Seventeen years ago, Ben Stiller and Jack Black teamed up in a forgettable comedy called “Envy” about two guys who are best friends, neighbors, and co-workers at 3M. However, their relationship sours when Black’s character becomes wildly successful after inventing the Vapoorizer.
The Vapoorizer is a powerful spray that makes dog poop mysteriously vanish. Although the invention seemed pretty unlikely at the time it made countless dog owners fantasize about a magical day when they’re liberated from having to pick up after their pets.
Excited to try #RocketBook but why does it remind me of the #VaPooRizer? https://t.co/8Bp4LBjLYU
It’s been 17 years since the release of “Envy” and nobody has figured out how to vaporize doggie doo-doo quite yet. But a new invention called the Beetl may be even better because it hunts down the dog poo for you.
The Beetl is an autonomous robot that cruises your lawn, locates dog poop, and then picks it up with a claw. It’s equipped with computer vision and a front camera that helps it navigate lawns and locate piles of poop.
via Beetl Robotics
“There are over 35 million households in the US with dogs and backyards,” the robot’s creator, Beetl Robotics, says on its website. “Nobody likes picking up poop, so we built a computer vision-enabled robot to address the needs of dog owners everywhere.”
Think of it as a Roomba that instead of sucking up dirt in your house, picks up poop outside.
Just like a Roomba, you can program the Beetl to roam within preset boundaries so it stays in your yard or avoids going into the street.
After the Beetl finds a pile of poop it picks it up and places it in a container you can throw out when full. The Beetl runs on a battery and will charge itself when it’s about to run out of power.
Beetl Robotics says it’s “probably the smartest pooper scooper ever” and that it “relentlessly” hunts and disposes of dog poop. The Beetl also connects to the cloud to learn new ways of detecting dog poop as the technology improves.
Imagine how great it would be if the Beetl eventually developed a sense of smell? Then, it wouldn’t even need a camera.
The company hopes to take the design one step further by creating a Beetl that can mow your lawn as well. This version would be equipped with a sickle-bar grass shear that cuts grass with a mechanism similar to a shaver.
Now, all of this probably sounds great to you, but there’s one catch, Beetl Robotics hasn’t set a date for the product to come to market so you’ll have to wait a little while longer before your poop-free days are over.
But for now, take solace in the fact that one day you will be able to walk across your lawn with confidence, knowing you can do so without stepping in doggie doo.
The age of Instagram and the ubiquitousness of photo editing tools that can completely change the way you look—on a screen, at least—have made body image issues even trickier to navigate than they already were. While “perfect” model bodies used to be the Photoshopped domain of magazines and print ads, now anyone with a smartphone can manipulate their image to be more or less curvy, lean, muscular—whatever the “in” body type is at any given moment.
The problem is that young people see such images and then look in the mirror. Faced with the reality of a human body in all of its normal imperfections, it’s easy to feel down on what you look like, especially when it doesn’t match the (highly edited) ideal version of a human body your favorite influencer shares in her Insta feed.
At least one country is taking action on the issue in an attempt to assuage some of the damage such comparisons can cause. Norway has passed legislation that requires content creators to disclose when they’ve edited a photo. The addition to its existing Marketing Act states that any photo in which “a body’s shape, size or skin has been changed by retouching or other manipulation” must be marked as edited. The reasoning behind the law is that undisclosed photo editing “plays on social insecurity, bad conscience, low self-esteem or contributes to body pressure.”
According to The Hill, the law applies to advertisers as well as social media influencers and content creators.
The issue is definitely real. BBC reports that the majority of kids under 18 said in a UK survey that social media images were “extremely influential” on their body image. Only 5% of them said they wouldn’t consider dieting or getting surgery to change their appearance. Other research has found that social media can be a positive influence on body image when people post body-positivity-oriented content, but most social media influence has a negative effect on body image.
All of this isn’t surprising. But as much as Norway’s requirement to disclose photo edits seems like a move in the right direction, it’s not going to do much to solve the real problem.
I think most people, even young people, know that social media photos have been edited. It’s not like it’s a big secret anymore. If you are on Instagram, you know that people have put automatic filters on their photos or adjusted the exposure, brightness, contrast, etc. to create the most pleasing image. That’s literally the way the app is used by almost everyone.
Filters and lighting adjustments aren’t new, and they’re not the real problem. Professional portrait photographers manipulate lighting and use filters all the time to make people look their best. We’ve all taken photos in bad lighting and wondered, “Yeesh, is that really what I look like?” No, it’s not. Cameras don’t capture exactly what our eyes perceive and the wrong lighting can make us look unnaturally bad. Adjusting lighting before and/or after taking a photo can actually give us a more true-to-life image, as long as it’s not overdone.
Photoshopping bodies, though? That’s a whole other story. Literally adding or taking away skin or fat to change a body shape should be noted. Making someone’s eyes bigger or nose smaller or lips fuller—not to make the image look more like how they really look, but to create an unrealistic ideal—is worth disclosing. But even not all Photoshopping is bad. I’m not bothered if someone uses Photoshop to remove a big ol’ zit from their face, for example, but I do care if they erase part of their cheek to make their face look slimmer. Blemishes happen, but they are temporary. They’re not part of how you really look. But changing the shape of your face or body? That’s what creates unrealistic expectations and body image issues when someone looks in the mirror.
Some might argue that makeup can do many of the same things photo editing can do and can also lead people to unrealistic beauty standards, though. So should makeup be disclosed too? Do we really expect people to only show raw, bare-skinned, no-make-up photos of themselves to be considered authentic? I don’t think so, but the line for what needs to be disclosed is definitely a bit fuzzy.
Still, I don’t think the issue is that people don’t know that images are manipulated on social media. I think the real issue is the normalization of following influencers who constantly share photos of themselves all the time in the first place. For instance, the Kardashians have nearly a billion Instagram followers between them, and almost all they post are selfies in various states of undress. I don’t think disclosing that their photos are edited would do anything to change the impact accounts like that have on their followers.
What we really need to do is teach young people that their value and worth aren’t to be found in what they look like, either in real life or on social media. And neither is anyone else’s, even if they’ve made millions off of their image as their “brand.” Find your worth in what you’re contributing that’s making the world a better place, not in how many compliments your social media images get.
We also need to teach kids to analyze their own habits when it comes to who they choose to follow: If you’re following people who share selfies to get attention or likes or beauty praise, why? What purpose does that serve? Is it actually serving you in any way other than to make you wish you looked different? Are there actually inspiring influencers who are making a real difference in the world that you could follow instead?
Norway’s law might make a powerful statement, but I don’t think it will solve the problem it’s attempting to address. Appreciate the attempt to tackle body image issues, but the real problem goes deeper than any law or photo editing disclosure can go.
One of the best stories of the NCAA Tournament is staying in the NBA Draft.
Jason Preston, a 6’4, 187-pound guard from Ohio University, told ESPN through his agency, Roc Nation Sports, that he was staying in the 2021 NBA Draft. Preston originally declared without signing with an agent so he had the option of going back to school, but will stay in after he reportedly impressed at the NBA Combine.
Ohio University junior guard Jason Preston will remain in the 2021 NBA Draft and sign with agent Drew Gross of Roc Nation Sports, Preston told ESPN on Wednesday.
Hardest decision of my life.. but the time is now!! To Ohio University… I’m so so so THANKFUL and I’ll always be forever GRATEFUL for taking a chance and believing in me. I LOVE YOU FOREVER BOBCAT NATIONBut always know first you always have to BELIEVE IN YOU!! pic.twitter.com/qbmW9FyhXr
Preston’s story is incredible. He averaged two points a game in high school, went to prep school, made his own highlight video and then posted the video to Twitter where it was then seen by Ohio head coach Jeff Boals and resulted in a college scholarship. Last season as a junior, he missed some time due to COVID-19, but also dropped 31 points against Illinois and was the driving factor in the Bobcats reaching the Sweet 16 in the tournament. For the year, he averaged 15.7 points, 7.3 assists and 7.3 rebounds while shooting 38.5% from three and 51.4% from the field.
Where he falls in the draft remains to be seen. He seems to be ranked a high second round pick right now, which isn’t a bad place to be. But perhaps some teams in late first round believe in him enough to take a flier on him there. For what it it’s worth, he spent Wednesday working out with the Lakers, who pick No. 22 overall.
Regardless of where he ends up, Preston has taken the next step from complete unknown to a legitimate NBA prospect who seems like he’ll get drafted later this month. That’s a cool story for someone who took the beaten path to get here.
Warning: This post contains spoilers for the fifth episode of Loki, which went live on July 7.
Disney has always known cute, from the earliest cartoons of its founder, Walter Elias Disney, through The Mandalorian, which lives on a platform that wouldn’t exist without his tireless work almost a century ago. And it looks like, with its third show, the Marvel wing has finally found its Baby Yoda: Its most recent episode featured something that was called “Alligator Loki,” which is as cute as you’re going to get with a creature who could chomp someone’s hand off (and, in the episode, does).
The show’s fifth episode finds Tom Hiddleston’s mischievous antihero surrounded by variants of himself from other dimensions: Boastful Loki, President Loki, Kid Loki, etc. There’s also Classic Loki, played by no less than Richard E. Grant. But one clearly stood out from the rest, including the guy who once played the peerlessly disreputable Withnail: one that’s a small alligator wearing Loki’s ostentatious horned headgear.
In a new behind-the-scenes piece on Marvel.com, Hiddleston though it offered some deep stuff about identity. “The question is, ‘Is he really Loki? Or is he just green?’” Hiddleston asked. “It’s such a funny question that [the Lokis] all bicker about. One thing about Loki is that Loki loves to be right. And they all have a different opinion about this alligator.”
But others weren’t taking it that seriously. Series director Kate Heron had a jokey post about how the lizard Loki is a “diva.”
Happy Episode Five “Journey into Mystery” @LokiOfficial day! Here is one the biggest divas and the most demanding actor I’ve ever had to work with, taking a break from his reign of terror to relax in his chair #alligatorloki#lokipic.twitter.com/3WH57yt0Bz
Anyway, perhaps Alligator Loki can get a spin-off series where he hangs with Baby Yoda (sorry: Grogu), BB-8, and any other recent Disney-owned cute critter. Of course, the last two better watch themselves around this hungry, hungry green guy.
Late last year the hip-hop community was shocked by news of MF DOOM’sdeath. The rapper passed away on Halloween, but his family opted to keep the news from the public until they were comfortable. Now, seven months later, he’ll be honored with a new street sign in Long Beach, New York.
Earlier this year, one Dr. Patrick C. Graham, who went to high school with DOOM, started a petition for getting a street sign named after him. Though he initially wanted to call is KMD-MF DOOM Way” — the first part a reference to the hip-hop duo with which he first made his name — a new report from HipHopDX reveals it will likely be called something else.
“Right now, there’s discussion instead of just ‘KMD-MF DOOM WAY,’ there’s going to be some indication of his actual government name,” Graham told the publication. “That’s all I knew him as was Dumile [laughs]. They were trying to do it before his birthday, but I feel we shouldn’t rush.”
Graham also spoke about the steps he took towards making the street sign a reality. “I had several community members contact me to see if I could get engaged with it,” he said. “I used to run the Martin Luther King Center there, so I still have a close connection to the community. I was born and raised there, went to high school with Dumile. So I said give me a minute and I’ll craft a letter to the City Council based on how I see it and then converted that letter into a petition. The group said they loved it and we moved forward.”
The news comes after Your Old Droog’s “Dropout Boogie,” which features a verse from DOOM, was released.
It’s a strange time we live in, where Joe Rogan is the NewsRadio alum with one of the biggest podcasts in the world. What’s more, one of the reasons it’s popular is because it’s so controversial. The guy who used to make people eat bugs for entertainment has garnered a lot of critics, and a new report reveals some of them are employed by his homebase at Spotify.
As per Insider, some staffers at the streaming service, which has had exclusive dibs The Joe Rogan Experience since December of last year, have taken understandable umbrage with their company helping disseminate a podcast featuring material that may be making the world a worse place.
Things came to a head last fall, when Spotify was inking their deal with Rogan. One employees, writing anonymously on the app Fishbowl, said, “I’m personally bothered by his transphobic comments and am concerned with the way he might spread misinformation.” There was enough pushback that the company held a town hall meeting, but it doesn’t appear it went so well. They refused, for instance, to force their new big get to receive editorial supervision over what he says.
Spotify staffers aren’t the only ones connected with the service to take issue with their big-time colleague. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, fellow Spotify podcast stars, were also not happy with things he’s said about a once-in-a-century public health crisis that is yet to come under control.
In the American craft beer world, there’s no disputing the appeal of the IPA in all its various forms. But before there was the IPA, there was the traditional pale ale — a crucial entry in American craft brewing history. Brass tacks, a pale ale is simply a top-fermented beer that’s brewed using (you guessed it) pale malts. The category of pale ale includes the aforementioned IPA, blonde ale, English bitter, American pale ale, and almost a dozen other offspring.
Today, we’re zeroing in on craft-brewed American pale ales. First brewed in 1980, this style began in the US with the introduction of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Still considered the best example of the style today, it opened the door for breweries all over the country to produce their own versions. While the classic version is recognized for its floral, hoppy characteristics, American pale ales can vary widely when it comes to how the hops are used.
Below, we asked a handful of our favorite bartenders to tell us the best American pale ales for fans of bitter, floral, and citrus-filled hops. Check their entries out and click on the prices if you want to give any of them a try!
Toppling Goliath Pseudo Sue
Toppling Goliath
Shaun Traxler, bartender in Fayetteville, Arkansas
Toppling Goliath’s Pseudo Sue is an absolute killer in the pale ale category. Brewed in Iowa, this single-hop beauty is a perfect pale to session a few of. Toppling Goliath makes this brew using only the Citra hops, known for (you guessed it) its bright citrus notes. It’s only mildly bitter so, again, it’s easy to run back to your fridge to open another only to find that you’ve finished the six-pack. It’s a pale that won’t scare some hop-haters away, but it’s also a pale that IPA drinkers will fall in love with.
Pale Ale is a classic American tradition, and we actively seek out those that are making excellent examples of the style. This has a nice golden color, crystal clear, floral hops up front, hints of grapefruit, and subtle lemon zest are what we look for. It has nice drinkability/crushability at 5 percent ABV, which is what we search for in a pale.
Ozark American Pale Ale
ozark
Emily Lawson, bartender at owner of Foxhole Public House in Bentonville, Arkansas
The Pale Ale from Ozark Beer Co. in Rogers, Arkansas is my go-to. They produce a variety of year-round and seasonal beers. Their pale is a real winner. It’s crisp, hoppy, and perfect for warm-weather drinking.
Indeed Day Tripper
Indeed
Joe Harvey, lead bartender of Thr3 Jack in Minneapolis
The Day Tripper Pale Ale from Indeed Brewing Co. is a must-try if you’re looking for hops but don’t want an IPA. Locally brewed in Minneapolis, Day Tripper is Indeed’s flagship beer. As a medium-bodied pale-ale, and with a reasonable 5.4 percent ABV, you’re able to enjoy the hops of this one more than once. They add four pounds of hops to each barrel of Day Tripper to ensure a delicious hop bitterness with subtle notes of citrus and malty sweetness to balance it out.
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
Sierra Nevada
Jake Conover, general manager at Bruz Beers in Denver, Colorado
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale is, hands down, the showcase industry-standard strive to be pale ale. It’s been around forever, and it will survive the haze craze because it’s everything a hoppy beer needs to be. It’s so hoppy, people even add it to lists of IPAs (with a disclaimer that it’s technically somehow a pale ale).
Bell’s Midwestern Pale Ale
Bell
Lauren Paylor, owner and co-founder of Focus on Health in New York City
Bell’s Two-Hearted is my go-to, but it’s technically an IPA. Bell’s also makes a great pale ale called Midwestern. If you find it, you’ll be treated to a nice blend of sweet barley, pale malts, and floral, citrus-filled hops.
When it comes to fresh, hop-forward pale ales, it’s really tough to beat Lagunitas Born Yesterday with its combination of Sabro, Simcoe, Citra, and Mosaic hops. It’s crisp, floral, spicy, and refreshing.
As a Drizly affiliate, Uproxx may receive a commission pursuant to certain items on this list.
Tim Robinson screams a lot. On I Think You Should Leave, his characters — and pretty much any protagonist not played by him — gets worked up over something patently ridiculous: hot dogs, “complicated” shirts, classic cars they don’t actually own, dirty tables. It’s a schtick he’s evidently been doing since his early days. In a new profile in Vulture, Keegan-Michael Key, who was one of Robinson’s first improv teachers at the Second City Detroit, reminisces about a sketch he did where he made America’s 16th president into a real piece of work — right before he was assassinated.
In the piece, Key describes the young Robinson as “an extremely eager student, always wanted to push, always wanted to figure out a little more.” He remembers an improv sketch in which Lincoln is at the Ford’s Theatre, unwittingly awaiting his murder.
“He just played him like a completely uncouth a**hole who had never been to a theater before,” Key told Vulture. “He just went on and on being disruptive and loud, and [the comedian playing Mary Todd Lincoln] keeps going, ‘Shhh, please.’ At one point, somebody comes to say something to him, and she’s like, ‘Honey, the play!’ And he’s like, ‘This is still going on?!’” Key then made a gunshot sound, bringing the sketch to an ending as sudden as any on his hit Netflix show.
It’s not hard to imagine Robinson’s “uncouth a**hole” version of one of America’s most beloved commanders-in-chief. If he ever did in on I Think You Should Leave, it would probably go on for seven minutes of shouty terror. And it’s good to know that the Tim Robinson of today was pretty much there from the start.
You can watch the second season of I Think You Should Leave on Netflix.
From the episode’s very name to the first on-screen appearance of the “Thanoscopter,” Loki‘s fifth episode offered countless Easter eggs and surprises for Marvel fans. However, out of all of the strange and marvelous things tucked away within the episode, one thing stood out among the rest as the most shocking: the reveal of the obscure and almighty villain Alioth. While Classic Loki (portrayed by Richard E. Grant) was quick to fill us in on what Alioth is — “a living tempest that consumes matter and energy” — we know you probably have a lot more questions regarding, well, Alioth’s whole deal, for lack of better words. While we might not be wearing any cool, golden horns (unfortunately), we’re here to tell you what you need to know about Alioth, their role in the comics, and the trouble their appearance could spell out for the MCU.
Whew, thanks. So first things first: I’ve never heard of this thing! Where is it in the comics exactly?
If you haven’t heard of Alioth, do not feel bad. Firstly because you should never feel bad about not knowing something, and secondly because Alioth is pretty obscure! Alioth made their first appearance back in 1993’s Avengers: The Terminatrix Objective #1, a story arc all about — wait for it — Ravonna Renslayer. In the story, Ravonna (aka Terminatrix) has essentially gained control over all of time and Kang the Conqueror’s (don’t worry, we’ll get back to him) kingdom of Chronopolis. However, as soon as she gets power, she is challenged by both forces in the future and in the past: Revelation (a version of her future self) and the almighty Alioth.
Alioth is the first character who has essentially broken free from the restraints of time. They are a “trans-temporal entity,” existing across timelines as the mass devouring storm we see in Loki. Another interesting fact about Alioth is they also negate temporal energy, making it impossible for people to travel to a time prior to their existence — even Kang. As such, they have an empire even larger than Kang the Conqueror’s and are essentially the only thing that scares the ruthless warrior, leading Kang to create a powerful barrier that prevents Alioth from entering his domain.
Wait, you said Kang again and you promised you’d talk about him more. Who’s that?
Similar to Thanos, Kang the Conqueror (real name Nathaniel Richards) is a major villain for the Avengers and The Fantastic Four. While he doesn’t have any powers per se, the man is an absolute genius, as well as an expert scholar and a master physicist specializing in time travel and engineering. When it comes to what you need to know about him right now, keep in mind two things: the time-traveling conqueror is hopefully in love with Ravonna Renslayer, and is scheduled to make his big MCU debut in 2023’s Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, in which he will be played by Lovecraft Country’s Jonathan Majors.
Wow, so a lot comes back to Ravonna here, huh?
Absolutely. Alioth, Kang, and Ravonna all go hand-in-hand and while they’re not on the same side most of the time, none of ’em are great…usually. I don’t know, man, Marvel is weird. Anyways, remember how I mentioned before Kang created a barrier preventing Alioth from entering his domain? Good! Little more backstory time.
So despite turning him down when he first comes to conqueror her father’s kingdom, at a certain point in the comics Ravonna ultimately sacrifices herself for Kang, proving she does in fact love him despite her not be very eager to say so. When she does, Kang decides to find divergent versions of her to try to keep her in his life. One of them is smitten by him and stays with one version of him as his princess. However, Kang finds another Ravonna variant that is in stasis, and despite him wanting to free her, he messes up his chances to and she remains in that state until she is freed by someone else. Needless to say, Ravonna is pretty upset with him. So much so that she decides to become Terminatrix and fight Kang. After defeating him, she places Kang in stasis and secretly takes over his empire by continuing to use his name. Once she assumes control, she finds out about the nefarious force that is Alioth — but only after she’s essentially destroyed that barrier keeping them away.
A future version of Ravonna — Revelation — then reveals herself, as well as the fact that she is actually the widow of Kang in another dimension who is in charge of leading his former kingdom against Alioth, the prime version of “Kang’s Empire” (aka the one current Ravonna, or Terminatrix, is running), and — wait for it — the Time Variance Authority. When Revelation heard Alioth was free and going to destroy every version of Kang’s empire, she summoned some Avengers (War Machine, Thunderstrike, and U.S. Agent) and sent them to tell Terminatrix she needed to restore Kang from his stasis.
This is so much.
Yeah, it really is, so while we could go on, let’s stop here and go over what this could mean for the MUC.
Thank god. So, what does it mean for the MCU?
It means we have a ton more to think about, and while I know that’s a cop-out answer, it’s the truth. Marvel could go so many ways and all of it would make sense. Firstly, they could keep up the show’s current portrayal of Alioth as more of a guard dog, presumably for Kang. It could be that in the MCU, Alioth is holding back Kang more so than Kang is holding back them, meaning that once Loki and Sylvie get rid of it, Kang is released. If that’s the case, that arguably makes Loki the most important Disney+ series yet, as it will essentially set up a major phase four villain. It could mean the Ravonna we see is the one that becomes Terminatrix (after all, she does love terminating people) and she will end up playing a bigger and perhaps more evil role in the series. We could even see Revelation and/or Kang in the next episode. All in all, it’s looking like Loki somehow ended up the Disney+ show not to miss, despite it seemingly being a spinoff series on a deceased character. We’ll have to wait until next week’s series finale to see how it all plays out.
I recently planned a three-day trip to Ybor City in Tampa, Florida. It was supposed to be a fun and flirty weekend away with a summer fling, but it ended up being a solo adventure to remember. I won’t bore you with the details of my messy dating life, but let’s just say it all fell apart just a few days before we were supposed to leave.
Did it hurt? A little. But was I about to cancel my vacation because of this? Absolutely not. Instead, I decided to follow through with the original itinerary and head to Ybor City (pronounced EE-bor). I had never been to this neighborhood in Tampa, so I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. What I found was a hub for Cuban art and history, an epic nightlife scene, a brand new swanky hotel, and some fantastic food.
First a little background: Ybor City is a U.S. national historic landmark that takes you back in time the minute you step into the neighborhood. Known as the “cigar capital of the world,” it was first put on the map in 1886 after Don Vincent Martinez Ybor (the neighborhood’s namesake) opened a Cuban cigar factory and established a corporate empire. Today, the iconic area is still shaped by the influences of Cuban, Spanish, Italian, German, and Jewish immigrants who worked in the factories or opened their own businesses. By bringing their traditional cultures to the U.S., they were able to create a prosperous community full of diverse shopping, dining, and socializing.
From its beat-up brick-paved streets and wrought-iron balconies to the friendly neighborhood chickens roaming the sidewalks, Ybor City is an antique little nook in an otherwise modern city. And it’s hot all over again right now. Since I was determined to make my weekend in Tampa better than it would have been with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, I filled each day with as much exploring, food, and drinks as possible.
Check my must-dos, eats, and sees in Ybor City below!
Live Like Mr. Ybor at Hotel Haya
Via Chloe Caldwell
For a bit of brand new luxury influenced by a legendary past, book a room at Hotel Haya. Having just opened in the fall of 2020, its accommodations and amenities are state-of-the-art and squeaky clean while still staying true to Ybor’s rich and colorful character. In fact, the property combines two historic buildings with modern-day construction. This fusion includes the Las Novedades building, which was once Tampa’s oldest restaurant, built in 1890, and the Warren building, which was believed to be haunted by Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders. The remnants of old bricks intertwined with new sleek white walls made the hotel’s hallways feel like a time-jumping whirlpool.
The Cuban culture is visually intermixed throughout the rest of the property as well with vibrant red and blue decor sprinkled throughout the infrastructure, lobby furniture, and hotel rooms. The potted green vines hanging from the ceiling in the Cafe Quiquiriqui grabbed my attention the most. This coffee spot is where I spent each morning of my stay…alone (insert eye-roll emoji here).
But the clinking machinery and espresso aromas swirling through the cafe pulled me into what felt like a mini Havana and the tropical-inspired pool area — which comes complete with daybeds, palm trees, and poolside service — kept me safe from any pity parties I might have been tempted to throw.
Do Yoga With Chickens
Via Hotel Haya
One thing I loved about Hotel Haya is that it partners with many local vendors and artists to support small businesses in Tampa. For instance, the hotel puts on a free yoga class with Union Three Yoga Studio every Sunday morning for guests and locals alike. The best part is that the last Sunday of every month is a special “chicken yoga” class. Yes, yoga with real-life gobbling chickens.
Ybor City is filled with wild chickens that have become a welcomed bunch in the community, which speaks to the uniqueness of the neighborhood. This quirky class is in partnership with the Ybor Misfits Microsancturay, which provides care for Ybor City’s injured, ill, lost, and abandoned chickens. I never thought I would think of a chicken as “cute.” But the little feathered friends pecking at my yoga mat while I stretched into Warrior II were truly adorable.
Charlotte (pictured above) was a real treat, confidently clucking her way through the ballroom like a local celebrity.
Indulge in Calorie-Packed Goodness
Via Chloe Caldwell
In my opinion, one of the best parts of every vacation is the local flavor. Of course, I had to get a taste of the cultural cuisine in Ybor City. While I love the mouth-watering delicacies of Cuba, my Italian roots led me to my favorite restaurant in Ybor City. Casa Santo Stefano serves authentic Italian fare with many of its ingredients and decorations imported from family-owned businesses in Sicily. The complimentary bread and olive oil had me salivating before I even ordered the main course. Every person gets their very own loaf of fresh-out-of-the-oven goodness that somehow masters the crispy on the outside to warm and soft on the inside ratio. Housed in a refurbished macaroni factory, the inside of the building is now adorned with hand-painted, colorful backsplashes and tabletops that transport you straight into the slow-paced Sicilian lifestyle. You’ll also see vintage photographs displayed proudly on various walls to represent the founding Sicilian families in Tampa.
If you really want to immerse yourself in the melting pot that is Ybor City, go to Columbia Restaurant. Owned by the same family since its opening in 1905, it serves a collection of Spanish and Cuban dishes like black beans and rice, seafood paella, and tapas galore. Follow this hearty meal with some traditional dessert at Flan Factory, known for its variety of flavored flans and menu of Cuban classics. As a well-established sweet tooth haver, I can be quite the critic of all things sugar. To my delight, the caramel custard aroused my taste buds with every spoonful.
As a small 5’2” woman, I normally wouldn’t take to the late-night streets of a city I’m not familiar with alone. However, I made some friends at the hotel bar who invited me to join their festivities. I decided to embark on the journey that is the Ybor City bar scene with my new squad of locals to show me around. First, we took a quick walk down the block to Copper Shaker Ybor City. With a slew of signature craft cocktails and a live DJ, it was the perfect spot for a few casual drinks and good vibes.
The real party started at Southern Nights Tampa, an LGBTQ+ nightclub. We’re talking LED lights, drag shows, and techno music blasting through the night. I even made my way on stage for a dance party with strangers. An infamous history of wild parties and all-night ragers in previous decades left Ybor City with a less than fantastic reputation, but I found the nightlife to be welcoming, inclusive, and a downright blast.
My headache the next morning was well worth the adventures.
The main stretch of Ybor City is down 7th Avenue. With lights strung across the street from building to building and palm trees lining the sidewalks, 7th Avenue is the social and retail center of the city that’s often used for parades and celebrations. There are tons of wacky shops, local cafes (make sure to order a Cafe con Leche), restaurants, art galleries, and more all within walking distance from each other. There are even a few cigar bars like King Corona.
I’m no smoker, but I had to see for myself what made this neighborhood the cigar capital of the world. When in Rome, right? I could only take a few drags of the heavily concentrated Cuban tobacco before my throat felt like the inside of a crematorium, but I enjoyed the badassery of the experience.
Visit Armature Works
Via Chloe Caldwell
Riverside views, occasional live music, and a classic indoor marketplace full of local cuisine are exactly what you’ll get if you venture just outside of Ybor City to Armature Works in Tampa Heights. It’s a fully restored, mixed-use building complete with event spaces and the Heights Public Market, which was crowded with tons of people scattering to the many popular food spots like hungry ants. There’s also a large turf field with lounge chairs, tables, and lengthy walkways overlooking the Hillsborough River where you can dig into your marketplace grub or take a leisurely stroll by the water.
Getting to Armature Works from Ybor City is a breeze, as it’s only a 1.5-mile drive or walk from the end of 7th Ave. Or in my case, a scooter ride. There are plenty of easily accessible Bird electric scooters in Tampa, so I downloaded the app and made my way out of the neighborhood. Yes, I scootered over a mile in a dress and platform sandals. And yes, Ridin’ by Chamillionaire was on repeat in my head for the entire 10-minute commute.
If you’re a history junkie and want to dive deeper into the history of what made Ybor City what it is today, head to the Ybor City Museum. For a mere $4 admission rate, you’ll get access to several exhibits that showcase the neighborhood’s rich heritage and a Mediterranean-style garden within the Ybor City Museum State Park. Included in your ticket is also a tour of the casita, a small house that has been restored and furnished to look as it would have when it was a cigar worker’s home. An afternoon at the Ybor City Museum takes you through a journey to the late 19th century, exploring all of the intricacies of this long-lived cultural hot spot.
In the end, I found Ybor City to be a great surprise, filled with immense character. In fact, I was glad to have been ditched before this trip because it threw me out of my comfort zone and gave me the motivation to make the most out of this one-of-a-kind historical hub. Dating drama is easy to put on hold when you’re saluting the sun with rescue chickens!
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But always know first you always have to BELIEVE IN YOU!! 
MILF ERA (@antmanstacos) 
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