Slapdash Road Trip Book Tour, Day 6: Omaha, NE --> Wichita, KS

This day started out slow and ended slow, with a whole lot of silliness in between. After a quick trip to Danny’s Bar and Grill, then a U-turn once we realized the GPS had betrayed us, then a quick trip to Denny’s for breakfast, we got on the road. Popped into a bookstore to meet a fan, then Lisa absolutely killed the three-hour drive to one of the destinations that was at the very top of my list:

See? Utter joy.

My reasons for wanting to stop there varied, though they mostly have to do with TOP-SECRET RESEARCH FOR BOOK THREE. It was a lovely little spot, about a mile off the road, and featured a picnic table hut, a little chapel:

And by “little” I mean “microscopic”.

a big stone marker:

I’m sorry, a big exciting stone marker.

And yet another sign, in case you somehow forgot where you were.

Oh, right.

And then a guy showed up to eat his lunch in the picnic hut, and it got awkward for everyone and we had to leave.

So it was back on the road, which I have to make a side note on: I am loving these wide open center states. Why? Among other things, like the friendly people and peaceful peacefulness, there’s this:

A 75mph speed limit. Kansas, I love you.

From there, it was on to Wichita, where I could relax, settle down in my hotel with a nice juice box, and–THE WORLD’S LARGEST BALL OF SISAL TWINE?!?! *tires screech, passengers are flung against the car window*

That line at the bottom there reads: “Thrift + Patience = Success.” Amazing.

Yes, the world’s largest ball of sisal twine, sisal being an agave that yields a stiff fibre traditionally used in making twine, or so Wikipedia informs me. Naturally, many photos had to be taken here, especially of the ball of the hour itself:

It is exactly what it sounds like.

The cold hard stats:

Cawker City, by the way: lovely buildings, all three of them.

And for a bit of perspective, here’s me Vanna-Whiting it up with the giant ball of twine, my best twine friend forever, or BTFF.

Though I am roughly the size of a Polly Pocket, so maybe it doesn’t look all that impressive.

THEN it was on to Wichita, where I did another meet-up at a bookstore, then, in the first instance of hopefully many, we ate our body weight in BBQ until we could no longer move.

Signed books left in my wake at:
Barnes and Noble, Omaha, NE: Crossroads Mall, 7400 Dodge Street 
Barnes and Noble, Lincoln, NE: 5150 O Street
Barnes and Noble, Wichita, KS: 1920 North Rock Road

(And wee side note about the stops: I stop at a lot of Barnes and Nobles because I know for sure that they carry the books, and also because B&Ns have been very nice to me. That’s not to say that I don’t love the indies–I do, very much so, and I’ve tried to pop into a few, but since there is less of a chance that they’ll stock the books, I haven’t had as much luck. If you know I’m coming to your area and you know of a really great indie that carries my books, please let me know and I’d be happy to visit!)

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