I’m back in New York today, but before I left Oklahoma, I squeezed in my first visit to The Kow Pasture, to my knowledge, the one and only bar in Owasso, Oklahoma. I always thought that a town with 40-plus churches needed at least one bar. Apparently most Owassoans still don’t know that The Kow Pasture has existed there for the past 50 years.

The cinderblock establishment is tucked away amongst scenic pastures, and probably also cows, though I only saw horses on the drive there. Since my parents discovered The Kow Pasture a couple of years ago, they’ve almost become regulars, in a sort of half-ironic way, and they’ve been talking up its rough charm ever since.

My mom was eager to point out the weathered door and barred windows as we entered. I was especially taken with the mascot.

This cow knows that you can’t enjoy a beer without a cigarette!

Neither can the patrons of The Kow Pasture. An atmospheric haze hung over everything inside.

Note the shuffleboard, which you can use for a dollar. There was also a dog (maybe a doberman pinscher?) wandering around. It seemed friendly, only jumping up on me once.

The drink selection wasn’t huge—basically, they had Bud and Bud Light, and they were out of Bud Light that night. If I remember correctly, a pitcher was $6. Definitely an economical way to spend a night out. The trickiest thing is hurrying home to throw your smokey clothes in the wash afterward.

I’m happy I could see this slice of Oklahoma before returning to the big city!

Hello from Owasso, Oklahoma! It smells like grass here.

Today my lofty goal was to finally make it to Dwelling Spaces, the newish hipster design store in downtown Tulsa that I’ve been hearing so much about on my past couple of trips here. I had been meaning to visit for some time now, and I’m glad I did! It was even better than I had imagined, nicely stocked with locally made goods, designer toys, kitchen-y things, etc.

I bought up an armful of goodies for New York friends, and a couple things for myself, including this lovely tote by felix & jayne, locally made by Cristi Jayne Martin:

I’m what I call a “loosely organized” knitter, which means that I threw a couple balls of yarn in my suitcase for my trip here. So I’m excited to have a shiny newly-made-from-vintage-fabrics bag to carry around. I love the detailed stitching of it too:

felix & jayne goods appear to be only available in Oklahoma at this time, but Cristi has an Etsy shop set up, so perhaps people outside of the area will be able to nab her handmade bags and other nice things sometime soon. I just emailed her to find out if she has plans for it.

At this time, Dwelling Spaces has an online shop set up with a small selection of “Tulsa”-branded goods. Also hoping they add to it soon!