Welcome to the Center of the Universe

When I went to college and was looking for a way to meet people and form strong, reliable connections 500 miles from home, I decided to go through Panhellenic Recruitment (sorority rush) and consider joining a sorority.  My friend Kim, who is a music theatre and Lord of the Rings nerd, told me about her positive experience while gushing "I'm SOOOOO not the stereotypical sorority girl!"  I found many kindred spirits in Alpha Chi Omega's Gamma Tau chapter and accepted an invitation to become one of their sisters.

As you join a sorority, you immediately have a mentor to help you transition through the process from accepting a bid to becoming an initiated member.  Your first mentor is paired randomly, but my Guardian Angel, as she is lovingly called, Twila, is amazing!  She is originally from Tulsa, a little over a hundred miles from where we attended college.  After she graduated and I visited her for the first time, she our other sister Amy took me to this spot in downtown Tulsa around 2:00 a.m.

They called it the "center of the universe," and it's a lot easier to experience than it is to explain.  There's a lot of unique, interesting architecture in downtown Tulsa but there is also a special spot, a parabolic anomaly, that people who have lived in Tulsa their entire lives may not know of.  Your voice echoes, only to you, in this spot, and the sounds all around you are heightened.  Rulers would design their throne rooms to have this effect so they could clearly hear what people thought they were saying in secret.

This past weekend I found out that the Brady Arts District was having their first ever Center of the Universe Festival to raise money for the district and to upgrade their trolley system.  Free concerts from up and coming bands, as well as headliners such as One Republic, OK Go, and Neon Trees.  What better excuse to visit my lovely Twila and enjoy a quick get away?

Sitting with Twila, watching OK Go on a big LED screen

During Neon Trees set, we worked our way up to the entrance to Cain's Ballroom, a favorite smaller concert venue in Tulsa.

As close as you can get without being one of the "fancy people" as OK Go liked to call the folks who paid for closer concert access.

Twila told me there are special events and free concerts fairly frequently in downtown Tulsa.  This was definitely a fun event and one of my favorite weekends recently.  Actually, to be fair, this has probably been one of the most fun months I've had.  I'll have to write a catch up entry about my road trip to Phoenix, and this weekend I'm going to float the Illinois River with some friends.  Hurray for summer adventures!