A Weekend of Hole-In-the-Wall Restaurants

Posted on February 1, 2015 by brent

Besides beaches and terrific weather, a selling point that is routinely made about Myrtle Beach centers on the restaurants. The area boasts over 20,000 dining establishments, solidifying itself as one of the highest restaurants per capita cities in the country. In Myrtle Beach you will find many of the classy, big name, reputable, and trendy restaurants this planet has to offer. Cool enough.

However, once you get out of the tourist hotbeds you will find areas lined with eclectic, family owned restaurants. These personality-rich eateries are so numerous that if today I started a crusade to eat at a different one daily until I dined at them all I would be on my mission for at least ten years.

For me, my interest in small restaurant gems goes beyond just finding a solid place to find some good food. I am attracted to the real hidden, hole-in-the-wall locations. On my 20 minute commute to work each day I probably pass 100 different restaurants. Tucked away in dusty strip malls, old shopping centers, and intersection-placed stand alone buildings, I keep mental notes on what places I really want to try. With nothing major this weekend going on for me (except for the Super Bowl tonight!) I wanted to take the opportunity to try a couple of new places. For dinner on both Friday and Saturday night I treated my taste buds to some of Myrtle Beach’s most unknown eateries.

Friday Night – China Garden (3570 Northgate Dr.): Right next to my apartment sits an old, decaying shopping plaza. It is anchored by a Dollar General and has other businesses such as a Bingo hall, a shady barbershop, and a dive bar. It is not a place you want to be at night. But after work Friday evening I decided to stop in and order takeout at the Chinese restaurant located toward the end of the plaza right next door to the barbershop.

China Garden sits toward the end of the run-down shopping plaza right by my apartment.

I walked in and couldn’t make out the greeting the nice young Asian girl at the counter gave me. I pointed to what I wanted on the menu after she gave me a confused look when I told her what I wanted (General Tso’s chicken). She told me the wait would be ten minutes. As I sat down and waited I saw a lot of people coming in and out picking up orders they had called in. Even though it was small and dingy inside, I knew this business was legit. I watched the cooks in clear view right behind the counter sweat as they labored to complete the numerous orders that were coming in. A couple of blue collar guys sat at a table to my right indulging in their food. True to her word, after about ten minutes the girl at the counter held up a plastic sack in my direction. I got up and took my dinner and went home.

A look inside China Garden along with a glimpse at the two blue collar men.

My food was great. The chicken was perfect, the broccoli flavorful, and the white rice tasted like white rice. It tasted high quality to me. I paid $9 and the amount of food I got was more than enough to provide me with a very nice lunch the next day.

This was the bowl I fixed myself for dinner on Friday night. I will go to China Garden again.

Saturday Night – Taqueria La Unica (4979 Socastee Blvd.): Last night Sidney and I agreed that we wanted Mexican for dinner. But instead of going to the Americanized and popular Nacho Hippo at Market Common, I wanted to try a place a little more ethnic. Daily, I drive down a street called Socastee Blvd. This road has numerous tiny Mexican restaurants lining both sides. I wanted to give one of these a shot. We literally drove into a few different mini strip malls and looked in the windows of some of these restaurants as we drove past. Each one looked a little sketch. We reached the point where we were at the final one on the stretch. Because we had already eliminated all of our previous options, we went inside Taqueria La Unica, quite possible the seediest one of them all.

The entrance to Taqueria La Unican in Myrtle Beach.

This place seemed to have the same square footage and set up as China Garden only it was Mexican-themed instead of Chinese-themed. Mexican tunes blared from the juke box when we walked in. We sat at a table and a young girl, probably 17, came up to us. She provided us with menus and then stared at us. This was the start of an amazing feat she would pull off. Throughout the whole dining experience she never once uttered one word to us. I figured the blank stare meant she wanted our drink order. I told Sidney to go ahead with what she wanted and I followed.

This is the inside of the restaurant. You can see Sidney’s Mexican imported Coca-Cola.

Before she brought our drinks to us she brought out a basket of chips. Strangely, the basket only had about 14 cold chips in it. We never were offered more even when they were devoured about seven minutes later when our drinks finally came. Sidney received a Coke in a glass bottle that was actually imported from Mexico! We thought that was pretty cool.

This was our chip basket when she brought it out. She never asked to re-fill it.

Our food came out and I was presented with my shredded beef chimichangas. Sidney had flautas. Our plates were very well organized and came out on platters. The rice was completely white in nature which was a little different from what I am used to at a Mexican restaurant. For the most part the food was pretty good. It did taste a little more authentic than what I typically have. As we ate, the restaurant started to fill up. We were the only non-Hispanic people in the place, a good indicator that we did in fact enjoy true Mexican food. I went up and paid at the register and for the first time saw some emotion from our server. As I handed her the tip a huge smile spread across her face. I believe that was her way of saying thank you.

My food is on the left while Sid’s is on the right.

Although I wasn’t blown away with the chips, our service, or the food, Sidney and I both agreed that we had a fun experience eating and socializing in the atmosphere of Taqueria La Unica.

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Next weekend my schedule is pretty open once again. Perhaps I will knock off a couple more small time restaurants I have been wanting to try. To all my Myrtle Beach friends, if you know of any “dive restaurants” that I might like, please let me know. Have a great Super Bowl Sunday. Don’t Blink.

The Most Bizarre Cupcake Flavors I Have Ever Had

Posted on January 30, 2015 by brent

Last night I tried two cupcake flavors that I never would have imagined existed if it wasn’t for last week. In a blog post that received a lot of reaction, I wrote about how I didn’t care for the go-to birthday dessert. Soon after I published it I was talking to my intern, Jada, who used to work at the wildly popular cupcake shop here in Myrtle Beach called Coccadotts. She told me about a particular cupcake that her former place of employment bakes each year around Super Bowl time. Get ready for this…

I went to Coccadotts Cake Shop in Myrtle Beach on Thursday night to get a couple specialty cupcakes. It is very nice inside the store.

I bet you have never heard of a chicken wing cupcake! Yes, there is an actual cupcake flavor called chicken wing. Around the same time that Jada and I talked about this phenomenon, a couple friends alerted me about this flavor as well. A photo got posted on my Facebook wall. Putting aside my disdain for cupcakes, I knew I had to go try the famous chicken wing cupcake.

Me with the cupcakes I purchased. The one on the right is the chicken wing selection and the one on the left is the one I am about to explain.

Last night after work I went to Coccadotts to pick up a chicken wing cupcake. Jada had also told me that the shop made a Bud Light cupcake especially during Super Bowl week as well. Say what?! Bud Light cupcakes?! Of course I had to pick one of those up too. I went into the store, which is actually really cool, and purchased the goods and came home. After I let my dinner settle I sat down to sample/eat the cupcakes.

Here is a closer look at the famous Coccadotts cupcakes…chicken wing on the left and Bud Light on the right.

Chicken Wing – This cupcake actually had a big old chicken wing on it. The cake itself looked like cornbread and it was topped with a generous amount of icing, creating a nice bed for the wing to rest on. I admit it, I was a little worried about what it would taste like. I took off the liner and hesitantly took a bite. My taste buds registered spiciness and then sweetness. As I was dealing with the change of flavors I also realized that the cupcake was really cold (I had stored it in my refrigerator). Simultaneously I looked down on the plate at some of the frosting that had fallen…it was a gob of blue cheese. The competing flavors combined with the coldness thrown in with the realization that I was eating a cupcake with blue cheese made me gag just a little bit. I took one more bite to see if my taste buds would mellow out a little and compliment the different flavors. No such luck. The whole thing tasted unnatural. That is the best way I can describe the chicken wing cupcake…unnatural. I stopped eating it and will never try it again.

The Coccadotts chicken wing cupcake.

In order to get the taste of the chicken wing cupcake out of my mouth I wanted to start on the Bud Light one right away. Despite my sense of urgency I did wait a couple minutes so I could drink some milk and give the bad taste in my mouth a chance to leave on its own.

They box your cupcakes up very nicely at Coccadotts.

Bud Light – I took the liner off and bit right in. Right when I chomped down I said to myself “Oh my gosh, there it is, it tastes like beer…this is weird.” But then that taste dissipated and a taste that I can only describe as resembling a fruity bathroom cleaner scent became very pronounced. Very confused with this sensation it also soon went away. And what was I left with, you ask? The best aftertaste ever! I am not kidding, while my mouth went on a trip with two very bizarre flavors the end result was like a sweet escape and I wanted more. I took another bite and this time there was no Bud Light taste, it was just the fruity bathroom cleaner flavor. But by that second bite it had already grown on me and I liked it. Adding to it all, the cupcake itself was just so fresh and just so different from the previous one that I found it very enjoyable. The beer taste never returned and the fruity bathroom cleaner flavor changed to more of just a fruity flavor (I imagine the fruity flavor was lime considering an actual one was on top of the cupcake). I ate the whole thing and was very satisfied.

The Coccadotts Bud Light cupcake.

While I will never touch another chicken wing cupcake I would scarf down another Bud Light cupcake if forced to. But I much rather choose one of the many delicious sounding/looking cupcakes that Coccadotts offers instead. You know what I mean, a flavor that actually sounds like it would be good on a cupcake. I went to the Coccadotts Facebook page where there was talk about the chicken wing cupcake. It is in fact a cornbread base with blue cheese icing. I didn’t see any information on the Bud Light cupcake so I don’t know if there is actual beer in it or if the fruity flavor was lime like I suspected. I will have to ask Jada.

The remains.

I think the next crazy Coccadotts cupcake flavor should be macaroni and cheese! The base could be cheesecake, the frosting could be a parmesan cheese icing, and it could be topped with actual mac and cheese. Sounds like I got a hit on my hands. Sometimes I am even too weird for myself. Don’t Blink.

Campus Marvels and Super Bowl Prediction/Connection

Posted on January 29, 2015 by brent

Happy Super Bowl Week to everyone! I hope you are all celebrating accordingly while wearing a lot of blue, green, and gray. Once again it is the Thursday Rundown so here we go!

Chauncey Statue – At Coastal Carolina we will soon join other big time universities as places that have beloved mascot statues on campus. Making our Chanticleer sculpture so unique (besides the fact that it is a Chanticleer in general) is that our own art students created this work of art. We didn’t have an outside company create it for us, it came from the talent we have here on campus. Once fully ready, this statue will be placed outside of our TD Sports Complex entrance. I stopped by to snap a few photos of it yesterday.

Me standing proudly by the Chauncey statue.

Ripped Up Football Field – Last week I mentioned that we would soon be installing teal field turf in our football stadium. I accompanied the news with a photo of our partially torn up field. Well, one week later the field isn’t just partially torn up anymore. As you can see, the once thick green natural turf is completely removed. This afternoon I went over and watched the heavy machinery run up and down the field while shoveling up mounds upon mounds of dirt. I can’t wait for the teal turf to be laid down…it is going to look awesome!

Me inside the grassless Brooks Stadium this afternoon.

Super Bowl Prediction – I have said repeatedly that I am nervous for this Sunday. New England is an extremely good football team. They crushed Indianapolis in the AFC Championship while Seattle squeaked by Green Bay. I hate Tom Brady and Bill Belichick as much as the next guy but damn they are good at winning. But do you really think I am going to go against my Seahawks?! I see Seattle winning its second consecutive Super Bowl by defeating the Patriots in a close game, 24-21.

Super Bowl Disclaimer – When it comes to in-game Super Bowl predictions and reactions though, be careful! I guarantee it, this year the commercials and the halftime show can be the most incredible spectacles ever but people will still shoot them down and say they sucked. Three years ago I wrote about the skewed sense of the past many people have and I am 100% sure we will see it again this Sunday. Another no-no for you…don’t be “that guy” who counts a team out long before they should. Time and time again I watch people on Twitter crown one team the winner only to be embarrassed an hour later. Although I wrote about this over two years ago I still see folks make the mistake on a weekly basis. If New England struggles early or if Seattle is down by a couple touchdowns in the second half, don’t leave either team for dead.

Good Luck, Brock! – One last Super Bowl note. Playing for the Seattle Seahawks this Sunday in the Super Bowl will be Brock Coyle, a linebacker on the team. Just one year ago he was still a student at the University of Montana. A standout student-athlete for the Grizzlies, he always conducted himself with class and integrity. It also just so happened that he served as an intern for myself and our marketing director. He did his job in the office with as much dedication and effectiveness as he did it on the field and in the classroom. Brock is one great guy and it has been remarkable to see him rise so fast. It would be incredible to see him get a ring.

Best of luck this Sunday, Brock!

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When I end these Thursday Rundowns I always like to thank my readers. Tonight is no different. I appreciate all of you for taking time to read what I have to say. There is so much on the internet and for you to spend even two seconds on Don’t Blink is a great compliment to me. Have a wonderful weekend. Don’t Blink.

The Tiny Price Hikes That Matter to Me

Posted on January 28, 2015 by brent

I am so thankful for the dramatic decrease in gasoline prices. It still seems almost too good to be true. I used to dread looking at gas stations signs advertising the price of a gallon but now I look at the 30 different ones I pass on my way to work each day with jubilation. With the complete transformation of gas prices from a once outrageous amount to a now laughably affordable amount, price increases elsewhere don’t register with me as much. However, there are three price hikes outside of the gasoline world that I have noticed very clearly. Do let me tell you what they are.

$5 Footlongs at Subway – Much to my horror, my classic Cold Cut Combo sub sandwich I purchase EVERY TIME I go to Subway is no longer $5. In fact, when I went and bought one at my local Wal-Mart Subway yesterday, I had to fork over $6.01 for my cold cut. This one hurts. The $5 price for a fresh meal was fair and it was a deal I had taken advantage of for probably five years. To have this sudden change slipped under my nose didn’t make me jump with joy. Oh well, I rather pay $6.01 for a sandwich as opposed to $4.03 for a gallon of gas.

It brings me great sadness to say goodbye to $5 footlongs.

Redbox Rentals – From reading the paper and seeing online reports I knew this one was coming but it still doesn’t mean I like it. In Montana and Washington I was paying in the ballpark of $1.20 per Redbox rental. When I moved to South Carolina I was paying around $1.30 which was increased I believe because of tax but nonetheless still a really cheap price. Last month renting a movie from a Redbox kiosk went up quite a bit percentage wise. I am now paying $1.61 a movie. Let me make clear that paying $1.61 for a couple hours of entertainment is still a darn good bargain but it is just the psychology of it all that messes with me. I was once paying a price that was closer to $1 than it was to $2. Now I am paying a price that is closer to $2 than $1. As someone who rents a lot of Redbox movies and who sometimes forgets to return the disc the next day, this does cause a minor impact. Good thing I have had some good books to read lately.

A Redbox rental is closer to 2 than it is to $1.

Rent Going Up – My one-year lease at my apartment complex expires in late April. Yesterday I received notice of my renewal options. Unfortunately, the “You have been such a good resident so we are going to lower your monthly rent” was not an option. As I know is common practice, my rent per month if I am to sign a new lease will increase. If I don’t want to sign a full year lease at the new price, I can pay month-to-month at a rate that is +$150 the new monthly rate for the year lease. As I am already paying on the high end for my living arrangements, I wasn’t too particularly thrilled with the increase. However, I do understand the economics of “market price.” I just wish there was at least a rent freeze for residents who are responsible and respectful.

My rent is going up!

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The best thing about these three increases? In the long run they are wiped out by the low price I pay to fuel my car. So I need to shut up and stop complaining about paying a buck more for a sandwich and a few cents extra for a movie rental. My transportation is essential, stuffing my face with footlongs and watching trashy movies are not. Don’t Blink.

Why I Think the Super Bowl Should be Moved to Saturday

Posted on January 27, 2015 by brent

In writing this, I have no intention whatsoever to bash on the storied tradition of the Super Bowl. Rather, I just want to throw out a suggestion and see if anyone else might be in agreement. I have the utmost respect for what the Super Bowl has become and I don’t want my idea to be taken the wrong way.

Okay, here it goes…

What do you think about moving the Super Bowl to Saturday?

I know that is very bold. I realize the big day is called Super Bowl Sunday. I know what I am saying must feel like a slap in the face to the 49-year-old game. But my friends, I am serious. By all accounts, the Super Bowl has become a glorified holiday. In fact, I would argue that it has become a date that is celebrated and revered by more people than several other actual holidays on the American calendar. But you might ask, why does this matter? Let me explain.

Like I said, millions of people in the country celebrate the Super Bowl, and when I say “celebrate,” you all know what I mean. Football fans and non-football fans alike go crazy eating, drinking, and cheering while becoming emotionally invested in the game. After the game concludes, many are spent. Once the excitement, despair, and/or buzz dies down we all come to the sobering reality that we have to work or go to school the next day. What a letdown.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Some slackers might push for the Monday after the Super Bowl to be declared a federal holiday but in no way would I advocate for something silly like that. Instead, I am just asking that the NFL considers moving the game to Saturday. Besides, no longer is Sunday sacred for the NFL anymore. The league plays games during the regular season on Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Two rounds of the playoffs games are played on Saturdays as well. With a long two weeks between the conference championship games and the Super Bowl, moving the game forward one day means nothing in terms of rest and preparation.

To be honest, I had not thought of this idea until this season. With my Seattle Seahawks once again playing in the Super Bowl it would be nice to not worry about working out and going to work the next day. I exert a lot of energy and take on a lot of stress while rooting for them. But the main reason why this idea struck me is because this will be the first Super Bowl I watch on the east coast. The game doesn’t kickoff out here until 6:30 p.m. With the long length of the NFL’s premiere game combined with the expectations put on American citizens to have a lot of fun during it, the potential to not put yourself in the best shape for Monday morning is strong.

I didn’t do any research before writing this post so I am sure that there are probably 283 reasons why the Super Bowl must be played on Sunday. However, in a perfect world I think it would be a good change to make. I definitely think it would make fans more interested in the game and it would be better for the economy. Without worrying about the looming work week, folks would be in higher spirits to watch the game the whole way through while also fully indulging in good food and drink.

This Super Bowl Sunday will be low key for me when it comes to the drinks and chicken wings. Getting a good workout in at 6 a.m. on Monday as well as being on the top of my game for the work day is too important to me. So yes, physically I will be 100%. I know emotionally it will be a different story, though. Instead of being even keel, I will most likely be on a high or a low depending on how things go down in Glendale. I can only hope that maybe in the future I won’t have to worry about my physical or emotional state the next day…here is my vote for a Super Bowl Saturday. Don’t Blink.

A Luxurious Movie Theater Experience

Posted on January 26, 2015 by brent

I had heard about upscale, fancy movie theaters before. I found the concept super cool but knew that no such theaters existed within my vicinity. With my recent trip to Charlotte, the opportunity opened up for me to finally try one out. Yesterday, my low-class butt got to sit in luxury as I enjoyed an amazing movie experience.

Sidney and I wanted to go to a movie before we left Charlotte. Wanting to get on the road at a decent hour we decided to see “The Wedding Ringer” at 11 a.m. We would be attending the Studio Movie Grill in the Epicentre. The friends we met at the bowling alley the night before told us that this certain movie house was an upscale theater but we didn’t really know any other specifics.

The entrance to Studio Movie Grill in the Epicentre in Charlotte.

I guess the first specific I was most curious about was the price. If this theater was so exuberant, it must have an exuberant admission price, right? Wrong. We walked to the box office and went up to a self-serve kiosk where we purchased tickets for $6 each! Going to a movie so early on a Sunday does cut the cost down but this price was cheaper than majority of matinee tickets at regular theaters. After choosing our movie and show time, we then got to choose our seats. A seating map came up on the screen that let us choose where we wanted to sit. We just used our finger to touch the seats we wanted and the kiosk spit out our tickets.

Our tickets for “The Wedding Ringer” at Movie Studio Grill.

We went up the escalator to the theater area. Only it wasn’t just the theater area. To our right was a full service, sleek bar. It looked like it was transported right out of a high end Vegas casino. Behind us was a billiards hall. To our left was the entrance to the theaters. We gave our tickets to the employee who asked us if we wanted menus. Yes, please!

The auditorium we were in had a large upper section and a smaller lower section. The upper section was split into three equal sections with generous aisles running up and down. The sections were filled with large, comfortable seats grouped in twos. They were more couches than theater chairs. The lower section had seats that were more individual-like. Sidney and I went to our assigned upper section seats. Each seat had a snazzy table tray and a button to press for service.

The button for us to push for service.

Because we were holding menus, we didn’t need to press any buttons. A host came to us immediately and introduced herself and said she would take care of us. She then left us to look over the menu. Expansive and appealing, the menu contained just about everything you could want from appetizers to entrees to cocktails to desserts. We ordered popcorn, a milkshake, and soda.

The screen was huge, the auditorium was immaculate, and the sound was the best I have heard at a theater in a long time. Not too many other people took up the offer to watch Kevin Hart for $6 as I would guess that only eight other people were in the theater with us. We reclined in the comfy seats and enjoyed ourselves.

Our order came. The soda was in a tumbler glass and the popcorn was served in a bowl with sheet paper. Don’t think this was your buttery, salty, artery-clogging (just how I like it) popcorn. It was much more on the lighter side, definitely not yellow in color. But it was really good! And the milkshake tasted great as our host made sure to bring us two straws and two spoons.

With about 20 minutes to go in the movie, our tab was brought to us. Knowing this was the cue that the movie would be ending soon, I sat back and savored the remaining time I had in the theater. I laughed out loud as the film reached its conclusion, knowing that the theater had something to do with my good spirits considering I had never found Kevin Hart funny before.

I would definitely recommend attending a movie at one of these service-based, experience-driven movie theaters. I really enjoyed myself and was able to relax much more than at a normal theater. Even with a long drive ahead of us and the need to get back to Myrtle Beach, we were able to let it all go while in Studio Movie Grill. In the future, it would be fun to go on a Friday night and sip a couple cocktails and unwind after the work week. You can bet that this wasn’t my last experience at a movie theater like this. Don’t Blink.

Sid’s Birthday Weekend in Charlotte

Posted on January 25, 2015 by brent

It didn’t even last 24 hours. To be exact, from the time we entered the parking garage at the Charlotte Epicentre to the time we exited it, we had clocked 23 hours and 10 minutes. Short but sweet for sure.

In honor of Sidney’s birthday this Wednesday, her and I took a brief weekend trip to Charlotte to spend a little time away from Myrtle Beach and to mark her milestone. We stayed at the Epicentre, a buzzing area with lots of fun things for people our age to do. This trip marked the first time I had ever spent actual time in the Queen City.

The Epicentre has one hotel in it, the Aloft Charlotte Uptown. The hotel is situated on top of the Epicentre, making you really feel like you are right in the middle of everything. A growing and modern chain, Aloft properties shy away from the traditional hotel lobby/hotel room look and go for something much more contemporary and social. The rooms are small with the bathroom and shower behind the bed but the fixtures/appliances, such as the shower and television, are top notch. We were on the tenth floor and had a view of Time Warner Cable Arena. The staff treated us really well and we killed some time today sitting on the snazzy lobby couches playing Connect Four.

This was our view from our hotel room. You can see some of the Epicentre and Time Warner Arena.

After we checked in at around 2 p.m., we went out and walked around the Epicentre. An outdoor closed in entertainment area three stories high, the Epicentre is just one of those places that immediately makes you say, “Yeah, this is definitely the place to hang out.” We walked into a vibrantly colored establishment called the Tin Roof and sat down at the bar. While enjoying chips and queso and a couple rounds of drinks, we talked to the bartender and another employee about the area and learned a lot.

A look at a portion of the Epicentre.

We left Tin Roof and went to the bowling alley in Epicentre, StrikeCity. Warning: This is not your typical bowling alley. StrikeCity is bowling meets clubbing meets sports bar. We signed up for a lane and then went to the giant bar situated behind the bowling action as we had about a 30 minute wait. Sitting at the bar watching people bowl gave me the perfect opportunity to scope out the area. Above the lanes were giant television screens tuned into ESPN. The light show was very sleek, not by any means a cheesy cosmic bowling type production. They only had 12 lanes and they were stacked close together. Our lane opened up and our server (called a “host”) immediately came over and introduced herself.

We had a blast bowling! I honestly had a lot more fun than I usually do. We made fast friends with the couple sharing our bowling ball return rack with us, Eric and Alia. StrikeCity sells these giant beer towers meant to share. We each went in half and purchased one to split between the four of us. When our bowling ended, the tower didn’t. We took the remainder of it to the bar and started to talk. It was there that we decided we wanted to go to the Charlotte Hornets-New York Knicks game that was about to tip off in about an hour.

Sidney bowling while Alia is laughing about something.

We hustled the short distance to Time Warner Cable Arena that was right next to the Epicentre. We split up to purchase tickets from a scalper. After some dead ends, Eric called me and said he found someone with four tickets. Sidney and I met back up with him and Alia and I purchased two seats for $80. Excited, the four of us walked inside the arena.

Eric, Alia, Sidney, and I (obviously excited) in Time Warner Arena going to our seats.

If I had to do Saturday night over again, I think I would have passed on the game. The star players for both teams, Kemba Walker and Carmelo Anthony, both didn’t play. The tickets the scalper sold us weren’t where he said they would be and we were nosebleed behind one of the baskets. The play itself was horrid. Reaction from both teams after the game centered on how sloppy the contest was. But on the bright side, Time Warner Arena is really nice and we did get Kemba Walker bobbleheads. It wasn’t enough to make us stay though…we left at halftime.

Some images from the game. It was cool to see an NBA game in Charlotte but probably wouldn’t do it again.

This morning, Sidney and I enjoyed a bagel at Bruegger’s. We spent time at the pool and time in the hotel lobby. After we checked out of Aloft, we went to Studio Movie Grill and watched the 11 a.m. showing of “The Wedding Ringer.” Our theater experience was terrific, so unique and good in fact that I will devote an entire blog post to it tomorrow. The movie itself wasn’t bad either. After lunch at Five Guys, we headed back to Myrtle Beach.

Some low key hotel fun this morning.

I told Sidney a couple times that I would definitely go back to the Epicentre. The place is just so contemporary and fun. Minus the lights and gambling, the Epicentre had a little bit of a Vegas feel to it for me. I enjoyed my time in Charlotte and was happy to help ring in Sidney’s birthday week. Don’t Blink.

Five “Super” Things

Posted on January 22, 2015 by brent

Having Monday off for Martin Luther King Day really made Thursday come soon. Not that I am complaining, who isn’t excited that Friday is just several hours away? Long week or short week, Thursdays are reserved for my weekly rundown so here we go! Super Bowl XLIX – Well, I wanted a Seahawks-Colts Super Bowl but I will settle for a Seahawks-Patriots championship just as well. When your team makes the Super Bowl, you really can’t get too upset about who they are paired against. This past Sunday’s game was incredible. No one except for my girlfriend knows the outright ridiculous celebration I engaged in when Seattle stormed back in spectacular fashion to smash the hopes of the Green Bay Packers. So many dynamite plays happened in those last four minutes but for whatever reason the onside kick recovery stands out most of all for me. Teams I root for never recover onside kicks so that play was special. I love the Seahawks and I hate the Patriots as much as I do the Cowboys so bring on Super Bowl XLIX!

I was beyond ecstatic after the game on Sunday.

Start of Something Beautiful – Isn’t it quite the sight to see a football field getting torn up? I took this photo from the Kline Hospitality Suite in Brooks Stadium this morning. Once the natural grass has been removed, field turf will grace the surface of our football stadium at Coastal Carolina University. But it just won’t be any turf. We are making a statement with TEAL TURF. You can bet it will look beyond sweet when I re-take the below photo once the teal surface is placed. I saw first hand the incredible boost the red turf gave Eastern Washington University and I know Coastal’s new turf will provide a similar lift.

The removal of the grass playing surface is underway at Brooks Stadium.

Accelerate Aging by Becoming President of the United States – My junior year of high school I was in an honors humanities class. The major culminating project of the class called on us to prove a thesis that we were to present to the community. Teamed up with two of my classmates, we presented and proved our thesis that the Office of the Presidency greatly accelerates aging. Besides all the research, science, and writing that went into our project, we built a walk-through replica of the White House that included before and after portraits of the Presidents from the time started their term in office to when they ended it. If only I had the below images of Barack Obama to back then to add to the walls. The first photo shows President Obama during his first State of the Union Address in 2009 and the second photo is from his State of the Union Address on Tuesday night. Say what you want, the pictures don’t reflect a normal six years of natural aging. It makes you appreciate and respect the stress and the hard work that our Presidents subject themselves to.

President Obama has aged dramatically while in office.

Learning to Assist in Difficult Situations – Today, my department went through another session of our customer service Feel the Teal Training (I wrote about the program several months back) . We spent the morning learning how to be most effective in challenging situations when a person is upset. Our group talked about past situations we have been in where the people we were trying to serve were not in very good moods. Our Feel the Teal Director, Eileen, then went over with us the different personalities of difficult people and how to adequately deal with them. Not only did it give us some great techniques, but it was also an eye-opener for me and others who have actually been that difficult person in the past. Charlotte Here I Come – To celebrate Sidney’s birthday, her and I will be spending the weekend in Charlotte. A three-hour trip from Myrtle Beach, we will be staying in the city’s Epicentre, an electric area full of shops, restaurants, bars, clubs, and other entertainment options. Besides airport layovers, I have never really done Charlotte before so I am really excited to visit another great American city. —————– After me complaining about Jeopardy, critics, and cupcakes it was about time I had something positive to say! Thank you for reading my blog and I wish you all a great weekend. Don’t Blink.

My Vendetta Against Cupcakes

Posted on January 21, 2015 by brent

When I was in grade school, I didn’t follow the norm when it came to celebrating my birthday in class. Instead of having my guardian whip up that all too ordinary and traditional classroom birthday treat, I had my mom do something else. She took a half scoop of vanilla ice cream and placed it on one of her famous chocolate chip cookies. She then took another one of her delightful cookies and crammed it down on the ice cream, making one delicious homemade ice cream sandwich. She froze them and brought them to school the next day and I was a hero.

The ice cream sandwiches made quite the statement against the bland, boring cupcakes that seemed to become the norm every couple weeks or so when we celebrated a birthday in class. I quickly grew to dislike the predictable and thoughtless treat mostly because they were so dry and so small. You could eat a cupcake in one bite if you wanted to…now where is the fun in that? My resentment that started as a kid stayed with me as I became an adult.

These are cupcakes from when I went to Loew’s this evening. I admit, cupcakes are different now compared to when i was in grade school.

I didn’t buy into the cupcake boom that occurred over the past decade. As the making of the treat turned into an industry, I never jumped on the bandwagon. Businesses, television shows, and competitions transformed the cupcake into art. However, to me, the treat was still boring. I admit it, cupcakes did become a little more flavorful and they did become bigger but they just didn’t do it for me. The cupcake still resembled something inferior to an actual piece of cake, the junior varsity version of what it was. Quite simply, if I wasn’t supposed to use a fork to eat it I wasn’t going to take it seriously.

If someone holds a gun to my head and forces me to eat a cupcake it is going to be a peanut butter one….even then, I probably still won’t eat it (this went straight to the garbage).

So, it goes without saying that I haven’t shed a tear over the past week as the media started to declare the cupcake age dead. Two major players in the industry, Just Baked and Crumbs Bake Shop, closed down their stores all over the country. I hate for people to lose their jobs and for businesses to shut down but if that means that wedding couples will now think twice before having the audacity to serve cupcakes at a reception in place of an actual cake then I am all for it.

It is appropriate for me to note that I am a fan of one cupcake shop. There is a very small cupcake chain called Coccadotts. It has a store in Myrtle Beach and my intern used to work there. Out of support for small/local businesses and out of support for Jada, I will give Coccadotts my blessing. All other cupcake shops can go away.

Give me REAL cake, give me ice cream, give me a brownie, give me a rice krispie treat…just please don’t give me a cupcake. I am one of those people who never seaw a sweet he didn’t like but a cupcake is the exception. What an awful trend it was. Don’t Blink.

My Critics

Posted on January 20, 2015 by brent

Now I know most of you think that what I write is The Truth. You think I can do no wrong, correct? This is your gospel, am I right? Okay, okay, okay I will stop there. I know some of you (okay, most of you) probably get irritated with what I write from time to time. Perhaps you have wanted to write a scathing message underneath my gibberish in the comments section. Perhaps you already have.

On a good day, my website will bring in over a thousand readers. With 30,000 views per month, you are bound to get some negative feedback…especially when you author such a terrible blog such as this one. Over the years I have had my fair share of criticism from people across the country. Some of the comments have been completely out of line while most of them have probably been deserving. I can ruffle feathers from time to time.

But in this day and age, the insult is the new compliment. Celebrities retweet the most horrendous rants about them for their 1.8 millions followers to see. Venom filled e-mails that are sent to companies are read out loud in meetings and laughed at. Columnists are known to take profanity-laced letters from readers and staple them to their walls. So in the same way that these people consider mean tweets/hate mail as a badge of honor, so do I in regards to my blog comments. How about we take a look at the feedback I get from my readers? (besides the comments that contain the F Bomb…those get automatically deleted by the system).

This came from my post yesterday about the five things I hate most about Jeopardy…

A reader once questioned my loyalty to a state that I lived in for several years…

Well, I don’t work for ESPN…

When I wrote about keeping a journal, my masculinity was questioned…

You aren’t the first person to tell me this…

I don’t blame you if you don’t read all of this…