It's 3:30 in the morning. Ella Fitzgerald's voice carries throughout our Airbnb house in central Oklahoma City. As I explore the midcentury home, I listen to the 1957 live recording at the Shrine Auditorium.
The record, "At The Opera House," plays in the living room. The B side is spinning.
When I finally settle in and relax in a chair near the turntable, she has started singing "Moonlight in Vermont."
I feel like I've gone back in time. It's a magical moment. It's just us and Ella.
It was another record-setting day for Masa at Bleu Garten. I had just helped break my previous two-man sales record from last summer. Actually we shattered it. This was coming off a St. Patrick's Day where I had worked 21 straight hours. And I loved every second of it.
This is probably a good spot to rewind and bring a lot of people up to speed.
In 2017, I quietly started working for Masa, a Tulsa-based food truck that features empanadas, bacon bombs, cuban sandwiches and a variety of specialities. It filled a 14-year void in my life.
From 1998-2003 I worked in a steakhouse. At 16 I started as one of two waiters on a staff comprised of older high school girls and a weekend crew of college-aged ladies who brought the Malibu and Zimas (and Jolly Ranchers) to the closing cleaning parties. I washed dishes. I ran the fryers for daily lunch specials of chicken strips, fried catfish or chicken fried steak between college classes. I showered with a water hose and often went to campus in swim trunks. I'm certain I still smelled like fryers. I still remember the batter recipe we used for everything we fried. I learned a lot at that job.
When I moved to Stillwater in the fall of 2003, I left behind the restaurant world. I then embarked on a 14-year journalism and PR adventure that allowed me to do so many incredible things and share some really awesome stories.
But there was always that void.
We have a lot of great restaurants in Tulsa. Nearly every single time I dined somewhere, at some point I'd glance toward the kitchen and think about the adrenaline rush. Then I'd go back to enjoying my meal.
I have many friends who work in the service industry. I loved listening to their war stories. I was always on the outside looking in, but I wanted it to be the other way around.
When I asked Masa co-owners Robert and Chad if I could jump on board and help out on weekends, they looked at me like I was crazy. Here I was a corporate guy asking to willing go into a box of 350-degree fryers during an Oklahoma summer. All because I missed it. I get it. I'd also wager they thought I'd do it a few times, get my fill and move on.
I not only worked weekends, I also worked big events. We got our ass kicked. My first visit to OKC's Bleu Garten was a record-setter. That nearly got me. (If you've never been to that food truck park, make it a point to visit it this summer.)
It was after overcoming a monstrous Sunday at Tulsa Tough's Cry Baby Hill that I knew I wanted to do whatever I could to help the food truck.
Masa co-owners Chad and Robert moments after surviving Cry Baby Hill at the 2017 Tulsa Tough.
In January, I decided it was time to make some changes. I had been stuck in a creative rut in my job, and I was extremely unhappy. After some conversations with a handful of people, I finally felt like there was no better time to chase my dream than as soon as possible. I sent a Snapchat to a few friends that I was going to walk away. A month later I did it.
Here's why:
I love Tulsa.
For the last couple of years I've published profiles about numerous Tulsans for Tulsa People magazine. (I'll be linking them over in the articles section in the days ahead.) Had it not been for editors Morgan and Anne giving me the opportunity to dive back into journalism, I wouldn't be where I am today.
So this is the beginning of a lot of new stuff. My immediate goal is to do a daily blog. Yes, that means I have to post something daily. I want to use this space to experiment and do some really fun stuff. I also have some other ideas of things I want to write about or share.
In the coming months I plan to launch something bigger. It's a passion project that is really coming together. I'm pumped.
I've been heavily invested in the community for more than a decade. I've been fortunate to get to know a lot of fellow Tulsans and learn their stories. I believe Tulsa is in the midst of an economic and cultural revolution that hasn't been seen since the 1920's. Many of the people who are leading that charge are friends or friends of friends. I want to share as many of their stories with you.
That's just a tease, but I think you'll start seeing some of that here as I work toward its launch.
On top of developing that project and growing this one, I'm going to keep doing freelance journalism, work on a food truck and run social media accounts for some local businesses.
Oh, and my fiction writing is still on the list of things to do. I have a handful of completed short stories. There's six others in development. Then there's that first novel, which has moved from the drawer back to my desktop, where it's currently resting in a folder right by my computer. The pages are covered in red ink for the first half of the stack of papers. There's also a play and a second novel....
One day, I plan to add a fiction link at the top.
But this right here, this blog, is the primary focus in the weeks ahead. This whole website is a work in progress, so any feedback is appreciated.
I'm really excited.
I'd like to thank the numerous people who have supported me, encouraged me and especially to those few who helped push me off the tree branch to force me to fly on my own. You all know who you are.
That's it for now.
This is finally published, and we're off.