The Sandbar...Home of the Indoor Hurricane!

Sandbar Shirts at Buckingham Palace

Our good friends Rheva and Dave recently spent 19 days on a bus in Europe. Okay, maybe they weren't on a bus the entire time, but according to them it sure seemed like it.

Like good Sandbar patrons, they packed Sandbar shirts to wear on the trip. A funny anecdote about this- one of the other bus-trippers tried really hard to remember everyone's name, and as she wrote names of her fellow travelers in a notebook, she also wrote down something memorable about each person. Beside Rheva and Dave's names she wrote "Sandbar." I'm guessing they were the only folks on this particular tour sporting shirts from a local bar.

Anyway, once they arrived back to the much less expensive United States, Rheva and Dave sent us these photos of them at Kensington Palace and the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace.

Not even Rheva could get that guard to crack a smile.  If you're planning to travel to Europe anytime soon, Dave and Rheva recommend that you take lots of money. You'll need it.

It Must Be A Sign

Earlier in the month, I showed you the latest shirt added to our lineup of classy Sandbar attire and explained how Dave modified a design he found "somewhere" to create this one.

Well, on graduation Sunday, Dave and Andrew were relaxing before the debauchery of Blair and Chris' graduation party invaded their day. As they walked down Massachusetts Street, past the kitschy Beyond the Door- a store that sells a little bit of everything, but especially funky signs- they noticed this:

Look familiar? Yep, it's a sign with the original graphic that inspired the shirt. Of course Dave had to buy it. It now hangs in a place of honor above the bar, right beside the shirt it spawned.

If you haven't been to Beyond the Door, you should check it out. I'm quite fond of the vintage looking metal signs they sell, especially the ones with clever and sarcastic phrases.

Fish Food 12/3/05

Homer puffed up today! It was soooo...neat!  He was the size of a volleyball!        

--Coleen

More Sandbar Reviews, Still Mixed

A couple months ago, I told you about a new website, Yelp, where users can log in and review any place their little heart desires: restaurants, bookstores, grocery stores, doctors, whatever.

When I happened upon this website, there were two reviews for The Sandbar- one positive, the other not so much. Well, my internet travels led me to Yelp again today, and I was pleasantly surprised to see two new reviews.

Again, one positive, the other not so much:

Good God, so much Jimmy Buffet...but wait, this bar does remind me of a place off of Captiva in Florida....Anyways, this was a great place to watch the Great O.J. Simpson Car Chase.

Okay, first of all, we promote The Sandbar as a place where you can find all things Jimmy Buffett...so if one doesn't really care for Jimmy, then perhaps this is not the place for you.

And secondly, wasn't the "great O.J. Simpson car chase" almost fifteen years ago? I guarantee that a lot has changed at The Sandbar since then.

On a side note, the newest glowing review of The Sandbar on Yelp was written by one "brother p.," who sounds suspiciously like a serial commenter on this blog named Brother Pants.  His review is a pretty accurate depiction of life at The Sandbar, and he should know, he spends enough time there.

The Ballad of Frank

I have a special treat for you today: a guest blog written by the very witty Chad.

Many a Sandbar regular is familiar with Frank, probably even more of you than actually realize it. Frank comes to The Sandbar to do two things: drink Guinness, and kick butt at video crack (that's the innocuous looking, soul-sucking box that sits on the end of the bar taunting your quarters with it's gaping slot.)

If Frank is not playing trivia, it means that he's content with the outrageously high scores he's cataloged, and he's just happy to sit back, watch the poor wretches mindlessly chase his high score, and consume Guinness as if in training for the tippy cup Olympics.

It was only a matter of time before such resolute consistency and determination came to the attention of the academic world and was put under a sociological experiment. The following is a re-enactment of an actual conversation Frank had with the bartender at Henry's, just up the street from The Sandbar.

Bartender (dropping an olive into a $12 martini):

So, Frank, did you know you were unwittingly a participant in a sociology experiment?

Frank (dutifully downing a Guinness and limbering up his trivia finger):

Most things I participate in are unwitting.

Bartender (gingerly mixing a Cosmo and taking Frank's keys):

Yeah, my sociology class had a project that required us to go into social settings around town and record our observations. A girl in my class came back and reported that she went into The Sandbar to observe and record. Not unlike the voyages of Star Trek, she was required only to observe and not interfere. Her notes indicated that in half an hour, the bar patron she observed played trivia and consumed three Guinness, while never once speaking to the bartender, simply sliding the empty glass to the edge of the bar. I heard that and I knew it had to be you!

Frank (nodding knowingly):

So, how did her report go?

Bartender (adding a sprig to something):

Well, one of the keys to sociology is being social, and since you didn't actually interact with anyone, she got a do-over.

We at The Sandbar, however, believe the study to still be ongoing, so be on the lookout for studious looking persons with notebooks playing trivia and ordering Guinness.

Door Diaries 5/17/08, Part 1

Sometimes I enjoy hanging out near the door of The Sandbar- inside or outside- just to experience the crazy things people do and say.

Andrew was working the door this particular Saturday night, which also happened to be the night before KU's graduation, so we all knew the bar would be full of college students and their parents all night long.
Andrew left his post to go pick up glasses or restock the ice or whatever it is that the doorboy is supposed to do along with carding people and beating back the crowds. It's not usually an issue for the doorboy to handle additional duties away from the door, because most nights random staff members are hanging around anyway, and they can step up and help. This night was no exception.

A few minutes after he walked off, a large group of girls barged in through the door like they were on a mission. Ken and John- the aforementioned random staff members hanging around- immediately stopped the girls. The leader of the group informed the guys that their group was a bachelorette party and that no one was at the door and people had been leaving, and since they were a bachelorette party, we should be so lucky that the twelve of them decided to grace us with their presence.

Ken and John informed the ladies that the doorguy would be back shortly but in the meantime they had to wait outside. Their leader tried to argue, but the boys have heard it all before. The bachelorette party retreated back to the line.

{Why is it that bachelorette parties always think they're entitled to just waltz inside with no regard to capacity, or cover, or ID's, or the fact that other people are waiting before them? This happens a lot.}

--Debbi

The Gong Show

You may have noticed the gong that has hung over the bar for the past six months. It was a Christmas gift to Dave, from Andrew. It was very much a perfect gift. Apparently Dave had dreamed of having a gong in The Sandbar to ring whenever he felt like it.

The gong's main purpose is to signal the imminent arrival of the nightly hurricane. It definitely gets people's attention.

And given that the gong hangs high above the bar, Dave is just about the only one who can reach it. Although if you're lucky, some night you might catch one of the other guys making a running leap to sound the gong.

Graduation Exercises

Bartender Ken was at The Sandbar bright and early- meaning 11 a.m., which is bright and early for night owls like our bar staff- to open and welcome the day. It was a slow Sunday until about 3:30 when our graduates, Chris and Blair, arrived. They had walked down the hill and then promptly left for The Sandbar. Their poor families probably sat through the whole ceremony, wondering where in the crowd the boys were, as they were drinking at the bar.

Their family members had been to the bar earlier in the day to deliver cake and presents and in Chris' case, decorations.

Make sure you all compliment him on his sweet shirt. And that hair.

Moving right along, Chris' family was not alone in providing breathtaking photos of their loved one. Dave and I painstakingly pored over the thousands of Sandbar pictures we have and found the ones we thought best represented the boys. Tegan took over from there and had the chosen photos blown up to poster size and printed out, and then she passed them off to Justin who mounted them on foam core. They were hung in various places of honor throughout the bar.

After awhile the various grandmas, uncles, cousins, siblings, parents, and friends started to arrive. Joe, our other graduate, finally made an appearance, too. Dave, Tegan, and Andrew entertained the crowd with their version of the "Apache" dance behind the bar. 

One of Blair's family members bought a hurricane and forced him and Chris to don the mermaid costumes. Though I think the boys were actually excited to put on green sequined dresses and read poems to the crowd. Andrew joined them on the bar for the dance, in his fat suit.

It was a long, fun night celebrating Chris, Blair, and Joe and their milestone of graduating from KU.

Sandbar Graduate: Joe

Oh, Joe. The Factor is graduating from KU this year.

I don't remember any other year that we've had three staff members graduate from college. And none of them have any immediate plans to leave The Sandbar either.

Joe has been at the bar for over a year now. He provides constant entertainment for not only the customers, but the other staff. You can read more about Joe here. Or just come down to the bar sometime when he's working; it's much better to experience the Joe Factor in person than on the internet.

Again, I had trouble finding pictures of Joe to share with you that didn't involve some sort of costume or other weirdness. But, I guess the weirdness is normal.

I didn't realize until very recently that Joe was also graduating, so I didn't have a chance to collect his thoughts on it. If you're reading this, Joe, feel free to chime in in the comments.

Joe, congratulations on your graduation. We all hope you find your calling in life; but until you do, we'll keep you around at the bar.

Good luck to you in everything you do. And good luck to your girlfriend, too.

Sandbar Graduate: Chris

The Sandbar has lots of staff graduating from KU this year.

Chris started working at The Sandbar about a year ago. He has claimed- and we believe it- that he is "the next Blair." At times that is a scary thought...at other times it's a welcome one.

Chris says:

Wow I can't believe it only took me six years to graduate from KU. I have enjoyed my time as a student but my final year was definitely one of the best. I'm pretty sure it had to do with working at The Sandbar where there is never a dull moment. Thanks to all the loyal customers and I will continue to enjoy your company as a graduate. Also thanks to Dave for giving me the opportunity to work at such a great place.

Six and out!

Pretty much all of the pictures I could find of Chris either involved a ridiculous costume, or they were inappropriate for a family blog such as this one. Apparently we can't just take normal pictures at The Sandbar.  Here's a couple:

Chris, all of us at The Sandbar hope that you put off the real world and stick around for awhile longer. We haven't had nearly enough time to get to know you and your antics. Of course when it's time to move on to things like health insurance and vacation pay, we wish you well.

Congratulations!