Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - September 1, 2013

Hey, all! It's Sunday morning, time for my weekly off television topic post reflecting on the week gone by in both words and photographs I've taken along the way. If you're looking for my latest post on the Big Brother show or live feeds, you can find that at this link. This off television topic photo post is something I do every Sunday year 'round. Thankfully, Big Brother isn't year 'round or I just might not survive!

Once again, I don't have all that much to report here. The weather's been muggy most of the week. I don't like muggy. I'd say I don't do muggy but I don't have much choice in the matter.

I do see some rest on the horizon -- I have two four-day work weeks ahead of me, then a staycation for my birthday week, the season finale of Big Brother and the start of Survivor. It's going to be amazing to not cope with only three or four hours of sleep a night. I forgot what that's like. And, today I can actually nap all day if I want as I'm off tomorrow for the holiday! Yay.

On the home front, all is well. No one stole my newspaper this morning, but it was delivered much later than it has been in the past. Usually it's out there by 5:30am. Today I found it on my fourth trip down at about 7:30. Maybe that's what happened last week. I might have given up on it too early and someone eventually did snag it. I don't use the front door of the apartment building, so it might have happened that way. Oh, well. At least during one of the trips I dropped off my rent in the secure mail slot doohickey for the landlord. It had that huge $5 increase for the new lease.

Onto this week's photos ...

Here's lookin' at you, kid

I ended up having a fantastic photo session with a praying mantis this week. More photos of her (I think her) after the jump.

A cacophony of flowers

These are going amok this year at the house on the corner of Richmond and East Front in Plainfield.

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

Big Brother 15: Live Feeds Overnight Saturday into Sunday - August 31 - Sept. 1

The cat hat is looking a bit ratsy

Oh, wait. That's ANDY. Here's the latest from inside that Big Brother House of Unlikeable Rodents:

• McCrae thinks that GM putting them (himself and Amanda) on the block was a good move, but that it would associate GinaMarie with Elissa when it comes to jury. He thinks it would have been better for her to work with them.
• Well, of course he thinks that way.
• Amanda claims she doesn't want to be blindsided, she wants to know if she's going.
• Oh, I think she knows. Whether she really believes it's going to go down is another matter.
• Amanda thinks McCrae let her down because he wasn't on GM every minute the day leading into nominations like she wanted.
• @@
• Her plan now is that they keep at GM to get her to re-nom Elissa when McCrae takes himself down Monday.
• Due to some event which could be heard from the yard, the hamsters were on indoor lockdown for much of the evening.
• Oh, I pine for the days of the early seasons when Miss Kitty, the megaphone lady, would cruise by the house, banner planes flew by, people threw stuff over the fence.
• Ah, BB memories.
• During the course of the evening, I heard Amanda TWICE reference to McCrae's stench (one time it was specifically feet, the other time overall stink).
• Did he go shower?
• Nope.
• Ew.
• Andy, still in his rat mode, told Amanda he threw the PoV to her.
• Hmm.
• What a little suck-up for jury votes.
• You can't throw a comp to someone who doesn't win.
• Oh, wait. Aaryn and McCrae BOTH tried to throw a comp to Amanda before and she screwed it up. Maybe the same kind of thing happened this time.
• Andy told Amanda he wants Elissa out, but Judd doesn't want her (Elissa) out.
• McCrae and Amanda worked on GinaMarie. She acts like she's considering their case.
• But she isn't.
• The plan is for McCrae to stick like glue to GM for the rest of the evening.
• If he doesn't shower, she might have to go out on a medical emergency from the fumes.
• They got booze.
• Amanda started drinking the wine straight from the bottle, then gave Judd a little.
• She refused to give Elissa any.
• @@
• Finally she gave her a glass with maybe a shot's worth of wine (pre-spitted and all) in it.
• @@
• The others watched. No one spoke up for Elissa. But they're sure noting this poor behavior.
• Then things became lighter -- they ALL got together for a card game in the kitchen.
• Elissa and Amanda wore almost matching Fedoras.
• Andy wore GinaMarie's pink cat hat and pink tutu (apparently from the veto comp yesterday). He wanted to wear one of the chicken suits, but BB told him no.
• I think I'd rather see Andy in a pink tutu than Amanda in a yellow tutu.
• Amanda apologized about the wine.
• Like that will make it all better ...
• During the card game, they decided that Andy had to dance every time they heard the BB voice.
• So, they kept breaking rules so BB would speak to them.
• On his last twirl, Andy said, "I'm a little princess." Then he changed back to his normal clothes.
• It was so weird seeing all of them actually getting along and having fun.
• Elissa, not always in game mode, went to bed as the others went out to the yard after it re-opened.
• As they chatted about TV shows, past hamsters this season and previous ones, Amanda did keep chiming in for Elissa to go on the block.
• When they talked of most memorable and recognizable hamsters from this season, GM said people probably won't recognize Helen as "all Chinese people look alike."
• Everyone called out GM at once for that one.
• Plus, I might add, Helen is Korean, not Chinese.
• Amanda and McCrae couldn't last the evening without being all over, McCrae funk or not. They left the Exterminators all by themselves to talk in the backyard.
• Judd, Andy, Spencer and GinaMarie re-confirmed the plan -- Spencer will go on the block, Amanda will go home.
• They feel that they'll probably be safe for the next week (they do think this week MIGHT be a double eviction) as McCrae and Elissa will target each other.
• The Exterminators are still up in the backyard talking. Amanda and McCrae are canoodling in bed. Elissa is sleeping.
• And I need coffee.

Fun was had by ALL

Elissa and Amanda in Fedoras

And then Amanda cried

Big Brother 15: Live Feeds Saturday and PoV Winner Aftermath - August 31

Just hang your head on the bed, Spencer

Here's what happened today inside that Big Brother House of Horrific Hamsters:

• Only one person won't play for veto. That one person not picked is Judd.
• Amanda pushed Andy, telling him he NEEDS to win the veto to take one of them off the block.
• Oh, at this point, I think he was thinking more along the lines of needing NOT to win the veto so he won't have to make a public stand with it.
• Even though Andy is pushing for Elissa to go up if one of McCranda comes down, GinaMarie is firm with her previous decision.
• She will NOT put either Judd or Elissa on the block. She promised them. And, as crude and vulgar as she may be, I haven't seen her break a promise yet.
• Judd and Elissa both warned GinaMarie that they think Andy is still holding onto some loyalty with McCrae/Amanda.
• Andy heard that Elissa said he was working both sides of the house and denied it to GinaMarie.
• I personally think that he's having a hard time breaking the bond. But, in the end, I think he realizes he's better off gamewise with the Exterminators.
• The veto comp went down, blocked to the live feeds.
• But we always find out anyway. So there, BB!
• McCrae won veto.
• Welp, there goes GM's plan to target him this week!
• So, it will have to be Amanda walking out that door (first) on Thursday.
• Aw, my heart breaks for her.
• Doesn't yours?
• Amanda cried.
• Sniffle, sniffle, HONK!
• Judd wanted to get McCrae to use the veto to save Amanda.
• That's not gonna happen.
• Silly Judd.
• Knowing that GM will not put up either Judd or Elissa, Spencer volunteered to go on the block as the re-nom.
• I personally would rather see Andy up there as he would have no temptation whatsoever to save Amanda if he can't vote at all.
• Amanda fussed (in her yellow tutu) that the comp wasn't fair to her.
• She also thinks it's not fair that she's on the block.
• She also thinks it's not fair that McCrae is on the block.
• She also thinks it's not fair when she can't control everybody.
• Aw, sucks to be her this week!
• Amanda thinks she deserves to be there in the house.
• Well, yeah. Gotta give her that. If anyone ever deserved to be in that house of idiots, she's a one.
• But all of them deserve to be there ... until they get evicted, that is.
• Elissa and GinaMarie talked the logistics of getting to the final two together.
• Trying to lead her on, Judd told Amanda there's a chance she might stay.
• I see no chance. Even if Andy flipped, it would end up a tie and GM would cast the tiebreaker. She won't vote out Spencer over Amanda.
• Amanda tried and tried, then tried some more, to convince GM she needs to put Elissa on the block as the re-nom.
• Ain't gonna happen.
• I'm saying that. GinaMarie told her that she'll sleep on it.
• Later on GM had a good laugh with Spencer and Judd about Amanda promising her final two.
• Oh. I forgot to mention -- Judd and Spencer are out of the chicken suits. That was only 48 hours.
• McCrae started mingling, something he hasn't done alone for most of the season.
• He talked to GM, telling her he thinks that Elissa, Judd and her (GM) are working together.
• Um, kind of right. They're all in on getting either McCrae or Amanda out.
• They're working with each other as in Judd/Elissa, Judd/GM, and a teensy bit of GM/Elissa.
• It's complicated.
• McCrae thinks they should pit GM against Elissa and that Amanda should play girly-girl with GM to get Elissa on the block.
• @@
• The PoV meeting isn't until Monday.
• But I would imagine we'll be seeing Amanda and Spencer on the block, Amanda the target.
• Did I say it sucks to be Amanda this week?
• Oh, yeah. I did.

What am I doing in this handbasket?

GinaMarie's toe bruise. Ouch.

Ew! Amanda in a tutu! My eyes! My eyes!

McCrae has started mingling

While Amanda exiles herself

Big Brother 15: Live Feeds After Nominations, Friday Night into Saturday - August 30-31

Inconsolable. Too bad.

After the rush of excitement, the waters calmed ... a bit. Here's the latest from inside that Big Brother House of Tearful Tizzies:

• As I posted in the bulletin, GinaMarie kept true to her plan, putting McCrae and Amanda on the block.
• During her nominations speech (blocked to the live feeds) she said they were a power duo while everyone else was alone in the game. She also said that Amanda took the fire out of McCrae's eyes once he settled in with her.
• I hate to say it because I'm not a GinaMarie fan, but the girl is on a roll with competitions and she's spot on with her nominations and the reasons behind them. Good for her.
• Amanda cried and headed to bed with McCrae ... naturally.
• McCrae actually said hardly anything.
• Perhaps he's thinking about how he might have done as a lone wolf in the game. I don't know.
• It wasn't long before Amanda went wild -- screaming that Judd and Spencer are working with Elissa, it's not FAIR, GinaMarie is DUMB for nominating her, everybody is gonna hate GM ... rant, rant, cry, scream.
• When she confronted GinaMarie in the HoH room, it was kind of funny with two grown chicken men roaming back and forth like winged security guards.
• No one spoke up for Amanda in that brouhaha and GinaMarie held her own on her own just fine.
• As Amanda screamed about how not right the noms were -- when one of them came off the block with the veto, her re-nom will go home, Judd quietly mumbled, "So we all should just pack our bags, right?"
• Like the old song went, she got no satisfaction and went back to crying all over McCrae, first in the Have Not room, then in their bed.
• Now that I've mentioned their bed, I must get this off my chest: No one has ever lived in their bed like McCranda! It's ridiculous. They canoodle constantly, eat, sleep, lounge about in the bed. Heck, I'm surprised they haven't asked for diapers so they can truly live in that poor abused bed!
• Phew. I feel better now.
• I hope BB burns that bed after this season. It's way tainted!
• Amanda is sure she's the target.
• She's not.
• McCrae is GinaMarie's target as she thinks he's more dangerous.
• She's right. It would be better for McCrae to go as, if he were alone, he'd probably team up with Spencer, Judd and Andy or a combination thereof.
• Also, without Amanda dictating the moves of puppet HoH winners, McCrae just might scramble back to his ways at the start of the season when he was honestly in fear he would be voted out.
• With all the Amanda outbursts, I think McCrae thinks if the noms remain the same, it's Amanda out the door, not him. So, in a way, he still feels personally safe this week. In the past he has talked with Spencer about Amanda having to go before him.
• Now, GM's not telling her boys that she fears a hook-up with a boys crew and McCrae.
• Although Elissa isn't a part of the Exterminators, there are mini-deals being made. Spencer told Elissa he'd keep her safe if she did the same for him.
• It's weird to once again see Elissa mingling about the house, probably with more hamsters than she has all season. In the past, she was pretty confined to hanging out with Candice and Helen.
• Amanda went into a fit of feeling sorry for herself and giving up, wanting to go home.
• Oh, save the drama for your mama, Amanda.  It's the premise of the game. You played so many others, it's time for you to get played for a change!
• On a side note, after the "love" is gone, I wonder if McCrae will be singing this tune from his heart over Amanda.
• Throughout all of this, GinaMarie's foot continued to swell from her fall on the stairs Friday morning. Like an idiot, she forced her sore foot into heels for the nominations ceremony.
• Now you have two guys in chicken suits, McCrae in his stupid filthy pajama pants and you need to wear a cute black dress and heels when your toe might be broken?
• @@
• Amanda did go around apologizing to people for her outburst, but she still thinks that GM is being stupid not getting Elissa out.
• McCrae and Amanda then became unwatchable for most of the rest of the night, just hanging out in bed cuddling and crying.
• GinaMarie made up Chicken Parmesan for all.
• I cry CANNIBALISM!
• Amanda had the cojones to ask GM if she and McCrae could have a night in the HoH room. GM said okay.
• Ew.
• @@
• Spencer and Andy will tell Amanda what she wants to hear all week, then vote as planned.
• Andy and Spencer talked about how they feel Elissa shouldn't win because she doesn't need the money.
• @@
• However, Elissa not winning will be part of the Exterminators plan anyway.
• They do want the final four to be their newly minted just in time for the numbers alliance -- GM, Andy, Spencer and Judd.
• There's no Elissa in there, nor an Amanda (or McCrae, but he will go this week unless he wins PoV).
• Amanda gave both McCrae and Andy all kinds of advice for "after she's gone." Don't trust Spencer. Elissa and Judd are the biggest targets.
• Oh, silly girl. You'll be stuck staying! :-)
• I really hate to say this, but if this all goes down as planned this week and the Exterminators stick together, GinaMarie (of all people) just might be deserving of the win.
• Well, if anyone from this season's cast of losers is "deserving" of the win, that is.
• PoV comp will be later today. We'll see what happens. Whatever happens, either McCrae or Amanda is out the door this week.
• Yay.

All we need is Chicken George to join in

A chicken studies the Memory Wall at night

She's filling her face, he's picking at his nails

It's not FAIR!

BB needs to make a rule about NOT living in beds

Big Brother 15: Live Feeds Bulletin - Nominations - August 30

Oh my. It happened.

GinaMarie put Amanda and McCrae on the block.

Amanda is freaking, McCrae is just hanging out in bed.

Make sure you read what's brought this on in my last post. It's kind of scary that GinaMarie's thought process on the nominations is both rational and strategic.

Whole lotta shouting going on!