Five Holiday Must-Haves.
By Carrie Gavit
App: Drizly
Join in on the newest way to enjoy a drink or two in Austin: Drizly. Austin is only the seventh major metropolitan city to receive access to Drizly, the fastest and most convenient way to receive beer, wine and liquor via its Apple and Android app. After downloading the application, users select from thousands of products, priced similar to retail stores, and they are then delivered within 20 to 40 minutes. Don’t miss this opportunity to enjoy a night in, now that both your food and beverages can be delivered to your door!
Album: Shivery Shakes, Three Waves and A Shake
Support local Austin band Shivery Shakes as they create music featuring styles from ’60s pop and surf rock, to garage. They recently released their first full-length album, Three Waves and A Shake, which is available for $7 at shiveryshakes.bandcamp.com. Stream a few of their hit singles, such as Hold On, and scroll through their merchandise. Head over to their newly created website to keep up with their show schedule. The band returns to Austin in late November after touring, so don’t miss out on their Vinyl Release Party at Studium on Dec. 5, or their performance at The ABGB on Dec. 19.
Book: The Flatlanders (University of Texas Press)
Explore local music in The Flatlanders: Now It’s Now Again. Austin author and music journalist John T. Davis shares the true story of three friends who became music legends in a unique way. The Flatlanders began their career in Lubbock, Texas, recording an album that was never released. After going their own ways with solo careers, the friends reunited 20 years later, forming a band and releasing their albums More a Legend Than a Band and The Odessa Tapes. Their music features a mix of country, folk and rock styles that Davis captures in this book while also exploring why music was and is so important to Lubbock.
Gadget: Chargerito
Constantly suffering from the conundrum of dealing with a dying appliance or lugging around multiple chargers with lengthy, tangled wires? There is a solution to both of these issues: the Chargerito. The world’s smallest phone charger is only 2.1 inches by 1.3 inches, and the prongs are flush until you need to plug it into an outlet. Your tablet or phone sits on top of the charger until you’re ready to move on. The Chargerito is available for $26 in two versions—either an Apple lightning or micro-USB—at chargerito.com. What’s even more impressive is the Chargerito functions as a car key fob and is complete with a built-in bottle opener. What more could you ask for from a phone charger? It makes the perfect stocking stuffer as well.
Website: Man Crates
Looking for birthday, Christmas, graduation or anytime gifts? Man Crates tags its site as having “The Most Awesome Gifts in the World,” featuring specific categories to search through in order to find the perfect man gift. Beware, you will not find a typical present of another tie for work or cologne. Instead, you can maneuver from the jerky and meat gifts, to the sport and hobby gifts, to the zombiepreparedness gifts. Add personalization to a gift by adding a name on a whiskey glass or by creating your own custom crate. Visit mancrates.com to find that perfect gift for the one-of-a-kind guy.
