When I was young, just a couple years ago, one of the biggest highlights of my Christmases was to drive around and scope out all the awesomely decorated houses and Christmas lights. Anyone remember the entire BLOCK of houses near the turnpike overpass and Taft Street in Hollywood in the 80’s or 90’s? Every single house on this street would get together to create one elaborate Christmas display- they even had postcards! Sadly, it seems each year it becomes harder and harder to find such holiday enthusiasm. Thankfully, Sun-Sentinel put together this little gem which maps out all the houses in your area for your viewing pleasure. It even includes pics and descriptions. Here are a few addresses to get you started. Happy hunting and Merry Christmas.
Davie– 9904 W Tree Tops Court- Thousands of lights, Santas, Frostys, trains, elves
Ft Lauderdale– 1131 SW 9th Ave- 200,000 lights, helicopter on roof
Hollywood– 5200 Thomas St- A show every half hour, lights synchronized to music
With the arrival of ALDI in November, came much anticipation for the discountgrocery chain which would be the first in South Florida of their thousand plus stores across the country. With their “honest to goodness savings” motto and German roots, could this perhaps be the IKEA of food? Or, dare I say, the answer to our Trader Joe’s prayers? We did the investigating and are here to report this is sadly not the case.
With most non-perishables around just a few bucks, there’s no denying the store is significantly cheaper than your average supermarket. However, my dreams of neat little European aisles stocked of quality products pretty much dissipated upon taking a closer look. More than anything, ALDI is probably most comparable to a deluxe Dollar Store of food, with the addition of produce and meat.
The store itself is smaller than expected and largely full of processed and packaged goods. Naturally, most products are off brands, with the exception of a handful of items like Ghirardelli brownie mix and Kit-Kats. Maybe some spending-inducing music (there was none at all) would help minimize the Twilight Zone feeling.
The store will undoubtedly be a saving grace for those on a tight budget or even those willing to make separate trips to collect their weekly goods. Grape tomatoes at 99¢ a container is hard to beat. But for the health-conscious and those still hoping for a Trader Joe’s or its equivalent, we’ll have to keep holding our breath. If you are still curious enough to venture out, BYOB (bring your own bags).
ALDI Deerfield Beach is located at 3825 W Hillsboro Blvd.
While you may be thinking “once is enough” when it comes to watching boat parades, there are actually several good reasons for you to change it up this weekend and drag your butt to the water to partake in the annual event this Saturday. While the $200 Grand Marshal Showboat tickets and $21 Birch State Park Grandstand tickets are both sold out, lucky for you you can view the parade for FREE along the intracoastal anywhere from the Broward Center for the Performing Arts to Lake Santa Barbara, South of Atlantic Blvd. According to the Winterfest website, East of the Stranahan House is supposed prime-time viewing space.
This years theme of “Dancing Through the Decades” will appropriately feature everyone’s favorite overly-exposed Dancing With the Stars’ co-host Brooke Burke. If you’re lucky, maybe you can catch a glimpse of her dazzling shadowy figure from the shore. Make it a little more interesting by bringing a flask and taking a swig every time you hear her name in the crowd, double duty if it’s paired with any adjectives pertaining to her “hot” or otherwise described body or its parts. (Drink responsibly, there will most likely be kids on every side of you)
Though it’s expected to warm up slightly by the weekend, a slightly cooler night will still offer two bonuses: an excuse to snuggle up to your paramour and an opportunity to practice your adult version of hot chocolate. If you need some pointers check out some of these drink recipes; or simply add a shot of Bailey’s, Kahlua, or Peppermint Schnapps to your thermos of Swiss Miss.
It may be somewhat of a family affair, but it’s still an anticipated yearly event for the young and old and it’s never too old to start your own traditions whether by yourself or with your SO. If anything, it’s a decent opportunity to get your fix of increasingly diminishing Christmas lights. The 39th annual Winterfest Boat Parade is to take place this Saturday, December 11th at 6:30 pm. Get there early to get a good view. Check out the mapped route here. Also, read Miami Bike Scene’s post about the Red Bull Barge Spin, a floating BMX park that will be making an appearance in this year’s parade.
A couple of months ago we griped about the “Fort Lauderdale”, a drink featured via video on eHow which oddly enough has yet to be found elsewhere on the web. Consisting of a couple of light alcohols and the juices of a couple of orange and lime wedges, we were simply not satisfied. Enter Jamaican ginger beer, the tropical carbonated beverage with a punch, and one of Florida’s major exported citrus: the grapefruit (Florida produces 54% of the entire country’s grapefruit), and we have the FTL Mule.
In the 1940’s, a little thing called The Moscow Mule happened to America, tripling the sales of vodka production which was previously only available here or there by way of Polish and Russian immigrants. It simply consists of ginger beer, vodka, and lime juice. It rose to popularity in the 1950’s and has since produced several variations. There is the Three Legged Mule which substitutes vodka for Jameson Irish Whiskey, the Old Grove Mule which subs the vodka for rum, and numerous others. So why not an FTL Mule? After several attempts in our alcotory, the FTL Mule was born. Try it out and let us know what you think. PS- don’t forget your copper cup.
The FTL Mule:
1 part vodka
1 part fresh grapefruit juice
4 parts ginger beer soda
Here’s a video tutorial on how to make Fort Lauderdale’s newest drink. The intro and outro music is REBEL – Stampede and The Jameses – Rat People, respectively.
“The nicest thing about the mule is that it doesn’t make you noisy and argumentative, or quiet and sullen, but congenial and in love with the world. One wag of its tail and life grows rosy.” -Clementine Paddleford, New York Herald Tribune’s food critic, 1948
