Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - October 7, 2012

To start things off this morning, how about some action?

The 007 of Plainfield, NJ? Cool. Apparently the John McClane character is from Plainfield, NJ. Bruce Willis is most certainly not. He's a Jersey boy after spending his first few years in Germany. But he's from the northeast corner of the state. McClane wouldn't have been from there! He's definitely more of a Plainfield kind of guy. Mind you, the movie is set in Russia ... not NJ or NYC.

Anyway, it's Sunday morning. Welcome to my weekly off television topic post. I usually reflect on the week gone by in both words and photographs I've taken. I really don't have a heck of a lot to say this week. I've been ill. I'm feeling somewhat better. I worked. I slept. Vincent still thinks I'm his own personal sofa. I guess, without further ado, it's onto the photos I took.

Clicking on an image will open it on a new page, clicking again will make it larger. Then just close out that page to return here!

Waning moon

It's as dark as night when I leave for work most mornings. This is the (slightly) waning moon Monday morning as I walked out the door. I always think photographing the moon is a challenge. Challenge met this time; I got detail!

Carpenter at work

Carpenter BEE, that is! Although almost the size of small flying mice, these bees are quite docile and make for good photo fodder. Bridgewater, NJ

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

Survivor: Philippines - October 3rd Episode Blog Party

Will Lisa, the former child TV star, finally gain her footing in her tribe? Will the "veterans" be targeted? Will Penner's tribe realize the idol indeed was the decorative doohickey on their rice bin?

Ah, burning questions indeed.

As the show airs here on the East Coast, I'll update this post with the major happenings. However, as always, the real fun is reacting to the show in the comments section. Come join in on the fun!

Well, Lisa is teaming up with Pete and Abi against Mike (or so it seems). Jeff figured out that the decorative doohickey on the rice bin was the idol and that Penner probably has it. Matsing has lost their raft.

Immunity Challenge time. Diving for puzzle wheels, solving the puzzle. Reward is a fishing kit and canoe. Second place, a smaller fishing kit. Kalabaw wins first, Tandang second. Matsing has to go to Tribal Council once again. It's mostly due to Russell being inept.

Penner figured out Jeff is leery of him, admitted he had the idol and wants to work with him. Jeff only gave him a four-finger handshake, not a manly one. @@

Abi, of all people, found the hidden idol in their camp. She told her buddy Pete.

TC - Angie voted Russell and vice versa. No surprises there! The tally -- Angie, Russell, Angie, Angie. Oh my. I figured Russell would be the goner.

The Amazing Race: Season Premiere Blog Party

Oh my ... the premiere is even going to be on time-ish. 60 Minutes started here on the East Coast at 7:04 PM. So, a few minutes off. It looks like there are a lot of strong teams in the cast this season. Plus, the winner of the first leg wins TWO million dollars if they win the show. That has happened six times over the previous seasons, so it's a possibility. We'll have to see the first leg to judge whether we want that team winning so much, though. After all, it's OUR show. They're just there for our entertainment!

Margo has finalized the random picks for the blog pool --

                              **Pool Match Ups**

Abbie & Ryan - Donna in AL, Sharon, Rbennie
Amy & Daniel - Auntie Leigh, DKNYNC, ML
Caitlin & Brittany - JOEY, Lars, tlynsta,
Gary & Will - PDXGranny, Buzzmaam, Jackie
James & Mark - Caela, Jennasmom, Sydney, Brian
Jaymes & James - Margo, Becky, Zoetawny
Josh & Brent - Sharon S, MEB, Dusty, Monty924
Natalie & Nadiya - Lynn1, Glenn, Ed in OH
Rob & Kelley - Laurie, JonMd1267, Delee, Nana in NW
Rob & Sheila - Terry in TX, Brent Mckee, ChicMc
Trey & Lexi - SueGee, Merrilee, Donna in FL
 
Very cool -- I have the team Phil called "not normal." I actually like that as long as they don't go out early! They look like a fun team. I'm so not into the drama with some of the teams we have to endure.

As the show airs here, I'll update this entry with the major news. However, the real fun is always in the comments area. Come join us!

The race is starting off in Pasadena, CA. They're heading to China! Now, there's a way to start the race!

Roadblock - Who's ready to get paddled? A table tennis challenge.

Double Roadblock - Who wants to go tubing? Eating the fallopian tubes of frogs, a delicacy. EW.

Yikes, the second four teams (including my pool boys) just arrived when the first are almost through with the second roadblock!

Teams are off (some of them) to the Bund Observatory, the pit stop for the first leg.

Abbie and Ryan are the first team to arrive. If they win, they get the two million.

2. Danny and Amy
3. Caitlin and Brittany
4. Natalie and Nadiya
5. Rob and Kelly
6. James and Abba
7. Josh and Brent
8. Gary and Will
9. Trey and Lexi
10. Jaymes and James (by 15 seconds)
11. Rob and Sheila -- PHILIMINATED 

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - Sept. 30, 2012

It's Sunday morning. That means that it's time for my weekly off television topic reflection on the week gone by in both words and photographs I've taken along the way. Tonight will be the big season premiere of The Amazing Race. I will be posting a blog party post for the show and would love to see you there!

Hmm ... my week, eh? Well, it was nothing for the history books of most fantastic times of my life, for sure! I'm still under the weather. However, I did return to work on Thursday. Sure enough, the rain came to join me for my work return. It's held off for the most part for the past few days. But I ended up making sure I had my umbrella with me anyway.

On Tuesday I dropped off my entries for the Plainfield Library Photo Contest. It was also my first time in the library since they remodeled and reopened a few weeks back. Wow. I'm impressed with the changes! It's definitely a change from the libraries I grew up loving. Heck, all they had were books! I really enjoy the staff working there, as well. Good people, some fantastic artwork, BOOKS and more. If I lived next door, I might just develop an addiction.

I think I'm just going to head into random notes of the week or my observations. Yeah, I know it's cheating, but ...!

• There is an elderly man on my street who has a motorized wheelchair. He has a boom box on his wheelchair. He plays Jamaican music. It's like it's coming over a PA system. He needs to stop.
• Then again, there are also those fools who feel they need to use their cellphones as mini-boom boxes. It's all tinny and annoying. They need to stop, too.
• Sure, just as I was walking up to my building, I hear a voice shout, "Do you need a ride?" I turn around and it's a police car. It was one of the narcotic detectives, albeit it in uniform and on patrol. He's a good guy I know from the bus stop downtown. I told him I lived here.
• I guess it's good that the narcotics/gangs cops "know" me, but haven't a clue where I live.
• Not that it would matter if they did. I lead the ultimate in boring well-behaved lives these days. My drugs of choice are ibuprofen and caffeine. My only "gangs" I might belong to are fellow local bloggers and folks who say hello on the streets.
• The school year has resulted in more school kids on the morning train. Their conversations SO differ from when I was in high school. Three boys were talking about how many lives they had gone through and how to get a special weapon to get to the next level.
• We talked about rock concerts at Saratoga and anti-war protests.
• Vincent the Cat is now addicted to Temptations cat treats. It's my fault. I'm an enabler.

Onto the photos for the week. Clicking on an image will open it larger in a new window, clicking again will make it even larger. To return to the blog, just close the Photobucket window.

Late season bee

I'm really not liking the yellow jackets who have started to bumble around bumping into me. They can be aggressive. But the bumblebees themselves are always laid back and good photo fodder. East Front Street, Plainfield.

Uh-oh, walking upright!

If they get opposable thumbs, we needn't fear a takeover from birds anymore. It will be squirrels overthrowing mankind. East Front Street.

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

The Amazing Race: Phil Keoghan's Season Breakdown

So ... have you signed up for the pool yet? Margo hasn't announced a cut-off time unless I've missed it. I think midnight tonight (Saturday, Eastern time zone) should be the latest you can sign up. That would be fair, I believe. Of course, if Margo has indeed indicated a cut-off earlier than that and I missed it ... oops and she's the Pool Boss!

The season premiere is tomorrow night at 8 PM ET or after 60 Minutes, whichever comes last. (Sigh.) I really hate that so many of my favorite shows are on Sunday evenings with a haphazard schedule due to sports coverage. I seriously think that they'd be better off scheduling sports to end at 8 PM and cutting out one primetime show. Ah, but that might lose them some revenue, huh?

Anyway ... I'm including Phil's breakdown of the teams we'll be watching this season. I so agree with him about those teams who claim they want to test their relationships. I mean, are they serious? Under super pressure when the best of friends might crack, silly folks want to test themselves. Okay. Go for it, fools!

I'm taking an immediate liking to several of the teams just based on the videos I've seen at this point. But I'm going to need to see them in action to really judge them. How about you? Do you have an early favorites?