The Friday Five, 2/24/23: 5 things I've been up to this week

This week was much better than last week, probably because I was in Destin, FL (technically, Miramar Beach) from Sunday through Thursday for a work trip. It was about 68 to 73 degrees daily, and I was able to squeeze in some beach time Sunday and Wednesday, as well.

Hilton Sandestin, probably one of the best views from a room I've ever had
Hilton Sandestin, probably one of the best views from a room I've ever had

What I've been up to this week:
  1. Attending ECRM in Destin, FL. ECRM is a conference that connected buyers and brands, for the most part. They have a few every year, and this one was the Christmas and Halloween edition (for Halloween/Christmas 2023), so I got to check out new products that will be hitting stores later this year. 
  2. Staying at the Hilton Sandestin. This was a beautiful resort, and my room had a full beach view, which was fabulous—some of the others had a partial beach view (most of my meetings were in other hotel rooms, which had been reset for meetings—i.e., beds were taken out, and there were tables or desks involved). The only issue is that you really need a car—to get "off campus" so to speak (and it was definitely a "campus"; you had to go through two security checkpoints to get in), I had to Uber or Lyft. 
  3. Having some good food. Breakfast and lunch was provided by the conference, but on Monday, they took us all out to Tuscany Italian Bistro, which was tasty—I think my favorite things were the chicken marsala, and the tiramisu and cannoli for dessert. On Sunday, I ordered Thai food from DoorDash, and I got some mango sticky rice, which was awesome—it's hard to find in the Detroit area, and when you do find it, it's usually not good, except for Detroit Shipping Company's. Only issue was that they forgot to give me cutlery, which was a problem, since my hotel room didn't have any. On Tuesday I had tacos via DoorDash for dinner and on Wednesday night I took myself out to Emeril's Coastal, for a steak and a drink. 
  4. Seeing Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania again. Kinda. Turns out there was an AMC theater next to Emeril's, so I grabbed myself a ticket on A-List and saw about 3/4 of this movie, since I accidentally slept through it the first time I saw it, last weekend. I left after the parts that I missed, but it turns out I missed a LOT of backstory on the villain, so I'd now give this movie 3/5 (I was waffling between 2.75-3.5 earlier). Still a fun movie though, I'd just recommend waiting for Disney+. 
  5. A long day of travel. There are *no* nonstop flights to Destin from Detroit, and your choices are basically Delta, via Atlanta airport, or Southwest, via Nashville; I took SWA because it was a lot cheaper. On the way there, I had a 2.5-hour layover, so I checked out the Minute Suites (a benefit of my 10 Priority Pass visits I get through a new credit card), and was able to take a 45-minute nap, which was awesome, since I had been up since 4am that day. On the way back, I didn't have time for that, but I did get some good BBQ. Yesterday I left the hotel at 1:30pm EST (12:30pm CST; Destin is on CST which is odd, most of Florida is EST) and didn't get home until about 10:45pm, so it was a rather long day.
Rum tiki drink from Emeril's Coastal restaurant
Rum tiki drink from Emeril's Coastal restaurant

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