A couple of days ago, I loaded up a car and drove around southwestern Oklahoma. Totally work-related. I needed to check out a potential traditional cultural property, to look for a relocated bridge, and to meet with the folks over at the Comanche Nation.
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This is what I got to walk through. Overgrown, and not much to see, except for someone's deer stand. And judging by the poop I spotted in several different places, they picked a good spot for that stand.
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A few flowers were blooming, but begrudgingly. Turns out that there was no traditional cultural property to be found, which is a good thing. There were, however, ticks to be found, not such a good thing.

After leaving the woods, I stopped by Trivets Restaurant in Elgin. If you are ever in the vicinity of Elgin, stop at Trivets and eat some pie. You'll be glad that you did.
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My next stop was the community of Faxon. There's not much to Faxon. I was looking for a relocated historic bridge. This is not the bridge that I was looking for, but I took a picture of it anyway.
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I drove all over town and took pictures of interesting things, like the abandoned playground at the school
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Sort of a bleak beauty to the place.
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This building has obviously seen better days.
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It turned 100 years old last year.
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I know 100 years isn't all that old for a building, but to put that into context, Oklahoma had only been a state for 3 years when this building was constructed.
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Another building up the street was in similar disrepair. At one time, it was a grocery store and filling station, with a staking rink to boot!
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Scenes from the movie Fast Charlie... the Moonbeam Rider, starring David Carradine, were filmed here. Reportedly, that's when "Hotel - Weekly Rates" was painted on the side of the building.
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More recently, someone started to renovate the building into a bar and converted the original windows into wagon wheel portholes. 
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This old gas station was on the other side of Faxon. It reminds me of the a store near where I grew up. The floors were wood, and the soda pops were in chest-style coolers.
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On the way out of town, I came across this building. I really liked the shadows on the wall.

Finally, I made my way to Lawton and had a great (and productive) meeting with my friends over at the Comanche Nation. It's always nice to catch up with them.

And on the way out of Lawton, I stopped for this lovely sign.
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So, there's a day in the life of ODOT's Tribal Liaison -- tromping through the woods, exploring small towns, and meeting with tribal folks. What a great job!
 


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