in the evening on a Friday. When we showed up, his sister and her family were already there, and Doug’s mom and dad were busy preparing dinner. Marilyn was sitting at the concrete picnic table cutting up potatoes for fried potatoes (a Bolin family staple). Doug’s dad, Ronnie, had Ribeyes marinating and Jena, Doug’s sister, was putting together a salad. It was a scene that I could picture myself in, in the future!
Though there are numerous recipes of Marilyn’s that I LOVE! The two that pop into my head right away are her Ham & Beans and her Cheesy Chicken and Noodle Soup. She only makes ham and beans when her kids’ families are visiting. They are like no other ham & beans I’ve ever had. If Marilyn makes ham & beans when we are visiting and Jena’s family can’t make it, or vice versa, Rodney, Jena’s husband, and I always joke about who Marilyn loves more. In our eyes, Marilyn shows love through her food. So, when she makes ham & beans for you, well then, you rank high in her book. The same joke goes between Doug and Jena, but it’s when Marilyn makes her famous sweet tea. Apparently, she only makes it when Doug’s family is visiting, which is a good thing, because her sweet tea is TO DIE FOR!!! It’s obvious who she loves more, don’t ya think?
The other recipe, Cheesy Chicken and Noodle soup, is amazing, comforting and light, all at the same time! The first time I had this soup was around Christmas time. We were visiting Doug’s parents for the holidays. We showed up after dinnertime, but we were so hungry when we got there. She whipped up this batch of cheesy chicken noodle soup and I can remember the first time that I tasted it. It had chunky carrots, tender egg noodles and this cheesy broth that was so flavorful!! It has become a staple in our house ever since. My Dinner Diva Facebook group has come to love it as well! And you know what? It is SO SIMPLE!! But Marilyn has this way of taking a recipe and making it greater than it ever was intended to be! She’s that way with many things in her life, but since this is a recipe column, we’ll leave it at that.
Granny Bolin’s Cheesy Chicken & Noodle Soup
6 cups of chicken broth 1 Tbsp. chicken base 2+ tsp. Salt, pepper & dried parsley. Add or omit, to your liking. 2 Tbsp. granulated garlic and 2 Tbsp. onion powder 1-2 Tbsp. oil of choice 3 medium carrots, sliced 3 stalks of celery slice 16 oz. wide egg noodles 3 cooked chicken breasts, shredded or cubed 8-10 oz Velveeta cheese, cubed
Sauté carrots and celery in a large stock pot with oil. Cook until almost tender.
Add seasonings and sauté for another minute or so.
Add chicken breast and chicken broth.
Bring to a boil and add egg noodles.
Turn heat down and simmer until noodles are al dente.
Add cubed Velveeta and stir until thoroughly melted
Let soup continue to simmer until noodles are done. About 5 minutes or so.
You can always add more Velveeta to make the broth as cheesy as you like.
Brady McCullough is truly a product of Career and Technology Education. As a Vo Ag and FFA student at Owasso Public Schools, he held local offices, showed cattle, and participated in various leadership activities, and was later elected as a State FFA officer. He continued his FFA involvement throughout college at OSU and in 1982 accepted his first job in Career and Technology Education as an Ag Teacher in Noble, Oklahoma.
He has been in the Career Tech System for approximately 34 years. His tenure has included administrative positions at Meridian Technology Center in Stillwater, Tulsa Technology Center, and the State Department of CareerTech. He accepted his first Superintendent position in 2011 at Green Country Technology Center in Okmulgee and became Superintendent at Autry in July 2015
McCullough retired from his position after six years at Autry Tech. During his time at Autry, McCullough spearheaded several new initiatives, including the purchase of a new training facility at 1802 N. Van Buren, new construction on the east end of the main campus for a diesel technology program, a CNC machine program, a fabrication lab, as well as the renovation of the culinary arts classroom to create a state-of-the-art training facility.
In honor of his dedication, Autry Technology Center named a state-of-the-art lab for him. The McCullough Lab is a high-tech, materials fabrication lab featuring design, prototyping, and light production resources for district members. The lab has two main spaces: the Rapid Prototyping Center and a production floor with zones for metal, wood, and soft goods.
Under McCullough’s leadership, Autry over the last several years also has significantly expanded its footprint in the area surrounding the 30-acre facility.
After his retirement, McCullough plans to stay in Enid with his wife. “Enid’s our home,” he said. “There’s a fishing pole in the back of my truck waiting for me. We plan to be here a long time.”
