YAY! 'Amazing Race' Finale Winners!

BJ and Tyler!

'The Amazing Race 9' Finale East Coast Update

Pit Stop order:

1. BJ/Tyler
2. Eric/Jeremy
3. Ray/Yolanda

Non-elimination, heading to Alaska

I Did It! I Did It! Dilemma SOLVED!

I've been in a bit of a panic about tonight's television. I'm glad I don't throw things out and keep them because I might fix them someday.

What does one sentence above have to do with the other? Read on...

Tonight's television at the 9 PM hour was putting me in a quandary. The Amazing Race finale show starts at 8 PM, ends at 10 PM. I have to watch that one and take notes to blog about it later (as well as provide East Coast Updates here on this blog for the West Coast Viewers Who Can't Wait). Lost has a new episode on at 9 PM. American Idol has an hour-long results show this week starting at 9 PM - while I don't necessarily blog that show, I give an East Coast Update on the boot.

I don't have TIVO.

I do have cable and have it going to two TVs -- one in my computer room (s/b dining room) and another in the living room which I can actually see from my computer set-up area. What I've been doing at 9 PM on Wednesdays is to watch Lost by the computer, tape and have on American Idol on the living room TV (where my working VCR is) so that I can watch it later, but catch the boot. Throw The Amazing Race in there at that time and you can see my quandary.

What to do? What to do?

I dragged out my two not-working-correctly VCRs -- my first old 2-head one from the '80s which, last I knew, only really had issues with the timer and limitations of a VCR from that time period. My other non-working VCR is more modern, 4-head and retired due to the fact that it eats tapes. I first hooked up the older one to my computer-room TV. No go. I haven't tried it in years and it just sort of sits there. So, I tried the second one, removing its top cover and trying a tape I don't care if it gets eaten. Sure enough, I saw the mechanisms go to eat the tape! Ack! I stopped it and gently threaded the tape back to what it should be. I then wiggled the mechanisms inside and made progress trying again and again.

I fixed my VCR. Woohoo! So, here's the plan for tonight:

• Watch The Amazing Race live, take notes for a later review (probably will post it tomorrow evening due to the plethora of TV watching I'll be doing tonight and the fact I must go to work early).
• Tape American Idol on the computer room TV/VCR while running it live on the living room TV so I can catch the boot.
• Tape Lost on the living room VCR as it plays AI so I can post the boot. I know for sure that VCR works with no issues, so it's the safest to use for taping Lost. I'm more concerned about actually watching Lost than I am about American Idol.

Just call me Jackie, VCR Technician and TV Addict.

Stop by later for the updates!

'The Apprentice 5' - Ep.12 -or- "Eye-Rolling? Me? @@"

Oh, my...this season is dwindling down to its last few weeks. Oh, whatever will I do? Survivor has ended; The Amazing Race finale is on Wednesday. I might have to hit up my book pile for entertainment going into June. Well, that can be fun, too! Onto the show...

When the girls (Roxanne, Tammy and Allie) saw Lee and Sean returning from the Boardroom without Michael, they all seemed a bit surprised Lee remains in the running for the job. I personally think that no one's more surprised than Lee himself. They all pretty much think that Trump has taken a special liking to Lee. I can't really disagree. He squirms his way out of that Boardroom each and every time he could be fired -- and that's a lot of times! Tammy, of course, was happy to see Sean return. She fluttered her eyes and all. I think she's smitten with the Brit.

This week, it's Bill Rancic and Ivanka Trump who monitor the progress of the teams and report back to Big Daddy Trump. The task looked like fun, but I don't think it's the best challenge they could face. Bigwigs from MicroSoft and Wal-Mart explained that the teams had to create an environment within a Wal-Mart store focusing on MicroSoft's XBox 360™ geared for display and promotion of the product. The envirnoment created had to be interactive and three-dimensional. Now, that seems to be kind of easy. Just with the "360," it screams out full-circle, doesn't it? Use their promo designs and colors and you're there!

Sean and Lee were immediately full of ideas and excitement about the task at hand. Their team, Gold Rush, is down to just the two, so they outsourced almost all of the labor details -- flooring, a roof, the banners, signage and all. "No more Kinkos for us!" Sean was the Project Manager, but they both took on even roles in the task. Both were very familiar with the product, so they knew what could tie in with it as far as goods sold within Wal-Mart. Ivanka peeked in on them and seemed to be very positive about their teamwork and enthusiasm. Their only real downfall was that by sourcing out the work, they lost control on the completion time. That's bad, very bad.

Ah, the after-commercial Trump quote and Forecast O' Firing this week was "Death to Traitors." I think it was a bit over the top, but then I was never good with office politics and backstabbing ways. He lectured about getting rid of those who sabotage your efforts from within. Hmmm...I never was into that either. Since they had already shown Lee and Sean working great together, I knew it had to be the Synergy team. And, it was.

Tammy wanted to be the Project Manager for the task to prove herself worthy or something to that effect. She literally said, "I want this to be about me!" Eep. Her idea was a rather odd red carpet Hollywood ordeal focusing on the entertainment aspect of the Xbox 360™. Okaaay...that's her choice, though certainly not something which would come to my mind when I think of the product.

She assigned Roxanne the sign-making tasks as she's into graphics and, to be honest, I can't recall what she assigned to Allie, if anything. As they shopped for supplies, both Roxanne and Allie were so not into her ideas or her plans that it was super evident. Not only to me, but to Bill Rancic who stopped by to check on their progress. He saw the eye-rolling and disdain wafting out from both Allie and Roxanne. Uh-oh! Traitors! Off with their heads! Oh, wait. Trump didn't say be-head, just generic "death." Tammy was the Rodney Dangerfield of the episode -- "I don't get no respect." I think her main turn-off with the team dates back to her statement that she wanted it to be all about her.

As the time came close, Gold Rush (Lee and Sean) had a super-dilemma on their hands -- no ceiling for their enclosure! They did the best they could with the banner-walls decorated in the product theme, having several related items from Wal-Mart, the specification sheets, and the pricing of the items.

When the Wal-Mart and MicroSoft bigwig dudes arrived, they didn't seem all that thrilled with either exhibit. In the meeting to discuss the efforts of both teams, they went with the Gold Rush effort even though it remained unfinished. They loved the product tie-ins and thought it integrated both companies very well. The reward was a neat one this time around. No stomping grapes, we're talking a private jet trip to California. a meeting with Jeffrey Katzenburg of DreamWorks Studios, and a voice audition for parts in the upcoming movie Over The Hedge. I officially give this one the Best Reward Award! Oh, but it made the Synergy team quite jealous. Plus, of course, they have to go to the Boardroom where one will be fired.

[If you watch the movie, watch for BBQ Barry in a scene where critters run through his barbeque -- that's Sean's voice. And Lee is the voice of Lunch Table Larry, a critter himself.]

Before heading to the Boardroom, Allie and Roxanne moped and whined and then fussed that they wanted that reward. Too bad, girls! Tammy thought Allie gave a half-assed effort in the task. She thought Allie was just following Roxanne who "isn't capable of sabotaging me!"

The catfight in the actual Boardroom pitted Tammy against Roxanne while Allie was smart enough to basically sit this one out. I noticed that she went for the Lee Politician Approach a lot during Trump's questioning. A very wise decision, indeed. Trump thought their task looked like a place where tired shoppers would sit and fall asleep or, as he said, "a cheap third-rate liquor lounge." Well, it did look comfortable enough! Voices were raised! Accusations of eye-rolling or not were um...accused! Trump declared he actually hates some people! Nobody can get along with each other! A lousy idea! A horrible team leader! A shot rang out! The maid screamed!

Ahem.

"Tammy, you're fired."

All in all, the best thing about this episode was the reward. Y'see, I am a firm believer in eye-rolling. I eye-roll a lot at my own writings. @@

'Big Brother 7: All-Stars' News

It's official. This season's Big Brother 7 (USA) will be an "all star" version and we (you, us!) get to decide who we want in the house for our summer's voyeuristic pastime! According to the official CBS website:

For the first time in BIG BROTHER history worldwide, viewers will vote on which former HouseGuests will compete in BIG BROTHER 7: ALL-STARS. On CBS Wednesday, June 21 at 8PM ET/PT, Julie Chen will unveil the top 20 candidates from seasons past. Web voting opens right here after the show at midnight ET/9PM PT. The polls close Wednesday, June 28 at 11:59PM ET/8:59PM PT.

The season premiere is slated for Thursday, July 6 at 8 PM ET/PT in most viewing areas. Information regarding the live feeds hasn't been announced at this time, but I feel it's likely going to be RealPlayer providing them for a fee once again.

I'm personally not a huge champion of reality television "all-stars" shows, but the show is a guilty pleasure of mine, so I'll be watching. And blogging about it, although I don't foresee a summer out with knee surgery like last year. But, then again, I didn't expect it last year! Right now I'm trying to think what previous houseguests might make the top 20 candidates from seasons past. It could be a scary bunch!

'Survivor: Panama - Exile Island' Finale and Reflections on the Season

Sniffle...this will be the last time I get to use my cool revolving Survivor/Jackie logo made by Zoetawny. She rocks, y'know!

Well, last night was the big night, the season finale. As I thought, the commercials deliberately misled viewers to thinking that Cirie would win the fire-making tiebreaker challenge against Danielle. As an observer of the show and its promos since its inception, I know the editors tend to do that sort of thing. So I wasn't surprised when when the Final Three turned out to be Danielle, Aras and Terry. I was a bit surprised at who won the final Immunity Challenge, but that's getting a wee bit ahead of things at this time.

I want to focus just a little on Cirie at this time. Here's a city born and bred woman, coming up from Jersey City, New Jersey. She didn't know woods, critters, fishing, camping, or anything else of the outdoor life going into the show. She knew her couch, TV and stuff of the city. I'm sure if someone asked her how to catch the PATH train into lower Manhattan, she'd answer with ease. But ask her to make a fire with flint, catch a fish or make a camp? No way! It was amazing to watch her grow through the season. Apparently, her couch-sitting ways made for decent people-skills and strategical planning. She vastly improved her outdoors skills while she was the true manipulator of people on the show. Her buddy Aras wasn't the leader - Cirie had him wrapped around her finger. Hats off to Cirie and I'm glad she won the Yukon SUV voted on by show fans. She added a lot to this season.

Back to the finale show...I was leery of Danielle turning on Terry once again with good reason. Once the three returned to camp, Terry brought out the shrunken-head Immunity Idol from Exile Island so that Danielle and Aras could check it out. Right then and there, it was evident that her alliance was still with Aras, not Terry. She made a few comments about the macho thing between Aras and Terry, but seemed to think Terry was gloating.

Instead of the expected Immunity Challenge, the three had an opportunity to play for Reward - a power meal, cot and pillow which might help the winner be in better shape for the final Immunity Challenge. It entailed finding pegs in bags on spinning wheels and then using the pegs to climb a three-story wall. It was only seconds between Terry and Aras at the end, with a Terry win and Danielle way out of the running. But will it work? Will Terry come back refreshed and ready? Will Aras' determination push him into high gear for the win? Oh...and what about Danielle? She hasn't won anything all season.

As inevitable as the season recap which took up the first ten or more minutes of the show, we had the Memory Walk to endure. I watched as each previous castaway had his or her blurb and the three remaining said basically kind words about them. Eh. The only rather neat thing about this segment was they used the torches to set the huge bamboo skull on Exile Island afire. Alas, it was a very smoky fire; the material must have been damp from all the rain. It was all very symbolic and all that stuff nonetheless.

Well, Immunity was back up for grabs for the last time. In this one, it's a mix between endurance and balance as the castaways had to stand on floating "lily pads" and move to smaller ones in 15-minute intervals. Uh-oh. This one is a challenge geared for a woman to win. After all, women have a lower center of gravity. In a shocker, Terry couldn't get up and stay up on the third pad and was out of the running. Then a wobbly Aras took Danielle's nod for a jump-off and Danielle won her first challenge ever in the show - the most important Individual Immunity of the season. She's guaranteed to be in the Final Two and it's her choice to pick the other half of the Final Two.

Aras immediately got a bit threatening when talking to her about her choice. "If you don't choose me, you'll lose both my vote and Cirie's vote!" Terry was a bit more laidback about things, but almost killed her with fairness. It's a tough decision for her, indeed. But, my own thoughts? I don't think she stands a chance to win against either of them. Now, if she were up against Shane in the Final Two, she may win. Terry or Aras? Nope, both of them have played so well and so hard that she'd be doomed to second place. Her choice? Aras. It doesn't matter; her fate is sealed anyway. All it really does is enforce the Survivor Winner of the Car Curse - no player has ever won a car and gone onto the million dollars. Terry, of course, won a car a few episodes back.

Tribal Council was rather uneventful and almost "nice" compared to some of the past finales. Who can forget Sue's speech about rats and snakes and not giving a drink of water to Richard (or was it Kelly for that - one was a snake while the other was a rat) dying of thirst in the desert? Shane got a bit odd, but he's Shane. He's angry that they did better than he did and both betrayed him in the game. In the end, like mimicking Greg (Season 1) with the Blackberry bit (Greg had the coconut phone), he told them to choose a number and the closest would get his vote. Courtney was still a bit of a space cadet in her comments and I just wanted her to stop talking. What the heck was her point?

As I guessed, Aras won. I had a message board bet elsewhere that he would win, but that was just on the pre-season bio information. Too bad it was just a cyber-bet, eh? The vote was 5-2 with just Shane and Bruce voting for Danielle (I believe - correct me if I'm wrong on that). They didn't show the last vote, but 4 was enough for Aras to win. In the reunion show, through a show of hands, Terry would have won against Danielle with roughly the same count - only Bruce and Cirie would have voted for her. So, she would have lost either way.

To me, this season was the best in a long time. My favorite Survivor season remains the first one when all was fresh and new. I picked Richard Hatch for the win on that one and he was instrumental in starting the alliances which have continued throughout the show's run. I wasn't happy with Vanuatu and Africa didn't rank too highly on my list either, although I liked Ethan (the winner). I felt last season in Guatemala was tainted with the gimmicky return of Bobby Jon and Stephenie from the previous season. They had their chance; I don't want previous castaways returning. I want fresh meat. Um...players! If there ever is to be another rehash of castaways (I don't like All-Star versions, either), let it be those we never got to know - perhaps those castaways voted off in the first show each season. The person voted off first is usually an unknown entity in game play and all but forgotten as the season goes on. Bring them back if someone must come back!

In this season, we had Super Terry who did a fantastic job. We had wacky Shane who's still wacky though cleaned up for the Reunion Show. We had Cirie who possibly backstabbed others more than anyone else, yet came away with them all liking her. I give this season an A for its entertainment value to me. Good casting, nice location and a different twist with Exile Island and the hidden Immunity Idol. Although the idol itself was never used, it certainly played a huge role in the show just by folks figuring Terry had it.

Next season it will be Survivor: Cook Islands and it's to have an Exile Island with a new twist. I'll be there! Well, not on the show, but watching it!

'Survivor: Exile Island' East Coast Reunion Update/New Season Location

Cirie won the Yukon voted on by viewers.

Next season's show will be Survivor: Cook Islands and it sounds like there will be another Exile Island there.

I'll be writing up the finale and reflections on the season in the wee hours or in the morning. Please stop back!

Winner 'Survivor: Exile Island' is...

Aras is the sole Survivor.

I won my bet! ;-)

'Survivor: Exile Island' East Coast Finale Update - Final Two

Danielle chose Aras to go to the Final Two with her. Terry has his car, no million.

'Survivor: Exile Island' - East Coast Update Finale - Immunity

Danielle won Immunity. Although Tribal Council hasn't occurred yet, it looks like she'll probably take Aras with her. They were on little floating platforms and she gave him a nod to jump indicating he'd be her choice for Final Two.

It looks right now like the Car Curse of Survivor holds true. Terry is most likely not going to win the million...but he has a car!

'Survivor: Exile Island' East Coast Update Finale - Rewards

In as close a finish as one can imagine, Terry won Reward against Aras. (Danielle was way behind.)

Reward is a power meal, a cot and a pillow which could be an advantage in the Immunity Challenge.

'Survivor: Exile Island' East Coast Finale Update - Final 3

Danielle won the tiebreaker.

The final three - Aras, Danielle and Terry

'Survivor: Panama - Exile Island' - Ep. 13 -or- "Call a Waahmbulance, It's To Be Continued!"

Time is dwindling and the season is near an end. On Sunday evening at 8 PM ET/PT in most viewing areas, the two-hour finale will air followed by the reunion show. The Final Four are Cirie, Danielle, Aras and Terry. Who will win the million dollars? And, more importantly, will Shane clean up enough for the reunion so that he stops looking like Reverend Jim from Taxi?

But that's Sunday, let's get into tonight's episode (5/11). Four are left. Who will be voted out tonight?

The show opened on Night 33 at the Gitanos camp as the four remaining tribe members returned from the Tribal Council where Shane was blindsided by Cirie's scheming. Cirie plopped her torch to the ground and Terry almost tripped over it in the dark. So, then it started. He spoke harshly to her; she defended herself. Then Aras got into the verbal brouhaha by telling Terry he was ruining the time they should be celebrating as the Final Four. All grouchy-pusses at the camp. Terry went off to bed and told them they could celebrate.

The Rewards Challenge was a bit different from ones we've seen before. It entailed the tribe members tied to ropes following a path like some of the ones in the past. But they each had to go to six locations, one at a time, count what was there, return with the number and then set out to do it all over again. Once they had all the numbers, they had to use them to open combination locks. At the locations they had to count iguanas, poles, rocks, fish, sea shells and hermit crabs. Cirie did her squeaky voice when it came to the iguanas.

Terry and Aras had several sort of rough encounters on the course, deliberately blocking each other, bumping each other and words. All of them had to go back through the locations due to miscounts. Terry mistakenly thought they could only return to one location at a time and noticed Aras was gone a long time - checking all the locations in one outing for a double-check. When Terry mentioned it to Jeff, Aras started yelling, "Call a waahmbulance! Terry's whining!" (Yes, I'm rolling my eyes here. Aren't you?)

Aras won Reward - a cruise in a 100 foot luxury yacht through the Panama Canal, a five-course meal and an overnight stay. Since he could choose one guest, he naturally chose Cirie. Both Danielle and Terry were sent to Exile Island where Danielle belatedly decided to flip and work with Terry. Now, that's something she should have done long before the Final Four, don't you think? Of course, Terry's out of cards to play (with the exception of the hidden Immunity Idol from Exile Island), so he seems to have forgotten that Danielle backed out of the last alliance attempt. He once again told her he would give her the Immunity Idol from Exile Island if he won Immunity. The yacht trip was a bit less eventful for us as we all know that Cirie and Aras are loyal to each other.

Both groups of two met up next to compete in the Immunity Challenge. This one was a bit funky. Puzzle pieces in three bags were hidden in sand pits. Surrounding the sandpits were markers. The castaways had to use coordinates to cross ropes to know where to dig. Each puzzle led to the coordinates to the next puzzle. And, Aras was on a streak. Not only did he win Reward, he also won Immunity - both firsts for him. Terry's winning streak of all individual immunities thus far finally ended.

When they got back to camp, Terry confronted Aras about a nasty statement he made regarding him disrespecting women. To my surprise, Aras apologized and it seemed to jolt him back into a nicer person overall. Both shook hands and it appears the boys won't be catfighting through to the bitter end.

Although Terry hasn't admitted to either Cirie or Aras that he has the Exile Island Immunity Idol, they've assumed he does. Therefore, the whole tribe knows that both Terry and Aras will both be safe and it's Cirie and Danielle whose heads are on the chopping block (figuratively, of course!). It's also quite likely to be a tie vote. Unless that silly purple rock deal (Survivor: Marquesas) rears its ugly head and it's totally random who leaves, the tiebreaker is usually fire. Cirie had made a fire while alone with Aras and had success. Danielle has made fire on and off through the season. Still, Aras teamed with Cirie and Terry with Danielle for fire-making classes.

Sure enough, at Tribal Council, it was a tie - two votes for each woman. And, sure enough, the tiebreaker was a fire-making challenge. Since it was a tie and Terry himself received no votes, the hidden Immunity Idol never came into play and this show was the last one in which it could be used. I suppose that Terry could take it home and call it Shane. After all, there is a bit of a resemblance. The show left off on a "to be continued..." note with both Cirie and Danielle ready to start the challenge. Apparently, they will finish that at the start of the finale show on Sunday and it's not until then that we'll know the Final Three.

In a sidenote: What the heck was that giant ring taking over Courtney's hand in the jury box? Sheesh! It looked like the Mood Ring Which Ate Cincinnati or something!

At this time, I think I could support any of the four for a win. Terry has played a fantastic game and I think he's the most competitive man ever on the show. Aras, though he has some weak spots, came around with his apology to Terry tonight. I have the feeling that he's more that sort of man than what we've seen. Cirie? For someone scared of leaves in the first episode, she's proven herself to be a strong competitor and an excellent strategist. At the bottom of my choices would be Danielle.

How about you?

'Survivor: Exile Island' East Coast Update - 05/11 -Tribal Council

The vote was two for Cirie, two for Danielle. A Fire Tiebreaker Challenge was set up between them and then...to be continued (on Sunday night finale show, starting at 8 PM ET/PT).

A full review/recap will be posted here later tonight. Now I must watch C.S.I.

'Survivor: Exile Island' East Coast Update - 5/11 - Immunity

Aras won Immunity.

'Survivor: Exile island' East Coast Update 5/11 - Reward

Aras won Reward - an overnight cruise of of the Panama Canal on a luxury yacht, feast. He chose Cirie to accompany him. Both Danielle and Terry went to Exile Island.

'The Amazing Race 9' - Ep. 11 -or- "No Money, No Pants, No Mo' MoJo!"

Like deja vu all over again, due to last week's non-elimination leg...

Four teams remain. Who will be eliminated next?

We last left our teams in the Australian Outback with Ray and Yolanda arriving first at the Pit Stop and mandatory rest period. Teams depart twelve hours after their arrival time and I noticed that they're down to mere minutes betwixt first and last. Ray and Yolanda left at 1:13 AM while the last team (BJ/Tyler) left the Pit Stop at 1:22 AM. We're talking 9 minutes difference in a whirlwind race around the globe as we head into the next to last show of the season. At this time, any of the remaining teams could win the million dollars. The teams are toughening up and trying not to make errors. Ah, but we know some errors will be made. I just hope it's not on the part of my personal favorites, Tyler and BJ!

Speaking of BJ and Tyler, they lost all their clothes, money and possessions while being saved by the last leg's non-Philimination. BJ had no shoes, a t-shirt and boxer shorts. Yolanda left her purple running pants on their car and one of the Frats (Jeremy and Eric) left a pair of sandals. Oh, my...BJ looked very silly in Yolanda's pants! The clue the teams received upon leaving the Pit Stops directed them to drive to the airport and catch a plane to Bangkok, Thailand. Once there they had to take a taxi to a bus terminal, then a bus to the Three Spires Pagoda in Lopburi -- the sacred home of tons o' monkeys. The clue told the teams how much money they had for the leg and ended with "one team has no money...and no pants." Heh, poor BJ!

The BJ/Tyler and Monica/Joe rift is still going strong in the leg. As BJ says, "They have a date with not being in the race anymore." Was he right? Just wishful thinking?

At the Darwin Airport, three of the teams got on a flight expected to arrive in Bangkok at 11 PM. BJ and Tyler headed to downtown Darwin to hit up folks for money. Of course, they were successful. These guys have so much spirit and friendliness that I think it's hard to resist giving them something. BJ even flashed his chest at a couple. He finangled new shorts in addition to the money. When they hit the airport, although the other three teams hadn't left yet, the flight was full. They managed to find a flight expected to arrive fifteen minutes earlier than the other and all looked up for the hippies until...

Argh. The flight carrying the three teams arrived forty-five minutes early! Huh? What? How can that happen? Sigh. So, BJ and Tyler were behind once again. Team MoJo got into a taxi that Joe thought was "shady." He was right -- the driver wasn't the best, not at all. Ray/Yolanda and Eric/Jeremy were lucky to get on a midnight bus to Lopburi. Monica and Joe arrived before BJ and Tyler, but didn't get the right information about the next departing bus. It ended up that BJ/Tyler caught a bus leaving an hour before the one they took. Too bad, so sad for MoJo. Heehee!

The Three Spires Pagoda was a hoot with monkeys all over the place! The clue the teams received before the task was directing them to a Fast Forward -- the last of the two in the race. Eric and Jeremy couldn't do it as they already took the first one a few legs back. Both Ray/Yolanda and BJ/Tyler jumped on it. When it turned out to be eating a school's favorite dish of fried crickets and grasshoppers, Yolanda backed out even though she claimed people from the South can eat anything fried. They headed back to the sacred monkeys while BJ and Tyler struggled with huge bowls of crispy critters. Where was MoJo? Way behind, hooray!

After making an intricate feast table for the sacred (and not so well-behaved monkeys) in a Roadblock, the teams' next clue led them to a Detour. Unlike a Roadblock, a Detour is completed by both members of the team. In this one, teams had a choice between two Thai tasks -- Move It or Altar It. In Move It, teams had to carry 72 pots on their shoulders (supposedly) using a board. Once they delivered the pots to the marketplace, they'd receive the next clue. In Altar It, teams had to make a shrine to Buddha complete with gold paint and gold-leafing. Burnt on the last physical task, Jeremy and Eric chose Altar It, as did Yolanda and Ray. For some foolish reason, Monica and Joe went for Move It -- prompting Monica to fuss and whine that it was "the worst thing I ever had to do." Now, she said that about carrying the swordfish a few legs back. She said that about having to catch a crayfish. What's with that girl?

As the teams worked on the Detour, BJ and Tyler finally finished eating their bowls of ick. Er, crickets and grasshoppers. They got their clue directing them to the Pit Stop at the Marble Temple in Bangkok. Briefly changing their "TTOW" chant to "TTHAI," they were first on the mat. Now, they've been lucky in that both times they came in last, they were in non-elimination legs. However, they've both been unlucky in that both times they came in first, there was no really cool prize. No cruises for them! The last time, they won a digital imaging center or something to that effect. This time the prize was dependent on a clue to be brought with them from earlier in the leg. One clue would have a Golden Gnome (Travelocity), the others would have "gnormal" gnomes. Theirs wasn't the Golden Gnome. Ah, well...at least they're in first place. TTOW!

The arrival order of the other teams:
2. Jeremy and Eric
3. Ray and Yolanda - Golden Gnome clue in hand. They won a cruise around the Sidney (Australia) Harbor, a trip to the Barrier Reef and a hotel stay for the evening.
4. Monica and Joe - Philiminated!

I'm so not sorry to see those two go. I'm tired of her crying and fussing. If she thinks everything she's had to do is "the worst thing I've ever done," I'd hate to see her face a real crisis. Joe has his own bad points, but he didn't irk me as much as Monica. So long, MoJo, not sorry to see you go!

Next week is the two-hour finale show. My "hippies" are still in the race! Yay! At this time, I think any of the teams are deserving. All three left are very competive and it should be an exciting finish to the season. That said, this season has certainly redeemed the show from last season's family-safe version. That is a good thing indeed.

'American Idol' East Coast Update - SHOCKER!

The top two were Elliott and Taylor, not shocking.

The bottom two were Katharine and Chris.

Going home is CHRIS...shocking!

'Amazing Race 9' East Coast Update 5/10 - Finish Order and Philimination

The teams arrived to the Pit Stop in this order:

1. BJ and Tyler! Alas, they won nothing as this time around a clue brought to the Pit Stop must contain a Golden Gnome.
2. Eric and Jeremy
3. Ray and Yolanda - Had the Golden Gnome clue, won a cruise around Sidney, Australia, a trip to the Barrier Reef and a hotel stay.
4. Monica and Joe - My least favorite of the remaining teams...Philiminated! Too bad, so sad. Heh.

A full recap/review will be posted late tonight. Also, at approximately 9:30 PM EDT I'll be posting the American Idol boot. Now, I must watch Lost!

'The Apprentice 5' - Ep. 11 -or- "Don't Give Up the Cheerleaders, You Bloomin' Onion!"

Once again this week, Deal or No Deal ran over its finish time. What's up with that, NBC? It's annoying to get all settled to take notes for blogging The Apprentice and then sit through 3 minutes of a show about people choosing briefcases. I don't understand the show; I don't watch it. I want it to end on time so I can watch "my" show. Is it too much to ask? What's Trump's opinion on this? Is he going to let a bald Howie Mandel stomp all over him? I think not! Okay, now that I have that out of my system, it's onto the show...

In the hotel, Sean has worked his way up from repeating "awkward" situation by adding a syllable. Now it's "awkwardness." Remember, he spoke against Allie in the Boardroom two weeks ago and she wasn't the one fired. She's as thick as thieves with the other two members on Synergy, Roxanne and Tammy. He said, in his British accent, "I'm adrift in a sea of eastergene." In came Lee and Michael from the Boardroom with the news that the most recent event was a double firing -- both Tarek and Charmaine gone. Right then and there I figured Sean has his way out. The teams can't run two against four. Trump will flip one Synergy member to Gold Rush and I'd bet dollars to doughnuts that would be Sean.

They got the call to meet Trump at Rutgers University Stadium in New Brunswick, New Jersey. (Not far from where I'm writing this article.) He took his TrumpCopter and they hitchhiked. Well, perhaps they didn't hitchhike. I suppose they drove there. Once there, Trump explained the upcoming task. At the Navy versus Rutgers football game, the teams were to each put on a tailgating party feast selling Outback Steakhouse food. Synergy was assigned the Yellow Lot while Gold Rush had the Blue Lot. Naturally, the team earning the most money would win the task. And, as I had thought, he evened the teams out. Sean volunteered to join Gold Rush, so the show's back to a gender war once again. Tammy, Allie and Roxanne were so happy that they danced. I personally thought that a bit much, but that may just be me.

This week's ominous foreshadowing quote and Trump lecture after a commercial break was "Deliver the Goods." It was a dead giveaway as to which team would win once the task was on. "You can talk a good game, but it's no good unless you deliver the goods," said Trump.

Lee stepped up to be the Project Manager for Gold Rush saying that he's a recent college graduate, a football fan and blah-blah-blah. I think he thought it was a sure thing, didn't you? He delved right into things, planning and scheming with Sean and Michael. He arranged an exclusive on having the cheerleaders join them, got a "money pit" (an enclosure with dollar bills blowing around - people pay to go in and grab as much money as they can in an allotted time span), planned an eating contest and generally went to town with plans run amok. They decided on low prices and went for the crowd scene.

Meanwhile at Synergy, it looked like the women were doomed. Roxanne was the Project Manager and, to me, it looked like they didn't have much of a plan. They decided to visit Outback to sample the food. (Now, I wouldn't have to do that...give me a bloomin' onion any day, mate!) They decided that each dish would be $5, no matter what. They lagged in the actual doing of things to prepare, though. While they were planning, the men were already hyping their tent at the pep rally with flyers. The women's flyers weren't even ready at the time! The more they showed of the team, the more sunk they seemed to be. It looked like the men had this one in the bag. Synergy tried to get cheerleaders, but Gold Rush's exclusive deal with the cheerleader team's coach nixed that. Actually, the coach tried to give them some and silly Michael almost agreed, but Lee and Sean made him insist on all the cheerleaders.

So, Synergy themselves donned little cheerleading outfits. I think all of them were cheerleaders in past lives, or at college. Then it happened. The Trump Quote came to play. Gold Rush had so much going on that it was a cool party, but the focus was on partying, not selling the food. Synergy had almost nothing but themselves and their $5 an item food plan when they hit upon delivering the food through the lots. The baseball team bought $200 worth, taught them the Rutgers football cheer and they were on the run from that point on. They were delivering the goods.

In the Boardroom with both teams present, it was obvious that the delivery (thought of on the spot at the event) won for Synergy. Their proceeds for the Outback Steakhouse were $2750 and Gold Rush only brought in $1750. Synergy won a trip to Raphael Vineyards on Long Island where they made and private-labeled their own wine while Gold Rush won a trip back to the Boardroom where someone would be fired. I would like to mention now that everytime I see people stomping on grapes with their barefeet, I promise I'll never drink wine again. They had a grand old time and each left with a bottle named after themselves.

As Gold Rush prepared their bags in the hotel, it was clear that both Lee and Sean would go against Michael in the Boardroom. They thought he spent too much time on the microphone being the emcee of the tailgate party and not enough time selling. Plus, they still were shocked that he almost gave some of the cheerleaders to Synergy. Once in the Boardroom, the latter is what did him in. Somehow Lee's performance as Project Manager skated through, but Trump and Company focused on Michael almost giving up the cheerleaders. "You don't give away your assets to rivals."

"Michael, you're fired."

All right, even though I still think Lee's days are numbered, I don't think Michael was the best candidate for the win anyway. I'm not sure that if I were Trump I'd fire him over Lee, but he did have to get gone. Michael seems like a very nice man, but he's wishy-washy. In corporate life, unfortunately, nice doesn't often make the grade. A politician-type such as Lee would do better. Sean is still a bit of a non-entity even this late in the game. I'm thinking it may be a Tammy or Roxanne win at the end.

Mark your calendars -- next week's The Apprentice will air at 10 pm ET/PT in most viewing areas. Be there or be square.

Dollar bills, y'all...