A Few Favorite Things That Aren't Books

I don’t know if it’s due to the challenges of creating content for 30 consecutive days or simply a desire to mix things up a little, but lately I’ve been seeing posts crop up here and there in which bloggers share lists of their favorite things. And while I let plenty of blogging bandwagons pass right by me--and I'm not NaBloPoMo'ing this year--I think I’ll jump on this one.

Every now and then I’ve wanted to blog about some product I’ve tried but haven’t wanted to build an entire post around it, and I think an occasional “favorite things” list could be a way to handle that. It may become a recurring feature, or not. We’ll see whether making the list itself becomes a favorite thing.

A Few Favorite Things That Aren’t Books: Fall 2011 Edition

App (iPhone/iPad)

Downcast is a podcast catcher/player that Lifehacker raves about, and I usually pay attention to their tech recommendations. It’s not a free app, but it won’t set you back much at $1.99--and yes, you can listen to podcasts through iTunes, but this dedicated podcast app allows streaming for immediate listen as well as downloading, and won’t make you lose your place in your music playlist. In fact, Downcast doesn’t require iTunes sync. If you use the Audible app for books, you’ll find some similarities in the interface and operation, but you can add podcasts from any source, and the search function is very effective.

Speaking of...
Podcast

Extra Hot Great is a pop-culture discussion (mostly TV and movies) from a few of the folks who originally brought you Television Without Pity (if you once knew Dave and Tara as Glark and Wing Chun, then you remember TWoP before it went corporate). They produce a weekly hour-length show and mini-casts (5 minutes or so) several days a week. (Thanks to Mike for originally pointing me to this one!)

“Hot” makes me think of …

Food

Honeycrisp Apples. OK, that wasn’t the best segue; they’re best eaten cold or at room temperature rather than hot, and I’m not sure they’d bake very well, but Honeycrisps are the tastiest apples I’ve ever tried and one of the best things about autumn. They’re only available in stores for a few months, so I’m getting my fix while I can!

Speaking of...

Fruit-related products

(that you eat)

YoCrunch Fruit Parfait is lowfat vanilla yogurt with strawberry puree, packaged with about a tablespoon of granola and meant to be mixed together. I’ve been off yogurt for awhile, but this is bringing me back, partly because I like the texture that comes from adding in the granola (although the taste isn’t bad either). There are other parfait flavors that I haven’t tried yet; there are also YoCrunch varieties with Oreo and M&M mix-ins, but I at least want to pretend I’m eating this stuff because it’s supposed to be healthy.

(that you don’t eat)

The Body Shop Banana Conditioner is not for conditioning your banana (bad double-entendre alert!), so that must mean it’s made from bananas. My curly/wavy hair needs regular conditioning to keep it from going crazy. I tried, and loved, the Banana conditioner years ago--and then The Body Shop discontinued it (of course). Now it’s back, and I’ve discovered it works nicely on skin as well as hair. I mix a little in with body wash and can skip after-shower moisturizing--and whether it’s on hair or skin, a little goes a long way.

What are a couple of your favorite things right now?


Disclosure: None of the items mentioned in this post were offered to me for review purposes. All opinions are my own, and based on my own purchase/use experiences.