The Friday Five, 1/31/20: 5 things I've been up to this week

You always see those memes that say "we are on the 5000th day of January today" or whatnot but it's kind of true ... this week in particular has seemed really long, for some reason, and today is January 31st. It's been a long month, albeit fun.

Trio of mini desserts at The Whitney, Detroit
Mini dessert trio at The Whitney, Detroit

What I've been up to this week:
  1. Eating out, a lot. And the scale unfortunately reflects it, even though I mall-walked AND did zumba on Monday. Last Friday, my boyfriend and I tried out Zeoli's, in Clawson, because I had a gift card; on Saturday, I had a small birthday get-together with friends at Dae Jang Keum, in Novi, because they're the only place in the metro Detroit area that does unlimited (all-you-can-eat) Korean BBQ. On Sunday, I met with friends at First Watch, in Troy, for book club, and on Sunday night, I took my mom to the Whitney, for her first time there, because I had a $50 "bonus" gift card to use from my $100 Black Friday gift card purchase. On Tuesday, I met up with Yelpers at Hyde Park Steakhouse, for Birmingham Restaurant Week, and on Wednesday, some coworkers and I tried out Adachi, also for BRW. Yesterday I met up with a friend at Rochester Mills Brewing to use my free birthday entree. Tonight my boyfriend and I are FINALLY going to try out Popeye's "famous" chicken sandwich, too; I was waiting because they kept selling out of them.
  2. Seeing movies. Last Friday we saw The Gentleman, which I'd give 3.5/5, although they used the C-word WAY too much (my least favorite word). On Saturday, we saw Parasite (second time for me, first time for my boyfriend) and I stand by my 4.5/5 star rating - it's a must-see film. On Wednesday, we saw Just Mercy, and I liked it a lot although it's slow; it's based on a true story, and parts are kinda crazy because of that (#Alabama, pretty much ...). Jamie Foxx and Michael B. Jordan were excellent in it, Foxx got a SAG nomination for the role. Tomorrow we are going to see Bad Boys for Life and on Sunday I'm going to go see The Rhythm Section.
  3. Switching banks. I'm *finally* going to be free of TCF but the process takes a while. Once my work direct deposit is finally switched over to my new credit union, I can close my two TCF accounts (checking/savings), though I added my mom to one of them a while back so I may need her signature too. It's been a major PITA but I think it will be worth it, my new CU seems great so far. 
  4. Returning to zumba. After like 13+ months away, on Monday night I returned to zumba ... and didn't die. I was a bit sore the next day but it actually wasn't too bad. I forgot how much I liked it so I'm going to try to go 1-2x per week. 
  5. Using up birthday freebies. I got my free meal at Rochester Brewing yesterday, which was pretty tasty, and I also got my (24-ounce!) Biggby drink, a Cocoa Carmello with oat milk, which I drank half of yesterday and will finish up today. A friend suggested I try their oat milk and it's actually pretty good. I have a 4-square Buddy's pizza coupon that we will use tomorrow, too, and today I am getting my free 8 nuggets at Chick-fil-A, although that was not a birthday freebie (just a month of January one, on the app). 
Sushi at Adachi (Birmingham, MI)
Sushi at Adachi (Birmingham, MI)


    Popular Posts

    Review: Polar Pizza at Baskin-Robbins

    Image
    *Disclosure: I received a gift card to try the new Polar Pizza at Baskin-Robbins. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. Baskin-Robbins launched its Polar Pizza last month (July), as I talked about in my recent post about them, and because this past month was crazy busy for me, I didn't get to try the Polar Pizza until this past Sunday. My parents and I went to the combined Dunkin' Donuts / Baskin-Robbins near them, in Novi, MI, to split one of the ice cream pizzas.
    Read more

    Upcoming and GIVEAWAY: Mamma Mia! at the Fisher Theatre, Detroit, April 23-28 {ends Dec. 12}

    Image
    *Disclosure: I have an ongoing media relationship with Broadway in Detroit. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. MAMMA MIA! will be playing at the Fisher this April, from April 23-28, and I'm excited to see it—I'm a big fan of the movies but I've never seen the Broadway show. About the show: Since premiering in London in 1999 and on Broadway in 2001, the irresistible musical has captured the hearts of millions around the globe. The sunny, funny tale of a mother, a daughter and three possible dads on a Greek island paradise, all unfolding to the storytelling magic of ABBA’s timeless songs, has now been seen live on stage by 65 million people across the world and turned into two record-breaking movies – MAMMA MIA! The Movie and MAMMA MIA! Here We Go Again. To date, MAMMA MIA! has been seen in 50 productions in 16 different languages grossing more than $4 billion at the box office. MAMMA MIA! opened on Broadway in 2001 where it played for a record-breaking 14 year
    Keep reading

    GIVEAWAY: Duel in the D, February 10 at Little Caesars Arena, Detroit {ends 1/10}

    Image
    *Disclosure: I have an ongoing media relationship with 313 Presents. The opinions expressed here, however, are my own. I had a great time at Duel in the D last year—I'm a UM alum, but I had only ever seen ONE hockey game in my life at that point, and this was the second one.  I'm looking forward to it again this year, and one of my lucky readers will win a 4-pack of tickets to experience it as well! About the game: The return of college hockey is headed to Little Caesars Arena with the annual “Duel in the D,” presented by Meijer, set for Saturday, February 10 at 8:30 p.m.  The fans of Hockeytown will be treated to one of the most intense and exciting rivalries in college hockey, as the Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans men’s ice hockey teams will add another chapter in their storied rivalry and clash for the “Iron D” Trophy.  The “Duel in the D” matchup features the most-played rivalry in college hockey. The game will mark the 346th all-time meeting between the h
    Keep reading