Category: Reviews

Posted on

Ball-slinging

The dogs got a 4-ball Hyperdog slingshot/ball launcher for Christmas, so today we spent a drizzly half hour or so at the dog park trying it out. It comes with 4 tennis balls, so it’s ready to go out of the box.

Hyperdog ball launcher with 4 dog-tested and approved balls

Hyperdog ball launcher with 4 dog-tested and approved balls

According to the product description, it’ll launch a ball up to 220′ (67m). I’m pretty sure I could have cleared the dog park from end to end with it pretty easily. Even with a short pull back you can launch the ball a good distance. Nala definitely had a good time running after the ball. Simba didn’t quite figure it out yet, because all he saw were the balls in the launcher, rather than the one that was launched.

Business end of the Hyperdog slingshot. Convenient ball storage.

Business end of the Hyperdog slingshot. Convenient ball storage.

It’s pretty comfortable to use, with a padded arm brace to absorb some of the pressure of pulling the ball and pouch back. The product description also boasts hands-free pickup, but this tended to be somewhat awkward because of the slingshot arms. I ended up finding it easier to just pick up the ball with my hands.

Hyperdog ball launcher arm brace

If you’re squeamish about picking up dirty and slobbery balls, you’ll probably want to stick with a regular Chuck-it or something similar for true hands-free play. If you have a dog that likes to run after balls and want to be able to send something far downrange, it doesn’t get much better than a Hyperdog launcher. It’s best in large, wide open fields and where the density of people/dogs is relatively low. Launching a ball and beaning someone in the head probably wouldn’t make for a good dog park experience. It would be perfect for the dog park at James Island County Park or Palmetto Islands County Park. It’ll work fine in smaller areas too, but you’ll have to be careful about how far you pull back and the launch angle.

I think the next thing I’ll do is replace the regular fuzzy tennis balls (hate how gooey and nasty they end up getting) with some Chuck-it rubber Ultra balls. They’re a little heavier, don’t get quite as dirty or gooey, and are easier to see in grass than a dirty tennis ball.

Posted on

Willie Jewell’s Old School BBQ

Last night was a Lowcountry BBQ meatup at the fairly new Willie Jewell’s Old School BBQ up in North Charleston.

Willie Jewell’s is located in a little strip mall almost across the street from Wannamaker County Park. It’s not a very large place, but is pretty decent looking inside. Definitely not the hole in the wall shack type places you typically associate good Lowcountry BBQ with.

Ordering counter

Where there's smoke

Old School BBQ

The menu has a pretty good variety to choose from, but I went for the pork supper plate, which turned out to be a pulled pork sandwich (with a pretty good sized portion of pork) served open face and two sides. I went for the baked beans and mac and cheese.

Pork supper plate

The pork was deliciously tender and very smoky. I think it’s some of the smokiest tasting BBQ I’ve had so far. Just check out that smoke ring.

Pork supper plate

The sides were kind of meh, although the baked beans were pretty good. The mac and cheese seemed to be just macaroni with salty cheese sauce poured on it. Ok, but there’s better out there. I got the impression that the sides were somewhat inconsistent. A few people in the group ordered the coleslaw which they said was really good before, but was pretty bad this time. The corn fritters, little fried nuggets of battered corn, were pretty tasty though.

The sauces are served warm in pump dispensers on a counter across from where you place your order. There are 4 sauces to choose from: traditional, sweet and tangy, classic mustard-based and a hot and spicy one. There’s also ketchup and regular mustard too, but I don’t recall seeing anything on the menu that you’d want to put them on. I probably just missed it though.

The sauces

The sauces

I went for the traditional and hot sauces. Don’t think I really liked the traditional sauce a whole lot, but the hot BBQ sauce was pretty decent. It tasted like it might have been mustard based as well. Really though, the pork stands up pretty well on its own and didn’t need any sauce at all.

If you’re in the area and develop a hankering for BBQ, Willie Jewell’s is definitely worth stopping at. Based on comments from the others, it seems like they still need to work on the sides to make the quality more consistent though. Prices are pretty reasonable though.

3.5 stars out of 5.

Posted on

9

Went to see 9 at the Terrace Hippodrome tonight.

It’s kind of a strange movie to describe. With Tim Burton as one of the producers, that’s probably to be expected. All CG animation and quite well done. It takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where nobody is left except these tiny little doll-machines and one big giant bad guy machine. Not quite sure how they work or what makes them go, but it’s not really all that important. The combination of tech and spirit in the story line made me think of Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within and a few other only vaguely remembered movies.

It’s not a long movie at just over an hour and is pretty easy to watch. I quite enjoyed it.

4 stars out of 5.

Posted on

Central BBQ

Tonight’s Lowcountry BBQ meetup was at the relatively new Central BBQ in Summerville (903 Central Ave).

Central BBQ sign

Aside from the bright yellow sign, it’s a pretty small building that wouldn’t be very hard to drive by without noticing (which would be too bad for you).

Central BBQ building

The menu at Central is pretty short and simple. From what I’ve been told, the owner puts on a batch of ‘cue at night and stays open the next day until it’s all gone so you’re always getting fresh off the BBQ food. Don’t think it can really get much better than that.

I opted for the large BBQ plate, which comes with a couple of generous scoops of pulled pork and two sides. Dug in before I remembered to take a photo of the plate.

BBQ plate with pulled pork, mac and cheese, and baked beans

The pork was amazingly good. Tender and smoky, I probably could have easily eaten another plate. There are four sauces available to choose from. I’m told the mustard sauce is excellent, but I rather enjoyed the Trinidad and Tobago Carribean BBQ sauce. It’s sweet and tastes really good.

Four bottles of BBQ sauce sitting on a table

Central BBQ is definitely worth a visit, and if you don’t live in Summerville, it’s worth the trip. You’ll want to get there early though before they sell out and close. Oh, and one more thing. Central BBQ is cash only.

Posted on

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra

Went out to see G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra at the Hippodrome tonight.

Like any movie based on a comic book, there’s lots of F/X eye candy, non-stop physics-defying action, plenty of boom and the requisite hot chicks in tight outfits.

It’s a movie based on a comic book and cartoon series, so any expectations of a plot should be kept along those lines. Some of the dialogue also tends towards cheesy over-the-topness as should be expected, especially from the bad guys. However, don’t let the source material make you think it’s a movie for kids. The action tends towards the extreme at points, lots of violence, and plenty of stabby parts. Definitely not a movie you’d want to bring little kids to. It’s really a movie for the big kids.

What did I think of it? For the type of movie it is, it was awesome. Where can I get one of those suits?

Did the Doctor make anybody else think of Keanu Reeves?