ye olde halloween

halloween is actually my 2nd favorite holiday, right behind thanksgiving. it involves food (well, candy, which is the best food), fun costumes, and a little bit of scariness. every year, i get a bit nostalgic for the old days of trick-or-treating and coming home to sort through my loot while watching some spooky movie or tv show. below are just a handful of random things that come to mind when i think about the scariest day of the year during my childhood. what are your favorite halloween memories?

still scares the crap out of me:



a fine, fun movie:

the trick or treat accessory with the most swag:

the worst halloween candy:

the best halloween special:

FALL BEVERAGE THROWDOWN

it's that time of the year when at least half of my daily calories come from whipped cream and flavored syrups. while many coffee establishments have their own signature drinks, starbucks definitely has the most memorable and distinctive ones. of course, i've tried them all. and of course, i had to officially rank 'em.

4. chocolate chai latte

ordered this new lil' offering a few weeks ago, and MY GOD WAS IT DISGUSTING. i should have changed my order when i saw the bumbling old barista ask another employee how to make it, so i guess it probably wasn't concocted correctly, but still. tasted like a whole truckload of chai concentrate was just dumped in there with about a tablespoon of hot chocolate mix. it was actually spicy. um, what? just...no.

3. pumpkin spice latte

probably going to get hate mail for this one, but it's overrated and just not that good -- sorry not sorry. i've realized that i definitely like pumpkin better in theory than in food or beverage, but i like me some pumpkin pie, pumpkin spice coffee, etc., etc. the latte is okay, but there is definitely such a thing as too much pumpkin flavor, and i've experienced it far too many times to take the risk.

p.s. i seriously love how mcdonald's is just totally stealing starbucks' shine and jumping into the pumpkin spice latte game. not even changing the name. gangsta.

2. caramel apple spice

a solid choice, which i actually happen to be drinking right now. like, let's get real, it's basically just apple cider with a caramel drizzle and whipped cream if you're feeling suuuper cozy, but it's quite delicious, and satisfies all of my fall-lovin' cravings. y'know what i mean?

1. salted caramel mocha

the salt. the sweet. the chocolate. the caaaaaramel. if i was charged to invent a delicious cold-weather beverage, this would be it. i usually get ambitious with a grande and then feel like i'm gonna vom/fall into a sugar coma by the end of it, but it's so, so worth it. i know salted caramel is super trendy right now or whatever, but that doesn't mean it's not amazing.

what are your favorite autumnal drinks?