Annual Picnic This Saturday!

What: Annual KaCSFFS Picnic
Where: The Writers Place, 3607 Pennsylvania, Kansas City, MO 64111
When: Saturday, June 16, 2018
6:00 - Setup
7:00 - Program: KantCon Presentation 
Please bring Tabletop Games to share informally afterward - playing time up to 60 minutes.
Food Theme: Picnic Food! Please bring Side dishes, Salads, or Dessert to share!

Our Annual Picnic
The KaCSFFS Picnic is traditionally held in June, because it's the month after ConQuesT.

We wanted to just relax and eat all the ConSuite leftovers, plus it often was a little cooler in June than July or August: back when the club was almost exclusively made up of 20- and 30-somethings, we'd reserve a pavilion or shelter in a local park for this event.

One of the last outdoors-only photos of a KaCSFFS Picni, held
in So-Ko-Par Park, Lenexa, KS, in 2006.

Now we've made different arrangements for most ConSuite leftovers, and some of our members have health or mobility issues, so we've moved it to an indoor-outdoor event. We still try to make it fun.

KaCSFFS provides burgers (including Veggie-burgers), hotdogs, buns, condiments & tableware. Please bring Side dishes, Salads, or Dessert to share!

Please also bring Tabletop Games to share informally afterward - playing time up to 60 minutes. Lawn games also are welcome, but the lawn at the Writers Place faces west, and the forecast is for temperatures in the 90s, so there may not be as many takers for those.

KantCon Presentation
We are pleased to host a group of the organizers of KantCon, set for July 13-15, 2018, who will present information about their tabletop game convention.

Many KaXFEN love tabletop games. Our meetings frequently have been enlivened by tabletop games brought by members to share with other members, and this blog has posted an ongoing series, "Not Your Parents' Board Games."

A photo from KantCon 2017.

KantCon's website tells us that "KantCon is a gaming convention for tabletop hobby gamers in the Kansas City area, created by tabletop hobby gamers in the Kansas City area. The only available gaming conventions and large gatherings of gamers in the Kansas City area are limited to the beginning of the year, and the end of the year, in March and November, respectively.

"As most gamers are increasingly busy, in school, or have children in school, there is a void of a centralized gaming convention in the summer months in Kansas City. KantCon will fill that void with three days of tabletop fun in the form of tabletop role-playing games, card games, board games, and miniatures games."

More photos from recent KantCons.

IMAGES: The "KaCSFFS Picnic" banner design is from Jan S. Gephardt, who also took the photo of members Jim Murray and Margene Bahm at the Writers Place during the 2015 picnic. The 2006-in-the-park photo is by Tracy Majkol, and is used with permission. We also are grateful to KantCon's Gallery for the photos from several past KantCons, used here with their permission! The KantCon Dragon logo is from their "About Us" page. Many, many thanks!

It's picnic time! Saturday June 17, 2017

When: Saturday, June 17, 2017--Setup begins at 5:30 p.m.; plan to eat 6:30-7:00 p.m.
Where: The Writers Place, 3607 Pennsylvania Avenue, Kansas City, MO 64111
Bring: Beverage of your choice, plus a side dish to share (members can sign up on the KaXFEN email list!)

It's the Annual KaCSFFS Picnic
Our traditional evening of gathering to share food, play tabletop games and eat or distribute all the ConQuesT Con Suite leftovers while they're still fresh is upon us!

Join us for an indoor-outdoor event that accommodates all abilities and respiratory capabilities. KaCSFFS provides hotdogs, hamburgers, veggie burgers, condiments, ConQuesT Con Suite leftovers, and table service. Please bring your own beverages and a side dish to share (there's a sign-up on the KaXFEN email list for members).

But WAIT! There's more!
Reviewers' Reading Circle Summer Selection

We'll kick off our new summer Reviewers' Reading Circle selection, Stupid Humans, by V. R. Craft. This is the program's first humorous selection.

What's it about? "What if all the intelligent humans abandoned Earth... and we're what's left? Samantha is a journalist who travels through the wormhole to New Atlantis and discovers that embarrassing reality when she meets the People, humanity's more intelligent--and smugly superior--distant relatives. Unfortunately, thanks to humanity's penchant for fighting, a Human/People conflict is brewing. She could almost forget she's not on Earth, except the People have tails and don't slap idiot warning labels on everything . . . "

KaCSFFS' Reviewers' Reading Circle program offers free downloadable copies of current books by lesser-known and emerging authors, available to dues-paid KaCSFFS members via links provided through the email KaXFEN list. Members may download the selection as a review copy during the two-month period following the first announcement. Read some or all of it, and if you choose, write a short review.

At the July 15, 2017 meeting, we'll have a live author interview with V. R. Craft via Skype or FaceTime, to discuss the book and answer questions. The selection will remain available through our August meeting.

KantCon presentation

There also will be a presentation about KantCon, the annual gaming convention, to be held July 14-16, 2017, in Overland Park, KS. It features lots of different gaming possibilities and a costume contest.

For more information, please come to our presentation at the meeting! You can also learn more at their website. Get some fun glimpses of their events at the KantCon gallery.

Dare we mention it? Membership cards!
As promised, new, 2017-18 KaCSFFS membership cards will be available for all dues-paid members, on a laminate-while-you-wait basis. Show your card for a discount at Prospero's Books!

IMAGES: The "KaCSFFS Picnic" header was made for this event by Jan S. Gephardt, based on a photo taken in 2015 by Jan S. Gephardt. The Stupid Humans header is from V. R. Craft's Stellar Sarcasm website, the Stupid Humans book cover image is from Amazon, and the KantCon header and gaming dragon logo are from their website. Many thanks to all!

KaCSFFS Picnic June 18, 2016

What: Monthly KaCSFFS Meeting and PICNIC

Where: The Writers Place

3607 Pennsylvania Ave., Kansas City, MO 64111

When: Saturday, June 18, 2016

6:00 Meeting Begins!

6:30 Latest time the meeting will end. Program begins!

Food Theme and Program: Indoor-Outdoor Picnic 

NOTE: KaCSFFS provides tableware, cups, plates, hamburgers, hot dogs, buns, and some drinks (leftover soft drinks and some alcoholic beverages from the ConSuite). 

Individual members--in this case Jim Murray and
Margene Bahm, in 2015--provide grills and their skill.

Individual members provide grills and charcoal, salads, sides, desserts, and their own additional beverages or grillables. Please see the Meeting Preview post for links to recipe ideas. 

For several decades our Annual Picnic has been held on the June meeting, so we can eat or drink any lingering ConSuite leftovers that are still good from ConQuesT, relax with friends, and recover from the work of putting on the convention. 

Indoors or outdoors, KaCSFFS cooks offer great food!

Bring indoor and outdoor games!

We'll return to a June Picnic this year, with an Indoor-Outdoor event at The Writers Place that allows our members with health issues to enjoy the party, too. 

No Picnic would be complete without games as well as food, so please bring favorite lawn games and/or tabletop games (duration: no more than 2 hours, please!) to share with friends!

IMAGES: All three photos were taken by Jan S. Gephardt, at KaCSFFS meetings in 2015 and 2016.

Early Preview: KaCSFFS Picnic returns to June Meeting!

cartoon by Alexis Gilliland

Here's ADVANCE NOTICE: Plan ahead, for the KaCSFFS Picnic!
As announced earlier, this year we return to the month of June for our picnic. Not this week, though--the Picnic will be on our regular meeting-day of June 18th, the 3rd Saturday, at The Writers Place, 3607 Pennsylvania Ave., Kansas City, MO 64111. 

We discussed venues, and although several members really wanted to return to our earlier tradition of outdoor cookouts in parks, input from other members convinced us to choose the path of inclusiveness. Since some of us have allergies, sensitivities, and limitations due to illness and/or mobility issues--AND we want everyone who is part of our community to enjoy the picnic--we will once again have an indoor-outdoor picnic.

Part of the spread at the 2013 Picnic.

Since the Picnic is a food-oriented event, it seems appropriate to offer some suggestions and resources. We will have grills going outside, leftover drinks (both alcoholic and soft) from the ConQuesT ConSuite, and tableware provided by KaCSFFS. What we need from members is everything else! 

Bring salads, sides, desserts, and anything else you care to bring and share! Here are links to some of the many resources for delicious recipes online:

Allrecipes "Picnic Recipes"
Cooking Light's "Top-Rated Picnic Recipes"
Country Living's "75+ Summer Picnic Recipes" and "15 Essential Grilling Tips"
BuzzFeed's "23 Easy Picnic Recipes that Everybody will Love," and
Food & Wine's "Top 10 Picnic Foods and Recipes" 

So there you have them: options. See you at the Picnic! 

IMAGES: Many thanks to File 770:164 and Alexis Gilliland, for the "T-Rex Picnic Chef" cartoon, and Country Living for the picnic table shot at the end of this post. The photo from the 2013 Picnic is by Jan S. Gephardt. 

Is the KaCSFFS Picnic on Your Calendar?

Fun, Food for All

What: Annual KaCSFFS Picnic

Where: The WritersPlace

3607 Pennsylvania Ave., Kansas City, MO 64111

When: Saturday, September 19, 2015

5:00 Load-in food and equipment to the back parking lot begins. Once everything's in, you'll have to park elsewhere after unloading. PLEASE BE PROMPT! 

6:00 Let the festivities begin!

9:00 Begin load-out, in the back parking lot

Don Mull and Kristina Hiner at an indoor picnic in 2013

An Indoor-Outdoor Picnic 

For the past several years we've held our annual picnic indoors, in recognition of some of our members' allergy, mobility, and other health issues. However, an influx of new members has brought many requests to go back outside. 

This year we hope to accommodate both groups. We've moved the Picnic's timing to September, in the hope it won't be as hot as it often is in June. 

Grills and some picnic tables will be set up in the shady, level parking lot area in back of The Writers Place, once all the equipment and food has been unloaded.  

We also will set up some of the tables indoors, so everyone will have a place to eat that is comfortable and safe.

An outdoor KaCSFFS Picnic in 2006

Field Day in Front

We also plan to set up lawn games in the front yard of The Writers Place. If you have something fun to share, be it Frisbees, croquet, bocci, horseshoes, beanbags, Nerf weapons, Super-Soakers, or whatever, please bring your toys to the party.

Feeding the Fen

KaCSFFS will provide hot dogs, hamburgers, buns, ketchup, mustard, some soda left over from the ConSuite, and tableware (table-coverings, plastic flatware, plates, cups, napkins, etc.)--but that leaves a lot of things we need from members:

• Grills, charcoal, utensils, and most importantly COOKS! 
• Delicious side dishes to share with everyone (there's a sign-up message on the Google Group. Please use it, so we can make sure not everyone brings the same thing).
• Drinks of your choice, if our standard soda choices don't work for you.
• More specialized condiments (pickles, tomatoes, lettuce, onions, mayo, cheese, chili, or other goodies)
• Ice, for drinks and coolers

It should be fun! It should be delicious! You should be there! Please sign up to bring stuff, and join the festivities.

IMAGES: Many thanks to Jan Gephardt for the "indoor picnic" photo, and to Tracy Majkol for the "outdoor picnic" picture (to see more, go to his "KaCSFFS Picnic" page). The "Lawn Games" photo is courtesy of Benekeith.com, via Snipview. Many thanks to all!

Call for Grill Wizards and Sundry Others

KaCSFFS Needs You for the Annual Picnic!
Start planning now for the Annual KaCSFFS Picnic at The Writers Place. Same fun folk, new month, and a new format: an indoor-outdoor picnic. 

We're hoping for nice weather September 19.

But KaCSFFS can't do it alone! We hope you'll start thinking NOW about what you can bring. We will need:

• Lawn toys (Frisbees, croquet, bocci, horseshoes, beanbags, Nerf weapons, Super-Soakers, or whatever).
• Grills, charcoal, utensils, and most importantly COOKS! 
• Delicious side dishes to share with everyone (there's a sign-up message on the Google Group. Please use it, so we can make sure not everyone brings the same thing).
• Drinks of your choice, if our standard soda choices don't work for you.
• More specialized condiments (pickles, tomatoes, lettuce, onions, mayo, cheese, chili, or other goodies)
• Ice, for drinks and coolers.

IMAGES: Many thanks to La Saucisserie Artisan Sausage Maker, for, ironically, the image of burgers on the grill; also to the blog On Your Grill, for the image of the hot dogs. Are you hungry yet?

Annual KaCSFFS (Indoor) Picnic June 21!

Summertime, and the Picnic is Indoors . . . 
Who: All KaCSFFS Members and Friends are invited!
What: Annual KaCSFFS Picnic meeting
When: Saturday, June 21, 2014 at 7:00 p.m. (Setup starts 6:00)
Where: Indoors at The Writers Place
Why: Because we like to party together!
How: With good food, drink, and friends.

The 2013 picnic's theme was "Camp KaCSFFS," held at The Writers Place.

The KaCSFFS Picnic tradition goes back decades. When the club and all its members were young fen just starting out (and when air conditioning was not as ubiquitous as it is today), we often went to local parks for food, fun, and our June meeting.

Now that we are a multi-generational group, however, we've moved the party indoors so everyone can freely attend without adverse health consequences. 

The food is pot-luck: everyone brings some kind of "picnic-appropriate" food.  KaCSFFS club funds go for the meat (usually hot dogs and hamburgers) and buns, plus paper plates, cups, tableware, and napkins. If you have special needs, let us know or feel free to bring your own.  We can set up grills outside, either on the front porch or on the lawn.

Don Mull and Kristina Hiner talk near one of the 2013 food tables.

Members bring everything else: side dishes, desserts, condiments, drinks, chips--we need it all!  Coordinating the picnic this year is President Ken Keller. Please let him know what food you want/plan to bring, before we have everyone show up and discover we all brought nothing but pie or potato salad.

Going Google!
Learn about our new Google Group in June!  We have been promised an orientation presentation, so all members present will know about the features and possibilities of our new members-only organizational group. This blog recently posted an overview with an informational video.

IMAGE CREDITS: The "Picnic" lettering is from RH Events "Company Picnic Themes" page.  The photos from the 2013 Picnic meeting are by Jan S. Gephardt.