Events

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The Dead South at Nortons

Posted on October 21, 2018 by Ching under Events, Things to Do.

Brian had been looking forward to seeing the Dead South for some time, specially since he missed them on their last visit to Wichita. We almost missed them again this time because the tickets sold out really quickly. But then the organizers opened up a hundred more tickets, which I just happened to see so I snagged a couple of tickets for me and Brian. Although, we almost ended up with four tickets because he just happened to be looking at the tickets online at the same time I was and had the exact same thought — better snag the tickets now before they sell out again. Thankfully, rather than keeping it a secret and surprising him with the tickets later (which was originally part of my plan), I opted to call him and tell him what I’d done. My being horrible at surprises and keeping secrets actually saved him from having to click the button and completing his own ticket purchase. Disaster averted — whew! We are so eerily in synch sometimes.

Fast forward to the day of the event when it was raining nonstop all morning. We were quite worried about it actually because the show is outdoors. We all know what happened at Journey. Leading up to concert day, we were worried there would be way too many people because of all the tickets they sold. So, on the one hand, the weather looked like it was going to be crappy but, on the other hand, that might make the event less crowded because some might get turned off by the weather and stay home or do something else instead.

We were so concerned about the weather that Brian called Nortons that morning to ask about their rain plan. He was told the show would continue — outside — rain or shine. So then we were scrambling to figure out our own plan. We actually talked about wearing the $5 ponchos we got from Dick’s for the Journey concert — amazingly, we still have them. He left it up to me to make the call since I was coming from the house. Our plan was for me to take a car over and just meet Brian at Nortons. He was going straight there from work.

The rain had stopped but it was still quite gloomy. The ponchos weren’t warranted though, so I left them at home. The weather turned out perfect and the sun even came out briefly before sunset.

Here are a few pictures from the Dead South show last weekend…

We got there early to have dinner before the show. I skipped lunch that day so I was starving. Brian had some beer and was in an excellent mood.

Here’s a selfie of the two of us from early in the evening.

The sun came out for a bit.

Here’s a picture of my handsome husband enjoying the beautiful night and opening acts — Del Suelo and Whiskey Shivers.

Thought I would share this picture because you can see my office building in the background. The venue is just steps away from the office.

Speaking of office, I ran into an old coworker at the show.

It turns out that Cody is good friends with one of the guys we met that night.

Obligatory drink pics followed by the obligatory event selfie.

Pics of the band — the Dead South.

Here’s a short video of the Dead South performing Brian’s favorite song by them.

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Fun Times with My Rotary Club

Posted on October 11, 2018 by Ching under Community, Events, Things to Do.

We spent the last couple of weekends hanging out with the Andover Rotary Club.

Last weekend was Greater Andover Days, an event that our club supports. We’re usually out there for the tailgate party on Friday night and to sell beer on Saturday night. The setup was a little different this year because we got to use the lodge patio. It’s beautiful and spacious, with great views of the amphitheater. It would have been perfect if we had a better turnout. Apparently, there were several things going on that same night. There was the 150th celebration in Augusta, Lynyrd Skynyrd at Intrust Bank Arena, Wichita Taste downtown, and a bunch of other events scattered around town and nearby. It was a beautiful night and the weather was perfect but we didn’t have quite the turnout we expected.

Do not believe it when someone tells you there is nothing to do in Wichita. There are always multiple options on any given night. Sometimes choosing which event to attend can even be overwhelming.

The weather wasn’t the best this past Saturday for our annual Haus of Brews event but that didn’t seem to negatively impact the turnout. Brian and I got there early to help set up. This year we had additional help from the lovely people at Meritrust, long time sponsors of the event.

Here’s a picture of Alison and her husband Chris setting up the German food buffet.

We relocated the check in desk this year and I kind of like it. I think it confused the regulars who have been coming year after year but I thought it made for better flow.

The wine station ended up being moved to the old check in spot.

River City Brewery was one of six local breweries to support our event.

We also had Areo Plains, Nortons, Third Place Brewing, Walnut River, and Wichita Brewing Company. Everyone brought plenty of great beer and smiles.

Here’s another picture of the brewery guys getting set up. Treescapes in Andover is a lovely place to have Haus of Brews. We are always grateful to them for letting us use their space for our event.

Here’s a picture of the food menu along with a bit of information about our club.

The breweries brought several beer selections along with their most popular brews. We also had a good wine selection for the ladies and non-beer drinkers and, as always, there was a margarita machine inside churning all-you-can-drink frozen margaritas. There’s something for everyone!

Our friends Jay, Becca, Cory, and April attended for the first time.

I also had some friends from work come out to support the event. It was fabulous! Overall, I thought it was a great way to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Haus of Brews. I look forward to our next one.

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Open Streets ICT

Posted on October 8, 2018 by Ching under Events, Food and Drink, Things to Do.

Just a few pictures from Open Streets ICT a few weeks ago… But first, what is it exactly? Open Streets ICT is a FREE community-building event that closes a Douglas Avenue to traffic and opens it for biking, walking, running, dancing, yoga, and more! Everyone is welcome to join in the fun, and to stop at the local businesses, restaurants, and street vendors along the four-mile stretch.

We started our day with breakfast at our usual place, Dempsey’s Biscuit Co, which also happens to be along the route.

Here are some pictures of our delicious breakfast.

We decided meet up for breakfast later than usual. Normally we go when Dempsey’s Biscuit Co first opens at nine o’clock but decided to go later that day so we could move right into Open Streets ICT mode. We didn’t think of the street being blocked because the official street closing was advertised from noon to five o’clock in the afternoon. However, they started closing the streets earlier that day and our cars almost got trapped in the Dempsey’s Biscuit Co parking lot (except for Jeff who planned ahead and arrived on his bike). Good thing Brian knew his way around the neighborhood.

After breakfast Brian and I took off and parked our car in my work parking lot. My office building is a long the route and right in the thick of the action.

We also purposely planned it this way because there’s a Bike Share ICT station right outside my office and our plan was to use my promo code for 2 hours of FREE bike rental. You can cover more ground and you get to see so much more by biking rather than being on foot.

We ran into one of Brian’s Edward Jones coworkers, Brandi. She had a tent along the path, right by the Alzheimer’s Association office.

There was FREE outdoor yoga on Douglas and Pattie.

There were lots of people walking and biking and there were vendors everywhere.

They even had sections of street blocked off for games such as pickle ball.

We would have taken more pictures but it was difficult to do so while riding the bikes. We only took photos at stops along the way. And, we didn’t really have enough time to see everything because we had to set aside enough time to get out of downtown so I could make it back to Andover for my two o’clock Zumba class.

There were four main hubs with lots of activities besides what’s pictured above. The City of Wichita even had a dunk tank featuring Mayor Jeff Longwell. There was also plenty to do in between hubs.

Though we missed the event last year because we just couldn’t squeeze it into our busy schedule, we heard it was a huge success so we did our best to squeeze it in this year. Next year I may have to sub out my Zumba class because I didn’t feel like we had enough time to take it all in.

Anyway, Open Streets ICT is one of those events/initiatives that we hope the city continues year after year because it’s a huge hit and people love it.

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Fall Kick Off Party at Andover YMCA

Posted on September 30, 2018 by Ching under Events, Zumba.

Here are a few pictures from the Fall Kick Off Party we hosted at Andover YMCA a couple of weeks ago.

This is a group photo of the active Zumba instructors home-based at Andover YMCA: (from left) Crystal, Darlene, Tiffany, me and Charis. The only one missing is Mandy who is still on maternity leave. She returns to the rotation next month. In the meantime Charis has been covering her Tuesday night class.

Don’t mind my wild outfit. The theme was neon so I wanted to be as colorful as possible. I just love theme days!

We had time for a few extra songs at the end so these next few photos are of Alex leading a song. She killed it!

We took a few group photos at the end. Some people had left already but, as you can see, it was a great turnout.

I can’t wait until we have another one of super fun Zumba parties.

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Zoobilee 2018

Posted on September 26, 2018 by Ching under Events.

As much as we say we’re not going to go to Zoobilee again, we always have so much fun. It’s definitely our favorite event to end summer and officially kick off fall. And, despite thinking each year will be our last, we’ve yet to miss one of these since we started attending in 2009. This year marked our 10th consecutive one.

We wouldn’t have gone this year because I didn’t buy tickets. I figured I was getting to old to hang with the YPW folks and felt guilty about buying through their group. They have a really nice private party set up though and early entry so if you’re buying tickets, YPW is definitely the way to go. For the same price, you get in much earlier and don’t have to stand in the ridiculously long line.

Anyway, some of my coworkers got free tickets through work. I was not special enough to get one. The Zoobilee tickets are so popular that there are never any leftovers. I’ve only ever gotten free tickets from work once in the ten years we’ve been going. In the past we’ve attended by volunteering, which I very highly recommend if you want to partake but are limited on cash, or buying our own tickets through the YPW group.

This year Isaac and Crystal decided not to go. I think they had something else going on that day. I ended up inheriting his tickets and so Brian and I were able to attend, though we totally had not planned it.

I may not be the most spontaneous person but I’m always ready for a party. LOL.

Here’s a picture of Brian in line for his first drink of the evening. Success!

So Brian’s face doesn’t look it but he actually has a lot of fun at these events (most of the time). There was one year we attended despite me having a massive headache and we still had a blast. We went because we didn’t want the tickets to go to waste.

Here’s a picture of us with Josh and his wife Jessica pretty early in the evening.

This time we are with Josh, Jessica, Darcy, and Jeff.

And then with Josh, Jessica, Derek, and Vicky.

And then with Andrea and James.

And with Gina’s brother BJ who is always at these events.

Here is Brian enjoying a free cigar from the Humidor.

Group pic with Laura and Chad and Josh and Jessica (again).

We were with Josh and Jessica most of the evening.

Cox Communications had a special sports bar area this year that neither of us remember seeing in years past. We both think it was new this year.

Here’s a picture of us with Johnson, my new favorite massage therapist at Sveta’s.

Here’s a picture of us with Sveta herself and my original favorite massage therapist Michael. He’s not working at Sveta’s anymore but still helps out for special events.