The Amazing Race 20 Blog Party - 03/04/12

Be still, my heart. The show is actually starting on time here on the East Coast! Oh my. I supposed we shouldn't get used to it, eh?

As it airs here, I'll be updating this post with the major events. However, the real fun is in the comments area. Everyone is welcome to join in to cheer or jeer the teams!

The teams are heading to Paraguay. The Detour is Stacked Up or Strung Out. Stacking watermelons or attaching strings to harps. The Border Patrol guys are way ahead of the other teams. The Roadblock is to perform a cultural dance with a water bottle balanced on their heads. Er, well ... one head.

Whoa! Art and JJ are at the Pit Stop and no other team has even finished the Detour! They won a trip to the Bahamas. Rachel and Dave used their Express Pass when they realized that all the other teams were already at the harps. Most of the teams switched from watermelons to harps.

Dave ended up breaking all the bottles in the dance. While they arrived second at the Pit Stop, they have to wait out a two-hour penalty. Rachel and Brendon came in third, which became second. Then the Jersey/Staten Island "Fitness" team came in third. Kentucky, four. Nary and Jamie, five. Rachel and Dave's penalty is up, six. Kerri and Stacy, seven.

Vanessa and Ralph made it to eight. The twins were last and were Philiminated. 

Off Topic - That Was the Week It Was - March 4, 2012

It's Sunday morning, time for my weekly off television topic reflection on the week gone by in both words and photographs I've taken. While my own week has been on the quiet side, my thoughts and prayers are with those folks in the Midwest and South who have suffered through horrible tornadoes on Friday. I heard there were 96 tornadoes in one single day while the average for the entire month of March is only 72. Unbelievable!

We did have rain and some chill here. But no severe weather, not eeven a thunderstorm. Nor did we have snow, something which came down north of this area. 

Local blogger Dan Damon is also still in my thoughts this week. How suddenly one's life can change! Hopefully his most recent surgery went okay and he's into rehab now. Shout out, Dan! Holla!  Now that I won't be having knee surgeries every three years with the accompanying medical tests, I guess it's a heads up to me to be checked for diabetes, etc., on a fairly regular basis.

My own week has been on the uneventful side. I'm still playing with furniture and decorations as I slowly put my apartment back together after its renovations. The building itself is painted throughout (interior, exterior is brick), mailboxes redone, new laundry machines along with the paint job there and more. It's in better shape than I've ever seen it in the almost eleven years I've lived here. Now they need to clamp down on the children from the front apartments thinking the hallways are a playground. I know we're due for another state re-inspection, plus it was supposedly bought at an auction last year although we're still paying the receiver from the bank after the last landlord went bankrupt.

My work computer software is still not functioning. I'm still working in the stone age with a chisel and piece of granite there. It's going to be dreadful when it's finally fixed and I have to sit and enter weeks worth of data. Wah.

Onto the photos ... clicking on an image will open it to a larger view!  

Blue sky, yellow glow

I like the blue and yellow hues in this photo I took while walking to the train just after the rain stopped early one morning. The sky is actually pretty light these days, but the clouds made it seem darker. This is on East Front Street near the YWCA in Plainfield.

Daffodils!

The annual daffodils came up this week in the cemetery behind the Friends (Shaker) Meeting House on Watchung Avenue in Plainfield. These don't usually bloom until late March or early April here.

Synchronized geese

Honk. Bridgewater, NJ

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Survivor: One World - February 29 Episode Blog Party

Welcome one, welcome all! Survivor: One World is starting here on the East Coast. I can only hope that the women might get their act together. What a dismal start for the tribe ... probably enough to make Colton Cumbie to beat feet back to his own tribe thankful that he avoided disaster. Not only are the women performing poorly in challenges, they're making horrible decisions. Sending Nina packing last week? Oy!

I'll be updating this post with major events. However, the real action (and fun) is in the comments section. Everyone is free to jump in with thoughts on the show, the cast, Jeff's Probst-ing ways, etc. See you there!

The Rewards Challenge is a memory test -- memorizing items and recreating. The reward is a complete fishing gear set and canoe. Oh my gosh, Sabrina took the first round! I think it's the first time a woman has won. Now Monica is also right. The women are leading! Alicia continues the streak. Then Kat. OMG! The women win reward!

Immunity Challenge time -- caller and blindfolded pairs going through an obstacle course, then puzzle. I'm in shock. The women started out doing horribly, then caught up and passed the men on the puzzle. The women have won Immunity!

Tribal Council time. Will Colton's alliance stick together on the vote? Will he use the hidden idol? Nope, he doesn't use it.

The tally: Colton, Bill, Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt. Bye-bye, Matt! Colton's alliance stayed true. Interesting.

The Amazing Race 20 Blog Party - 02/26/12

The show is starting on time for a change. Woohoo! Alas, I'm expecting a quiet evening here due to the Oscar competition. I didn't see any of the films up for awards and have no plans to watch said gala event. I do plan to switch to the new Celebrity Apprentice premiere after TAR, though. Since getting to "know" George Takei (Mr. Sulu from Star Trek: The Original Series) via Facebook, I simply must catch him in action. He's very intelligent, has a fantastic insight into a tremendous array of things and sense of humor!

But, of course, this party is all about The Amazing Race! I'll be updating this post only with the really major events. I'm still in the process of figuring out the teams, so it's best that you all join me in the comments area where we don't really have to have the teams memorized! Teams ready?

1. Rachel and Dave AGAIN! Won a trip to Grenada
2. Border Patrol dudes
3. Popper and Mark (Kentucky)
4. Brendon and Rachel (sigh, want them GONE)
5. Kerry and Stacy (country gals)
6. Nary and Jamie (fed agents)
7. Vanessa and Ralph (my blog pool team)
8. Joey Fitness and Danny
9. Elliot and Andrew

The clowns, Dave and Cherie, were Philiminated. They didn't perform well, but I found them pleasant as a couple and possessing humor. I'd rather another team go.

Off Topic - That Was the Week It Was - February 26, 2012

Yes, it is indeed Sunday morning and I'm back! My apologies for skipping last week's off television topic photo post, but I was really hurting and discombobulated. My apartment is still a bit discombobulated as I get this written. However, I no longer ache and I should get things back in place later today.

For those who didn't catch last week's post -- my apartment underwent some renovation work. Painting throughout, new kitchen floor, new bathroom ceiling, new bathroom sink with vanity, and new bathroom medicine cabinet. While I didn't have to do all this work, I did move everything to the center of my rooms, climbed up and down removing things from the walls (and the knee doesn't really climb well), helped the contractor move my refrigerator (which really wanted to remain in place), etc.

I was exhausted and ached all over. It takes a good year to eighteen months to recover completely from a knee replacement. Not only is the knee a bit iffy still, but my stamina and strength aren't 100% yet. Plus I started all this work ill with a fever and stomach bug. GAH! 

I've been working on getting things back in place ... or in new places as it gives me an excuse to rearrange things ... bit by bit after work. I'm not quite under the deadline I was for throwing and shoving everything in the middle of the rooms! I also have decided to purge some of my belongings. I will probably never be a size 10 again, those clothes can go. I have a pair of practically brand new Chicago inline roller skates. While I might venture out on quad (old school) skates again, I hated the inline and used them a few times years ago. Size 9 -- anyone wanna buy?

Work has been a nightmare for most of this week with computer issues. Supposedly the DSL at work isn't working and we're only communicating via satellite. That was fixed, but amidst the problems, my software I use for my work somehow got corrupted (they think). I've had to use a chisel and a slab of granite in lieu of modern technology. Er, okay ... adding machine tapes and notes. Once things come up, I have to enter each day's work into the computer. Sigh. 

On this Sunday, my thoughts go out to local Plainfield bloggers Dan Damon and Bernice Paglia. Dan was hospitalized with some serious issues earlier this week and Bernice, a fellow car-free pedestrian, has been having horrible knee issues. I know what knee issues are like, especially as a pedestrian! May both of my friends feel better soon!

Onto the photos for this week -- clicking on an image will open a larger view.

Call me Mr. Chubbs

This squirrel was hanging out at the Plainfield Train Station yesterday morning as I waited for my train. He was a bit of a ham (even though he's obviously a squirrel!). I have a mini-series of shots of him later on in this entry.

Winter budding

We've had some cooler temperatures the past few days. But the winter is still so warm and mild that the trees are confused. Bridgewater Train Station.

Pinks of dawn

The days are getting longer. It's no longer pitch black when I leave my apartment heading to the train station. The sunrise actually occurs while I'm aboard the train on my way to work. Soon it should be rising while I'm at the Plainfield Train Station.

***CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE ALL THE PHOTOS***