Week 126: Nekter

Week 126: May 25th-31st, 2025

Finally, the weather is getting consistently warmer. By Friday this week, the sun was fully out and about, and naturally, the pool called to me. So, I answered. I texted my friend Amanda and asked if she wanted to "rot by the pool," and of course, like any sensible person, she said yes.

We first stopped at Ralph's for a snack run, and I randomly had a craving for a smoothie. It was a gorgeous day out, and a smoothie would be the cherry on top of our pool day sundae. Thankfully, there is a Nékter Juice Bar right next to Ralph's, and we stopped there before heading home. I'd never been to Nékter before, or at least not this location, so I also got to check off my Something New for this week's To-Do list.

The Nékter building feels like any standard smoothie or drink shop, and the big windows made it bright inside. They had a big menu, so we took a minute to decide what to order. Their sizing and pricing was a bit odd. The "mini" started at $7.59 and was 12oz, the "small" started at $9.59 and was 16oz, and the "regular" started at $11.59 and was 24oz. I found myself missing the days a large Jamba Juice smoothie was less than $5. Sure, we're living in a recession, but oh, what the heck, why not break the bank a little more for an unnecessary smoothie? You only live once.

I decided to get a Regular size Blueberry Almond Butter protein smoothie, which is described as, "a delicious, protein-packed mix of blueberry, vanilla protein, house made cashew milk, almond butter, and zero calorie sweetener." My protein powder choice was pea protein, instead of whey, because I usually prefer the plant-based ones in smoothies. Supposedly, the Blueberry Almond Butter smoothie has a whopping 40g of protein. Yes, I paid like $12 for a smoothie I could probably make at home, but where's the fun in that?

Sorry for the bad picture of my smoothie. I am not a professional smoothie photographer.

I think I liked the smoothie, except for toward the end when I got to the bottom of the cup and the remaining bits were a really grainy and strange texture. It also felt like they could have done without the cashew milk and used oat milk instead for a less...weird taste... Amanda got a tropical pink smoothie that tasted like sunshine and pineapples and happiness... but hers didn't have 40g of protein.

As far as weeks go, this one was pretty chill. Most people had Monday off, which made the work week feel less terrible. Some of friends who weren't able to make it to my clay date last week even surprised me with a mini additional birthday celebration on Memorial Day. They worked with my boyfriend to sneakily decorate our garage while I was at my lash appointment. I was genuinely surprised, which is rare, because I usually am incredibly nosy and dislike surprises and prefer to plan everything myself. It was a really sweet gesture that I will cherish forever.

My friends (and bf) mid-set up before surprising me!

Bonus: My generous parents got me the 160-pack of Ohuhu Oahu alcohol markers, and I cannot wait to use them. I printed out swatch sheets and plan to re-organize them to be less chaotic. If you aren't a "knower," as the kids say, the Ohuhu markers are really good dupes for the cult-favorite Copic alcohol markers.

I have waited so long for these beauties!

I'll have to keep you all posted on what I create with them. I am excited to have a "real" marker set, instead of the haphazard variety I've collected over the years for when I make cards, use my Coco Wyo cutie pie coloring books, or just doodle.

See you next week.