This is a photo I took during a previous holiday season, but with the nip in the air mornings now, it seems right for today. Again, I used layers to make the background black and white while leaving the inflated turkey (run, turkey, run!) in color. The location is John's Meat Market in Scotch Plains, New Jersey -- a place I love to go to for old-fashioned butcher attention and really fine meats. If you click on the photo, you'll see a larger version.
In today's TV Newsy Bits:
- Don't forget -- The Amazing Race 12 premiere is tonight after 60 Minutes, with a possible football delay on the east coast. Thanks to the screener I received for the TV Squad gig, I've already seen it. Although I won't spoil anything for you -- I like most of the teams at first glance with two teams who annoy me. One of those two went! (Yay!) So you have no clue what team was eliminated, but it's already off to a good start with me because an annoying team is gone. Now if the other would go away next week!
- The New York Marathon is today. I won't be there. Even when I could run, I didn't run. I think the most I've ever run at one time was two miles, not 26. I will raise a cup of hot chocolate to them from the comfort of my living room.
- It's still uncertain but probable that the WGA's television and film writers will go on strike tomorrow. Although scripted television shows wouldn't be immediately impacted, my late night Letterman fix will probably head into reruns. I guess it would be good for me to go bed earlier, eh?
- Although my own writing isn't covered by the WGA, I can sympathize with its members. Outside of this blog, I write on a freelance contract which necessitates me keeping a day job. I found this Huffington Post article very informative about the writing industry for film and television. In an industry which pays its actors ridiculously high salaries, it offers the writers virtual peanuts in comparison. With my freelance work, I earn more than many of the WGA members and I'm not writing fiction which I know from personal experience is a lot tougher than blogging. And, when you think of it ... if not for writers, there would be no films and scripted television shows in the first place. Stephen King money isn't expected, but a living wage is and they should get their royalties on DVD and Internet sales increased. Is four cents too much to ask? I think not!
- Thinking of Stephen King -- I see The Mist is going to be released in theaters soon. That's one of my all-time Stephen King short story favorites. Although I probably won't go see it in a theater, I will definitely get it once it comes out on DVD. (The writer will get paid, I'm sure!) It stars Andre Braugher, one of my favorite actors from Homicide: Life on the Street.
Today's music non-sequitur:
She put de lime in de coconut, she drank 'em both up She put de lime in de coconut, she called the doctor, woke him up, And said, "Doctor, ain't there nothin' I can take,I say, Doctor, to relieve this belly ache?-- "Coconut" by Nilsson
Here it is! The last installment on the teams we'll be seeing starting this Sunday, November 4, 8 PM ET?/PT in most viewing areas -- or, seeing the time slot, possibly delayed for sports in many areas. Sigh.
I covered the other teams in this post and in this one, too.
Ari and Staella are one of the younger teams -- 21 and 24 respectively -- and they're best friends all about having fun. Okay.
He's a waiter and she's a restaurant manager. He lives with her family which seems to indicate that neither have been out on their own. Ari says he's catty, mean, rude, hilarious and is never afraid to speak his mind, loves to dance -- always great qualities for the race, right? Staella thinks she's honest, trustworthy, and caring. (I do like that more.)
They think they'll ruffle feathers of the other teams and have a great time. Me? I don't like their attitudes. Well, his attitude. She seems okay.
Marianna and Julia are sisters hailing from Miami. They describe themselves as feisty, best friends, and worst enemies. Julia is the problem-solver while Marianna is the athlete. Both consider themselves to be very competitive and think they're unbeatable. Good. It's always nice to have a strong all-woman team even if we're lacking the all-men teams this season.Supposedly Julia is emotional while Marianna is as steady as a rock. Julia thinks Marianna doesn't self-censor and is often mean. They've traveled together before and say that their favorite team was BJ and Tyler due to their upbeat energy. Well, hopefully these two will have the same!
Like the blondes this season, they aren't afraid to flirt.
Speaking of BJ and Tyler, look! It's TK and Rachel! They're a dating couple -- she's a florist and store owner while he's a substitute teacher. Their mothers were friends for years, but they're only recently dating.
They say they're always laughing (good) and want to see how their relationship stands up to the race. Rachel believes she's bright and ambitious. She thinks the biggest difference between her and TK are the lives they've led. She started working and bought a business right out of high school while he was a collegiate athlete at UC Santa Barbara.
TK's sport was swimming. He thinks he's dedicated, witty, and intelligent. They hope to spend their lives together starting out with a million dollar nest egg.
Now, here's a team a bit different from many of the ones we've seen before. Kate and Pat are married lesbian ministers. They dated for seven years and married three years ago. They say not to worry -- they aren't afraid to play dirty. Pat is the second-oldest racer this season at 65. (Grandfather Donald is 68.)
Kate thinks she avoids conflict while Pat dives right in. Kate says she's passionate and sarcastic while Pat claims to be persistent and dependable. Pat thinks Kate often misjudges her time, something which might affect them as a team during the race. They're not afraid to compete against anyone and think their years of experience will beat out the physical prowess of other teams. I think others have thought along those lines before and it hasn't won the race yet. But I think they'll be an interesting team to watch.
Although technically California heavy, I like the mix of racers this season. I'm so glad we're not seeing a season full of model couples. What do you think?
The show has started here on the East Coast. I'll be updating this post with important events as they air, so please return here for the news. As always, comments are welcome! My full review of tonight's episode will be on TV Squad later tonight.
UPDATE -- James found the second hidden idol. Alas, Jaime just peeked in his bag and found both hidden idols. Uh-oh.
UPDATE -- Merge is on, black buffs, will use Fei Long camp, feast and Chinese cultural performances
UPDATE -- Frosti won the first individual Immuniy.
UPDATE -- Bwahahaha! Jaime pulled out the blank plaque thinking it was the hidden Immunity Idol -- she got voted off.
My Survivor review for TV Squad should be up at this link around midnight. I apologize for the delay, but it was out of my hands.
Due to popular request, I'm putting up an additional DWTS blog discussion post for the remainder of the season as the comments in the other one were getting unwieldy.
The official show website is here.
This season's original discussion post can be found here and I invite you to bring over any ongoing discussions you wish from the older post.
The original blog discussion post is located here.
AOL's feature page for Dancing With the Stars is right here.
The TV Squad reviews for the show can be found here.
The SirLinksAlot page for the show is here (lots of great links).
Oh, look what I got! Look what I got! Thanks to my TV Squad gig, I received a screener copy of The Amazing Race 12 season premiere today! And, but of course, I dropped what I was doing to watch it immediately after the FedEx man left. My lips are sealed; I can't be bribed. I'll be posting a review of the season premiere Sunday evening on TV Squad. But I'll say one thing -- the magic is back! Set the Sunday 8 PM ET/PT hour aside for an amazing good time.
In other TV Newsy Bits:
- Around 8 PM ET tonight I'll be setting up a Survivor 15: China East Coast Updates post which I'll update throughout the show with the major happenings. My full show review will be posted on TV Squad late this evening.
- I have a few posts up over on TV Squad you might wish to peek at -- my Kid Nation review from last night and spoilers for the upcoming Survivor 16. With the latter, if you don't want to know, don't go. It's filming now, so no boot spoilers just location and all stars or not kind of stuff.
- At this time it's still uncertain whether the WGA (Writers Guild of America) will call for its members to strike. If it does, the most immediate shows impacted will be shows such as Letterman, Leno, SNL, and such. They don't have shows filmed ahead and rely on a staff of writers. The first show postponed due to a possible strike is Heroes: Origins according to news sources.
- This blog will not be affected by any strike. I'd hold out for more pay here, but ... um ... well, I do have my day job because writing can't support me in the jetsetting way of life I love so much. (That's my story and I'm sticking to it.)
- I'm postponing my final installment on the TAR12 teams until tomorrow evening due to time issues today. But, who knows? Maybe I saved the best for last!
Today's music non-sequitur:
We can dance if we want to
We can leave your friends behind
'Cause your friends don't dance
And if your friends don't dance
They're no friends of mine.
-- "The Safety Dance" - Men Without Hats
