Friday, March 04, 2016

The Amazing Race Blog Party - March 4, 2016



The show is starting! As it airs here on the East Coast, I'll post the major happenings live. Refresh the page to get the latest! However, as it always is ... the real party is in the comments area. Please join in on the fun! (And bring tasty beverages and snacks!)

The Magnificent Margo (and Mom) have made the random picks for the blog pool and here they are ...
Tyler & Korey-P- Paula Bell, Bruce & Ray, SueGee
Burnie & Ashley- Buzzmaam, Delee
Erin & Joslyn- Brian, Margo, Rbennie
Sheri & Cole- Donna in FL, Merrilee, Becky
Zach & Rachel- Sharon N, Nana in NW
Dana & Matt- Grandi, Nicklepeed
Jessica & Brittany- Donna in AL, Monty924
Scott & Blair- Meb, Jennasmom
Kurt & Brodie- David, Ed in OH

Philiminated:
Marty & Hagan- Jackie, Willie J
Cameron & Darius- chrob61, PDXGranny

Amazing Race fans ready? Let's GO!

Teams are on their way to Geneva, Switzerland. All teams are to be on the same flight, so we have a bunching point. Lots of talk about Blair having a crush on Brodie. Hmm. It seems like he kind of likes her, too!

The first clue leads them to a place which doesn't open until morning. So, Brodie and Blair got in some cuddle time.

Detour: Workbench or Bench Work -- They have to assemble 27 Swiss Army Knives. Or, the latter is saying how many people can sit on the bench touted as the longest in the world.

Both Detours seem quite tough.

Although Brodie and Kurt made it through the bench sitting/counting spaces first and shared their answers, the others in that detour had to go through the motions again. They're the first through to the next clue, then Tyler and Korey finished the knives detour. So, the two leading teams are leading once again.

Brittany and Jessica didn't get the Alpha Boys answer, so they seem to be the only ones still stuck on the bench.

One thing I've noticed with these basically younger Internet quasi-related teams is that the teams are more friendly with each other than we've seen in many other seasons. That may change when the win gets closer. But there's no animosity between teams.

Roadblock: "Who is Having a Banner Day?" Teams have to identify ten flags of ten countries which were original members of the United Nations. (Where's Sheldon Cooper and Fun With Flags?)

Burnie and Ashley get done first and are headed to France for the Pit Stop.

Brittany and Jessica are the last team to arrive at the Roadblock. The remaining teams there are all already working together and they feel shunned.

Now, after two separate groups taking two different trains, all the teams are on the same connecting train heading to the Pit Stop ... except Brittany and Jessica.

1. Brodie and Kurt first - 3,000 each
2. Tyler and Korey
All the other teams converged on the mat so quickly, I lost track.

9. Brittany and Jessica -- Philiminated

Wednesday, March 02, 2016

Survivor: Kaoh Rong Blog Party - March 2, 2016


Survivor fans ready? As the show airs, I'll update this entry with the major happenings -- refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. Please join us there. We like snacks.

Lifeguard Laurie is running the pool, but that doesn't mean you can run around the pool. It's slippery, y'know!

Here are the random match-ups:
Chan Loh - Brains
Elizabeth Markham - Donna in FL, Terry is a Texan
Peter Baggenstos - Jackie, Tammy
Neal Gottlieb - Merrilee, JoyzJenn
Debbie Wanner - meb, Rbennie
Aubry Braco - Jennasmom, Glenn
Joseph Del Campo - Grandi, Petals

Gondol - Beauty
Tai Trang - Margo, anonymouse
Nick Maiorano - Laurie, ML
Anna Khait - monty924 , SueGee from the Left Coast
Michele Fitzgerals - Brian TCC, Kelsey NY
Julia Sokolowski - Indiana Jane, Nickelpeed
Caleb Reynolds - Ed in Ohio, Stephanie in Baltimore

To Tang - Brawn
Kyle Jason - Nana in the NW, Sharon N.
Alecia Holen - Becky, Donna NY
Scot Pollard - Delee, Pinky
Cydney Gillon - Leo Lionharted, PDX Granny

Torch has been snuffed:
Darnell Hamiltonn - free play!
Jennifer Lanzetti - David, Paula Bell

Let's get this party started!

Alecia tells Cydney she wants Scot to go. She seems to be barking up the wrong tree there.

Meanwhile, Tai wants to bark up the right tree and retrieve the key to hidden idol he knows is there. He gets what he wants -- the key to the idol and the idol. He kisses trees, the idol and he would kiss Caleb if he was there!

The idol is one part of a Super Idol. If he finds the second fitting idol, it can be used AFTER the vote is read. (A new twist going on there!)

On Brains, Debbie (the wackadoodle) wants to target Liz. She doesn't like Peter, but feels they need him for challenges. She's all secret agent gal around camp. 

Beauty is thinking of killing one of their chickens for food. Caleb, the voice of reason (oh my), is thinking of how Tai will feel about it. The deed goes down with Tai holding the chicken for Caleb to chop off its head. Tai is accepting the fate but is sad anyway. 

Anna trusts Caleb and Tai and wants to pull them in against Nick. She sees right through his fake smiles. 

On Brawn, Scot is in search of an idol. Alecia is looking, too. Kyle (Jason) sees Cydney and Alecia searching. Heh. Cydney has Alecia go away and she gets the locked idol box similar to what Tai found at his camp. When confronted, Cydney tells Jason and Scot about the clue and they run off. Now Alecia's there as Jason finds the clue. All of them are off running. Scot and Jason are trying to get the key down. Jason snags the key when it falls.

Immunity Challenge time! They have to jump off into water, swim to boat, retrieve bags of rice, balance beams, search for balls in the rice, maze ... sheesh, just a bit convoluted! Reward is a choice for first place -- comfort or emotional items. Second place gets what first didn't choose. 

Beauty wins first place! Brawn actually wins second place! It will be Brains going to Tribal. Beauty chooses comfort, so Brawn gets their emotional items. It might be emotional enough for them to not lose another member!

Peter thinks Neal will get the boot. He doesn't know that Secret Agent Debbie has been working against him. Or, his ally Liz anyway. Neal is suspicious. Peter thinks he's the one in charge. We'll see about that. 

Debbie promises us a total blindside (either Peter or Liz). And, it's time for Tribal.  Jeff asks his Probsting questions. 

The Tally:
Aubry, Aubry, Peter, Peter, Liz, Liz. A three-way tie with a re-vote. Peter, Liz and Aubry cannot vote and the others must vote for one of them.

The Re-Tally:
Liz, Liz ... 

Liz is out. Secret Agent Gal was right.

Sunday, February 28, 2016

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - February 28, 2016

Good morning! Since it's Sunday morning, it's time for my weekly off television topic reflection on the past week in both words and photos I've taken along the way. Please come by during the week and join in on the Survivor and The Amazing Race blog parties! I live blog those shows as they air while folks party in the comments area. It's a fantastic group of show fans. Please stop in!

But this ain't that.

We had yet another odd/wild weather week here in New Jersey. Some days were bitter cold with wind, but sunny. On Wednesday we had all day flooding rains with severe thunderstorms and a tornado watch. No, we did not have a tornado. (Yay!) The late-night temperature was in the high sixties! It remains a very odd weather pattern (or lack thereof) for February in New Jersey.

In other random stuff:
  • NJ Transit train workers might go on strike mid-March. I've requested the Saturday of the "soft strike" off as a vacation day. If they don't strike, I have a weekend off. Win-win. If they do strike going into the week, I'll have to deal with buses and rearranging my work schedule to have a co-worker pick me up near the Shop-Rite not all that far from work. (But farther than I want to walk!) More co-workers go through there than anywhere near here.
  • The bright side of that is that there's a Burger King there and I haven't had a Croissanwich in years. It's my favorite fast food breakfast sandwich.
  • Things are going better at my workplace. I have new knowledgeable bosses I can actually work with and we share mutual respect. I forgot what that's like in the past few years.
  • I'd still rather be retired and perhaps just do something I like to do.
  • I've worked for the same company for about 34 years. I think I've paid my dues.
  • But there's this pesky thing called keeping a roof over my head. I don't see Vincent the Cat going out there working to help me!

Oh, well. That's about it. Onto this week's photos! Clicking on an image will bring up a larger version. I hope everybody has a fantastic Leap Day tomorrow!

Into the light

While I like how this photo turned out, it shows the deplorable conditions of the NJ Transit Plainfield Station pedestrian tunnel between the westbound/eastbound platforms. When it rains outside, it now rains in the tunnel. Some light panels are entirely missing, others often have the rain running through them. The floor is always wet, slippery and grimy. It desperately needs repairs and regularly scheduled cleaning. Hey, NJ Transit. What's up with this? 

Don't fence me in

A sparrow rests on a fence and makes for a cute shot.

Coming in for a landing

A pigeon making a landing on a ledge on the Chotola Apartment building on North Avenue in Plainfield.

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

Friday, February 26, 2016

The Amazing Race Blog Party - February 26, 2016



The show is starting! As it airs here on the East Coast, I'll post the major happenings live. Refresh the page to get the latest! However, as it always is ... the real party is in the comments area. Please join in on the fun! (And bring tasty beverages and snacks!) I'm still a bit iffy on the team names, so please bear with me!

The Magnificent Margo (and Mom) have made the random picks for the blog pool and here they are ...
Tyler & Korey-P- Paula Bell, Bruce & Ray, SueGee
Burnie & Ashley- Buzzmaam, Delee
Erin & Joslyn- Brian, Margo, Rbennie
Sheri & Cole- Donna in FL, Merrilee, Becky
Zach & Rachel- Sharon N, Nana in NW
Dana & Matt- Grandi, Nicklepeed
Jessica & Brittany- Donna in AL, Monty924
Scott & Blair- Meb, Jennasmom
Kurt & Brodie- David, Ed in OH
Cameron & Darius- chrob61, PDXGranny

Philiminated:
Marty & Hagan- Jackie, Willie J

Amazing Race fans ready? Let's GO!

Teams are running all over from place to place picking up clues. They have to go to San Diego for one (not California) and to the catacombs.

Detour - Tickets -- collecting tickets on a bus. Tejo has them throw a disk rock thing on some sort of bang type fireworks dohickey. It's kind of like cornhole with a bang. (No, that's not how Phil explained it.)

Dana and Matt continue to be the only team arguing. Sigh. Oh geez ... the alpha male team, Kurt and Brodie, actually chest bump.

Gah. One of the women on one of the female teams (the one whose person was claustrophobic during the prior cave challenge) is about to go into a full-burst anxiety attack in the catacombs. It's Jessica and Brittany -- not sure which girl it is, though.

The alpha boys get to the Roadblock first. "Who's left holding the bag?" They have to find bags by the same designer as one given to them, searching a gazillion bags and several vendors.

Kurt and Brodie are headed to the Pit Stop.

Pit Stop:
1. Kurt and Brodie - won a trip to Greece
2. Tyler and Korey

Oh noes! Rachel counted the bus money wrong. She and Zach have to go back and finish that Detour.

3. Burnie and Ashley
4. Dana and Matt (He thinks they need to work together better. Y[think?)

Jessica is trying to help Cole on the Roadblock even though she's ready for the next clue. Finally she leaves him be. Rachel and Zach finally finished the Detour.

5. Jessica and Brittany
6. Sheri and Cole
7. Erin and Joslyn
8. Scott and Blair
9. Zach and Rachel
10. Darius and Cameron -- Philiminated.

Really nice guys, but The Amazing Race isn't their strength!

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Survivor: Kaoh Rong Blog Party - February 24


Survivor fans ready? As the show airs, I'll update this entry with the major happenings -- refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area. Please join us there. We like snacks.

Lifeguard Laurie was kind enough to offer to add the latecomers who posted last week to the blog pool, as well as reassign those who unfortunately were Darnell's pool peeps as he was the first boot.

Here are the revised match-ups:
Chan Loh - Brains
Elizabeth Markham - Donna in FL, Terry is a Texan
Peter Baggenstos - Jackie, Tammy
Neal Gottlieb - Merrilee, JoyzJenn
Debbie Wanner - meb, Rbennie
Aubry Braco - Jennasmom, Glenn
Joseph Del Campo - Grandi, Petals

Gondol - Beauty
Tai Trang - Margo, anonymouse
Nick Maiorano - Laurie, ML
Anna Khait - monty924 , SueGee from the Left Coast
Michele Fitzgerals - Brian TCC, Kelsey NY
Julia Sokolowski - Indiana Jane, Nickelpeed
Caleb Reynolds - Ed in Ohio, Stephanie in Baltimore

To Tang - Brawn
Kyle Jason - Nana in the NW, Sharon N.
Jennifer Lanzetti - David, Paula Bell
Alecia Holen - Becky, Donna NY
Scot Pollard - Delee, Pinky
Cydney Gillon - Leo Lionharted, PDX Granny

Torch has been snuffed:
Darnell Hamiltonn - free play!

Let's get this party started! If I vanish during the show, we're having some severe thunderstorms here and we've just been put under a tornado watch.

Recap, recap. 

Alecia, although saved last week, is very suspicious of her tribe mates. She's next on their list to go. Gah, Alecia calls an ember an "embryo." Oh, duh!

Over on Beauty, Tai is still determined to find a hidden idol without a clue. And he's found a clue saying the idol is buried at the base of the tree. He found that clue and it directs him to find a key to unlock the idol. He has to climb a tall tree to get at it and has to give up ... for now.

Debbie is sure the water they have to drink is safe without boiling. She's proving more and more of a nut. 

Heh. Caleb has taken a liking to Tai. Who woulda thunk it?

Brains weren't so brainy ... they wasted/spilled most of the kerosene thanks to Joe. At least he's the one they're blaming. Joe himself thinks he's at kindergarten camp because the "book" brains are all trying failed experiments rather than just working to achieve their goals.

On Brawn, while Scot and Kyle slept, Alecia worked for hours with the flint and got a fire going. Will that redeem her in their eyes? Now they can cook their chicken and boil their water. 

Immunity Challenge time! Race down river, retrieve log, carry it through obstacles, knock down targets. Reward for the first tribe is a huge fishing kit and boat. Second gets a smaller kit. Geez, Debbie is sitting up and cheerleading. I think I'm ill.

Beauty wins first place immunity and reward! Brains wins second place. Brawn once again will go to Tribal Council. 

Of course, Scot and Kyle are wanting Alecia out once again. She decided she needs to go out searching for an immunity idol. Meanwhile, Jennifer is getting tired of Kyle (Jason) and would rather keep Alecia. Jennifer and Alecia approach Cydney about an all girls alliance. If the girls stick together, it's Jason (who is actually Kyle Jason!). Now Jennifer is having second thoughts because she doesn't want to let Scot down.

Tribal Council has Jennifer spilling a few too many beans and making the guys suspicious. Uh-oh, Jennifer lies and claims the all girl alliance was Alecia's idea. Alecia denies it and claims Jennifer. Is Jennifer sinking her boat?

The tally:
Jenny, Alecia, Alecia, Jenny, Jenny.

Welp, she did it to herself! Alecia is safe and Jennifer is gone.