Feeling Pinspired

I joined Pinterest last June, but still only have 14 pins.

I love the idea of Pinterest:  "connecting people all over the world based on shared tastes and interests".

It's a great way to organize the interesting things that can be found on the internet (onto boards, such as Decorating, Style, Recipes...), share them with friends, and see boards created by other people, which is "a fun way to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests".

(It really is!)

And still...

14 pins.

Then I read the article From pins to projects: Pinterest in real life, about a woman named Kelly, who realized she was spending most of her time pinning items to her boards, but not actually doing anything with them.

So, she decided to try a different Pinterest-inspired project each week, and write about it on her blog, 52 Weeks of Pinterest.

I don't have quite the same problem, although I haven't done anything inspired by any of my 14 pins either.

But, I decided that I, too, would make an effort.

Not one-per-week (definitely!)...

Maybe one-per-month.

And, in Kelly's honor, I decided that my first Pinspired project would be her first Pinspired project...

Pepperoni Pizza Puffs

These were really easy.

They go from this...

 to this...

in about 30 minutes.

And, they're perfect for watching "the big game"!

Rock Chalk Jayhawk!

Folly

 ... is the direct pursuit of happiness and beauty.  (George Bernard Shaw)

According to dictionary.com, folly is "the state or quality of being foolish".

But I don't know...

The pursuit of happiness and beauty sounds ok to me.

Foolish or not (I say "not"!), Folly Beach, near (where else?) Charleston, South Carolina, is the perfect place to pursue happiness and beauty.

Luckily for me, my friend Gypsy Girl is spending three months on Folly Beach, and was nice enough to invite me to visit.

I arrived on Friday afternoon, and we immediately met up with Mr. Gypsy Girl (Gypsy Boy?) at O'Brion's Pub on James Island.  

I have a running joke with another friend about the generic-ness of Irish pubs (why would you go on vacation and go to an Irish pub?), but this place was away from the tourists, and it was fun talking to the locals, who recommended the SweetWater 420 pale ale, which is brewed in Atlanta, GA (not really local, but close enough).

After a SweetWater or two (three?  I can't remember.), we headed out to Folly, and dinner at The Folly Beach Shrimp Company, where the shrimp is brought in right off a boat out back.  

The next morning, after an early morning walk on the beach (and I mean early)...

we went back to "downtown" Folly for breakfast at Lost Dog Cafe. 

After breakfast, we walked out to the Folly Beach Fishing Pier, 

then hit the thrift stores in West Ashley, where I found a cute vintage plaid wrap skirt for $2.50 (!).

Later that afternoon, after a quick lunch (including fried pickles! Yum! ) at Rita's Seaside Grille back on Folly, 

we took another walk on the beach, this time towards the Morris Island Lighthouse, which was completed in 1876.

That night, we had more seafood, this time at Bowens Island Restaurant,

a local dive where the food is served on paper plates.

After dinner, we stopped at the Folly Beach Brewing Company, which serves flights of an ever-changing selection of craft beers, 

and plays awesome music (Pink Floyd, The Grateful Dead...).

Sunday morning was COLD, so I skipped the morning walk on the beach, but not 2nd Sunday on King, when the main shopping street in downtown Charleston is closed to cars.  

First we had breakfast at Hominy Grill.

It's cute...

and the Shrimp & Grits are INCREDIBLE,

which is good, because...

In addition to the shrimp & grits, we also tried The Big Nasty - fried chicken breast on a biscuit, covered with sausage gravy and sprinkled with cheddar cheese.  (Delicious!)

One thing we didn't try was the Squash Casserole, which I hear is another must-have.  But, I bought their recipe book, so will try to make it myself. (And there's always next time!)

After lunch we wandered along the shops on King Street, then had a quick dinner at the Smoky Oak Taproom on James Island before seeing an incredible Avett Brothers show at the North Charleston Coliseum.

The next morning, I made up for skipping the walk on Sunday by walking from my friend's house to the pier (6-ish miles round trip!).

To quote the Avetts, "the pier is farther than it seems". (At the Beach)

But, we were finding shells, and sand dollars, and crabs (among other critters, alive and dead), so it was fun.

I saved this crab's life.

Later, we did some shopping at Butterfly Consignments on North King Street and The Trunk Show on Meeting, stopping briefly for lunch at Poogan's Porch, where we started with Pimiento Cheese Fritters and She Crab Soup (SO good!), then split a BLT (with fried green tomatoes!).

After lunch, we had about an hour to wander around downtown.

Then it was (sadly) time to go to the airport.

But, I hope to go back soon!