BB 18: First Impressions -- Paul Abrahamian

Paul Abrahamian, age 23

I've read his bio on the CBS Big Brother website. I've seen his video on CBS All Access. Here are some facts and my impressions:

• His faux-hawk and beard are perfectly coiffed. How long is that going to last in the house?
• He says he's a "clothing designer." I think I'd rather see what that huge tattoo is on his chest.
• He's single (for the last few months), hails from and currently resides in Tarzana, CA.
• He's a thrill-seeker. Well, that in and of itself, is only sort of good in the BB House. The idea of going on the show, that touch of fame (albeit fleeting and to a limited audience), the competitions ... all of those provide the adrenaline high for a thrill seeker. But, what's he going to do with all the down time they have?
• He's very into music. He better not be one who sings and makes the live feeds go to fish. I'm warning him right here and now ... don't sing! Don't hum. I don't even want you to whistle, kiddo!
• He wears a ton of rings in the Jeff interview. I hope he doesn't think that they would preclude him from washing dishes.
• Paul seems to think he can mentally "crack" practically anyone. Hmm.
• Yet, he doesn't really to have a strong urge to have more than fun in the house. He stated once in the interview that he wanted to win. However, when asked more directly about it, he went more along the adventurous fun aspect of being in the house. Will he be able to scheme? I don't know. 
• He thinks he can be sneaky and will use other peoples' weaknesses against them.
• But ... can he backstab and be truly underhanded? Is he going to be a real BB villain? I'm not getting that vibe from him, although I could be wrong.
• He claims to be a big fan of the show. I do believe he might be more of a fair weather fan. But, big fan? Nah. He didn't mention watching the live feeds at all. He only knows a bit of the show, methinks.  

What are your impressions of Paul?

Images © CBS

Big Brother 18: Meet the Hamsters

Um. Okay. The new BB18 hamsters were introduced today. So much for diversity! Ten 20-somethings, one 32 year-old and then an "old guy" at all of 50 years old. Of course, he's a generation apart from all the rest. Nothing let setting a guy up for the fall! The only real noticeable ethnicity diversity is that more than usual seem to be Hispanic. Leave it to Grodner to go for the models casting once again! I prefer real diversity in casting. Oh, well.

Two are siblings of previous players:

• Paulie is Cody's brother.
• Tiffany is Vanessa's sister.

I haven't watched the videos yet as I had to work today and got home a bit late. As the days go on towards the season premiere, I'll be delving more into the cast so we might kind of sort of get to know them.

What do you think?

Bridgette Dunning, age 25

Bronte D'Acquisto, age 26

Corey Brooks, age 25

Glenn Garcia, age 50

Jozea Flores, age 25

Michelle Meyer, age 23

Natalie Negrotti, age 26

Paul Abrahamian, age 23

Paulie Calafiore, age 27

Tiffany Rousso, age 32

Victor Arroyo, age 25

Zakiyah Everette, age 24

Images © CBS

Big Brother 18: CBS Delays the Cast Reveal

BB18 cast reveal delayed by CBS. Instead of this morning, the cast reveal on CBS All Access will be taped (not live) and shown tomorrow -- Tuesday, June 14, starting at 1pm PT/4pm ET. The timing is a bit better for my own reasons due to work. But, this whole casting thing between no media interviews and now this is very weird.

The photo above is just a screenshot of the CBS announcement page ... which makes it seem like they never announced the reveal would be this morning. Hmm.

UPDATE: In a Twitter announcement, CBS said that the announcement was delayed due to the tragedy in Orlando.

Big Brother 18: News, Rumors and More Rumors

Many of the rumors regarding the cast will be either shown to be right or way off base by tomorrow. For some reason, the BB18 cast hamsters will not go through the media interviews -- the only cast interviews will be those on CBS All Access. That, of course, is also where we'll access the live feeds once they go live late next week.

Why all the secrecy? Well, we usually have secrecy going on at this point. However, this is a first that outside media won't be talking to the sequestered hamsters. Hmm. I just don't know. If All Access has the information up early enough tomorrow East Coast time, I'll be posting before I go to work. If it's up later, it won't be until very late Monday night. Unfortunately, I still have to work for a living.

Here's the timeline as far as I can discern:

1. Rumor: CBS did the hamster pick-ups at their local towns this past Tuesday through Thursday.
2. Fact: All Access will do the cast reveal tomorrow, Monday, June 13th.
3. Probably: The hamsters will be sequestered in hotels until Wednesday or Thursday of this week, then move into the house. They're always there for a week or so before the season premiere. While I hate that we miss that initial time on the live feeds (so much can happen!), I understand they need show fodder for the season premiere.
4. Fact: The season premiere will be a two-hour show airing at 8pm ET/PT on Wednesday, June 22. We, but of course, will have a blog party as it airs East Coast time.
5. Fact: The second episode will air Thursday, June 23 at 9pm ET/PT. If all is like the past, it should be a live eviction show.
6. Fact: The live feeds will kick in live on Thursday 6/23 (Friday 6/24 to us East Coast voyeurs) after the show airs on the West Coast. We're talking 10pm PT or (wah) 1am ET. 
7. Fact: The show's regular airing schedule is as it has been for the past several seasons -- hour-long episodes on Sunday 8pm, Wednesday 8pm and Thursday 9pm. 
8. Fact: POP TV, the old TV Guide cable station will once again have nightly BB After Dark shows. I won't have access to them this year because Comcast (Xfinity) decided to drop the station. 

Hey ... what about the hamsters?

I just don't know. I'll know tomorrow, but not today.

Reality Blurred has an article claiming it's the Coach approach once again. They claim returning players Ian Terry, Audrey Middleton (huh ... what could she coach?), Vanessa Rousso and Derrick Lavasseur.  Meanwhile, Ian Terry denies he's going to be on the show on his Twitter page. Derrick posted a photo of him with his baby and pug dog yesterday on Twitter, thanking CBS for letting him bring them into sequester with him. So ... this needs to be taken with a grain of salt, for sure.

They also claim in that article that there will be twelve newbies, two of whom have a connection of some sort. We'll just see about that!

Meanwhile, BB18 Leaks, often a dependable source, claims no coaches but more than six returning hamsters. You can peek in on their Twitter feed at this link.

BigBrotherAccess.com has a list of oddness regarding the cast and the two-hour premiere (it's usually an hour) at this link.

Is the house different?

Yeah, it seems to be an international theme. I don't believe the ET episode with the house tour has aired yet. But many sites have photos, including this one from BigBrotherAccess.com. Supposedly, the bathroom floor is sand. That will be great for the ants!

In the yard, it's now a rectangular pool with the hot tub occupying a corner of it.

Stay tuned tomorrow for the anxiously awaited cast reveal!

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - June 12, 2016

Good morning! Since it's a Sunday morning, that means it's time for my weekly off television topic reflection on the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. As for television -- you might want to keep tuned here or on my Big Brother on Jackie's TV Blog Facebook page as I watch for news on the upcoming season of Big Brother 18! I will be posting later today on the BB18 topic and the cast reveal should be tomorrow.

It's been a rather whacko weather week here in my little part of New Jersey. We had chill worthy of autumn for part of the week and then so hot and humid that flowers were wilting before my very eyes. They said it's supposed to be beautiful today. But, when I went out to get my newspaper from the front of the building, it's definitely still on the humid and muggy side. That's okay. Except for running over to the bodega around the corner a bit later today, I'm in for the duration. I had yet another hectic work week, didn't sleep properly and I foresee a bit of nap time thrown in with household chores today.

Our state primary was this past Tuesday. While we have a circus going on in the national presidential race, our local politics in Plainfield aren't much better. Thankfully, the folks with a wider vision won on the local level. Yes, Plainfield has troubles. Yes, things need to be done to stop gang violence. However, that's only a fraction of the folks living here. Plainfield is moving forward. It needs to stay on that path. The majority of folks in town are working and contributing to society. (I like to think of myself in that majority.) While we definitely need and want a safer city, new businesses and promoting higher standards for what we accept as a society will mean more in the long run than pandering only to folks who prefer to stand on street corners doing drugs, gang-banging and drinking in public. The local political race got nasty and underhanded. I'm so happy the people with a positive vision won out.

On the home front, I still haven't met my new downstairs neighbors. Except for some odd hammering in the daytime on my day off, I haven't heard any noise from down there. That could have been Super Mario (the superintendent) hammering something. As for the guy upstairs, he's been relatively quiet. Or, at least his stereo has been relatively quiet. I still wonder if he has any furniture or anything up there other than the stereo or if he's just a plain old loud guy. I know there's carpet for the first tenant ever up there since I've lived in the building. Yet, if he's on the phone or has someone over, I can practically hear every word said. With all the other tenants up there (with no carpet), I could only hear conversation if they were shouting. He's also very thumpy. I cringe if I drop something on my hardwood floor, especially late at night. But I don't think I thump when I walk!

Onto this week's photos ... clicking on an image will bring up a large version.

Over the sidewalk

I took some editing liberties with this shot. I liked the contrast of the pinks and greens against the background of the sidewalk.

A safe zone

Due to robberies (and even scattered murders!) of folks buying/selling on Craigslist and other internet sites, the Plainfield Police Department has this set up across the street from the police station on East 4th Street. I know there have been robberies of people involved in the buying and selling in nearby towns. I'm not aware of any occurring in town. But this is an excellent idea rather than meeting up with strangers while carrying money ... go to the police station!

Man vs. Nature

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