Ghost Hunters - New Hampshire

The commercials promised this last episode of the season to be the scariest, so I was really looking forward to it. The TAPS team goes to New Castle, New Hampshire and the Portsmouth Harbor. The light house, keeper's quarters and Fort Constitution will encompass this investigation. The fort was built in 1808 and there are reports of footsteps and voices heard. The keeper's quarters, built in 1872 is the site of apparitions, noises and footsteps. The light house is a working light house and people have reported hearing voices and seeing apparitions.

J & G are first in the light house and start communicating with the "captain" who is often seen there. They ask the captain to make a noise and he obliges. Just to make sure it wasn't coincidence, they ask a second and third time for him to make a noise and they are rewarded each time with a knock. Excited that there is good activity, J & G send in Kris and Amy to see of they experience the same things. Amy asks the captain to knock for them and he repeats the knock in the same pattern. Kris asks the captain to come up to them (they are at the top of the light house) and immediately hear footsteps on the stairs. The girls continue to hear the footsteps & knocking which is clearly heard on the TV.

J & G go to the fort and a shadowy figure and hear a male voice. They then go to the keeper's quarters and get a door slammed shut as soon as they walk in. When they hear a woman laugh, Jason tries to communicate by knocking and gets responses on the K2 meter.

The team catches the knocking and the laugh on audio. There were a lot of personal experiences but Jason would like to investigate further before calling the place haunted. Well, it wasn't the scariest episode like the commericial promised but it wasn't bad either. Stay tuned for Ghost Hunters International starting in January. Can't wait! Double D

Top Chef - 12 days of Christmas

This episode starts with Fabio & Stefan crying in their beer wondering what happened to them in the last episode because they are SO great, they couldn't possibly be on the bottom. Today is another day and another quick fire which is to make a holiday meal that can be made in one pot to be judged by the cooking diva herself, Martha Stewart. They have 45 minutes to make this one pot wonder so I was paying close attention. If something can be made in 45 minutes in one pot, that's for me!

Some of the dishes were Paella from Hosea (gee that rhymes), meatballs with mashed potato and pork loin with cabbage so I got a few ideas. Martha didn't like Fabio's polenta which Fabio couldn't believe and thought Martha was crazy. It was Ariane with another win when she made filet with cauliflower puree'. Talk about a come back, this girl is on a roll!

The elimination challenge is to make a dish based on the 12 days of Christmas to be judged at an AIDS fundraiser. What do you cook for 9 ladies dancing? The cheftestants (yes there is it again) prep their meals but the next day it was discovered that someone had left the fridge door open and Hosea & Radhika's dishes were spoiled. The other chefs pitched in and helped them both to make alternate dishes. Now there's team spirit! Stefan had the drummers so he made pot pie, OK. Fabio had the ladies dancing and made a "dancing" crab cake. Maybe he put in some Mexican jumping beans? Jeff with lords a leaping came up with potato risotto with pork and brussel sprouts. I guess the brussel sprouts with have you leaping the to the wash room. Ariane who has been on such a come back, makes deviled eggs which did not impress the judges and earned her a spot on the bottom. Hosea wins with his pork loin & chipotle mashed potatoes.

As the chefs are wondering who will be packing their knives, Chef Tom comes in and announces that everyones food pretty much sucked but since everyone banded together to help Hosea and Radhika, no one is getting sent home. So now it's off for some egg nog! Happy Holidays! Double D

Top Chef - Gail's Bridal Shower

We start out at the house where it's pretty clear Stefan has the hots for Jamie even though he knows she's gay. I guess he thinks he's so good that he can change her! Good luck with that Stefan.

It's the quick fire taste test with teams of 2 playing name that ingredient by bidding how many ingredients they can identify in a dish. Stefan goes in with his cocky self and gets all the way to the final round with Carla & Hosea. The final taste test is Mexican Mole' which Stefan clearly doesn't like. After Carla misses an ingredient it's down to an exciting finish in which Hosea & Stefan try out bidding each other. Hosea edges out sassy Stefan for the win. Go Hosea!

Here comes the bride for the elimination challenge. Gail is one brave woman to trust her bridal shower to the cheftestants, yes, that's right, cheftestants, kind of catchy you think? Gail arrived looking positively radiant. Even Padma couldn't outshine her this day. The challenge is to make dishes based on the poem Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue. The cheftestants break up into teams with the "new" team going for a surf & turf sushi but Gene over cooks the rice and it comes out too sticky. So rather than making a new batch, he tries to make it work by adding chili pepper and calling it chili pepper sticky rice.

Chef Tom comes into the kitchen where he tells the chefs that since it's a girl thing, he has been banished to the kitchen and will do his tasting there. The "blue" team does a seafood theme, ocean, blue, get it? The "borrowed" team borrows from Radhika's Indian culture and makes lamb with French and Indian spices. The "old" team decides on an heirloom tomato theme and Jeff makes a tomato sorbet while Stefan keeps telling him it won't be good. Much to Stefan's displeasure, the judges say it was the one thing that made their dish. However, it was Ariane's lamb that wins her the challenge. I'm so jealous of her prize, she won a complete set of Calphalon cook ware as well as the new Calphalon electric ware.

It was the "new" team on the chopping block. Gene failed to tell the women that it was a build it yourself sushi and a lot of the women were wondering what the nori was for. Come on, they look like a bright bunch, I would have thought they would figure it out. Anyway, Danny's part of the dish which was a yuzu ginger granita, didn't sit too well with the judges. Danny stood by his dish and wouldn't budge even after the judges were hinting that if he would say, yeah your right maybe I could have done this or that, he might have been spared. But no, being stubborn earned Danny a pack your knives and go. Double D

Top Chef - Live on Today

The quick fire challenge is to make a one bite breakfast. One bite?! Bring on the bacon, bring on the eggs! One bite doesn't cut it with me, especially for breakfast. But this is not about me, so I'll continue. There were some interesting combinations like Fabio's bruleed banana and brioche (what's brioche? It looked like egg nog), Danny's cornflake crusted zucchini blossoms and Hosea's quail egg with sweet potato hash. A lot of quail gave their eggs for this challenge but it was Leah with the win for making quail egg, tomato and cheese bite. Jamie was a close second with her baby BLT but the judges said her portion was more than a bite. Picky, picky.

For the elimination challenge, the chefs have to make a 2 1/2 minute presentation for live TV. Everyone heads to the market and straight to the seafood counter for tuna. After the prep work, it was time for the presentations. Padma, Gail and Chef Tom were on hand to time the presentations and judge the food. It was hard for anyone to stay in the time limit and some of the food was less than pleasing judging by Chef Tom's reactions.

The top three that managed the time limit and had decent food were Fabio, Jeff and Ariane. They each had their dishes on the Today Show where the hosts chose the winner. After tasting Jeff's malfouf roll, Cathy Lee Gifford acted like she had been poisoned running around like she was choking then spitting out the food. I'm still trying to figure out what a malfouf is but it didn't look as bad as Ms. Gifford made it out to be. Ariane is on top once again when she wins the challenge with her tomato, feta and watermelon salad.

Now for the bottom three: Melissa made habanero shrimp which was so hot no one could eat it. My husband would have polished it off and asked for more, the man eats habanero peppers whole! Jamie made a green salad topped with a fried duck egg which was undercooked and Alex's creme brulee fell short earning him a pack your knives and go. Double D

Ghost Hunters - San Diego

TAPS investigates the Star of India and the steam ship Berkeley in this episode. I was excited because I have seen both ships in San Diego. The Star of India which was built at The Isle of Man in 1863 is currently residing, along with the Berkeley, as part of San Diego's maritime museum. Reports on the Star of India include objects that move, footsteps, apparitions and parties are heard. Now we know, spirits like to party too! People also report getting S's drawn on their backs. The history of the ship shows that a stowaway liked to play tag by drawing S's on the backs of people with his finger.

The steam ship Berkeley, which is next to the Star of India, has reports of footsteps, apparitions and a stall in the ladies room that locks itself. Privacy please! The Berkeley is first on the list. J&G go on board first and immediately hear footsteps. They send in Steve & Tango next and Tango gets sea sick. They find high EMF readings which would explain the feelings of dread that get reported. Steve can't keep his hands off of the ships bells and keeps ringing them.

J&G go on board the Star of India to do EVP work and hear voices and feel the deck creak like someone walking. They continue to hear footsteps then start seeing shadows. J&G send in Steve and Tango to see if they experience the same things. They don't but Kris & Amy see a shadow. Nothing was found on the Berkeley but the Star of India yielded several EVPs one of which is a voice that says "get off my ship". Thermal camera catches what looks like someone kneeling down and a gate that moved on it's own against the list to port (that's sailor talk for the ship was leaning the other way). Jason pronounces the Berkeley not haunted but says there is paranormal activity aboard the Star of India. Double D

Ghost Adventures - Scotland

Edinburgh Scotland. The team investigates the Edinburgh vaults under the city's south bridge. The vaults were first used as storage for merchants who had shops just outside Edinburgh castle. Later, the vaults where home to the cities not so fortunate citizens. There are three levels of vaults and the lower you lived, the lower your station in life. The vaults are now home to several spirits which include a woman who has lost a child, a boy named Jack and an evil spirit the guides call Mr. Boots who likes to throw rocks. Zak vows to confront Mr. Boots and make him angry. Any spirit that throws rocks already sounds angry to me! I'm also thinking right after Zak pisses off Mr. Boots, he will scream like a girl and run away like he's done before. During the tour before the lock down (and there are more people around) Zak issues his challenge to Mr. Boots and Aaron sees a shadow walk behind Zak. They also tour a local cemetery said to be the most haunted in the world and Zak offers the following insight: "This place has seen a lot of death". You think?! Nothing like stating the obvious.

Lock down begins and Zak immediately starts provoking Mr. Boots. Nick feels something touch his hair as Zak gets a spike on the EMF detector which turned both guys into drama queens yelling "it touched me!" and jumping around like a couple of teenage girls. After recovering from being touched, Zak goes into Mr. Boots room alone and gets creeped out. He hears a scratch on the wall and freaks out, I actually thought he would pee his pants he couldn't get out of there fast enough. Zak calls for Nick & Aaron who are in another part of the vaults when Nick asks "is that Zak?" Now I ask you, who else would it be? These guys never cease to amaze me with their quit wits. Zak's courage returns when he is joined by Nick & Aaron so he begins to taunt Mr. Boots again. They hear dragging noises but instead of trying to find the source, Zak keeps the camera on his face. The team had set up a camera in the room that the boy spirit, Jack, is often seen. They had put a teddy bear and a ball for him to play with and the camera catches the teddy bear moving on it's own while the EMF detector registered a spike.

I'm real critical about these guys because on one hand they don't come off as being too bright, buy hey, they are on TV and I'm not so they must be doing something right. On the other hand, the show looks to be on the up and up, nothing staged or faked. Since I am really interested in the paranormal, I guess I'll keep watching (and criticizing) Ghost Adventures. Double D

Top Chef - A Foo Fighter Thanksgiving

For the quick fire challenge, the chefs have to redo a recipe from the Top Chef cook book. Everyone picks their dish and are off and cooking when, 10 minutes into the challenge, Padma tells the chefs that they have to make soup with the ingredients they are working with. Poor Leah was making tuna tartar, I don't think that would make a very good soup. She thought so too and came up with a white asparagus soup which won her the challenge and immunity.

The elimination challenge is to make Thanksgiving dinner for the Foo Fighters and their entourage which includes 18 vegetarians. Everyone is thinking, no big deal right? Then they find out the catch is they have to cook the dinner using one burner, microwave ovens and toaster ovens. They divide into two teams with Leah picking her dream team of all of the best chefs so far. She's no dummy! Leah's team call themselves Team Sexy Pants while the other team is Team Cougar, apparently because of Ariane who is the oldest.

Eugene from Team Cougar doesn't waste any time and rigs up a grill using a chafing dish and a grill rack from one of the toaster ovens. The other twist was that they were doing all of the cooking outside and it started raining. You see the production crew trying to put up tents while the chefs are freaking out thinking they will be serving soggy food. I would have been more worried about all those toaster ovens shorting out in the rain.

Aside from the rigged up grill, everyone made do with the micros and toaster ovens and got their meals out on time. Ariane who has been on the bottom from the start, made the turkey for the Cougar team which turned out to be a crowd fave. The Foo Fighters kept going back and forth between the two teams liking dishes from each. In the end it was the Foo Fighters love of bacon and team Sexy Pants' vegan stuffing that won them the challenge and a trip to that nights concert while team Cougar cleaned up the mess. It came down to the desserts to decide who went home and the unlucky chef that heard Padma utter the words pack your knives and go was Richard. Double D

Top Chef - All American

The quick fire this week is to create a signature hot dog and go up against Angelina who apparently is a famous hot dog vendor in NYC. Fabio has no idea how to make a hot dog but that doesn't stop him from trashing everyone else. He gets knocked down a peg when Radhika wins with her Indian inspired lamb dogs.

Keeping with the all American theme, the elimination challenge is to create a three course New American lunch menu. The chefs divide themselves into threes, appetizers, entree and dessert with everyone responsible for one dish. The frenzied shopping begins and Jill decides to buy ostrich eggs to make quiche. OK. After everyone is back and in the kitchen, Chef Tom drops the bombshell. Not only will they be serving lunch in his own restaurant but the customers will be chefs that tried out for Top Chef and didn't make the cut. No pressure there!

Back in the kitchen, Ariane is making a lemon meringue martini and wants everyone to taste it. Did anyone bother to tell her this is a competition? Does she honestly think they are going to tell her what they really think? Actually it looked like most of them were honest but she still said, "if I don't win you all are going to hear it!" There's gratitude for you!

The "customers" come in the restaurant wanting to hate everything and they pretty much succeeded. They all said how they would have done this or done that. They talk a big game but I wonder if they knew how much time the chefs had to prepare. The only dishes they liked were Jamie's corn soup, Stefan's halibut, Jeff's chicken and Carla's apple tart. Everyone hated Ariane's martini saying it was way too sweet, even Padama had to spit it out. The judge's commented they could tell Radhika had immunity when they tasted her avocado mousse, avocado mousse?! Fabio lives to trash talk another day when he wins with his beef carpasco with olives and Parmesan cheese. Ariane dodges the bullet again when Jill and her ostrich egg disaster is told to pack her knives and go. Double D

Ghost Hunters - Clovis Sanitarium

The TAPS team once again heads to California this time to investigate Clovis Sanitarium which is an 8000 sq. ft. facility which was used as a convalescent home and the site of where thousands of people died. Should make for a good investigation. I know it has nothing to do with the investigation but I thought it was funny that the episode starts out with J&G doing their "day job" and the camera keeps focusing on the dish washer they are about to install. Maybe GE was giving a little extra for product air time? Back to the story.....reports here are of voices, objects moving and even though there are no working telephones in the building, 911 has been called from there several times. The basement is the location of a lot of activity as well as a bedroom called Mary's room since so many people feel a spirit named Mary. Kris & Amy go to the basement and within minutes a rock gets thrown into the doorway leading to the basement. In another attic room, Steve & Tango have papers fall out of a box. Thinking the papers were on the edge of the box and just fell off as they walked by, they reset the papers and try to get them to fall but the papers wouldn't budge. J&G go to the basement and clearly hear a voice say "I like the one in the hat". Jason was wearing a ball cap and, feeling a little freaked out, wanted to take it off after hearing the voice. Who could blame him? They decide to try and communicate with the spirit by asking it to move a door, light a flashlight (which was left on the floor for it's convenience) or play with Jason's hat. Just as Jason is offering his hat for the spirit to try on, or something, the flashlight on the floor lights up saving Jason from having to give up his hat to the ghost. Amy does some research on the house and finds out that even though there are no phones in the building, the phone system still works and will dial 911 if the system malfunctions. So even though the wires are cut, it seems that the "brains" of the system still work and, from time to time, lets the local PD know. J&G let the owner know it looks like they have a resident spirit that likes to play games and is nothing to be afraid of. We will surely hear more since the building is slated to be turned into a hotel. I think I could stay there! The second part of the show was an investigation of The Windward Grill in Essex, MA. Built as a farmhouse in the 1680's, it is now a restaurant. The owner reports hearing babies crying, plates moving, silverware that rearranges itself as well as apparitions. Steve & Tango immediately debunk the silverware thing when they find out a lot of pieces are magnetic. It was pretty much an uneventful night. The only thing caught on audio is a voice asking "where is the boy" which could be in reference to the owners son who helps out in the restaurant. Either way, Jason doesn't think there is anything to be afraid of and tells the owner to call if she feels the need. Personally, I think she felt the need for advertising! Double D

Biggest Loser Finale & Momma's Boys Premiere

I have been watching on and off the Biggest Loser. It is so amazing the weight that these have people lost. Of the four that were left on last night's finale, Heba, her hubby Ed, Vickki and Michelle, I thought it was so totally hilarious that America voted by a landslide to keep Ed in the finale and vote out Heba. I know a collective groan went through America, when Ed pleaded with America to keep his wife in the running. My first thought was Oh please! If she has that much control over him to make him plead for her to stay instead of him, then she needs to be voted out, and that is exactly what America did by a landslide! Heba would have been better off letting Ed plead his own case. Ed looked silly begging America to keep his wife instead of him, did she really want it that bad? Either way one of them would go to the finale and have the chance at the money. At the reunion show, about the only ones that still needed help losing the weight looked like Tom Jr. and Tom Sr. Junior went from 360 to about 270, but he's still a big boy and if not careful, could balloon up again. The second place finish went to big girl Heba with an impressive weight loss, inching out an almost too gaunt Amy.

After Heba winning, I was so hoping that Ed wouldn't win, because that wouldn't be fair. Another Survivor Gabon with winner take all. I didn't think tho that Ed (he better be careful, what with being a chef and all) would have a chance and I was hold my breath when Vicki did her weigh in. Doesn't she walk knocked knees with her feet in a duck stance? I guess she'll have to learn not to walk like a fat girl. I was rooting this entire time for Michelle to win, after all the black team has been the underdogs this whole season. So when Michelle got on the scale and had to lose 105 pounds, I was like, eek! That's a lot of weight. But when she made 110 I was so glad for her and her trainer, Jillian. Michelle looked amazing and so totally deserved to win against the other two. All around a satisfying conclusion to this season.

After that came the premiere of Momma's Boys-a bachelor style dating game with a twist-momma's coming along for the ride, nothing like three's a crowd. Thirty girls for 3 bachelors to chose from, nice odds. Looks like Michael the EMT from Jersey is already a crowd favorite. He is a cutie and his mother is seems pretty hip. The other momma's boy, Rob is a nice Jewish boy from New York, oy vey! His mother is your typical Jewish mom ( I know I had one). The third bachelor is JoJo whose mother is the mother from hell. Khalood (what kind of name is that?) already has created fireworks with her racial and ethnic slurs (hey isn't she some kind of ethnic herself?). She just wants a nice white girl for her little man. Well, with a mixed crowd of ethnicity's in the bachelorettes, this show seems like it has all the makings for some mindless entertainment. Let the backstabbing begin!-Single D

Survivor Gabon-Finale

It always amazes me when a season of Survivor comes to an end. Just as quickly as it started, it has ended. This season I really didn't have a favorite survivor, maybe, towards the end there, I was hoping that Crystal might surprise everyone, but that was not to be. And if Sugar had any hopes of winning this thing, she would have voted off Bob when she had the chance after Suzi won the house of cards immunity. Instead she chose to play King Solomon and have the battle of the fire makers, Bob and Matty put to the test. If she was trying to be so fair, then why didn't she tell Matty that she was going to make it a tie, so Matty could practice making fire like Bob. During tribal, all Matty could do was to stare at Bob's fire. Sugar right there gave Bob the million. At the tribal Q & A, Corinne was so venomous, didn't someone tell her it's just a game? To rag on Sugar for the death of her father was inappropriate. Corinne seems to wear the badge of the world's biggest Beeyach like it's some kind of honor. Wrong! I think Corinne and Randy should couple up. They both hate people and the world.

It was no surprise when Bob won most of the votes, edging out Suzi for the money. I was hoping maybe Suzi would win and be the sleeper survivor of the season, but that was not to be. Poor Sugar was totally shut out of the voting. I thought she was the one that played the smartest game. She was instrumental in many of the key moves, and so what if she laughed in the face of stupidity, when Randy played the fake idol, it was funny! Sugar would have been my vote to win, but whose listening to me. I totally had to turn the TV off when Bob was announced the winner of 100,000. Too bad he didn't offer to split up the money between his two runners up, it was after all, Sugar that crowned him!-Single D

Movie Review-Australia

While away on my working trip to Los Angeles, I finally found time to see a movie. At home, I am always too busy to sit still for the required 3 hours or so of movie time. I was staying at the Hilton LAX, which I might add is a really nice hotel on Century Blvd., only 5 minutes from the airport. I always judge a hotel by how comfortable the beds and pillows are and I love, love, love a bed that is dress in a sheet duvet on the bed rather than bedspreads which was the case here. The bed and pillows were divine however, what would have been a comfortable night rest on these heavenly pillows was ruined by the clank, clank, clank of the ice machine. Unfortunately my room was right across from the ice machine and unfortunately this hotel uses metal ice buckets. The sound of the ice cubes hitting that metal bucket in the middle of the night was deafening, which answers one of the most intriguing questions of the universe. Do people really get ice in the middle of the night? Yes they do!

A nice perk to this hotel, being stranded without a car, was that a shuttle to Manhattan Beach was provided, where it was that I saw the movie, Australia.

I am seldom moved to see movies, what with the cost of the movie, popcorn and soda will set you back a small fortune. I always sneek my water bottle and snacks with me. I've seen whole families buy hot dogs, drinks and snacks at the show, which gives dinner and a movie a whole new meaning. But Australia was one movie I wanted to see, no matter that I had to hunt down the theater in an area unknown to myself and walk two giant blocks away from the mall and the shuttle drop. After lunching on Baja Fresh, I found the 19 screen theater down the street just in time to catch the 2:25 matinee although it was already 2:40 when I got in, screen blackening to the opening scene. I couldn't have planned it better.

Australia was everything I had hoped it would be. A big epic drama, with romance, drama, suspense and bittersweet tenderness. I have read some reviews of the movie criticizing it's false grandeur and unreal history, for heavens sake, it's for entertainment value not a history lesson! The boy wonder, an unknown Brandon Walters as Nullah, with his singular most poetic line of the entire movie, "I will sing you to me" was mesmerizing, whose wide doe eyes enveloped you with a sense of wonder and innocents. I thought Nicole Kidman as Lady Sarah was perfect in her role of aristocrat gone down under and Hugh Jackman, well there's a reason why he's People's sexiest man of the year. One word, WOW! And ladies, hold on to your seat with that scene of him showering in the outback, as my daughter would ask, "Do you think he's yummy?" Yes dear, he's way more than yummy!

To all the movie critics that might pan this movie, for it's lack of acting and accuracy, I say, Crikey mate, it's damn well great entertainment and if I wanted a history lesson or Shakespearean acting then I would see some Henry James movie. But this movie represents what movies used to be in the genre of Gone with the Wind or the likes of Pearl Harbor. I miss movies like this, I miss the sweeping scenes, the romance wishing I were the Nicole Kidman character being swept up in the arms of the Drover and leaving me with the affects of the movie long after I have left the theater. This movie should definitely be seen on the wide screen, so pay the money, buy the popcorn and soda and settle in for a great story.-Single D

Survivor Gabon-Bob In Charge

After that last tribal, Kenny is feeling like Professor Bob made a fool out of him with that whole fake idol thing. Kenny really plays the part of poor me really well. In exchange for comforting Kenny, Bob promises that if he wins the next immunity challenge he will give the idol to Kenny. Either he's a fool or a real game player. Is it my imagination or is Suzi flourishing in the jungle? It's amazing how much weight Kenny has lost but Suzi is still round and plump. For the reward challenge, need we say anything here, except that once again Professor Bob proves he's a force to be reckoned with at age 57. Bob wins a trip to a gorilla habitat, lunch and a shower and he takes along Crystal (because she has yet to win something) and Kenny. For all of Crystal's title of Olympic winner, she sucks at challenges. I liked the muu muus they were given to wear. Back at camp, Matty is trying to woo Sugar over to his side and it looked like she would remain steadfast to her alliance of Crystal and Kenny until Crystal makes the mistake of getting on Matty's case for no apparent reason. Cut to Sugar crying over injustice to an underdog. Sugar sure cries a lot. Again Bob wins the immunity challenge. Kenny is practically begging Bob to give him the immunity but Bob's answer to this is that he's not a target, therefore gracefully bowing out of his promise to give him the immunity. Amazing how Bob comes out smelling like roses in this maneuvering. Since Bob has the immunity, this spoils Kenny and Crystals' to get rid of the biggest threat this season. At tribal, Sugar knows that this will be the last chance to play the idol, so voting comes down to a three-three split between Matty and Crystal. Before the votes were read, Jeff does the whole speech thing about the idol and Sugar casually gives it to Matty, thereby cancelling his votes and in a turn around, Crystal is voted off. One thing about Crystal's departure, this is the first time during this whole thing, she displayed grace and sincerity. Seems like Bob and Sugar are poised to go all the way and surely if this happens, it will be interesting to see who becomes the biggest game player of all time.-Single D

Amazing Race-Finale

I had been out of town when the finale of Amazing Race was on, so I taped it, thinking that probably some website headline would spoil it for me. Well, that didn't happen, so I did manage to watch it with some hopes that the "horseshoe up the butt team" (in Ken's words) wouldn't win. But of course that was not to be. They were this season's strongest team with a good race for their money made by Ken and Tina. The final challenge of linking clues with various route markers, detours, pit stops was on your seat riveting. What made this whole episode get on my nerves was Tina's incessant complaining. Come on, take that darn helmet off. Didn't she just drive you crazy with her helmet doing that walking the log challenge? And Ken, he was just so patient with her. Of course we knew the Cinderella team of Andrew and Dan wouldn't make for a compelling race to the finish. The sloppy team managed once again to get a taxi that didn't know his way around Portland, Ore. Hey, it's America! It's not like Portland is that big. Good idea for Andrew to call the visitor bureau for that information, needless to say tho, they just couldn't keep up with the two strongest team. They just kept plugging away like Colombo and Inspector Clouseau with their third place finish. In the end, Nick and Starr win the money, but I think Tina was the biggest winner in this race, with Ken asking her again to marry him and giving her a ring. Hey Ken, one word RUN! -Single D

Survivor Gabon-Operation Fake Idol 2

Well, I knew it was going to happen sooner or later. Quiet Professor Bob is playing the game. His true colors revealed themselves starting with his anger at Sugar laughing at Randy when he played the fake idol during tribal for all of America to see, making him the biggest Survivor jackass of all time. Lighten up Bob, that was good TV! I think Bob must have been feeling the guilt and so was angry with himself for putting Randy in that laughable situation. Did I miss the part when delicate Sugar put Bob in a stranglehold and made him give the fake idol to Randy? I think not, Bob is the smartest one there and he knew exactly what he was doing, so suck it up Bob. It was funny!

The reward challenge is the seeing relatives cry fest. Didn't gamer boy, Kenny look like he was really trying to squeeze some water out of those eyes when he saw his sister? Say it with me, crocodile tears! We knew that anything involving puzzles, Bob would win, which he did and enjoyed an afternoon with his wife and pizza. Me, I would have enjoyed the pizza more. The producers are such wimps and everyone else gets the visit with their relatives. Matty becomes the biggest softest marshmallow on the planet and gets all mushy over his girlfriend and proposes to her in the jungles of Africa. Hey, that will make a good story to tell the grand kids one day.

Clever and crafty Bob hatches operation fake idol 2 with Corinne and makes another fake idol. I'm wondering exactly where in the jungle Bob finds all those wooden beads to fashion a fake idol from? The Gabon bead store? He tells Kenny, whose head is now so big it can barely balance on top of his scrawny body, that when the idol was thrown in the ocean by Marcus, he really hid it on the beach and now he has it. If anyone buys that story, I have a bridge I'd like to sell. Kenny fell for it, making him the biggest dummy in Survivor history. He tells Crystal that Bob has the idol and that they will be voting Matty out.

The immunity challenge is lobbing balls on to a target. Again, Bob proves his skills and wins the immunity. The old Fang tribe is voting Corinne out with unbeknownst to Crystal becoming the swing vote. Again, another great twist at tribal, whether Crystal would vote Matty out. When Jeff asked if anyone had the idol, Kenny was practically saying out loud to Corinne to play the idol and when she didn't, Kenny knew he had been duped. Thankfully, Crystal voted Corinne and the queen of mean took her walk of shame. Corinne is forgetting that this is just a game as she venemously spews hate toward those who are left becoming this season's Sue Hawk! -Single D

Amazing Race-No Money, No Passports, No Third Place Finish-Bye to Toni & Dallas

First to leave: Toni & Dallas

Followed by Ken & Tina

Nick & Starr

with Frat boys bringing up the rear and having to catch up after their imposed speed bump. I was almost certain the race for the final three would be the first three teams to leave, with dumb and dumber packing their bags, but that was not to be. It seemed like all teams almost leave at the same time as they all make it to the submarine together. The clue is to race to the park of Fallen Monuments and make a statue count. I knew it when Toni and Dallas arrived and mom told Dallas to do it, I was like why would she let him do it? It seemed like it should have been her turn to do the road block. But like the dutiful son that Dallas is, he didn't disagree with her-huge mistake MOM! First of all, it sounded way to complicated for Dallas's huge hair brain. Of course, Nick didn't have any problems with this road block, in fact the luck Gods were with Nick and Starr this leg of the race.

Not having a smooth time of it was Tina, screeching her way through Moscow. I need a hoodie, I'm going to catch my death, Ken give me your hoodie! I don't think I heard Ken utter one complete sentence during this entire episode. Just Tina screeching in the background. No wonder Ken divorced her! I thought it was funny when Nick and Starr stole Ken and Tina's cab who had the only GPS device in all of Moscow.

I wasn't understanding how it was raining on all the other teams, but where the Frat boys were it was sunny, maybe they were in Southern Russia?

When Dallas finished counting the statues of course he had the wrong number and if it wasn't for Tina giving him the right number, he might have given the wrong number each time and wouldn't have lost their passports and money which eventually cost them the game. So from here on it was semi anti-climatic. Of course frat boys do their speed bump with little flair, although Dan still can't dance a Cassock dance. Yes, you do dance that bad!

No matter, how the edits of this leg, it didn't build any suspense for me. I knew Toni and Dallas were the last. I'm not getting why they just didn't follow the rules and begged for cab money in the first place. They might have made it and you know darn well, their passports were retrieved out of that cab because Mom was not that concerned. I have to give her snaps tho, she remained the calm Mother. I would have been the hysterical Mother, am the hysterical Mother.

I was hoping against hope that maybe four teams would race to the finish, but that was not to be. So bye to Toni and Dallas, they went further that I thought they would. But the team that made the final three by default, the so called "Cinderella team", I would have never guess they would have made it that far. I would laugh my butt off if they did win it, but my money is on Nick and Starr. Next I'm thinking it's on to Alaska, because can't you see Alaska from Russia?-Single D

Amazing Race-March to Russia

Only four teams left: 9:21 pm-Nick and Starr 10:47 Dallas and Toni 11:17-Ken and Tina 12:41 Dan and Andrew All board the same flight to Moscow, Russia with Dan and Andrew at the airport buying shoes because they stupidly left their shoes at the costume store. They looked really silly walking around the airport in the hotel slippers! Laurel and Hardy, Barney and Andy, Miss Piggy and Kermit, who would be Miss Piggy? I'm thinking Andrew? Arriving in Russia they catch cabs to a monastery where they will receive their next clue, however, taking cabs in Russia looks daunting and worst than Almaty. The detour is boots or borscht. Marching in military boots or serving borscht to a military army of 75. Nick and Starr for the first time have bad luck in catching the cabs from Hell. All teams chose boots and Dallas and Toni make it to the detour first, with Tina and Ken on their heels. Tina looked right at home in that military garb, that suited her militaristic style of traveling. Andrew for some reason doesn't know how to wrap cloth around his feet and both decide to do the borscht which they remove their uniforms only to find out that they needed to stay dressed. So once back in the uniforms they decide might as well do the march. Now come on, Dan can't march. At first I'm like, he's got to be kidding. No one is that uncoordinated! Wrong, Dan is. He can't march to save his life. Even the Russian army were having a good laugh. At work we were all marching like Dan, with Jeffie making the perfect Dan impression. What a klutz, Dan not Jeff! Andrew and Dan then decide to do the ladling of borscht, because that doesn't require coordination. Meanwhile, Nick and Starr have finally arrived to the detour and Starr tells her cab driver to take a hike since he got them lost in Russia. Of course when they finish their detour there isn't a cab to be found anywhere. Not a good leg for these two, but you knew their luck would have to run out sometime. Next challenge is to load 50, 50lb sacks of flour into a bakery. Looked like back breaking work, but Dallas insist on carrying two sacks at a time. I was so glad Dallas and Toni made it to the pit stop first. Next to check in were Ken and Tina with Nick and Starr making up a lot of time ahead of the bumbling idiots of Dumb and Dumber who finishes last, but were saved by a non-elimination round. My guess for the race to the finish, Nick and Starr and Tina and Ken. I really would like Dallas and Toni to win, but I just don't think they are fast enough, but maybe they will have the Luck Gods on their side.-Single D

Survivor-Gabon-Cookies and Venom and False Idols

Ok folks, was this not the best episode ever! We were buzzing at work about how crazy good it was. And Randy enough with the cookies already, as Sugar said, it's just cookies! This episode was the auction reward challenge, pitting bidding Survivors against each other for food. Randy wins the first item for bid which was beer and peanuts. Randy strikes me as a beer and peanuts kind of guy so that was appropriate. Kenny bids on the next which is a piece of paper that says send someone to exile island and take their money, so he sends Bob to exile again. Poor Bob! Next, Susie bids on a soak in a tub. At first that looked great, but having to soak in front of the gang and crew wouldn't necessarily be relaxing. She gets in, I assume sans clothes and soaks for all of 5 minutes. I think she got out quickly because she was uncomfortable washing her pits in front of America. Matty bids and wins the big plate of spaghetti and wine which he desperately needed since he is so thin he makes me look fat. And the whole cookie incident was brought on when Jeff brings out a plate of cookies and says it's for sale for 20.00 but it's for the tribe. Randy immediately jumps in and gives the money over and brings the plate for everyone to take a cookie, but at first Sugar says no, but then says I will give it to Matty. This ticks Randy off and he says no, it's for you. The very last cookie he asks Sugar again and this time Sugar takes it and gives it to Matty, which enrages Randy. Is there anything that doesn't enrage Randy? Back at camp Randy is on a rampage against Sugar and the whole cookie incident. Sugar keeps rolling her eyes and says, geez it's just cookies! Randy hatches a plan with Corinne, to incite the camp against him which I'm sure is not going to take much since everyone already hates him. When Bob comes back, Corinne is to sweet talk Bob into giving Randy the idol and thus save him from tribal. One major thing wrong with this plan, Bob doesn't have a real idol, only the fake one he made from resin and beads. On exile, Bob decides to get in touch with his African experience and enjoy the beauty of Africa. The immunity challenge was a maze of setting up pieces of wood to create a domino effect to win the immunity. In the final three, Corinne, Kenny and Matty, I was like holding my breath to see whose domino's would finish first. Kenny's gamer boy intellect leads him to win victory and all was well in Survivor world.

At camp Bob tells Sugar that he doesn't have the idol but made a fake one. Sugar says wouldn't it be funny if you gave that idol to Randy and he'd play it at tribal thinking it was a real one. For all of Sugar's blondness, she's not some dumb cookie. She's actually pretty smart and the way she handles people with that dumb blond personality people are like putty in her hands. I really didn't think Bob would spin a lie to Randy and Corinne, but I was amazed when Corinne asked if he found the idol and he kinda said yes in an off handed manner.

At tribal the cookie drama was still being bantered around with Sugar saying get over it!Everyone is pretty much done with Randy and his antics. During the vote, Crystal talks so loudly to the camera, everyone could hear her say, I'm so done with him since day one. Alrighty let's really tell everyone how you feel. I was laughing. When Jeff asked if anyone had the idol and would like to play it, a smug Randy turns over the resin beaded thing to Jeff. Corinne and Randy both had that smug look of triumph, but Sugar and Crystal could hardly contain their laughter behind their hands. They looked like school girls getting one over on their teacher. When Jeff declared it a fake, you know those girls wanted to laugh hysterically. I was howling on my couch, my daughter commenting, gee mom, you're so weird! Well, I guess you had to be there. I loved, loved, loved him getting blindsided, it was like a double blindside with the fake idol and all. And when he was eliminated, Randy's looks were spewing fire. Hell hath......Can't wait to see what he says at Ponderosa.-Single D

Reality Check-Traffic Tickets

Several months ago I got a speeding ticket. Ok, I was distracted,rushing to my daughter's orthodontist and then planning on leaving town for a week in San Diego. Who wouldn't be distracted? Which led me to think of my other tickets, not that there have been that many, which I could probably count on one hand since I drive more like "Driving Miss Daisy". I'm the person on the highway doing the speed limit! When we lived in Denver, I got almost two tickets there. I say almost, since one of the them I was stopped by the po-po for having out of state plates on my Subaru Outback. It just so happened, my timing was perfection! that I had gone to the DMV that day to register my car (from California) and received my new plates. I threw those in the back seat, when on University Ave there was a flashing red light in my rear view mirror. What, is that for me? Yep it was. He pulls me over, "Do you know your plates are expired and out of state?" I'm like, "well, dud, like I'm from California" (well, I really didn't use those words exactly). Yes sir. "Do you live in Denver?" Yes sir. "How long have you lived here?" Here I lie, about 2 months, (really more like 6 months). "Do you know it's illegal not to register your car when residing in this state?" But sir, I have my plates! Oh, where are they? In the back seat, because I just got them today, I remark happily. Po-po is not pleased at all! (I think that ticket was a hefty fine). So he says to me, put them on. I'm like what? Put them on! I say I don't have a screw driver. Guess what he says? "Use a nickle". Yep you heard me, use a nickle. Not a quarter, not a dime, not even a penny, use a nickle! Oh how those three words are burned into my brain to this very day! Use a nickle! So I get out of my car, now it's about 25 chilly degrees outside and it's getting dark. I take my plates, use a nickle to pry off the old ones (do you know how hard it is to unscrew a screw with a nickle?!) and put on the new ones, this taking about 20 minutes because I'll be darn if he didn't sit in that warm po-po car of his watching me do this. I think he secretly enjoyed seeing me suffer. I should have reported him! The one ticket I did get was one of the photo tickets, again on University Ave (I should have avoided that street altogether!). All of sudden I see this flash, but, I thought nothing of it. A couple of weeks later, I get in the mail a photo of me driving in my car, my passenger's face (my husband) blurred out like I was having some sort of secret affair. I thought I looked pretty good for a black and white photo, although I had this quizzical look on my face (what was that flashing light?). Well that good black and white photo which wasn't suitable for framing cost me $300.00! My very first ticket was in Oakland when I was really green around the ears. The four of us had gone out to dinner at a place called the "Gingerbread House" in Oakland. This restaurant only had two seatings for dinner. The four of us enjoyed the 9:00 seating, ate Cajun food and my friends had several bottles of wine between them. Leaving the restaurant and me unfamiliar with Oakland trying to find the freeway to get back to San Francisco, I saw the freeway entrance, but I was in the wrong lane to turn so instead I went straight for a half block and made a u-turn. So what if it was a little deserted street and I was going the wrong way down a one way street, what was the harm in that at midnight? Well, when I got to the corner to make the right turn onto the freeway, there was the po-po lying in wait. He followed me onto the freeway for 5 miles, surely waiting for me to drive like some drunk reckless person. When he finally pulled me over, shining the light in my eyes and sniffing the inside of my VW, he asked me if I had been drinking, to which I tersely said, No! He made me follow his flashlight with my eyes, which I guess it was some sort of sobriety test which I passed. He asked me what we were doing and I said I was trying to find the freeway back to SF, to which, after he wrote me the ticket said, would you like me to escort you to the freeway? I'm like yeah, deflated, defeated, and suddenly that Gingerbread House food giving me a terrible upset stomach! So when I got that ticket the other day, with my daughter strapped in the back seat, the police said he clocked me at 54 mph in a 35 zone, asking me for my license and registration of which I couldn't get my glove box opened, it was a new Saturn Vue which had a faulty glove box lock, the po-po said in his most generous sounding voice, of course after running my plates and seeing what a good little citizen I have been, said that he was going to reduce it to a parking ticket. A parking ticket I queried? Yes, it would act like a parking ticket and I will reduce your speed to 45 mph also. Somehow my mind could not wrap around the words speeding and parking. Those two words just didn't jive in my head. After he gave me my ticket and I resumed driving, this time 35 mph, my daughter's voice came through the fog, gee mom, I felt like crying! When I told my husband that I got a speeding/parking ticket, he's like what does that mean and why didn't you tell him who you work for, maybe he would have cut you some professional courtesy? First of all, being stopped like that is not an everyday occurrence for me, so I really didn't have my wits about me and besides he threw me off by throwing out words like parking. When I got my ticket, I was hoping it would be of the parking fines and not the speeding fines. Not! So the other day when I was leaving my house, lo and behold, there in front of my subdivision, was a motorcycle cop lying in wait. I'm like OMG, they're in my own neighborhood, my own backyard and where the speed limit is only 25 mph. 25 mph! Only wheelchairs and skateboarders go that slow! It's unnatural for cars to go 25 mph I whine to my husband and daughter! It's just not fair, not fair I think to myself, going 25 mph, still feeling the sting from paying $200.00!-Single D

Top Chef - Premier

The talent pool for Top Chef has exceeded itself once again or so it seems. Most of the contestants own their own restaurant or are a executive chef at one. There is one student. So everyone is making friends and having a good time when Padama and Chef Tom announce the quick fire challenge. They have to peel apples with a knife. The quick fire is done in three rounds and the one left standing is going home. The second round is chopping the apples while the third round is to cook the apples. One contestant slices his thumb and bleeds all over his apples but luck for him, he peeled them good and didn't have to continue. The two bottom people both make salads. Nothing wrong with salads but come on, this is your first impression with the judges! It doesn't work for Lauren and her spinach salad gets her a ticket home with Stefan winning immunity. At the house, personalities are emerging with Stefan and Fabio thinking they are superior. Check the ego at the door guys it usually goes before the fall.

In the elimination challenge, the chefs are paired up to go head to head and get an area of NYC to get their inspiration, China Town, Little Italy, etc. It seemed like one person from every twosome didn't know how to cook in that particular area. The shopping was funny, the one person who didn't know what they were doing would follow the other to get some clue. Back in the kitchen, Jeff was running around like a chicken, well you know, and not getting anything done. Everyone else was trying to get in the swing of things since they really aren't used to competing. I thought sure Eugene was going to win since he didn't know how to cook Indian food but came up with, apparently, is their national dish of lamb with basmati rice and tzatziki with tandoori glaze (yes I cheated and looked it up). But it was not to be and Stefan wins with his lamb chop paired with beef skewers, sounds plain by comparison. Pour student, Patrick, who had so much trouble with his black rice noodles didn't impress the judges and was told to pack his knives and go. Double D