Sweetest 4th of July Part 3: Concerts

By Marketing Intern on Jun 30 Filed In Events, Live Music 4 Comments

Photo courtesy of Boston College

If there’s anything we love more than a delightful glass of homemade goodness, it’s music! So when compiling a list of the sweetest things to do this 4th of July, we knew concerts needed a section all their own. If you’re from a small, Texas town like myself, then you probably associate the 4th of July with small-town bands that cover old country classics like “Strawberry Wine” and “Friends in Low Places” while the locals cut the rug in their Sunday’s best. While those concerts have never failed to show me an exceptionally good time, I couldn’t help but wonder about some other sweet spots where my fellow Americans would be jammin’ out this 4th of July.

As it turns out, Willie Nelson’s 4th of July Picnic is a pretty big deal here in Austin, Texas! And why wouldn’t it be with a line up like Randy Rogers, Kris Kristofferson, Billy Joe Shaver, Billy Bob Thorton & the BoxMasters and Willie Nelson himself? It seems that country music lovers have been gathering to this extravaganza since 1973, and this year will be no exception!

On the other side of the country, blues lovers will be gathering for the 23rd annual Safeway Waterfront Blues Festival in Portland, Oregon. This 5-day music festival (that begins July 2nd) is the LARGEST blues festival on the West coast, with a stellar line-up of more than 100 performances, featuring bands like Mingo Fishtrap, Austin’s own Porterdavis, Sultan’s of Slide and Commander Cody & The Lost Planet Airmen. Not only will blues fans get to jam out to great music during their holiday, but their hard earned dollars will also benefit Oregon Food Banks that work to eliminate hunger statewide!

For those celebrating July 4th in our nation’s capitol, there is the Concert from the West Lawn of the Capitol building. Performances at this venue will include Gladys Knight and Reba McEntire–two legends of their own genre! If you can’t make it to D.C. for this super sweet concert, no need to worry because you can catch it live in spectacular high-def on PBS!

These are just to name a few, and wherever it is that you decide to celebrate your 4th of July don’t forget to make music one of the main events!

Are there any other sweet, 4th of July concerts we should know about?

Sweetest 4th of July Part 2: The Parades

By Marketing Intern on Jun 29 Filed In Activities, Events, Intern 4 Comments

July 4^th is getting closer and closer and it’s about time people started figuring out how to celebrate America’s 234^th. Yesterday we discussed some of the coolest fireworks displays that will be taking place all over the country, but the 4^th of July isn’t just about fireworks. Another very important tradition is the parade. After all, what is a more fitting way to celebrate our country’s independence than decked out vehicles and giant balloons that resemble famous cartoon characters? It just makes sense. So here are a couple of the sweetest parades taking place on Sunday around the country that are sure to be memorable.

: photo courtesy of music celebrations.com

National Independence Day Parade, Washington, D.C.

At 11:45am on Constitution Avenue between 7^th and 17^th Street, Washington, D.C. will be hosting one of the biggest and most famous parades in the nation, the National Independence Day Parade. It will feature high school marching bands from all around the country, military officials, floats, and possibly more red, white and blue that you’ve ever seen before at one place at one time. So if you live around the D.C. area, join the hundreds of thousands of spectators on Constitution Avenue for this fun and patriotic procession.

Huntington Beach’s “A Star Spangled 4^th” Parade, California

It’s a good sign when a parade in a town of 200,000 brings in over 250,000 spectators. This is the case for Huntington Beach’s “A Star Spangled 4^th” Parade in Southern California. This parade seems to pull all of the punches, with candy, clowns and ponies for the kids, military heroes, bands, and what is sure to be a surplus of good ol’ American spirit. The parade starts on Main Street at 9:00am and goes all the way to Gothard Street until about 11:00am.

What are some other cool July 4^th parades you know?

Sweetest 4th of July Part 1: Fireworks!!!

By Marketing Intern on Jun 28 Filed In Activities, Austin, Texas, Events, Uncategorized 6 Comments

Photo courtesy of www.hollis.nh.us

As the 4th of July approaches, I get more and more excited as it is the one day a year that it is perfectly acceptable to play with fire and eat your body weight in barbecue. Here at Sweet Leaf, we know that you can’t very well do one without the other and expect to have the greatest 4th of July EVER! So, Sweet Leaf Harrison and myself have found the sweetest spots around the country to celebrate our nations independence and found some great barbecue recipes and party ideas that will take your 4th of July to the next level! So, we’ll get started with a bang as we countdown the sweetest places in the country to play with fire.

At number three, we’ve got the Queen Mary July 4th Celebration & Fireworks Show in Long Beach, CA where party goers can dance the night away in the nightclubs that are throughout the ship with DJ’s and live performances. If you’re celebrating this spectacular holiday accordingly, feel confident and free to unleash your musical talents at the karaoke bar. And those feelin’ really classy this 4th of July can purchase the Queen Mary VIP pass, which includes a 4-level pool party with a VIP daybed lounge, open bar and a dinner buffet. Oh! I almost forgot to mention…it’s the best view of one of the largest fireworks shows in all of California!

At number two, we’ve got the 37th annual Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular, which takes place in (you guessed it) Boston, MA, right over the Charles River to be exact! This year’s show will feature awesome fireworks, church bells and howitzer cannons, plus musical performances by the Boston Pops Orchestra & country music artist Toby Keith.

And finally at number one, we’ve got the one and only Macy’s Fireworks Show that takes place over the Hudson River in New York City. This fireworks show features more than 40,000 shells that explode at a rate of 1,500 shells per minute (That’s an InSaNe amount of fireworks!!!) Not only that, but the sparks reach to 1,000 feet in the air making this show visible for miles! The greatest part of this show (which is its trademark) is its “Golden Mile”, which is a shower of golden sparks that stretch for a mile across the river! As if that weren’t awesome enough, but this year’s show will have an extra mile of sparks that will shower down in shades of green and red! Ahhh America!

These are just a few of the best shows around the country, and if you’re here hangin’ out in Sweet Leaf country definitely check out the largest fireworks show in Austin–the H-E-B Austin Symphony 4th of July Concert & Fireworks show over Lady Bird Lake!

What’s your favorite place to watch fireworks?

Sweet Love

By Guest on Jun 28 Filed In Austin, Texas, Events, Sweet Consumers 2 Comments

Anyone who knows me, knows that the way to my heart is simple: a bottle of Sweet Leaf Mint & Honey Green tea. You’d be hard-pressed to find me at a rehearsal for a play without one. So it stands to reason that the way to my heart was also one way to my fiancé Dave’s heart at the beginning of our relationship.

Dave and I first met during rehearsals for The Laramie Project at The City Theatre almost two years ago (and, yes, Sweet Leaf was present). We became friends during the run and then, owing much to chance, we were cast together in a new show just as Laramie was ending. We started hanging out at local coffee shops, studying lines for The New Jersey Book of the Dead, which was to be staged at The Hyde Park Theatre. During this time, as you can predict from the headline of this posting and his current moniker of fiancé, Dave moved from being my good friend to my leading man.

Photographer, Will Hollis Snider

At the end of the run of Jersey, I assembled my collection of empty Sweet Leaf bottles from rehearsals (some of which Dave had purchased for me); and, with a hot glue gun in one hand and a strand of sequined trim in the other, I embarked on a new craft project for my fellow cast members that would end up showing Dave just how much I cared for him. I attached the trim to the glass, tied on coordinating tags (Dave’s tag served as his first love note from me), gathered some Texas wildflowers and—voila!—vases. Then the debate: do guys—especially ones as macho as Dave—really want flower vases from tea bottles that have beads and sequins on them? The only answer I can give is that apparently my guy does. I mean, come on…it’s Sweet Leaf! A year later, I stumbled across the bottle, which Dave tucked away in a drawer full of mementos from our relationship.

So, now we’re planning our wedding and reception, and we’ve decided on a picnic theme, which captures our love of fun, outdoor get-togethers. Budget and beauty are big considerations. Well, several weeks ago, Dave and I were sitting in Café Mundi—at a read-thru for another show, Rabbit Hole—when I discovered a wedding planning solution in my hand. Sweet Leaf Blueberry Lemonade in a mason jar. How cute and perfect is that? Tie on a fun, printed ribbon, place a votive candle inside, and they’ll be beautiful, whimsical candles at our picnic that pay tribute to how our story began—a wonderful reminder of just how sweet life can be!

Photographer, Will Hollis Snider

Rachel McGinnis Meissner is a freelance writer/illustrator/actor in Austin. Befriend her and Sweet Leaf on Facebook.com.

It’s National Bring Your Dog to Work Day!

By Danny on Jun 25 Filed In Austin, Texas, Sweet Leaf Dogs 7 Comments

As some of you may already know, Sweet Leaf Tea Co. is a HUGE advocate of dogs in the office. Heck, we have at least two in the office every day. Sometimes three. We used to have more, but they played too hard and caused a ruckus. Now we have a doggie schedule for each week to minimize these incidents.

The pups are great for company moral, stress relief, looking cute, and snuggling [See Below].

: @SweetLeafAshley and @SweetLeafDanny Snuggling with Bayer

But it’s not just great for the awesome peeps that work here. It’s also awesome for the dogs. They get pets, attention, love, and fun all day long.

Between the 23 people that come into the office daily, we have more than 10 dogs that get to cycle through on the reg!

Today is a day that celebrates taking dogs to the office, “National take your dog to work day!” It was created in 1999 to celebrate the great companions dogs make and to encourage their adoptions from humane societies, animal shelters, and breed rescue clubs. To learn more about the organization behind the day and more general information about “National bring your dog to work” day click HERE.

Here in Austin, there are several ways to adopt a pup in need. One of my personal favorite organizations to adopt pets through in Austin is Austin Pets Alive! They rescue pets, that are perfectly healthy and able to be adopted from the shelters that are about to put them down. Then, foster them through a network of volunteers that can keep the animals until they are adopted.

Anyways, check out our pups that we keep close to our hearts here at SLT – HQ’s.

-@SweetLeafDanny