Kansas City MeetUp: Thursday, June 14, 2012

This is an open invitation to join in the Kansas City MeetUp on June 14. As far as I know, this is the first planned gathering at a used book sale! The Johnson County (Kansas) Library will have their annual sale at:

The Metcalf South Shopping Center -- 9635 Metcalf Ave., Overland Park, KS.

Thursday will be the second day of the sale. All you locals can check it out on Wednesday. Just be sure and leave some good books for the rest of us! The sale opens at 10:00 a.m. each day.

I plan to be there when the doors open on Thursday morning. The fun part will be finding each other and deciding where we want to go for lunch. I'm not too familiar with this part of KC so suggestions are welcome.

Please leave a message if you are planning to be there as we don't want to leave anyone behind!
I'm looking forward to it and hope we get a few people to join in the fun.

More info and a link to the map for the JoCo Booksale.

I used to live 4 blocks from the Metcalf South Shopping Center, one of the first indoor shopping centers built anywhere. It was great in its heyday, but a bit long in the tooth now. I am very familiar with that part of town but don't eat out there often. There are many nice restaurants south in that part of Johnson County so I won't be difficult to find a place. I'll ask some old friends for recommendations.

I'm planning to be there, too. I'm fairly familiar with that part of town - I don't live there but drive through it regularly. I know there is a good Italian buffet not far away, if that has any appeal. Also Chinese, sandwich/deli's, Mexican and good KC BBQ.

I'm in! Just got off the phone with Brenda. I will be there as close to 10:00 on Thursday morning as is humanly possible.

But I'm worthless when it comes to restaurant recommendations there.

KC Meet-Up Part 2 - Lawrence on Friday, Jun 15.

We are planning to meet in downtown Lawrence (KS) Friday, Jun 15 at 10:00. The Eldridge Hotel at 7th and Massachusetts is where we will start. From there we will visit The Dusty Bookshelf for used book browsing and The Raven for small, independent bookstore fun! All three are located within the same block and will be great fun to explore with LT friends. After that, who knows where we'll end up . . . : )

Gonna be great . . .

Sorry, for those of you who don't know, Lawrence is located west of the KC area roughly 30 miles. Easily driven in 35 to 45 minutes from the Metcalf South Shopping Center/JoCo Library Booksale location.

It looks like a wonderful meetup is taking shape. Terri, we can let the locals pick out a place to eat. I'm easy. It's more about the people (and books) for me.

Our second day in Lawrence sounds like so much fun. Thank you, Brenda, for inviting us on the short drive to your historical city. I think The Dusty Bookshelf may be the best name ever for a used bookstore. I may have to rent a van for my new acquisitions!

I'm sure your meet up will be very wonderful. Watch out-- If Terri Loeffler is a part of the group you will laugh so hard you might need to wear depends.

How I wish I could be there.

Please remember to take photos and post them.

Gosh, couldn't that be done in a day? 10:00 to noon at Metcalf South followed by lunch and 2:00 at Lawrence. That would save out of towners an overnight stay.

Mike, If we still have energy after the JoCo sale and lunch, I think it makes more sense to take in another KC location, like I Love a Mystery, Prospero's, Half-Price Books, which would be closer to Metcalf South. If you would like to drive to Lawrence for the specific stores mentioned, I will happily give you any information you need.

Mike, that sounds like a good idea, but I think it's questionable whether we'll be ready to leave the JoCo sale after only 2 hours. Plus, if Terri is later coming from St Louis.... But, I understand the hardship in coming from out of town and not wanting to stay overnight. Maybe we can plan another meet-up between now and Joplin (September?) to spend a day in Lawrence for those who can't go this time. I certainly don't have any complaints about going back there a 2nd time. Maybe in July - isn't that when Roni is coming back?

Sandy, That is a great idea. Roni is supposed to come through here in July. I'll shoot her a note . . .

But I'm right here! I'm actually not coming that far--my nephew and niece in Olathe are moving to Abilene next month. However, if we could set up a meet-up with bookstores, I'll bet I could get my sister to come to Lawrence with me for a day. My reunion is the 20th and 21st, my husband's birthday is the 26th, so need to avoid those. Probably the 23rd or 24th or 25th would work out best, since our time in Kansas before and after those dates is flexible.

Late July (after the 17th) is free for me, although that's a bit far out on my schedule. I haven't been in Lawrence since grad school in the '70s. Might be worth a trip if I run out of books by then....

Of course you'll have run out of books by then! We all will have! :-)

I can't believe you lived in OP all those years and never made a trip back to Lawrence. I'll be interested in your impression of the place. It's one of my favorite day trips.

Sorry I'll miss this. Oddly enough, we'll be in St Louis June 11 to 15 for the White Sox/Cardinals games but we have to be back here.

Have a great time!!

I'm staying overnight even if we don't go to Lawrence (which I hope we do!). There's just too much I want to check out. And I don't have a problem coming back in July. Right now, my July is pretty open.

And I certainly wouldn't turn up my nose at another trip to Prospero's!

>7 Whisper1: Gosh, Linda, you make me out to be some kind of extrovert! O.O (*bats eyes innocently*)

#14 sjmccreary > My time in Lawrence was busy with no time to enjoy the town. I was dating a girl in Ohio and made several looooong weekend drives from Lawrence to Oxford, OH and back, then going to classes, doing research and trying to stay caught up. I don't even want to think about those days so perhaps that's why Lawrence doesn't hold the aura for me that it does for you. No time for beer and pizza in Lawrence, although my wife and I used to like the Campus Hideaway for pizza after we were married and made a few trips back there around 1970-71. I know little or nothing about anything outside of the campus, and that's no doubt totally changed from those days.

#17 I didn't go to KU and was totally unfamiliar with the town until after graduation. So I don't have any fond student memories of Lawrence, either. But they've got a nice downtown with lots of busy shops and restaurants, they have a lot of concerts there and festivals, it's clean and vibrant and just a nice place to go for the day. We drive through regularly on our way to Topeka, and I used to have a client there that I drove over to visit monthly. But I like it when I have a chance to go just to do something fun - which isn't often.

Just popping in to say that I will try to make one day or the other. Even though I am trying to cut back on book buying and I always buy the most. :)

Yeah, good luck with that....

Sandy told me about the meet up and I was hopeful of making it, but unfortunately it is on a Thursday, a night I have to work. On top of that, I have my final paper due that week and finals. *sigh* I am sorry I will miss it. Please take plenty of pictures!

We're not going to make it. I've had family obligations most every weekend throughout May and a cousin's wedding coming up this weekend. When hubbs moved us here so that I wouldn't have to keep missing out on extended family activities any more, I don't think he had my LT 'family' in mind.

Last weekend was especially poignant. We went to a family reunion with my grandfather's last remaining sibling, Uncle Alvin, who is nine years older than my father. The reunion is held annually, and is for descendants of Uncle Alvin's grandparents, who had 14 children. After 30 years of reunions, only 2 lines were still represented this year. Kind of sad.

Stasia, you will be missed in KC but we expect to see you in Joplin. We'll even work around your schedule!

Cindy, family comes first. Summer is the perfect time to reconnect. Your LT family will look forward to seeing you and Janice in Joplin this fall.

Only TEN more days! It is starting to look like I'll be able to attend both Thursday and Friday. Double the fun!

What Donna said . . . Sorry we won't get to see you two til November.

Sorry Stasia can't make it. I'm still good for the 14th.

I had something come up suddenly and won't be able to make the trip. I hope y'all have a great time. I am thinking of consoling myself with an amazon order.

For those LTrs participating on Friday, the 15th . . .
I would like to extend an invitation to two friends, both very bookish, to join us on Friday. Would anyone object to new non-LTr faces among the group?

I hope not, because I'm bringing my non-LTr cousin....

BJ - You will be missed. See you in Joplin in November. ;-)

Brenda - As far as I'm concerned, the more the merrier. Maybe we can convince your friends to join LT.

Terri - Your cousin is another potential LTer!

**********************************************************
Here is the lineup as I have it so far:

Thursday, June 14, Metcalf SouthShopping Center - Overland Park, KS
Summer Sizzlin" Book Sale: 10:00 a.m.

Sandy
Mike
Brenda
Terri & cousin
Nancy (and Mel?)
Donna

Friday, June 15, Downtown Lawrence, Kansas: 10:00 a.m.
Brenda and 2 friends
Terri and cousin
Sandy
Donna

Please make corrections as necessary! We don't want to leave anyone out.
My cell phone number is the same as our last meetup. If you need it, please PM me.
I'm getting excited!!!

Remember, ALL ARE WELCOME!
You'll be sorry if you miss this MeetUp!

Chris & I will be leaving St. Charles at 5:00 am on Thursday (!), so we should be there very close to 10:00. We'll be staying at the Baymont Inn & Suites in Lawrence Thursday night & probably Friday night too. Chris is the one who knew Daniel Woodrell in grade school, and she's going to do a crash course in Woe to Live On and Clair de Lune this week so she's going to fit right in. We had lunch today, and we are both SO excited!

Looking forward to seeing everyone!

Gonna be some fun . . .

Have lots of fun! Share lots of pictures!

Hi guys! I did some due diligence and went to the book sale this morning! Very crowded...I think tomorrow will be a much more pleasant browsing and buying experience. Time was limited with a 4-year-old in tow. Most of my time was spent in the children's room!

I did notice that there are some benches at the north entrance to the book sale outside the old theater. I'm pretty certain we will be bumping into each other all morning, but just in case, let's meet in that area between 12:00 and 12:30 and decide where we want to go to lunch. There is a Macaroni Grill and Olive Garden in close proximity but maybe we could find a Jose Peppers for Terri. I like that place as well. ;-).

I'll see everyone tomorrow. I'll be wearing a black T-shirt with *red, white, and blue* on it for Flag Day!

Have fun at the KC meetup. I'm visiting the other side of your state right now. If you ever have a meetup in St Louis, count me in.

You could always just call me up, Linda, and we could have our own little meet-up...

And Donna, the sad news is, I will eat just about anywhere. If I were a little more discerning, I might not be quite so plump. So anyplace is a good place!

I guess I'd better go pack, since we're leaving at 5:00 tomorrow morning, and that's only about 7 hours away...

Excited I am!

Hi all. Thanks, Donna, for checking out the area for us. Looking so forward to seeing you all tomorrow!

FYI - There is a Jose Pepper's at 103rd and Metcalf. Just sayin' . . .

Enjoy, all! Wish I could be there.

We wish you could be here too! I still want to see you when you are in the area. . . July ?. Which of the days you mentioned do you think would work best for you?

I've been looking forward to this all week. What time does the sale open in the morning? I'll see you all there! Well, all except Roni and Linda - :-(

Kinda late notice, but I'm not going to make it this trip. Some family issues came up that will delay my departure, so I'll cancel and see everyone next trip. Hope the sale is productive. Have fun.

39: Sandy, the sale opens at 10:00. I'm leaving Lori's at 9:30 which should put me there at about the time the doors open.

40: Oh no, Mike. I promised Nancy's husband that there would be another male in the group. I think he had planned to do his own thing for lunch anyway as they're just coming up for the day. Sorry about the family issue. You will be missed.

Day One of the Kansas City Summer Sizzlin' Book Sale was a HOT time in the COOL surroundings of a shopping mall with the corridors filled with books. Here are some smiling faces of happy book shoppers before we headed to Jose Peppers for a late lunch.


Sandy(sjmccreary), Nancy618, Brenda(brenpike), Donna828, Chris(potential new member), and Terri(tloeffler).


Chris, Terri, and Sandy stagger to the cashier to pay for the few books they managed to find! (Notice Terri's handy-dandy wheeled bag.)


Brenda and Nancy are happy with their purchases.

It was a great day - delicious lunch, wonderful company, and tons of books. And I just want to be clear - not all of those books were for me - quite a few of them were for the family. I did go back and get a few more after lunch - I'll get them out and list them later.

Wonderful pictures!! Waiting for book lists...

Sounds like it was a great time today!!

So sorry I didn't make it. I hope Nancy's husband survived. Looks as if there weren't any good books left, anyway ......

Makes me smile seeing pictures on LT with faces become familiar. Wish I was there, too! I'm jealous of your haul and I haven't even seen the titles yet! Hope your today is just as much fun!

I second what Sandy said...delicious lunch, wonderful company, and tons of books for *almost* everybody! I only bought two, but that's normal for me! ;-) My DH made up for it, though -- he bought nine. And he did survive, Mike -- but we missed having you there!

And in case anyone's interested in my paltry little purchase -- I bought The Finkler Question by Howard Jacobson and A Long Fatal Love Chase by Louisa May Alcott. That's a book I'd never even heard of. I just checked the back of the book jacket and it says "Its publication after lying untouched for more than a century marks a new page in literary history." The copyright date is 1995.

Since I didn't end up going to Lawrence today, I can go ahead and post my acquisitions. Besides a large stack of art books for my daughter, and several novels each for my husband and son, I got these for my daughter with the caveat that I want to read them, too. (And so I've added them to my library here):

Beloved by Toni Morrison
The Shipping News by Annie Proulx
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson

For myself, I got:

The Innocent Man by John Grisham
Krakatoa by Simon Winchester
Great Issues in Western Civilization Since 1500 ed by Brian Tierney
Wild Swans by Jung Chang
West With the Night by Beryl Markham
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
Peter the Great by Robert Massie
The Nautical Chart by Arturo Perez-Reverte
Billy Bathgate by E L Doctorow
Sleeping Beauty by Phillip Margolin
The Cook's Garden by Shepherd Ogden
A History of the English Speaking Peoples by Winston Churchill (volumes 1 and 2)
and The Presbyterian Hymnal

What a fun day it was!

48: Nancy, I guess you didn't get that copy of My Losing Season when you went back. I'll retrieve my loaned out copy when you are ready to read it.

49: We missed you today, Sandy! Nice book haul. I'm glad we are going to post our new acquisitions here. Everybody's books went into their book bags so quickly that I didn't have time to be jealous.

I'll list my books when I get home tomorrow. Right now, I have to change the picture codes so they'll show up!

I thought about all of you today. I hated to miss the fun, but there was so much going on here and, besides, I got so many books yesterday that I really didn't need any more. I hope you took more pictures in Lawrence. Looking forward to seeing everyone's lists.

Nice haul, sjmccreary. I've read a three from your list if you're interested in my comments. I don't put spoilers in my short comment/reviews.
Snow Falling on Cedars
The Innocent Man (the only true crime novel written so far by Grisham, with an oh, so common scenario)
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Oh, well. Looking forward to having the crew in Joplin later ...

Here are my books from two days of book shopping and talking about books with a great bunch of LTers and friends and relatives of LTers...

Day One:
From the Booksale/meetup:
City of Thieves - David Benioff
The Little Stranger - Sarah Waters
Cutting for Stone - Abraham Verghese (reread for August book group; permanent library)
The Rebel Angels - Robertson Davies (Book 1 of Cornish Trilogy; I have the other 2)
Breakfast with Buddha - Roland Merullo
To My Daughters with Love - Pearl S. Buck
The Opposite of Fate: Memories Of A Writing Life - Amy Tan
Pioneer Women - Joanna Stratton (5-star recommendation from Brenda)
The Tennis Partner - Abraham Verghese
A Bestiary of Bridge - Because I need comic relief from my Bridge refresher course.

Day Two:
From The Dusty Bookshelf in Lawrence, Kansas:
The Coroner's Lunch - Colin Cotterill (because everyone seems to be loving this series)
Sorry - Gail Jones
Old Filth - Jane Gardam
Everything Happens Today - Jesse Browner
(The last three books are Europa editions which I seem to be collecting)

From The Raven...to support a very cool independent bookstore:
Postcards from Penguin - (to use as bookmarks and mail a few out on occasion)
A refrigerator magnet/finger puppet of Mark Twain, one of those Missouri authors you may have heard of!

More pictures from Day Two in Lawrence, Kansas...


I wish we had a large well-stocked used bookstore like this in my hometown!


Cousins Chris (potential LTer) and Terri (tloeffler), both from the St. Louis area.


Waiting for our delicious lunch at the historic Eldridge Hotel in Lawrence, Kansas.
From left to right: Kathy, Cheryl, Chris, Joyce, Brenda, Terri, Donna.
(Kathy, Cheryl, and Joyce are local friends of Brenda's...more potential LTers!)

Thank you, Brenda, for showing us your lovely city. Terri has pictures to post as well. I had to miss the tour (and the Rolo McFlurries!) to head back to Kansas City and more time with the grandkids. I'm home now and will be busy looking for places to stow my new books.

Looks like a great time was had by all!

Love the pix on this thread!

It must have been the week/weekend for meetups! DC had theirs June 9-10, y'all had yours June 14-15, and Whisper1 and I had ours on June 16th! And we all had a great time!

Thanks LibraryThing for bringing us all together!

What a great group....How I wish I was there, but as Cheli mentioned, we also had a lovely meet up.

And, she is right...LT brings us together...

Amen!

A request to say some prayers for my cousin Chris (who, by the way, had a wonderful time last week). Her 27 year-old daughter Kate has injured her back jumping off a 30' cliff at Johnson Shut-Ins (Hello, Kate? A 30 foot cliff? Really?). She has a fracture to her lumbar spine, and she may have to have surgery. I don't have any other details right now, but I'll let you know as I find out.

And on that cheery note, I shall post my purchases.

Raven Book Store:
Cutting for Stone—Abraham Verghese
Pogo: Through the Wild Blue Yonder—Walt Kelly
To End All Wars—Adam Hochschild

Johnson County Book Fair:
My Name is Mary Sutter—Robin Oliviera
Paris 1919—Margaret Macmillan
The Human Comedy—William Saroyan
Abide With Me—Elizabeth Strout
The Late, Lamented Molly Marx—Sally Koslow
Crossing to Safety—Wallace Stegner
The Wit and Humor of Oscar Wilde—edited by Alvin Redman
West With the Night—Beryl Markham
The Master and Margarita—Mikhail Bulgakov
The Romantic Manifesto—Ayn Rand
A River Runs Through It—Norman Maclean
Imagined London—Anna Quindlen
Henry Plantagenet—Richard Barber
Chips Off The Old Benchley—Robert Benchley
As I Lay Dying—William Faulkner

Dusty Bookshelf:
The First World War—John Keegan
On Her Their Lives Depend—Angela Woollacott
Eugene Onegin—Alexander Pushkin
Same Kind of Different As Me—Ron Hall, Denver Moore
The Lambs of London—Peter Ackroyd
A Handful of Dust and Decline and Fall—Evelyn Waugh
A Gathering of Old Men—Ernest J. Gaines
Looking Backward—Edward Bellamy
Being Dead is No Excuse—Gayden Metcalfe
The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles—Julie Andrews Edwards
A Case of Two Cities—Qiu Xiaolong

terri

So sorry to hear about your cousin...ouch, ouch, ouch....prayers sent...

What a book haul. Where will all these books go?....I've taken to storing some under the bed...

Oh Terri. I'm so sorry to hear about Kate's injury. Please give Chris my condolences, wishes for a quick recovery, and a hug. . .

Thanks for stopping by BJ, Laura, Cheli, and Linda. I echo that wonderful thought, Cheli!

Oh Terri, that is terrible news. Poor Kate. Poor Chris! My thoughts and prayers are definitely with them. Please keep us updated as to how Kate is doing. I think you must have bought the most books! I like Linda's hint about storing them under the bed. ;-)

Terri - when you get time - don't you have some pictures to post? Did you take one of your Rolo McFlurry?

Donna, Didn't you buy yourself a Rolo McFlurry? You really must if you haven't yet . . .

64: Not yet! I'm more talk than action. I was going to treat Dave on Father's Day, but we were both too full after eating at Olive Garden. This weekend for sure.

"There are lots of chewy Rolos in..."

Terri, I am so sorry that Kate injured her back. Please let Chris know that she and Kate will be in my thoughts and prayers. I really enjoyed meeting Chris and spending time with her on Saturday. I have to agree that it looks like you made the biggest haul -- you have some great reading ahead! :-)

. . . a roll for you, if you're choosy 'bout what you chew . . .

Jumping? Ouch. Guess 27 is just a kid. Sorry. Prayers and crossed fingers.

Great book haul. Jealous. Keep us posted.

Kate had surgery on her back yesterday, and they had to fuse the area that was shattered. A few more ml and she would have had a spinal cord injury. Thank heaven! She'll be in the hospital till Sunday, and then she'll have to wear a brace for a while. But all seems to be going okay.

I've had to start double-shelving some books. Under the bed? No, that's Cleo's personal space. Plus, then I'd have to get down on the floor to see them, and then I'd have to stay down there until someone came to rescue me.

Yeah, yeah, I'm working on that picture thing...

Did you guys not make it to "I Love A Mystery" bookstore in KC?! Shame! One of my favorite stores, and I'm not even a mystery fanatic.

Thanks for that update, Terri. I hope Kate is a quick healer; back surgery recovery is no picnic. I am so, so glad that she doesn't have a permanent spinal injury. Please let her and Chris know that we are thinking of them.

Mike, we have to leave something for the next meetup! I'm a fan of Half Price Books...and then there's Prospero's where we went last year...

Terri, glad to hear that Kate is going to be OK. What a terrible scare that must have been for everyone. Great list of books. Patiently waiting for pictures...

What good news for Kate, Chris and the family. . . Hoping she has a speedy recovery. Give my best to Chris.

Just saw that the Johnson Cty Book sale made $91,495.00.
Nice to know it was such a success. I know we certainly did our part!

That's good news, Brenda. We also made the LT "State of the Thing" June newsletter. Mine came through email but it's probably also on the Home Page. Wouldn't it be great if we got to meet some more Kansas City area readers and Thingers?

I shared some of your comments with Chris. Her response: "Terri, thank you, can always use more prayers. Please let them know how much I appreciate their prayers and kind thoughts."

Okay, I give up. The pictures are either too small or too large. Here's a link to Photobucket:


Choose View All.

Okay, let's try again. For the fifth time.....

Donna, Brenda & Terri

I saw your pictures, Terri! Thanks a lot! :-)

Donna, Brenda, and Terri @ The Dusty Bookshelf.

Lunch at Jose Peppers.

Terri's mission! A picture is worth 3 days!

Day One haul for Terri and Chris.

Terri's haul - Day Two on right side.

Thank you, Donna!

Your picture from the KC meet-up is in this month's "State of the Thing" email.

I saw that! Wasn't that cool???

I don't get the State of the Thing emails anymore - can you forward it to me?

88: Sandy, mine is long gone into cyberspace. Maybe Brenda or Terri still has it in their inbox?

They're online: http://www.librarything.com/wiki/index.php/State_of_the_Thing

#90 Thanks for the link - which also included instructions for changes to my profile so that I can get monthly emails again. I'm not sure what happened there - I used to get them...

I just read the State of the Thing email telling us about the Kansas City LT Meetup in mid-June. Sounds like you had a great time. Sorry I missed out on it. Hope that adding this message will get me included if there is another in the future.

Laura, it would have been wonderful if you could've come. The meet-ups are usually posted in the 75 Books Challenge Group - I think there is a wiki that lists all of them as they are arranged. For KC specifically, it is also discussed in the Missouri Readers Group, which you are also welcome to join. I don't know if you are interested, but we also have an annual meet-up in Joplin the last week of November. Hope to see you next time!

WOW! What great photos and book hauls. Congratulations!

Friends, I don't think a meet-up is going to work out for this visit. On top of the class reunion and my husband's birthday while we are back, we now have a family reunion on the second weekend, and my sister, who I had counted on for transportation, got her summer school schedule and she has to work the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday I had fingered for the possible dates, as well as the following week. Add to that that the nephew I usually visit in Olathe has now moved with his family out to Abilene, it is highly unlikely that I will get east of Topeka on this visit (we are driving out).

While I will be very sorry to miss you all, I will tentatively plan again to hit the Johnson County Book Sale next year.