by Debbi | Dec 5, 2011 | Off the Wall, Stories
Holidays often bring out the crazies and the amateurs. Thanksgiving night this year was no different.
Since we know how much you like to read stories about stupid behavior at the bar, here's a story from Kristen, bartender Tyler's fiancee' and frequent visitor at the Sandbar.
As usual, Tyler and I had decided to end our Thanksgiving Day by having a drink at the bar after Coleen had determined that she was okay with working the whole shift and closing that night. Tyler went to grab a few things for her from the back before we were getting ready to leave and I was sitting on the bench in the corner by the fish tank on my phone.
I look up to see a group of guys leaving and one of them looked like he had the napkin/straw holder in his arm. I did a quick double take, saw Tyler walking my way and I believe I said something along the lines of "Tyler! napkins! straws! kid!" and pointed frantically as he was walking faster out the door.
We both look out the window to see the kid beginning to jog down the sidewalk with the holder in his right hand. Tyler takes off out the door, I put my drink down and follow (because I didn't know how many of the guys there were & I wanted to see what was going to happen) and one of the guys hanging out by the door (another regular) followed me out the door. Neither one of us could see Tyler or any of the other boys and as I start to walk down the sidewalk towards New Hampshire, here comes Tyler with the holder and a pint glass in his hand as he's hollering back to the guys not to come back or he'll call the police.
Really, people? A napkin/straw dispenser? Stop trying to steal our stuff!
Big thanks to Kristen for her eagle eyes and to Tyler for tracking down the thieves. You know, the last time someone tried to steal something from the bar, they spent the night in jail…
by Debbi | Dec 1, 2011 | Downtown, Events, Good Things
One of Lawrence's great holiday traditions is this weekend- the Old-Fashioned Christmas Parade!
Downtown Lawrence will be filled with horses and carriages and buggies on Saturday, Dec. 3. The parade starts at 11 a.m. at 7th and Massachusetts and heads south.
Something cool this year: the parade was named as one of the top 10 U.S. Christmas celebrations by the website Suite 101. You can read their article here to see what they had to say, along with the other nine celebrations that were selected.
Something else cool this year: Downtown Lawrence Inc. has partnered with Just Food, the local food bank, to place food donation barrels downtown. Anytime you're downtown this season, whether for the parade or to shop, bring non-perishable food items with you to put in the barrels. Some downtown merchants will also have cash donation boxes in their stores.
The Sandbar is proud to be a sponsor of this Lawrence tradition, and we hope you'll make it out on Saturday for the parade!
Like the Lawrence Old-Fashioned Christmas Parade page on Facebook.
by Debbi | Nov 30, 2011 | Christmas, Downtown, Events, Good Things, Pub Crawl
SantaCon 2011 is coming to town!
Last year we participated in the inaugural SantaCon in downtown Lawrence, and we're excited to be part of this event again this year!
What is SantaCon? “SantaCon is a mass gathering of people dressed in Santa Claus costumes parading publicly on streets and in bars in cities around the world. The focus is on spontaneity and creativity, while having a good time and spreading cheer and goodwill," according to Wikipedia.
SantaCon Lawrence also incorporates a bit of charity: a food drive to benefit Just Food, the local food bank.
Here's the details for this year's extravaganza:
- When: Saturday, Dec. 17
- Time: 2 p.m.
- Where: Starts at the Sandbar and travels to downtown Lawrence bars
Food donations will be accepted at the Sandbar all day on Dec. 17, so even if you can't participate in SantaCon you can still donate non-perishable food.
Be sure to find a Santa costume! Check out Fun & Games or the Antique Mall in downtown Lawrence for suits or accessories. Or, be creative and make your own!
For more information about SantaCon Lawrence, including the rules, visit the website. You can also like the SantaCon Lawrence Facebook page or RSVP to the event on Facebook.
by Debbi | Nov 29, 2011 | Around the World, Cool Stuff, Jukebox
We've got lots of pictures of Sandbar shirts in all kinds of fun places, like tropical islands and mountaintops and foreign countries, but this might be a first.
We recently spotted one of our shirts on the inside cover of a music CD!
One of Dave's favorite bands, Jason Boland and the Stragglers, travels through the Lawrence and Kansas City a few times a year, and he tries to make it to every show. Once upon a time, he gave Roger, the band's pedal steel/guitar player, a Sandbar shirt. We've been pleasantly surprised to see it make a public appearance a few times.
The band recently released a new CD, and Dave downloaded it from iTunes. Then, one of our Facebook fans (thanks Brandon!) posted a picture and a comment on our Facebook page letting us know that Roger is wearing his Sandbar shirt on a photo inside the CD's cover!
Like any good fan, Dave then went out and bought not one, but two copies of the CD. Unless you know our shirts, you wouldn't be able to tell it's a Sandbar shirt…but we definitely recognize it.
The Stragglers will be in Lawrence this Thursday, Dec. 1, at the Granada. If you like good Americana/red dirt/Texas country music, check them out. And stop by the Sandbar before the show for a pre-party; we like to think we've become the unofficial pre-party spot for these type of shows.
by Debbi | Nov 28, 2011 | Stories
You'd be amazed at the amount of stuff people leave behind at the bar. Or maybe you wouldn't be.
Credit cards are frequently left behind, but in most cases (but surprisingly not all!) the owner retrieves them.
But we also end up with a rather large assortment of coats, jackets, hats, gloves, scarves and less frequently, other random items like cameras and purses. Often, the owner never comes back for them.
What do we do with all this stuff? Well, we do have a lost and found box in our office. Credit cards and things like cameras, phones and wallets stay near the register. We usually assume that the owner will come calling for those items quickly.
Coats, jackets, umbrellas and other apparel go upstairs in a tub. We'll hold onto your stuff for a long time. Probably longer than most places would. We like to think that the next day, when the hangover has worn off and you realize you're freezing, that you'll remember where you left your coat and come get it. Some people do. Some people don't.
Eventually, the leftover credit cards are shredded. We've made many attempts, some successful, to identify owners of left-behind cameras and wallets. With clothing, there's virtually no way to find out who it belongs to, so unclaimed property is eventually donated.
Earlier this year, we took a big box of coats, jackets and other apparel to Goodwill. A few weeks ago, we took another pile of winter items to Scotch Fabric Care for their "Share the Warmth" project. They'll clean the items and then donate them to the Salvation Army.
So if you find yourself missing a coat or umbrella after a recent night out at the Sandbar, call us. If we've got it and you can identify it, we'll happily return it to you.
