Clearly Oklahoma City

With the economy constantly changing (usually for the worst), some people may wonder how Oklahoma City is handling the recession.  Well, I’m pleased to report that we’re doing quite well.  In fact, Forbes.com actually named OKC it’s number one recession proof city. 

Many things back this up.  We haven’t had any major company shut-downs.  Instead, businesses have been moving into the area.  Half-Price Books, Cricket Mobile, and Panda Express have all opened new franchises in the area.  These new businesses are doing quite well, while local businesses are still going strong.  One thing that makes me really believe OKC is doing very well is that the Laredo’s Restaurant on Classen and 50^th is actually going to open soon!  This building has been in the works for at least four years, with very little progress being made until recently.

Looking for a great place to eat?  One of my favorite locations is the Belle Isle Brewery, a restaurant located in the upscale shopping center of 50 Penn Place.  While I can’t really afford to shop there (with the exception of the Full Circle Bookstore, which I’ll be covering in another post), the Belle Isle Brewery is a great place to eat that is really affordable. 

The Belle Isle Brewery does, as the name suggests, have a number of beers available.  Not sure which one you want?  You can always ask for a sampler—you get four tiny little shots of beer to try out.  The restaurant also has several different types of wines and some mixed drinks if beer’s not your thing.

Here’s a look at some of the great events coming to Oklahoma City in July.

July 3 – Red, White, and BOOM! – OKC Philharmonic in Bricktown

July 3, 9-11 – Oklahoma Shakespeare in the Park: As You Like It – 8:00 p.m. at the Myriad Garden

July 3, 9-12, 16-18 – The Little Dog Laughed performance at the Carpenter Square Theater

July 4-7 – Baseball: OKC Redhawks vs. the Omaha Royals at the AT&T Bricktown Ballpark

July 7-11 – The Music Man at the Lyric Theatre

Art thou ready for another great season of Oklahoma Shakespeare in the Park?  If you love seeing some of the Bard’s classic plays performed in the beautiful outdoor weather, then I’m sure you are.  OK, maybe the weather isn’t always that beautiful right now (the temperature is hitting over 100 every day!), but the performances are in the evening when it starts to cool off.  This year’s season is being performed at the Myriad Gardens Water Stage, which brings a whole new look to the performances.

If you love buying cheap books (like I do), then you’ll love Half-Priced Books.  The chain has been around for awhile, but I don’t think there has ever been a store in Oklahoma (although a blog listed below says there has—I wasn’t aware of that).  The closest one I knew of was in Dallas.  Well, now there’s Half-Priced Books in Oklahoma City, and it has been open since May 21^st.  It’s a great store for anyone who is looking for some new reading material.

Oklahoma’s Representative John Sullivan, a republican who represents Oklahoma’s First Congressional District, checked himself into the Betty Ford Center on May 29^th for alcohol rehabilitation.  He has serves as one of Oklahoma’s congressional representatives since 2002, when he was elected in a special election to replace Steve Largent.  So far, Sullivan has only stated that he’s taking a temporary leave of absence—he’s not resigning (or at least, he hasn’t indicated that he is at this point).  Rep. Sullivan was arrested for public intoxication when he was 20 years old.

If you’ve got teens, changes are you’ve had to sit through countless viewings of the High School Musical movies.  Now the stage version of High School Musical 2 is coming to the Oklahoma City Civic Center.  This musical will run from June 25 to June 28.  There will be five shows in all, one each evening (7:30 on the 25^th and 8:00 on the other three nights) and a matinee performance at 2:00 pm on Saturday.

If you love science fiction and fantasy, mark the last weekend of June.  That’s when TrekExpo is held in Tulsa.  The largest pure science fiction convention in Oklahoma (Soonercon is also large, but it’s not purely a sci-fi television/movie convention), TrekExpo always has a large number of guests.  Most are from the various Star Trek series, although they always try to have several other sci-fi series’ stars there as well.

Things have been happening with the potential Ten Commandments memorial that OK Representative Mike Ritze wants to put on the grounds of the state capitol (see original post here).  On Monday, April 20, the Oklahoma Senate voted on Mr. Ritze’s proposal (Bill #1330), and the measure passed by a large margin.  Of course, there was some very heated debate first. 

Senator Randy Brogdon, R-Owasso, claims the bill simply pays tribute to a historical document that is a part of our country’s foundation.  He went as far as to compare it to the Liberty Bell.

If you love theater and you love the story of The Lion King, why not combine the two and go see Disney’s The Lion King musical!  This amazing show is making its Oklahoma City debut at the Civic Center Music Hall.  It opened on April 21^st, and it will run through May 23^rd.  In addition to some incredible costumes, the musical features many of the hit songs from the movie, including “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” and the theme song, “Circle of Life.”  For tickets and show times, visit the Civic Center’s website at http://www.okcciviccenter.org/index.html.