Random Observations of The Grand Lake Bum March 18

It’s finally official! Right in the middle of Spring Break week, SPRINGTIME officially arrives this week (Tuesday night at 10:06 p.m.). Now we have both Springtime and Daylight Saving Time. Life is better!

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They’re going to have to change the name of the Big Meat Run to the GIGANTIC Meat Run. I don’t know how many thousands of people were in the Disney area and the off-road area by the dam over the past weekend, but it looked like those old photographs of the traffic jams in Disney when they celebrated the completion of the Pensacola Dam. Holy COW, that was an incredible turnout! On a personal note, I was also thrilled at the “Big Meat Music” event. Even though it was just for one night, it was great to see live music return to the iconic Mountain Mama’s in Tia Juana!

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If you’re planning to be out on the lake bass fishing this weekend, don’t be discouraged by all the people who are catching more fish than you. The best fishermen in the world converge on Grand Lake this weekend for the Bassmaster Classic – the Super Bowl of bass fishing competition. Be nice to the fishermen because there’s probably a TV crew on the boat right behind them, and you don’t want to be caught on ESPN making Grand Lakers look tacky!

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As for me, I’m more about eating and drinking that fishing, and I can’t wait to wrap up Spring Break Week with the biggest dining & drinking event so far this year. Shangri-La’s inaugural Food & Wine Festival is Saturday night at 6:00 on The Anchor lawn. Great food from area restaurants, great beverages from a whole host of suppliers, and the official reveal of the all-new “Monkey Island Makers” whisky by Maker’s Mark. It’s the perfect way to wrap up a big week before all of our company leaves Sunday!

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Thank goodness legislation by State Representative Kevin West (R-Moore) died a natural death last week. His bill would have put Oklahoma permanently on Standard Time, doing away with the tourism-boosting Daylight Saving Time. Even more importantly, legislation by State Senator Shorty Stephens was approved by the Senate. His bill would make Daylight Saving Time permanent – pending a literal “act of Congress.” Now what we need to do is contact our members of U.S. Congress to approve the federal “Sunshine Protection Act” which would allow Daylight Saving Time to be permanent – thereby boosting tourism (Oklahoma’s third largest industry” year-round!

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Yes, it is possible to have too much of a good thing. As evidence, Dollar Tree is closing 1,000 stores – 600 of them in the next three months. That should just about match the number of stores they opened in the last three months. In the future, maybe they should open their stores somewhere besides 25 yards from an existing Dollar General!

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The Oklahoma legislature is on track to require holders of social media accounts to be at least 18 years old; and the U.S. Congress is working at full speed to ban TikTok. Next thing you know, people will once again be starting up new newspapers and magazines!

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GRAND LAKE BUM SHOUT-OUTS: Congratulations to the incredible Grove High School COW (Change Our World) Week kids who raised an astonishing $173,288.99 for the Community Crisis Center through their months of hard work and fun events. Unbelievable! Happy birthday wishes go out this week to Bill Slepka, Richard Lippitt, Rusty Fleming, Erin Fitzgibbon, Julie Londagin, Jan Smith, Candace Haynes, David Ogle, Jason Macer, Todd Segress, Ryan Dalton, Donnetta Kerr, Todd Kerr, and Matt Moyer.

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BEST GRAND LAKE EVENTS THIS WEEK. What a wild Grand Lake Spring Break Week! Tuesday is an incredible “Killer Keyz” dueling pianos show at Shangri-La Resort; and Wednesday is a “Family Fun Festival” beginning at 6:00 followed by an awesome hot-air Balloon Glow at 7:30 on the Grand Lawn at Shangri-La Resort Hotel. Har-Ber Village Museum is now open for the 2024 season.
Spring Breakout Wildlife Adventures run Wednesday-Saturday at Grand Lake State Park at Bernice Nature Center (10:00 a.m. for younger kids, 1:00 p.m. for older kids). Thursday is a Grove Chamber Business After Hours at UFFC Mortgage (5:00-6:30). Thursday night is Karaoke Night at Doc’s at Shangri-La. The Bassmaster Classic Tournament returns to Grand Lake this week (Thursday-Sunday).

Saturday is The Great Easter Egg Hunt at Afton City Park (2:00 p.m.). Saturday is also an Easter Festival and Egg Hunt at Marina Del Rey Resort benefiting Ketchum FFA. Saturday is also a Bingo Fundraiser at American Legion Post 178 in Grove benefiting America’s Boating Club Grand Lake (6:00 p.m.). The – 2 Hip Chicks Road Show is at Whoops Outlet in Grove Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday evening is the inaugural Shangri-La Food & Wine Festival on The Anchor Lawn at Shangri-La (6:00 p.m.).

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RANDY KREHBIEL’S RANDOM FACTOID OF THE WEEK: The comic strip character Hagar the Horrible was inspired by "Hagar the Terrible," a nickname bestowed on creator Dik Browne by his children.

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FUN FACT OF THE WEEK: “Never odd or even” spelled backwards is still….”Never odd or even.”

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ODD FACT OF THE WEEK: If you started saving $10,000 every day from the year 50,000 B.C. to now, you would still have less money than Elon Musk.

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BEST FACEBOOK POST OF THE WEEK: I saw a guy at the beach yelling, “Help, shark! Help!” I just laughed. I knew the shark wasn’t going to help him.

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BEST SIGN SEEN THIS WEEK: Waiting on the Alabama Supreme Court’s ruling on caviar.

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BEST PERSONALIZED CAR TAG SEEN THIS WEEK: 370HSSV (you’ll need to turn this one upside down to get it)

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BEST TWEET OF THE WEEK: My life coach just informed me I did not make the team.

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PUN OF THE WEEK: Two bears at the Prague zoo attacked and killed a zookeeper. They had to dissect the bears two see which one ate him. Official result: the Czech is in the male.

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UNANSWERED QUESTION OF THE WEEK: In an attempt to block underage customers from sneaking purchases of alcohol, Oklahoma lawmakers are considering legislation to ban alcohol purchases at self-checkout, requiring purchasers to use a human being to check out. Does that mean Wal-Mart is going to stop selling wine and beer?

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OBSERVATION OF THE WEEK: I’ve never seen anyone jogging and smiling at the same time, so that’s pretty much all I need to know about jogging.

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QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.” – Mark Twain

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FEEL-OLD MOMENTS OF THE WEEK: Show business icon Carol Burnett turned 90 years old last week. Actress Barbara Feldon, best known for her role as Agent 99 in the TV series “Get Smart,” turned 91; and legendary singer/songwriter James Taylor turned 76.

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BEST WEEKEND LIVE ENTERTAINMENT: On Monkey Island, Jason Morgan kicks off the weekend with Thursday Night Karaoke at Doc’s Bar & Grill. Friday night, JR Neal entertains live at Doc’s. The Pearson Brothers will be live at Blind Swine Friday night followed by Sons of Turner Saturday. Rockwell entertains at the inaugural Food & Wine Festival on The Anchor lawn at Shangri-La Saturday night. Robbi Bell performs Friday night at Big Shots followed by DJ music; and DJ K-Bandito provides the music Saturday night.

On South Grand, Friday night is Karaoke Night at The Copper Penny in Ketchum. RocKFiscH entertains Saturday night at the Drunken Rooster in Cleora. Magen Faulconer will perform Saturday night at Mooney’s Sunset Bar & Grill in Disney.

In Grove, there are two upcoming nights of live music at Cherokee Casino featuring D’Elegantz Friday night, followed by The Swade Diablos Saturday night.

Mr. and Mrs. Smith start the weekend Thursday night at Indigo Sky Casino followed by Oreo Blue Friday and Brent Giddens Saturday. Risky Business will be on stage at Backwoods Lounge at Buffalo Run Casino Saturday night.

In Club 60 West at River Bend Casino, Bobby DeGonia will entertain Saturday followed by late night karaoke with DJ Kay.  

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DINING & DRINKING UPDATE: Don’t miss the Food & Wine Festival Saturday night at 6:00 on the Anchor Lawn at Shangri-La. VIP Pizza at Hammerhead Marina and the Quarterdeck Café at Tera Miranda are now open for the season.

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BUM MUST-SEE TV: 3 Body Problem is available this week on NETFLIX and Road House is available on Prime Video. The Voice airs Monday & Tuesday nights at 7:00 on NBC; and Jon Stewart hosts The Daily Show Monday night at 10:00 on Comedy Central. Good One: A Show About Jokes airs beginning next Tuesday on Peacock.

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BUM MUST-SEE MOVIES: Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, and Sleeping Dogs debut in movie theaters Friday.

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SAVE THE DATE: Thursday, March 28 – Mardi Gras in March at the GRDA Ecosystems Center in Langley sponsored by the South Grand Lake Foundation, benefiting Ketchum Backpack Program (6:00 p.m.). Friday & Saturday, March 28-29 – Grove Merchants Spring Open House. Saturday, March 30 – Langley Easter Egg Hunt at Langley City Park (11:00-1:00). Friday, March 29 – Ketchum Public School’s 3^rd Annual Egg Drop at South Grand Lake Regional Airport (1:00 p.m.). Saturday, March 30 – Rooster Easter Party & Egg Hunt at the Drunken Rooster. Saturday, March 30 – Easter Egg Hunt & Picnic at Cherokee Yacht Club (10:00-2:00). Saturday, March 30 – Easter Egg Hunt at Bernice State Park & Nature Center (1:00 p.m.). Sunday, March 31 – Easter Brunch at both Doc’s and The Summit at Shangri-La (11:00-3:00). Sunday, March 31 – Easter Egg Hunt at The Anchor at Shangri-La at 2:00. Tuesday, April 2 – Tuesday Trivia with Jason Morgan at The Anchor at Shangri-La. Saturday, April 6 – Saturday Night Game Show competition with Jason Morgan at The Anchor at Shangri-La.

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In the NBA, the OKC Thunder are on the road this week, and they’ll need to pack their Passports. They face the Raptors in Toronto Friday night, then travel to Milwaukee to face the Bucks Sunday – then head down to New Orleans for a Tuesday night game with the Pelicans.

The NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments get underway this week as we kick off March Madness. The ladies kick off action with First Round games Wednesday-Saturday, with 2^nd Round games Sunday and Monday. First Round men’s games are Thursday & Friday, with Round 2 games Saturday and Sunday.

PGA players are in Palm Harbor, Florida this week for the Valspar Championship. Coverage is at 1:00 p.m. Thursday & Friday and noon Saturday & Sunday on the Golf Channel. NBC picks up the final two rounds at 2:00 Saturday and Sunday.

NASCAR drivers are doing a little Grand Prix driving this weekend at the Circuit of the Americas track in Austin. Coverage of the Echopark Automotive Grand Prix is on Fox Sunday afternoon at 2:30.

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Weather for the weekend ahead looks almost perfect. We’ll have sunshine for the most part with high temperatures in the mid-to-upper 60s – mid-70s on Saturday - and lows in the mid-to-upper 40s! Get out and enjoy the festivities on the final weekend of Spring Break. Remember, though, wherever you decide to party, be sure to buy a drink for the guy next to you. It might be me!

GRAND LAKE BUM

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Looking for places to go, things to do, services to use or property to buy in the Grand Lake area?  Here’s a starter kit listing of “open to the public” fun places to spend time at Grand Lake

Anchor Sports Bar & Activity Park at Shangri-La

Big Shots on Monkey Island (Open Thursday, Friday & Saturday nights)

Blind Swine on Duck Creek at Safe Harbor Harbors View Marina (closed for the season)

Blind Swine on Monkey Island

Blue Bluff Café at Blue Bluff Harbor

BOOM in Grove (at The Regatta)

Buffalo Bar at Shangri-La on Monkey Island

Buffalo Run Casino in Miami (smoking)

Casa Gutierrez in Grove

Cesar’s Place in Vinita

Cesar’s Place in Langley

Changos Locos at Littlefield Corner, Monkey Island

Checkered Past in Grove

Chickanella’s on Monkey Island

Chicken Coop west of Langley

Chubby’s Grill at On Target in Grove

Clanton’s Café in Vinita

Copper Penny Bar in Ketchum

Cosby’s Catfish on Highway 28 in Eucha (East of Disney)

Cove Club in Langley

Doc’s Bar & Grill at Shangri-La Resort Hotel

Domino’s in Grove

Downstream Casino in Quapaw (smoking)

Drake’s Restaurant in Grove

Drunken Rooster Bar & Grill

E&H Liquor Store at Littlefield Corner, Monkey Island

Eddy’s Lakeside Bar at Shangri-La Marina (closed for the season)

Fire Pit at Wildwood Cove Resort in Drowning Creek

Galley at The Anchor, Shangri-La Resort

Goodfella’s Pizza (Cleora and Grove)

Grand Getaway Mercantile (north of Grove)

Grand Lake Casino, north of Grove on Highway 10 (smoking)

Grand Lake Coffee Company in Grove

Grand Lake Public House in Grove

Grand Lake RV Resort at the back of Duck Creek

Hero’s Deli in Grove

High Winds Casino east of Miami (smoking)

Honey Creek BBQ in Grove (south of Honey Creek bridge)

Indigo Sky Casino west of Seneca, Mo. (smoking)

Juan Montez Restaurant & Cantina at Red Arrow Marina

Keagan’s Coffee at Littlefield Corner

La Casita de Martin in downtown Grove

Lighthouse Supper Club in Ketchum

Los Garcias in Langley

Lupe's Mexican Restaurant in Grove

Matt’s Place in Grove

Monkey Island RV Resort

Mooney’s Sunset Bar & Grill in Disney

Monkey Grind at Shangri-La Resort Hotel

Monkey Island Trail Rides

Monkey Island Winery

Mosa Hibachi and Sushi in Grove

Mulligan’s at Patricia Island Golf Club in Grove

Nu Taste Restaurant in Grove

Pappy’s Bar on Hwy 10 east of Grove

Pickles at the Lake in Langley

Pier 13 Liquor Store in Langley

Pistol Pat’s on Honey Creek in Grove

Pit Stop Café in Grove

Quarterdeck Cafe at Tera Miranda Harbor (closed for the season)

R Bar Dance Hall & Saloon in Grove

Raggedy’s in Grove

Rancho Viejo in Grove

Regatta Restaurant & Bar at Sailboat Bridge, Grove

Riggs & Company in Langley

River Bend Casino in Wyandotte (smoking)

Road Hog Saloon at the entrance to Monkey Island

Royal Liquor Store in Grove

Rusty Anchor (next to the cliffs at Dripping Springs)

Sharky’s at Hammerhead Marina (closed for the season)

Stuffn’s Restaurant in Ketchum (Smoking on patio)

Sugar Shack at Lee’s Grand Lake Resort

Summit Restaurant at Shangri-La on Monkey Island

The Grill at Indian Hills Resort & Marina in Bernice

The Stables Casino in Miami (smoking)

The Shebang on Monkey Island (smoking on patio and Balcony Bar)

Ugly’s Grill & Bar, Thunder Bay Marina (closed for the season)

VIP Pizza at Hammerhead Marina (smoking on deck)

Wolf Creek Diner in Grove