So, a few weeks ago, I turned 40.
Forty. 4-0.
It’s so strange.
For one, I do not, at all, feel like I’m forty. I can still remember being a lot younger and thinking “gosh, forty…that’s so OLD!!!” I, for one, definitely do not think that I am old. I mean, I just had a baby like six months ago. By the same token, I have a kid who moved off to college at the end of the summer.
It’s so strange.
Of course, in true fashion to my birthday, I was sick with an icky cold, so it took me a few days to come here and update things.
Celebrate Good Times
For my birthday, we did a lot of fun things. We ate at one of my favorite local restaurants, George’s Bistro. I had their French onion soup, and it was delicious. It paired well with the wine we selected. I also had their Steak Frites, also supremely delicious. I was so full afterward, that I couldn’t finish my dinner. Yay leftovers!
After George’s, we went to a place I’ve been wanting to explore, Dockum Apothecary.
Before I tell you more about what Dockum is, let me tell you a little bit about what Dockum was. The Dockum Drug Store was one of the sites of the civil rights movement here in Wichita, Kansas. A sit-in protest began July 19, 1958 at the counter at The Dockum Drug Store when Black people gathered to protest the store’s refusal to serve their Black patrons. See, back then, Wichita was super-segregated (I actually have noticed that there is still a lot of segregation here, particularly along economic lines and job types), and a lot of places around the city would be “whites only.” A group of students sat quietly at the store’s counter, waiting to be served, every day for three weeks until finally the manager ordered his staff to serve the students. The sit in went a long way for desegregating many businesses across Kansas. There’s now a pretty awesome 20-foot bronze sculpture commemorating the awesome students who participated in the sit in.
So, somehow, I stumbled across an article reviewing a Speakeasy-style bar hidden downtown. The Ambassador is a hotel downtown that is housed in the restored Union National Bank Building – and – Dockum Drug Store. In the basement of The Ambassador is Dockum Apothecary. They serve alcohol and bar eats, and boy is it a neat place to go. Their cocktails are finely crafted takes on old classics. I had The Smoking Gun and The Duke of Earl cocktails. They were amazing. So good. If you live locally or you visit Wichita, you really ought to check them out. It was a lot of fun.
Running and Wine Tasting
After long last, I’ve re-taken up running – YAY! I joined a local running group that does couch to 5-k training. I’m really really excited about this. I have three races coming up – yipes! So my training program began the day after my birthday, and it was good to be moving again. I’m looking forward to running more and getting this extra baby weight off so that running is easier on my body and so that I can keep up with my three small goobers (and the big one who is off at college too).
After the run, we came home, goofed off a bit, dropped small people with grandparents, and headed out to go taste some wine. YES! Wine! Kansas does have some wineries, and we decided that we wanted to try them out. We went to two: Wheat State Wine Company and Grace Hill Winery. I have to say, I was impressed with both. I was kind of expecting Kansas wine to taste like jam, to be honest, but the wines were good. I’ll be writing more specifics about them soon enough. For now, check out the photos I took while embarking on our tasting trip.
Wheat State Wine Company
Grace Hill Winery
So that’s about what’s been happening here. I turned 40, the kids are all growing up more and more, I’m running, I’m planning, I’m doing.
How are things on your end of the spectrum? Don’t be afraid to say “hi” in the comments!
