Blog Posts

One of Our Favorite Board Games is About Making Wine

Welcome back to the Randolph Towers Blog! Today we highlight one of our favorite board games: Viticulture. The next time you host game night in your Arlington, VA apartment, consider playing a strategic board game all about making wine. What it’s about: When playing Viticulture ... “You find yourself in rustic, pre-modern Tuscany, where you’ve inherited a meager vineyard. You own a few plots of land, an old crush pad, a tiny cellar, three workers…and the dream of owning the best winery in Italy. “Your job is to allocate your workers and helpful visitors to complete various tasks throughout the year. Each season is different on a vineyard, so the workers have different tasks they can take care of in the summer and winter. There’s competition over those tasks, and often the first worker to arrive at each one has an advantage over the rest. “Using those workers and visitors, you can expand your vineyard by building structures, planting vines, and filling wine orders as you work towards the goal of owning the most successful winery in Tuscany.” Why we love it: Viticulture is a beautiful game with many colors, outstanding wooden components, and clever gameplay. The rules are easy to understand. There are also plenty of online tutorials that can teach you and your friends how to play. The game was designed for one to six players, so whether you’re at home alone or have a few friends over, you’ll be able to play. Viticulture is a great board game about the challenges of making wine. We hope you enjoy playing it this month for your next game night. Share your favorite board games to play by leaving a comment for our readers below. We’d sure love to read about them. Maybe we’ll even add them to our game collection.

How to Improve your Sleep Quality

Back in February, we helped residents of our apartment community find the mattress of their dreams. Today, we’re focusing on helping our residents sleep better. A good night’s sleep can make all the difference for your work day and can help reinvigorate you during a stressful week. We hope that you trying out these tips helps to improve your sleep quality in your Arlington, VA apartment. One Word: Comfort Make sure that your bed is a place of rest and relaxation. Reserve your bed for sleeping only. Don’t check your phone, your email, write, read, or watch TV while you are in bed. By reserving your bed as a sleeping space, you will find it easier to fall asleep at night and minimize distractions. Two Words: Minimal Stress The Mayo Clinic writes that stress can damage a night’s sleep . Manage your stress by eating healthier, unburdening your mind in a journal (or with another resource like a therapist or a friend), and setting a schedule for your daily tasks. You will be amazed at the difference less stress can make when you are trying to get to sleep and stay asleep at night. Three Words: Bright Light Exposure According to Healthline , one tip for sleeping better is to increase the amount of bright light exposure that you’re currently getting. “Natural sunlight or bright light during the day helps keep your circadian rhythm healthy. This improves daytime energy, as well as nighttime sleep quality and duration. In people with insomnia, daytime bright light exposure improved sleep quality and duration. It also reduced the time it took to fall asleep by 83%. A similar study in older adults found that two hours of bright light exposure during the day increased the amount of sleep by two hours and sleep efficiency by 80%. While most research is in people with severe sleep issues, daily light exposure will most likely help you even if you experience average sleep.” Thanks for visiting the Randolph Towers Blog!

Healthy Eating Begins in Your Apartment

Before you start making drastic changes to your eating habits, understand that you don’t have to be perfect to have a healthy diet. In fact, eating healthy does not require you to remove all the different foods that you enjoy — you don’t even have to change everything right at once. If you’re planning to eat healthier, the Randolph Towers Blog hopes to help. Here are a few key points to remember to get you moving in the right direction at a pace that’s right for you, setting you up for success. Prepare your meals. By cooking your own meals you can be the boss of what goes into your food. Studies have shown that preparing your own meals will help you eat fewer calories, eliminate added or unnecessary sugar, and combat feelings of depression. Avoid late-night eating. Start eating dinner early (around 14 to 16 hours before breakfast the next day). Eating when active and giving your digestive system a good break each day is a great way to help regulate weight. Eat with others when possible. People tend to overeat when alone or in front of the television. Drink a lot of water. Don’t mistake thirst for hunger. Staying well-hydrated is a great way to help you make good eating choices. Replace the unhealthy foods. Cutting back on unhealthy foods can be difficult. Many people struggle with this because they don’t successfully replace those with healthy alternative foods. An example is to replace trans fats with healthy fats — goodbye fried chicken and hello grilled salmon! We hope that these tips help you move in the right direction when it comes to healthy eating. What suggestions do you have to help with eating healthy in your apartment? Share with our Arlington, VA apartment community residents by leaving a comment below.

What to Blog About in June

Are you a blogger? If so, what topics do you cover each month? The Randolph Towers Blog is sharing a few ideas that will hopefully inspire you in your blogging endeavors this month and next. Check out our suggestions below. A kind act or word from someone, or a good aspect about others. There are plenty of not-so-great things in the world happening, but there is also a wealth of great things happening that don’t get the attention they deserve. Recognizing those things can make you more optimistic about life, so share that realization by spreading goodness. It will help you feel better about life, encourage others to keep up the good work and improve your relationships with others. Something you like about yourself. It’s always a good time to recognize the attributes about yourself that you think are awesome. Whether it’s your sense of humor, your kindness, or a quirk, there are many things that make you you. So practice some self-love and find yourself! Something you’re passionate about. If you have a blog already, you’re probably blogging about something you’re passionate about. But you don’t have to just have one passion or stick to your usual topic this month. Try something new this week — a potential skill or hobby, or even a new way of thinking — and write, draw, or make a video about what comes of it. Something you’re grateful for. Think about and express in some way at least one thing you’re grateful for. Whether it’s your favorite apartment amenity, something life-saving like food or water, a luxury like a great donut shop, or a good day at work, there’s something to be grateful for each day. We hope you feel inspired as you blog in your Arlington, VA apartment, or wherever you might be. Have a great month!

Make Parkour Part of your Workout Today

Welcome back to the Randolph Towers Blog! Today, we’re excited to focus on Parkour. Ever heard of it? Keep reading to learn about this great exercise and discipline! Picture this: You’re running from a hungry lion and only one thought is on your mind: “How do I get away from him before he eats me?” Before you have time to change thoughts you notice a table getting closer. Your thoughts race. You could go around the table, but why waste time? The lion will be that much closer. So instead, you jump over it, land, and keep running. There are more tables in the way and jumping takes a lot of energy, so you use a Kong Vault — diving forward over the obstacles and pushing off the tops with both hands while tucking in your legs. You’ve now passed over the obstacle just as quickly, but you’ve made the movement more efficient and saved energy. Behind you, the sound of the lion’s soft yet powerful roar fills the air, but you don’t look back. Instead, you run towards a rail, jumping over it as you place one arm down to propel your body sideways and guide its motion with your hand. You see a building with a low roof only thirteen feet high. You charge at it. Only a few feet away, you push off of the ground with your left foot and begin to run up the wall. Your body shoots up. You reach high with your hands and pull yourself over the top. You keep running along the rooftop and jump over a small gap. As you land, you notice the sound of silence. You’ve won. You’ve managed to outrun the lion. Parkour is by no means a “new” exercise, but it is something that we’re excited to add to our workout routine as we approach the summer season. Parkour is first, moving from point A to point B in the fastest, most efficient way possible. Second, you are using your physical abilities and the surrounding environment to help get you through this path that you have chosen. As you saw from the example, the surrounding environment could be tables, bars, or even walls. You’re basically using your surroundings to your advantage. Check out this video on First 5 Beginner Parkour Moves to learn things like the basic roll, safety vault, wall run, turn vault, and precision jump. You can also check out Parkourpedia , an online resource to learn about Parkour, its history, and strength exercises. We invite you to switch up your exercise routine with basic Parkour movements. Get out of your apartment and explore Arlington, VA in a fun and exciting way. Thanks for reading!

Chocolate & Bubbles: Our New Obsession!

Welcome back to the Randolph Towers Blog! In today’s post, we’re excited to focus on bubble baths! Have you ever heard of a chocolate bubble bath? Get ready for a recipe that will blow your mind! Lavender Bubble Bath Before we get into the recipe that we’re all excited about, let’s start off with something a little more classic like lavender. In order to make this recipe, you’ll need one cup of castile soap, one-quarter cup of vegetable glycerin, and 20 to 30 drops of the essential oil of your choice (the recipe uses lavender as an example). Simply combine all ingredients and mix. Then carefully pour the bubble bath mixture into a glass bottle for storage. Use about one-quarter cup for each bath. Chocolate Bubble Bath This recipe is made by using dried milk powder and unsweetened chocolate. From reading about it, it sounds like the key to getting this bubble bath just right is the amount of chocolate. While the recipe calls for a specific amount in the ingredients list, one person found that adding a little more makes things extra nice. This recipe comes from Jamie Geller, who shared all the ingredients that you’ll need, including the following: one cup of unscented bubble bath, one-half cup of dried milk powder, and three ounces of powdered unsweetened chocolate. Prepare yourself for a bubble bath that smells great and is simple to make. This is also a great place to begin if it’s your first time making a bubble bath. Mix the powdered milk and chocolate well, until blended. Stir this into the unscented bubble bath. Then add the mixture to your bath (the amount is up to you). Thanks for reading! Share your own recipes for a soothing bubble bath with the rest of our Arlington, VA apartment community by leaving a comment below. Have any other ideas for relaxation? We’d love to hear about them.