SafeHaven of Tarrant County's HeartCard Program

One thing I love about Camp Bowie is how active and charitable the community is. So many businesses on the Boulevard are participating in the HeartCard program, benefiting the SafeHaven of Tarrant County.

The HeartCard program is a great way to support a fantastic charity, and get some wonderful discounts. If you purchase the card, you’ll receive a 20 percent discount at the following Camp Bowie businesses:

• Black Eyed Pea Restaurant

• Byrd and Bleecker

• European Skincare Institute

• Facelogic

• Inscriptions on the Boulevard

• Inside Out Designs & The Pleasure of Home

• Into the Garden

• Kay’s Hallmark

• Lane-Miss Knight

• Marty & Pat’s Frame Shoppe & Art Gallery

• Miss Molly’s Toy & Candy Shop

• P.S. The Letter

• Prim & Proper

• Sally’s Flower Shoppe & Gifts

• Sandra Sampson Interiors

• Toy Works

• Winners All Dance & Gymnastic Wear

• Working The Flea

• Wright at Home

• The Enchanted Florist

See you out on the Boulevard, everyone!

Relax The Back

We bricks aren’t known for our flexibility. Quite the contrary, in fact. We’re actually a euphemism for inflexibility. Just because we’re tough on the outside, doesn’t mean we’re not softies on the inside– we’re kind of like baguettes.

         As regular readers of my blog know, I am a hard-partier, but I’m also trying to take care of myself a lot more these days. It’s a difficult balance to strike, since I’m meeting so many new people and going to so many new places on Camp Bowie. Popularity is as much a curse as it is a blessing.

         I needed something to relax and repair my partied-out brick shell. So I went to Relax The Back on the Boulevard, and found some great ways to keep myself limber, relaxed, and ready for the next all-night rager.

         That store has more than I ever could have imagined. I found some chairs that will heal me, just by sitting down. I sat in something called a Zero Gravity Recliner, which takes all of the strain off of your vertebrae. We bricks have had a long and sordid history with gravity, so I felt a little apprehensive at first. But once I sat down in one (and then another, and another, etc…), I knew I had found my body’s new refuge!

         Go see for yourself all of the products, chairs, and other ways Relax The Back can make you a more flexible and relaxed person. Try those chairs out while you’re there. If it can help this road-weary brick, it’s sure to do wonders on your soft human backs! 

The Zero Gravity Recliner did wonders for my back!

Fort Worth Music Festival

This brick likes to party. I think I’ve made that pretty clear by now. I have never in my life partied as hard as I did at the two-day Fort Worth Music Festival. I mean, the weather was perfect, there was so much to do, so many bands to see, so much to eat, and so much art to enjoy.

         I am something of a culture vulture, so I headed straight to the art tents and was amazed by the talent of some of our local artists. I saw some pretty amazing watercolors, prints, photographs, jewelry, and more!

         I worked up an appetite taking in all of that stunning art, so I headed over to the food area. Choosing between Salsa Limon, Big Dawg’s in Cowtown, the Yum-Yum! Food Truck, and Button’s was near impossible. I chose to start with some Salsa Limon tacos, and work my through the rest later. Eventually, I managed to hit them all, and was pretty full by the time I enjoyed my after-dinner slurpee. I washed everything down with some delicious ice-cold beer from Rahr & Sons Brewing Co. from right here in Fort Worth.

         Speaking of Rahr, I got to witness the brewmeisters conduct a demonstration called “Brewing 101,” and learned all about how to make beer! Foodie that I am, I was the first in line to sit in on the Fort Worth Culinary School’s cooking classes. I seriously stepped up my gastro game. Now I have some delicious recipes for my next date night.

         The highlight of the festival was of course the music. I ran back and forth from both stages like a man possessed. Local lads, Whiskey Folk Ramblers, opened the festival on the Rahr stage, and singer Amanda Walden kicked things off on the Comerica Bank stage. I stayed all the way through on both days. Dawes’ performance on Saturday was breathtaking, and Kermit Ruffins lit the night up on Friday.

         All of the music acts were awesome, the food was delicious, the artwork inspiring, and the Rahr brew was tasty. I bought myself a cool commemorative shirt, made by Fort Worth Screen Printing Company, so I’ll have something to remind me of how much fun I had. I can’t wait until next year!

I got to do a sound check at the festival!

Texas State Optical

It’s hard to admit it, but I’m definitely starting to feel my age. The first thing to fade was my hearing – or maybe I’ve just been spending too much time at the Mule Pub, rocking out to Poo Live Crew and other loud bands. I’m not about to get a hearing aid (I have an image to maintain). The second thing to fade was my eyesight. I am blind as cinder block (they have notoriously bad vision – one of the thousand ways in which bricks are better).

I visited the kind folks at Texas State Optical on the Boulevard. Dr. Matthew Barber checked out my eyes (I hate the test that blows air into your eye), and his knowledgeable staff hooked me up with the perfect pair of glasses. I look so distinguished now, and I can do that thing where I whip my glasses off dramatically.

         As it turns out, chicks dig me in glasses. They even say I look younger. The best part is, now I can see inside dark bars. I no longer have to waste my time on 6’s. It’s 10’s only for me now! Thanks, Texas State Optical.   

The TSO team hooked me up with a stylish pair of specs!

Legacy Salon And Day Spa (Rachael Maxey)

Sometimes being a bon vivant takes a toll on my body. Sure I’ve been looking after myself a little better these days, but I still have to deal with the stress of being the life of the party, keeping track of my ever-busier dating schedule, and figuring out where to steer my non-stop Camp Bowie party boat next. It’s a nice problem to have, but it still makes my brick-hard body very knotty.

         I needed a massage in the worst way. I waddled down to Legacy Salon and Day Spa, and met up with Rachael Maxey, an award-winning massage therapist. I thought she might be the only person qualified to get knotty with a brick.  And I was right!

         We bricks are usually a massage therapist’s nightmare, but she was professional, pleasant, and melted my stress away. By the time she was done, I felt more like a noodle than a brick.

         Legacy offers loads of other services: hair, waxing, skincare, nails, and more. Their professional, friendly staff will leave you feeling refreshed, and beautiful. Go down there and see for yourself! And if life is just getting too much to handle, go down and ask for Rachael – the only brick-tested masseuse in Fort Worth!  

Rachael Maxey melted my stress away!

Smart Barre

We bricks are not known for our flexibility. Now that I’m retired, I’m trying new ways to keep myself healthy and happy. I was walking down the Boulevard to check out some new jewelry at Chiffoniers for one of my lady-friends, and I passed by Smart Barre. I didn’t know what to expect. Was this a bar that caters to intellectuals who smoke their pipes, stroke their beards, and discuss the works of French philosophers?

         When I dropped inside, a woman named Allison greeted me. She explained to me that Smart Barre is a total body workout that combines elements of ballet, yoga, and Pilates. They don’t really have any brick-specific exercises, but Allison let me participate in a class anyway.

         I’m not going to lie, my brick-shaped body just can’t do some of the movements. But everyone was very supportive, and I was sore in places I didn’t realize could get sore. In short: I loved it.

         For bricks on the go, Smart Barre is offering a 30-minute lunchtime class from 12:15-12:45 on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. There are classes every day except Sunday, but they fill up fast. So call Allison today, and tell her Brick Thurber sent you! 

Allison allowed me to keep my boots on during class.

Chiffoniers

As a brick on the Boulevard, I lived in a something of a bubble. All of my friends were bricks, all of my co-workers were bricks – and we all played brick games (rock, paper, brick; brick toss), and gossiped about other bricks. Now I’m out of the brick race, I’m making non-brick friends – none of who care about what brick is dating what other brick.

         I’ve also had to step up my home décor, since I’m having people over more these days. It’s easy to impress bricks – we pretty much all have the same pictures hanging on our walls: the yellow brick road, the famous brick train, and so on. I waddled over to Chiffoniers on the Boulevard, and the knowledgeable staff really helped me turn my brick hut into a lady-friendly, boutique-y bach-pad.

         Chiffoniers has so much more than home décor. In fact, the boutique also specializes in women’s apparel, jewelry, cute clothing and accessories for the kiddos, and all kinds of gift ideas.

         It’s impossible to leave Chiffoniers without taking home something memorable. Hopefully, all of my houseguests will remember what great taste I have in home décor. And if I happen to meet a special lady, I know the first place I’ll go for a unique gift. 

Chiffoniers is a great place to shop for boutique chic home decor!