April 22, 2008

DEWEY GETS A NEW CAR

As I mentioned a week ago, my first car was wrecked in a collision on the Walt Whitman Bridge, ending an era.  Of course, when one era ends, a new one begins, and that era began last Saturday, April 19.  Thanks to some great work by my dad, I was only without a car for one week.  It made me realize how lucky I was to have had a car for all of those years in the first place.  Many people cannot afford cars and therefore must rely on public transportation or their friends and family for rides.  I was relegated to the latter, having to get rides from my parents and brother to places I needed to go.  Other than the one day that my younger brother was driving me around, I felt like I was 16 years old again because I had to depend on adult family members for rides.  It made me really feel for people who don't have cars.

I ended up getting my second car thanks to a lucky break.  My uncle found out that his old friend Jeff from high school was back in town and was a salesman at Elkins Chevrolet in Marlton, NJ.  My uncle and my dad then set out to visit him there, and in doing so they found out that the dealership had just bought a 2000 Chevy Malibu.  The dealership was intending to use it as a service vehicle, since theirs had recently been retired after amassing over 240,000 miles.  Knowing that, we knew it was in good shape, and that it was not necessarily for sale.  However, the guys at Elkins Chevrolet called the boss, Mike Elkins, who my family happened to know as well.  Mr. Elkins' middle son, Adam, played roller hockey with my brother at the Maccabi Games for two years, and my dad hung out with Mr. Elkins at both events.  Mr. Elkins allowed his dealership to sell the vehicle to us; now I just needed to test drive it.

The car drove well, and was in good shape even after over 100,000 miles.  This is because it was never in an accident and was well maintained, according to its CarFax report.  It was not perfect of course, as there were several things that needed fixing.  The sunroof stuck a little, the shifter was torn, the turn signal fuses were burnt out, the gas meter was not working properly, and the brakes made an odd noise when activated.  By the time I was ready to get the car, all of those things were fixed.  In total, it cost about $5300, including repairs.  Thanks to my dad and my uncle for re-connecting with an old friend, thanks to Jeff Schor for working everything out with the dealership, and thanks to Mike Elkins for selling me a car that you originally wanted to keep.  Hopefully, I'll be able to have the Malibu for a long time, or at least until I can afford to buy my own really good car.






April 15, 2008

THE DEATH OF MY FIRST CAR

Everyone remembers their first car, something that they have to give up eventually.  Almost every motorist also gets into a significant car accident at some point in their lives.  I combined the two situations into one on the night of Friday, April 11.  While driving home on the Walt Whitman Bridge, I crashed my blue 1993 Toyota Camry, thus ending it's nearly 6 year-long tenure as my main means of transportation.  Details of the crash are coming soon, and by soon I mean right now.

I was in Philadelphia to watch the Flyers-Capitals game with my brother Ryan and friends Eric and Dave.  We were at Eric's apartment near Drexel University, which he attends.  Eric's girlfriend Arianna later brought over her friends to hang out, but they left before midnight.  With Eric and Arianna going out for pizza, and Ryan and Dave needing to catch a train back to Exton, PA, I decided to leave rather than stay in the apartment myself.  After dropping Ryan and Dave off at 30th Street Station, I headed home on I-76 eastbound towards the Walt Whitman.  Unfortunately, I would not make it over the bridge, at least not the way I expected to.

It was raining that night, and my 15 year old car was not always very good in the rain, especially now with worn out brakes.  People were also driving poorly all over Philadelphia.  These details make up what English professors call "foreshadowing."  I was just about at the first exit on the bridge, which goes to U.S. Route 130 and the Ben Franklin Bridge, when the car in front of me suddenly stopped.  Considering what I said earlier in this paragraph, plus my severe lack of reaction time, you can probably guess that I slammed into that car.  There was a shoulder available so we both pulled right over, and I immediately got out to talk to the motorist who I just hit.  It was a hot 19 year old blonde girl; why can't I meet girls like this when I'm not getting into car accidents?  Anyway, she immediately told me that it was not my fault, which completely shocked me, since I was ready to accept all of the blame.  Perhaps it was because both her and I ended up unharmed.

According to her story, which she later told to police, some moron was about to miss that first exit off of the bridge so he/she stopped suddenly.  Another car stopped, then the girl, and then there was my vehicle unable to come to a complete stop.  The girl's 2005 Honda Accord had minimal damage, as I had only scratched her bumper.  The same could not be said for my car:  I had some engine damage, my hood was bent in half, and the headlights were both shattered.  The police report accurately listed it as "severe front end damage."  Being rattled from the crash and not trusting my car's functions anymore, I had the car towed off of the bridge.  I was taken back to the Delaware River Port Authority police station, where I would wait for my father to pick me up.  I will take this chance to commend the two DRPA officers who assisted me and the other girl in this crash.  They were both very helpful and did not place any blame on me.  Also, at the station, when I was waiting for my dad, both officers who assisted me at the scene made sure to check up on me and make sure I was OK, which I was.  I wish all police officers were this helpful.

The next day, Saturday the 12th, my dad and I drove out to 61st Street in Philly, where my car was being held by a towing company.  Damage repair estimates were at about $1000, which is more than half of what my car was worth, so we decided it was definitely not worth fixing.  It would have cost $90 to get it out of the towing company lot that day, but we had nowhere to put it, so we let it stay there until Monday, accumulating $30 more in fees over that time.  On Monday a local junkyard brought the car back to New Jersey while paying the towing fees to get it out.  The junkyard would then pay us a small price ($200) for the car, which still has many salvageable parts.  Today, Tuesday the 15th, my dad got the license plates back from the car and was paid $80 for the car, which equated to $200 minus the towing fee of $120.  I should be getting a new car soon enough, as soon as we can find a decent deal on a used 1999-2001 four door mid-sized vehicle.  I'll point out that I did want a new car eventually, but certainly not this way.

When my father decided to sell the car away for parts, I knew it was the end of an era.  I said goodbye to my first car, affectionately known as the "Baby Blue Beast."  She gave me over 5 1/2 years of reliable transportation, with just one major mechanical problem the entire time I had her.  That was a snapped timing belt in the summer of 2005, and even that occurred at an opportune time, if that is possible.  May she rest in peace, and hopefully she'll live on as pieces of other cars.





April 8, 2008

MARCH MADNESS, PART 3:  DEWEY IS COOKED

Well, so much for my shot at winning this year's office pool.  UCLA got blitzed by the University of Memphis Tigers in the National Semifinal round, losing by a score of 78-63.  After a close first half that saw Memphis leading by just three points, the Tigers took control of the game in the second half, outscoring UCLA by a convincing 40-28 margin.  With that loss, my chances of winning the big office pool went down in flames, thus the title "Dewey is Cooked."  This was the third year in a row that I picked UCLA to win the national championship, and for the third year in a row they let me down.  If Bruins star big man Kevin Love does not stay around, there is no chance in hell I pick them again next year.

For anyone who didn't watch the championship game, it was one for the ages.  The game between Memphis and the University of Kansas Jayhawks was close most of the time but Memphis was able to build a nine point lead with 2:12 left in the game.  It seemed like Memphis was on its way to their first national championship, but they were unable to hold this lead.  The Tigers were one of the worst free throw shooting teams in the country this year, and that was evident as they made only one of their final five attempts from the charity stripe.  This set the stage for an exciting finish, in which Kansas guard Mario Chalmers nailed a three-pointer with 2.1 seconds left in regulation to send the game to overtime.  In the extra session, Kansas dominated and ended up winning 75-68 for their first national title in 20 years.  Thanks to his clutch performance, Chalmers was named the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player; why the NCAA doesn't just call the award the Final Four MVP is beyond me.  Memphis' choke job was legendary, and it's something that I, and millions of other college basketball fans, will never forget.

As for the results of the bracket, of course a guy picking Kansas won the whole thing, which as I mentioned last week was a first prize of $520.  The winner was the only person to receive all 40 possible Final Four points, as he correctly predicted a title game of Kansas over Memphis.  Second place, a $200 prize, went to a high school kid who had Memphis winning the title game.  He must have been rather upset when the Tigers choked away the game, as it ended up costing him $320.  Luckily, his bracket was so good that even with Memphis losing he still won some cash.  Another Kansas picker won third, a prize of $80.  For the 11th year in a row, I came away with nothing.  Oh well; as us Philly sports fans are very used to saying, there's always next year!





April 1, 2008

MARCH MADNESS, PART 2:  STILL ALIVE

Well, it's a week later, and I'm still alive in my quest to win $520 in the big annual NCAA March Madness pool.  The regional games have been played, and after being in first through the first two rounds, I have dropped one spot to a tie for second place with 110 points out of a possible 148.  The guy in first is not beating me by that much, as he has 115 points.  The way the point system works out, you now get 10 points for getting a National Semifinal game correct, and 20 for correctly picking the national champion.  My champ is UCLA, and since I'm beating everyone else who has UCLA going all the way, my options are pretty simple.  If the Bruins win the national title, I win $520; if they don't, I get absolutely nothing.  Therefore, GO BRUINS!

What's crazy about the top of the standings is that the top four guys all have different national champions, meaning each one has an even 25% shot of winning the big prize as of right now.  The way the brackets have worked out, nobody with the same champ as any of the top four can pass them, so it's guaranteed that one of the "Big Four" will win the title.  Fortunately, there are still other prizes for guys in position to place second or third.  Second place gets a healthy $200, while third receives $80, a prize that pales in comparison to the top two but is still four times the initial buy-in.  These are big prizes, but just imagine if the buy-in were doubled to $40.  First prize would pay over $1000!  I'll have to ask the pool commish if he will consider raising the entry fee.

What's amazing to me about this year's pool is that only three guys out of 40 have lost their national championship picks through 60 tournament games (we don't pick the play-in game).  Two of them were #2 seeds Georgetown and Duke, and the other was #3 seed Louisville.  This ended up being the year of the chalk pick even more so than last year in terms of picking #1 seeds.  Last year the Elite 8 consisted of all four #1 seeds, three #2s, and a #3, with two 1s and two 2s advancing.  This year, for the first time ever, all four top seeds reached the Final Four.  Just about everyone in the pool expected this to some extent, since 37/40 guys picked either UCLA, UNC, Memphis, or Kansas to win the national championship.  Usually, over a fourth of the field or more has lost their champ by now, since at least one top seed or more is out by now in most tournaments.  To anyone who picked all four #1 seeds to make the Final Four (which happened in my pool), congrats; to anyone who tried to be a hero and picked none of them (also occurred in my pool), better luck next year.

That's it for my March Madness update for this week.  I'll check in with everyone next Tuesday, which happens to be the night after the National Championship Game.  There's a 25% chance that I'll be celebrating a big victory by UCLA that will win me $520, but that means that there's also a 75% chance that I get jack squat.  I'll let you all know how it works out a week from today.  Once again, GO BRUINS!






March 25, 2008

MARCH MADNESS:  MY SHOT AT $520 

It's March, and that means that it's the most wonderful time of the year for college basketball fans.  March Madness provides one of the best postseasons in any sport with the Men's NCAA Basketball Tournament.  It is easily one of the most gambled upon sports events in the world, with billions of dollars in legal (and illegal) bets being exchanged.  One guy I know runs a pool for his office every year, and I always enter it.  Usually around 30-35 people participate, but this year he got his biggest turnout ever with 40 entries.  With an entry fee of $20, this results in a pool of $800.  First place gets $520, second $200, and third $80.  The first place prize explains the choice of my title for this article.

So far, after two rounds, I am in first place in the pool with 59 out of a possible 80 points, with one point awarded for each correct first round pick and three for each one you get right in the second round.  I am not holding my breath, however, because there are still 15 games to be played.  Two guys are right behind me with 57 points apiece, and they each have different national champions than me.  I'm in good shape right now for sure, with UCLA as my national champ, but a loss by them and I'm finished.  I have seven of my Elite 8 picks still alive, but the one that is out is Georgetown, who I had going to the Final Four.  I'm not too worried about that because fourteen other guys had the Hoyas advancing to San Antonio as well.  So far, my best pick was West Virginia over Duke, and my worst was Clemson to the Sweet 16.  I'll elaborate further on why those two were good or bad picks just below here, where I'll be listing the five best and five worst picks made by the other 39 guys in the pool.

BEST PICKS

• Western Kentucky to the Sweet 16:  All of one person picked WKU to the Sweet 16, and it ended up being a brilliant selection.  Apparently, this person knew that Courtney Lee was an amazing player and will be in the NBA someday.  Or, it's possible he knew that the Hilltoppers were a very good team that beat BCS programs like Michigan and Nebraska this season.  Maybe it was just dumb luck.  Nonetheless, it was ballsy, and it worked out pretty well.
• Siena over Vanderbilt:  Seven of the 40 guys in this pool picked Siena, which equates to 18% of the field.  I was one of them, and I made this pick because I knew Siena beat mighty Stanford earlier in the season.  Also, I saw Vanderbilt struggle down the stretch with three losses in their last five games.  This may not have been the reasoning of the other six guys for picking the Saints to advance, but everyone earns this additional point just the same.
• Davidson to the Sweet 16:  Just one guy had this happening, and man does he look smart.  Picking them to beat Gonzaga is one thing, but Georgetown too?  He must have known that Stephen Curry is an amazing player, one who has scored 70 points in the Wildcats' two wins.  It's just as likely that it was a lucky pick, but however you put it this guy earned three points that nobody else did.
• Villanova to the Sweet 16:  The two guys who made this pick look like geniuses because both of them also had Siena beating Vanderbilt.  This is a pick I should have made, because Villanova is my favorite school.  I feel like I betrayed them by picking Clemson over 'Nova, and the basketball gods made me pay for my lack of loyalty.  I promise to never doubt the Wildcats again, unless they really really suck, which probably will not happen as long as Jay Wright is in charge.
• West Virginia over Duke:  Believe it or not, only 10% of the pool had this pick.  The other 90% bought into the Duke hype that they were really good enough to be a #2 seed.  I knew they were not, believing that the Blue Devils were overrated all season because they have no inside game at all.  Sure enough, they got absolutely beasted on the boards by the Mountaineers, getting out-rebounded 45-19.  One guy had WAY too much faith in Duke; I'll get to him a bit later on.

WORST PICKS

• Clemson to the National Championship Game:  Clemson was possibly the team most resembling Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde this season.  One game they look like they could be national champs, the next they look like they could lose to NJIT (0-29 in 2007-08).  Many experts said the Tigers could be a Final Four team, or they could get knocked out in Round 1, and the latter happened.  I can see picking them to the Sweet 16, which I did, but the title game?  This guy really thought Clemson would beat the likes of Kansas, Wisconsin, and UNC?  Please.
• Duke as National Champion:  Here we are, at the worst pick of the entire field.  Someone actually picked this overrated, unathletic Duke team to win it all.  I can't understand why anyone would make this pick.  Say Duke beats West Virginia, and Xavier, which is possible.  They'd probably run into UCLA in the Elite 8, where Kevin Love would dominate the Blue Devils on the inside and Darren Collison, Josh Shipp, and Russell Westbrook on the outside.  Now let's say that by some miracle Duke beats UCLA; do you really think they'd have the athleticism to match up with Memphis or Texas, or the size to beat Stanford?  I have a better chance of getting pregnant.
  
• Georgia to the Sweet 16:  Sure, Georgia was a nice story, winning three games in two days to enter the tourney as the SEC Champion.  However, I didn't buy into that momentum continuing into the Big Dance for a second.  The Bulldogs went just 4-12 in the SEC in the regular season and lost to "powerhouses" East Tennessee State and Tulane earlier in the year.  For some reason, two guys saw them beating both Xavier and Purdue.  Nice try, but it didn't quite work out.
• Indiana to the Final Four:  I will anoint this pick the second worst to Duke going all the way.  Indiana would have been lucky to make it out of the first round, where they would then have to face the almighty UNC Tar Heels.  This was a Hoosiers team that had become completely dysfunctional after Kelvin Sampson was forced out as head coach.  Since he left, Indiana barely squeaked by two non-tourney teams in Northwestern and Ohio State, lost by 29 to Michigan State, lost at weak Penn State, and then honked out in the first round of the Big Ten tourney to Minnesota.  This is a Final Four team?
• USC to the Final Four:  This guy may have thought he was making football picks, because USC was certainly not one of the four best basketball teams in the country.  As a #6 seed, they were a long shot to even reach the Sweet 16.  O.J. Mayo is good for sure, but certainly not that good, and he didn't exactly have an all-star supporting cast.  I knew they weren't getting out of the first round, as did several others, but not this guy.  He tried to be a hero by selecting a long shot to reach San Antonio, and that does not work anymore, since chalk picks rule nowadays.
  

That's all for my analysis of the bracket I'm participating in.  I'll check in with everyone next week after the regionals, where hopefully I'll still have my three remaining Final Four picks alive.  Until then, go Memphis, North Carolina, and (especially) UCLA!





March 18, 2008

MY FLORIDA VACATION

This past Wednesday, March 12, my brother Ryan and I returned home from five days and four nights in Florida.  The main purpose of the trip was to visit my grandparents in Dunedin, which is about 45 minutes from Tampa.  I had not seen my grandparents in over a year, and my grandmother is now stuck in a nursing home, but I won't elaborate on that because that stuff is boring.  Anyway, our trip got off to a pretty good start when I spotted Phillies play-by-play announcer Harry Kalas at the airport.  He was on our flight to Tampa to call the Blue Jays-Phils game on March 9, a game Ryan and I would attend.  We got a photo with him, which you can see here, along with other photos from our trip.  That was one of the only good things about our trip down.  Our flight on USAir was delayed 45 minutes because the crew had to come from another flight, which was also delayed (heavy rain that day).  Things picked up a bit when we finally got to Tampa, as we got our luggage in record time.  Somehow, the luggage must have started coming out of the plane about 15 seconds after we landed because it was all out by the time we got to the baggage claim area.  At the baggage claim I saw another sports semi-celebrity in Penn State wide receivers coach Mike McQueary.  At well over 6 feet tall and with flaming red hair, it was hard to miss him.  I had a little chat with McQueary about various things, but unfortunately he was unable to tell me who was winning the Nittany Lions' quarterback battle.  That was OK though, I figured it was top secret information.

From the baggage claim it was on to Thrifty to get our rental car.  Some words of advice:  DO NOT USE THRIFTY!  THEY WILL SCREW YOU OVER!  It has happened to my family on three consecutive occasions when we used them to rent cars on vacations.  Last summer, all four of us went to San Diego, where my dad requested a Chrysler Pacifica; we ended up riding around in a $%#@!* minivan.  My parents went to Florida to visit the same grandparents I was visiting in January and requested a Dodge Caliber, but ended up with a Hyundai Sonata.  This time, I had reserved a Caliber as well, but they were all out and I was nearly stuck driving a Chrysler Town and Country minivan.  Yeah, that will look really baller at Clearwater Beach.  I'm not exactly saying that a Caliber is a chick magnet, but at least people don't get laughed at when coming out of one.  Nonetheless, I felt like Jerry Seinfeld after his rental car reservation had been given away.  After over an hour of waiting and complaining, our Thrifty agent Ron, who was actually very helpful throughout this situation, finally found me a Chrysler Sebring.  Never again will I use Thrifty.

The next day, Sunday March 9, I went to the Phillies Spring Training game with my grandpop, Ryan, and my friend Dan Glaberson.  I went to high school with Dan but the lucky bastard now goes to the University of Tampa and lives in Florida year round.  Anyway, the Phils' spring training stadium in Clearwater, Bright House Field, is very nice.  Ryan deftly pointed out that it is very similar to Campbell's Field in Camden, NJ, home of the minor league Camden Riversharks.  My dad hooked us up with quality third base line seats thanks to him being friends with a baseball agent.  The agent had the seats reserved through Phils bench coach and former outfielder Milt Thompson, so thanks Milt.  The Phils lost to Toronto 9-4, but fortunately the games don't count yet.  Kyle Kendrick got lit up for 6 runs in the second inning alone.  Kendrick wasn't the only one who got burned that day, as pale-skinned Ryan and Dan both got badly sunburned knees.  It was a sunny, 75 degree day, and those guys forgot to use sunblock, so they paid the price for that.

Monday Ryan and I just chilled at our grandfathers' condo pool, then went up to Tarpon Springs to visit another friend from high school, my man Jon Simons.  Simons moved to Florida about four years ago and chose to go right to work instead of going to college.  He's just now earning a degree, but he has to do it through night school and online classes, missing out on the real college experience.  Simons happens to live right near former NBA player Matt Geiger.  If you are wondering why I'm mentioning him, just check out his home; you might be slightly impressed.

That night I hit up the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Tampa with Ryan and a couple of high school friends who were in town at the same time.  There was a theme that night at the place, and that theme was incompetence.  This applied to both dealers and poker players.  Of course, the stage was set for donks to play poker there, since for some reason Florida law prohibits buy-ins of over $100.  We all played $1/$2 no limit Texas Holdem, and most of us came out in the red.  My friend Jeff Kaplan actually lost all of his initial buy-in in less than 10 minutes thanks to a guy calling him down and catching runner-runner for a flush.  I ended up down $60, but at least it took me over three hours to lose my stack.  On my final hand, I went all in with 5-5 and was called by 7-7, and no 5s came out so that was the end of my night.  It could have been worse for me, and it was for Ryan and Jeff, who played at the same table much of the evening (Jeff bought back in).  One moron ended up beating Ryan's A-Q with a 5-2, hitting a 5 on the flop.  Another guy at their table check-called the entire way with pocket aces and didn't raise once; appropriately, one person laughed at his donkery when he turned over A-A. 

Did I mention dealer incompetence earlier?  Let me elaborate.  After someone folded pre-flop at Ryan's table, some guy asked for the dealer to play out the hand, and unbelievably he actually did.  You are not supposed to play out a flop at a casino!  This is not a basement game with your buddies!  That was very unprofessional to say the least.  Also, at my table, a dealer failed to give a guy change for his blind entry, and a supervisor needed to be called over to settle the dispute.  I'm not expecting to see anyone from the Seminole Hard Rock dealing at the Bellagio any time soon.  Back to the gameplay itself, Dan ended up meeting us there later and promptly dropped over $100, but he works a lot so he can afford it.  The only one of us who finished in positive figures that night was Jeff's friend Neel Bhutta, who won over $300.  I know these money figures are small and wimpy, but that's what happens when you're limited to a $100 buy-in.  I think I hear the entire city of Las Vegas laughing at every casino in the Sunshine State right now.

Tuesday was our most eventful day of the trip.  After lunch, Ryan and I met up with Jeff and Neel to go to Clearwater Beach.  There was a pretty good amount of Spring Breakers there, and it was a pretty good beach day at about 75 and sunny.  The water was still cold, but we still swam for a bit.  We were surrounded by plenty of sexy coeds, but none of us talked to any girls.  It would've been hard to coax a group of girls to hang out with us anyway.  "Hey baby, wanna come back to my grandpop's condo?  We can't do anything fun, we might wake up all the other old people that live there."  Besides, we had tickets to the Tampa Bay Lightning game that night.

Ryan scored a great deal for the Islanders-Lightning game on eBay, as we got club box seats valued at over $101 for just $34 apiece.  Dan went with us and was supposed to bring one of his buddies but his friend bitched out, forcing him to sell the extra seat for just $10 right before face-off.  This was my third Lightning game at St. Pete Times Forum, and the team had come full circle during that time.  The first time I went to the Forum, it was March 2001 and Tampa Bay was the second worst team in the NHL that season.  This showed in the game I saw, where they lost 7-1 to the eventual Eastern Conference Champion New Jersey Devils.  The next Lightning home game I saw was in December 2003, a season that saw them earn 106 points and finish with their first Stanley Cup Championship.  Accordingly, Tampa Bay beat the Boston Bruins 4-2 thanks largely to two goals and an assist from 03-04 league MVP Martin St. Louis.  Now, they suck again, as you can see in my team rankings.

As for the game, there was still a very good crowd despite Tampa Bay's ineptness on the ice this season.  The team has certainly built a good fan base, which is more than their cross-state rivals in Miami can say.  The game ended up being very high-scoring, which was no surprise because both the Isles and Lightning stink.  When two bad teams play the game is usually either a shootout or a boring, low-scoring affair, and luckily these guys knew how to score.  Lightning superstar Vinny Lecavalier broke out of a long slump with a hat trick, capping it off with 2:17 left to play.  At that point Ryan and I left with Tampa Bay well ahead at 6-3; Dan already left after the second period to meet up with some buddies in Fort Lauderdale.  Somehow, we ended up missing three more goals, making the final score 8-4 Lightning.  This was the last thing of note that we did on the trip, since the next day we ended up just doing laundry and visiting my grandmother one more time before going home.

Sidenote 1:  You might be wondering what Ryan and I ate during this trip.  I will tell you about the three excellent restaurants we scrounged at.  On Sunday after the Phils game, we ate at one of our all-time favorite buffet restaurants, Sweet Tomatoes.  Known as Souplantation in California, this franchise has locations in much of the western and southern United States.  When dining at Sweet Tomatoes, you start off with as much salad as you feel like eating, with just about every kind of vegetable and topping available.  After that, they have all of the soup, pasta, bread, fruit, and soft serve you can handle, with unlimited refills on drinks.  Eating at Sweet Tomatoes is always on my family's list of things to do when we go to Florida, and it should be on yours too.

Another place we ate at was Cody's Original Roadhouse, which has ten locations in Florida.  The wait was kinda long, but Cody's smartly has a giant barrel of peanuts to hold you over.  I had their chicken fajitas, while Ryan had their bacon cheeseburger, both of which were delicious.  They have ribs there, of course, but we saved that for our final day there.  We had ribs at Sonny's Real Pit BBQ, which has several locations throughout the South.  Their ribs were tender with great sauce and meat that fell off of the bone, which is just how we like them.  Their mac and cheese was an excellent side dish.  If you ever end up in the Clearwater/Dunedin area, be sure to eat at any of the three restaurants I mentioned, because I guarantee you'll be satisfied at the end of your meal.

Sidenote 2:  Remember how I complained about Pennsylvania drivers a few weeks ago?  Florida drivers just might be worse.  First of all, they drive very slow, even on roads with higher speed limits.  This is probably the "old people" factor of Florida, but it's still very annoying.  The drivers also seem to have slow reaction time at traffic lights.  When the light turned from red to green, I went immediately, while the native Floridians were delayed by a couple of seconds.  This delay allowed me to get way ahead of these slow-reflexed drivers.  If these were races, I would have won them very cleanly.  Also, many of these drivers seemed to be reckless or stupid or possibly both.  In my first two days there I saw three accident scenes; one was so bad, over 10 emergency vehicles rushed to the scene to provide help.  Jeff and Neel saw someone get rear-ended right in front of their faces.  Hopefully, this paragraph will serve as a warning to anyone driving in Florida.  Be careful, because a lot of people are dangerous when they get out on the road, even more dangerous than Pennsylvania drivers.






March 4, 2008

THE SIMPSONS VS. FAMILY GUY

Two of my favorite television shows are "The Simpsons" and "Family Guy." Both are very funny cartoons whose humor I did not understand until I got older and more mature. I'll watch either show at almost any time, even if I've seen that particular episode multiple times. However, I must point out to everyone one thing about Family Guy, and that is that it seems to be a rip-off of The Simpsons. Sure, television shows copy each other all the time, but it seems like Family Guy has blatantly copied The Simpsons many times over. Since The Simpsons debuted nine years before Family Guy, the chance for copying was certainly available. Heck, just look at the basic family setup of each show:

• Bumbling idiot husband/father main character who is overweight, has a dead end job, and has a severe drinking problem that has led to a great deal of property destruction (Homer Simpson, Peter Griffin)
• Wife/mother who is an attractive, jobless housewife that sticks with her husband even though he has screwed up many times in his life (Marge Simpson, Lois Griffin)
• Moronic son who does not do very well in school and often gets in trouble (Bart Simpson, Chris Griffin)
• Daughter who has trouble fitting in at school and is not funny unless something bad happens to her (Lisa Simpson, Meg Griffin)
• Baby that can do things that no real life human baby is capable of (Maggie Simpson, Stewie Griffin)
• Dog as the family pet (Santa's Little Helper, Brian Griffin)

This setup could be coincidental, as there have probably been other shows with families arranged like this. However, there are many more similarities between the two shows with regularly featured minor characters and with certain situations. Both shows feature the following:

• In-laws that never liked the main character husband/father from the beginning and therefore ridicule or insult him with every chance they get (Homer's sisters-in-law Patty and Selma Bouvier, Peter's father-in-law Carter Pewterschmidt)
• Nerdy boy who has a crush on the family's daughter (Milhouse van Houten on Lisa, Neil Goldman on Meg)
• Token black friend of the main character (Homer's friend Carl Carlson, Peter's buddy Cleveland Brown)
• Corrupt, incompetent mayor of the featured town that is nonexistent in real life (Springfield Mayor "Diamond" Joe Quimby; Quahog, Rhode Island Mayor Adam West)
• Repeated shots at the FOX network, generally focusing on its crappy programming
  

Is that enough evidence for you? That's OK if it's not, because I have plenty more similarities that are contained in a single episode of each show, Simpsons' episodes airing first:

• Both main characters have had money-related troubles with the federal government (Homer's faulty tax return in "The Trouble With Trillions," Peter's failure to report a gross overpayment on welfare checks in "Death Has a Shadow")
• Both main characters ran for public office to support a dumb cause, won the election, and were subsequently forced out of office due to a combination of corruption and incompetence (Homer's run for sanitation commissioner in "Trash of the Titans," Peter's quest for school board president in "Running Mates")
• Both families have to move away from their homes to redneck-like situations to escape a threatening situation back home (Homer escaping a duel in "E-I-E-I (Annoyed Grunt)," Chris getting away from a criminal who he witnessed committing a robbery in "To Love and Die in Dixie")
• Both families have to deal with the fallout of the Y2K bug ("Simpsons Treehouse of Horror X", Family Guy's "Da Boom")
• Both married couples decide that their marriage is dull and need to get away to rediscover their original spark (Homer and Marge in "Natural Born Kissers," Peter and Lois in "North by North Quahog")
• Someone in each family loses something because he reveals that he failed to finish a level of schooling (Homer fails to complete high school in "The Front," Brian fails to finish at Brown University in "Brian Goes Back to College")
• One of the children has to live in a bubble for a short amount of time due to medical reasons (Bart in "Little Girl in the Big Ten," Stewie in "The Father, the Son, and the Holy Fonz")
• School-aged son gets expelled from school (Bart twice, Chris in "No Chris Left Behind")

Still not enough, Mr./Ms. Stubborn? Alright, you asked for it. Here is an excellent YouTube video, not made by myself of course, that points out a lot of similar situations that occur on the two shows, all on the Simpsons first:


YouTube - Family Guy Steals from Simpsons


Now, do you still think it's a coincidence that the two shows are so similar?  If you have any thoughts regarding this issue, feel free to post them on my guestbook, thanks.

Source:  Wikipedia - List of Family Guy Episodes, List of Simpsons Episodes

Related:  FOX's The Simpsons page

             FOX's Family Guy page




    

February 26, 2008

MY FAVORITE FOODS IN SOUTH JERSEY

Having been born and raised in South Jersey, I have a lot of favorite restaurants in the area. This week, I have decided to share some of them with you all, with the hope that maybe I'll get free food from them for giving them free plugs ;). Just kidding; seriously though, now that I finally have a forum for expressing my thoughts I figured I should tell everyone where to get some really good grub in South Jersey. I'll tell you my favorite places to get pizza, Mexican, Chinese, and subs. If you want to see reviews of any of these restaurants, simply Google them; I guarantee you will find mostly positive ones.   Feel free to give me any recommendations yourselves. Bon appetit!

PIZZA

KING OF PIZZA - BERLIN-CROSS KEYS ROAD, WEST BERLIN; ROUTE 70, CHERRY HILL

King of Pizza has both the best pizza and the best buffalo wings that I've ever eaten. The pizza has a thin, crispy crust with delicious sauce and cheese. Their best is definitely the sausage pizza. Unlike many restaurants that just throw big chunks of sausage on their pizza, KOP shreds theirs for an even distribution over the whole slice. Also, their sausage simply tastes better than that of most other pizza places. Definitely try the bacon pizza as well, as it is very tasty. As a side, definitely get their crispy buffalo wings, available either in Mild or Hot. If you like good pizza and wings, you must try KOP at least once.


MEXICAN

MEXICAN FOOD FACTORY - ROUTE 70, MARLTON

The Mexican Food Factory is not what its name suggests; they produce authentic Mexican cuisine, which is certainly not something a place like Taco Bell can say. The atmosphere almost makes you feel like you're in Mexico with authentic Mexican music playing and great art on the walls. Better yet, the food is great. Their appetizer nachos might be the best you'll ever have, the enchiladas are overstuffed with mouthwatering cheese, and their tacos will make you forget about Taco Bell (sorry guys, you're good but this is better). I had their salad as a side, and their ranch dressing may be the best I've ever had. The Mexican Food Factory is a bit pricey, so going there should be a special trip, but I guarantee you'll like the experience


CHINESE


JOE'S PEKING DUCK HOUSE - ROUTE 73, MARLTON

Joe's Peking Duck House is not your traditional American-based Chinese restaurant. The food there is more like what you would find if you actually traveled across the Pacific to China itself. Their specialties do not include typical dishes like egg rolls, Lo Mein, or the always popular General Tso's Chicken. What they do specialize in is spectacular. My favorite items there are the Wonton Noodle Soup (ask for extra noodles; they'll know my family sent you), Fried Dumplings, Chicken in Peking Sauce, House Special Pan Fried Noodles (get it without the squid), and Ha Moon Noodles. My parents would recommend the Soft Shell Crab and their famous Peking Duck. They offer Dim Sum on the weekends; your best bets there are the BBQ Pork Bun, Mini Spring Roll, Turnip Cake, Chicken Bundle, and BBQ Pork in Rice Noodle. I guarantee you'll like Joe's, or your money back (not really).

SUBS

WHITE HOUSE SUB SHOP - ARCTIC AVE, ATLANTIC CITY

Call them whatever you want, be it hoagies, heroes, subs, grinders, but White House Sub Shop in Atlantic City has the best subs I've ever had. Located right near the Trump Plaza Casino and Hotel, White House is a great stop for any meal of the day. No matter which sub you order, I guarantee it will be on a fresh roll that was ordered that day, and that roll will be completely stuffed with meat, cheese, lettuce, and tomato. I dare you to eat a sub from there and not be full afterwards; if you still have room in your stomach, you must be a champion eater. I personally recommend trying their traditional Italian, turkey, and cheese steak subs. Another great thing about the place is it's fame; having produced quality subs for the past 62 years, dozens of celebrities have eaten there. The list includes Frank Sinatra, Joe DiMaggio, George Clooney, Tommy Lasorda, Franco Harris, and everyone's "favorite" comedian, Carrot Top. If you want to eat outstanding subs while looking at tons of photos of famous people who ate there, White House is the place.

February 19, 2008

DUKE BASKETBALL

The most popular NCAA basketball program in the country is probably that of Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. It seems that people have one of the following two opinions of the Blue Devils; you either love them, or hate them. Personally, I hate Duke basketball. I consider them the New York Yankees of NCAA basketball, which means I also don't like the Yankees, but that is a topic for another day. Year in and year out, Duke recruits some decent athletes, but also a bunch of scrawny white guys, yet somehow is always in the Top 25 and in the running for the ACC Championship. Since 1984, this program has missed the NCAA Tournament only once, with that occurring in 1996.

What is it that people hate about Duke and their players? Sometimes I wonder exactly why I don't like them. In fact, I really cannot give a legitimate reason other than that they are the NCAA's evil empire and those bastards win all the time. Some of their players simply irritate me. Do not even get me started on former Blue Devils 2-guard J.J. Redick; I CANNOT STAND HIM! He won several national player of the year awards in 2006 that I do not think he deserved. I know he averaged 26.8 points a game his senior year and shot over 90% from the free throw line for his career, but that's all he was really good at, shooting. The guy was not a great passer, couldn't rebound if his life depended on it, and his defensive deficiencies would have made many coaches pull their hair out. The hype of him being on Duke was, in my opinion, the only reason he won all of those national POY awards. They really should have gone to Adam Morrison of Gonzaga. Morrison could actually rebound and play defense, shot better from the field, and unlike Redick could create his own offense. Duke had so many set screens and set plays for Redick that he could just get open and shoot; Morrison was able to score both inside and outside. I do not want to hear the argument that Morrison played in a weaker conference, because his Gonzaga Bulldogs played plenty of strong opponents and Morrison played very well against them. Just watch their NBA careers to see who is the better player; you'll see that it will most definitely be Morrison.

Today, my least favorite Dukie is point guard Greg Paulus. He is a good leader and a great passer for sure, but he is also a terrible flopper. Think I'm just a hater? Check out this video of Paulus flopping (and for good measure here is one of Redick flopping as well). Here is another great video of Paulus getting leaped over by Virginia Tech star Deron Washington. Real tough players would not flop or let themselves get hurdled for a dunk, so I would say that Paulus does not fall into the category of a tough player. Many people believe that Duke gets a lot of favorable foul calls on the whole, and I agree. Some pretty good evidence is presented in this video.  For this reason, it was very sweet to see Duke lose to Wake Forest on Sunday night. It is always great to see the Blue Devils lose, but it was especially great to see all five of their starters foul out by the time the game was over. Wake played a tough, "in your face" game, and Duke was unable to handle it without fouling the Demon Deacons every other possession. This proved that the way to beat Duke in the Big Dance is to play a physical game, because only the best referees work March Madness and they will not fall for the Blue Devils' flopping tactics.

One thing I will definitely concede is that Mike Krzyzewski is an outstanding coach. Coach K recruits underrated and undervalued players year after year and brings the best out of them. You see many players succeed in Coach K's system at Duke, then suck in the NBA. This happens to a lot of college players of course, but it seems to be especially rampant among ex-Dukies. Just look at the following list of players: Cherokee Parks, Bobby Hurley, William Avery, Trajan Langdon, Dahntay Jones, Daniel Ewing, and (my favorite) J.J. Redick. All of those guys were stars while playing for Duke, but had negligible impacts once reaching the NBA. Former Blue Devils forward Josh McRoberts will probably be added to that list someday, as I do not foresee him being anything more than a bit player in the pros. This fact is comforting to me, knowing that most of Coach K's players will never be successful NBA players.

I'd say that sums up how much I hate Duke basketball. Just like the Detroit Red Wings, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Lakers, and New England Patriots, they are not one of my favorite teams' rivals, yet I still enjoy seeing them go down. Last year may have been the sweetest year for Duke haters in a long time, as they finished with "only" 22 wins and lost to Virginia Commonwealth in the first round of the NCAAs. I would like to close by wishing the other 11 schools in the ACC good luck, and may you all not allow Duke to win the conference and earn yet another #1 seed in the Big Dance. BEAT DUKE!!

Sources: Yahoo! Sports, Wikipedia

February 12, 2008

WING BOWL

One of my favorite events to attend each year is the Wing Bowl. For those who don’t know, the Wing Bowl is a Buffalo wing eating competition that is held at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia every year on the Friday before the Super Bowl. It was founded in 1993 by Philadelphia radio personalities Al Morganti and Angelo Cataldi, two guys who still commentate the event every year on 610 WIP Sports Radio. It was originally held at the Wyndham Franklin Plaza hotel in downtown Philadelphia in front of 150 spectators. However, it quickly grew too big for smaller venues like that, and eventually moved up to the Electric Factory concert hall, the Wachovia Spectrum, and finally to it’s current home, the Wachovia Center . Today, the Wing Bowl is sanctioned by the IFOCE, or the International Federation of Competitive Eating. This ensures that only serious competitive eaters participate, which erases the past problem of joke competitors. One year, a guy nicknamed “Yao Wing” stopped after eating six wings. SIX WINGS! I’m far from a champion eater, but even I would have to eat at least three times that amount before stopping. Fortunately, the event’s IFOCE sanctioning will keep this from happening again. The event’s commissioner is lively former 76ers owner Pat Croce. He took over for former commissioner and MLB umpire Eric Gregg, who sadly passed away due to a stroke in 2006.

The main reason I, and most other guys, attend this event is for the debauchery. The arena parking lots open at 4 AM (the event starts at 6), and tailgating immediately commences. People often break out grills, tents, and even beer pong tables. In the past, this event was free, but this was no longer the case after 2005. The demand for entry was so high in 2005 that several hundreds of people were turned away; fortunately, my friends and I were not among them. The drunken souls who were denied entry to the Wachovia Center did not take this lying down, as they started rioting. To keep this from reoccurring, the Wing Bowl organizers starting requiring spectators to purchase tickets. They are a mere $5, so they always sell out very quickly.

After people enter the arena, which opens at 5 AM , the best part begins: GIRLS FLASHING!! It is an annual tradition for at least 10-15girls in the crowd to flash their breasts for everyone’s enjoyment. If a woman suggests flashing, she is egged on by all of the men in nearby sections; those who flash are loudly applauded,while those who back down are booed. The2008 event had a bonus that was previously not allowed, as breasts were shown on the arena’s Jumbotron. In the past, hot girls were always shown on the Jumbotron, but as soon as they began to roll up their shirts the video production staff cut away, obviously invoking booing from the crowd. Fortunately, this year the standards were relaxed and breasts were shown on the arena’s largest television, drawing loud cheering each time.

When the show starts, each competitor enters to his/her (usually his, but women have competed before) choice of music and is surrounded by a large entourage. The competitors will usually come in on a spectacular float and will be flanked by several beautiful women in skimpy outfits, known as “Wingettes.” Wingettes are often strippers, especially if the eater they are associated with is sponsored by a Philadelphia-area gentleman’s club. Prizes are given out for the best entourage and the best Wingette. The Best Entourage wins a vacation package for 10 to anywhere in the US ,as well as a 73 inch big screen TV. The Top Wingette wins a Scion car and a pair of earrings from one of the event’s main sponsors, Steven Singer jewelers. Of course, the most valuable prize, a brand new truck or car, is given to the Wing Bowl champion; this year the winner received a 2008 Toyota Tundra courtesy of Liberty Toyota and Scion, who also gave out the Scion to the Top Wingette.

As for the competition itself, it is a show of amazing feats of gorging. To qualify for the Wing Bowl, a person must achieve an extraordinary eating accomplishment, usually a very large amount of food in a short period of time. The qualifying feat is negotiated with the 610 WIP hosts. It then must be done at the WIP studios in front of Al Morganti, who is known to be a tough judge. Accomplishments of this year’s qualifiers include four pounds of Sloppy Joe in four minutes, 12 oz of syrup in 15 seconds, three foot-long chicken teriyaki hoagies in eight minutes, and three pounds of shrimp in four and a half minutes. Another way to qualify is to win a “Wing Off,” the winner of which eats the most wings in five minutes. Of course, not everyone has to enter through these methods, as past champions are automatically allowed to enter whenever they want.

The rules of the Wing Bowl are simple for the most part. The competition is divided into two 14 minute halves, plus a two minute sprint at the end, for a total of 30 minutes of wing eating craziness. For awing to count as eaten, it must be completely clean of meat, otherwise it will not count and points can even be deducted from someone’s score for multiple violations. The only other thing that can be consumed during the competition besides the wings is water to help wash them down. The fans’ favorite rule can be expressed in four words: “You Heave, You Leave.” If any food is regurgitated during the competition, even during the break in between rounds, the competitor is immediately disqualified. Many times during the Wing Bowl, we see a contestant who is struggling to keep his food down, thus provoking taunts from the 20,000 fans who want to see him hurl. One man was disqualified this year because apiece of chicken came out through his nose, and this was counted as regurgitation. However, the last really spectacular disqualification came in 2001. A contestant known as “The Sloth” was doing very well until he threw up,spewing a large stream of water and chicken on the table in front of him. In this year’s competition, every time a guy was on the verge of puking, a video clip of The Sloth losing his breakfast was shown on the Jumbotron as an additional taunt.

The 2008 Wing Bowl, the event’s 16^th running,featured the breaking of some significant records. The champion was Joey Chestnut, who is arguably the best competitive eater in the world right now. Chestnut has won the last three Wing Bowls and last year’s Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, defeating former champion Takeru Kobayashi with a world record 66 hot dogs. Chestnut won this year’s Wing Bowl with a world record 241 wings, which is an incredible average of eight wings per minute. He also set a first round record with 124 wings, an amount higher than four previous winning totals. The 200 wing barrier had never been broken before, but three guys did it in total. Patrick Bertoletti finished in second place for the second year in a row with 227 wings, a total that would have easily won any of the first 15competitions. The third man to top the 200 wing barrier was fan favorite and Wing Bowl Hall of Famer Bill “El Wingador” Simmons, a five time champion. As a demonstration of how much better the competition has become recently, El Wingador ate his career high in 2008 with 205 wings, yet he was still 36 wings off the lead. A new champion is guaranteed next year, as both El Wingador and Chestnut have announced their retirement from the Wing Bowl. The odds-on favorite to win in 2009 will likely be Patrick Bertoletti, judging by his second place finishes the past two years.

That’s pretty much all there is to know about the Wing Bowl. It has gone from being held in a hotel lobby to filling up the Wachovia Center and has become a staple of Philadelphia culture in the process. I recommend this event to any heterosexual male aged 21+ (for drinking purposes) who likes seeing hot chicks that flash their breasts and guys eating ridiculous amounts of Buffalo wings. Look for me at next year’s event, because I’ll almost certainly be there.

Sources: 610 WIP, Wikipedia

February 5, 2008

PENNSYLVANIA DRIVERS IN NEW JERSEY

As a New Jerseyan, I do not have a high tolerance for out of state drivers. Many people from other states do not drive according to typical New Jersey standards (aggressive and fast, pretty much). However, one state's drivers irritate me more than any other's - PENNSYLVANIA!! Pennsylvania drivers in New Jersey are the absolute worst from out of state.

My first complaint about PA drivers is that they drive slowly. There is probably an explanation for this - they are lost. It is understandable for someone to get lost in an unfamiliar area. However, there is no need to go really slow and keep me and other drivers from getting to where we need to be because they don't know where they are going. I get lost once in a while, but I do not slow down when that occurs; I just keep driving at a normal speed to try to find the right roads, or if things get really bad, I pull over and call my buddy for directions. Is that so hard? If you're lost, pull over and ask for directions. Better yet, BRING A MAP!! Mapquest can get you to wherever you need to go most of the time, and even if they do screw up, there is no need to drive 15 mph below the speed limit.

The worst thing about Pennsylvania drivers is when they drive slow in the left lane of a divided highway. Picture this: you're cruising along at 70-80 MPH, the road seems to be clear, when suddenly you have to slam on your brakes because some idiot from PA is going 40. Sound familiar? It should, because it happens a lot. Again, it has to do with those drivers being lost, but it's even more annoying this time because it slows you down when you are trying to go fast. Why are they going so slow in the left lane? It's simple - they're looking for a left turn lane to do a U-turn. Hey morons, this is New Jersey; use a JUGHANDLE!! There's a reason that jughandles were made, and it's so that people who need to do a U-turn don't have to clog the left lane looking for a turning lane. If there is no jughandle, well, that just sucks, but it's still the PA person's fault for being lost and/or driving slow.

Another problem I have with PA drivers is that they have trouble staying in their lanes when driving, or if it's a single lane road they just swerve a lot. Why does this happen? Do all driving schools across the Delaware river teach people not to drive straight and steady? Plenty of times I've been driving behind a Keystone stater in my neighborhood and for some reason he/she cannot drive without swerving from left to right. Or, there are those people who are next to you on a major highway and it looks like they are about to encroach into your lane because they can't stay straight. Sure, NJ drivers do this too, but it seems like most of the time when I see these kinds of things the offending car has a blue and gold PA license plate.

There are probably a few other things that PA drivers do in my home state, but I feel like I have trashed them enough already. Before I finish, I would like to point out that not all drivers from across the Delaware drive like this, so kudos to you highly skilled motorists from there. For the rest of you, the next time you come to my state, please go here first:

Google Maps or Mapquest

Thank you for reading, and please, no matter where you are from, drive safely and know where you are going in advance.








January 29, 2008

SONIC DRIVE-IN

I have a new favorite fast food place, and sadly it is nowhere near me. Sonic Drive-In has some amazing food items. It is so great, my brother and I make a special trip to Morgantown, PA, which is where the nearest one to me is. It is just 30 min west of West Chester, so it's actually not too far from civilization. For those who don't know, you just pull up in your car and press a button to order through a loudspeaker when you're ready. There are no drive thru lines, and your food comes rather quickly, usually in 10 minutes or less. Just about everything on the menu is great. Here are my favorite items:

Breakfast Bistro Sandwich: Comes with egg, cheese, and your choice of sausage, ham, or bacon. Served on ciabatta bread, this may be the best breakfast sandwich I've ever had. Plus, you can get it all day, as Sonic's entire breakfast menu is not restricted to the morning.

Chicken Club Toaster Sandwich: This is simply a medley of just about everything that I like. Comes with breaded chicken, lettuce, tomato, bacon, smoky cheddar, and honey mustard sauce. If you like clubs andwiches, this is for you.

French Fries: Sonic has skinny fries, similar to those of McDonald's. They are outstanding, and if you really so desire, they come with cheese.

Famous Slushes: Good no matter what flavor you get. Come in cherry, orange, grape, blue coconut, or watermelon. Two tips: don't get a size larger than medium, or the cup won't fit in your car's cup holder. Also, drink it slowly, because while these drinks are tasty, they can cause brain freeze very easily.

Oreo Sonic Blast: Similar to the McFlurry, but good nonetheless.

Those are my five favorite items. I have yet to try many of them, mainly their other desserts and their hot dogs. If any rich entrepreneurs out there are reading this, please open a Sonic Drive-In in South Jersey!! You'll make huge money, especially from my brother and I, I guarantee it.


Sonic Drive-in Official Website