by Debbi | Mar 5, 2011 | Events, Stories
Last fall the Sandbar crew put together a volleyball team for the Lawrence Parks and Rec leagues. We weren't very competitive, but Team Shark Attack managed a respectable 10-20 finish, or sixth place out of nine teams.
Most of the team members wanted to play again in the winter league. Given that our team wasn't much of an "attack," we changed the name to a something softer: Dolphin Sighting.
So far, Dolphin Sighting has won two games. Yes, two. The pre-game drinks might not be helping our athletic abilities very much. But we're definitely the team winning in the "having the most fun category." Yes, I said "winning." (That's a Charlie Sheen reference if you still don't get it.)
We have three games left. Wish us luck!
The referee kindly took this team photo after last week's win. Notice how the guys are all trying to look serious and intimidating.
by Debbi | Mar 4, 2011 | Hurricane, People, Stories
Our friend Chad doesn't dance. We all know this and accept it, even though dancing is somewhat of a requirement at the Sandbar.
On Chad's birthday, he was at the Sandbar. Dave convinced him to get on the bar for the hurricane (he wouldn't wear the mermaid costume, but just getting him on the bar without too much argument was considered a win).
Even more shocking, considering his disdain for dancing, was the fact that Dave convinced him to stay on the bar during "Car Wash." Sure, he stood there laughing while Dave busted a move, but he was on the bar.
However, Dave was in rare form that night and slightly perturbed that Chad wouldn't even wash the car or spray it down. What happened next is a story we still talk about today.
Dave refused to serve Chad another drink until he moved his arm in the circular "washing" motion. Chad refused. It was a standoff. For several hours.
Chad was thirsty. Dave was stubborn. The blood pressure levels of each were going up.
Eventually, Dave decided that while he didn't want to give in and fill an order placed by Chad himself, he'd make the drink if someone else (meaning me) ordered it. After several hours, Chad had his drink and didn't have to dance for it.
Fast forward to a few months ago. Dave was dancing on the bar (again), doing the Car Wash (again). Chad was standing down in front of the bar, and on this night it was his turn to be sassy. He looked up at Dave, caught his eye and suddenly made the circle motion with his hand.
Dave about fell off the bar.
And now, it's no big deal and we all laugh about it, and Chad does the Car Wash all the time. While wearing rainbow-colored wigs.
by Debbi | Jan 24, 2011 | Stories
We get a lot of applications and resumes dropped off at the bar. From college students to professional people looking for a second job to graduates of bartending schools, there are no shortage of people in Lawrence who want to tend bar.
Often, Dave finds scraps of paper around his office and behind the bar with names and phone numbers scribbled on them, along with availability to work. And sometimes, we even get fancy resumes bound in folders with pictures of the person.
The other day, Dave was cleaning his office and throwing stuff away. He had a whole pile of old applications and resumes to shred, but since there's not a shredder in the office he brought them home. (We care about keeping your information safe from identity thieves.)
I flipped through the stack out of curiosity and quickly realized the pile contained great blog material.
So, coming soon, some of the great lines people use when they apply for a job in a bar. Not to worry, no names or other identifying information will be revealed. Stay tuned.
by Debbi | Jan 8, 2011 | Hurricane, Stories, Web/Tech
I have several different online notifications set up to send me an e-mail whenever there's a mention of the Sandbar online- Google alerts and SocialMention.com are two of my favorites. Often, the alerts I get have nothing to do with our Sandbar, but every once in awhile I get something good.
Recently, I hit the jackpot with one of the strangest and funniest Sandbar mentions ever.
It appears that some teenagers in Austin who are interested in various internet and computer activites stumbled upon our webcam. They were so fascinated with this "magical digital portal" into the strange world of Kansas that they dedicated an entire page on their website to us.
Here's what they had to say:
Once upon a time, three friends stumbled upon a magical digital portal into the unknown world of Kansas. Through this portal, the friends witnessed a strange religious ritual centering around an artifact of pure crystal and shaped like a soccer ball. Fascinated by these practices, the friends captured a link to this portal and began using it every week as a cheesy segment in their semi-comedic podcast. And now the link has been placed here for all to see. Gaze in upon the Sandbar and its bizzare events if you dare…But don't expect much, it's not really that interesting.
Obviously, the strange religious ritual they are witnessing is the hurricane show and dance, and the soccer ball-shaped crystal artifact is the white Christmas light hanging in the center of the bar.
I looked around their site for the podcast that supposedly features us as a cheesy segment- I could only find one link to a podcast (click here to listen to it), and it's really long. I haven't listened to all of it yet so I don't know if they actually talk about the Sandbar or not.
We're happy that we could humor some kids in Austin with the crazy things we do in Kansas. When you turn 21, take a road trip and visit us- we think you'll find our bar a lot of fun.
by Debbi | Jan 6, 2011 | Hurricane, Ottawa, Stories
Awhile back we found ourselves without a mermaid costume for the first time in eight years. We quickly got a new one, but it got us thinking about how many costumes have disappeared over the years. Probably at least 20.
One of the funnier stories about missing costumes involves the ones we actually got back.
Several years ago, some ladies stole several costumes from the Sandbar in Ottawa. A Sandbar family member- I think it was Peach's brother Patrick, if I'm wrong, sorry to whoever's not getting credit here- found out who it was, and heard through the grapevine that these ladies would be at a wedding reception with the costumes.
Patrick played detective (not hard in a small town) and found out when and where the reception was. And he showed up. He walked in to the reception, saw the women all dressed up in the mermaid costumes and promptly demanded them back.
They refused.
That's right, they refused to give back costumes they had stolen from us. Patrick then suggested that he call the local police to settle the matter. The women finally gave in and gave up the costumes.
And that's how we got back at least a couple of our stolen treasures.
(This story is as accurate as I can remember it. Please don't steal our stuff.)
by Debbi | Dec 19, 2010 | Stories
One of our regulars, Erin, shared a funny story with me recently.
She stopped by the bar early one evening to meet a friend, have a drink and vent about a particularly crappy day. She asked the bartender for a Fuzzy Navel. (I'm keeping the day of the week and the bartender anonymous, to protect the innocent.)
The bartender replied that he didn't know how to make a Fuzzy Navel.
(Stop right there. Show of hands- who knows how to make this drink? Have you even heard of it? I think this might be the first alcoholic drink I ever tasted, and I'm pretty sure I knew how to make it when I was sixteen. Because my mom drank them. Anyway, moving on.)
The bartender whipped out the trusty drink book we keep behind the bar, and found another "fuzzy" drink. He told Erin what was in it, she thought it sounded good, and asked for a double.
He calculated the amount of alcohol that would be and said, "Um, wow that's a lot of alcohol. How about I sub some OJ in there?"
As I repeated this story to Dave, we both laughed pretty hard. He defended his bartender, though, and said not a lot of people ask for a Fuzzy Navel, and Erin agreed that Dave is the only one who's been able to mix it up right away for her. She very much appreciated our bartender looking out for the amount of alcohol she consumed.
