BB19: Live Feeds into Monday Evening - August 21

Sharp dressed man

Here's the latest from inside that Big Brother House of Hellbent Hounds:

• BB gave them some news from the outside -- the eclipse.
• They gave them viewing glasses to watch it.
• Some took advantage of the time to nap a bit.
• I think it would have been funnier had they just surprised them with the darkened skies.
• Sigh. I guess I don't want them to go blind.
• I'm sure Raven will contract something from it anyway.
• The Veto Ceremony (blocked to the live feeds) was held this morning.
• No surprises.
• Jason took himself off the block and Christmas put Mark in his place.
• Christmas cried some crocodile tears to Mark about it hurting her heart.
• Oh, yeah.
• Sure.
• Christmas is pretty sure they're due for a physical comp, although she can't play as exiting HoH.
• She wants Matt or Raven to win so they will target Alex or Jason.
• It's Jason she wants out more so than Alex.
• If Jason or Alex win HoH, Christmas wants them to target Kevin.
• I'd rather they not, thankyouverymuch.
• Alex and Jason both fussed about how Raven cooks chicken.
• It's too spicy and chewy.
• And here I thought that cooking chicken was Raven's saving grace in the house!
• Josh talked to us. He said his father told him to act goofy and like he didn't know what he's doing.
• Here I thought it just came naturally to him!
• Nothing much really happening with the exceptions of the "If I win HoH" scenario talks.
• Oh. Mark isn't doing those talks.
• He knows he's gone this week. 

Eclipse watching (and napping, too)

Is he constipated? Could be!

Seeking the wisdom of the gods

Why is she even there? Who chose her?

BB19: Live Feeds into Monday - August 21

Who woulda thunk it?

Here's the latest from inside that Big Brother House of Obnoxious Oafs:

• In reference to the screen cap above -- in the beginning of the season, I pegged Christmas as a strong contender and Josh as a pretty much a loon. Who would have thought this team up would even start up, say nothing about still existing so late in the season?
• Sundays are usually the most boring day of the week in the house -- no comps, just a PoV meeting ahead on Monday.
• At least Kevin got his yard open. It makes a definite difference in his demeanor.
• When the PoV is pretty much a given -- as it is this week -- things are relatively easy-going among the hamsters.
• Yes, Mark knows he's the target and will probably go on the block and out the door this week. He hasn't really given up trying to stay. He's being nice. That's pretty much all he can do at this point.
• Paul had an extremely long talk with the camera going over his strategy so far and in upcoming days. 
• He said he's "owned" every HoH except for Jessica and Cody. Yep, he has. Some viewers have certainly been vocal about him doing so. 
• But it's a feather in his BB cap.
• He hasn't been on the block and everybody except Jessica and Cody have followed his direction so far.
• Obnoxious dude or not, not many could have pulled it off.
• Of course, that doesn't mean his followers won't turn on him. They're quite likely to do so.
• In other news ... while Christmas, Josh and Paul want to target either Jason or Matt next, Alex, Jason, and Raven want Kevin gone.
• Paul wants Kevin to remain in until the final five to give him (Paul) a better chance of winning it all.
• Raven told Matt that she can't believe no one has targeted Paul.
• Ha. She's been a part of that, hasn't she?
• She also told Christmas about some new and different health woes she has.
• I can't believe no one's targeted her! After all, shouldn't she be living in assisted care or something with all of her health issues?!?!
• Christmas, playing on their agenda, encouraged Matt and Raven to keep Kevin nervous.
• Sigh.
• I like Kevin. He's been so different than most on the live feeds and has entertained me. But I do sense he's packing it in a bit and isn't going to give his 100% for the win.
• Paul also continues to cast doubt on Kevin's integrity.
• The latest is that he's lying about having seven children. He's not.
• Mark made a few last ditch efforts to see if there's any way he can stay.
• While Christmas told him she hasn't really made up her mind yet, we know she has. He knows it, too.
• Christmas and Josh want the final four with themselves, Paul and Raven. They think if Alex makes it that far, she'd boot Paul.
• Tons of small talk.
• Raven loves Josh? Oh my.
• On that note ... 

Being Mr. Congeniality

Paul explaining his strategy to us

Pool sharks

Probably won't eat hot dogs for a year

BB19: HoH, Nominations, New Temptatiion Show Blog Party - August 20

As the show airs here, I'll be live-blogging and constantly updating this entry -- refresh the page to get the latest! As always, the real party is in the comments area. Come join in on the fun! 

Recap ... Cody is out again! 

Finally, the HoH comp has matches two by two figuring out "decrypted" clues
Raven vs. Mark
Paul vs. Alex
Christmas vs. Kevin
Josh vs. Matt 

Mark is out. Alex is out. Kevin out. Matt out.

Second round -- Raven vs. Paul -- Raven out. 
                     -- Christmas vs. Josh -- Josh out. 

Final round is Christmas vs. Paul. Christmas wins thanks to Paul tossing it to her.  

Mark is the target and he knows it. Alex thinks Kevin should the alternate. Now she thinks he's a cop because he said he met Derrick "back home." (It was actually at a BB fan thing.) She tells Jason that Kevin is shady and he needs to cut ties with him. Jason will go with Alex because she's his "ride or die." 

Jason tells Kevin that he must have done something to Alex. Kevin denies it. Kevin asks Alex what's going on. Alex claimed it was all about him constantly asking about food.

Christmas asks Josh what's going on. Now, he was a partial witness to the Alex, Jason and Kevin kerfuffle. Josh tells Christmas that he thinks Jason and Alex are acting sketchy and they're good liars. 

Jason's short HoH reign got him an HoH basket. He cries as he reads his letter. He gets the news that his wife is pregnant! 

We get a bit on the Josh/Christmas bond. They do seem to truly like each other and care about one another.

Paul tells us he needs to attach himself with each power couple, the third to each pair. It's actually a good plan. It's a shame no one else is playing a thinking game in the house this season.

Christmas needs pawns to get Mark out. She's thinking of putting Jason and Matt up. If Mark wins the veto, it will be Jason. Kevin's name was tossed in there, but not the choice.

Oh, geez. It's a Josh and the stuffed owl Orwell bit. That happened weeks ago!

Whoa ... a big lighted tree in the living room! It's the Tree of Temptation. Five apples -- power or punishment. Once a houseguest chooses an apple, that's it. There are things like Eliminate Two Votes, Second Veto, Can't play in HoH, etc.

Mark, who really has nothing to lose at this point, claims an apple.  

He has to open it in the living room in front of everybody. Save a Friend.

Christmas talks to her pawn possibilities to Matt and Raven. Matt volunteers. Christmas tells them if Mark wins, Kevin goes up. She then gives roughly the same speech to Alex and Jason. She tells them that Matt will go home if both stay on the block. Jason is up for it. 

Mark talks to Josh and Christmas ... he knows he's the target. He points out the couples. She tells us that Mark made some sense in targeting the power couples. Hmm. 

Nominations time. Mark has to reveal who he has chosen to save. He gives Paul safety for the week due to friendship in week one.

Christmas nominates Matt, then Jason. She tells Mark she hopes he understands. 

ZingBot will be in the next episode.

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - August 20, 2017

Good morning! Since it's a Sunday morning, this is my weekly off television topic post taking a look at the week gone by in both words and photographs I've taken along the way. This weekly post is done year in, year out. Big Brother, the main draw for so many of you, only lasts about three months -- although sometimes it seems to be a lifetime. If you're here solely for the BB posts, please feel free to skip this post. You can find my latest BB19 posts by using this link.

I really don't have a heck of a lot for you this week. It seems like the majority of my commutes were rain-filled or high heat and humidity bearing. So, I didn't really take many photos and, you realize if I take photos of landscaping rocks, I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel here. I will say that, with all the rain we've had throughout the summer, everything is amazingly green and lush for late August. Usually by this time, the lawns that aren't watered are dry and leaves on some of the trees are even dying.

Some random thoughts this week:

• I'm not as thumpy or door-slammy as many neighbors in the building. I'll have to work on that.
• People seriously need to keep moving when they step off a train or enter/exit stores. Ahem! People are BEHIND you. 
• Amazon Prime needs to stop using USPS for their "guaranteed two day delivery" packages. USPS is the most undependable carrier out there. A huge part of why I went to Amazon Prime is the delivery guarantee time. I'm only home two specific days a week. If I order something heavy for home delivery, I time it to appear on that day. I don't want to schlep heavy stuff from work to home on the train.
• That said, I will be re-watching all five seasons of The Wire for free on Amazon Prime.   
• Soon I'll qualify for less than half-fare on NJ Transit.
• But I won't be able to retire due to the added ridiculously high expense of health insurance on a reduced income even though I'd have Social Security, my work pension and my 401K. If not for the work-related health insurance ending -- although I can still carry cheap life insurance -- it would be easy to make ends meet. If you can retire at 62 on Social Security, you should be able to get Medicare at the same age!
• Grr.
• I have two full weeks of work, then a three day work week, then my next staycation. I seriously need it.

Onto the few photos I'm posting this week ... 

Please

Not only on NJ Transit trains, but in the employee lounge at work, too! Sheesh, I'm the one with knee replacements and all kinds of leg and back issues. Yet the people nearly 40 years younger than I am tend to not be able to sit upright with feet on the floor. They have to sprawl out and practically be lying down in the chairs. I don't even like to sit on the chairs in the lounge -- they're all feet grungy. I feel like I should sit atop a plastic bag like I do on street benches.

Let the sun shine ...

Caught in the sun's morning rays, this morning glory is quite splendid indeed.

Fashion, beep beep

Trendsetter in motion on North Avenue in Plainfield.

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

BB19: Live Feeds into Sunday, Power of Veto - August 20

Safe this week no matter what

Here's the latest from inside that Big Brother House of Millennial Mice:

• The Veto comp went down -- with the live feeds blocked, of course.
• It was a visit from ZingBot and the "sliding on greased lanes filling up containers" one that's usually an HoH shown on the live feeds.
• At least, that's the gist of it from the conversations after the live feeds returned.
• Grr. That's usually more fun to watch than wall endurance comps. I feel robbed!
• Jason, who's on the block with Matt, won the comp.
• He will surely save himself. He may be a clown, but his mama didn't raise no fool.
• While Paul and part of his company are happy that Mark didn't win it, Paul is still on the anti-Kevin train. He also told Matt and Raven that if they get Jason out, Kevin will have no ties to Alex.
• Hmm.
• But Jason is safe this week.
• Paul is safe, too. After all, his best lil' buddy Mark gave him the "save a friend" from their latest new temptation tree.
• Will Paul stab his "savior" this week in the back?
• Hell, yeah.
• Mark is a dead man walking this week and will be evicted.
• In their thinking, they have to get Mark out when they can. He can win comps.
• It won't be a true backdoor because Mark played in the veto. A true backdoor (or Six Finger Plan as Nakomis who thought of the whole blindside scheme called it) gives the target no chance to save his or her butt in the game.
• Mark knew he was a target. But a slip and slide comp for him is almost as bad as a wall would have been. He's not built for either.
• Christmas agreed with Paul that they need to get Jason out.
• Well, not gonna happen if he keeps winning comps!
• Some of the zings from conversations -- Matt hasn't done anything but Raven. Alex is carrying too many people. 
• Oh. Raven's arthritis was aggravated by the comp.
• Poor sick child.
• Ahem.
• Paul is ticked because BB wouldn't let them slide on their butts in the comp this year like he did last year. 
• He thinks BB makes rules up to make things harder for him.
• It seems like more than half the show's fans think it's the other way around.
• Apparently the ZingBot said something about recent current events outside the house.
• Josh was amazed when Kevin said he remembers Nixon going out, Malcolm X., man walking on the moon and the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. "You were alive back then?!?!?!"
• Oh my.
• Now I feel even older as I have a handful of years over Kevin.
• Alex and Jason are both free of their punishments.
• And life is normal once again.
• Oh, wait.
• It's not.
• It's still BB season. 

Crazed veto winner?

His days are numbered ...

How Alex changes clothes

I'm a happy Have Not!