So, It's Almost Christmas...

I just want to go home and be.  But first, I have to make it through Christmas with the in-laws.  Where I don't know them and they don't know me.  They'll ask me the same questions that they asked at Thanksgiving and I will smile and nod and answer.

I love Kevin and I love his dad and his sister and her husband and her son and his brother and his fiance and Deb...

But his mom's family is weird and I'm just not comfortable with them.  Part of the problem is that Kevin doesn't have a really good relationship with his Grandma or Grandpa.  Not that they hate each other, just that he doesn't know them very well.  It's weird, because I can tell you so much about my grandparents.  It seems like it was always very segregated along the generation lines when he was growing up.

And I don't have anyone to say this to.  Because I can't tell him or it will make him uncomfortable.

It gives me anxiety and I'm tired of it.

Amazing Race

Another non-elimination leg.  Haven't there been like 3 already this year?

Amazing Race-Thailand Once More

So our intrepid travelers start out by traveling to a river.  Once at this river, they use local transportation to get to the clue box.  In this case, local transportation consisted of a large Asian elephant.  It was fun to watch,  but not very fast which frustrated most racers.

Once they reached the clue box, it was time for a Road Block.  In this Road Block, the team members had to dive for a clue in a pool of water.  Most teams were done with this task before Liz and Marie, who had finished last on the previous leg, arrived at the river.  They had to wash the elephants or some such thing for their speed bump.

Their clues took them to a temple area where they had to dissemble a spirit house and take it to the true temple.  This was a Road Block, where they had to remake the spirit house.  In this Road Block, the team member who did not dive for the clue had to assemble the spirit house.  Most teams had to return to the original staging area as they just took the house down without caring about where things went.  In particular, Cindy and Laurence were irritated at their partners for not being able to remember the original set-up.

The teams then took their strange taxi-buses to the bus station, where they had to take a bus to Bangkok.  Four teams were all on the earliest bus: Snowboarders, Brother-Sister, Weird dating Couple, and Laurence and Zac.  Laurence and Zac got tickets for a different bus, which was a first class bus.  They realized this and abandoned it.  However, it seemed like the same thing to me.  Thus, they had to walk back to the station. 

NFL Guy and His Wife and Ernie and Cindy, and the older Couple left at the same time, which left when Laurence and Zac arrived back at the terminal. 

The Twins arrived at the station, but did not have enough money to buy tickets for the bus and to pay their taxi driver.  This was a common problem, as the taxi from the temple to the bus station was expensive and the racers all have limited funds. 

The buses all arrived in Bangkok at various times, not related to when they left, or so it appeared.  The teams then traveled to Bangkok Noi where they fed koi.  However, the twins were out of cash and had to walk.  The first team to feed the fish were Ernie and Cindy, followed by Amani and Marcus and Bill and Cathi.  Ernie and Cindy abandoned their cab, which allowed Amani and Marcus to arrive first at the Pit Stop, with Cathi and Bill close behind and then Ernie and Cindy.

The Twins found a taxi driver who would take them for free to the Bangkok Noi and then another that would take them to Pit Stop.  At around the same time, the Snowboarders asked this school for help, but the lady who was going to find the place disappeared for a while with their clue.

The Snowboarders and Laurence and Zac arrived at the Pit Stop at the same time and Phil told Laurence and Zac that the original bus they were on would have been fine.  They looked upset, but were still in the race.

Jeremy and Sandy arrived 7th place, which leaves the Twins in last place, once again.  It's hard on a leg like this with no equalizers to catch up, especially when you have an extra task. 

A strange thing happened on this leg: the Snowboarders kept talking about their devotion to God.  It's just weird to me, as they never mentioned anything like this before.  Also, when they were at the temple, they kept saying how a temple couldn't defeat the one true God.

Parenthood

Two short thoughts:
First, more people need to watch Parenthood.  It is the best ensemble cast on T.V.  Bar none.  Each actor can give great emotion with no words, with just a look.  All the way through to the youngest cast members.  No other show can consistently deliver this well.  They just can't.

Second, I seemed to have missed fall.

Amazing Race-Onto Thailand

The leg started out with the Snowboarders and the Father-Son team teaming up once again.  As soon as the Snowboarders got to the airport on their way to Thailand, they found out that there were no direct flights, but that they could get flights to Jakarta and find flights from there.  This is what they chose to do and advised Lawrence and Zac do to the same.  All the rest of the teams booked flights for both legs at that first airport.  These teams got into Phuket at 5:40 pm, while the other two teams got in at 7:40 pm.  This seemed like it could be a game-changer, except when they reached the beach, it turned out that they had to all wait for morning anyway.  All teams were now equal.

In the morning, they had to move across this floating buoy dock thing.  Suffice it to say that it was weird.  The Snowboarders moved across it like it was standing still, while everyone else was a little more cautious.  It was now time for a detour.  In this Detour, they had to choose between a coral reconstruction task or a beach furniture set-up.  Most teams chose coral, but only two successfully completed it.  The task consisted of building a structure out of pipes, placing it by a buoy in the ocean and then placing coral into the structure.  The Snowboarders were the first team done, followed close behind by Brother-Sister team.  The Brother-Sister team looked like they were actually working together and civil and more importantly, having fun, for the whole leg of the race.

All the other teams worked on the Beach Set-up.  In this Detour, the teams had to set up 20 chairs and 10 umbrellas.  This was a struggle for most teams because of the wind.  Also, the arrangement for the chairs and umbrellas was really specific.  The Blonde Twins, despite being one of the few teams who chose this detour first, were the last team to finish.

The Road Block for this leg was rock climbing.  It didn't look particularly hard and it seemed like most teams enjoyed themselves.

The first place team was the Snowboarders.  This is their third first place finish in a row.  They are definitely looking like a serious team to beat.  Second place went to the Brother-Sister team and the rest of the teams fell in place, with the Blondes finishing last.  However, this was a non-elimination leg.  So nobody went home this time.

Amazing Race-Indonesia Redux

For the entire third leg of the race, the Amazing Racers were in Indonesia again. 

The third leg is probably about when the individual teams start having personality on TV.  Until now, there are just too many of them to keep track.  So, a few thoughts: I really like the Snowboarders.  They seem happy and kind and like they genuinely enjoy each other's company.  I also like the Father-Son duo and the older couple.  The dating couples seem a little snippy and the NFL husband-wife team seem whiny.

The Detour was first: it was a choice between Grass Fed or Rice Field.  In Grass Fed, they had to collect two bags of grass, two sheep, and fill a trough with six buckets of water.  In Rice Field, they had to deliver food to the field and then plant 300 rice seedlings.  Most teams thought that Grass Fed would take less time.  I don't think it did, unless the magic of editing was really misleading.  The Father-Son team and the Snowboarders were the first two teams to leave the Pit Stop and maintained that lead the entire time.  Only one team switched to the other detour and that was Amani and Marcus.  They were solidly in last place.

However, on this leg, the Road Block was a great equalizer.  In this Road Block, they had to count the number of Buddha statues at this amazing temple and keep track of how many of each hand position were represented.  When they told the answer, they also had to make the hand positions.  Laurence and one of the Snowboarders worked together and finished in next to no time.  Father Son team, Laurence and Zac, were the first to arrive at the Pit Stop, but had used too many buckets in the Detour.  Thus, the Snowboarders were first, once again.

The other teams were not so lucky.  Many counted the wrong things, such as Buddha carvings, or neglected the hand positions at all and just counted Buddha statues.  Finally, they figured it out.  All teams were fairly close in leaving the Road Block.  However, some had left a cabbie waiting and had to go pay them.  This is what killed the Vegas Showgirls.  They just couldn't arrive before others because of finding their cab and then searching for the Pit Stop.

Do you pronounce aunt like ant or like augnt, with a long a?

 I've always said both, but am corrected either way.  Strange.

Amazing Race-Indonesia

Leg 2 of the Amazing Race started off with a video montage of every team reading their clue and discovering that it was a double elimination leg, which means that the last two teams to arrive at the pit stop would be eliminated.

All teams arrived at the airport in Taipei and got on the same flight to Jakarta.  They then had to take a train from Jakarta to Jojakarta.  Justin and Jennifer, the siblings, had a breakdown while waiting for the train.  I just can't see them making it if they can't get beyond their distrust of each other.

All teams then made their way to this giant cave.  The first team to arrive were Ma and Pa(Bill and Cathi).  They had a huge head start on the other teams, but they had to do their speed bump.  Which was unknotting a bundle of rope.  I appreciated the Christmas Vacation references from Bill.

Then one person from each team spelunked into the cave.  No one was afraid of heights and no one was claustrophobic.  I think that this was a first in Race history where on a potentially frightening detour, no one was frightened.

Then they had to choose their Road Block.  It was either parking mopeds or dancing in the streets for tips.  About half chose each.  Neither were particularly hard but there was also little advantage other than simply arriving first. 

After completing the detour, they proceeded to an orphanage and gave their earnings from the detour.  However, there was an additional caveat, written on a sign at the orphanage, that said that each team must give all their money to the orphanage.  Only three teams read this clue correctly and those three teams became the first three checked in teams, although they were really teams 4, team something, and team 10.  These were the snowboarders, the showgirls, and the father-son team.  All the other teams arrived at the pit stop and were forced to return to the orphanage.

The last two teams to arrive were the flight attendants and the Survivor winners.  They were eliminated, but the flight attendants were brave and cool, even in the face of defeat. 

Amazing Race Premiere

On Sunday, we were welcomed back to the Amazing Race, once again.  As always, the first episode is mainly just watching a bunch of new people and trying to get their measure.
As far as I could tell, I think that I am going to like Cindy and her boy(I can't recall the name), the flight attendants, and maybe the father-son team.  But it is so hard when there are so many of them to get any of their personalities.  We'll just have to see.

Amazing Race Starts Tonight

Yay, back to some good times.
I don't know what so addictive about the Amazing Race, but it is definitely one of my favorite shows.  I love the premise and the teams and Phil and the competition.  All around, I just enjoy that hour of television so much.

Troy Davis

Last night, Troy Davis was executed by the state of Georgia.  I have a problem with that.  I have a problem that a man who 1/3 of Americans believe was innocent of his crime was executed.  I have a problem that in our country, a man who 1/3 of Americans believe was innocent had no reasonable doubt at the time of his initial trial.
This is a man who had up to 7 "eyewitnesses" recant their statements.  Seven eyewitnesses stated that they saw him kill another man over 20 years ago, but since, have said, no they don't think it was him.  This is not enough doubt for Georgia to stay the execution?  That's b.s.  That is more than enough doubt.  That is opening the door and all you can see is doubt.

Troy Davis may have been guilty.  But those words, may have, are the key words in any phrase involving guilt.  That means that this man may have been innocent.  That Georgia may have killed this man in cold blood.  How do you live with that?  How do you wake up this morning and feel good about yourself, when last night, you may have murdered this man as viciously as the victim of the original crime was murdered?

It's especially important to remember that there are innocent people in prison.   These men and women have been wrongly convicted and years later, the convictions are sometimes overturned. 

The United Nations, arguably one of the greatest sources for the morals of the world, has passed a resolution calling for the end of the Death Penalty.  We are no longer the barbaric people of Biblical times.  We are thinkers and individuals who hold the sanctity of life high.

The Death Penalty makes a mockery of us all.

Awesome Video

So, Michelle Bachmann bugs me for multiple reasons.  Not least that she and her husband believe that being GLBT is a disease and can be cured by prayer.  Thus, this video: http://www.nerve.com/news/politics/watch-a-pro-gay-rights-flash-mob-dance-to-madonna-at-a-michele-bachmann-rally
I still love flash mobs, even if the spontaneity is a lie.

Back to Normal

School starts back up in two weeks.  Wow, this summer has just flown by.  I took two summer classes, got married, went on a week long honeymoon, and organized tons of presents.
Now, Kevin is back at school and I am just sitting around, waiting for my school to start.  Oh well.

I'm Married

It's official.  I've been married now for three days.  He's the most wonderful man.  I can't believe we found each other.

Casey Anthony Sentencing and a Juror Speaks Out

The judge sentenced her to four years, with credit for time served and good behavior.  So a few weeks more and she will be out.  "Free."  If she did not kill her daughter, she has to live with the death of her daughter for the rest of her life.  If she did kill her daughter, she probably can move past it.  But either way, the public is not happy and I hope that none of them do anything rash.

I read this article about a woman, juror #3, and it said that the jury wanted the evidence to point towards a guilty Casey, but it just wasn't there.  Probably one of the truest statements we will ever get from the jury and I think this is how the court of the public opinion feels.  Except for the whole part where they were willing to call Casey guilty simply because they needed/wanted it.  I hope statements like these(from the jury) will help placate the public.  Because regardless of what they believe Casey got away with here, it is no reason to threaten the jurors or the Anthony family.  We have law for a reason.

Casey Anthony Trial

I followed the Casey Anthony Trial.  Who didn't?  Well, those who are not so addicted to the Internet or to news.  I think the jury got it right.  There really just wasn't enough evidence to prove "beyond a reasonable doubt" that Casey was guilty.  That doesn't mean that the jury found her innocent, which is an important distinction.  No one is ever found innocent by a jury or trial, only not guilty.  I don't think that many people believe there is a distinction, but there is and it's really one of the most important parts of a trial.

Many people believe that the jury got it wrong, but the jury really did seem to use evidence and fact to aid them in their decision.  The court of public opinion, on the other hand, used emotion to bolster the evidence.  This emotion is the strongest evidence that the prosecution presented and the jurors couldn't just use it to make Casey guilty.

She may have been guilty, but evidence and facts are what prove guilt, and it simply wasn't there.

Wow, it's been a long time...

So, after American Idol, I was done with recapping and thus, there was a bit of a break.

Life is good, currently we are 25 days from the wedding and everything seems to be working out.  Which is really nice.

I'm been trying to set up my internship, but MN has been shut down, so internships at the MN department of Health aren't really available.

A couple weeks ago, I started my summer courses.  So far, so good.  Except for the fact that they take up so much time.  Imagine a regular course compressed into 8 weeks(so half the time).  Yep, sounds like fun, doesn't it?

I turned 24 last week.  I'm officially in my mid-twenties. So strange.

The fiancee and I finally watched the season four opener for Leverage.  We don't get TNT, so we have to depend on the website and it seems as if they decided to post the shows a week later.  Probably so that people would try to catch the reruns on tv.  Anyway, it was fairly decent.  Season openers are always a little week because of the tendency to recap.  I love Eliot, so I really enjoyed the mountain climbing and the cave philosophizing with Parker.  Even it were terrible, I'd still watch it.  And it's not.

American Ido;- And the Winner is....Scotty!?

Yep, evidently our American Idol is a 17 year old boy who sings really low and also sings inappropriate songs for his age.  He'll go far...

Actually, if he was a regular pop singer, those song choices would be fine, but country listeners like to pretend that they have higher morals or something. 

Beyonce preformed twice, J.Lo danced to Marc Antony's song, Steven Tyler sang beautifully, The Edge and Bono tempted fate with a Spiderman song and a Spiderman stunt double, Casey sang with Jack Black, Jacob sand with a gospel star, Haley sang with a very spry 85 year old Tony Bennett, James sang two songs with  Judas Priest(very good), Scotty sang with Tim McGraw, and Lauren sang with Carrie Underwood.  Scotty's performance showed his weakness, which is singing with others and harmonizing.  Lauren's performance was a little better.

I don't know.  I mean, of all the talent that the show had this year, we get two country singers as our finalists?  This is what happens when the judges say no constructive things at all.  We need some honesty from the judges' panel.

American Finale-Who will go hoem tonight?

It's down to the final two: Lauren and Scotty.

Lauren sang three country songs.  Scotty sang three country songs.  It was kinda painful to watch.  Lauren had a better single, but remember how she sang Aerosmith to audition, where is that girl?

Scotty sang Gone again.  It was awful, he looked so nervous and he flubbed the lyrics a bit.  Lauren did the same on her Flat on the Floor.

At this point, does it really matter?  Don't the people who vote already have their opinions made?  They know who they want to win and for the whole competition Scotty and Lauren have been gaining more votes.

Neither one of these kids is going to make it big.  They don't have the talent.  Scotty doesn't have the charisma.  Lauren doesn't have the confidence.  America doesn't have a big time market for these kids.

Scotty will be crowned the American Idol and sing his awful single again.

American Idol- Who's going to the finale?!?

Scotty and Lauren.  That's right, Scotty and Lauren.  Not Haley and either of the two others.   Haley had a shot, James had a shot, Casey had a shot, Pia had a shot, Paul had a shot.  These two left?  Not so much.

A telling moment for the future of Scotty: when he was giving his concert back home, Josh Turner showed up.  In case you don't know who that is, Josh Turner is a country singer who sings that song that Scotty always sings.  Most people who listen to just pop have no idea who Josh Turner is.  If you forced them to name some country stars, they would list Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, maybe Tim Mcgraw and maybe a couple others.  Would they list George Strait or Josh Turner?  No, because those artists are pop artists who are also country stars, but are simply country stars.  That's what Scotty can be.  And I'm not dissing those fans, since I know many personally and country fans are the most consistent and loyal in the business.  I mean, Garth Brooks still makes millions of dollars and he hasn't released a new album in years and he was retired for most of the 2000s.  So yeah, Scotty will probably make it big in the country world.  But not the whole pop world.  Pop is reserved for people who sing pleasingly, not disturbingly low.

And Lauren...Lauren is too young and too not confident in her abilities to be a star.  She still can't fill up the stage with any presence.  After she's done, I'm always like...what did Lauren sing again?  Oh well, I didn't like it anyway.

American Idol-Down to Three

It was a shocker!  James went home!

I thought for sure it was going to be Lauren, but she was the first one to safety, followed by Haley.  Leaving James and Scotty.  Then, I was hoping that it would be Scotty.  But it was James.

Criticism for the remaining three: Lauren is too nervous and never pushes herself, only sings what is safe.  Also, Lauren chooses songs that she doesn't like to sing.  Scotty only sings country.  Every single time.  The same way.  With the same creepy leers and weird way of holding the microphone.  Haley is the only one that gets any criticism from the judges.  The last few weeks, she has been very good.  Before that, she had her ups and downs.

She better win it all.

American Idol-Theme Unclear

Something about inspiration, but I wasn't really sure what the second set of songs had in common.

An okay night.  James was solid, even though he sang "Don't Stop Believin'" and you can't not sound like you aren't singing karaoke for that song.  His second song was Love Potion Number 9.  It sounded vastly different than the original, but was still good.

Haley sang a song by Michael Jackson called Earth Song.  Randy said it was the pinnacle of Michael's career and I said, Hmm?  What?  I'd never heard it before.  It was good and a cool song, but of course the judges decided that only Haley can take criticism.  She got a little defensive and then Steven stood up for her, which made me happy, if only because Haley is far superior to Lauren.  The second song was I(Who have Nothing).  She came out and fueled by her anger at the judges, sang the crap out of the song, which should have been boring and lounge-singy.

Scotty sang "Where Were You(When the World Stopped Turning)."  Which is a song about September Eleventh.  Cashing in a bit on Osama's death?  It sounded like every other country song Scotty sings, which is to say, boring and safe.  His second song was Young Blood.  I have finally realized where Scotty belongs: in a country-western lounge act.  That's him. 

Lauren sang a song called Anyway.  I don't really remember it.  Her second song was Trouble, which she seemed to be really nervous about performing a song about badness and I said, choose a different song then.  Duh.  It was okay, but still nothing spectacular.

My prediction:  Lauren will go home tonight.

Amazing Race Finale!

The four teams (Zev and Justin, Gary and Mallory, Keisha and Jen, and the Globetrotters) started out in Switzerland.  They were then told to get to Rio de Janeiro.  Zev and Justin and the Globetrotters initially had a much better flight, but evidently Big Easy isn't a good liar, so Gary and Mallory and Keisha and Jen found out about the earlier flight. 

They then had to ride this tram to a staircase and find their next clue.  The Globetrotters got a bad cab driver and missed the first tram, which put them 30 minutes behind.  Except that the next clue led to a Road Block and Zev had to do it....It was a dance challenge and as Zev said, he has white-boy rhythm.  It wasn't pretty.  He tried to complete the challenge at least twice as many times as anyone else.  So the Globetrotters caught up.

Gary and Mallory finished the Road Block first with Keisha and Jen close behind.  Then the Globetrotters and then Zev and Justin.  All team members then had to undergo a Brazilian wax.  Looked painful and awful.

Then it was the Detour.  On the Rocks or On the Beach.  In On the Rocks, teams had to correctly make 100 cocktails, while in On the Beach, teams had to sell bikinis on the beach and have the buyers model the bikinis until they made 100 Brazilian currencies...  Gary and Mallory, Keisha and Jen, and the Globetrotters chose Rocks, while Zev and Justin chose Beach.  Rocks was easy, once the teams got the recipe down, Beach, not so much.  Finally Zev and Justin switched to Rocks, but they were too far behind.

Gary and Mallory finished first, followed by Keisha and Jen, Flighttime and Big Easy, and finally, Zev and Justin.  Justin said some pretty nice things about Zev and the race and both looked really happy to have done it together.

That was Brazil.  Now, for the race to the Finish.

Amazing Race Finale Tonight

Super-sized episode tonight!
Who will win?  I hope that Zev and Justin pull it off, but they had a really brutal last leg.  So who knows, it's really anyone's race.

American Idol-Thursday Elimination

Finally...Jacob is done.  Thank goodness.  According to my not tone-deaf fiance, he has been awful and pitchy all season.  That's the problem with these judges.  They like everyone except for Haley.  Which I don't understand, since Haley is one of the best left.

Also on last night we had Lady Antebellum and J. Lo.  Lady Antebellum's new song sounded a lot like Need You Now except happier.  Same style of singing, same sharing of verses.  J. Lo's new song, on the other hand, was about sex and was absolutely awful.  I remember when I thought she had talent.  Back in the Selena days...

American Idol-Now and Then

I was only able to watch about thirty minutes of the show last night, my fiance and I had to pre-marital counseling.  That was supposed to be on Monday, but the pastor had to reschedule for last night, which Kevin accepted, regardless of my preferences.  So I missed most of American Idol.

So, now they are each singing two songs in the 90 minutes slot.  The theme this week was Now and Then.  They had to sing one more current song and one classic song.  And surprise, Jimmy Iovine had another helper and once again, it was Will.I.Am.  It was Sheryl Crow.  Yay.

First up was James with a song by 30 Seconds to Mars.  It was definitely one of his weaker songs, if not his weakest.  Kevin said he sounded like karaoke and I have to agree.  Of course, the judges loved it.  They are pretty worthless.

Then we had Jacob.  He sang some song by Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown.  I had issue with that.  He wouldn't sing that one song because it was about sex, but he would sing a song by an abuser?  Okay...
Anyway, it was awful as well.  I just don't like Jacob's voice or stage presence or facial expressions.  He looks awkward and sounds worse.

Next was Lauren.  She sang a song by Carrie Underwood.  Ooh, a couple former Idol songs...  She was okay, but it was the same old, same old.

Then, there was Scotty.  He sang a song by Montgomery Gentry.  It was country and it was Scotty, so I didn't like it.  It sounded the same as every other song he sings.  It was boring.

That's all I got to see.  I don't really know why the kids were having trouble with this theme.  There are a lot of songs to choose from.  Choose something that pushes you, but not so far that you fail.

Finals coming up

Next week is officially finals' week.  However, I have two of my three final projects due this week.  That doesn't seem fair, does it?  Why couldn't my huge paper be due during its final slot?  That's what I would enjoy.

Amazing Race-The Alps

The Race started out this week with five teams left: Zev and Justin, Keisha and Jen, Kent and Vyxsin, Gary and Mallory, and Flightime and Big Easy, in that order.  They opened up their clues and found out that they had to go to a heliopad and there, they would receive their next clue and their destination.  Kent and Vyxsin kept trying to take a taxi and they were all full.  Gary and Mallory managed to pass them to the heliopad. 

All the teams arrived at the heliopad and they started taking off after they found out that this was the detour.  On this detour it was search or rescue.  For search, the teams had to use a gps device to find a beacon.  At this beacon, they had to dig through several feet of snow to find a dummy and then they had to completely uncover it.  Zev and Justin and Gary and Mallory chose this detour.  All the other teams chose rescue.

In rescue, one team member lowered the other using a pulley into a crevice until they could hook a line to the person "trapped" in the crevice.  Then the team member pulled the other up using the pulley and they pulled up the stuck person.  This sounded really hard, but they all had a much easier time than the teams doing search.  With search, only one team member could really dig and the other just tended to get in the way.

All of the teams except for Zev and Justin got done at about the same time.  They then had to take a train back to down and get their next clue.  Finally Zev and Justin finished, with Justin having snow and ice all over his face.  The next task was a road-block.  In this road-block, one team member had to paint a travelocity gnome mold with colored chocolate, fill it with more chocolate and wait for it to cool.

It was pretty easy, except at one point, someone took Flightime's mold out of the freezer.  It was probably Vyxsin, but there is really no way to know.  Zev said, looks like there are too many cooks in the kitchen.  Big Easy got upset and Kent said, just to the cameras, that he could beat Big Easy up.  I don't think so.  Big Easy could poke Kent and Kent would cry.

Anyway, Vyxsin managed to finish first, but her and Kent made a huge mistake.  They were supposed to make their way on foot to the Pit Stop, but instead they took a handy little electric taxi.  The first team were the Globetrotters, followed by Jen and Keisha.  Then Kent and Vyxsin, but they incurred a thirty minute penalty.  Gary and Mallory showed up fourth and received third place.  It was now down to Zev and Justin and Kent and Vyxsin.  Kent and Vyxsin argued their entire penalty about whose fault it was that they read the clue wrong.  Finally Zev and Justin showed up.  Phil told them they were last, but then he told them about the Goths' penalty.  Zev said, we'll take it.  Kent and Vyxsin were eliminated.  Thank goodness.  Kent has so much negative energy, it was terrible.

Elimination Night Again- American Idol

Sad.  So very sad.  Casey went home.  He needed to pull out his upright bass for the win.  Oh well.  I knew some of my favorites were going to leave before the end.

James had better hold on.  He's my favorite. 

I really do think that  Jacob should have left a long time ago(probably right about when he sang Man in the Mirror.

American Idol- Carole King Style

Very strange episode.  Very, very strange.  I dislike the duets.  A lot.  And I felt really bad for Jacob and James.  I mean Casey got to sing with Haley and Lauren got to sing with Scotty, so then they had Jacob sing with James.  They don't mesh well.  At all.

Jacob started the episode off.  He sang some song (oh no not my baby), but it was awful.  As my fiance said, it's time for him to go.  He also wore this outfit that looked like it came out of PeeWee Herman's closet.  Not good.

Then, there was Lauren.  She was good and sang "Where you Lead". It was fine, except for when she pulled some random boy out of the audience and sang to him.  They didn't know each other.  Very awkward.

Our first duet was between Casey and Haley.  They sang I feel the Earth move.  It was okay.  Casey stalks about the stage a bit.

Scotty was next. He sang You've got a friend.  It was awful.  Absolutely horrible.  Way too famous and by way too good of people.  He sang it with his twang and made it sound corny.  It's not.

James sang Will you still love me tomorrow.  And no, it's not really a rock song.  But he made it into a lovely rock power ballad type.  He's the winner.  Hands-down.  That's my pick.  He can sing any song and make it sound good and unique and his.

I can't remember the song Scotty and Lauren sang together.  Suffice it to say that it wasn't my favorite.

Casey sang a song call Hi-di-Ho?  I'm not really sure.  It was pretty good, but he just doesn't look natural when he stalks about the stage.  He looks angry.

Haley sang a song called Beautiful.  She did it well, even though I'd never heard the song.

Then we ended with James and Jacob.  They sang I'm into something good.  Not really good.  James did okay, but they just don't sing that well together.  My fiance always cringes when more than one person is singing.  They need more practice time if they want to continue to sing together in large crowds.  Otherwise, they just sound discordant.

Bottom three for tonight are Haley, Jacob, and Scotty(maybe wishful thinking).  Jacob is going home.

Wednesday

American Idol tonight. Evidently, there will be duets...Interesting.  I guess we'll see.

On a completely different note, I am sick.  Currently I am deciding whether I am well enough to go to school all day or whether I should just go to my afternoon class.  I'm leaning towards afternoon, since there is a really interesting discussion to be had and I don't want to miss it, which may happen if I go in the morning.  I really don't feel like I have a whole day in me.  We'll see.

Amazing Race-Switzerland

All six remaining teams got on the same train to that really little country.  Then, Gary and Mallory got a bad cab driver who didn't know the way to the border crossing?  Strange...
At the border crossing, it was a Road Block(and Gary and Mallory's Speed Bump).  For the Road Block, one team member had to drive this motorcycle/bicycle across that really little country and measure the distatnce they traveled.  At the end, they told this man named Marco and if they said 22 km, they were correct.  All the teams got lost, but somehow Justin had the right kilometers.  He then told Jen and Flight Time who told Gary who told Vyxsin, but Jet had reached the finish line first and had already turned back around to do it again.  The Cowboys fell behind.

Gary and Mallory's speed bump was a little brain teaser where they had to figure out how much gas to put in a container so that there would be 25 parts gas to 1 part oil.  They got it right away.

All teams then went to a city in the Alps via train.  It was now time for the detour.  Cheese vs Wheeze.  Keisha and Jen and Zev and Justin both chose cheese.  They had to eat a fondue pot full of cheese.  It looked like they also had to use bread to dip in the cheese, they could just take a spoon to the cheese.  Keisha and Jen took like two bites before they left this detour for the other.  Zev and Justin chose to stick it out.
In Wheeze, they had to deliver 20 bags of luggage to five different hotels and collect the luggage tags.   All the other teams chose this one. 
Zev managed to plow through the food and pushed Justin to finish.  They reached the double-U turn first and did not U-turn anyone.  Keisha and Jen were next, having had no trouble with the deliveries and also did not U-turn anyone. 
Zev and Justin reached Phil first and won again, four times for this race.  Zev made some puns about fondue.  Justin just laughed.
The Globetrotters were ahead of the others, but lost two tags so they had to deliver two more bags.  Kent complained a lot, so finally Vyxsin pushed him around in the luggage cart.  Some weird relationship dynamics going on there.
Kent and Vyxsin didn't U-turn anyone since they had U-turned the cheerleaders earlier.  Mal and Gary didn't U-turn anyone.  The Globetrotters U-turned the Cowboys.  The cowboys were already behind and they finished last.  They were eliminated.  In the post-elimination interview, Jet said it was his fault(because of getting lost) but Cord said, he's my partner, I was with him in the beginning of the race and I was with him to the end.  Then they said that they loved each other(essentially) and then Jet said that there was no one else he would rather race with...except maybe his wife.  Cord said he didn't blame him.

Last Night on American Idol

Stefano went home.  Really, I'm kinda surprised that he made it this far.  After all, he has a decent voice and he's cute, but he really wasn't better than the rest.

Also on the show were David Cook and Katy Perry.  David Cook sounds like a million pop-rockers.  Katy Perry sounds weird, looks strange, and has an awful song.

So yep, we are down to six.

Teenagers

Response to Single Dad's Laughing blog: http://www.danoah.com/2011/04/when-is-it-time-to-evolve-in-our.html#more
I'm surprised that so many of the comments were accusatory.  Yes, teenagers are difficult.  Yes, they say mean, hurtful things, and scream and throw tantrums that only two year olds can top.  Yes, they say it's the end of the world when really, it's not. 
But, that doesn't mean you get to say it right back to them.  I yelled at my parents, told them I hated them, slammed doors, and many other things.  I was considered a good kid by all my family and neighbors and by my parents.  Who loved me despite my hormones and flaws.  Who loved me as I tried to figure out my place in this world that doesn't always make sense.
This is what Dan is saying should happen.  Nothing more, nothing less.  Just that parents need to love their kids.  Is there anything wrong with that?

Wednesday's American Idol

Scotty only ever sings country.  It's boring and it's safe.  Stretch yourself a bit, bub.

James sang the most overplayed Muse song ever.  He was fine, although his costume seemed like he was trying to be Matt Bellamy.

Haley sang something raspy.  She looked good and sounded good.

Jacob sang Dance with my Father.  Which he was singing to his dead dad(?).  Strangely, it had very little emotion.

Casey sang a wonderful version of Harder to Breathe by Maroon 5.  This is what he was trying to do with Nirvana.  He didn't succeed there, but now, he certainly did.

Stefano sang some song by Ne-yo.  Sounded like all the other things Stefano sings.  And he had his eyes closed for almost half the song.

And we closed off the night with Lauren, singing some country.  It was also boring and she looked quite uncomfortable.  I don't know why.

Steven got bleeped out at least three times. Casey stole a kiss from J. Lo.  And she blushed. 

For tonight, the bottom three will be Lauren, Stefano, and Jacob.  Jacob's going home.

Amazing Race-April 17

So, essentially, after two days, I finally watched  this week's Amazing Race.
Interesting points: Kent and Vyxsin look to be in serious trouble, relationship-wise.  Kent is weak and depressing, which makes Vyxsin feel weak and depressing.
Justin and Zev still get along and are so happy.  I love them.
None of the teams could master a food-eating contest.  For 1 million dollars, I would have cleaned my plate.

Non-elimination leg, so even Gary and Mallary are still in it.  Let's hope that Kent and Vyxsin leave next week.

Amazing Race Today

Yay...excitement abounds.

On a completely different note, my fiance and I had food poisoning yesterday(still feeling it a bit today, but not nearly as bad).  We lay on the couch for seven hours.  It felt like a really intense flu that gave no warning, it just started.  Needless to say, that was an unproductive day.  Which means extra homework today.

Paul Goes Home

Lauren and Scotty sang a country song(shocked me out of my chair...or not).  Casey and Haley sang a wonderful, playful bluesy, jazzy song.  Stefano, Jacob, James, and Paul sang two Simon and Garfunkel songs.  Did not do so well with The Sound of Silence.  Mrs. Robinson was fine, but not good.  Rihanna sang some really strange song.  Kelly Clarkson and her newest duet partner sang a country song.  That's it.  Then Paul went home.  The bottom three were Haley, Stefano, and Paul.  Haley and Stefano better get out of the bottom three if they want to continue.  They've been in it far too much.

American Idol-Elimination Night

My picks for the bottom three: Stefano, Paul, and Jacob.  Of those, I think that Paul will go home.  He's too unique.

Last Night on American Idol

So, the theme was Songs from the Movies.  With such a broad category, all of the contestants should be able to pick a song that is well-known, but not too well-known, right?  Not so much...

We started off the night with Paul singing Old Time Rock and Roll.  It was okay, but he looked even a little crazier than ever.  I think he could have chose a better song.  How about some James Taylor or some Simon and Garfunkel?  I don't know...

Next after a really long commercial break, we had Lauren, who sang Miley Cyrus...I hate Miley Cyrus.  Not least because she changed her name to Miley...  Anyway, Lauren sang The Climb.  It wasn't anything new or exciting.  It was a solid performance, but she did do this funny run thing that sounded awful.

Stefano sang some song by Boyz II Men.  It was fine, but he did that whole hold the microphone and close his eyes things.  Not great.

Scotty sang Cross my Heart by George Strait.  Never heard of it.  I think he could have killed Everybody's Talkin', which is what Jimmy Iovine championed.  As it was, it was the same ole Scotty.  Nothing new, nothing exciting, and I am getting more and more annoyed by the way he holds the microphone.  Don't hold it with two hands and especially don't hold it like you are going to break it.  It just looks weird.

Casey broke out the upright base and sang Nature Boy.  Jimmy Iovine wanted him to sing some other song, but Casey stuck to his guns(not the only contestant to do so last night).  It was a good choice.  I love Casey.

Haley sang Call Me.  It was so good, although I wish that she would have changed up the arrangement a bit.  But still, it was fun and we got to here her raspyness.  Wonderful.

Then we had Jacob.  Now, I don't like Jacob, never had...never...oh wait.  He sang Bridge over Troubled Water and I finally got his voice.  It was wonderful.  His voice is so well suited to singing Art Garfunkel.  From now, he should only sing those songs.  His best performance ever.

And we ended with James...singing a song called Heavy Metal.  Which did not show his range and did not give me a new side of James.

It seemed like a lot of the singers were playing it safe.  The only ones that didn't were Jacob, Casey, and Haley.  And they were the best performances of the night.  Coincidence?  I think not.

Mason Michael Mueller

That's my new nephew.
I haven't seen him yet, but I already know that he is adorable and wonderful.

One New Thing and One Old Thing

I officially have a nephew.  He was born this morning at about 4 am.  He weighs seven pounds and 3 ounces.  He and mom are doing fine.  Yay!  I am overcome with joy.  I can't wait to meet the little guy.

150 years ago today, the first shots of the Civil War were shot at Fort Sumter, effectively starting the War.  More Americans died in the Civil War than in both World Wars combined.  About 0.6 million people died, which at the time was about 2% of the entire US population.  This would be equivalent today of about 6 million people dying.  The war split apart families, pitting brother against brother.

Now, today, there will be people who tell you that the war was about slavery...and it was.  But, you can't say that it simply about slavery, because back then, they (particularly the South) used the rallying cry of state's rights to recruit their army.  General Robert E. Lee was offered command of the Union army, but refused, even though he didn't hold with slavery.  He supported the state's rights and he wasn't going to fight against them.  Many of the Confederates were living in conditions equal or worse to slaves...but they fought, because the North wasn't going to take away their states' rights.

So, today, take a moment to remember one of the most decisive moments of our nation's history.  A war where nobody really won, except for maybe us. 

Amazing Race: India Part Two

So, as I was just getting settled with the Amazing Race, my parents called.  And since I hadn't spoken to them in two weeks.  Well...I essentially missed the Amazing Race.

The parts I did see featured all the teams wandering through a marketplace looking for some sort of holy men?  Who had a clue that was a word and when they found all the holy men, they had the phrase.  This is was the RoadBlock.

The Detour involved either using cow dung to make strange patties on the wall of a building or bringing hay to some cows for food.

The first team to arrive at the Pit Stop were the Globetrotters, which makes me happy, followed close behind by Zev and Justin.  The Cowboys, Keisha and Jen, and Gary and Mallory arrived in the middle, I didn't really pay attention to the order.  Then, it was down to two: Ron and Christina and Kent and Vysxin.  There was some amazing tension building editing where Vysxin jumped out of their water taxi into the really dirty looking water.  Really, though, I've swam in the Mississippi, who am I to talk?  Ron and Christina got behind somehow and just couldn't catch up.  They did take the water taxi, but Kent and Vysxin beat them to Phil.  Then they talked about how great of a time they had and how they learned so much.  I yelled at the TV.  Ron whined his way through several continents and yelled at his daughter more times than I can count.  This equals a good experience for the two of them?  I hope not.

Amazing Race Tonight!

All is right in the world.

Waiting for a Nephew

My future sister in law is pregnant.  Very pregnant.  Due tomorrow.  I want this baby to be here, now.  I love kids and I want one to cuddle and teach and play with and read to and love.

That's the strange thing.  I love this baby.  I haven't met it, I don't know what it looks like or behaves like or what it likes or dislikes.  All I know is that it will be my nephew (future, but I mean, we are getting married in four months) and that's more than enough to make me love him.  Who is going to squabble over those details?

The weirdest thing to me is that some people talk about really needing to bond with the baby or child.  I'm bonded, right now.  I know that I will love him.  Already.  Since he was little more than a cluster of cells, I have loved him.  How is that?  How can I love something so completely, with all of my being, without even meeting him? 

This isn't the first time that this happened.  I have cousins who are 15 or more years younger than me.  I've loved them since they were embryos.  A love that fills my heart with joy. 

Well, I hope he comes soon, so I can share some of this love with him...

American Idol-Pia Goes Home

So, last night on American Idol, the bottom three were Pia, Jacob, and Stefano.  Pia went home.  The judges were shocked.  Here's my question, does that mean if Jacob or Stefano would have been eliminated, the judges wouldn't have been shocked?  I think they thought that Stefano was going home.  But Pia was their little darling ballad singer.  Except, newsflash, she can't sing well on anything but ballads.  Which means that she just looked and sounded rather ridiculous on Wednesday.  The costume that Gwen Stefani picked out for her was definitely one of her weirdest yet.  And Pia has wore some pretty unattractive outfits.

Before the end of the show on Wed. the judges and Ryan went on and on about how good the performances had been.  So why were they shcoked when the audience had to make a tough choice and get rid of someone who is beautiful and sings ballads oh so well, but can't dress well and looked extremely uncomfortable singing a faster paced song?  I just don't understand, but there it is.

Also, J. Lo's pants?  Not attractive...

Rock and Roll American Idol

Last night on American Idol, the theme was Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  I'm not sure why they did Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  My guess is they added Hall of Fame so that Steven could got to the Hall of Fame and make fun of his own clothes.  Which was a rather ridiculous opening sequence, but at least we got to hear him sing.  So that was good.

Most of the contestants did fairly well.  The judges liked them all.  I thought that Haley was little week on Janis Joplin.  I think her voice is just a little too pretty for that.  Scotty sang Elvis.  Which could have been really good, but he really reminded me of a lounge act.  A good lounge act, but a lounge act nonetheless.  I love Casey and his upright bass.  It's wonderful.  He managed to do a really good job with his song, while not sounding like karaoke.  Speaking of which, hello Stefano.  I love Stefano.  He's so sweet and cute and feels genuine, but the song choice, not so much.  My least favorite performance was Pia.  Probably because her outfit was horrible.  It was like a muu-muu that had been changed into a one piece coverall.  So strange.  Also, she is far too used to just standing around on stage and looked really forced when she moved about. 

James did an amazing job with his song.  It was quiet, but still full of his intensity.  He's definitely going all the way, man.  Paul also tried to switch it up, but I just can't say he did it well.  He looked like Paul on drugs, moving twice as fast and twice as much.  He already moves about enough as it is.  Lauren did a good job.  That's pretty much it.  Jacob sounded just like Jacob.  I hate his voice.  It just makes me cringe.  I don't know why.  Also, the way he looks when he sings...not pretty.

So, my prediction for tonight for the bottom three is Pia, Jacob, and Stefano.  With Pia going home.  She did too little too late.

Amazing Race: Unfinished Business

So, I decided, as long as I was in the mood for predictions, I might as well make one for the Amazing Race.  The final three will be Justin and Zev, Mallory and Gary, and Jet and Cord.  That's my best guest.  And of course, those are my three favorite teams.

I love the Amazing Race.  It's so much better than most reality shows.  The contestants are generally less catty.  The challenges seem to fit in the whole scope of the show.  Phil is awesome and I love his eyebrow.  What's not to like about the Amazing Race?

American Idol Tomorrow

It's weird.  I haven't watched all of the season of American Idol since I went to college over four years ago.  But now, this year, I missed maybe one or two episodes.

Why is it compelling?  I just don't know.  I mean I know one or two reasons.  I love Steven Tyler...and who would have guessed that he would take the Paula Abdul role.  He's nice, more than a little kooky, but still manages to give some decent criticism.  On the other hand, I feel bad for Randy, since not only is he not as flashy as the other two judges, but he constantly has to play bad cop.  He is always the one that is left saying the truth about the performance.  Once in a while, J.Lo joins him, but more often than not, he is left to be Simon.

The performers are good.  It's weird, there isn't a single traditional pop voice, other than Stefano.  Everyone else seems to have their own niche. 

So, I know the season is more than half over, but here's my prediction for the top two: Casey and James.  I would pay to watch the two of them perform.

July 30, 2011

So, the wedding is only four months away.  I can't believe that I will be married in four months.  When we got engaged last year and set the date, the wedding was 16 months away.  Now, a whole year has gone by.

I can't wait, but also there is so much stuff left to do.  We still have to plan flowers and cakes and pictures and booking hotel blocks.  Which by the way, doesn't really seem to make sense to either of us.  Oh well.

It smells so good in the apartment right now.  I'm slow-cooking beef in the oven so that we can have it for dinner tomorrow.  Yum.  Now I must go and make some oven fries to go with our brats for lunch.

No Amazing Race Tonight

Sadness.
It's the CMAs instead.
Why do they get their own awards show and can win Grammys?  It's not fair.

Thursday's American Idol

Before it aired, as I sat eating dinner with my fiance, I told him to mark my prediction for who would be eliminated.  I said that Thia and Naima were leaving.  The first two people in the bottom three were...Thia and Naima.  They both got eliminated.

Thia just didn't have enough personality.  On EW.com's recaps, they referred to her as a robot and it really did seem that way.  She sang beautifully, but everything about the performances seemed very planned.

Naima couldn't seem to express herself well, either.  It didn't help that she wasn't a strong enough singer to do the songs she chose most of the time.  Especially when she had drummers and choirs behind her.  Her voice just didn't stand out well enough.

Yesterday=Homework Fail

On Tuesday, I was all on top of things and I got my homework that was due Wednesday afternoon done.  I even proofread it.  Yay me.

Then, on Wednesday, I was running late for the bus and I reminded myself to grab the homework out of the printer.  I then proceded to decide that I didn't have time to make my pb and j, so I grabbed some money out of my purse and headed out the door.  Only when I was talking to my friend, Utah, about that assignment, did I realize that it was home, in our printer.  Luckily I had a gap between classes, so I took the bus home grabbed lunch and the assignment and went back to class.

Total class time: 230 minutes
Total commute time: 162 minutes spread throughout eight different buses.

Amazing Race: China to India

So, last night on the Amazing Race, all the teams started in China. They had to go to a tea shop and drink one cup of tea.  Most teams thought it was tasty.  However, all the teams were angry about still being in China.  They had now been there for several days, if I'm judging the Amazing Race time gap correctly.  So, anyway, they drank the tea and all got on the same flight to Kolkata (used to be called Calcutta in the US), India.

They all ran through an immense crowd of people, trying to find a cab.  As Keisha/Jen said, there were so many people and it was 1 am.  Kolkata was very busy.  It's strange, they came from China, one of the world's most populated country and I did not hear them talk about all the people there and it really didn't look that crowded.  They must have been in a smaller city.

After the mad dash for the taxis, which culminated in Big Easy and Flightime getting the lead taxi and telling their cab driver repeatedly, "No, these are not our friends.  We are in a race."  They all arrived at the Town Hall, which did not open until 10 am.  So, they had a nice long wait, which meant that they all received the next clue at the same time.

Now, for the RoadBlock.  This was an absolutely painful RoadBlock to watch.  They had to identify the tea that they had drank before leaving China by drinking cups of tea and bringing the empties to a judge.  Sounds relatively easy, right?  Not so much, since there was a table easily 50 ft long and 5 ft wide full of tea cups.  Ron seemed to be an avid tea drinker or taster, so he identified the right one within a very short time.  The clue was contained on the cap of the Snapple bottle they received.  They however lost their lead when their taxi driver didn't know where the next place was.  Oh well, darn...  Jet/Cord smelled the tea, which worked well for them.  Keisha and Jen and Kent and Vyxsin also did the task quickly.  Keisha and Jen proceeded to use the bottle for the clue, not the cap.  They asked everyone where the Snapple Factory was.  Finally, at one stop, they yelled at a man for trying to open their Snapple and then they did so themselves.  Voila, they now have the clue.

The remaining four teams seemed to lack a good strategy for the tea task.  They just kept drinking and drinking and spilling lots of tea down their chins.  Luke said to all, I'm so full, and I really think that was the general consensus.  Zev got really frustrated and dropped an empty.  Finally, Mal found the right tea and all four teams were really happy.  It seemed as if they had lost all hope for there being more of the right tea, but there was.   After a long while, Zev got the right type.  Then Flighttime.  And then it was Luke, all alone with the longest table I have ever seen.  He cried.  Margie cried.  The workers clapped him on and cheered him on.  Finally, after a super long time, he found the right cup.  And the workers picked him up in celebration.  It was all very nice.

So, somehow, Gary and Mallory not only caught up with the earlier teams, but they passed them.  They were one of the first to the Detour and chose to deliver books rather than decorate Ganesha.  A good choice.  Jet and Cord also chose to deliver as did Zev and Justin.  All they had to do was get eight stacks of books, get a rickshaw and get directions to the right school to deliver their books.  They all had no problems.  Gary and Mallory somehow finished first and got a cool trip or something in India.  The others got caught in traffic.

The other five teams(I believe), all chose to decorate.  They had to paint this stature in the right colors and then decorate it with jewelry and such.  It took them all a long time. 

The people got out of traffic and then just Margie and Luke and Flighttime and Big Easy were left.  Flighttime spilled some paint on their stature so they had to redo some of it.  It really looked like Margie and Luke could catch up, but they just couldn't.  They were the last teams to arrive at the Pit Stop and it was an elimination leg, so goodbye...
There was a rather touching moment in which Flighttime offered a hug to both Margie and Luke and said he knew how tough the tea RoadBlock was and was proud of Luke for completing it.  He and Luke both looked a little sick the whole day after the tea challenge, which makes me wonder how much tea they really drank.  It looked like a lot.

So, another episode down.  And now, because of the Country Music Awards, it's two weeks to the next one.

American Idol

I don't think that there is a single traditional pop artist in the bunch for this year's American Idol finalists.  Not that that is a bad thing, it is just strange, since normally they are stacked pretty high.

Why do people like Jacob Lusk's voice?  It's so not pleasing to the ear.

Ditto on Scotty, although, if you like country, then you probably like him.
Right now, my favorites are Casey, Paul, and Haley (especially after her song this week).

Amazing Race Recap-China Part Deux

So, last week's episode ended with the second continued leg of the series.  Thus, this week's episode was the continuation of that episode.

It started off with Margie and Luke getting to the train station that they had to take back to the city.  They then found out that the earliest train left at 7 p.m., which would give plenty of time for all teams to get caught back up.  Keisha and Jen and Jet and Cord join the Globetrotters for an impromptu game of b-ball.  Easily one of the best parts of the episode is where Jet and Cord came out in the Globetrotters' jerseys and looked like children playing dress-up.  Justin and Zev arrived.  All were happy.  Kent and Vyxsin arrived and all demanded news about a penalty.  Phil had just told the Goths that they had a thirty minute penalty, but when questioned the Goths said that they had no knowledge yet.  I appreciated the fact that they didn't straight up lie, but simply tried to use it to their advantage while being mostly truthsome, especially since there was a double u-turn ahead.

Then, all nine teams got on the train.  Which had three bunks on top of the other.  Justin and Zev got a top bunk each and discussed that they improved their survival with more distance from the floor.  They are so wonderful.  They just get along so well.

When they got to the city, they had to find the Flower Market.  Zev and Justin teamed up with Christina and Ron who speak the language.  The Globetrotters found the place last and then, someone had taken their taxi.  Uh oh.

Now it was time for the detour, after which, there would be the double u-turn.  Ron and Christina, Zev and Justin, Gary and Mallory, and Keisha and Jen all chose to Honor the Past in which they had to watch several actors/actresses dressed in traditional outfits walk about a stage and then the teams had to order dolls(dressed in the same outfits) in the same order as the actors.  Ron and Christina were the only team that had any trouble with it, but they all did pretty well.  Then the cab driver that Ron and Christina had took them to the wrong place and their gaggle of other teams as well.  All the other teams chose Look to the Future where they had to carry three boxes of water pipes to the top of a building and put them together to make a solar water heater.  Which looks way cooler than any water heater I've seen.  Kent and Vyxsin had a lot of trouble as Kent is rather weak, but they did alright.

Luke and Margie were the first team to arrive at the U-turn and they did not use it.  Kent and Vyxsin showed up at exactly the same time as the cheerleaders and were discussing U-turning the Globetrotters but then the Goths U-turned the cheerleaders.  Who were upset and then U-turned the Globetrotters.  This is where the double U-turn is problematic.  The cheerleaders have to go to the other challenge first before they can get their clue, but they can u-turn another team?  Seems as if that should have to wait until after they complete the other challenge as well.  Right?  The Globetrotters arrived and were upset as well, but they managed to complete the challenge quickly.  All the teams that had done the dolls first arrived to see that none of them were u-turned and they were very happy.

Now, on the to RoadBlock.  In this road block, one of the team members had to build a scale dinosaur.  Most of the people who chose to build it were the smaller members of the team, which made it very hard indeed.  So they build the dinosaur and they built the dinosaur and finally Jet and Cord were the first team done with dinosaur.  Jet (or Cord, it is so hard to tell the difference when they are together every time I hear their names) kept looking at the diagram for the dinosaur, which paid off as he figured out quickly what things were wrong and the other teams mostly stood there and said they had no idea.  Jet and Cord were the first team at the map and I was happy.  Globetrotters came in third, so as they said, "Take that double uturn."  Or something to similar effect.  The teams kept clearing out and then there were the cheerleaders.  They were upset about being U-turned and that earlier their taxi driver had need to stop for gas.  Oh my goodness, it is simply irresponsible of that cab driver that he didn't have enough gas to drive them around all day.

I'm glad they were eliminated.  I really disliked them the first time they ran.  They were constantly rude to anyone that didn't speak English well or at all.  This time, they were a little better, but not enough to make up for their ugliness on their first race.

I'm also really glad that I like most of the teams left now.  I don't like Angry Dad and Christina or Margie and Luke, but normally when I watch the amazing race, I only like about two or three teams for the whole race.

Amazing Race Recap

So I didn't even realize that these episodes were titled.  My bad....
Anyway, I've decided that I wanted to do at least reaction posts to each episode, if not true recaps...so here goes:
First of all, I hate Margie...hate, hate, hate, hate her.  All because of that incidence that Keisha/Jen referenced in this episode.  It's the same thing that I hate about anybody fighting for equality.  I understand that she is Luke's advocate and has to be, but when you want people to treat people the same and then you say that they were insulted because of their disability and not because of their action, then you are guilty of discrimination as well.  The incidence that highlights this is back two seasons when Luke and Keisha/Jen (it's hard for me to tell which one is which in most of the same sex pairs) were running to the clue box and Luke pushed Keisha/Jen out of the way, after which, Keisha/Jen said and I quote, "Bitch."  Margie got all upset and said that it was because Luke is deaf and not because he is this huge guy pushing Keisha/Jen out of the way of a clue in a spot where it does not matter who gets it first.  Argh.  As this also happened in China, albeit two seasons ago, it was referenced and still bothers me.
So, the episode started normally, everyone getting to the airport except for Kent and Vyxsin.  Who were lost.  For hours.  And refused to do anything but drive and say they were lost.  It was not enjoyable to watch.  All the other teams were on the same flight because it was a required flight, but when Kent and Vyxsin finally found the airport, they found a different flight...possibly leading to a penalty.  Who knows, though.
When everyone else got to China, they had to get to Jade Dragon mountain.  Ron and Christina took advantage asks about trains first and they got on the earliest one.  However, when they got to Jade Dragon, they had to take a shuttle bus that didn't leave until everyone, excepting Kent and Vyxsin, got to Jade Dragon. 
All the teams then had to ride a yak.  It looked as though this was one of those easy challenges they do to make sure that the teams don't lose heart.  Look, yeah, maybe you stink at riding a fake horse in a circle, but you can ride a yak in a waterfall.
Then they had to take gondolas up the mountain.  The altitude was high and they all felt it.
I think by this time, Kent and Vyxsin were in China and buying tickets on a flight to Jade Dragon.  But wait, Vyxsin had left her passport at the counter...and they talked about it a bit, so it must be important.
The Road Block involved the Chinese 'signs of the Zodiac'.  I'm not really sure what their real names are.  Christina said she would have an advantage because of her mom's forcing, but then Peppy Blonde Girl beat everyone and helped Luke.  Aww, so nice.  And not Angry Dad, so supportive.  Love them.
After several got through it, we see Ron and Christina, who hence forth shall be known as Angry Dad and Daughter who mistakenly thinks that they learned on the first race...or as Angry Dad and Christina, who got on a weird golf cart thing, which was the wrong way down the mountain.  Luckily, the Globetrotters are not Angry Dad and did not care only about beating people to the next stage and stopped their bus. 
Angry Dad was very distracted by food, but they still finished well, after he ate so much candy at the Detour.
Nonetheless, Margie and Luke arrived first to the 'Pit Stop' only to find out that Phil hates them as much as I do and made a split decision for this to be another continuing leg.  Or maybe it was planned.  Who knows?
That's what happened.
My favorite teams still left are the Cowboys, Zev and Justin, not Angry Dad and Blonde Daughter, and the Globetrotters.
My least favorite teams are Margie and Luke, Ron and Christina, and the Redheads.
I could care less about Keisha and Jen or The Goths, but I won't rout against them.
The Redheads haven't been so bad on this race, but I still remember how they yelled at every single cab driver.  These are the people that we are warned against being while traveling.
So, that's what happened.
 

A New Post...

So, once again, it's been a super-long time since I posted.
Life is going well...there's that.
I have discovered a new tv love: Leverage. It's amazing. I'm completely in love with Christian Kane and he was in Mpls, but I missed it. Argh. Of course, I don't really like country, but I would have loved to see him in person instead of just as on Leverage.