Day thirty-four - North to Norman

After that great day in Denton I drove 150 miles to the home of my hosts, Joyce and Les, in Norman, Oklahoma. Joyce and Les spoke enthusiastically about their holiday in Prague as part of the EducatorsTravel.com program, Joyce is a retired elementary school teacher and Les is a pastor. Les is also a great cook. He got up so early in the morning to make a breakfast of waffles with home cooked apples and maple syrup.

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Les, my host in Norman, OK.

My first stop in the morning was to Copelin’s Teaching Tooks in Norman. The Copelin store is big. They sell furniture, stationary and school supplies. I had a great time at Copelin’s. Lyn Copelin, the owner and Jennifer, her assistant, were very organized. About a dozen patron showed up for a “Meet and Greet” and we had a get-together in the ‘conference room’.

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Meet and Greet Session [top left], Lin Copelin, co-owner [top right], inside of the store [bottom left] and outside of the store [bottom right].

Next stop was to Mardel’s head office just outside of Oklahoma City. You haven’t seen anything until you’ve seen Mardel’s head office. Actually Mardel’s is part of a conglomerate with other companies including: Hobby Lobby, Crafts Etc., World Wood and Hemispheres. The head office is 1/2 mile long and 1/2 mile deep. The complex is 2.6 million square feet. (And I thought everything in TEXAS was big!)

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Gayleen at reception [left] and outside of Mardel's, which stretches for half a mile [right].

Last stop of the day was to Learning Tree Toys, Books and Games in Oklahoma City. Kathy Carey and Patty Tepper have been co-owners of this (3500 square foot) store for the past 19 years. At Learning Tree Toys, Books and Games also hosted a “Meet and Greet” session where I was able to meet and converse with many customers.

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Co-owners Kathy Carey and Patty Tepper [top left], Patty and Alison, hamming it up [top right] and the exterior of the store [bottom].

As you can imagine it was getting pretty late. I was supposed to drive to Muskogee. I would have been an “Okie in Muskogee” that night. Unfortunately it was so dark and so late I decided to forego the “Okie in Muskogee” experience and pulled off the highway a little earlier just to stay safe.