Home » Archive by category 'Friends' (Page 28)

Archive of ‘Friends’ category

Popchip Heaven. I’ve arrived.

A BIG thank you to the amazing people at my favorite potato chip brand, popchips, for bringing this GIANT basket of chips to my office so I can share the joy with my colleagues.

 Popchips on display

Can you believe how big this is! Here is the basket of popchips attending my team’s meeting:

Popchips at my meeting

The flavors included are Barbecue, Sea Salt and Vinegar, Salt and Pepper and Original.

My personal popchips story
I first tried popchips last year at the Hungry Girl book signing in New York City. I had heard about them from HG but didn’t know where to find them, so I was excited to snag a few bags at the event. When I tried them I knew I finally found the perfect, healthy chip in a perfectly proportioned bag (100 calories). I was sad that no stores in New York sold them. And then one day I walked into Jamba Juice. And there, under the counter with the other snacks were popchips! I was thrilled to find a place so convenient who had them. They only had Original and Barbecue. I dislike all things Barbecue flavored, so I stuck with the Originals and was very happy.

Months passed. Then one day, I walked into my local Duane Reade and what do I see but an ENTIRE DISPLAY OF POPCHIPS. Really big bags, bigger than I had seen before, ON SALE FOR REALLY CHEAP! I immediately took a picture on my phone and sent it to my good friend Missy who loves popchips (I just checked and I don’t have the pic anymore) and bought a bunch of bags.

Then Missy held a popchips giveaway. Every day she chose a random winner who would receive a box full of Popchips.    Every day I entered, hoping to win. And then on the last day of the contest, a Friday, I get a text from Missy that said, “Omg you actually won!”

When the chips arrived, I was so happy! The boy especially loved them since he is a MAJOR potato chip fan. It worked out since he LOVES barbecue flavor so he ate them all and we shared the rest of the flavors. And by shared, I mean he ate most of them.

But wait, there’s more! The chips started popping up (get it?) at supermarkets! Jubilee, where I do most of my shopping these days, was stocked full of them. Finally I could get my popchip fix anywhere and at any time.

Recently, I received their email newsletter. I’ve gotten a newsletter before from them, but this one was clearly the result of a redesign. It looked fantastic and the writing was energetic, lively and fun. I immediately emailed them to say “Good job” (and to request a sweet potato flavor!) and within minutes the CEO of the company REPLIED DIRECTLY TO ME. Can you believe it? Have you ever heard of a company where the CEO answers customer service emails? He really cares about what people think of his product and tries to ensure that popchips meets everyone’s standards. It really says a lot about their values over at popchips, and proves that they’re more than just a money making vehicle. After all, I am sure the CEO has more important things to do with his time than answer emails — yet that is exactly what he does, and FAST!

The CEO and I engaged in a little back and forth about our love of potato chips, new flavors that are in the works, my sweet potato popchip suggestion and more. (Can you tell I love sweet potato chips?) He offered to send me some coupons for free and discounted chips! He put me in touch with Tory, their new buzz marketing manager. I had read about Tory in the newsletter and was excited to speak with her more. Tory graciously offered to send a popdrop over to my office so I can share with my favorite snackers. A popdrop is something awesome that popchips does where they send baskets of chips to offices so everyone at work can sample popchips. Um, best marketing ever. This company is innovative, creative and clearly loves their product. It also sounds like it would be a great place to work as it reminds me a lot of the theory and environment at Zappos.

My popdrop happened today! A big thank you to Joey who delivered them. As you can see, the basket is enormous. Also, the basket itself is AWESOME. I am excited to use it to hold things when the chips are gone. And the chips, I might add, are going FAST. I already received an email from a colleague who left for the day requesting that I save him some more Barbecue popchips because he loved them so much! Another coworker just told me, “This is really good, I’m gonna take another one.” Then after a few more bites she said, “Where do they sell these? I wish I didn’t know about them because now I’m going to eat them all the time!”

As I sat at my desk, I watched everyone come by and take some chips! Some people took and walked away but many asked me about them. I gladly offered up all the information I have, trying to sell them on the chips. Everyone is curious about where they came from!

And word is spread fast! A few more coworkers came up to the basket to try some chips and chat with me about them. Two ladies told me they heard the chips were here. One said she is watching her weight so these are the perfect snack for her! The other has tried the Salt and Pepper flavor but not the others, so she was excited about that — especially the Barbecue. They asked me where they can find the chips, and I told them what I have told everyone so far — Duane Reade, Whole Foods (which is close to our office!), Jamba Juice, and other supermarkets. They are excited!

And look at the dent everyone made after just 45 minutes:

popchips1

**NEWS ALERT! NEWS ALERT**
I just tried the Barbecue flavor for the FIRST TIME EVER. The verdict? HOLY YUM HOW DID I NOT EAT THESE BEFORE.

I thought my favorite popchip flavor was Parmesan & Garlic (tastes like pizza!) which was not included in my basket, but wowwww the Barbecue is good. The barbecue flavor adds sweetness in to the chip. I never, ever liked anything like this before, but now Barbecue popchips are officially my favorite flavor!

POPCHIPS

For those of you not familiar with popchips, here is some amazing information on this healthy snack:

all the flavor.
where’s the fat.

Introducing an all-natural chip like you’ve never tasted before. We don’t fry it (unhealthy). We don’t bake it (undelicious). We take the finest ingredients, like wholesome potatoes, apply heat and pressure, and pop! It’s a chip. Then we use an artful blend of natural seasonings for a snack so tasty, crispy and dip-able, you won’t even notice it’s (we hesitate to say) healthier.

What’s out? Half the fat of fried potato chips, trans fats, saturated fats, and cholesterol. All gone. For good. What’s popped in? Only what’s natural, tons of delicious, and plenty of crunch.

I like my food as healthy, natural and low calorie as possible. Popchips meets these standards — plus, there are lots of chips in the bag! I didn’t get to put them out until the end of the day, so I need to get some more office reactions tomorrow. I stored the chips under my desk and I will put them out again in the morning so everyone has a chance to take some. And save some Barbecue for myself.

Don’t forget to enter my Free Doormat Giveaway Contest! It ends Friday!

Doormat Theft Is No Laughing Matter

Yesterday I arrived home from work to find that, once again, I was the victim of doormat theft.

Not long after Lim and I moved to our apartment in the city, we came home to find that our doomat was gone. We couldn’t believe it — who would STEAL a dirty doormat?! That thing had been through some gross weather. It was not clean. It was not even a very nice doormat. What would someone want with it?

We decided to call our landlord company. Silly, yes. But we were outraged!

They told us that we have no cause for complaint, and we are not allowed to have doormats anyway because of a fire hazard. Um. What? Illegal to wipe your feet to prevent dirt and mud from getting into the apartment? Whatever. Not important — although it raises the suspicion that it was perhaps an inside job.

We decided to turn this into a building-wide matter. We made a sign and posted it in the hallway.

Doormat 2 Doormat Lim Dori Doormat

 

Obviously, this was facetious. No one would take it seriously. Right? Wrong.

The next day, IT WAS VANDALIZED! I forgot to take a picture of the vandalized version, but I will try to remember tonight and post it in an upcoming post.

Someone wrote on it: “You gotta be kidding.” Well, duh. Do you actually think we were offering a REWARD for a $10 doormat? It wasn’t clear to you that this was a joke? And you actually saw our sign, stopped by our door, took out a PEN, and WROTE on it? You cared that much about what we thought was an obvious joke? Not obvious to you, it seems. Wow.

Yeah, I gotta take that pic for here. I knew I had the above pictures but I didn’t even think about the vandalized one. I am so used to it. We keep the sign inside our apartment now.

Anyway.

When my brother moved to Seattle, I bought him a little going away gift. I saw this in a store and LOVED it, since his name is Matt.

Hi I'm Mat Doormat

How great is that! So I bought it for him and he loved it. He proudly displayed it outside his apartment door. And then one day, it was gone.

SOMEONE STOLE MATT MATT’S MAT!

In this case, it makes a LITTLE more sense than in mine. This is a funny doormat. It has a name. Mat. Clever. My doormat was blue with flowers. Makes a little less sense. But still — who does this??! WTF?!

So I ordered another one online and had it sent to my baby brother. His new apartment is at the end of his own narrow hallway, where the doormat can remain unharmed and present.

Which brings me to the third case. Last night I came home from work to find ….. dun dun dun…. my doormat MISSING. Again. This one was hideous. Brown with fall leaves. WHY? WHY WHY WHY? Why would anyone take it? And this one has lasted through a couple of winters, much more mud, dirt and rain than the last one. What on earth would anyone want with it?

I should put out my (vandalized) sign again.

And what makes this all even funnier is that since my name is Dori and my brother’s name is Matt, my mom always said she wanted to open a doormat store and call it DorMatt. I think the fact that we have both been victims of doormat theft is a sign she should do it! This way, we will have access to an unlimited supply of doormats.

In better news, Jen at PriorFatGirl is giving away custom made granola. Check it out. Also, this weekend the boy and I are taking Core Fusion Sport at Exhale. It was voted Best Guy-Friendly Gym Class at New York Magazine. Here is the class description:

Core Fusion® Sport is a total body workout that is designed to help you improve your performance in sports while reducing your risk of sports related injuries. Using a combination of lateral and twisting movements, this barreless one-hour class will chisel and firm your arms, shoulders, legs and butt while focusing on your core – the center of your strength – plus increase your aerobic capacity.

Very excited! Will review next week.

And finally, my last BIG NEWS of the day — I just signed up to run a 5K! I never did this before! It is the 2009 Wall Street Run and Heart Walk.

Wall Street Run and Heart Walk

The Start! Wall Street Run & Heart Walk is a 5K (3.1 mile) competitive run and non-competitive walk to raise awareness and funds to support the American Heart Association’s mission to build healthier lives free of cardiovascular diseases and stroke – the nation’s No. 1 and No. 3 killers

I registered through my company. It starts and ends where I work. I signed up last year to do the walk but it was a gross rainy day, so I sat out. This year, I plan to run. Please sign up if you want to join!

1 … 26 27 28 29 30 … 37