Hudson Valley NY Blogger

Summer is here! And, what’s better than a summer weekend? How about the increasingly popular summer Fridays perk, or a full Friday off to kick-start that weekend?! Sam Adams gave my wife and I the opportunity to have a summer Friday on them! When I found out that in 2016, Americans failed to take 662 Million Vacation days I was in disbelief. How are people NOT using all of their vacation days?! I usually take more than I’m allotted at my job! (LOL) How can we work at full function, be creative, and not be irritable with our co-workers if we don’t take time to do anything but work. In fact, a recent study commissioned by Sam Adams showed that more than two-thirds of survey respondents (69%) feel more creative and productive after a few days off work for vacation or a long weekend. Give me any opportunity to get out of work early to have some fun and have a cold one and I’m there. I’m not lazy by any means, I bust my butt during my work hours, but I value my free time and love having fun and spending time with my family. My wife and I took the day to have a little mini #SamSummerFriday vacation within 30 minutes from our house. You don’t have to go on a major trip for you to feel like you’re on a vacation. Any place with some sort of recreation, good food, drinks & good music can instantly take me away from reality. We hit up this super cool mini-golf place where you can play 18 holes, all while walking around with a Summer Ale from the bar! I love mini-golf, and so does my family, but adding a couple cold ones to the game really elevates the experience! You can also enjoy bumper boats, volleyball, and arcade games, again, all while putting some back (WIN!). Once we finished up mini-golf, we headed over to the Poughkeepsie waterfront restaurant, Shadows on the Hudson. I’ve actually been here for a couple of great weddings and even spent a couple nights cutting up the dance floor with wifey, but never actually ate here! I will definitely be back. Their tuna tacos were out of this world, their lobster roll was seriously spot on, and their crab cakes were amazing. During our dinner of apps we got to enjoy the beautiful views of the Hudson River and Mid-Hudson Bridge, all while washing it down with summer’s finest, Sam Adams Summer Ale! The crisp lemon notes of the beer were an excellent completion to the buttery richness of our seafood dishes. This really was the perfect Summer Friday. We had incredible weather, and got to spend time together away from work and away from the everyday grind, with some of our favorite activities, topped off with good food and more importantly good beer! Thank you Sam Adams for reminding us it’s ok to step away, take advantage of the benefits you’re entitled to and have a mentally uplifting day to escape reality and recharge! I’m telling you, I’m always more motivated on the job when I can step away and leave the work at work. Find that balance and give yourself the break you deserve!

For those of you in DC, SF, Tampa, LA and Boston in particular, this reminder is especially for you…you’re the worst at taking your vacation days according to a study from Project: Time Off! To combat that, Sam Adams is taking matters into their own hands, by hosting an exclusive summer “Sam Summer Friday” parties in those cities to help encourage you all to take more time for yourselves to refresh and recharge. Workers in the cities I mentioned can nominate their offices through Twitter using #SamSummerFriday to win an exclusive opportunity to attend the Sam Summer Friday party. For official rules including how to enter, visit www.samueladams.com/samsummerfridays.