Free Taco Bell

If anyone steals a base in the World Series, go visit a Taco Bell near you (between 2-6PM on Tues, October 28 or Mon, November 3!  Visit their website for the details.

Freebies

• Ben and Jerry's will give you free ice cream if you bring your "I voted" sticker in on Nov 4.
• Barnes and Noble will give you free coffee any day before November 1.

And Whole Foods will give you $5 off an order of $25 or more by 10/22.

Free night of theater

This organization is promoting theater in various places in the country (including Philadelphia).  See the website for more information, but it starts in October!

Free Starbucks Smoothies today and Saturday!

Starbucks is promoting their new Vivanno smoothies today and tomorrow (Saturday) by offering a free smoothie to customers who register their Starbucks gift card on their website. The e-mail they sent me said that each person can only get one smoothie, but hey--it's free!

Free slurpees!

Today is July 11, which means it's 7-11, which means that 7-11 is giving away free slurpees all day today!!!

Free water ice

Tomorrow (Thursday) is the first day of spring. As always, Rita's Water Ice will be giving away free water ice all day at all locations!

Free pancake day Tuesday at IHOP

It's that time of year again! Visit IHOP tomorrow for a free short stack of pancakes.

Free pictures at Walgreens!

Today, Friday, and Saturday, you can get a FREE family pack of photos. One 8x10, two 5x7s, and four 4x6s...all you need to do is this:

Instructions:
1. Login or Register if new to the site.
2. Upload your photo or choose it from your library.
3. Choose your set (1-8x10 2-5x7 4-4x6's)
4. Click "check out".
5. Enter code: VALENTINE
6. Complete checkout

Free pretzels!

This Saturday, Auntie Anne's Pretzels is celebrating their birthday! Free original and cinnamon sugar pretzels from 10-4 at every location across the country.

Christmas shopping tip

Before I buy anything online, I make sure to check StealDeals.net to make sure there aren't any coupons. I usually check the website twice a day for the latest deals from companies--including free product promotions like Arby's free milkshake.

Recent art events...for free!

Saturday night John, Angie, Pricilla, Sarah, and I saw a production of Romeo and Juliette in the park! I had never seen the play before, and despite the tragic ending, it was a wonderful show. The bowl-shaped park provided an excellent venue for it, and the weather was perfect for the evening's events.

Tonight our Students Run race was canceled due to the excessive heat. It ended up working out well, however, because Sarah and I went to a free concert at World Cafe Live. We got to hear two artists--one from Philly and another from Miami. The Miami guy, Jacob Miller, was great--Sarah even bought his CD! Good timing: I could use some new music before embarking on a 12-hour road trip to Michigan!

Zorbas and more

Our free lunch at Zorba's was delicious yesterday. 10 of us enjoyed a flavorful meal at the Greek-style restaurant. Most of us had never been there before, but I had high expectations after Sarah and I had enjoyed a dinner there several weeks back. I had the lamb platter, which came with potatoes, rice, and veggies. My favorite part about the restaurant is their slow-cooked, juicy meat. Every piece I've tried has been so tender and flavorful! And it's three blocks from Sarah's new apartment...what could be better?

After lunch, Libby, Seth F, Meredith, and I walked off some of the calories by spending some time by the Water Works Restaurant next to the Art Museum and the Schuylkill River. While I neglected to pull out my camera at Zorba's, I managed to remember in time while we were out there. See the pictures here.

Sarah and I had a great date last night, too. We rode bikes through Center City and grabbed some cheap food/drinks at Mission Grill, El Vez, and, of course, Wendy's. (you can't beat beautiful appetizers for $1!)

We went to My Best Friend, courtesy of the free tickets I won at Bastille Day (review? I'd give it a 6.5 out of 10). I'm pretty sure it was the first film I've watched that was completely in another language! It took some getting used to, and I was afraid to turn my head from the screen since I wouldn't be able to catch up with my ears. Living in a foreign country that speaks another language suddenly became more intimidating than ever! I found myself admiring people like Sarah who spent a whole semester of Hope in a foreign land. Will I ever have that chance? Perhaps more importantly, do I have the language skills to do something like that?

And go clean your room!

I feel that's what I ordered myself this week. A good part of me feels like I haven't been doing much recently--even though yesterday I completely organized a pile of papers that have been there since my SENIOR YEAR AT HOPE (that's over two years ago, for those of you keeping score at home). My black filing cabinet is now organized, and I threw a bunch of stuff away. That's usually hard for me because I, Eric De Boer, am a pack rat. Seeing Sarah so effortlessly toss and donate many things in her move has inspired me to downsize a bit too. (thankfully, I can still retain my digital pack rat tendencies...I've saved every personal e-mail sent to me since freshman year at Hope, and I'd be able to go back to high school except that I lost a few years of data somewhere)

Sarah and I had a great weekend together. She, Michelle (new roommate), and I threw a party on her roof deck on Saturday night. A bunch of people came, enjoyed the food, and even met a few neighbors. Her roof deck is a great place to host people--it offers a unique perspective on the city that few people have seen before. Plus, with recent beautiful summer weather, it's a great place for a meal (or a date!). We had a great time being co-hosts, and it was neat to see Sarah serve others in that role. I've only known her to have a small apartment with little seating in Philly, so to host a good number of people is a big change. As with most things, she does it gracefully.

I won free lunch at a local Greek restaurant named Zorbas after I dropped my business card in the monthly drawing when Sarah and I went there for a date. So, tomorrow 10 Liberti friends and I will enjoy free lunch (well, not completely free....we do have to listen to a five minute presentation on financial planning, but the rest of the meal--including tax, tip, and a beverage--is free!). The day might as well be declared Winnings Day, since I also won two free tickets to a preview showing of My Best Friend, a French film! Of course, I'm going to see it with my best friend.

Free TCBY ice cream thru Aug

Print out this coupon; it's good through the end of August!

More free Philly summer fun

I added this to my original post, but I thought I'd make a whole new one for it too since I figured people wouldn't notice:

Wednesday nights at 7:30PM
PhillyCarShare sponsored drive-in movies
Free movies, popcorn, and refreshments!
7/18 Annie Hall at Liberty Lands Park
7/25 James and the Giant Peach at Vernon Park
8/1 Breakin' 2: Electirc Boogaloo at 22nd and Montrose Streets
8/8 The Wiz at Clark Park
8/15 3 Amigos at Pretzel Park
8/22 Rocky I at Capitolo Park
8/29 An Inconvenient Truth at 23rd and Pine
9/5 Ghostbusters at Eastern State Penitentiary
9/12 Spaceballs at UPenn
9/19 Double feature! Cars & The Princess Bride on South St. Whole Foods on top of parking lot

Free Philly summer fun

With some of my spare time, I organized a list of fun summer events for free (or SUPER cheap) in Philadelphia. Let me know if you're interested in one, and we'll go!

Tuesday nights at dusk
Liberty Lands Lawn Chair Movies
Event: Free outdoor movies
Schedule:
July 17 The Atomic Kid
July 24 The Fabulous World of Jules Verne
July 31 Rainbow Round My Shoulder
August 7 Son of Kong
August 14 War Games
August 21 The Kid Brother

Wednesday evenings from 5-7PM
Center City Sips
Event: Cheap food and drinks at different bars
$1 appetizers
$2 beer
$3 wine
$4 cocktails

Wednesday nights at 7PM
Society Hill Dance Academy at 409 S 2nd St.
Event: Free dance lessons/movie in covered area.
Schedule:
6/13 Hairspray Madison
6/20 West Side Story Mambo
6/27 Grease Hand Jive
7/04 Saturday Night Fever Hustle
7/11 Dirty Dancing Merengue
7/18 Swingers Swing/Jitterbug
7/25 Cabaret performance only
8/01 Strictly Ballroom Foxtrot/Waltz
8/08 Chicago Charleston
8/15 Goonies Truffle Shuffle Contest
8/22 Priscilla, Queen of the Desert drag show
8/29 The Rocky Horror Picture Show The Time Warp

Wednesday nights at 7:30PM
PhillyCarShare sponsored drive-in movies
Free movies, popcorn, and refreshments!
7/18 Annie Hall at Liberty Lands Park
7/25 James and the Giant Peach at Vernon Park
8/1 Breakin' 2: Electirc Boogaloo at 22nd and Montrose Streets
8/8 The Wiz at Clark Park
8/15 3 Amigos at Pretzel Park
8/22 Rocky I at Capitolo Park
8/29 An Inconvenient Truth at 23rd and Pine
9/5 Ghostbusters at Eastern State Penitentiary
9/12 Spaceballs at UPenn
9/19 Double feature! Cars & The Princess Bride on South St. Whole Foods on top of parking lot

Thursday nights from 7:30-10:30PM
The Commodore Barry Club, 6815 Emlen Street, Philadelphia, 19119 (West Mount Airy) (www.freestepping.com)
Event: Free step dancing

Thursday nights from 7:30-11PM
Art Museum Steps (http://www.rakdan.com)
Event: Free Israeli Dancing

Thursday nights at 6:30PM
Penn's Landing at Columbus and Market
Event: Free movies and themed activities
Schedule:
July 5 - Bruce Almighty
July 12 - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
July 19 - To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything!
July 26 - It's Christmas in July! How the Grinch Stole Christmas
August 2 - The Wiz
August 9 - The Nutty Professor
August 16 - Kicking and Screaming
August 23 - Curious George
August 30 - Happy Feet

Friday nights at 7:30PM
Penn's Landing at Columbus and Market
Event: Free concerts
Schedule:
July is R&B month
July 6 - Jazmine Sullivan and Eric Roberson
July 13 - Featuring Donnie
July 20 - Featuring Musiq Soulchild and Raul Midon
July 27 - Kindred the Family Soul

August is Smooth Jazz month
August 3 - Jeff Kashiwa and Ken Navarro
August 10 - Jeff Lorber and Paul Jackson, Jr.
August 17 - Steve Cole featuring Cool World
August 24 - Chieli Minucci and Special EFX featuring Nelson Rangell
August 31 - Bobby Caldwell and the Smooth Summer All-Stars

Sunday afternoons from 1-5PM
Penn's Landing at Columbus and Market
Event: Free concerts
Schedule:
July 22 - KeKe Palmer
July 29 - The Jonas Brothers
August 5 - Paul Green School of Rock
August 12 - Lisa Loeb

You can get this for free??

One of my favorite websites has a great posting of things you can get for free...including CPR certification, MIT classes, language lessons, and computer classes. Check it out.

Free stuff

Read this if you're interested in...
free office supplies (good stuff, too! 250 business cards or a personalized rubber stamp or personalized stationary or postcards or other premium discounted items)
free photo mug
free tampons, underware, or deodorant
and a free Oceans 13 movie ticket (this one requires purchasing Oceans 11 and 12 DVDs for $12)

Where does all this stuff come from? StealDeals.

Dealios

Fishtown's shopping plaza near my house has been incredible for deals. Dunkin Donuts (iced coffee), Rita's Water Ice, GNC (free vitamins), WaWa (hot chocolate), ColdStone (I love it size), Arby's (medium fries), and I'm probably forgetting a few. Tuesday Seth and I snagged free slices of pizza from Pizza Hut. We got in RIGHT before the deal ended at 5PM, which ended up being a good thing because they offered us the rest of the box. Yesterday, John, Nate, Seth, and I went to Baskin Robbins for 31 cent/scoop ice cream! We each bought three scoops for $0.96! Not quite free, but about as close as you can get for premium ice cream!

Last night I filled up with gas for $2.83. My dad had called and warned me that gas in Michigan had gone up to $3.25 a gallon! If you had told me gas in the middle of Philadelphia would be 40 cents cheaper than Holland, I wouldn't have believed you. If you're ever wondering where to find the cheapest gas, try using Gas Buddy...it works for most places in the country.

Speaking of gas prices, I found a really good blog post on how to save money on gas.

I can't believe May is here already. Next week is Tulip Time in Holland! This year seems to be flying by faster than most previous, and I'm trying to determine why that is. Living in the city? Living on my own? Having a full time job? Who knows. Maybe I'm just getting older.

Free pizza today!

Visit Pizza Hut between 3 and 5PM today for a free slice of pizza!