FLIP + CHING

Karen’s First Time at the Belmont

Posted on May 21, 2021 by Ching under Food and Drink.

I’ve been telling my friends about the Belmont and their very photogenic, deliciously refreshing cocktails. Karen finally got to try it this past weekend. We met up for open play at Nahola after I taught my Aqua Zumba class. Went to Seneca Park after open play just to see what was up and to get our root beer float fix at TJ’s but TJ’s was closed. Ended up getting our root beer floats at NuWay around the corner. It was just as good.

We ended up killing time until the Belmont opened because I really wanted Karen to check it out. We got there a little before 4 PM but the door was unlocked so I went right in. There was another lady who was waiting in her car in the parking lot when we pulled up so I went back out and told her that they will let us sit and wait inside, which made her think I worked there. LOL. I was just trying to be helpful.

Here are some pictures of our food. We always start with the cheese course when we are there. It’s so perfect. I like everything that they include so nothing ever goes to waste. We usually have to ask for more crostinis so we can use up every bit of cheese and meat that’s provided.

Karen got the bacon-wrapped stuffed potatoes and the smoked salmon.

Brian got the ham and cheese on a pretzel bun, which we shared because it’s plenty for two people to enjoy. As sandwiches go, it was excellent.

Here are a couple of pictures of the pretty drinks.

This is the Dr. No (left) and the Violets Femmes (right). The Dr. No has scotch. I thought it was quite strong but Brian really liked it. He liked it so much that he finished the drink for me. Karen had the Violets Femmes. I’d had it before and it’s one of my favorites there.

The drink on the left is the Flamingo No. 492 and on the right is Calumet. The Flamingo drink is like a fancy margarita. It was quite refreshing and I enjoyed it a lot. Karen had the Calumet which is probably my most favorite drink that they make at the Belmont.

Here’s an up close pic of the Flamingo No. 492 drink. I love how they decorate all the drinks and make them look so pretty. They’re perfect for pictures.

Here’s an up close pic of the Violets Femmes. It was taken on a previous visit. Wanted to re-post this picture because I didn’t get a chance to take a pic of Karen’s drink before she took a sip off it.

I wish I could have taken a photo of me, Brian, and Karen but I didn’t because I looked like crap. I did Aqua Zumba and pickleball and went straight to the restaurant from all these activities with no shower in between. I didn’t even get a Shower Pill in. So no picture this time. I do want to go back for some fun pics, though. The interior decor and ambiance at the Belmont is so unique. It reminds me of a completely different era. I told Karen I want to go back dressed up in 60’s attire and get some Mad Men style pics. So stay tuned for those. Until then, GNG.

Comment on This

Making Lemonade Out of Lemons

Posted on May 19, 2021 by Ching under Food and Drink, Hobbies.

The weather decided to rain on our parade this past weekend. We were gearing up for a super awesome tournament — the first one for our Rotary club — on Saturday, May 15, but the weather report called for rain all weekend so we ended up moving Picklemania MMXXI to June 19 instead.

I was supposed to play in the afternoon group so then I had nothing to do. Thankfully my friend Seth organized mixed play at Riverside Tennis Center and invited me so I at least got some pickleball play in that day. We played inside the bubble because it was supposed to rain all day but the courts had dried for the most part and the weather was beautiful so we could have totally played outside. Looking back, I was thinking we could have totally still had the tournament and simply pushed everything back a couple of hours but we had no idea that it would be as dry as it was. The forecast for the day was scattered showers all day long so we were afraid that we would be starting and stopping games.

We should have known better than to heed the weather forecast. Brian has this joke that he should have gone to school for meteorology. He said it’s the only job in the world where you can be wrong 100% of the time and not get fired.

Anyway, here is a video from Friday play. I actually did pretty well all things considered. I lost very few games. We were doing a “winners stay and split” format so I basically had to keep playing until I lost. I still hadn’t lost when I quit playing but decided I wanted to take a break so I gave up my spot.

I worked up an appetite playing pickleball and the rainy weather that really wasn’t somehow made me crave crab legs so I asked Brian to take me to Blue Hook Cajun on 21st and Webb. I really liked it when I went with my girlfriends from Leadership Wichita and I’ve been wanting to go back. I couldn’t get crab legs that time because I didn’t want to be messy in front of my sophisticated girlfriends but I didn’t mind getting dirty with Brian so I wanted to go back and get my crab legs fix.

My food came in a big plastic bag.

Here’s what it looked like after I dumped it in the pan. So much yummy goodness!

Of course Brian got chicken tenders. Who does that? I guess I should have known because he doesn’t really like seafood. Honestly, I don’t think he wanted to go to Blue Hook but he was mostly just humoring me. I mean, I did need cheering up after we couldn’t do our tournament thing that I’d been working so hard on for the past two months (at least). When we first talked about having the tournament I was worried about getting all of the player spots filled but when it came down to it, we actually exceeded our goal by one team. Our goal was to have 32 teams (16 in the morning and 16 in the afternoon) and basically have 8 teams per bracket and we filled all of our brackets and had 33 teams ready to go.

Anyway, I wish he would have gotten the crab cakes because I really wanted to get a picture of it (and also taste it). I guess we will just have to go back.

It never fails that you run into people you know when you look like absolute crap. I figured I would get messy from eating crab legs so I didn’t even bother to change from my pickleball clothes. We just went straight to dinner. I had no makeup, messy hair, dried sweat, and now buttery crab juice all over me (the bib they gave me helped a bit but I always end up wearing my food somehow whenever I eat crab legs – I knew I would have to shower after so I didn’t bother showering and changing before going to dinner) and guess who they seated at the table behind us.

Meader sends us a Facebook message with the above picture and the caption, “Who are these people?” Hilarious. They were all dressed nice in a double date with another couple. Brian and I looked like a couple of hoodlums in sweats and I was covered in butter and crab.

Story of my life. Until next time. GNG.

Comment on This

Brian’s New Hooded Robe

Posted on May 18, 2021 by Ching under Shopping.

I got Brian a new hooded robe from Me Undies. His face may not show it but he absolutely loves it. I know because he hasn’t stopped wearing it.

I got it for him because it’s a much lighter weight material than the black, terry one that he lives in AND it matches the lounge pants that I got for him a couple of months back. His favorite black robe reminds me of the one that Dude wears in The Big Lebowski except in black. It’s super comfy but I think too warm now that the weather is warmer. Now that I’ve realized that he can’t live without wearing a robe 24/7, I had to find him one that he can comfortably live in during the warm months. He can go back to the black one in the winter.

When I say he lives in a robe, it is no joke. He literally lives in it.

He wears a robe even while he naps.

I think he would wear a robe to the store if it didn’t garner him strange looks from people. He might still do it. Who knows? He’s been out and about in his house slippers a time or two. I wouldn’t put it past him to go out in his robe. Give it a few years. I feel like as we get older, the less we care about what’s acceptable and unacceptable and the more we behave as we truly are without pretense.

Anyway, if you’d like to get one of these amazing robes or any of the super comfy things that Me Undies sells (they sell more than just underwear these days — they’ve expanded to lounge wear and other things) follow this link.

Until next time, GNG.

Comment on This

My Favorite Hair Tool

Posted on May 13, 2021 by Ching under Toys.

I went through a couple of years of wearing my hair completely natural and not even brushing it at times. That exercise has helped me realize that I prefer wearing my hair sleek and smooth rather than curly. Anyway, I discovered this Le Volume tool by L’ange and it is amazing. It has been my go-to hair tool ever since.

A few weeks ago the handle started overheating on me. Not sure what happened but it didn’t seem safe. I contacted L’ange and they told me to cut the cord and send them a picture and they would send me a replacement. I followed their instructions and sure enough it wasn’t long before the replacement arrived.

I was so happy finally get my replacement as I have been completely lost without it.

I was so happy with L’ange customer service and I am so in love with this tool that I ordered another. I ordered the petite 60mm version because I’ll be cutting my hair next month and my original one will be far too big to use.

Here are the pictures of the new, smaller one.

They’ve actually improved this tool since I first ordered it last year. It now ships with a protective cover (so the bristles do not get bent in storage) and also a cleaning brush. Although, I missed the cleaning brush when I got my 70mm Le Volume (because I was just so excited to finally get it after being without it for so long) and threw it away with the packaging.