Our original plan had been to get up early and visit the science center in downtown but we scratched that in favor of a couple of extra hours of needed sleep. After hotel breakfast and packing up the car, we headed a little south toward the University of Oklahoma. We were scheduled for a 1PM tour of the National Weather Center. Sarah is interested in meteorology as a possible career choice and since we were so close to the nation's only national severe weather forecasting center, we made sure to visit. We learned a lot about the weather, the small numbers of people who study weather and how they apply this information in various fields after graduation, and what Sarah would need to do/study to achieve a degree in meteorological sciences. We saw actual meteorologists at work, preparing forecasts, preparing warnings, and trying out new weather technology. We also saw students at work, prepping to become our future weather pioneers.
**Side note about Oklahoma: they have many interesting road signs. Some are encouraging like, "Drive Friendly" and others are odd like, "Don't Drive Into Smoke". This one was particularly unnerving and made us question more than just the quality of hitchhikers in the state:
Okay, back to our regularly-scheduled programming:
The building is actually half university, half government occupied, so we weren't able to see all the parts of the property. They wouldn't want us spilling government weather secrets, I guess. Our tour guide explained that about 500 people work in the building; I would wager we saw maybe 60 people. Most of them are "nerds, introverts" who are at work making sure the nation is aware of any severe weather threats, so one would never guess that 500 people work in the building. He was right. And...the promise of nerdy introverts appealed very much to Sarah.
The building is only 6 stories tall but it was explained to us that something like 3,000 miles (yes, miles) of wire is run between the floors for all of the electronic equipment it takes to make everything work so the building is more like a 12-story building. Visitors who are afraid of heights were warned to avoid looking down over the side as we toured the upper floors. Sarah didn't dare look and took the elevator instead of the stairs with each descent.
We were really impressed with this free tour. It was definitely worth every penny and it made me thankful that technology has come so far as to keep people safe when the weather turns scary.
Our van pulled out of the U of O parking lot with Waze set for Amarillo, TX. I drove virtually the entire way; Andy needed to work. He also served as the nature photographer as the landscape changed. Texas definitely has what the Dixie Chicks call "wide open spaces". We saw loads of cattle and endless ranch-type lands.
The skies were beautiful until we realized we were driving directly into a thunderstorm. The winds picked up very fast and the rain came down in buckets. Before we left, our tour guide told us we shouldn't miss Big Texan Steakhouse in Amarillo, home of the 72 oz "free" steak. If you can eat it (and accompanying baked potato, salad, roll, and beverage) in under 60 minutes, it's free! If you don't finish the entire meal, they keep your prepaid $72. Yeeps! This restaurant happened to be on our route, about 15 minutes before arrival to our hotel. So we stopped because we were hungry and to wait out the storm.
This place was a hoot! The food was great (Andy and I split a steak 70/30, the kids' food was served in cowboy hats, and there was a banjo/guitar duo serenading tables), the atmosphere was comfortable, and the service was spot on. A kid who couldn't have been a day over 12 years old was at the "big table" trying his hand at the 72-ounce challenge but he gave up with 18 minutes left and the entire restaurant erupted in applause. There were games and kitschy novelties all around. We stopped for a few souvenirs and our waiter even gave us all hats to match Char's and Alex's. We have no shame so we wore them for the rest of the evening. It was a good place to stop.
On to the hotel we traveled and we all donned swimsuits to head to the pool/hot tub. My feet/legs have continued swelling so I thought it might help to have a go at the hot tub before my shower. We had the place to ourselves since it was later in the evening so that was fun. We're all showered and turning in for the night. Tomorrow it's off to NM as we make our way to the west coast. We're more than 1,500 miles in so far and counting!
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