Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - April 3, 2016

Good morning! It's Sunday morning ... time for my weekly off television topic reflection of the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. If you're a fan of either Survivor or The Amazing Race (or both!), please stop by on show nights as the shows air East Coast time for my live-blogging of the episodes and the blog parties in the comments area!

My apologies for getting this post up so late today. Last night's wild weather awakened me several times with hail and winds which sounded like freight trains! There have been several trees down around town and power outages. My power has stayed on (so far), but many areas in Plainfield are out as I get this written up. And now, several hours into these winds, I just got a Nixle Alert on my cell phone advising me to stay inside due to dangerous conditions outside. Well, duh. I took trash out to the dumpster and snagged my Sunday newspaper from the front of the building. The wind was ridiculous. I'm glad I don't have to go to work today.

Meanwhile, a certain cat keeps jumping on me to purr in my ear. Don't get me wrong. I love the cat. But, sheesh ... he sure can be an affection mongering kind of cat! Once he's on my shoulder, I can't type at all.

Random notes on the week:

• We keep alternating between winter and spring. Unfortunately, most of the warmer days, we've had rain.
• We started the week with high wind warnings. We ended the week (and started this week) with high wind warnings.
• I keep having to get out my winter jacket, then putting it away.
• I worked extra hours this week and I'm totally exhausted.
• I actually have three of four days off starting today. I work tomorrow, but have off both Tuesday and Wednesday. I volunteered to take a paid vacation day to help with a budget cut this week at work. Good for them; good for me. I need the rest. I've been running on empty.
• We didn't get the overnight snow coating they predicted for last night. However, I'm sure we had a hail coating in the middle of the night!
• I bought a package of peanuts to feed squirrels. I'm weird like that.
• The Walking Dead season finale is tonight. Gulp. They better not kill off Darryl. Or, if they do, perhaps they could bring in Larry and his brother Darryl and his other brother Darryl from Newhart. I bet they'd be quite capable in the zombie apocalypse. 

Onto this week's photos -- clicking on an image will bring up a larger version.

On a wing and a prayer?

More like on wings and wind currents. A turkey vulture was having the time of its life gliding about in the high winds earlier in the week. He's probably hiding with the hurricane-force winds we're getting today!

Daffodils are still growing strong

Despite some outright overnight freezes, they're hanging in there!

First bum of the day

No Plainfield Train Station ticketed passengers can use that platform shelter in this photo. The bums hang out all day and most of the night there. They're responsible for all the trash on the grass in that area, too. It's sad that new apartments have been set up on North Avenue in rehabbed buildings, commanding a luxury rent price ... and they look out on the Plainfield Train Station bum gathering. The police regularly stop by and move along those on the East 4th Street side of the station. Yet this spot is almost totally ignored. I doubt those new apartments will ever have good quality tenants until the loitering issues are solved. 

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

The Amazing Race Blog Party - April 1, 2016

The show is starting! As you all know, it's been off for a few weeks due to basketball. (Grr.) As it airs here on the East Coast, I'll post the major happenings live. Refresh the page to get the latest! However, as it always is ... the real party is in the comments area. Please join in on the fun! (And bring tasty beverages and snacks!)

The Magnificent Margo (and Mom) have made the random picks for the blog pool and here they are ...
Tyler & Korey-P- Paula Bell, Bruce & Ray, SueGee
Burnie & Ashley- Buzzmaam, Delee
Sheri & Cole- Donna in FL, Merrilee, Becky
Zach & Rachel- Sharon N, Nana in NW
Dana & Matt- Grandi, Nicklepeed
Scott & Blair- Meb, Jennasmom
Kurt & Brodie- David, Ed in OH

Philiminated:
Marty & Hagan- Jackie, Willie J
Cameron & Darius- chrob61, PDXGranny
Jessica & Brittany- Donna in AL, Monty924
Erin & Joslyn- Brian, Margo, Rbennie

Amazing Race fans ready? Let's GO!

Teams are on their way to Armenia. All teams are on the same flight. So, any one could win this leg ... theoretically. There is an Express Pass waiting for the winner of the leg. The teams are bunched waiting to purchase opera tickets. They're not going to see the opera -- their next clue is hidden in the theater.

Teams have to climb a gazillion steps next -- Cascade.

The Alpha Boys are leading the pack, followed by Cole and Sheri.

Detour: Thread - Make a rug or ... Bread - making traditional bread. Both tasks are difficult.

Tyler/Korey and Blair/Scott are the last ones out of the theater.

The Alpha Boys are the first on their way to the next clue. No real surprise there. They have to take a certain bus and pick up the clue along the roadside at a stand.

Roadblock -- Who's feeling drained? They have to do an oil change. Only two cars at a time can be on the ramp.

Alpha Boys are heading to the Pit Stop.

Pit Stop:
1. Kurt and Brodie - won Express Pass (to be used before the 9th leg)
2. Burnie and Ashley
3. Zach and Rachel

Sheri at first didn't have the tool to loosen the oil filter. Then she keeps trying to loosen it in the wrong direction. That might cost them the leg/race (dependent on whether it's a non-Philimination or not). We're probably due for a non-Philimination. But I could be wrong.

4. Dana and Matt

Scott helps Sheri!

5. Scott and Blair
6. Tyler and Korey
7. Sheri and Cole -- NON-PHILIMINATION!

They're immediately going to start on the next leg!

Survivor: Kaoh Rong - March 30 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready? As the show airs, I'll update this entry with the major happenings -- refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. Please join us there. We like snacks. And beverages. Don't forget the beverages! Tonight promises us a "drop your buffs" moment for the merge. This should be interesting!

Lifeguard Laurie has been keeping up with the pool!

Blue - Chanloh
Cydney Gillon - Leo Lionharted, PDX Granny
Kyle Jason - Nana in the NW, Sharon N.
Michele Fitzgerald - Brian TCC, Kelsey NY
Nick Maiorano - Laurie, ML Debbie Wanner - meb, Rbennie
Neal Gottlieb - Merrilee, JoyzJenn

Yellow - Gondol
Tai Trang - Margo, anonymouse
Scot Pollard - Delee, Pinky
Joseph Del Campo - Grandi, Petals
Julia Sokolowski - Indiana Jane, Nickelpeed
Aubry Braco - Jennasmom, Glenn

Torchless
Darnell Hamiltonn - free play!
Jennifer Lanzetti - David, Paula Bell
Elizabeth Markham - Donna in FL, Terry is a Texan
Alecia Holen - Becky, Donna NY
Anna Khait - monty924 , SueGee from the Left Coast
Peter Baggenstos - Jackie, Tammy

Medical Evac
Caleb Reynolds - Ed in Ohio, Stephanie in Baltimore

Let's get this party started!

Due to the vote last week, now Scot is wanting to target Joe and Aubry. Over on Chanloh, Cydney sees the bulge in Neal's pocket and thinks it's an idol. She tells Kyle and he also sees it -- and he's sure it's real.

A boat shows up at Chanloh. They have to pack up and go to the merge. The boat arrives at Gondol's camp. Tai thinks his best ally remains Scot despite the fact that some of the beauty still survives. Debbie thinks her Brains are still tight.

Scot lets it slip to Jason Kyle and Nick that Tai has an idol (after they said they think Neal has one).

Debbie comes onto Tai and asks him to be in an alliance with her. He tells her yes. I think he's in shock with himself. But he tells us he sees through her.

Meanwhile, Brawn and Brain is together. Or so, Jason and Scot think.

It's getting Situation Complicated here. The Brains themselves are getting annoyed at Debbie. Neal admits to Aubry that he has an idol. Aubry is all excited about the possibilities.

Immunity Challenge time has Jeff inquiring about the infections they have.

Stand on a log, balancing a ball on a disk. More balls added as time goes on. We've seen this before. Joe out first, Debbie out. Jason out. Another ball is added. Michele, Neal, Scot out. Cydney out. Aubry out. The three Beauty players get to the three ball round. Julia out. It's just Nick and Tai. Tai out.

Nick wins the first Individual Immunity!

Scot and Jason think they're running the show. They want to target Aubry. Nick's not all that keen on them -- he thinks they're over-confident. Aubry and Debbie want to take out Scot or Jason. Both sides want Michele to work with them.

Nick thinks that they should work with Brawn because he feels he can manipulate them down the road.

A boat pulls up with Jeff and medics. Uh-oh. Jeff is concerned about the infections. Uh-oh. Neal is getting pulled from the game due to his knee infection. The others are cleared. He'll be back on the jury after hospital treatment.

No Tribal Council tonight. He did NOT give his buddy Aubry his idol. She remains a target.

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - March 27, 2016

Good morning! Happy Easter to you all! (Unless you don't celebrate the holiday ... then it's just Happy Sunday to you!) This is my weekly off television topic reflection of the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. If you're a fan of Survivor or The Amazing Race, please stop by during East Coast showtimes for my live blogging of the shows. We have blog parties with fans and a good time is generally had by all!

I haven't seen any rabbits yet this spring or I'd have one leading off the photos. Oh, well. Easter is coming early this year. Since it is the holiday, I'm pretty much going to go straight into the photos.

Clicking on an image with bring up a larger version ...

Easter in my Plainfield 'hood

Buds are starting to form on the larger trees. This magnolia tree across the street is the only one in full spring mode.

Wildlife at the Bridgewater Train Station

I'd rather see the garter snake than the homeless dude who's been living there despite my complaints to NJ Transit. Although, I must admit, the homeless guy slithers away like a snake when I'm surly to him. But the snake doesn't panhandle and isn't annoying.

I'm SO confused

What holiday is this? Even though it's Easter, this home on East Second Street is perpetually in a Christmas kind of mood. As long as it doesn't invite snow and I don't live there, live and let live. 

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

Survivor: Kaoh Rong - March 23 Blog Party

Survivor fans ready? As the show airs, I'll update this entry with the major happenings -- refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. Please join us there. We like snacks. And beverages. Don't forget the beverages!

Lifeguard Laurie is running the pool and, supreme lifeguard she is, has the new tribes all down pat for us --

Blue - Chanloh
Cydney Gillon - Leo Lionharted, PDX Granny
Kyle Jason - Nana in the NW, Sharon N.
Michele Fitzgerald - Brian TCC, Kelsey NY
Nick Maiorano - Laurie, ML Debbie Wanner - meb, Rbennie
Neal Gottlieb - Merrilee, JoyzJenn

Yellow - Gondol
Tai Trang - Margo, anonymouse
Scot Pollard - Delee, Pinky
Joseph Del Campo - Grandi, Petals
Julia Sokolowski - Indiana Jane, Nickelpeed
Peter Baggenstos - Jackie, Tammy
Aubry Braco - Jennasmom, Glenn

Torchless
Darnell Hamiltonn - free play!
Jennifer Lanzetti - David, Paula Bell
Elizabeth Markham - Donna in FL, Terry is a Texan
Alecia Holen - Becky, Donna NY
Anna Khait - monty924 , SueGee from the Left Coast

Medical Evac
Caleb Reynolds - Ed in Ohio, Stephanie in Baltimore

Despite technical difficulties for most of the day with my Comcast signal, things seem to be working. I'm keeping my fingers crossed even though it makes for more typos.

Okay ... let's see how the new tribes rock the boat! (Although Lifeguard Laurie cautions that rocking the boat while in the pool is frowned upon.)

Hmm. Peter is trying to align with Tai and plant seeds that Joe needs to go if they head to Tribal again. That could backfire, y'know.

On the other tribe, Debbie is working on Nick. Now, I'm not thrilled with Nick. But he's smart enough to see through her. She's claiming to once modeling. Eek.

Tree Mail -- tribes release buoys from the floors of the ocean and throw them into baskets. Yikes. Now Debbie is referring to Nick as "Adonis." I personally don't get the beauty of Nick. Maybe it's just me.

Reward Challenge is the one to which tree mail referred. It's a Survivor picnic that's at stake. (Or, perhaps at steak.) What a surprise -- Scot is shooting the baskets for his tribe. It's Nice on the other side. Scot isn't doing any great moves. Nick is running ahead. Now they're tied. Scot redeems himself. Gondol wins the feast!

Since Michele set her tribe back originally by not quickly releasing the buoys, she feels she needs to get back in favor. Although, in the long run, they almost won despite her failure to do her part fast.

Huh. Now Peter has latched onto Julie with plans to get Aubry out, then Joe. Aubry thinks Julia should go. Both Joe and Aubry are a bit suspicious of Peter, Aubry more than Joe.

Michele got Debbie to say they're going to go after Jason. She goes to Nick and he tells her that she's the target. He wants to "keep her under his wing." She sees through that.

Joe knows that Peter is working against him. So, he confronts him and asks him to his face if he's trying to take him out. So, Peter lies. And Joe knows he's lying.

Immunity Challenge time! Both tribes work together to get through obstacles, two knock blocks down, then they stack the blocks. Tribe with the best teamwork will win.

Chanloh wins Immunity!

Now Aubry is having second thoughts about getting rid of Peter. She thinks they won't have the numbers if he goes. She wants Joe to talk to Peter and work it out. Peter still lies to him. Now Peter is turning towards getting Julia out with Joe and Aubry. Peter tells Scot they'll be voting Julia. Scot knows Peter is a snake. Tai and Julia try to convince Aubry that Peter's been scheming against her. Joe tells Aubry he's sticking to the plan to vote out Julia.

Well, we'll know soon ... it's time for Tribal Council and Jeff's Probsting questions to rile things up a bit.

Heh. They're all whispering Peter.

Time to vote.

The tally --
Peter, Julia, Peter, Julia, Peter, Peter.

There goes my pool pick. I'm a free agent.

The merge is on for next week!

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - March 20, 2016

Good morning! It's Sunday! That means (a.) I have a day off from work and (b.) it's time for my weekly off television topic reflection of the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. If you're a Survivor fan, stop on back Wednesday evening during the East Coast airing of the show for my live blogging and blog party in the comments area! If you're an Amazing Race fan, you'll have to wait until the next show on April 1. We're going two weeks without that one due to March Madness college basketball.

Even though spring arrives today (yay!), we have the threat of at least a coating of snow later today and tonight. Thankfully, the storm is moving more out to sea and won't live up to the dire predictions of a nor'easter we had earlier in the week. It's unfortunate for more coastal areas of New England, for fortunate for us! We're only predicted to get a dusting or up to two inches. I'm so over it. I want spring to be spring!

Other random notes:

• Although the NJ Transit rail workers strike was averted, three of the five trains to work I took this week were late and one going home was late. It's a good thing I deliberately build in a time cushion for my to work commute. If I'm not early, I consider myself late. So, even though the trains were late, I made it to work on time. 
• Speaking of NJ Transit -- true, they opened the Watchung Avenue rail bridge to street traffic once again. But now they've shut down the Park Avenue street traffic at the bridge on the other side of the Plainfield Train Station once again. They've milked these bridge projects for 13 months now. Yeah, they were using the marvelous new doings which placed the bridge sections in over a weekend. Otherwise, I could see the projects lasting five years!
• A drunk woman riding a bicycle on the sidewalk annoyed me yesterday morning. She could barely keep upright. I have a personal policy that I do not move for bikes on the sidewalk -- they're supposed to be on the street by law. THEY need to alter their path, not me the pedestrian. Since she almost fell over, I did move. But I was nasty to her and she quickly (as slowly as her quick was) moved out into the street. I have little tolerance for adults riding bicycles on the sidewalks, nor for drunks.
• There was also a very drunk guy dressed in summer shorts and a tank top (when I dragged my winter jacket back out for yesterday) on the train. The conductors had given the two-buzz signal that the doors were closed and the engineer could move the train when the man started yelling he had to get out. Usually the train will just keep going, but they did stop again and let him stumble out. They probably preferred he get off the train.
• Train etiquette deems that you should be out of your seat and ready to exit by the time you get to your stop. First off, the departing passengers need to get off before the new passengers board the train. Second, the train will leave and you're stuck until the next stop ... usually.
• Why did I see two drunk people before 10am on a Saturday morning? What's up with that?
• While I will drink alcohol, I don't believe I've been actually drunk since about 1976 or so. I don't like the feeling. I get sick to my stomach and I really hate stumbling around or falling over. I learned my lesson way back then!

Enough of all of that. It's onto the photos for the week! Clicking on an image will bring up a larger version. Have a good week, folks ... and Happy Spring to y'all! (Even though it's a last hurrah of winter here tonight!)

Are you looking at me?

Are YOU looking at ME?!?! There's no one else here. Are you looking at ME? -- said in my best DiNiro impression. If the pigeon pulls out a gun, run for the hills.

No strike, yay!

Yet this train seems to be dirty and running dirty. While that locomotive is a dual diesel/electric powered one, it's diesel until it goes into the tunnels into Manhattan. Diesel isn't allowed in the tunnels. I find the diesel trains much more reliable in bad weather than the electric ones. NJ Transit, unlike the MTA, uses overhead wires instead of the third rail system for electric trains. Since the line I take (Raritan Valley Line) used to be all diesel until they bought the dual-powered locomotive engines, we used to have to transfer trains in Newark to go into Manhattan. Now, with the new locomotives, there are many trains that are one-seat rides into the city. But, not all of them.

Yellow and white daffodils make me happy

Well, at least when I'm looking at them.

I'm still waiting for good blossoms!

The magnolia tree across the street decided to blossom right at the beginning of a cold snap! The blossoms haven't really opened wide as of yet. Or, if they have, it's been during times I've been at work. Today's prediction of cold and possible snow covering isn't going to help them any. 

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

No Amazing Race tonight!

Just a reminder --

Due to March Madness basketball, The Amazing Race isn't on this week, nor next week. It will return April 1.

Survivor: Kaoh Rong Blog Party - March 16, 2016

Survivor fans ready? As the show airs, I'll update this entry with the major happenings -- refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. Please join us there. We like snacks.

Lifeguard Laurie is running the pool and here's the latest update:

Chan Loh - Brains
Peter Baggenstos - Jackie, Tammy
Neal Gottlieb - Merrilee, JoyzJenn
Debbie Wanner - meb, Rbennie
Aubry Braco - Jennasmom, Glenn
Joseph Del Campo - Grandi, Petals

Gondol - Beauty
Tai Trang - Margo, anonymouse
Nick Maiorano - Laurie, ML
Anna Khait - monty924 , SueGee from the Left Coast
Michele Fitzgerals - Brian TCC, Kelsey NY
Julia Sokolowski - Indiana Jane, Nickelpeed

To Tang - Brawn
Kyle Jason - Nana in the NW, Sharon N.
Scot Pollard - Delee, Pinky
Cydney Gillon - Leo Lionharted, PDX Granny

Torch has been snuffed:
Darnell Hamiltonn - free play!
Jennifer Lanzetti - David, Paula Bell
Elizabeth Markham - Donna in FL, Terry is a Texan
Alecia Holen - Becky, Donna NY

Medical Evac:
Caleb Reynolds - Ed in Ohio, Stephanie in Baltimore

We know a "drop your buffs" time is coming tonight. Will it be a reshuffling or the merge? I tend to think it's the former as there seem to be too many right now for a merge. Let's get this party started!

Ew. Joe has an infected looking finger. Peter, who knows he's a target, goes into his doctor mode and tries to help out. Neal thinks one of them need to find the hidden idol so it doesn't get into Peter's hands. Sure enough, he finds the clue and the padlocked box like the other tribes found. Yep, he gets it along with the clue that it fits with another idol and, if found, it could be used to save someone after the vote in Tribal.

Immunity Challenge time. Drop your buffs! Switching things up!

Original plan was two tribes of seven. Then Caleb went. Six blue buffs, six yellow, one red. Red buff goes off to Brawn Beach, but won't compete, will join tribe that loses at tribal council.

Julia draws the red.  

Blue: Two brain, two beauty, two brawn -- Cydney, Jason, Michelle, Nick, Debbie and Neal.  

Red: Three brains, two beauty, one brawn Tai, Scot, Joe, Peter, Anna, Aubrey.

Debbie is already in action, working on Cydney, then goes after Jason. With Neal, she thinks she's the mastermind they won't see coming and the beauty folks will be out.

On the other tribe, Tai has worked his way into Scot's heart. Heh, Scot says he has a man-crush on Tai. Now, Caleb was also a bit smitten. Tai must be very endearing! Aubrey and Anna are scheming against Tai. Interesting.

Nick wants to try the same thing Debbie has already done. Jason knows he and Cydney are in a good spot.

Meanwhile, Julia is having a rough time alone. She feels dehydrated and feels so all alone and paranoid.

Immunity Challenge time! Swim out, retrieve fish puzzle pieces, carry them on a pole, solve puzzle. The Blue Tribe (still don't have the name down here) wins!

Tai is worried. He doesn't want to use the idol he possesses, nor does he want to go home with it in his pocket. A move is afoot to target Anna. Tai thinks he can take Peter out because he's arrogant (Peter, not Tai). He tells Scot the girls and now Peter becomes the target. Scot thinks Jason's idol could be used with Tai's down the road and Anna could go tonight. He tells Tai not to use the idol, he's safe.

Tribal Council time! Heh. Joe doesn't think there are any idols. And, when asked, Tai explained he looked for one. But, he doesn't say whether he found one or not!

The tally (Tai does not use the idol) --
Peter, Anna, Anna, Anna, Anna.
Anna is gone.

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - March 13, 2016

Good morning! I hope you remembered to Spring Forward! I personally feel like an hour of my life has just been yanked from me. Oh, well. Maybe I'll find it in the fall. Welcome to my weekly off television topic reflection on the week gone by in both words and photographs I've taken along the way. If you're a fan of either Survivor or The Amazing Race, please stop back on show nights for live blogging blog parties!

The biggest news around here this past week is that the uncertainty of an NJ Transit railroad workers strike is over. That's something that has been worrying me for months as I depend on the trains for my work commute. I even requested yesterday off as a paid vacation day over a month ago as I read rumors there might be a "soft strike" that day leading into the midnight strike. Finally, on Friday evening, a deal was made and the strike was averted. Phew!

So, I had/have an actual whole weekend off. And, what have I done? Um. Well. I caught up on un-watched television shows. I made my corned beef and cabbage meal. I napped. Even though it was a nice day out, I stayed indoors and just had a mellow quiet kind of day. Maybe I'll venture out into the world today. 

Random thoughts on the week:

• I saw my first robin of the season, but the photograph I took wasn't good. So, you won't see it. Other years I've seen them come back during very wintry weather. But I haven't seen one since early December (when it was still unseasonably warm here).
• I also saw my first mosquito of the year. Grr.
• Along those same lines, the gnats are swarming the Bridgewater Train Station as they do each spring.
• The homeless dude hanging out at the Bridgewater Train Station needs to move along. I was told he was kicked out of the Somerville Train Station, the next stop west. He's becoming annoying and more aggressively panhandling each day.
• Someone, perhaps the homeless dude, moved a Platform Closed sign and construction barrel down to the street under the railroad bridges at Bridgewater. It took me several minutes to convince an Asian woman with only a very basic knowledge of English that the platform was open, that's not how NJ Transit closes a platform, they put the signs on the platform itself and that it was a prank. "That's not funny," she said when she finally believed me.
• Vincent liked the open windows this week. So did I. Well, until the motorcycles and brakes on the buses from NYC got too loud.

That's about all I have for you this week ... other than the photos. Clicking on an image will bring up a larger version.

As the crow flies

I'm not sure why that saying exists. I've watched crows fly. They definitely rarely fly in a straight line!

The Sunset Express

My train home from the Bridgewater Train Station coincided with the sunset this past week.

Where's the beach, dude?

You're in a parking lot, you silly seagull.

Looking north on Watchung Avenue

I won't get the opportunity to take this shot again if the bridge opened on Friday night as I was told it would. I took it standing in front of the barricade fencing at the closed railroad bridge. Those are the Watchung "Mountains" in the distance. When I first moved here to the area, I was amazed about the flatness of it all. And, then they showed me the Watchung Mountain Range. Bwahahaha!

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

The Amazing Race Blog Party - March 11, 2016

The show is starting! As it airs here on the East Coast, I'll post the major happenings live. Refresh the page to get the latest! However, as it always is ... the real party is in the comments area. Please join in on the fun! (And bring tasty beverages and snacks!)

The Magnificent Margo (and Mom) have made the random picks for the blog pool and here they are ...
Tyler & Korey-P- Paula Bell, Bruce & Ray, SueGee
Burnie & Ashley- Buzzmaam, Delee
Erin & Joslyn- Brian, Margo, Rbennie
Sheri & Cole- Donna in FL, Merrilee, Becky
Zach & Rachel- Sharon N, Nana in NW
Dana & Matt- Grandi, Nicklepeed
Scott & Blair- Meb, Jennasmom
Kurt & Brodie- David, Ed in OH

Philiminated:
Marty & Hagan- Jackie, Willie J
Cameron & Darius- chrob61, PDXGranny
Jessica & Brittany- Donna in AL, Monty924

Amazing Race fans ready? Let's GO!

Teams have to find certain cars in Chamonoix  to get their next clue. Then they're going up to the top of the highest mountain in Europe in a gondola car. They're set for a mountain hike. In ice and snow, of course. They're going up with mountain guides.

Yikes! They have to ascend snow stairs and then take a hand powered kind of zip line among high peaks to retrieve their clue.

Detour: Dynamite -- must deliver explosives and lunch to experts. After the pros explode the dynamite to control avalanches, they will get their next clue. Campsite has them setting up a snow camp.

The dynamite detour is very treacherous ... especially for those afraid of heights.

Alpha Boys Kurt and Brodie are in the lead. The Roadblock has them para-gliding and answering a question regarding it to get the next clue.

Erin and Joslyn are wandering about clueless looking for lunch.

Now Tyler has overtaken the Alpha Dude. (Alpha Dude crashed on take-off.) Tyler spots the (clue) Yeti with a Frnech flag.

Cole is having issues with the heights. Poor guy.

Pit Stop:
1. Tyler and Korey - won a trip to the Phillipines
2. Brodie and Kurt (Alpha Boys)
3. Dana and Matt
4. Scott and Blair
5. Zach and Rachel

Erin just can't get the take-off done.

6. Burnie and Ashley
7. Cole and Sheri
8. Erin and Joslyn - Philiminated.

The next episode will air April 1st. I assume that's due to March Madness basketball.

Survivor: Kaoh Rong Blog Party - March 9, 2016

Survivor fans ready? As the show airs, I'll update this entry with the major happenings -- refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. Please join us there. We like snacks.

Lifeguard Laurie is running the pool, but that doesn't mean you can run around the pool. It's slippery, y'know!

Here are the random match-ups:
Chan Loh - Brains
Peter Baggenstos - Jackie, Tammy
Neal Gottlieb - Merrilee, JoyzJenn
Debbie Wanner - meb, Rbennie
Aubry Braco - Jennasmom, Glenn
Joseph Del Campo - Grandi, Petals

Gondol - Beauty
Tai Trang - Margo, anonymouse
Nick Maiorano - Laurie, ML
Anna Khait - monty924 , SueGee from the Left Coast
Michele Fitzgerals - Brian TCC, Kelsey NY
Julia Sokolowski - Indiana Jane, Nickelpeed
Caleb Reynolds - Ed in Ohio, Stephanie in Baltimore

To Tang - Brawn
Kyle Jason - Nana in the NW, Sharon N.
Alecia Holen - Becky, Donna NY
Scot Pollard - Delee, Pinky
Cydney Gillon - Leo Lionharted, PDX Granny

Torch has been snuffed:
Darnell Hamiltonn - free play!
Jennifer Lanzetti - David, Paula Bell
Elizabeth Markham - Donna in FL, Terry is a Texan

Let's get this party started!

We're starting off this week with Jeff telling us about the brutally hot weather at Kaoh Rong. Then we get a brief recap of each tribe's times so far. Fifteen are left. Who will be voted out tonight? 

On Brains, Debbie thinks she should be called The Mastermind. Peter is still shocked. He thinks his tribe is no longer strong. Oh, well. 

My gosh ... it's right to the Immunity Challenge! Racing through obstacles, digging under walls, digging for bags of balls, rolling the balls into holes on a platform. Reward is a huge array of spices, second place gets salt and pepper.

They're all digging for the bags of balls. The camera goes to slow motion and the sun. All are exhausted. Brains finally got the last bag of balls first. Brains win it while the other two tribes are still digging for bags. Beauty now has their three bags.

Debbie (the Mastermind) thinks she has heat stroke and the medics are called in.

Brawn finally have their bags and the game is on.  Beauty wins second place and Brawn will go to Tribal once again. 

Oh. And, Debbie lived. 

Now Caleb has passed out. Cydney is about to be next. The show's entire crew get called in to help the fallen. Oh, noes! Has Caleb died?!?! (We know he hasn't, but it's onto commercial.)

They're giving him fluids, but Jeff just called for the chopper. It's an evacuation! Caleb might be out of the game. Yep, Caleb is a goner as far as the show goes. Rats. I liked him here so much more than on BB. Tai is devastated as is the rest of his tribe. He's been the strongest on it.

On Brawn it's a kerfuffle between Alecia and Scot.  

No Tribal and it's onto another Immunity Challenge. Race into jungle, climb up ladder, retrieve puzzle pieces. Two others dive for puzzle pieces. 

Brains wins first place! Beauty gets second place and Brawn will go to Tribal. 

Scot tells Jeff that Alecia has a zero chance of staying. Jason and Scot are willing to have Tribal right there, but Alecia balks. So, it's now onto the real Tribal Council. It sounds like a clear-cut decision to send her home.

The tally:
Alecia, Scot, Alecia, Alecia.

No surprises there. But now Brawn is down to three. Yikes.

Next week, it's Drop Your Buffs time. Whether it's the merge or a reshuffling, I don't know. But Brawn can't continue to go on with only three tribe members.

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - March 6, 2016

Good Sunday morning to you! Since it is indeed Sunday, that means just one thing ... it's time for my weekly off television topic reflection on the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. Please stop back for live blogging of Survivor and The Amazing Race on show nights!

Our weather wasn't technically as wacky this past week as it has been all this winter. Instead of the record highs/lows roller coaster, we pretty much just maintained wintry cold weather all week. Snow had its (hopefully) last gasp Wednesday night into Thursday morning. It wasn't a bad snow at all, sticking mainly to unpaved surfaces, trees and cars. The sidewalks had few slippery spots as I walked. They claim that we might have record-breaking high temperatures this week on Wednesday. I'm off from work that day.

I have a four-day work week ahead. I requested Saturday off as a paid vacation day due to rumors of a "soft strike" lead-in to an NJ Transit rail workers strike planned for next Sunday if they don't resolve issues before then. I don't feel like having an iffy commute with buses and such on a weekend when I work late. I'm hoping there will be no strike. But, if there is, I have a combination of walking, buses and getting rides to bus stops on the work end of things if it comes to fruition. I'm not looking forward to it. It's going to be extremely inconvenient and leave me on the city streets late at night some nights when that's the last place I want to be for safety reasons. Plus, it will add hours onto my workdays. Sigh.

I don't have much for you other than the photos I took this past week. Clicking on an image will bring it up in a larger version. Have a great day!

Se compra oro

Alas, I have no oro to sell them. Looks like they buy and sell many things. One day I should peek in there. Park Avenue, Plainfield.

Snowy morning

The tree in front of the local Presbyterian Church held the snow nicely. I edited this photo to leave only two orange lamps by a doorway in color.

What a blue sky!

No, I did nothing with the color on this shot! I had some condensation on my lens which made the lights a bit streaky. It's finally not totally dark when I get home from work three days out of five. Plainfield Train Station.

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

The Amazing Race Blog Party - March 4, 2016

The show is starting! As it airs here on the East Coast, I'll post the major happenings live. Refresh the page to get the latest! However, as it always is ... the real party is in the comments area. Please join in on the fun! (And bring tasty beverages and snacks!)

The Magnificent Margo (and Mom) have made the random picks for the blog pool and here they are ...
Tyler & Korey-P- Paula Bell, Bruce & Ray, SueGee
Burnie & Ashley- Buzzmaam, Delee
Erin & Joslyn- Brian, Margo, Rbennie
Sheri & Cole- Donna in FL, Merrilee, Becky
Zach & Rachel- Sharon N, Nana in NW
Dana & Matt- Grandi, Nicklepeed
Jessica & Brittany- Donna in AL, Monty924
Scott & Blair- Meb, Jennasmom
Kurt & Brodie- David, Ed in OH

Philiminated:
Marty & Hagan- Jackie, Willie J
Cameron & Darius- chrob61, PDXGranny

Amazing Race fans ready? Let's GO!

Teams are on their way to Geneva, Switzerland. All teams are to be on the same flight, so we have a bunching point. Lots of talk about Blair having a crush on Brodie. Hmm. It seems like he kind of likes her, too!

The first clue leads them to a place which doesn't open until morning. So, Brodie and Blair got in some cuddle time.

Detour: Workbench or Bench Work -- They have to assemble 27 Swiss Army Knives. Or, the latter is saying how many people can sit on the bench touted as the longest in the world.

Both Detours seem quite tough.

Although Brodie and Kurt made it through the bench sitting/counting spaces first and shared their answers, the others in that detour had to go through the motions again. They're the first through to the next clue, then Tyler and Korey finished the knives detour. So, the two leading teams are leading once again.

Brittany and Jessica didn't get the Alpha Boys answer, so they seem to be the only ones still stuck on the bench.

One thing I've noticed with these basically younger Internet quasi-related teams is that the teams are more friendly with each other than we've seen in many other seasons. That may change when the win gets closer. But there's no animosity between teams.

Roadblock: "Who is Having a Banner Day?" Teams have to identify ten flags of ten countries which were original members of the United Nations. (Where's Sheldon Cooper and Fun With Flags?)

Burnie and Ashley get done first and are headed to France for the Pit Stop.

Brittany and Jessica are the last team to arrive at the Roadblock. The remaining teams there are all already working together and they feel shunned.

Now, after two separate groups taking two different trains, all the teams are on the same connecting train heading to the Pit Stop ... except Brittany and Jessica.

1. Brodie and Kurt first - 3,000 each
2. Tyler and Korey
All the other teams converged on the mat so quickly, I lost track.

9. Brittany and Jessica -- Philiminated

Survivor: Kaoh Rong Blog Party - March 2, 2016

Survivor fans ready? As the show airs, I'll update this entry with the major happenings -- refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. Please join us there. We like snacks.

Lifeguard Laurie is running the pool, but that doesn't mean you can run around the pool. It's slippery, y'know!

Here are the random match-ups:
Chan Loh - Brains
Elizabeth Markham - Donna in FL, Terry is a Texan
Peter Baggenstos - Jackie, Tammy
Neal Gottlieb - Merrilee, JoyzJenn
Debbie Wanner - meb, Rbennie
Aubry Braco - Jennasmom, Glenn
Joseph Del Campo - Grandi, Petals

Gondol - Beauty
Tai Trang - Margo, anonymouse
Nick Maiorano - Laurie, ML
Anna Khait - monty924 , SueGee from the Left Coast
Michele Fitzgerals - Brian TCC, Kelsey NY
Julia Sokolowski - Indiana Jane, Nickelpeed
Caleb Reynolds - Ed in Ohio, Stephanie in Baltimore

To Tang - Brawn
Kyle Jason - Nana in the NW, Sharon N.
Alecia Holen - Becky, Donna NY
Scot Pollard - Delee, Pinky
Cydney Gillon - Leo Lionharted, PDX Granny

Torch has been snuffed:
Darnell Hamiltonn - free play!
Jennifer Lanzetti - David, Paula Bell

Let's get this party started!

Alecia tells Cydney she wants Scot to go. She seems to be barking up the wrong tree there.

Meanwhile, Tai wants to bark up the right tree and retrieve the key to hidden idol he knows is there. He gets what he wants -- the key to the idol and the idol. He kisses trees, the idol and he would kiss Caleb if he was there!

The idol is one part of a Super Idol. If he finds the second fitting idol, it can be used AFTER the vote is read. (A new twist going on there!)

On Brains, Debbie (the wackadoodle) wants to target Liz. She doesn't like Peter, but feels they need him for challenges. She's all secret agent gal around camp. 

Beauty is thinking of killing one of their chickens for food. Caleb, the voice of reason (oh my), is thinking of how Tai will feel about it. The deed goes down with Tai holding the chicken for Caleb to chop off its head. Tai is accepting the fate but is sad anyway. 

Anna trusts Caleb and Tai and wants to pull them in against Nick. She sees right through his fake smiles. 

On Brawn, Scot is in search of an idol. Alecia is looking, too. Kyle (Jason) sees Cydney and Alecia searching. Heh. Cydney has Alecia go away and she gets the locked idol box similar to what Tai found at his camp. When confronted, Cydney tells Jason and Scot about the clue and they run off. Now Alecia's there as Jason finds the clue. All of them are off running. Scot and Jason are trying to get the key down. Jason snags the key when it falls.

Immunity Challenge time! They have to jump off into water, swim to boat, retrieve bags of rice, balance beams, search for balls in the rice, maze ... sheesh, just a bit convoluted! Reward is a choice for first place -- comfort or emotional items. Second place gets what first didn't choose. 

Beauty wins first place! Brawn actually wins second place! It will be Brains going to Tribal. Beauty chooses comfort, so Brawn gets their emotional items. It might be emotional enough for them to not lose another member!

Peter thinks Neal will get the boot. He doesn't know that Secret Agent Debbie has been working against him. Or, his ally Liz anyway. Neal is suspicious. Peter thinks he's the one in charge. We'll see about that. 

Debbie promises us a total blindside (either Peter or Liz). And, it's time for Tribal.  Jeff asks his Probsting questions. 

The Tally:
Aubry, Aubry, Peter, Peter, Liz, Liz. A three-way tie with a re-vote. Peter, Liz and Aubry cannot vote and the others must vote for one of them.

The Re-Tally:
Liz, Liz ... 

Liz is out. Secret Agent Gal was right.

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - February 28, 2016

Good morning! Since it's Sunday morning, it's time for my weekly off television topic reflection on the past week in both words and photos I've taken along the way. Please come by during the week and join in on the Survivor and The Amazing Race blog parties! I live blog those shows as they air while folks party in the comments area. It's a fantastic group of show fans. Please stop in!

But this ain't that.

We had yet another odd/wild weather week here in New Jersey. Some days were bitter cold with wind, but sunny. On Wednesday we had all day flooding rains with severe thunderstorms and a tornado watch. No, we did not have a tornado. (Yay!) The late-night temperature was in the high sixties! It remains a very odd weather pattern (or lack thereof) for February in New Jersey.

In other random stuff:

• NJ Transit train workers might go on strike mid-March. I've requested the Saturday of the "soft strike" off as a vacation day. If they don't strike, I have a weekend off. Win-win. If they do strike going into the week, I'll have to deal with buses and rearranging my work schedule to have a co-worker pick me up near the Shop-Rite not all that far from work. (But farther than I want to walk!) More co-workers go through there than anywhere near here.
• The bright side of that is that there's a Burger King there and I haven't had a Croissanwich in years. It's my favorite fast food breakfast sandwich.
• Things are going better at my workplace. I have new knowledgeable bosses I can actually work with and we share mutual respect. I forgot what that's like in the past few years.
• I'd still rather be retired and perhaps just do something I like to do.
• I've worked for the same company for about 34 years. I think I've paid my dues.
• But there's this pesky thing called keeping a roof over my head. I don't see Vincent the Cat going out there working to help me!

Oh, well. That's about it. Onto this week's photos! Clicking on an image will bring up a larger version. I hope everybody has a fantastic Leap Day tomorrow!

Into the light

While I like how this photo turned out, it shows the deplorable conditions of the NJ Transit Plainfield Station pedestrian tunnel between the westbound/eastbound platforms. When it rains outside, it now rains in the tunnel. Some light panels are entirely missing, others often have the rain running through them. The floor is always wet, slippery and grimy. It desperately needs repairs and regularly scheduled cleaning. Hey, NJ Transit. What's up with this? 

Don't fence me in

A sparrow rests on a fence and makes for a cute shot.

Coming in for a landing

A pigeon making a landing on a ledge on the Chotola Apartment building on North Avenue in Plainfield.

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

The Amazing Race Blog Party - February 26, 2016

The show is starting! As it airs here on the East Coast, I'll post the major happenings live. Refresh the page to get the latest! However, as it always is ... the real party is in the comments area. Please join in on the fun! (And bring tasty beverages and snacks!) I'm still a bit iffy on the team names, so please bear with me!

The Magnificent Margo (and Mom) have made the random picks for the blog pool and here they are ...
Tyler & Korey-P- Paula Bell, Bruce & Ray, SueGee
Burnie & Ashley- Buzzmaam, Delee
Erin & Joslyn- Brian, Margo, Rbennie
Sheri & Cole- Donna in FL, Merrilee, Becky
Zach & Rachel- Sharon N, Nana in NW
Dana & Matt- Grandi, Nicklepeed
Jessica & Brittany- Donna in AL, Monty924
Scott & Blair- Meb, Jennasmom
Kurt & Brodie- David, Ed in OH
Cameron & Darius- chrob61, PDXGranny

Philiminated:
Marty & Hagan- Jackie, Willie J

Amazing Race fans ready? Let's GO!

Teams are running all over from place to place picking up clues. They have to go to San Diego for one (not California) and to the catacombs.

Detour - Tickets -- collecting tickets on a bus. Tejo has them throw a disk rock thing on some sort of bang type fireworks dohickey. It's kind of like cornhole with a bang. (No, that's not how Phil explained it.)

Dana and Matt continue to be the only team arguing. Sigh. Oh geez ... the alpha male team, Kurt and Brodie, actually chest bump.

Gah. One of the women on one of the female teams (the one whose person was claustrophobic during the prior cave challenge) is about to go into a full-burst anxiety attack in the catacombs. It's Jessica and Brittany -- not sure which girl it is, though.

The alpha boys get to the Roadblock first. "Who's left holding the bag?" They have to find bags by the same designer as one given to them, searching a gazillion bags and several vendors.

Kurt and Brodie are headed to the Pit Stop.

Pit Stop:
1. Kurt and Brodie - won a trip to Greece
2. Tyler and Korey

Oh noes! Rachel counted the bus money wrong. She and Zach have to go back and finish that Detour.

3. Burnie and Ashley
4. Dana and Matt (He thinks they need to work together better. Y[think?)

Jessica is trying to help Cole on the Roadblock even though she's ready for the next clue. Finally she leaves him be. Rachel and Zach finally finished the Detour.

5. Jessica and Brittany
6. Sheri and Cole
7. Erin and Joslyn
8. Scott and Blair
9. Zach and Rachel
10. Darius and Cameron -- Philiminated.

Really nice guys, but The Amazing Race isn't their strength!

Survivor: Kaoh Rong Blog Party - February 24

Survivor fans ready? As the show airs, I'll update this entry with the major happenings -- refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. Please join us there. We like snacks.

Lifeguard Laurie was kind enough to offer to add the latecomers who posted last week to the blog pool, as well as reassign those who unfortunately were Darnell's pool peeps as he was the first boot.

Here are the revised match-ups:
Chan Loh - Brains
Elizabeth Markham - Donna in FL, Terry is a Texan
Peter Baggenstos - Jackie, Tammy
Neal Gottlieb - Merrilee, JoyzJenn
Debbie Wanner - meb, Rbennie
Aubry Braco - Jennasmom, Glenn
Joseph Del Campo - Grandi, Petals

Gondol - Beauty
Tai Trang - Margo, anonymouse
Nick Maiorano - Laurie, ML
Anna Khait - monty924 , SueGee from the Left Coast
Michele Fitzgerals - Brian TCC, Kelsey NY
Julia Sokolowski - Indiana Jane, Nickelpeed
Caleb Reynolds - Ed in Ohio, Stephanie in Baltimore

To Tang - Brawn
Kyle Jason - Nana in the NW, Sharon N.
Jennifer Lanzetti - David, Paula Bell
Alecia Holen - Becky, Donna NY
Scot Pollard - Delee, Pinky
Cydney Gillon - Leo Lionharted, PDX Granny

Torch has been snuffed:
Darnell Hamiltonn - free play!

Let's get this party started! If I vanish during the show, we're having some severe thunderstorms here and we've just been put under a tornado watch.

Recap, recap. 

Alecia, although saved last week, is very suspicious of her tribe mates. She's next on their list to go. Gah, Alecia calls an ember an "embryo." Oh, duh!

Over on Beauty, Tai is still determined to find a hidden idol without a clue. And he's found a clue saying the idol is buried at the base of the tree. He found that clue and it directs him to find a key to unlock the idol. He has to climb a tall tree to get at it and has to give up ... for now.

Debbie is sure the water they have to drink is safe without boiling. She's proving more and more of a nut. 

Heh. Caleb has taken a liking to Tai. Who woulda thunk it?

Brains weren't so brainy ... they wasted/spilled most of the kerosene thanks to Joe. At least he's the one they're blaming. Joe himself thinks he's at kindergarten camp because the "book" brains are all trying failed experiments rather than just working to achieve their goals.

On Brawn, while Scot and Kyle slept, Alecia worked for hours with the flint and got a fire going. Will that redeem her in their eyes? Now they can cook their chicken and boil their water. 

Immunity Challenge time! Race down river, retrieve log, carry it through obstacles, knock down targets. Reward for the first tribe is a huge fishing kit and boat. Second gets a smaller kit. Geez, Debbie is sitting up and cheerleading. I think I'm ill.

Beauty wins first place immunity and reward! Brains wins second place. Brawn once again will go to Tribal Council. 

Of course, Scot and Kyle are wanting Alecia out once again. She decided she needs to go out searching for an immunity idol. Meanwhile, Jennifer is getting tired of Kyle (Jason) and would rather keep Alecia. Jennifer and Alecia approach Cydney about an all girls alliance. If the girls stick together, it's Jason (who is actually Kyle Jason!). Now Jennifer is having second thoughts because she doesn't want to let Scot down.

Tribal Council has Jennifer spilling a few too many beans and making the guys suspicious. Uh-oh, Jennifer lies and claims the all girl alliance was Alecia's idea. Alecia denies it and claims Jennifer. Is Jennifer sinking her boat?

The tally:
Jenny, Alecia, Alecia, Jenny, Jenny.

Welp, she did it to herself! Alecia is safe and Jennifer is gone.

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - February 21, 2016

Good morning! It's Sunday morning. You know what that means. It means it's time for my weekly off television topic reflection of the week gone by in both words and photographs I've taken along the way. If you're a fan of the shows -- please stop by on Wednesday and Friday evenings for coverage of Survivor and The Amazing Race! I hope to see you at the blog parties!

Oh my gosh, this week's weather has run the gamut here in New Jersey. We had record low temperatures to start the week, snow, ice, torrential rain, heavy winds, thunderstorms and temperatures nearing record highs by Saturday. There was even a small earthquake but that wasn't felt in this area. That's okay. I've felt earthquakes before. I don't really need more experience at it.

I didn't really have an exciting week photo-wise. In the beginning of the week, the cold kept killing my camera's battery and/or it was too cold to really take photos. Some of the time, it was rainy or icy. I look forward to spring with bugs and flowers for me to shoot!

Life goes on here in the apartment building. One day I got home from work and the elevator wasn't working. It still wasn't working when I left early the next morning. But it was working when I got home from work that day. Since this landlord took over, the elevator has been rapidly repaired any time it has decided to stop. I recall going months at time without it before. And, since we have some elderly and disabled folks on upper floors living here because it's an elevator building, we can't really go without it for long even though we're far from a skyscraper!

Kids playing in the hallway managed to spill sparkly green glitter on the forest green carpet. I've been fighting sparkly green glitter for days now. My vacuum doesn't get it all off my red welcome mat outside my door! Nor did the maintenance staff get it all out of the hallway carpet with their equipment. I ask again ... why are there so many children and adults in that one-bedroom apartment in my corridor?

Onto this week's photos -- clicking on an image will bring it up in a larger version.

Did you see the moon last night?

It's almost full. The actual full moon will take place on Monday night. This full moon is called the Snow Moon. I'd rather some other name, please ... like the SPRING Moon!

Plotting

Since they're not birds of a feather flocking together, their nefarious plan is obvious. They're plotting to overthrow humans and take over the world. Atop the Chotola Apartment Building on North Avenue in Plainfield.

One cool ride!

You'd think they'd at least cover the seat! I wouldn't want to ride that home in the ice and snow. Parked at the Bridgewater Train Station.

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

The Amazing Race Blog Party - February 19, 2016

Ready to race from your couch? As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll post the major happenings live. Refresh the page to get the latest! However, as it always is ... the real party is in the comments area. Please join in on the fun! (And bring tasty beverages and snacks!) I'm still a bit iffy on the team names, so please bear with me!

The Magnificent Margo (and Mom) have made the random picks for the blog pool and here they are ...
Tyler & Korey-P- Paula Bell, Bruce & Ray, SueGee
Burnie & Ashley- Buzzmaam, Delee
Erin & Joslyn- Brian, Margo, Rbennie
Sheri & Cole- Donna in FL, Merrilee, Becky
Zach & Rachel- Sharon N, Nana in NW
Dana & Matt- Grandi, Nicklepeed
Jessica & Brittany- Donna in AL, Monty924
Marty & Hagan- Jackie, Willie J
Scott & Blair- Meb, Jennasmom
Kurt & Brodie- David, Ed in OH
Cameron & Darius- chrob61, PDXGranny

Amazing Race fans ready? Let's GO!

Teams are flying to Columbia ... a first for the show. Uh-oh. My blog pool pick team is on the last flight.

Roadblock - Who is a hot mess?
Teams must submerge themselves in a mud pool at a volcano site and retrieve a satchel with an emerald. Some of the satchels have other rocks or gems in them. Korey dropped his coming down the volcano and had to go back. Still, the teams on the first flight are all finishing the Roadblock before the last teams get there.

After they finish the Roadblock ...
Detour - Pop-Up has them building a shelter which needs to be approved by locals. Parilla -- cooking and serving a barbecue type meal. Heh. Tyler and Korey beat out alpha male team Kurt and Brodie in building the shelter. They're on the way to the Pit Stop. My poor blog pool gals are getting frantic stuck in last at the Roadblock.

For their Speed Bump, Scott and Blair must help local fishermen pull in a fist net and retrieve the catch.

Okay, Matt and Dana are the first ones to bicker.

Pit Stop --
1. Tyler and Korey - won a trip to St. Thomas
2. Kurt and Brodie
3. Burnie and Ashley

Uh-oh. Cameron and Darius missed finding their clue. They better get it together!

4. Dana and Matt
5. Joslyn and
6. Jessica and Brittany
7. Zach and Rachel
8. Sheri and Cole
9. Scott and Blair

The brothers pass Hagan and Marty who were running because they let their cab go.

10. Cameron and Darius
11. Marty and Hagan, Philiminated in tears.

There goes my blog pool random pick. Now I'm on my own!

Survivor: Kaoh Rong Season Premiere Blog Party and Pool

Survivor fans ready? The new season makes its premiere tonight! As the show airs, I'll update this entry with the major happenings -- refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. Please join us there. We like snacks.

Before the show gets going, that Lovable Lifeguard Laurie has made the random picks for the pool. I realize a few people asked too late. Lifeguard Laurie has been kind enough to offer to put the three latecomers and first booters into the pool after tonight's boot.

Here's the match-ups:
Chan Loh - Brains
Elizabeth Markham - Donna in FL, Terry is a Texan
Peter Baggenstos - Jackie, Tammy
Neal Gottlieb - Merrilee
Debbie Wanner - meb, Rbennie
Aubry Braco - Jennasmom
Joseph Del Campo - Grandi, Petals

Gondol - Beauty
Tai Trang - Margo
Nick Maiorano - Laurie
Anna Khait - monty924 , SueGee from the Left Coast
Michele Fitzgerals - Brian TCC
Julia Sokolowski - Indiana Jane, Nickelpeed
Caleb Reynolds - Ed in Ohio, Stephanie in Baltimore

To Tang - Brawn
Kyle Jason - Nana in the NW, Sharon N.
Darnell Hamiltonn - JoyzJenn, Paula Bell
Jennifer Lanzetti - David
Alecia Holen - Becky
Scot Pollard - Delee, Pinky
Cydney Gillon - Leo Lionharted, PDX Granny

Let's all have a great season!

All three tribes scramble to snag supplies before abandoning ship. Jeff promises us the most grueling season ever. So far, as we're still going through the start-up welcome stuff, Debbie seems quite bizarre and annoying to me. Brawn all seem to fit in well together, Brains not as much. The Beauty tribe is trying to figure out Tai. He's defensive of trees, y'know.

Okay, Brawn is starting to split a bit. The guys aren't liking "Blondie" -- I think that's Alecia. I'm not good with the names yet. Darnell wants to work with Cydney. She isn't as committing, I don't think.

Over in Beauty, the chickens escape. They get two of them back while Tai impresses the girls with his gentle approach. The girls are also liking Caleb because they know he was solid to his alliance through BB.

In Brains, Debbie seems to have designs on Joe. Poor Joe. Liz and Neal don't care for her. And, unfortunately, they're deciding that Joe and Debbie are the "geriatrics." It's sad that they're already targeting due to age. If they target Debbie due to weird, that's fine by me.

In Beauty, Tai is searching for an idol and ripping up trees to do so. Yikes! The others realize what he's doing and now he's likely to get targeted. He did apologize to the trees.

Now Brains is in a segment on the heat there. Heck, are they going to even have a challenge? The show only has 20 minutes left to go! Aubry is dehydrated. Maybe we'll just have a med-evac. Maybe it's anxiety. We'll see.

Nighttime. Eek. Jennifer has a bug in her ear!

Okay, I've been informed tonight is 90 minutes. They'll have time.

Treemail. But Jennifer's ear is bleeding and the bug is still in it. Aha! The bug crawled out and she's herself once again!

And, it's time for the Immunity Challenge. Swim to a boat, one person dive down for paddles. Eventually they can solve a puzzle or test their dexterity. Reward is a massive fire-making kit. Second tribe to finish gets a flint.

Uh-oh. On the first dive for paddles, Darnell lost the dive mask and that's setting them behind from the start. Beauty is the first tribe with all the paddles. Beauty and Brains are now competing with Brawn as the first two tribes have trouble getting their boat in the cradle. They're putting on their wheels. Beauty is now in trouble.

Brains goes for the puzzle and is in the lead. Brawn chooses puzzle. Beauty is struggling to move their boat on the track. They also go for puzzle.

Brains Tribe wins Immunity and Reward! Beauty wins the second place! Brawn will go to Tribal Council tonight.

It looks like they're going to target Darnell. Now, Alecia might have blown it by hinting she might have an idol. Stupid girl. Cydney also wants to keep Darnell because she knows he's in her corner.

Tribal Council time. Darnell admits losing the goggles, but claims he will bring it. Alecia thinks she's a mental giant. Oh my. Darnell goes to tears. His heartbreak tale might save his butt.

The tally:
Alecia, Darnell, Alecia, Darnell, Alecia, Darnell.
It's a tie.

They have to revote -- Alecia and Darnell can't vote and the others can only vote for them.

Darnell, Darnell, Darnell. He's the one out tonight.