The May 10 storm had been forecasted a full week ahead. The forecast for severe weather remained fairly constant for Central Kansas and moved into northern Oklahoma. A few days before the storm, the National Weather Service had Sedgwick County under a very significant hazard assessment. I’ve heard that when the threat assessment gets to the highest level, Emergency Management is activated for an impending disaster. That Monday was the first time in my memory that a day of Riverfest had ever been cancelled.

This edition of Patio Quest 2010 is brought to you by the east side of Wichita. Grab a beer and relax. It’s patio time.
Old Chicago (7626. E Kellogg)
Like I said in the Old Town review, I would sit on Old Chicago’s patio no matter what part of Wichita I’m in. They always have friendly service, it’s always clean, and the east OC has devoted a lot of real estate to its patio. The view, unfortunately, is of my most despised stretch of road in Wichita – the mess that is …

While the “staycation” has gone out of vogue, the idea of an inexpensive getaway is always appealing. To this end, I bring you the float trip – a chance to escape from real life, unplug your electronic gadgets, and pretend you’re on a backwoods episode of “Man vs. Wild” for a weekend – only with booze and inner tubes. You know, really roughing it, American style! There are many places within a few hours’ driving distance of ICT that will take a very modest fee for plopping you …

When the weather finally turns warm, I want to be outside, on a patio, in good company, drinking many beers. And on the rare occasion Kansas gives us a day we can sit outside peacefully, I need to make a decision and commence patio sitting, posthaste. Enter Patio Quest 2010! My mission: Find the best patio(s) in Wichita. And sit on them.
For the purpose of this review, I’m breaking the patios into three categories: Old Town, East Wichita and West Wichita. Old Town is first. The time to hesitate is …

Recently, my daughter’s preschool class took a field trip to Tanganyika Wildlife Park. I had heard about the interactive exhibits and unusual animals featured there, so I was pretty excited to join this group of teeny pre-K explorers.