Things to Do

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Cinco de Mayo Zumba in the Square

Posted on May 25, 2017 by Ching under Events, Things to Do, Zumba.

Here are some pictures from the first Zumba in the Square event of the year which, coincidentally, fell on Cinco de Mayo. I ended up being in charge of this one because Pat, our fearless Zumba in the Square leader who normally organizes these events, just happened to have a schedule conflict that night. Lucky for me, I had the help of several amazing instructors.

Amy, Andrea, Charis, Johnna, Missy, Nick, and Todd all taught some songs. A picture of our kick ass Zumbathon® playlist is on the left.

It was such a blast leading songs for a fun-loving group!

We had a great turnout!

Afterward a bunch of us went to Carlos O’Kelly’s to continue our Cinco de Mayo celebration. We had to wait a little bit before they could seat our group because there were 30 of us. It was a great time, though!

I ended up making some new friends.

Anyway, I was so delirious from the Zumbathon® that I completely spaced and left my water bottle at Old Town Square. We were almost home before I realized my folly. It’s a very special water bottle. It was one of the S’well bottles we’d gotten from Brian’s parents for Christmas. I was really upset that I left it.

Brian knew that I was really upset about leaving my water bottle so we agreed to go back and look for it. As luck would have it, the bottle was still there on the grass where I had left it. I got really lucky!

Although, I did tell Brian that if my water bottle was no longer there when we returned I wouldn’t be too upset because that would mean that some homeless person has taken it and they probably need it more than me. I’m really glad that I got my S’well bottle back, though.

We got home really late after making a trip back to downtown and then driving back home. It was a long, exhausting day but totally worth it. We had such a great time! If you missed the event, fear not. We’ve got another Zumba in the Square event coming up in a couple of weeks. The next one is scheduled for June 16.

I won’t be able to lead any songs at that event because we are celebrating with family that day. We’re having a cookout at our house to celebrate Brian’s birthday (June 13), grandma’s birthday (June 19), and Father’s Day. I hope you can make it to the next Zumba in the Square event though because it’s fabulous and not to be missed! It’s one of my favorite summer activities!

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WASAC’s Take Back the Night

Posted on May 21, 2017 by Ching under Community, Events, Things to Do.

These are pictures from our team building volunteer activity for the Wichita Area Sexual Assault Center‘s Take Back the Night event. My friend and coworker Alex is an avid volunteer for the agency and she arranged it so that we would man the Community Quilt Project station at the event.

I don’t really know much about WASAC and their programs but I agreed to volunteer in support of Alex. She is always so generous with her time and volunteers for things at organizations that I’m passionate about so it was my turn to return the favor. There are no pictures of Brian because he didn’t want to do this event with me. It turned out all right because we had enough representation at the event. It would have been nice to have him there but it was okay that he wasn’t. There wasn’t much to the volunteer activity.

We basically just talked with people at the event and encouraged them to participate in the Community Quilt Project. We had two tables with several blank fabric squares and colorful markers. We also had completed squares on display as examples. Each person’s contribution is an art work or saying on fabric square, which would then be incorporated into a big community quilt.

I wanted to contribute to the Community Quilt Project so I designed a couple of patches also. Some people got really artsy and did drawings but I’ve never been any good at that so I just wrote a bunch of encouraging words down and decorated/colored them.

I’d never been to one of these events before so this was my first. I’m not sure what the participation and attendance was like last year but this event was very well attended. I think it also helped that some awesome food trucks were there, including my friend’s truck Kamayan.

It was interesting to hear stories from survivors and supporters. I think it actually worked out better that Brian didn’t go because he would not have had the attention span for it. Please visit the WASAC web site to learn more about support groups, volunteer opportunities, advocacy, and other services.

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New Keeper of the Plains Statue

Posted on May 1, 2017 by Ching under Projects, Things to Do.

A new Keeper of the Plains replica statue was unveiled in our office building a couple of weeks ago. It is one of several 10-foot tall fiberglass replicas of our famous Keeper of the Plains statue that’s part of the “Keepers on Parade” project launched by Together Wichita in 2014.

Brian and I have been anxiously awaiting the unveiling because we collaborated on the design concept last year. When work announced that we would be commissioning our very own Keeper of the Plains replica for the atrium of our Wichita office, they held a design contest.

I wanted to enter the contest but I wanted Brian to help me. Anyway, as the deadline approached, I ended up getting busy with work. On the last day, I found out from Ebony that we only had a few entries. I told Brian what I wanted drawn and he whipped it up real quick. Then he scanned them and emailed them to me for me to send to Ebony. Below is the design that we submitted.

It’s not even colored because we ran out of time. We submitted our design literally moments before the cutoff. Who would have thought that the judges would appreciate the simplicity of our design concept.

That was last year. We’d been waiting for the completed statue since. Here’s a closer look at all the sides of the completed Keeper of the Plains replica statue.

The artist made several changes that improved the overall outcome. They kept the general concept of our design but added and changed some of the elements. I thought all of the design changes worked. The statue turned out even better than I could have ever imagined.

If you are interested in seeing this one in person, it’s located in the atrium of the Ruffin Building on the corner of Douglas and Broadway (100 N. Broadway). There are three others at the pop up park. Those were the first three I had ever seen actually. I have seen several since. They’re scattered all over town.

One of these days I will go and check out all of them. There’s a Keeper Finder map on the Together Wichita web site which makes it a lot easier to locate all of the “Keepers on Parade” statues. If you’re looking for something to do, this would be a fun weekend activity or cheap date idea. It reminds of the time that Brian and I went on a sculpture scavenger hunt on the Wichita State University campus a few years ago. That was a lot of fun.

Perhaps we will see you around at one of these installations. Happy hunting!

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Wheat State Wine Company

Posted on April 29, 2017 by Ching under Things to Do.

Rain was in the forecast but we didn’t let that stop us. I’m glad we pushed through with our plans to see Piper Leigh and the Smokin’ Section because it turned out to be a beautiful day for a country drive.

We saw Piper Leigh and her band perform for the first time last year when they opened for Jared & the Mill at the Orpheum.

We’d never been to Wheat State Wine Company before because of the hour-long drive to Winfield but, since Piper and her band were performing, we thought we would make an exception.

We were worried about the rain so I ended up wearing my rain boots but it turned out to be a beautiful day and the weather was perfect.

We arrived during soundcheck and got a really good spot.

The place is really lovely. Brian and I couldn’t believe we’d never been until that night. We will definitely be back.

Here’s a picture of my awesome rain boots. Also, Brian really liked the print on my Lularoe leggings. I do too. They’re super fun!

I loved all the lights, which helped to create the perfect ambiance.

I ended up getting a bottle of the Flat Pick. Brian had a glass of beer but opted out of getting an entire bottle of wine because he was driving. On the plus side, if you don’t drink the entire bottle, they can repackage it for you so you’re not driving home with an open container.

They also let you taste the wines if you can’t decide what you want.

The winery is open for free wine tastings and tours Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from noon to six o’clock in the evening. They also allow visitors to enjoy their wine and picnic on the grounds. Brian and I will definitely be back.

The 2017 summer concert series also has a fabulous lineup of musicians so I know for sure we will be back for another one of these events. I can’t wait.

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Pictures from the Society of 1895 Luncheon

Posted on April 17, 2017 by Ching under Community, School, Things to Do.

I had to be in Kansas City on the day of the Society of 1895 luncheon at Wichita State University. Fortunately, Brian was able to attend for the both of us. This is a selfie that he sent me on his way to the event.

Brian snapped a few photos while he was there, including one of his name tag.

He was texting me the photos to make me feel like I was there with him also.

Since this was kind of my thing, Brian didn’t want me to miss out.

It looked like a great turn out. I found out after the fact that Jill Frasco and Bill Moore were both at the event, which made me feel really bad for missing out.

Brian took a picture of the little blurb they printed about us in the program, but also took home a couple of the programs (one for us and one to give to grandma).