As of Late: Things I’m Loving (and a Giveaway!)

As a continuation of my post in June about things I’m loving, here’s a round-up of some things I’m loving this month, plus a giveaway from Pura Vida Bracelets. (Sorry, I couldn’t think of anything I’m really hating to share! That’s a good thing right?)

Two Roosters Ice Cream

Might as well start with the most delicious thing first. Today I headed out to the pop-up vintage market on West Street in Glenwood South. It’s the first of the season, but they’ll be organizing this market on the last Sunday of each month through the fall. There are tents full of small business owners selling vintage clothing, headbands, jewelry, bags, accessories, and decorations. There’s even a tent with homemade dog treats on display.

I planned on having lunch here because I’d heard there’d be food trucks (my main reason for going, obvi). However, the healthy adult that I am, I gravitated to the old school truck and ice cream trailer. Two Roosters Ice Cream serves crazy flavors in a cone or a cup ($4 for single, $6 for double) ranging from the locally sourced Slingshot Coffee Fudge Ripple, the Pecan Sticky Bun from Yellow Dog, or the very unique can’t-put-your-finger-on-it flavor of Roasted Almond Fruit Tea from Tin Roof Teas.

Yes I tried about four different samples.

Of course, if you’re boring you can get the classics like milk chocolate or vanilla vanilla.

Or, if you’re me, you just can’t NOT order the Lucky Charms Ice cream, complete with all the colorful, sweet, marshmallows. Leaving with my treat in hand, I had one woman take a picture of me… and two kids ask in awe, “Is THAT Lucky Charms ice cream?! That’s my favorite cereal!”

My Kindle (and reading on my balcony)

Okay, okay, I’m super behind on this one. I actually got my Kindle as a Christmas present and it’s taken me seven months to open the box. In my defense, I’d already bought several real books (and was gifted several more) right around Christmas and I’ve just now finished reading all those paperbacks.

But I really, really like the Kindle! Yessss, I already have an iPad… but you just can’t read it in the sun! Also I would never even want to think about bringing my iPad to the pool or beach – too risky. The Kindle is cheap, lightweight, and has that matte surface great for reading outside. The only con for a slow, detail-oriented reader like me is that it’s not super easy to flip back several pages if you need to fact check a plot point along the way.

I’m currently reading The Girl on the Train and though I’ve heard mixed reviews, all the talk about its Gone Girl nature made me do it. So far, I’m about 45% in (according to the Kindle, another neat feature) and loving it. And I just downloaded The Giver, which I haven’t read since middle school. I’m finally getting back into some fiction if you guys have any great recommendations!

A lovely pink and orange sunset from this week. Yep, we still have Christmas lights up.

I’ve also been reading out on our balcony which faces the street and holds my plants and orange vinyl chairs. When we moved in I thought I’d have coffee on the balcony in the morning and we’d eat dinner out there at night. So far, it’s only been used for drinking beers, eating chips, and listening to music, but I’m hoping I’ll use it as a spot to relax more nowadays.

Extra Pack of Peanuts Travel Podcast

Last As of Late I mentioned a few of my favorite travel podcasts. This month, I think I may have found one I like even better! Extra Pack of Peanuts is a travel blog and podcast which contains interviews with travelers and entrepreneurs and also personal stories from podcaster Travis and wife, Heather. They cover everything from their all-time favorite meals around the world to their travel freakouts in Myanmar.

In addition to great story-telling, they provide practical tips about how to get into the longterm travel mindset, how to meet locals, and even how to find the best khao soi in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

I’ve been listening to EPoP (as they’re affectionately known) podcasts almost every weekday at the gym. They range from thirty-five minutes to an hour each and they even have a very catchy theme song.

Adult Pool Parties

Okay, so this is a little ridiculous, but now that I’ve attended two of these pool parties at our apartment complex, I can honestly say that I don’t hate ’em. Some guys in our building have decided to throw pool parties on the occasional weekends throughout the summer, generously sponsoring a keg, food (pizza this weekend, Tasty 8’s hotdogs previously), and a DJ.

This weekend’s DJ was particularly awesome as he danced the entire time he spun tunes – I never even saw him take a bathroom break. His dancing was so impressive that I thought about asking if I could Snapchat his moves (follow me – I’m rsass!).

So anyway, all of these young professionals head down to the pool in their neon gear and tank tops with their inflatable beer pong tables, and we spend an afternoon replicating a much older, more responsible version of MTV Spring Break. (And then I have dinner and go to sleep at a reasonable hour, of course.) What can I say? I’ve kinda been on a pool kick recently.

A Giveaway by Pura Vida Bracelets!

If you’ll check out the banner ad on the right side of the blog, you’ll see that I’m an affiliate for Pura Vida Bracelets. They recently sent me some samples of their fun, cool, casual bracelets, and I’m giving one away here. The bracelets are made in Costa Rica and some are simple while others contain metal details amongst colorful threads. Enter below and if you win I’ll mail you this sweet aqua anchor bracelet (US addresses only, sorry!).

The cool thing about the company is that they provide full time jobs to artisans in Costa Rica and they donate to charities all over the world, supporting a ton of different causes in the process. I love the look of these bracelets and they’re especially great for stacking, so even if you don’t win, check ’em out. They were recently featured on the Today Show!

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway
In addition, you can click the affiliate link below and get 20% off your purchase of Pura Vida Bracelets through the end of August!  

Where I’m Heading Next!

Tomorrow I leave for Puerto Rico! My mom, brother, Charlie, and I have a sweet apartment in San Juan booked through airbnb (click for $25 off your first stay!). I’m pretty excited… especially because it has a rooftop terrace! Stay tuned for posts, pics, boats, and obviously a food tour that’s in the works…

Some of the links above are affiliate links. If you purchase through them, I’ll receive a tiny commission at no extra cost to you. Thanks for your support of the blog!