singing while drinking is encouraged

I have found through personal experience that there are very few places that allow, much less encourage, patrons to drink large amounts of beer while standing on their seats and singing. Naturally this sounds like a place that I’d love and is too good to be true. But it’s not! Enter the Hofbrauhaus: a place where the servers dress as German beer maids, a man with an accordion leads the drunken chants and inside it always feels like Oktoberfest. Most call it Hofbrauhaus, but I prefer Heaven on earth. Conveniently for me there is one in Pittsburgh, the city of beer guzzling champions. If you’re in the city, try the Dunkel.

family vacations are fantastic. again.

i feel like going on vacations with one’s family is a constant, fluctuating cycle of coolness. when i was little i loved going on vacations to disney or skiing in the rockies. when i was tween i dreaded spending any day i had off of school with the fam. hanging out at the mall or the movie theater with my friends was surely the most important thing in the world at the time. but then when i entered high school and became more mature (i know some would argue with this, but just go along with it) and cultured i began to appreciate my family vacations again, especially when i was allowed to bring my friends with me. now that i am a poor, college senior my feelings towards family vacations have come full circle and i am truly thankful for any family vacation that i can latch onto. this year it just happened to be a fantastic sailing trip through the british virigin islands. i brough a friend, a video camera, and snorkel, of course. had one of the best family vacations ever at the age of 22. i mean who could have a bad time with a father who wears steeler crocs, seersucker shorts, and swedish viking tee? not me.

and i’d rather be backpacking.

it’s a monday. it’s a monday in january. when things are looking that bad, it’s time to break out the summer/winter backpacking photos and reminisce about hot accents, tangy ceviche, sleeper trains, better beer and kayaking on the pacific. Forget about the food poisoning, cat fights, that near-drowning incident and hostel bed bugs. i’m being nostalgic, damnit. and i’d rather be backpacking.

hear this: savoir adore.

Last night dc’s u streeters were in a jovial sort of mood, and made a decent showing at the velvet lounge. They even danced a little. Okay, maybe more of a sway/bop, but it was effort. And some of that swaying was to the lovely, layered, lush (not the drunk kind) brooklyn-based band: Savoir Adore. What’s not to like about a band whose first ep was entitled: “The Adventures of Mr. Pumpernickel and the Girl with Animals in her Throat”? Basically, for those who want a little electro-pop with their stripped-down indie rock (read: xx, beach house), Savoir Adore doesn’t disappoint; listening to their album, In the Wooded Forest, lands you in this fantastical fairytale world of star-crossed hipsters and unicorns where you also might get eaten by a robot. “In the darkness we had time to pretend.” Cool. Shout-out to the velvet lounge sound man, who totally didn’t make me go deaf, and subtract a star from Ra Ra Rasputin, who inexplicably played the same song twice. I noticed.

of those humorists: david shrigley

david shrigley does dry, odd humor (my kind of humor) right. i can look at his drawings for hours and still be amused. i will leave you with a few of his drawings, so you can begin your appreciation as well. i do sincerely hope you enjoy them, otherwise…

fantastic, huh?

the beer snorkel

the next time you go sailing in the caribbean, bum around in australia, or go on spring break trip to panama, don’t forget to bring your snorkel. after a long day of snorkeling, chasing fishies, and basking in the sun it’s time for a drink. this is where the beer snorkel comes in handy. you simply leave your snorkel on or even better continue to snorkel, while someone (or yourself if you have no friends) pours a beer down your snorkel and you drink. now you can definitely be considered a first class multitasker; drinking beer while snorkeling. trust me kids, this is way cooler than those lame, fratty beer bongs.

 warning: this should only be attempted while in the ocean and with a local lager.

or if you are really desperate you can give it a test ride in the bath tub (my roommates suggestion). 

drink this: tactical nuclear penguin

 a new beer has come out from my favorite brew company, brewdog brewery. you may remember them for their beloved punk ipa. but the two geniuses that started this brewery have now come up with the strongest beer in the world, the tactical nuclear penguin, which ranks in with an ABV of 35%. yes, 35!!!. this beer has apparently been “frozen by penguins for 3 weeks at an ice cream factory resulting in the world’s strongest ever beer (ever).” this crazy little beer even comes with a warning on the label that “it should be enjoyed in small servings and with an air of aristocratic nonchalance,” which is exactly the way we prefer to drink here at capslock. now i advise you all to go out and get your hands on one of these and experience all that it has to offer. cheers loves.

outfit post.

back when I was your age: bjorn’s drunk, 1970’s

Back when they were our age…our parents were smashed too.

see this: nowhere boy.

If you think that John Lennon was always a long-haired, zen-like peace-activist with his arms wrapped around Yoko, it’s time to see Nowhere Boy (if only as a manual for how all datable boys should dress). Turns out Lennon was a rebellious little punk who frisked girls in the woods, jumped on the tops of busses, and pissed off austere British headmasters everywhere. His family issues–he lived with his strict aunt while his zany, unstable mother lived down the street–occasionally come off as overly dramatized…but who cares? It’s all true! Not to mention the folky, Elvis inspired soundtrack is totally a better alternative to your next party than some overplayed Bloc Party. I’d mention how cool it is that the flick was directed by a notorious British female of the art world, or that the faux-Liverpool-accented star, teenager Aaron Johnson is a heartthrob…but all anyone seems to care about is that he knocked her up. Whatever. Go find an obscure cinema and see it.