Month: June 2023

When it comes to DJs and influencers, travel hacks and destinations are the name of the game. From playing to the masses across the globe to jet-setting to some pretty Instagram-worthy locations, you can’t go wrong taking some inspiration and recommendations from the people behind the boards.

While international travel is plenty alluring this time of year, there’s something about staying domestic during the North American summer that just makes sense. Especially after the pandemic reawakened Americans to the glories to be found closer to home. So we picked the brain of 15 globally recognized DJs, producers, and travel influencers to reveal their “most underrated” American towns and cities to make a trip to this summer.*

*Warning: Some of these towns are very mainstream so treat the word “underrated” with a grain of salt.

Riot Ten (@riottenmusic): Portland, Oregon

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: Forbidden Kingdom (6/10), Beyond Wonderland (6/18), Lost Lands (9/23)

I think I’m going to have to go with Portland for this one. I’ve been there probably 5-6 times now and I have to say it’s definitely one of my favorite cities in the US. I’m a big fan of sushi and with Portland being in the PNW, the fish is some of the best I’ve ever had. Portland has a pretty large Asian community as well and I’m a big fan of pho & ramen, so you know I’m in heaven whenever I go. It also has this Japanese Garden that’s really beautiful. It’s an absolute must-see in my opinion.

On top of all of that, the crowd in Portland consistently goes hard. I am always excited to visit Portland and its food, crowd, and landmarks. It never disappoints!

Loren Gray (@loren): Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania

As someone who loves being outdoors and hiking, Jim Thorpe is the perfect destination for a summer visit. Growing up in Pennsylvania, I spent many summers here, hiking to waterfalls, going to museums, and shopping in town. The Harry Packer mansion (the architectural inspiration for Disneyland’s haunted mansion ride) is beautiful and open for reservations if you want to spend the night. The waterfalls are completely breathtaking to hike up to, and you can even white water raft in nearby lakes.

One of my favorite places to dine is a restaurant overlooking the mountain called Roadies, with great pub fare food and live music.

a.k.a. skips (@quackhouse): Boise, Idaho

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: To Be Announced

I actually think Boise, ID is criminally slept on. The creative culture is thriving and I feel an exciting energy around DIY spaces and events in particular when I’m there. My friend Street Fever (@streetfever) does a party called OIL (@oil.move) that absolutely demands a visit, and AI Studios has a location there with an art space and jewelry manufacturing as well.

For restaurants you can’t miss: KIN, which also has a music/theater/art venue called piKINic as part of their set of three concepts.

Chloe Caldwell (@bychloecaldwell): Carlsbad, California

Maybe I’m biased because I just moved here, but I definitely think that Carlsbad, California is an underrated travel destination in the United States.

It’s located /north of San Diego, about 30 minutes from downtown and it is the cutest beach town without all of the crowds and bustle of downtown San Diego.

If you’re looking for the best place to stay, surprisingly, the Best Western Plus is actually so nice and it has a beautiful view of the ocean with a top deck that has chairs where you can watch the sunset.

One of my favorite places to eat is Blue Ocean Sushi and I also love Taste of the Himalayan, which is authentic Himalayan food. It is so delicious. I especially love the curry options.

As far as fun activities to do in Carlsbad, California, it is the ultimate beach destination with a surplus of outdoor activities from kayaking and surfing to just hanging out at the Carlsbad State Beach and hiking. You’ll also find a ton of really cute shopping boutiques and thrift stores, which is fun to explore in between dining and going to the beach.

Of course, the best time to visit any beach town is spring and summer. It does get crowded. But fortunately, it is a little bit of an oasis from downtown San Diego with fewer people and it’s just easier to find parking and get around.

CHYL (@itschyl): Charleston, South Carolina

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: Hard Summer (8/5), Hulaween (10/26)

I’d have to say Charleston, SC was an absolute pleasure to visit! I’d never really heard much about the city before visiting and it was quite a surprise to see the liveliness and quaintness of this city. The cobblestone streets, pastel-colored houses, and nicely-groomed horses bring so much life to this adorable city. I was also pleasantly surprised by how fresh the seafood was. If you do vision, make sure to try out the oysters and the shrimp and grits. Absolutely outstanding flavors!

We walked through the French Quarter which was beautifully preserved and filled with live music. Also, everywhere we went, we were greeted by nice and warm hospitality. The city’s Southern charm combined with its rich history definitely makes it an unforgettable experience to visit.

Tones (@tonesmusic_): Sedona, Arizona

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: Groove Cruise 2024

I would say Sedona, AZ. Most people don’t think of Arizona for summertime because of the heat. But Sedona nighttime lows in the summer average in the cool mid 60s, nearly 25 degrees cooler than the Phoenix average. The place is extremely spiritual with red rocks everywhere, it feels like you’re in a dream. Walt Disney would spend substantial amounts of time there and modeled several Disneyland rides around the landscape.

In terms of places to eat, Mariposa in Sedona has beautiful views and a world-renowned chef. For unique food, including a peach pizza, go check out Hideaway House as well.

In terms of activities, go hike Devil’s Bridge and see trees whose trunks are totally twisted around due to the vortex energy. Go get your aura read while you’re there, and some of the most beautiful stars you’ve ever seen at night.

Mikala Lugen (@mikalalugen): Buffalo, New York

I feel like whenever I tell someone that I’m from Buffalo, they automatically assume how cold it is. Let’s be real here: obviously Buffalo is pretty cold in the winter thanks to our neighbor Lake Erie. But many people don’t understand that Buffalo and Western New York as a whole has an amazing summer season!

Because it sits right on Lake Erie, Buffalo becomes an amazing destination for spending time on the water. You can spend all day at Buffalo RiverWorks, the city’s premier waterfront, boating, sports bar, and music and entertainment destination. Located right on the banks of the river in the industrial district, the city has put millions of dollars into this over the years and has become an amazing addition to the city. You can rent a kayak, stand up paddleboard, hop on the Buffalo Tiki Tour, rock climb one of the sheer walls of the grain silos, watch a roller derby bout, and sip cocktails on the water with free live music. There’s also Canalside, another beautiful part on the waterfront that is right in the heart of the city. It hosts hundreds of events throughout the year, many of which are free or low cost including concerts, festivals, and summer fitness classes, and you can also get on the water with a kayak, paddleboard, or boat here too.

Of course, Niagara Falls is very close by, everyone should come here at least once in their life!

For some amazing Western New York hiking, I highly recommend going to what is considered “The Grand Canyon of the East” at Letchworth State Park. My personal favorite is also Griffith Sculpture Park, where you get stunning views of Buffalo’s rolling hills as you find peace and serenity walking among sculptures in the woods.

You can’t go to Buffalo without having some chicken wings. Sorry to all you ranch lovers out there – the only correct way to eat chicken wings is with blue cheese. Get some from the iconic Anchor Bar on Main Street or at Duff’s Famous Wings.

Keys N Krates (@keysnkrates): Asheville, North Carolina

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: Washington D.C.’s Flash (9/23), Salt Lake City, UT’s Soundwell (10/5), and Portland, OR’s 45 East (10/6)

We discovered Asheville on our first U.S. bus tour. At that point, we were very used to waking up in different cities/towns (or sometimes Walmart parking lots). I remember waking up in Asheville and walking out of the tour bus onto Biltmore Ave, which felt like the main drag of that immediate area, and thinking, this town seems really great. I got the immediate impression that there was fun stuff to check out (art, food, music), but it also felt secluded, surrounded by nature and a bit of a hidden gem. My hunch checked out; we learned the MOOG factory is there, there’s a ton of cool art galleries and we were surrounded by The Blue Ridge Mountains.

And then there is the Orange Peel, the 1050-cap-simple-rectangular room that felt almost like a barn house. It became one of our favourite venues in the U.S. to play shows at. For whatever reason, the energy of the crowds there was always unmatched, and every show there (we’ve done around three now) just felt like a chaotic sweaty debacle in the best way possible. I’d like to think it was just us, but it definitely felt like that room had its own magic.

I still feel like we’ve barely scratched the surface in terms of what’s great about that town. I’m sure “current-day us” would go on hikes and hit galleries and those botanical gardens, but “mid-2010s us” were tour bus sloths who basically just walked to whatever was around the tour bus, regardless of how great a city was. I would typically do a 15-minute walk to Liberty Coffee and have a pre-show bite at the brewery (Wicked Weed) right next to the venue.

Our second time in Asheville, we got invited to the MOOG factory to see the place and do a taping of us performing one of our songs just using MOOG gear which was really fun. They were super kind to us there. As producers, we were in hyper-geek-out mode, and they were amazing hosts. That was super memorable.

Anabel Englund (@anabelenglund): Lake Geneva, Wisconsin

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: Utah Pride (6/2), Sunbar Nightclub (6/3), The Midway (7/1), Global Dance Festival (7/21)

Lake Geneva is a place I have gone to every summer since I met my husband. There are no direct flights into this small town so the only two options are either fly to Chicago O’ Hare or Milwaukee Airport and then drive from there to wherever you are staying. I will say you will pass a lot of cornfields! The air there is clean & dense like it’s made of melted sugar & as the sun starts to set you see fireflies rising up from the grass. The lake is spring fed & crystal clear. When you jump into the water with sun kissed skin it feels like a holy experience. Our favorite place to eat breakfast is at this old diner called Daddy Maxwell’s. It is simply the best with its familiar waitresses & regulars. Make sure to pull out some money before dining because it’s a cash only establishment. There are endless amounts of things to do on or around the lake. You can walk/bike/run around the whole thing (21-26 miles.) You can do all kinds of water sports like skiing, wakeboarding, tubing, or even just cruising around listening to music with friends catching up and enjoying the sun together. Needless to say, when it’s time to head to my next destination I am never ready to leave & am already planning my next trip back.

KHIVA (@khivamusic): Denver, Colorado

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: Cervantes Ballroom (7/1)

While I would by no means consider myself the authority on spots to hit here, I have probably had more ‘in depth’ visits to Denver than a lot of US cities. For many reasons, I think it can hold its own in the ring with more ‘notable’ destinations like say, NY or SF. Truly, it seems like there is always something going on and if you’re like me (a sun-worshipping lizard) a clear summer day in the Mile High City is such a good opportunity to bounce between spots and try a little bit of everything.

One thing I love about Denver is all its cool ‘food halls’ that have become rightfully popular over the years. I’ve had great times at Denver Central Market, Denver Milk Market, Edgewater Public Market, and Avanti Food Hall. I love a chance to hit Konjo for Ethiopian food at Edgewater! I’ve personally really enjoyed hot spots such as Denver Biscuit Company and Watercourse over the years and especially living where I do in New York, it’s just not the type of food/restaurants I have a lot, so it’s quite different. I feel like Denver has its own version of every type of cuisine and spins it into its own genre of comfort food. One culinary aspect of Denver I love is all the little mom-and-pop Mexican spots!

Sometimes it feels more difficult to find inner-city activities that aren’t totally food or drink-centric, but Denver seems to have a pretty cool array of interesting things. I’m not a huge gamer, but I do love pinball, so I really enjoyed hanging out at 1UP Arcade Bar on Colfax. I love all the old-school machines and their wicked art! I haven’t been yet but a friend invited me to check out the Church of Cannabis, which apparently has an awesome new light show of sorts, so I am very stoked to visit this one! There is, of course, the new Meow Wolf, which also is hosting a lot of shows!

Of course, this list would not be complete without mentioning the rich and wonderfully incessant stream of musical entertainment happening in the city. Shameless self-plug here, but I am so excited to have my biggest headline to date happening at Cervantes on July 1st, so that’s incredibly exciting, but I l also have time to stay afterward for a few days and get in on the buzz that is July 4th! I’ve got a lot of friends either based in the city or passing through, and you know there’s bound to be a cool show happening somewhere. I haven’t been to the Black Box in a while, so I’d love to see what’s going on and catch up with some friends where you know the sound, music, and vibes are on point!

Overall, I just love to be outside and experience food, culture, art, and music, and Denver ticks so many boxes — making this a great summer destination. If you have time and transport, getting into nature is no doubt a huge bonus of its location. On this trip, I am trying to hit some of the places in this list, but never underestimate the power of a good hotel with a pool to come back to after a full day of festivities!

BKRLYN (@brklynmusic): Waikiki Beach, Hawaii

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: Splash House (TBD)

Being able to tour in Hawaii was incredible and definitely is the ultimate summer vibe. We landed in Honolulu and stayed in Waikiki Beach. We stayed at a resort and an Airbnb and truly experienced the best of both worlds.

If you prefer hotels, The Outrigger Resort was nothing short of perfection with luxurious shopping, food, and amenities. Surrounded by beautiful beaches and lots of options for anything tourism. If you are into nature and sightseeing we definitely recommend Diamond Head state park. If you are a beginner, Waikiki Beach is a perfect place to learn with long rolling rides. We recommend any shopping at the Royal Hawaiian Center Mall which is within walking distance from the resort. For nightlife experience, we had a blast performing at The Republik which is one of our all-time favorite venues in the United States.

Our favorite was definitely the Airbnb which was tucked away in the green hills overlooking the beaches. It was a different experience because it was a step away from all the tourism but still close enough to get in the mix. Highly recommend renting moped scooters as means of transportation. Which allowed us to see and experience more of a local vibe with great recs from our host. One of our favorite things to do is take the mopeds up and down the coast at sunset. Absolutely breathtaking and we made sure to do that every night. Our favorite local poke spot was called Five Star Poke. And definitely have to take a tour of the dole plantation to try the legendary “Dole Whip”. And if you can visit the island during the 4th of July celebrations, do it. The highlight of our experience and the best recommendation we can give is renting a boat or catamaran and sailing just off the coast to catch the sunset which is followed by multiple fireworks shows as far as the eye can see up and down the coast.

Two Friends (@twofriends): Charleston, South Carolina & Cleveland, Ohio

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica (6/12), Skyla Credit Union Amphitheatre (6/22)

I’m gonna have to say Charleston, South Carolina. We have played there a few times in the summer and it is just so beautiful. We did 4th of July pool parties back-to-back out there last summer and they were two of the craziest shows the whole year. We’re coming back there at the end of June and we’re definitely looking forward to that one. It’ll be all outdoors, on the lawn, with great summer vibes as the sun goes down and the music plays all night. -Eli

I’m gonna go with Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland can sometimes get a bad rap, but that place is amazing, especially down by the water. It’s so lively, there are so many cool places. We’ll also be there on our tour in June and honestly, it’s a vibe. There are a lot of fun things to do and people are just ready to go. -Matt

juuku (@juuku_): Joshua Tree, California

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: Hakkasan (6/23)

Just got back from a trip to Joshua Tree and it was one of the most rejuvenating experiences I’ve had in a while. I went to Hidden Valley, Cholla Cactus Garden, and Keys View. There are so many good eats like Crossroads Cafe, Joshua Tree Coffee, JT Country Kitchen, and Sky High Pizza. This place is really dog friendly so I brought my two pit bulls with me (just make sure they stay hydrated). Downtown Joshua Tree is great at night for bars/breweries. One of my favorite aspects of the town was seeing the Joshua Trees themselves. It was my first time seeing them in real life and they were so peaceful and serene. I also loved how relaxing and tranquil it was being in the desert- it’s perfect when you want to remove yourself from everything for a few days.

UnderLux (@underluxmusic): South Boston, Massachusetts

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: Denver (TBD)

My underrated summer destination for all those who haven’t been to the wonderful coasts of New England – where I spent most of my life – is Southie (South Boston).

I would always start my days by hitting the local PS Gourmet Coffee shop for a bacon egg and cheese breakky sam on a poppy seed bagel. They have about 35 different flavor choices for coffee so I would always switch it up to keep things fresh.

The next stop is a quick walk over to M street beach. The water quality is questionable but the vibe quality is exceptional. Plenty of music and beach games and people bonding over iced coffees as they sweat out their hangovers. From there, it’s an easy walk to Loco Taqueria & Oyster Bar for some fresh oysters and my personal favorite, the coconut margs. Across the street Lincoln Tavern is always packed but worth it if you can brave the line and can get a table with friends. Alternatively, make a friend who has a roof deck and head there to cap the day off with a nice sunset. Then it’s time to hit the clubs. Royale used to be a personal favorite of mine. The Middle East in Cambridge will always be dear to me as the first venue I played, and then Bijou and Venue and Icon are all solid clubs to hit. My good friends still hold down the fort at Big Night Live and open up for some phenomenal acts from all over the world.

Catch me playing next in my new hometown of Denver. The announcement coming soon! Enjoy your summer and stay safe and cool!

Mxmtoon (@mxmtoon): Oakland, California

Featured Upcoming Tour Dates: The Greek Theatre (7/20); Frost Amphitheater (7/23); Central Park SummerStage (8/3)

My personal choice for the most underrated American town for the summer would be Oakland, California. It’s totally biased because that’s where I grew up but I choose it for good reason.

If you’re looking to visit California and don’t want to commit to LA’s high heat and traffic all the time but you’re also not sure about San Francisco and how chilly it gets along with all of its hills, Oakland is the place for you. It’s a perfect middle ground for all of those things – we have incredible nature and hiking trails along all the regional parks nearby. We also have incredible food. My favorite place to go is over on Telegraph Avenue, it’s called Cholita Linda and it’s really delicious Cuban food.

I hope more people come to visit Oakland because it’s my favorite city in the Bay and I think it deserves a little more love.

Pets are wonderful, loving, innocent creatures that add so much pure joy into our lives.

They also have an unruly penchant for eating things they shouldn’t be eating, find heinously bad places to go potty and are weapons of mass destruction when it comes to shoes, fragile knickknacks and furniture. If you’ve had a pet, then you have at least one story involving one of these sins, if not all three.

No matter how egregious the act, it’s pretty hard to stay mad. After all, much of the time animal misbehavior is merely a natural reaction to stress or boredom. Plus, one look at their sweet little faces is all it takes for anger to be subdued. Most of the time.

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A Reddit user recently asked pet owners, “What’s the worst thing your pet has ever done?” and boy, some critters really know to act out. Whether its fur babies or feathered friends or scaly companions, pets are capable of some truly horrific-slash-hilarious antics. We love them anyway, of course.

Below are 22 of the best responses from traumatized pet owners. And though their stories don’t necessarily paint the best picture of their beastly bestie, it’s certainly an amusing read, if not an all-too-relatable one.

1.

“My dog dug up my neighbors cable line on Super Bowl Sunday when they had a big crowd coming over.” -@Living_Departure_265

2.

“My parrot has learnt to swear and will not stop. The weirdest thing is that I don’t even know how he learnt to swear. Maybe he overheard the neighbors or something.” -@Pizza-pen

3.

“As a kitten, she managed to get hold of, and tear to pieces, a dried flower my mother took from my grandmother’s funeral as a keepsake. Literally irreplaceable.” -@Catstrudle

4.

“My dog, then teething, chewed through and broke the beanbag chair he used to sleep on; which was filled with styrofoam pellets, each about 3mm dia. Tens of thousands of them. There is no effective way of picking them up due to their attraction to static and propensity to fly at the slightest change in the wind. The vacuum cleaner just pushed around more than it picked up. It took ~3 hours to clean up. We were finding pellets for years in random places.” -@Darthfloyd

5.

“I used to have this ball python. I wake up one morning and take him out of his cage because he’s looking restless. I throw him on my bed and lay back down. He’d often crawl on me and curl up for warmth. On this particular occasion he came sniffing around my face right as I yawned. When I did, a small tear came out of my eye, which he licked. A second later he latched onto my eyebrow like it was some furry little rodent. I sat right up, holding the four foot snake straight off my face. He let go after a few seconds and we didn’t talk for the rest of the day. Left two bloody holes right on my eyebrow. Jerk.” -@Stevel-Knievel

6.

“Baxter once pooped in the refrigerator and ate an entire wheel of cheese. I wasn’t even mad, it was amazing.” -@ryclarky

7.

“My boxer knocked over a statue of the Virgin Mary. Her head broke off, and my dog was running around with the head.” – @Motherinlawdouche

8.

“As I lay down for a much needed nap the other day, I heard a crash in the living room go out to check what fresh hell…my Calico had climbed a desk and knocked over a small shelf containing a case of small silver thumbtacks alllllllll over my living room. I made it about 5 steps in before I realized I was surrounded by tacks.” -@slumvillain

9.

“I filled a cup to the brim with fruit punch and walked away to put the bottle back into the fridge. When I turned back around I saw my blind cat standing on the dining room table feeling the cup with his paw…he winds up and swats it off the table. Got fruit punch everywhere.” -@colethefatcat

10.

“Back in 2014, my parents owned this vase that had been passed down 4 generations to the youngest in the family. It sat on top of the cabinets, like higher than the refrigerator. Our family went on a 4 day vacation to Disney World and had our neighbor feed our 2 cats. On the 2nd day of our vacation, my father gets a text saying that our vase shattered on the floor and both our cats were next to where it once sat. We believe our cats were able to jump up there with the help up [by] climbing on our air fryer we left on the counter.” -@mittiens

11.

“We bought our first house and the first time we left our dog alone he ate through the trim surrounding all the doors, the drywall behind it, and almost through the exterior. Needless to say I wasn’t pleased.” -@Fuzzy-Ad5756

12.

“I’m a caffeine addict and I admit it. I start out every day with an energy drink and pop Diet Mountain Dew all day. In college I was very, very broke and at one point was down to about 14 ounces left in a 2 liter of Mtn Dew poured into a cup. My cat came to check out what I had, sniffed at it and I guess the popping bubbles tickled her nose and she sneezed directly onto the surface of it.”-@LatterTowel9403

13.

“Got a new dog and wanted them to be happy and acclimated to a new home. Gave them a pig ear to chew on (already a fairly disgusting treat) and they happily take it. A short time later, where did the dog go? On my bed, chomping away on the pig ear, with a large pile of drool and pig ear bits, now quite possibly a permanent part of my sheets. Not the way I wanted to start off a relationship with a new dog. Silver lining, my sheets smelled like bacon for a while even after washing them!” -@ItsGotHeart

14.

“My beta killed 3 fish in a week.” -@Tox1cShark7

15.

“My dog was still a puppy and has never seen a baby bird. One night I was taking her for a walk and there was a baby bird on the ground. It was chirping and it really caught her attention (probably cause it sounded like her squeaky toys). I started reaching for the bird so I could try and put it back in its nest but my dog jumped towards the bird. I just heard a loud squeak and silence. My dog’s expression changed when she realized what she had done. The rest of the night she was not herself, I’m sure she felt really bad.” -@justanotherperson218

16.

“He (dog) broke my mother’s nose with his big head by jumping around too excitedly.” -@mortokes

17.

“A few nights ago, in the middle of the night, my monster cat brought in a live pigeon through the cat door and released it in the living room. Feathers EVERYWHERE.” -@effieokay

18.

“I have a roomba. I set it to clean at 7:30 AM every morning… because I am always out the door for work by then, and my dog has just been walked. One morning, apparently, the 7 AM walk was not enough, and my dog shit on the floor. Then, like a good little robot, my roomba took off. I came home to poo circles all over my carpet and a dead roomba.

TL;DR–My dog teamed up with a robot to create an abstract art piece made out of feces.” -@SleepsontheGround

19.

“Whilst walking my friend’s dalmation, Stripey, one summer’s day in a park filled with happy picnickers and laughing children, she spotted a birthday party. A river separated the party from us and, underestimating her love of food, I kept her off the [leash]. I’m not sure how she even saw the birthday cake wrapped in tinfoil but she leaped into the river before I could stop her. She tore apart the tinfoil like a savage and devoured the cake before quickly moving on to the BBQ where she managed to eat every sausage, burger and chicken leg she could see whilst the birthday boy watched in terror. I stood awkwardly on the other side of the water, shouting her name and apologizing profusely but she only listened when she’d decided her meal was over after which she swam calmly back over the water and pranced into the distance whilst the entire family stared me down. I am sorry, birthday boy, I hope your day wasn’t too badly ruined.” -@Tanyabee

20.

“One time I was running to the basement to grab an ingredient I had forgotten to add to dinner. Like an idiot, I kept the burner and hot pan going because I figured that running to the fridge in the basement would only take a minute. Instead, I tripped over my dog before reaching the first step and tumbled down into the basement. I stared up to see my dog looking down and smiling as I scrambled frantically to run back upstairs before my stupid dinner set the entire house on fire.” – [deleted]

21.

“Maybe not ‘worst’ for me, but definitely for my mom. She pissed off the cat… kicking her out of the bedroom before bed because she hates animals sleeping on her bed or next to her…Apparently in the morning, she was running late for work. Rushed to put on her shoes and found vomit in one of them. Out of all her shoes, and of all the times in the day, the cat had decided to revenge-puke in the ones she wears to work almost every day.” -@badguywindow

22.

“My 55lb dog ate an entire tray of pot brownies.” -@karmavorous

This article originally appeared on 8.9.22

Street artists are a special breed. While “the art world” can sometimes be a snooty, elite place for those with means, street art is made for everyone. Sometimes that means large public murals, but street art can be small, too. In fact, some of the best street art is so small you might miss it if you’re not paying attention. But those who are can discover some delightful surprises.

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Just imagine walking down a sidewalk and seeing this little fella at your feet:

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Or this young lady:

Or this creature:

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That would make your day, wouldn’t it? Or at least bring a smile to your face for a while?

Public art is an act of love to strangers, a way of connecting to people without saying a word. It says, “Hey there, fellow human. Here’s a little something to make you smile, just because.”

That’s the beauty of David Zinn’s street art. It’s meant for the public—just average passers-by—to enjoy, individually and collectively.

Zinn has created an entire world of characters who pop up in unexpected places. For instance, meet Gerald the otter, who is waiting for a blind date in this tree stump.

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Zinn uses chalk and charcoal to make his cast of characters come to life in cracks and crevasses, sidewalks and tree trunks. His creations aren’t meant to last forever; in fact, as Zinn points out, the temporary nature of them adds value to them.

“Famous works of art hanging in museums get seen by thousands of people every day. But this? You could be among the dozens of people who get to see this while it exists,” he told CBS Mornings. “That’s pretty special.”

Watch how he takes something he finds in the sidewalk and transforms it into a sweet little duo.

Sometimes he uses natural things he finds as inspiration for a piece.

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Other times, he uses something human-made, like this upside down terra cotta pot:

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Or this manhole cover:

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Sometimes the shape of a rock lends itself to a character, like Keith and his emotional support chick here:

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Or the space itself serves as inspiration.

Nadine the mouse features in many of Zinn’s pieces, probably due to her small size making it easy for her to fit into small spaces.

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Usually his pieces use what’s already there—like a crack in the sidewalk—to tell a story.

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The 3D nature of his drawings make it feel as if his characters are truly there.

“Looks like another long day of things stubbornly refusing to be impossible,” he writes in a caption of one of his “pigasuses.”

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(Speaking of having wings, Nadine found a pair for herself.)

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Watch Zinn turn a simple pot into a character with personality in a matter of minutes:

His entire Instagram page, Facebook page and TikTok channel are filled with endless delight. It was nearly impossible to decide what to include in this article because I wanted to include everything.

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This is all well and good, you might say to yourself, but how does Zinn make a living if he’s not selling this art?

He sells books and prints of photos of his artwork on his online store. He also gets invited to schools and events. He has created a career for himself by rejecting blank canvases, putting his imagination out on the street for everyone to see for a while, then selling versions that will actually last. Pretty brilliant, really.

Zinn gave a fascinating TEDx Talk explaining how he found his own artistic niche. You’ll never look at a parking meter or sidewalk the same way again.

This article originally appeared on 02.12.22

A local reporter at Hometown Life shared a unique and heartfelt story on March 16 about a mother struggling to find shoes that fit her 14-year-old son. The story resonated with parents everywhere; now, her son is getting the help he desperately needs. It’s a wonderful example of people helping a family that thought they had nowhere to turn.

When Eric Kilburn Jr. was born, his mother, Rebecca’s OBGYN, told her that he had the “biggest feet I’ve ever seen in my life. Do not go out and buy baby shoes because they’re not gonna fit,’” Rebecca told Today.com. Fourteen years later, it’s almost impossible to find shoes that fit the 6’10” freshman—he needs a size 23.

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The teen’s height doesn’t stem from a gland issue; he comes from a family of tall people. Both his parents are over 6 feet tall.

Eric plays football for Goodrich High School in Goodrich, Michigan, but doesn’t wear cleats, which led to a sprained ankle. He also suffers from ingrown toenails that are so severe he’s had two nails on his biggest toes permanently removed.

Last year, the family was lucky enough to stumble upon five pairs of size 21 shoes at a Nike outlet store. It was discovered they were made especially for Tacko Fall, the NBA player with some of the most enormous feet in the game. To put things in perspective, Shaquille O’Neal wears a size 22.

However, Eric soon grew out of those as well. The family was left with one more option: have orthopedic shoes made for Eric at the cost of $1,500 with no guarantee he won’t quickly grow out of those as well.

After his mother’s heartfelt plea to Hometown Life, the family got much-needed help from multiple companies, including Under Armour and PUMA, who are sending representatives to Michigan to measure his feet for custom shoes.

CAT has reached out to make him a custom pair of boots. Eric hasn’t had any boots to wear for the past five Michigan winters.

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Kara Pattison started a GoFundMe campaign on behalf of the family to help them purchase custom shoes for “the rest of the time Eric has these feet.” It has raised nearly $20,000 for the family in just over a week.

“The success of this fundraiser is well beyond what was ever expected,” Pattison wrote on the site on March 18. “The Kilburns plan to open a bank account dedicated to Eric’s future footwear and some specialized sports equipment. He can use this to get a helmet that fits for football along with pads. They will also look into a football and track jersey for him.”

The sense of relief felt by Rebecca, Eric and the rest of the Kilburn family must be incredible. It has to be frustrating to be unable to provide your child with something as basic as footwear.

“It’s been overwhelming,” Rebecca told Hometown Life. “I have been this puddle of emotions, all of them good…It’s the coolest thing to be able to say we did it! He has shoes! I am not usually a crier, but I have been in a constant state of happy tears…We are so grateful.”

This article originally appeared on 03.23.23

Everyone has a list of nostalgia-inducing beverages that they’ve left behind with childhood. Capri Sun, Kool-Aid Jammers, Sunny D — pick your poison, it’s not like you wouldn’t drink a bottle (or pouch) of any one of these if you were offered, but you’re probably not throwing them into the grocery cart on your next market run. For me, those drinks are Tampico, some sort of weird artificial spin on orange juice, and Mountain Dew, gamer fuel, a soda that everyone leaves behind when they’re a teenager (or they no longer have teeth).

It’s not like my tastes have grown more sophisticated with age (I still love sugar-packed drinks) I’m just a lot less inclined to drink things where the top main ingredients are water and high fructose corn syrup. But when both brands came out with boozy versions of their beloved products, I knew I had to taste them. But why just taste them when I can blind taste them?

Methodology:

For this blind taste test, I tried each beverage one at a time at random in an unmarked glass. I’d like to tell you it was hard to guess which drink was which brand, but Mountain Dew had this radioactive glow to it that kind of gave it away.

We tried both flavors of Hard Tampico and four different iterations of Hard Mountain Dew Baja Blast. Here was today’s tasting class:

• Hard MTN Dew — Baja Blast
• Hard MTN Dew — Baja Blast Mango
• Hard MTN Dew — Baja Blast Pineapple
• Hard MTN Dew — Baja Blast Punch
• Tampico — Hard Punch Citrus
• Tampico — Hard Punch Island

After my tasting, I meditated on my impressions a bit and ranked each flavor from worst to best, though I’ll be honest, I’m using the word “best” very very generously. Let’s dive in!

Part 1: The MTN Dew Tampico Taste Test Challenge

Taste 1:

A strong candied flavor dominates the palate. It’s a bit fruity and juicy, with some hints of pineapple, mango, and the slightest hint of cherry on the backend. That fruity medley dissipates fast and you’re left with a slightly bitter malt liquor flavor.

Taste 2:

I mean… it’s blue so you know it’s Baja Blast. This is highly candied, it doesn’t taste like fruit so much as it just tastes, well, blue. You could taste this blindfolded and know it’s blue! It tastes just like Baja Blast with a kick of alcohol. It’s off-putting but strangely, I don’t hate it… it tastes like summer.

Taste 3:

It’s hard to pin down the flavor of this one, I’m getting some mango in there, maybe a bit of blood orange — it’s a medley that never stops shifting.

Taste 4:

Whoa, this one is super sour. As soon as it hit my palate it had my salivary glands juicing with a wince-inducing tart flavor. The citrus flavors here are strong and zesty, I think this would make a great base for mixing harder liquor in. I… kinda like it.

Taste 5:

The faintest hit of pineapple flavors this one. The aftertaste is weird and bitter and stains the tongue in the worst way.

Taste 6:

Somehow worse than Taste 5. Where that one had faint whispers of pineapple, this one can only be described as rough, brutal, and bitter, none of which are desirable flavors. It’s like licking a cactus.

Part 2: The Drink Ranking

6. Hard MTN Dew — Baja Blast Mango (Taste 6)

ABV: 5%

As I said in the blind taste test portion, the sensation of drinking this is like licking a cactus. It’s incredibly harsh and bitter. Now that I know it’s mango I’m even more puzzled. They should’ve called this one “road kill.”

The Bottom Line:

Mango-flavored malt liquor is always a hard flavor to land and Hard MTN Dew Baja Blast Mango solidifies that. If you already love Mango White Claw or Truly, you might like this (though it’s less juicy and more carbonated than both), but if you’re on the fence over mango, this isn’t going to win you over.

Buy Hard MTN Dew Baja Blast Mango here.

5. Hard MTN Dew — Baja Blast Pineapple (Taste 5)

ABV: 5%

Mountain Dew isn’t known for ‘pineapple-flavored’ drinks (most of their flavors aren’t fruit based at all) so this comes across to me as a boozy version of Cactus Cooler, a southwestern soda that tastes a bit like a Big Stick Popsicle in drink form. Mix this thing with cherry and it easily would’ve ranked higher in our list.

The Bottom Line:

Decent, it feels like it’s missing an ingredient but as it stands it’s a nice mix between high carbonation, pineapple, and malt liquor.

Buy Hard MTN Dew Baja Blast Pineapple here.

4. Hard MTN Dew — Baja Blast Punch (Taste 3)

ABV: 5%

With Hard MTN Dew dominating the bottom half of this ranking, I think it’s safe to assume where we stand on the idea of boozy MTN Dew. The Baja Blast Punch delivers a medley of hard-to-pin-down fruity flavors that might end up being your favorite because it’s so hard to define.

You can’t just easily dismiss it as a “bad pineapple drink,” it’s noticeably fruity, and… since you can’t define the flavor, you can’t say it’s a bad version of any one flavor.

The Bottom Line:

Fruity but hard to decipher, and better for it.

Buy Hard MTN Dew Baja Blast Punch here.

3. Tampico — Hard Punch Island (Taste 1)

ABV: 8%

Hard Tampico is noticeably boozier than Hard MTN Dew, with 8% ABV rather than 5%, which means the kick here is much stronger, but at the same time, much more bitter. You can really taste the malt liquor here, and it combines with this medley of tropical fruit flavors in a really off-putting way.

It’s easier to swallow than most of the Dews, but it tastes like some sort of unholy union. Like a fruity cocktail made with really cheap vodka.

The Bottom Line:

Too strong for its own good. Tampico Hard Punch packs a punch, but that strong malt liquor flavor doesn’t pair perfectly with this blend of fruity flavors.

Buy Tampico Hard Punch Island here.

2. Hard MTN Dew — Baja Blast (Taste 2)

ABV: 5%

I like this, I don’t know if it’s the nostalgia or what, but Baja Blast is the best flavor Mountain Dew makes and this tastes exactly like you slipped some cheap grain alcohol into a fountain cup full of Baja Blast. It’s not good in the way a perfectly crafted margarita is but… it gets the job done!

I’m sure I’ve mixed Baja Blast and alcohol on my own in the past. Now I don’t have to because the brand is doing it for me!

The Bottom Line:

Baja Blast with an alcoholic kick, what could go wrong? (Narrator: Everything)

Buy Hard MTN Dew Baja Blast here.

1. Tampico — Hard Punch Citrus (Taste 4)

ABV: 8%

Far and above the best of this tasting class, Tampico’s Hard Punch Citrus mixes tart and zesty citrus flavors with enough alcohol to result in a buzz, and for that, it’s our favorite. I’ve had a lot of these hard fruity beverages, White Claw, Truly, Vizzy, Topo Chico, Spindrift — I’ve never had one that is as juicy, sour, and tasty as Tampico Hard Punch Citrus.

And with 8% ABV, it manages to be a lot stronger than the majority of brands on the market.

The Bottom Line:

The fruitiest, juiciest, and most boozy canned malt liquor drink currently on the market. Without a doubt, Tampico Hard Punch Citrus is good, no childhood nostalgia for the brand is even necessary.

Buy Tampico Hard Punch Citrus here.

Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse is out now and racking up rave reviews. Its soundtrack, produced by Metro Boomin, has been equally well-received, although it might not reach the same high watermark as its predecessor. That’s because the original Spider-Verse soundtrack, released in 2018, contained “Sunflower,” one of the most successful songs ever — whether from a movie soundtrack or not.

In a new interview with Variety about his twin roles in the film’s production (he also makes a cameo as one of the many alternate universe Spider-Men), he says he didn’t let the success of “Sunflower” intimidate him. “‘Sunflower’ was a great record — was it 17 times platinum or something like that, something insane? And things like that don’t happen often, so I didn’t even want to go into it with the mind of how am I going to top ‘Sunflower?’”

“So more than trying to make a song that’s 20 times platinum, I just wanted to focus on making a great album and a listening experience from top to bottom that you’re just going to want to keep playing. So there might not be a ‘Sunflower’ or a song that’s like 15 or even 10 times platinum or anything like that, but there might be a bunch of songs that people really love and make and integrate as a part of their everyday lives.”

Among those songs is “Hummingbird” by James Blake and “Mona Lisa” by Dominic Fike, both standouts that fans have taken to like a spider to a string. Meanwhile, of his Metro Spider character’s appearance in the film, the St. Louis star said “it really blew my mind.” “I’m still not thinking it’s going to land in the movie,” he admitted. “So we just read the lines before the screening one morning, and everybody just bust out laughing. But then for them to animate the character and put him in the movie with my dreads and the bandana, it was just so surreal. Especially coming as I’m a lifelong Marvel and Spider-Man fan.”

You can check out the Metro Boomin Presents Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse album here.

As promised, on Tuesday Chris Christie became the latest challenger to Donald Trump for the 2024 GOP nomination. He’s not portraying himself as some Trump-lite. He’s all about tearing his ex-buddy a new one, in a go-for-broke attempt to de-MAGA the Republican Party. Christie entrée into the primary race seems to have broken Fox News. As an example, anchor John Roberts (no, not the Supreme Court justice, that must be confusing for everybody) went off on a bizarre milkshake monologue for which he quickly had to apologize.

As per Mediaite, after Christie formally threw his hat into the ever-widening ring, Roberts, during a group discussion, launched into the longest and most byzantine soliloquy about milkshakes since There Will Be Blood:

We wonder about the net effect on the race, and to use a modification of a metaphor we were using on the panel earlier today. It’s like, you have two milkshakes, right. If the Republican Party is two milkshakes, and this one representing almost half the party — because that’s what the polling shows — has got one straw in it, and that’s Donald Trump’s straw.

And the other milkshake, which represents the non-Donald Trump part of the Republican Party, has how many straws in it now? And now we’re gonna have Chris Christie’s straw in there, and judging by Chris Christie’s physical stature, he could drink a lot the milkshake if he wanted to. But you’re not affecting the Donald Trump milkshake.

For one thing: This is one strange metaphor. For another, Roberts probably shouldn’t have made that little tangent about Christie’s weight. Indeed, even the Fox News host realized fat shaming was not cricket, and he soon stopped the show dead to tell Christie he was sorry:

I just want to take a moment to address something, because I really do feel terrible about it. Earlier on the show, I was making an analogy to describe the Republican voter pool, and I made a comment that I meant to be light-hearted, but I immediately realized was hurtful toward Governor Chris Christie. I should not have said what I said. I deeply regret it and I sincerely apologize to the governor.

Roberts has a checkered if inconsistent past as a Fox News pundit. On one hand, he challenged Kayleigh McEnany when she tried to whitewash her old boss (now enemy) Donald Trump over his comments about white supremacists who like him. On the other, he once spread COVID-19 vaccine misinformation after Colin Powell’s death.

(Via Mediaite)

Cancel culture strikes again. Trump supporter Patrick Stedman, who did nothing but participate in a tiny, inconsequential coup of democracy itself, has now been kicked out of his dad’s wine club.

The South Jersey local is currently on trial for taking part in the Jan. 6th insurrection — a coordinated attack by angry Trump voters who hoped to stop the certification of Joe Biden’s presidency. Stedman tweeted his involvement in the mob assault that afternoon saying, “I was pretty much in the first wave, and we broke down the doors and climbed up the back part of the Capitol building and got all the way into the chambers.” He also shared a video of himself in former Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office. Despite the evidence, Stedman refused to accept a plea bargain, claiming he didn’t engage in any violence or property damage during the siege.

He’s also arguing that he should avoid jail time because he’s already been punished enough via his restricted social life. While fundraising the money needed to pay his attorney fees, Stedman described how he’s been ostracized by family and friends for simply trying to “defend” the country he loves.

“Classmates and family members informed the FBI on me. I was disinvited from family gatherings,” he wrote. “My father and I were kicked out of the wine group he founded 40 years ago.”

Not the wine group, you guys!

Stedman’s also disappointed that his attempt to overturn a presidential election has been met with such outrage that he may no longer be able to move to Poland to live with his wife. What’s worse, he can’t even look at old wedding videos anymore because, “nearly none of the people I see are people I speak to.”

Really, what is prison compared to the loss of annual father-son wine tastings and those balmy Polish summers?

(Via Courier Post)

I’m not sure what’s going on these days with Marjorie Taylor Greene’s political strategy. Granted, she’s been a puzzler for awhile, to the point where it’s hardly worth trying to comprehend her perspectives. Yet it’s notable that the congresswoman from Georgia has been at odds with several of her far-right BFFs lately. She fought with Lauren Boebert in the bathroom and lost Matt Gaetz by supporting the “sh*t sandwich” of a debt-ceiling deal, which has also apparently caused a “divorce” between Greene and Steve Bannon.

Greene doesn’t seem to care about essentially having zero political allies now, though. When she gets her mind set on something, things get strange. She gets laser focused and acts like she’s never heard of, say, “disgusting” porn websites. This also seems to be the case with climate change, which Greene has perhaps just now realized is a threat to humanity. That’s the vibe that one gets from her bizarre faux-concern about how “migrants in America” shouldn’t be here because they would be subject to natural disasters.

“Natural disasters. Talk about climate change!” Greene sounded uncharacteristically aghast on the subject. “We have an extremely diverse climate. We have a wide range of natural disasters. 97 natural disasters occurred in 2021. I don’t think that it’s very safe for migrants in America. These natural disasters include wildfires, heatwaves, droughts, winter storms, cold waves, tropical cyclones…”

A not-unfounded take on social media: “I think MTG just became aware of problems with the climate.”

Ruth from Ozark also has something to add.

From there, no one is sure what to make of this display. “Bless your heart” is one cutting response, and no one knows what Greene’s point is, other than putting her anti-immigration spin on everything.

There are a lot of things that are impossible to explain to people who haven’t experienced Grey’s Anatomy: the operation on a deer episode, the bomb inside a body cavity plot, or the ghost sex sequence. For an outsider, it sounds silly, but you must understand that it’s silly from the inside, too. Nobody was really taking this seriously.

But for every bizarre episode about a lion attack in downtown Seattle or a man who swallowed 10 American Girl Doll heads, there will be a heartbreaking moment between the flagship couple Derek and Meredith. Most notably, in season two when Meredith is pleading for Derek to “pick” her to be with (as opposed to his literal wife…. but that’s a whole other story). Of course, this was back in 2006 back before TikTok existed, but Meredith’s monologue helped inspire the idea of a “Pick Me” girl, who is the Gen Z equivalent of “Not Like Other Girls” trope (a distant cousin of The Mary Sue).

Ellen Pompeo, who played Meredith Grey for nearly half of her life, spoke with her former co-star Katherine Heigl about the significance of the scene, which she seems to regret nearly two decades later. Pompeo has been watching Grey’s Anatomy with her teenage daughter and seeing the show from the eyes of a TikToker with too much internet access, and that’s when she learned that her character might have spearheaded this movement, which she was trying to avoid. Via Variety:

POMPEO: So, OK, this is a real thing. My daughter and her friends, they sit around and they’re like, “Oh, she’s a ‘pick me girl.’”

HEIGL: Oh, my God! Is that what that means?

POMPEO: Yes. I’m like, “What’s a pick me girl?” They were like, “You know, girls who are like, ‘Pick me, choose me!’” And I’m like, “Hello?! Do you know who invented the ‘pick me girl’?”

HEIGL: That’s incredible.

POMPEO: Listen, I don’t know if you remember that I fought that speech so hard. That’s another really interesting thing about life — some things that I was so against, and I was like, “I can’t beg a man on TV! This is so embarrassing.” And then it turns out to be one of the most famous scenes ever.

HEIGL: It was a beautiful scene.

POMPEO: In the scene, I’m crying, but I’m really crying because I have to beg a man on television.

Again… this was 2006. There were worse shows airing at the time, so begging a man on television was not that strange. But out of context and plastered on TikTok, sure, it is a little off-putting. Not enough for Pompeo to leave the show, as she starred as Meredith for another 17 seasons. There are at least 13 other times she cried to a man on the show, but maybe those were warranted.

Still, she is fine with most of the stories from the early days, while Heigl is doing her best to forget about her ghost sex arch.

HEIGL: There would be scenes that I would be so embarrassed to be sitting next to her watching. I’d be like, “Can we fast forward this moment?”

POMPEO: Yeah. This is sex with the ghost.

HEIGL: Yeah, that. The oral sex with the ghost while somebody else was watching in the room. I don’t know how I’d explain that.

While it might seem like she’s looking back with a laugh, please keep in mind that this was not a weird, one-off episode of Grey’s with the ghost sex plotline. It didn’t resolve until NINE EPISODES LATER. So yeah, who cares about the “pick me” thing? There is a lot of unresolved trauma here. Also, this show is still on, in case you forgot.

(Via Variety)