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Ok, these pics are pretty old, but Evan mentioned last night how cool he still thought my office looks with these decals up. Enjoy!

Two more SoyBlendz mentions before the year is over. Will 2006 be the tipping point? I sure hope so!

Reporter Margherita Miserandino of the TheCelebrityCafe.com absolutely loved the SoyBlendz smoothies and even stated in her write-up that “these are some of the healthiest and tastiest fruit smoothies out there.” She was especially impressed when we told her that each bottle provided 8 grams of protein.

Soy Blendz
Fruit and Soy Protein Smoothiez from Soy Blendz are a delicious way to get your protein each day, with 8grams per bottle. All natural and made with whole soy and real fruit juices, these are some of the healthiest and tastiest fruit smoothies out there. They are available in Mixed Berry Medley, Mango/Orange Dream, Orange Citrus Splash, and Strawberry Banana Blast.

The link to the article can be found here

Al Sicherman (a.k.a. Mr. Tidbits) of the Minneapolis Star Tribune mentioned SoyBlendz in his December 1st “Tidbits” column that focused on new organic and natural products on the market.

The link to the article can be found here (registration may be required or use BugMeNot)

So last night was a fundraiser for the Windy City Rollers travel team at The Globe Pub. I had been there before when it was The Lyon’s Den to see Boris the Sprinkler play, but that was like 4 years ago. I think it was just a little over a year ago when that space was turned into what is now The Globe. I’m sure we will probably be spending a lot more time there over the summer when the World Cup series is on since The Globe is a great soccer bar and will be showing all the matches, but I digress.

So we made our way to the back bar, and got a couple of drinks. The place was already pretty full, and there were lots of derby girls in attendance, including our favorites BrokenCherry, Val Capone, and Annie Maim. We also talked for a little while to the very nice Belle Diablo. We are still trying to figure out what we should have BrokenCherry make for our wedding party shirts. We’re leaning towards printing work shirts with a Razorback on Mount Fuji on the back. We’ll see what she thinks of that next time we see her.

Anyway, roller derby was playing on the tv screens, the drinks were flowing, and everybody looked like they were having a good time. However, the karaoke equipment was late, so the evening started out with some raffles for t-shirts and season tickets, $5 polaroids with your favorite derby girl, and derby girl arm wrestling in the corner.

Finally, the karaoke equipment arrived, and people started paying to have a derby girl sing a song. By the time we left, the party was well under way, and the back bar was totally packed. Let’s hope they raised enough dough to send the Windy City Rollers travel team to the national flat track derby invitational in Tucson, Arizona so they can bring the trophy back to Chicago!

So last night was Inspiration Cafe’s annual Christmas party (yes I said Christmas and not Holiday Mr. Bill O’RLY). For those of you who do not know, Inspiration Corporation assists individuals who are chronically homeless, unemployed or underemployed, and struggling with mental illness, substance abuse disorders and social isolation. Amy and I volunteer Sunday mornings at the Cafe, where we serve people meals in a restaurant-style setting. Since we started doing this in March or April, we have gotten to know many of the guests at Inspiration Corporation, and since the Christmas party is a big deal to them, we decided to help serve at the party.

We knew it was going to be different than serving during breakfast, but we did not realize exactly how hectic it was going to be. There were many more tables in the Cafe in order to accommodate all the people that showed up, so moving around with cups and plates was very difficult. Everyone there was in very good spirits, though, and no one minded that it took awhile to get them their orders. The menu was fantastic - mushroom soup, salad, roast turkey, ham, mashed sweet potatoes, collard greens, glazed carrots, real cranberry sauce, rolls, and pie for dessert! Most of our favorite guests and alumni came to the party, including a few that we hadn’t seen in some time, so it was extremely fun. After dinner was over, and all the plates has been bussed, Santa came strolling in with presents for everyone!

So Annie Maim celebrated her birthday on Saturday with karaoke in the basement of the American Legion Hall. We walked in the main door, and were greeted by rows and rows of empty chairs. The faint sounds of karaoke could be heard downstairs, so we headed through the door to the basement. There were a fair number of people downstairs, even though the ceiling was only a little over 6 feet high! Annie greeted us, and I gave her a karaoke version of “Ziggy Stardust” by David Bowie, which she had asked if I could get for her. We had a great time, even if it was a weird place to have a karaoke party. Amy and I sang “A Little Respect” by Erasure, and Rory Lake, karaoke host extraordinaire, gave us each stickers for singing. Evan did not sing, even though I suspected deep down that he wanted to. Val Capone was supposed to have been there, but she was scouting out the Arizona roller derby team who was playing a bout in Madison that night. She had not arrived by the time we left to search for some nourishment other than the kind found in 12 oz cans.

We had brunch the next day at The Horseshoe with Evan and his friend, Nancy. If you have not had Sunday brunch at Horseshoe yet then what are you waiting for? I’m serious. How can you pass up a chance to have all-you-can-eat 14 hour smoked beef brisket, pulled pork, awesome biscuits and gravy, hot links, pancakes and french toast, hash browns, bacon and sausage, cheese grit cakes, etc? Plus, they have a make-your-own-bloody-mary-bar!

Over the course of the brunch, we found out that Nancy went to high school with our friend Travis. How weird is that? I mean we now know two people that escaped Greenville, IL, by moving up to Chicago?!? What are the odds?

In October, the Convenience Store News had a nice SoyBlendz write-up. Now, in the November 15, 2005 print edition, that article was featured in an article about “new beverages that do more than just quench your thirst.” Pretty exciting, since Convenience Store News has a distribution of over 77,000!

Now for some rumors and upcoming SoyBlendz placements. We will be in the Notre Dame student union/hangout, The Huddle, early next year. We also should be in a good number of White Hen Pantry stores the first quarter of next year! Caputo’s Fresh Markets, a four store chain in the western Chicago suburbs that sells Italian and other ethnic foods, will be selling SoyBlendz shortly. We also are getting close to distribution deals with companies in England, Germany, and Mexico, so soon SoyBlendz will be an international drink! Lastly, a distributor in SoCal is interested in SoyBlendz, and has been showing it to 20+ chains, including Whole Foods in Los Angeles, and they have all agreed to take it on except for one store. Southern California here we come!!