September 17, 2010: Tulsa area

Today was sort of a day to relax after the intense driving earlier in the week. The only thing I had planned was to get to the Tulsa area. Oklahoma City was the furthest point west I planned to go. So, today marked the slow beginning of the drive home. Yes, I only just got out there and am already turning around.


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Near Tulsa is an annual swap meet called "Cowboy trade days." It's supposed to be the biggest in the United States for western related items. Since I have an interest in old west history, I wanted to visit. The event officially started the next day (Saturday) but customers were allowed to come early if they didn't mind being around the dealers setting up.

I went back the way I came via the I-44 toll road. The day before, there was a huge backup on the eastbound lane (I was heading west at that point so I just watched it) between construction and an accident involving three tractor trailers. I hoped construction would not cause another backup....and of course that there weren't any accidents. As this is a toll road in Oklahoma, they allow people to drive at 75. But, 75mph is probably a bit much for this road as it does have traffic. (In Rocky Mountain western states like New Mexico, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, etc., the populations are so low that 75 on interstates in the rural areas is fine. Utah is even testing an 80mph limit on I-15.) Thankfully, a sign at the beginning of the turnpike indicated there was no backup.

I-44 is rather confusing going into the city of Tulsa itself. There is no toll within the city. You MUST pay attention to signs because what seems like an "exit" in a few places is actually what is keeping you on I-44. Otherwise, you can end up on US 412, or Route 66 (yes, THE famous Route 66).

The Cowboy Trade Days swap meet is hyped to be the largest of its kind in the United States. Vendors must pay as much as $80 for a booth. In NY, that seems cheap as I believe the Round Lake Antiques Festival charges at least $200 for a booth. But remember, this is Oklahoma and swap meets are a common thing out here. In various places vendors get to set up for free --- but the swap meets have no advertising budget so it's spread via word of mouth.

I visited this event last May. This is an annual event in September but they were experimenting with doing it in May as well. Due to bad weather, not as many vendors showed up. It was underwhelming back then, but I was told that it's so much better in September.

When I got there, there were very few vendors set up. There were some interesting things to look at. I was told more vendors would be coming in later and also Saturday. It was extremely hot. After looking around a bit and getting very tired of being out in the heat, I decided to head for the hotel and enjoy an air conditioned room.

I took a free night for this hotel though I had to actually use points this time (unlike the previous night where cockroaches basically awarded me a freebie night ---- and likely a night that will STILL earn points!).

I planned to just relax for the night. But, I remembered I needed to buy some things at Kohl's and figured when I had a "night off" it would be the best time to get this done. I was a little surprised when I went to check out. The store announced a need for every cashier possible. The lines were extremely long with several cashiers ringing people up. I don't know if the recession is happening in Tulsa. This is definitely not "back to school" stuff because Midwest and Southern states start school around August 15th. School also gets out in mid-May. In the Northeast, we're one month different in terms of the beginning of summer vacation and two or three weeks different in terms of school starting.

Finally, I was able to get back to my hotel and relax a bit.