Good Scores

Here is the electronic scorecard from play at the Pete Dye course. We
played the Black tees and fared better than expected. TJ shot 98 (he
only had to use the hand wedge 4 or 5 times). I shot 75 and only had to
invoke the Mayors rule 2-3 times.

Hit it Straight

TJ and I played at the Barefoot Resort course today. We played on the
Pete Dye course, lots of bunkers on the course. The upside is that you
can drive in many of the bunkers.

Believe it or Not

We went to the Aquarium.

Who's for Dinner?

Be careful TJ, it is not clear who is for dinner?

BBQ Plate

TJ and I split this barbeque dinner at the Myrtle Beach BBQ Festival.

20th Hole

Time for a dip!

19th Hole

Coconut shrimp and iced tea at the 19th Hole. Next stop, the pool.

18 at The Dunes

We got our tired asses out of bed for an 8AM tee off at the Dunes Country Club. If we didn't pre-pay the greens fees, we might just be getting up.

7 & 5

Here I am on the 18th hole of Mount Atlanticus Miniature Golf Course.
The 18th hole finishes at the top of the Mt. Atlanticus and you take an
elevator down 4 stories to the ground. Not your average mini golf for
sure. Anyway, TJ and I played match play and it was a serious beating.
I had 10 hole-in-ones out of 18 and he had no chance. On aces 4-9 he
kept muttering "...this is ridiculous..". On the last ace (17th hole)
he decried, "You are no fun to play with". At which point I informed
him that I am undefeated in mini-golf tournament play. Tomorrow we play
for real at the Dunes Country Club, I hope my flat stick treats me just
as well.

Back for a Second Crab Cake Sandwich

We went to the kickoff of the Barbeque festival and got there in time
for the John Michael Montgomery concert. Lots of BBQ and carny food.
We opted for a round of crab cake sandwiches from Phillips Seafood's
stand. TJ went back for seconds and declared: "This is awesome".

Go Speed Racer

Here is TJ getting in some practice laps after being lapped in the prior
race by his old man.

Hot Wings From Hell

Last night we stopped by one of the sports bars that specialized in wings - 33 different kinds. We split an order of 8 Chernobyl Wings. Besides only being able to eat 6 of them, TJ was taking wet-naps and wiping his tongue. Eventually he started weeping and we left.

Swish!

TJ made a 3-pointer on his first try into a reduced rim and won a football jersey.

No Helmet Laws

TJ wanted to rent a Harley and go to The Hard Rock Cafe. Mission Accomplished!

Dinner At Joe's Crab Shack

Our first night here we went to Joe's Crab Shack. Joe's is to crabs as
Famous Dave's is to ribs. Too bad, definitely not great.

When in Rome

As most people know, proper South Carolina rednecks dip snuff now and
then. Well TJ wanted to enjoy the pleasures of a pinch between the
cheek and gum. Fortunately, the snuff in question was shredded beef
jerky and not tobacco.

William Tell

This compound bow is cool! It is a good thing we drove, because I don't
think I could carry this on the plane. TJ, go get an apple and put it
on your head.

Alternatives to Teen Violence

We should have video games that encourage teens to be more aware of
worthy things rather than shooting deer. Perhaps a game on Global
Warming. The teens could learn about the evils of business and
capitalism and how the profit is cooking the planet. We could called it
Carbon Credit Countdown.

A Room With A View

Here is TJ looking out our window at the Marriott. It is not an
Oceanfront room, but has a nice view nonetheless. We have a small
fridge and will stock up on drinks. There are 3 pools at the hotel and
we are right on the beach. I think tomorrow we are going to lounge
around the pool and beach and catch up on <<0828081749.jpg>> reading.
Golf will wait until this weekend.

Rumjog Offices

The Marriott in Myrtle Beach was able to accomodate my request for office space to work while I am down here.

TJ Inc.

'Listen Sweetie, I have a lot of competing interests. It's not that I don't like you or anything like that. But in order to stand out within the taxonomy of my interests, you are going to have to make more of an effort.'

Taking a Shower

Torrential downpours in NC slowed us to a crawl and sidelined most travellers who opted to pull over rather than drive.

Chow Down at White Swan BBQ

Here is TJ scarfing down his second barbeque pork sandwich. I had one and they are Mmmm Mmmm Good!

Historic Selma NC Train Station

We diverted to check out the historic train station in Selma, NC. From the sign you would have thought there was more to it.

Road Race with Gunny & Poppo

Here we are saying goodbye at Gunny & Poppo's as we begin Day 2 of the Man Trip. Gunny & Poppo are off to Pittsburgh as we leave for Myrtle Beach. Both of us have about a 7 hour drive assuming the same amount of goof off time. Apart from stopping at The House Of Mud and again to see the second largest ball of string, we will not be goofing off. However, we will stop for some brisket and barbeque at the first chance.

Pit Stop - 13 gallons of gas for TJ and 12 oz. of coffee for Dad

TJ's first fillup at Wawa in Salisbury, MD. Gas prices are lower here - $3.39 so it only cost $44.41 to top off.

Mandatory Man Trip Stop

First stop on the Man Trip - ARBY'S

Hunterdon County 4-H Fair

Here is Heather having a good time at the fair.

Koreans Serving Oriental BBQ

Has anyone seen Nick?

Negotiating Prowess

For $10 I can win $2 in prizes?

Carny Trinkets

Here are Sarah and Heather with their prizes.

World's Tallest Pinball

TJ is 6-2, so figure about 20 feet high?

Mystery Meat

Mmm mmm good! Not sure what it is, but it sure tastes great.

TJ's First Car

My first car didn't have navigation and heated seats.

Fun in the pool

Sarah enjoying an afternoon swim at The Hard Rock Hotel.

Adult Swim

Hey Beautiful, sit still while I give you mouth to mouth. I am an expert in the breast stroke - are they real?

I Miss My Sister Heather

The sign says it all.

Popeye & Bluto's Bilge-Rat Barges

Here is Sarah after riding Popeye's raft ride. I did not want to get wet so I hung out with Wimpy and had a couple hamburgers.

An Oasis In The Park

Here is Sarah waiting by a fountain while I argue with the weight guessing guy.

Lacking Self Awareness

I won this at the 'Guess Your Weight Challenge'. I figured since I weigh a bit more than I look then it would be a lock for the prize. I figured that I look about 230 and weigh about 250 giving me a nice 20 pound cushion. Anyway, the guy guessed 272 and I figured he was kidding and was just conceding the prize to me. I jumped on the scale and to my horror the needle flew past 250, 260, 270 and settled on 268.5 pounds. I had no idea that my shoes weighed 10 pounds each! So I won the prize and have vowed to get new shoes when I get home. Sarah said get new shoes and NutriSystem.

Dueling Dragons Roller Coaster

Here is Sarah riding the Dueling Dragons roller coaster. She is the one with the bare feet.

Harry Potter at Islands of Adventure

Harry Potter Land is under construction here. Scheduled opening in 2010.

Mythos Update

I sent my earlier report prior to Sarah getting dessert. She actually ordered kid's sushi. It is fruit roll up wrapped in rice krispy treat and dunked in chocolate with a strawberry sauce. Amazingly the dessert only cost $1.99. I am upgrading my score to 8.5 and recommending you stop here for the soup and 'sushi' combo.

Mythos Restaurant

Day 4 - we slept in and left the room around 10:45AM. We went straight for Mythos Restaurant at Islands of Adventure. This restaurant was rated Number 1 theme park restaurant for the last 5 years. Kind of like Queen of the Pigs. Anyway, the restaurant is pretty nice and on par with the EPCOT restaurants. I had the tortilla soup and it was just shy of world's best Houston's. Sarah had the thin crust pizza and it was about what you would get from Domino's. I had the bacon cheeseburger and it was abovd average. I suppose the rating was based on atmosphere and service both are very good. I would rate the place a 7 out of 10. The soup added a full point.

Good Girl Gone Bad

After the run in with the Sting Ray it seemed appropriate to get her the tattoo.

Sting-Ray Revenge

After the Sting-Ray pulled her in, Sarah went over to the snack bar and ordered a large order of sting-ray bites with fries. As she ate them she decried, "I hope these bites are related to that one who pulled me in!"

Criikee - Those are Sting-Rays

My camera caught this just as a sting-ray pulled Sarah in.

50 Long Need Not Apply

Here is Sarah riding the roller coaster Kracken. You will see that the seat next to her is empty. It turns out that I am too large to fit within the constraint collar despite the best efforts of two teenage staffers pushing down. I felt like I was on Candid Camera when the one of the workers yelled "Pull the release, I have a Fatty in row 8".

Shark Feeding?

Sarah was feeding shrimp to the sharks and a lawyer came by and grabbed the last piece.

Shamu!

We sat in the Soak Zone and managed to stay dry. The people next to us looked like they jumped in the water with their clothes.