Laurie’s Last Visit to Wichita
Posted on July 17, 2026 by Ching under Food and Drink, Pickleball.
This is a late post but here are some pics from our friend Laurie Adams’ visit to Wichita last month. Laurie came down to play in the IPN mini tournament at TapNPaddles and got partnered with Harvey Self and won first place!
I ended up taking third place with Deanna Agpoon.
Afterwards we stopped by to check out Gilley’s grand opening open play.
Senda Vu and Lena Quach were running the show.
Kyle Rinck happened to be there.
Then we went home to pick up Brian and take him to dinner at my favorite pizza place — Piatto’s.
The pizzas were delicious as always.
Walked over to Hopping Gnome after for drinks so we could get stamps on our Wicked Brew passports. I was on antibiotics and couldn’t drink so I donated my drink to Laurie. Worked out perfectly.
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Champion Social at the Hutchinson YMCA
Posted on July 14, 2026 by Ching under Community, Events.
Just a few pictures from the Greater Wichita YMCA Champion Social last month that was held at the brand new Hutchinson YMCA. We got to tour the facility that Friday before it officially opened to the public the following Monday.
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2026 Picklepalooza
Posted on July 4, 2026 by Ching under Community, Pickleball.
This year’s Picklepalooza fundraiser for Senior Services of Wichita and the Wichita Cancer Foundation took place on Friday, June 5, at Chicken N Pickle—where it’s always held.
Since my usual partner, Chris Wilson, was out of town, I recruited Denver Smith to play with me. Last year I teamed up with Zach Nguyen for the same reason, but he was unavailable this year as well. Denver had played the event with another friend last year and really enjoyed it, so asking him to partner up seemed like an easy choice.
A few months later, though, my plans started to unravel. Ongoing back issues forced me to withdraw from several tournaments, and by the week of Picklepalooza I was already questioning whether I could compete. Then came my ER visit that Tuesday, which was the tipping point. I texted Denver and told him to find another partner because I wasn’t confident I’d be able to play.
Ironically, after IV fluids, a blood transfusion, and a handful of medications, I felt remarkably good over the next few days and probably could have played after all. But everything worked out for the best. Denver teamed up with Sam Adedire instead—and they went on to win the competitive division. Honestly, I’m not sure we would have won it if I’d been on the court.
Denver and Sam in action; and with Denver’s dad in the photo above.
And winning it all.
Here are some more fun pics from the event..
Awesome volunteers checking players and guests in for the event.
Mom and dad watched last year but got to play in beginner division this year.
We got to enjoy a delicious lunch at the “Be Amazing” room.
So grateful for the opportunity to be involved with this event, even though I didn’t get to play this year. Hoping to be part of it again and actually play next year.
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Ching’s 2026 ER Trip
Posted on June 29, 2026 by Ching under Life.
I’m calling this post “Ching’s 2026 ER Trip” because I’m really hoping it’s my only ER visit of the year.
Unfortunately, emergency room visits have become a little too familiar for our family. In fact, Kansas Medical Center should probably name one of their exam rooms after us. It was the same room I ended up in after fainting at YaYa’s 15 years ago, and the same room Brian was assigned during some of his health emergencies, including his bowel obstruction.
We’ve landed in a different room once or twice, but it honestly feels like this particular room has been our designated spot 99% of the time.
How We Got Here
As many of you know, I’ve been dealing with fibroids and endometriosis since 2022. After months of symptoms, I talked with my gynecologist about treatment options, including an ablation and hysterectomy. At the time, though, I wasn’t eager to pursue either. My thinking was simple: menopause couldn’t be that far away, and surely all of these issues would eventually resolve themselves.
By late 2023, my periods had become wildly irregular, and the cramps were sometimes so painful they were debilitating. However, since I wasn’t completely sold on the idea of having surgery, my doctor prescribed birth control pills to help regulate my cycle and reduce the pain. I’m thinking I just need to hang in there for a little while longer.
For almost two years, they worked remarkably well. My periods became predictable, the extended bouts of bleeding disappeared, and the cramps were either minimal or nonexistent. For a while, life felt normal again.
Then my blood pressure started creeping up. Because I’ve historically had low blood pressure, we initially assumed it was a fluke. But after several months of consistently high readings, my new gynecologist (around this same time, Center for Women’s Health closed, forcing me to transfer my care to Associates in Women’s Health and establish a relationship with a new doctor) and I decided to stop the birth control pills to see if they were contributing to the problem.
Stopping the pills didn’t help my blood pressure at all. Poor eating habits, less exercise, and the extra 20 pounds I had gained since this all began probably didn’t help matters either. I gained quite a bit of weight last year while Brian was undergoing cancer treatment because people kept bringing us food and, since he couldn’t eat, I was eating all of it. Eventually, my primary care doctor prescribed blood pressure medication – which is ironic because prior to Brian’s cancer diagnosis, he was the one who was on the verge of being prescribed blood pressure and cholesterol meds.
What stopping the pill did affect was my menstrual cycle. All of the symptoms I thought I’d left behind came roaring back: unpredictable periods, prolonged bleeding, miserable cramps, and all the fun that comes with them. Since I wasn’t planning to go back on birth control, I basically accepted that this was just my life now.
Things Started Going Sideways
Fast forward to May and Parker’s wedding in Kansas City. I felt awful that entire weekend. I was crampy, bleeding for unusually long stretches, and then it felt like my cycle started all over again just a couple weeks later. Around the same time, I began noticing back pain and shortness of breath. Because I had recently bought new shoes for Zumba and pickleball, I initially blamed the back pain on that.
I pushed through it anyway. I taught classes, worked, and kept up my usual schedule, even though the pain was becoming more constant and intense. One weekend, while playing pickleball with Huyen Nguyen, Angie Farlow, and Diona Marshall, I had to ask Michael Farlow to fill in for me every other game because my back simply couldn’t handle it.
The next day, I attempted to practice with my MiLP v3 team and was in so much pain that I immediately knew I needed to give up my spot. Still, I convinced myself this was just my new normal.
The Friday before my ER visit, I tried playing in Friday Night Fiesta. My back hurt, I was completely out of breath, and I felt terrible for my partner. Thankfully, Heide Bartel was there and finished the rest of my games for me.
That weekend, I ran the IPN mini tournament at TapNPaddles on Saturday but took it easy on Sunday. I stayed home, rested, and did nothing because I had absolutely no energy. Since I work from home on Mondays and Fridays, I was able to get through my work day on Monday by resting in between meetings.
The Day Everything Changed
Tuesday, June 2, started like any other workday. I felt awful but I didn’t realize how sick I actually was.
I drove into the office despite feeling miserable. When Chris texted to see if I wanted to grab coffee that morning-something we do regularly—I told him to go ahead and get coffee without me because I wasn’t feeling well.
I was crampy and also felt constipated, so I headed to the restroom. No luck. I returned to my desk and tried crocheting a few rows to distract myself from the discomfort. When that didn’t work, I leaned forward, pressing on my abdomen. A few moments later, I looked up at my computer and realized something was very wrong.
My vision had become blurry. I wasn’t blind, but I couldn’t read anything. I could see my screens and the lines of text, but the words themselves were unreadable. I felt disoriented and scared. I immediately called Brian and told him I needed to go to the ER.
While waiting, I was so out of it that I ended up lying down in the lobby. Alicia happened to see me on her way in. She waited with me in the lobby and walked me to Brian’s car.
The drive to the ER felt endless. The wait at the ER felt even longer. We arrived around 9 AM, but I don’t think I got a room until nearly 11. Brian stayed with me the entire time, only leaving briefly to grab lunch and bring back a hoodie because he was freezing in the exam room.
Finally, Some Answers
The ER team discovered I was severely dehydrated, so they started IV fluids immediately. They also found that my hemoglobin had dropped to 6.5, low enough to require a blood transfusion. They gave me Toradol for the cramps, and at some point I fell asleep.
When Brian came back from lunch, he asked how I was feeling. I paused for a second because I was genuinely surprised. The cramps were gone. The mental fog was gone. For the first time in what felt like months, I felt clear-headed and normal. Other than being attached to a collection of tubes and needles, I actually felt pretty good.
At one point I told Brian he could head home to check on Saki and just come back when I was discharged. He refused. His reasoning? Every time he stepped away, I seemed to come back wearing a new bracelet. When they added the blood-transfusion bracelet, I joked that he didn’t need to worry unless they started tagged my toe.
Most of the day was spent waiting—waiting for doctors, waiting for tests, waiting for bags (of fluids and blood) to be depleted, waiting for results. And waiting to eat. Because surgery was still a possibility, the nurses wouldn’t let me have food until they knew exactly what was going on. It was 2 PM by the time I finally ate lunch. The hospital lunch was surprisingly good.
The Diagnosis
The CT scan confirmed my known fibroids, but it also revealed something unexpected: colitis. Since I’ve always been somewhat prone to anemia, the combination of prolonged menstrual bleeding and colitis likely pushed my hemoglobin down to the dangerously low level that landed me in the ER.
The ER physician prescribed two antibiotics for the colitis (which I had to take for a week) and a 30-day iron supplement to help rebuild my blood supply. He also stressed the importance of follow-up appointments with both my gynecologist and primary care physician.
As he explained it, the ER could treat the immediate problem, but I needed a long-term plan for the underlying issues.
Looking Ahead
Overall, I’ve felt much better since the ER visit. The antibiotics are finished, and I’m still taking iron. The cramps haven’t disappeared entirely, but they’re much more manageable. Interestingly, the back pain that had been making me miserable is gone, which makes me wonder whether it was related to the colitis all along.
I’ve been paying much closer attention to my diet, tracking what I eat and how it affects my symptoms. I’m also making a conscious effort to stay hydrated.
We have our annual health screening coming up in July, and there’s a good chance a hysterectomy is in my future this October. For now, I’m grateful to finally have some answers—and I’m feeling better than I have all year.
And hopefully, this will be my one and only ER trip of 2026.
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2026 Wichita Wicked Brew Tour
Posted on June 15, 2026 by Ching under Food and Drink, Things to Do.
The Wichita Wicked Brew Tour is one of our favorite summertime traditions. We’ve done it every year since inception in 2016; although, we found out about too late to get a shirt that year. The key is to finish your tour early so that they still have your size of shirt available but I have seen some go-getters finish the tour the same day that it starts — which is really wild to me, unless you’re drinking coffee and starting early in the morning.
This year we started our tour at Mokas and finished in exactly 10 days.
We met for lunch at Mokas, got coffee with our Mokas duos, and received our first stamps. SIDE NOTE: If you’ve never been to Mokas, the Mokas duos are an excellent value because you get a half sandwich, salad (or soup), and chips (or fruit) for one price. The portions are generous and their food is fantastic, as is their coffee. If you don’t consider the convenience of Scooter’s, Mokas is hands down Brian’s #1 favorite coffee place.
Next Stop – Saturday, May 30: River City Brewing Company. We went to RCB for dinner after the tournament at TapNPaddles. We got a couple of drinks and stamps along with them.
Don’t ask me what this green drink is because I don’t remember but it was very good. That part, I do remember.
After dinner we went to Cocoa Dolce down the street for a couple more stamps. Brian got a small coffee and I got a tipsy gelato.
The following morning we hit Il Primo Espresso Caffe on the way to High Park in Derby to check out the new pickleball courts.
My back had been killing me so we just went for some pictures and I only played a couple of games. It was also way too windy that day. Here’s our Wicked Brew Tour passports up to this point:
Brian had to stop by his office on the way home to check on some painting that was completed. Since we were already out West, we decided to have lunch at Wichita Brewing Company and get some more stamps for our passports.
The East-side WBC is actually where we typically begin our tour because it’s close to us but we deviated from our usual routine by starting at Mokas this year.
Passport update: 5 stamps completed.
On Monday, Brian took our passports to work and bought his coworker Miranda a coffee so he could get two stamps at Nameless. In previous years, this is how we got out of sync. Whenever I went and got coffee on my own, his passport would fall behind. So this year, we decided we would keep the passports together so we stayed in sync the entire time.
I would have gotten a couple more stamps for us when I got coffee with my coworker Chris on Tuesday morning but that was the day that Brian had to take me to the ER. Chris actually texted me if I wanted to get coffee and, I remember telling him he should just grab coffee for himself on the way to work because I wasn’t feeling well.
I had been suffering from back pain and cramps all weekend and I felt the worst that day. I thought it was just my typical cramps so I just sucked it up and went to work anyway. But then, I started feeling disoriented and my vision got blurry and I started freaking out so I called Brian to pick me up from work and take me to the ER. I will save that story for another time because I’ve gotten sidetracked enough.
The next day, I was back to work because I was feeling much better. I went with Chris to get coffee at Larcher’s Market. Brian told me to tell my manager Alicia “Thank you,” so I did one better. I brought her an iced coffee so I got two stamps in the process. Our passports are continuing to stay synced up.
On Thursday morning, Chris and I went to Reverie Coffee Roasters. He had already gotten his Reverie stamp so he didn’t need one from there but I made him a deal that if we went to Reverie that morning, I would buy his coffee in exchange for a stamp. That was stamp #8 for both Brian and me.
The weekend of June 6, our friend Laurie Adams came to town for a visit so the three of us had dinner at Piatto (my favorite pizza spot) after playing in the IPN mini tournament at TapNPaddles. We decided to walk over to Hopping Gnome to get stamps after dinner. Since I was still taking my antibiotics (which were prescribed by the ER doc), I couldn’t drink. Decided to buy Laurie a drink in exchange for a stamp.
Brian and I finished this year’s tour on Sunday by having breakfast at the Pennant, my current favorite coffee shop because they serve the best iced vanilla latte in the city.
This was kismet because it put us just around the corner from the newly unveiled transit center called The Hub. This deserves its own post so more on that later but, since we were already in the area, Brian and I did drive over there to check it out after breakfast. That pretty much concluded our tour for this year. I think this is the earliest we have ever finished. Most of the time, it takes us at least three weekends because our passports get out of sync and then I’m having to catch Brian’s passport up. We were way more strategic this year. I picked up our shirts on Monday last week. We haven’t worn them yet because Brian refuses to wear new clothes until they’ve been washed but we look forward to wearing them all summer long along with others from past years. How about you? How is your Wicked Brew tour going?
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