This collection of entries is from August 2003.
Sunday, August 31, 2003
Day offNothing to say today. It's a "holiday" weekend. I'm laying low, staying quiet. Maybe another day.
posted at 08:53 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Saturday, August 30, 2003
Yo Ho, Yo Ho! A Pirate's Life For Me!
Fun, fun, fun, fun, fun! Went to the movies to see Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. This movie just looks right. The story may be a bit light, but it had action and Johnny Depp was just great in his role. Hey - it's got Jerry Bruckheimer behind it! My recommendation? Worth seeing on the big screen.
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YO HO (A PIRATE'S LIFE FOR ME)
Lyrics by Xavier Atencio and music by George Bruns
Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me.
We pillage, we plunder, we rifle, and loot,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot,
Drink up me 'earties, yo ho.
Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me.
We extort, we pilfer, we filch, and sack,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
Maraud and embezzle, and even high-jack,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me.
We kindle and char, inflame and ignite,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
We burn up the city, we're really a fright,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
We're rascals, scoundrels, villans, and knaves,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
We're devils and black sheep, really bad eggs,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me.
We're beggars and blighters, ne'er-do-well cads,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
Aye, but we're loved by our mommies and dads,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:12 PM | Link | Movies § |
Erika's boyfriend!!?? THEME
On the Internet feeds during the week, Robert walked out into the backyard where Erika was alone and asked her if this was the same house that the first season used. She said yes, to which he replied something about that it's funny that she is living in the same house as "him"...
Huh? "Him" is her current boyfriend!!! So, who would that be???
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posted at 02:11 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
3-Day weekend?When you're unemployed, weekends aren't as special as they used to be. When you work, you almost live for the weekend. When you're not working, it's close to being like any other day. The fact that it's a 3-day weekend doesn't necessarily change it. It's special for Carol - she's looking forward to relaxing without having to go to a baseball game. Normally, we'd relax at my sister's house in Michigan, but she has a little thing that she's ben doing the last couple of years. She takes a trip for her birthday. I'm not sure why she always does that, but she does. Last year was a driving trip out west. This year, it's fly to San Francisco and do Pacific Coast Highway to L.A.
The problem with it this year is the dogs (Chelsea & Gracie) are at our Mom's. We could go to house anyway, but then it would be the three of us and the 2 dogs in the car for the drive, and it's not something that I think I could tolerate if there's heavy traffic. So, nothing special planned for the weekend.
There's the emotional side of the weekend, though. Labor Day weekend signals the "end of Summer", and that's pretty hard to handle. Where did the year gop? What do you mean summer is over - I didn't do anything! Crap.
posted at 10:43 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Friday, August 29, 2003
Friday 5 - School
Time for another Friday Five...
1. Are you going to school this year? Nope. That's over for me.
2. If yes, where are you going (high school, college, etc.)? If no, when did you graduate? High School - 1975, College - didn't graduate
3. What are/were your favorite school subjects? TV Production, History of American Popular Culture, Meteorology, and a favorite - a 2 credit hour Geography course: Wine, Beer, and Booze Geography!!!
4. What are/were your least favorite school subjects? High School Drafting - only course I flunked and had to talke summer school
5. Have you ever had a favorite teacher? Why was he/she a favorite? Two guys - Bob Morris and Bob Brown. Had them in High School. Funny guys, both driven, knew how to talk to the students and motivate them
posted at 12:42 AM | Link | Friday Five § |
Thursday, August 28, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands cast announced THEME
CBS announced the cast of Survivor: Pearl Islands this morning on The Early Show. The two tribes are Drake and Morgan (must be in keeping with the Pirate-theme). Oh, oh... two Ryan's in the same tribe...
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- Rupert Boneham, a mentor for troubled teens, is 39 and hails from Indianapolis, Ind.
- Tijuana Bradley, 27, is from St. Louis, Mo., and works in pharmaceutical sales.
- Shawn Cohen, who turns 29 on Sept. 20, works in advertising sales and lives in New York, N.Y.
- Jon Dalton, an art consultant, hails from Danville, Va. He is 29.
- Nicole Delma, who turns 26 on Sept. 19, is a massage therapist from Hermosa Beach, Calif.
- Sandra Diaz-Twine, 29, an office assistant, is from Fort Lewis, Wash.
- Trish Dunn, a 42-year-old sales executive, Dunn is from Annapolis, Md.
- Christa Hastie is a 24-year-old computer programmer from Los Angeles.
- Darrah Johnson, a mortician, 22, lives in Liberty, Miss.
- Lillian Morris, 51, is a scout troop leader who lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.
- Ryan Opray, an electrician, is 31 and lives in Los Gatos, Calif.
- Burton Roberts is a 31-year-old marketing executive from San Francisco.
- Andrew Savage, an attorney, is 40 and lives in Chicago.
- Ryan Shoulders, hailing from Clarksville, Tenn., is a 23-year-old produce clerk.
- Osten Taylor, 27, is an equity trade manager from Boston.
- Michelle Tesauro, from Pittstown, N.J., is a 22-year-old student.
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:45 AM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 23 THEME
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Yes, another twist in the show. First, during the live eviction voting, Jack was evicted on a 2-1 vote, against HOH Jee's wishes. Over the course of the past day or two, the crew have been removing items out of the house. The HOH competition was a quiz to identify the items. Jun won it. Julie Chen, after a commercial break, calls Jun to the Diary Room to tell her that there's a limo outside and she's leaving the house. her only question was where? She's going to New York to be a guest at the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City! Jun puts on a blindfold and leaves, with her housemates on the couch waiting for her. And waiting... and waiting...
Update: Sure enough, there's Jun on the Red Carpet during the VMA pe-show being interviewed by Gideon. She was also in "the Pit" for the whole show. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Oops... I think I made an error of judgement...Over a week ago I made a blog entry about Ozzy Osbourne singing Take Me Out to the Ball Game at Wrigley. I posted a link to an MP3 of the catastrophe. Now, I just got a bill from my hosting provider for extra bandwidth usage for the month and I've got a feeling it's because of that one file. Time to move it to a much slower, cheaper server. Damn... I don't have the money to pay for a bandwidth bill...
posted at 09:18 AM | Link | Blogging § |
Tuesday, August 26, 2003
Mars
We're just a few hours away from closest approach of Mars to Earth - 34,646,418 million miles at 5:51 a.m. ET (normally it's at 50,000,000 miles). It's pretty cool seeing Mars out there - hard to miss, actually. It's brighter than everything else in the night sky (Venus doesn't count) because it's also closest to the sun in its eliptical orbit. It hasn't been this close to us in 60,000 years, but it's supposed to be closer in 2287. My guess is that I won't be around to see that...
posted at 10:48 PM | Link | Space § |
Columbia Accident Investigation Board Report
The Columbia Accident Investigation Board Report was released today. If you're looking for a PDF copy, I happen to have one here.
posted at 03:11 PM | Link | Space § |
Soaked up the sun?I sort of don't get this...
I've been outside when I go to the White Sox games. I've been to Florida for a week, walking around Walt Disney World and Universal Studios.
I haven't put on any sunscreen during this time and I'm not getting sunburned. I'm not even getting red. I'm barely turning a darker shade of my normal skin color. I wonder what happened to my body chemistry that made this happen?
posted at 09:22 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Monday, August 25, 2003
I'm still hating my hostThe website was down 6 hours yesterday, 5½ hours today, always during the day when you want to do something... it's hell being unemployed and not have the money to switch hosting companies... Did I get any notification either before or after the outage? Hell no...
posted at 08:46 PM | Link | Blogging § |
Sunday, August 24, 2003
White Sox 0 - Rangers 5
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Three gorgeous days for baseball at "The Cell". But, alas, the streak is over. We got our hats handed to us today by John Thomson, who threw a complete game shutout with 1 walk and 6 strikeouts. Jon Garland had 10 strikeouts and 2 walks, but gave up 3 runs. Not much else to talk about. Nice weather, though. Disappointing outcome.
(Boxscore) « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 04:04 PM | Link | White Sox § |
Saturday, August 23, 2003
White Sox 13 - Rangers 2
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Second day straight of gorgeous weather, and we get to spend it at a ballgame. "the Cell" was not as crowded as last night, but still pretty full. Still, a great night for baseball.
We knew Mark Buehrle wouldn't last long when he threw 17 pitches to Rafael Palmiero in the first, only to strike him out looking. A Rod was on first and was breaking to second on each of the last dozen pitches. He was getting winded!
It turned into another rout - 5 homeruns. Last night, Jose Valentin had 2, tonight he had one but Frank Thomas had 2. We also had homers from Joe Crede and Carlos Lee.
When the lights came up after fireworks tonight, we noticed that some damned friggin' idiot had run out onto the field and had 2 or three security guys on top of him. At least there weren't any players on the field. No matter what, this idiot should get fined and tossed in jail. I'm tired of that crap.
(Boxscore) « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:40 PM | Link | White Sox § |
Playoff InvoiceGuess what I got in the mail today from the Chicago White Sox?
An invoice.
For playoff tickets!
Holy crap, I sort of didn't expect it. Since we're only Weekend Season Ticketholders, we don't get a full set of tickets. We get 3 AL Division Series games, 1 AL Championship Series game and 1 World Series game. World Series game! Oh, and parking, too.
I'm giddy. Now, I'm a realist. I'm not expecting to actually get to the World Series. But... how cool is this!!!!
Now all we have to do is scrounge around for the money.
PLAYOFF TICKETS!!! I must remember to not count my chickens...
posted at 03:08 PM | Link | White Sox § |
Friday, August 22, 2003
White Sox 7 - Rangers 1
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Tonight is Elvis Night at "The Cell". We don't normally go on a weknight, but it's Elvis Night at "The Cell"! What an absolute gorgeous night for baseball. There were the usual inpersonators outside everywhere on stages singing to the crowd.
The E Team jumped-in the American Flag during the National Anthem (performed by impersonator Ryan Pelton, dressed as Army-era Elvis). (Hey! I have a Windows Media Video of this for you here - 2.4Mb). After the game we had the Steppin' Out Dads and Shawn Klush with a mini-concert. The E Team did a night jump (complete with light-up jump suits), and then fireworks. Odd, crazy, fun night.
So, i guess this has become a little "ritual" with us. Carol hates Elvis, but we keep going. We had to go this year beacuse we were hoping to reclaim our same fortunes of last year, when we won the Sox Split Charity Raffle for $3,585. This year the pot was up to $5,496. (Attendance was 36, 311 this year compared to 27,988 last year.) Alas, we didn't win. Not even close. I blame it on Peggy, who was supposed to be at the game but I was unable to find her. Carol & I felt that she and Rob were our "Good Luck Charms" and we looked everywhere for them. (I suppose it would have helped if I knew what section, row and seat they were in.) I did however, run into my cousin Jane and her husband Richard, but (no offense) they weren't our Good Luck charms.
*sigh*
The ballgame itself wasn't that great. It was a battle of the "newbies" - Neal Cotts (0-0, 6.75 ERA, 8 IP, 2 G, 8 BB, 7 SO 7 H 6 ER) against Juan Dominguez (0-1 8.31 ERA 8.2 IP, 2 G, 2 BB, 9 SO 11 H 8 ER). BORING. White Sox get 7 runs on 5 hits. Ouch. Dominguez pitches a 5 2/3 inning 3-hitter on 87 pitches, with 5 runs (4 earned), 6 walks and 2 homeruns (Jose Valentin in the 2nd with 2 on & no outs and Frank Thomas in the 3rd inning with nobody on and 1 out). Sox still had two more homers (another by Valentin in the 8th off Joaquin Benoit, a solo with 2 out and Carl Everett also a solo off Benoit with one out). We got our first look at a new reliver that we just got in a Reds fire sale: Scott Sullivan. I didn't know he was a sidearm guy. He looked a little nervous at first but struck out A Rod and Palmiero (both swinging. Sweet.)
(Boxscore)
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posted at 11:45 PM | Link | White Sox § |
Gnome Food Challenge THEME
This afternoon, the Houseguests had a food challenge - even though they are eating PB&J for the next 5 days. The task - demolish garden gnomes in te backyard. The winner gets one meal from McDonald's on each of the 5 days and gets to invite one other houseguest. What would be a nice twist?
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posted at 04:19 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Friday 5 - The Last Time
Time for another Friday Five...
1. When was the last time you laughed? Wednesday when we went to see Finding Nemo
2. Who was the last person you had an argument with? Wow, an actual argument? I can't recall...
3. Who was the last person you emailed? That would be a former co-worker Peggy to talk about Elvis Night tonight at "The Cell"
4. When was the last time you bathed? Why, I just got out of the shower. Yeah, that's it... I just got out... squeaky clean... yeah...
5. What was the last thing you ate? Last night - steak/green beans/noodles for dinner
posted at 08:22 AM | Link | Friday Five § |
Thursday, August 21, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 13 - FINALE THEME
"It's Like Adam Building His First House"
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Here we are - the final episode...
We're on Ellis Beach on the North coast of Australia. David & Jeff (known to us as Team Who?) are the first to depart at 1:47am. "Teams must now drive themselves 20 miles to the Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park. Here, they will join in a traditional ceremony in which fire will signal tribesmen to bring them their next clue." Oh oh... Jeff narrates that he thinks that "they've made the least amount of mistakes of the three teams that remains at this point." Then they show that Team Who? doesn't really know how to close the rear doors of their Toyota SUV. All I can say is "oh, oh...". The Chipsters depart at 2:14am. There is only $1 given for this leg of the race. They narrate that people think all gay people are "queenie". Oh, boy. Team Who gets to the park to find out that Hours of Operation are 6am-6pm. Great - time for another "TAR Bunch-up". Jon & Kelly depart at 2:38am. Kelly: "Hours of Operation 6am to 6pm. We can still catch up." Jon: "Awwww... doesn't that stink for the boys.... let's go...".They are just way too nice to each other this morning. The sun comes up, all three teams are at the gate, and as it opens all break into al all-out run to the ceremony site. The watch intently as aborigines try to make a fire. In what has to be the most coolest visual thing of this season, a tribesman puts a long spear into a blazing fire, withdrawing what seems to by a bright sparkler at it's tip. He uses the spear to hurl the sparkling thing off the tip and across about at least 100 feet of water toward a very small wooded island. When the burning thing reaches the island, the whole frickin' island goes up in flames (must have had a huge open gas main out there). Way cool. More tribesmen show up with a container full of "message sticks" which hold their next clue. Teams must now drive themselves 15 miles to the airport in the city of Cairns and search for the General Aviation Terminal, where they'll find their next clue. Oh, oh... "General Aviation Terminal" is not good. It's drizzling/raining as the sun is coming up. There's a white-knuckle SUV race to the airport and Chip sends his SUV hydroplaning off the road after he passed Jon & Kelly. He's lucky the vehicle didn't roll. Kelly tells Jon to keep on going because they're OK (referring to The Chipsters). Team Who is first to the Route Marker, followed right behind by Jon & Kelly and The Chipsters. The clue is a Detour - "Wing It" or "Wander it". In "Wing It" teams must get into a plane, climb to a height of 10,000 feet, and skydive in tandem with an instructor to their next clue. The task is potentially frightening, but teams can finish it fast. In "Wander It", teams drive to a mangrove forest and find a boat, use it to navigate out of the forest and then to the skydiving landing zone to get their next clue. There's nothing frightening about the task, but completing it could take a very long time. Everyone choses "Wing It". (Reichen decides that this is better than being in a car with Chip!)
Everyone makes the jump, (though some (Kelly) were quite more frightened than others) and everybody had a great time. Team Who? is first on the ground and get to the Route Marker. Teams must now travel 4,700 miles to the island of Hawaii, also known as The Big Island. When they land, they'll have to chose a car (Another SUV - looks like a Ford) and drive themselves to Kaulana Bay - the southern-most part of the United States. It's now another trip back to Cairns Airport, but now to the International Terminal. Except for The Chipsters who want the Domestic Terminal. Team Who? (mostly Jeff) discusses that they should go to Sydney since Qantas was hubbed out of there so they'll get a better chance of getting to Hawaii.Turns out the Chipsters knew that even though they're at the domestic terminal Qantas is so good with customer service that they'll help them out. Kelly checks out a flight out of Sydney, but they'll miss the connecting flight. Team Who? books a flight to Sydney, with a flight to Honolulu the next day. They take off to Sydney, hoping to make better connections through there. The Chipsters book a flight from Cairns to Tokyo on Qantas and then a United flight that gets them into Honolulu at 6:55am (which sounds like they'll be in Hawaii before Team Who? leaves Australia). Kelly & Jon wind-up booking the same flights as The Chipsters from the other terminal. Team Who? gets to Sydney and works the phones for better connections. They think JAL can help them through japan, but all flights have left. They worked 3 hours trying to work any route and can't get out of Australia. In Tokyo the two teams try to make the transfer from Qantas to United - which is in a different terminal - within 45 minutes. The Chipsters got the bus and booked. Kelly & Jon get to a different terminal, get a United employee to help, get their own bus, and get to the gate - only to need boarding passes which they don't have. The Chipsters board the plane, the rest of the gate crew won't let them on and Kelly & Jon miss the United flight - as The Chipsters get upgraded to Business Class and drink champagne on the way to Hawaii.
Kelly is devastated that they missed the flight. They find a flight that gets in at 8:05am instead of 6:55am, so they take it. We see The Chipsters arrive at Kona Airport on the big island - but we have no idea how they got there (since they were going to Honolulu). They drive to Kaulana Bay. Team Who? is still in Sydney and is now worried since they didn't see any of the teams come through there. The get on their flight to Honolulu. Kelly & Jon arrive in Kona. Chip is steak behind a slow driver and you know that's just pissing him off. The Chipsters hit the bay and find the Route Marker. The clue is a Roadblock: "Who is a strong swimmer and good with a hammer?" In this Roadblock, the team member has to swim out to a floating tiki head, dive beneath the waves to the rock below and get the rock back to the beach. Once on shore, they'll have to smash the rock open to retrieve the clue from inside. Chip is chosen for the task, and gets the rock back to the beach. It takes a long time with a hammer and chisel to get the rock open. Jon & Kelly are on the road to Kaulana Bay. Chip finally gets te rock open. The clue is in a tube at the core. Teams must drive themselves 60 miles to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and find a lookout point.Then, they must follow a marked path across a field of hardened lava to a Route Marker. The Chipsters drive to the Park, Jon & Kelly get to Route Marker and Jon decides to do the task. But, he doesn't want to get his underwear wet, so he decides to do the task naked. Oh. Good. God. Who the hell would crouch over a rock with a hammer, chisel, and safety glasses, with pieces of sharp rock flying everywhere totally naked? Looks like Jon gets through the rock with little effort (or a lot of editing). Jon puts on his pants and drive to the volcanoes. The Chipsters arrive, walk the path, and get to the Route Marker. Teams must now travel 2,900 miles to their final destination city - Phoenix Arizona. Once there, they must search for a monument - the anchor from the U.S.S. Arizona, one of the ships sunk during the attack on Pearl Harbor. It's here they will get their next clue. The Chipsters decide to go to Hilo instead of back to Kona for the flight. Kelly & Jon reach the Route Marker and they take off. Kelly has flight info for flights back to Honolulu. They decide that Kona has more flights so they head back there. The Chipsters book a flight from Hilo to Honolulu that gets in at 8:17pm and then a flight leaves at 11:15pm for Phoenix that arrives at 8:15am. They fly to Honolulu. Jon & Kelly get to Kona and fly to Honolulu. The Chipsters, in Honolulu, try to get the best seat assignments at the front of the plane. Jon & Kelly, in Honolulu, book a flight to Phoenix - the same one as The Chipsters, and 4 rows behind them. The Chipsters start asking people in the terminal waiting areas on the exact location of the anchor. Kelly & Jon start doing the same. They enter Gate 33 and fly back to the mainland.
The flight to Phoenix looks stressful to the racers. They land in Phoenix and race through the airport. The Chipsters are first to get a cab. Chip looks like he's bribing the driver as soon as they pull away. Kelly & Jon get a cab right behind them. The Chipsters now say they'll give the guy $50 to get there as fast as they can. Jon gives his driver the "first hundred bucks" as their bribe. The teams talk about emergencies, the race, other cabs trying to overtake you. The Chipsters get to the anchor, while Jon & Kelly may have the right park but their cab driver doesn't know where the anchor is. The Chipsters read their clue: "You've come a long way from Dodger Stadium and you're almost there. So, make your way to the southeast entrance of Sun Devil Stadium." They get back into their waiting cab. Kelly & Jon's driver finds the anchor. They bolt for the Route Marker, read the clue, and head back for the cab. Did I mention that it's been raining in Phoenix? Well, Jon runs toward a low wall to jump over it when his feet slide out from underneath him as he slams into the wall. They get in the cab and take off. Reichen gives the cab driver another $50 "just to keep you motivated". Just then we see Jon tell their cab driver "I've got another $100 bucks if you drive like a madman." The Chipsters hit Sun Devil Stadium and run to the Route Marker. They have the cab driver turn his cab around so it's pointed put ward just to make sure they get a fast getaway. They read the clue: "To find your next clue, solve the following puzzle. Happy Valentine's Day + White + White." To solve the riddle, teams must first translate the date - February 14th - into the number 214. They must then figure out that "White + White" refers to the two players who's name's White are written on the stadium's wall. One White is number 33 (this refers to Wilford White) and the other is 11 (this refers to Danny White). Using all these numbers, teams must figure out that they need to get to Section 214 Row 33 Seat 11 to get their next clue. Chip is on the right track, checking out Section 2 Row 14. Kelly and Jon are still going to the stadium. Chip realizes that he 200's are upstairs, so they climb up the ramps. They get to 214 and Chip slowly walks up the stairs. He looks up, sees the players numbers and names on the facade and heads to row 33. Chip grabs the clues and start their way back down as we see Kelly & Jon's cab pull into the facility. Kelly gets out and bolts to the Route Marker. (Hmmm... I don't see The Chipsters' cab... bad editing... and you know what's weird? There's four clues, not three... a ruse so that the people don't really know who's in the lead?) Still on the ramps down, Reichen reads the clue: "Make your way to the west parking lot of Papago Park. Chose a pair of mountain bikes and ride the marked path until you reach the end of the bike course - the Finish Line." Jon & Kelly figure out the clue as The Chipsters pull away. John & Kelly get the final clue and get back to their cab and leave. Tension is building. It's 8 o'clock at night and the editing makes it into a mad scramble with the taxis. We see a cab pull up. The Chipsters get out and walk to the rack of marked mountain bikes. They take off down the path. We see Phil on the huge final mat, looking out toward the distance. All of the eliminated teams are shown cheering. Kelly and Jon pull up in their cab, get their bikes and take off. Reichen and Chip hit the end of the trail, drop the bikes, and start running up a trail and onto the stage/mat.
"4 continents. 24 cities. 44,000 miles. Reichen & Chip, you are the official winners of The Amazing Race!"
Chip has a tearful speech. Jon & Kelly run up to the stage. "Kelly and Jon, you're the second team to arrive. Congratulations." Kelly breaks down sobbing. They narrate a few things.
And then we see fresh, hot lava pouring over what appears to be an asphalt road in the dark at 5:30am. David & Jeff walk out of their SUV in the rain and darkness to the Route Marker. You hear David say "Are we first? Are we the first team?" dripping in not rain but sarcasm. David reads the final clue: "Route Info. Reichen and Chip have crossed the Finish Line. The Race is over. Kelly and Jon came in second."
And thus ends what might be the last episode ever of the best Reality show on television. As of right now, CBS has not committed to a fifth year. Damn
Hey, you want to look at an overview of The Race? Look at this from Television Without Pity as viewed by Reichen and Chip: On their journey, we have seen them riding 10 cars, 19 planes, 9 trains, 2 charter vans, 38 taxis, 2 ski-lifts, 1 zipline, 1 snow-raft, 2 buses, 1 gondola, 1 fiacre, 3 boats, 2 bikes, 1 bicycle wagon, 2 subways and 1 horse.
(Each taxi trip is counted separately, spoon-fed cars are counted as separate on different legs.)
SATURDAY 18 JANUARY - Day One
Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California, USA
Car to Los Angeles Airport, Los Angeles
Plane to Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Netherlands
SUNDAY 19 JANUARY - Day Two
Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Plane to Malpensa Airport, Milan, Lombardy, Italy
Subway to Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Milan
Walk to Hotel Nuovo, Milan
MONDAY 20 JANUARY - Day Three
Hotel Nuovo, Milan, Lombardy, Italy
Walk to Piazza Fontana, Milan
Charter Van to Piazza Roma, Cortina D'Ampezzo, Veneto, Italy
Taxi to Cinque Torri, Cortina D'Ampezzo
Ski-lift, Zipline and Ski-lift again at Cinque Torri
Taxi to Hotel Lajadira, Cinque Torri
TUESDAY 21 JANUARY - Day Four
Hotel Lajadira, Cortina D'Ampezzo, Veneto, Italy
Taxi to Trampolino Olimpico, Cortina D'Ampezzo
Snow-raft at Trampolino Olimpico
Taxi to Train Station, Calalzo, Veneto
Bus to Train Station, Alpi, Veneto
Train to Stazione Santa Lucia, Venice, Venito
Walk to Ponte Della Guglia, Venice
Gondola to Calle Querini, Venice
Walk to Palazzo da Mosto, Venice
Walk to Citta di Padova, Venice
WEDNESDAY 22 JANUARY - Day Five
Citta di Padova, Venice, Veneto, Italy
Walk to Stazione Santa Lucia, Venice
Train to Verona, Veneto, Italy
Train to Innsbruck, Austria
Train to Westbahnhof Train Station, Vienna, Austria
Walk to Friedrichstrasse/Operngasse, Vienna
Walk to Kaiserhof Hotel, Vienna
THURSDAY 23 JANUARY - Day Six
Kaiserhof Hotel, Vienna, Austria
Walk to Friedrichstrasse/Operngasse, Vienna
Walk to Stadtpark, Vienna
Fiacre to Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna
Walk to Figarohaus, Vienna
Taxi to Donautrum, Vienna
Taxi to Westbahnhof Train Station, Vienna
Train to Attnang Train Station, Gmunden, Austria
Taxi to Seeschloss Orth, Gmunden
FRIDAY 24 JANUARY - Day Seven
Extended Pitstop at Seeschloss Orth, Gmunden, Austria
SATURDAY 25 JANUARY - Day Eight
Seeschloss Orth, Gmunden, Austria
Taxi to Salzburg Airport. Salzburg, Austria
Plane to Frankfurt Airport, Frankfurt, Germany
Plane to CDG Airport, Paris, France
Taxi to Montparnesse Station, Paris
Train to Le Mans Station, Le Mans, Sarthe
Taxi to Circuit Bugatti, Le Mans
Car to Porte 4 Cap Janet, Marseille, Provence, France
SUNDAY 26 JANUARY - Day Nine
Porte 4 Cap Janet, Marseille, Provence, France
Same car to Sainte Marie Lighthouse, Marseille
Same car to Gorges du Blavet, Provence
Same car to Chateau des Alpilles, St-Rémy de Provence, Provence
MONDAY 27 JANUARY - Day Ten
Chateau des Alpilles, St-Rémy de Provence, Provence, France
Car to Marseille Airport, Marseille, Provence
Plane to Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Train to Magere Brug, Amsterdam
Boat to Scheepvaart Museum, Amsterdam
Car to Alkmaar, Netherlands
Same car to Smoker Statue, Monnickendam, Netherlands
Same car to Kasteel Muiderslot, Muiden, Netherlands
TUESDAY 28 JANUARY - Day Eleven
Extended Pitstop at Kasteel Muiderslot, Muiden, Netherlands
WEDNESDAY 29 JANUARY - Day Twelve
Kasteel Muiderslot, Muiden, Netherlands
Taxi to Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Plane to Malpensa Airport, Milan, Italy
Plane to CST Airport, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
THURSDAY 30 JANUARY - Day Thirteen
CST Airport, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Taxi to Film City, Mumbai
Bicycle to Studio 10, Film City
Bus to Goregaon Train Station, Mumbai
Train to Mahalaxmi Train Station, Mumbai
Walk to Dhobi Ghat, Mumbai
Taxi to Sassoon Docks, Mumbai
Taxi to Gateway of India, Mumbai
FRIDAY 31 JANUARY - Day Fourteen
Gateway of India, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Walk to Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai
Taxi to Panvel Train Station, Panvel, Maharashtra
Train to Ernakulam Train Station, Ernakulam, Kerala
SATURDAY 1 FEBRUARY - Day Fifteen
Ernakulam Train Station, Ernakulam, Kerala, India
Taxi to Highway 47, Kerala
Taxi to Sports Field, Pallathuuthi, Kerala
Taxi to Beach Road, Alappuzha, Kerala
Bicycle Wagons to Geogi's Chicken Farm, Alappuzha
Taxi to Finishing Point, Alappuzha
SUNDAY 2 FEBRUARY - Day Sixteen
Extended Pitstop at Finishing Point, Alappuzha, Kerala, India
MONDAY 3 FEBRUARY - Day Seventeen
Finishing Point, Alappuzha, Kerala, India
Taxi to Kochi Airport, Kochi, Kerala
Taxi to PL Worldways Limited, Kochi, Kerala
Taxi to Kochi Airport, Kochi, Kerala
Plane to Kuala Lumpur Airport, Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory, Malaysia
TUESDAY 4 FEBRUARY - Day Eighteen
Kuala Lumpur Airport, Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory, Malaysia
Plane to Kota Kinabalu Airport, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
Taxi to Monosopiad Cultural Village, Kota Kinabalu
Taxi to Kota Kinabalu Jetty, Kota Kinabalu
Boat to fishing boat on South China Sea, Kota Kinabalu
Same boat to fishery on South China Sea, Kota Kinabalu
Same boat to lobster boat on South China Sea, Kota Kinabalu
Same boat to Manukan Jetty, Manuakan Island, Kota Kinabalu
Walk to Manukan Beach, Manukan Island
WEDNESDAY 5 FEBRUARY - Day Nineteen
Manukan Beach, Manukan Island, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
Walk to Manukan Jetty, Manuakan Island, Kota Kinabalu
Boat to Kota Kinabalu Jetty, Kota Kinabalu
Taxi to Poring Hot Springs, Poring, Sabah
Car to Sepilok Orangutan Sanctuary, Sepilok, Sabah
Same car to Sepilok Nature Resort, Sepilok
Taxi to Puu Jih Shih Temple, Sandakan, Sabah
Charter Van to Kota Kinabalu Airport, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah
THRUSDAY 6 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty
Kota Kinabalu Airport, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
Plane to Changi Airport, Singapore
Plane to Incheon Airport, Seoul, South Korea
FRIDAY 7 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-One
Incheon Airport, Seoul, South Korea
Taxi to Seoul Tower, Seoul
Taxi to Sheraton Hotel, Seoul
Taxi to Sundam Valley, Chirwon, Gangwon-Do, South Korea
Taxi to a subway station, Seoul
Subway to Seoul University Station, Seoul
Walk to octopus restaurant, Seoul
Taxi to Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul
SATURDAY 8 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Two (Thank you Miri!)
Extended Pitstop at Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
SUNDAY 9 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Three
Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
Taxi to Yeoido Island, Seoul
Taxi to Incheon Airport, Seoul
Plane to Brisbane Airport, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
MONDAY 10 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Four
Brisbane Airport, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Taxi to Holiday Inn Hotel, Brisbane
Car to UnderWater World, Mooloolaba, Queensland
Same car to Mooloolaba Yacht Club, Mooloolaba
TUESDAY 11 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Five
Mooloolaba Yacht Club, Mooloolaba, Queensland, Australia
Car to Australian Woolshed, Ferny Hills, Queensland
WEDNESDAY 12 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Six
Australian Woolshed, Ferny Hills, Queensland, Australia
Same car to Brisbane Airport, Brisbane, Queensland
Plane to Cairns Airport, Cairns, Queensland
Car to Wild World Tropical Zoo, Queensland
Same car to Wangetti Beach, Queensland
Horse at Wangetti Beach
Same car to Off Road Rush, Julatten, Queensland
Car to Ellis Beach, Queensland
THRUSDAY 13 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Seven (Thank you EmeraldFire!)
Ellis Beach, Queensland, Australia
Car to Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park, Queensland
Same car to General Aviation Centre, Cairns Airport, Cairns, Queensland
Plane to field, Cairns
Taxi to Cairns Airport, Cairns
Plane to Tokyo-Narita Airport, Tokyo, Japan
Plane to Honolulu Airport, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
THRUSDAY 13 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Eight (Thank you TheSchnauzers!)
Honolulu Airport, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
Plane to Kona Airport, Kona, Hawaii
Car to Kaulana Bay, Hawaii
Same car to Chain of Craters Rd, Hawaii Volcanoes Ntl Park, Hawaii
Same car to Hilo Airport, Hilo, Hawaii
Plane to Honolulu Airport, Honolulu, Hawaii
Plane to Sky Harbor Airport, Phoenix, Arizona, USA
FRIDAY 14 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Nine
Sky Harbor Airport, Phoenix, Arizona, USA
Taxi to USS Arizona Anchor, W Washington Street, Phoenix
Taxi to Sun Devils Stadium, Phoenix
Taxi to Papago Park, Phoenix
Bicycle at Papago Park, Phoenix, Arizona, USA « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, August 20, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 20 THEME
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In a not too startling event, Justin is voted out of the house. In what was more startling to me was watching a segment on the Jury House where Dana has been staying. Holy crap this is a gorgeous place! It's not on the CBS lot as we had originally heard. Jee won the HOH competition tonight, which was a bocce ball/skee-ball event, and just about sealed the fate of either Jack or Erika.
At the end of the show, Julie Chen made this announcement to the houseguests and left them hanging:
"Well everyone, we told you from the very beginning you should never get too comfortable in the Big Brother house. Remember that our motto is 'Expect The Unexpected'. And everyone should know that the unexpected begins tomorrow. Goodnight houseguests."
What is it? How about isolating each houseguest to a room? How about "selling" Power of Veto to a houseguest? The stakes? How about PB&J for everyone else for a week? Two weeks? A month? How about geting POV before the nominations are made? How about an HOH taking the deal? « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
P.Sherman, 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney
Carol took the day off since we'd be getting home late last night from Varekai. We decided to take in a movie. Which one and where? Well, since it's broken records, we thought we'd better go see Finding Nemo, but we drove down to the AMC Cantera 30 in Warrenville. We got there for the first showing at 3:00, and got into the theater a lot earlier than we thought. In fact, we were the only one's in the theater and the projectionist was re-calibrating the projection system for quite a while before the movie. Anyway, the movie was great. There were some absolutely laugh out loud moments. Technically, Pixar is really advancing the technology pretty well. Water effects are not easy, and they've nailed it. The lighting and motion is getting better, too. This movie, even for adults, is a must see.
posted at 06:02 PM | Link | Movies § |
Virus bastards!Thank you so very much for flooding my inbox with Sobig.F virus infected messages.
NOTE to anyone out there that received the virus addressed from the Webmaster of this website: IT DIDN'T COME FROM HERE. The virus makes it look like it did by spoofing addresses. My virus software is up to date and guess what? I DON'T USE OUTLOOK so the addresses didn't come from my address book!
IT AIN'T ME!
Bastards.
Are you dirty? Go clean yourself. NOW.
posted at 12:19 PM | Link | Internet § |
Tuesday, August 19, 2003
Varekai
Tonight, Carol and I drove into the city. After a quick dinner at Twisted Spoke, we drove over to the United Center in search of the yellow and blue tent city of Cirque du Soleil.
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We're here to see Varekai, the latest touring show from Cirque. A tour usually only comes around every three years, so when Cirque comes to town we have to see it. Times are rough for all of us. We normally go with other friends, but no one could afford going. We can't either, but we had to go. This show was going to be different for us. Bravo had run a 13-episode series Cirque du Soleil Fire Within that documented the the trials of putting this show together. You got to meet the cast and see what it was like to develop a Cirque show. You got attached to a few of them, only to see them fail and leave. Will the rest of the performers still be in the show? Anyway, we made it into The Grand Chapiteau. Our seats were on the main cross-aisle. The show was wonderful, as always. And as always, you can feel some acts aren't as strong as the others, and some of the acts just blow you away!
Go see the show. It's a must. Go. Find out if it's coming to a city near you. Go! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 11:28 PM | Link | Entertainment § |
Monday, August 18, 2003
Announcements to Houseguests THEME
This post is only for those people out there that are a bit obsessed with Big Brother, so the rest of you can just move along to another post right now...
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First, I'm sure you already have these feeds, but in case you don't, here are 5 broadband feeds that wont time-out after 30 minutes (because they're not feeds from CBS!)... Now, if you have been watching the feeds, there's something you've heard everyday that never makes it into the shows. The production staff does not like to talk to the houseguests outside of the Diary Room. Instead, they had an announcer produce a series of recoded announcements that the crew can put together at and use at any time. He recorded each of their names plus the word "Houseguests" and a series of "commands". The crew can then direct anyone to do something that needs to be done. If you've never heard them before, or if you're a fan and have heard them and want to hear them again, I'm going to try to collect a bunch and post them here. Check back every once in a while to see what I've added, if anything. Wakeup callsDiary RoomMiscellaneous « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:01 PM | Link | Reality TV | 2 comments § |
Sunday, August 17, 2003
The Prince Of Darkness at Wrigley
Holy effin'™ cripes... Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne just "sang" The Seventh Inning Stretch at Wrigley Field...
Oh. My. God.
Update: If you must, here's an MP3 for you. (1.71 Mb). You have to hear "Lets go out out to the ballgame" and you have to listen closely to hear the lyric: "I don't remember what I have to do..."
posted at 03:07 PM | Link | Odd § |
Saturday, August 16, 2003
Ribs & Sausage
Drove into the city to hang out with Barry & Buffy tonight, as well as Debbie who stopped by. We don't see each other as often as we would like. In fact, we haven't been together since Orlando in mid-June. On the way in on the Kennedy as well as Addison we could see the Thunderbirds performing over the lake for the Chicago Air & Water show. I love the military jet teams. It's just hard to watch them and drive on an expressway or on city streets at the same time. We love B&B (well, and Deb, too. A "good egg" as some would say). But B&B always goes out and "entertains" us with food when we're over. Lots of snacks, drinks (fresh mojitos (YUM!)) and then Barry grilled-up some ribs and some italian sausages for dinner, along with some corn on the cob and salad and a fruit torte for dessert. Love the food. Love them. Neither B nor B are Reality TV fans, but I think we got them hooked on "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy". Bravo ran a bunch of them back to back tonight, so we were able to get them to sit down and watch the episode with Andrew, a cameraman for the show. After that, we watched "Sweet Home Alabama" on Starz and then it was time to venture home.
I miss the three of them.
posted at 10:38 PM | Link | Friends | 1 comment § |
Friday, August 15, 2003
Friday 5 - Your internet
Time for another Friday Five...
1. How much time do you spend online each day? Not as much as I expected now that I'm unemployed again. Only a few hours during the day and a few hours at night (which does not include watching any Big Brother 4 live feeds...)
2. What is your browser homepage set to? about:blank - I can't stand waiting for the page to load, I just want the browser to open quickly
3. Do you use any instant messaging programs? If so, which one(s)? Trillian, but I don't have it up that often.
4. Where was your first webpage located? at my original website - The Cousins, which was a failed attempt at trying to get all my cousins online. Now it's just a gutted skelton that needs to be killed.
5. How long have you had your current website? since December 2001.
posted at 11:42 AM | Link | Friday Five § |
Thursday, August 14, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 12 THEME
"He's a Few Ticks Away from Having a Heart Attack!"
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Well, we're still at the Mooloolaba Yacht Club in Australia, site of last week's Clown Carnage and The Chipsters Penalty.
David and Jeff depart at 10:41pm. Teams must now more than 80 miles to the town of Ferny Hills, find the Australian Woolshed and search through one of these giant piles of wool for their next clue. The teams get $1 for this leg of the race. Guess there's no cabs, no hotels - no international travel this leg. Jon and Kelly depart at 10:59pm. Reichen and Chip depart at 11:33pm. (wow, Jon & Al must have finished around noon then). Ferny Hills must be small because teams are having trouble finding it - in the case of Kelly & Jon, even with a map. Team Who? arrives at the Woolshed first, and find that the Hours of Operation are 6am to 4pm, Team Mean (Kelly & Jon) arrive 2nd, the Chipsters arrive last. All decide to sleep in their SUV's until the morning (they have about 4 hours). I have to call them Team Mean only because they're mean to each other and what they say behind the backs of the other teams (and, at times, to their faces) is just mean. So, the teams are all bunched-up again when the gates open at 6am and the teams take off. OK, there are sheep and Wallabies here? What kind of place is this? They take off sprinting trough the facility and find a shed with three huge piles of wool. The teams rip through the piles. For once, the producers really took their time and really camouflaged and buried the clues. This wasn't easy. Jon find the clue, and he and Kelly quietly run away and open it away from the others. Teams must now drive themselves to Brisbane Airport and fly more than 1,000 miles to the city of Cairns. When they land, they'll chose one of these cars (looks like Toyota Land Cruisers) and drive to Wild World Tropical Zoo , where they'll find their next Route Marker. Team Mean takes-off. The boys keep looking. Team Who winds up going back through their piles because they missed the clue. Reichen finds their clue, whispers that he has it, and The Chipsters leave. Team Who still searches.
Team Who? finally find the clue and leave. Kelly & Jon pull into the Thrifty Car Rental parking lot at the airport (Thrifty has Mercedes SUV's?) at about 6:55am. They go inside to Qantas Ticketing and get on the 7:45 flight to Cairns. The other teams show-up and they all get tickets for the same 7:45am flight. At the Cairns Airport (which looks like it had just rained) the teams jump into their SUV's and take off. They tailgate each other down the highway. Kelly & Jon, in the lead, use a woman in a silver car to help box-in the other teams from passing. Jon narrates that this is getting to Chip (who is driving and trying to get around him) and the says the title of the show in reference to Chip. They find Wild World and park by the marker. There are 3 numbered tags on the Route Marker box (obviously to claim who does a task first, second, third). The clue is this year's product placement task: Teams must now follow the marked path to the crocodile pen. One team member will chose a feeding stick and feed a fish to the 15-foot crocodile named Sultan while the other teammate takes a picture with a Kodak Easyshare Digital Camera. Only one Team may perform this task at a time. Once Sultan has been fed and the picture had been taken, teams must find the souvenir shop, where they'll develop their picture at a Kodak printer dock and receive their next clue. (OK, we'll ignore the reference to "develop" a digital camera image. They're just printing them.) Kelly & Jon, the ones that pulled #1, leave with a curator. But now we see a table next to the Route Marker box that has 3 digital cameras on it. We see the other two teams. Then we see one camera on the table. David says to Jeff, as they're walking down the path "don't let them see this" and they hide the camera. Jeff realizes, as they walk behind Kelly & Jon that they don't have a camera! Team Mean get to the croc pen and we hear Kelly say "Where's the camera? Jon. Jon! Don't have the camera." They take the humbling walk back to the Route Marker. In an argument on the way Kelly asks Jon why he's blaming her. Oh, I don't know, maybe because she's taking the picture and she would need a camera for that. I don't know. Maybe it's just me. So, David feeds Sultan while Jeff takes the picture and they run to the souvenir shop. Chip feeds Sultan, Reichen takes the picture, and they're on their way to the souvenir shop. David & Jeff have docked their camera and are reading the instructions on how to print. Team Mean is back at the croc pen with the camera. Jon feeds Sultan, Kelly takes the picture and they leave. (I don't understand why the curator throws something like a small rock at the croc first - probably to get his attention.) Reichen at the souvenir stand docks his camera in the printing station. Jon gets there and docks his camera. Reichen looks puzzled, and he re-docks the camera. Team Who? gets their picture printed. The back of the paper says Make your way to Wangetti Beach for your next clue. Phil explains it anyway: Teams must now drive themselves 15 miles to secluded Wangetti Beach where they'll find their next Route Marker. Thanks, Phil. David & Jeff leave, followed by Kelly & Jon. Reichen finally figures out how to print an image and The Chipsters leave. (Here's a map for you - the zoo was in Palm Cove and they have to go to Wangetti Beach). Team Who? hits the beach, get the clue and find that it's a Detour - "Saddle" or "Paddle". Phil, over to you: In "Saddle", teams must explore this one-and-a-half mile stretch of beach on horseback and find one of four Race flags. They'll then search within a 25-yard radius for a cluster of clue envelopes. However, only one of the clusters contains the actual clue; the other three instruct teams to try again. The task won't be physically demanding, but searching the beach for the right cluster could take a long time. In "Paddle" teams have to inflate their own kayak and then paddle to an orange buoy to get their next clue. The task requires a good deal of energy, but the clue will be easy to find. Team Who? choses "Saddle". Kelly thinks they just past the turn-off for the beach. Guess what? The Chipsters pull into the beach parking area, get the clue and chose "Saddle". Jon pulls up to a road construction flagman and find out they've gone too far and have to turn around. Surprised? I didn't think so.
David & Jeff go to the right (south?) and Chip and Reichen go to the left (north?) down the beach. The Chipsters find a cluster, but it's not the real ones. The go further down the beach to another marker. It's another "Sorry. Try Again.". Team Who? finds a flag, find the cluster of clues, and actually find the correct cluster! Teams must now drive themselves 35 miles to the town of Julatten and look for Off Road Rush, an adventure sports company where they'll find their next Route Marker. Kelly & Jon pull into the beach parking area. They also choose "Saddle". They also notice that The Chipsters are coming from left, passing them, and going to the right. Team Mean actually see this and deduce that the clue has to be to the right since The Chipsters must not have found it to the left. Team Who? and The Chipsters pass each other on the beach. It seams that Team Who? isn't the greatest riding horses, but they're te first ones that leave the beach. The Chipsters get their clue and leave. Well, they try to leave, but Chip drives the SUV over Reichen's foot while they're still in the parking area (Chip started the car while in gear and without having the clutch engaged. Nice going. Drive a manual much?) We then see the first name-calling argument between the boys. Twelve legs of the race and this is their first argument. Team Mean can't get through 12 minutes. Speaking of them, Team Mean gets their clue and leaves. The Chipsters don't know where they're going, so Chip goes up to someone's house to ask for directions. Kelly & Jon try to do the same other other drivers. Team Who? finds the little sign for Off Road Rush and make the turnoff. At the Route Marker, they find that it's a Roadblock. In this Roadblock, one team member has to choose a race buggy and, along with a racing instructor, drive as fast as they can along a muddy and bumpy 7-mile course. As soon as they make it back to their partner, they'll be given their next clue. David gets suited-up and drives off. He did a really good job at a good rate of speed. Jon is still looking for directions to Julatten. The Chipsters find the turn-off. Chip decides to do the Roadblock. David hits the finish line in great shape, and gets the next clue from his instructor before he leaves the vehicle. Teams must now drive 50 miles to Ellis Beach. This picturesque beach at the edge of the Coral Sea is the Pit Stop for this leg of the race. They drive off, but David has to readjust to driving the SUV instead of the buggy! Chip suits-up, gets in his buggy and takes off. It's like he doesn't know how to drive - he's all over the track. He barely keeps it on the marked dirt. He plows into a line of small trees along the right-side of a stretch of track and totally busts-up the steering. Team Who? is still driving back to the highway. The company sends a new buggy out to Chip so that he can complete the task, which he somehow does. Team Mean passes The Chipsters on the way in to Off Road Rush. Team Mean pulls the Roadblock clue at the Route Marker.Even tough Kelly really really really really really wants to do it (after all, it's her turn), Jon does it. The last thing Kelly says is "Be careful, Jon" as he spits out of the starting area. Yes, spits. He popped the clutch and stalled the buggy. More than once. He finally leaves. and he's a maniac. He's more like David than Chip, tough - it looks like he's in control at least. Jon screams into a tight left-hand turn and... the buggy rolls over!!! Kelly is screaming "Oh my God!!! Oh my God!!!" in a pitch that only dogs could hear. Crew people start running with walkie talkies into the dust cloud. There's a quick shot of a helmeted Jon trapped in the vehicle and then... commercial.
When we're back, we have an overhead shot from the helicopter camera and you can see how many people are running to to the crash site. People help Jon crawl out of the buggy and he's laughing his ass off! He's unscathed. Kelly is screaming "Jon! Why did you do that!" and she runs over and hits him! "What's wrong with you!" The crew rights the buggy and Jon climbs right back in. Of course, we don't see the instructor do that right away. He's probably trying to figure out if he wants to do this again. As they scream off, Kelly yells "Babe! Please be careful! I need you to win the million bucks!" Team Who? pulls into Ellis Beach and the run across the sand to The Amazing Bathmat. Phil proclaims that they're "Team Number 1" and they win a vacation to Europe compliments of American Airlines' website "which you can enjoy after the race". Phis now does post arrival interviews for the teams. We see Jon finish his task. He's still laughing and giggling like a schoolgirl. Kelly takes the clue and reads it. Kelly narrates that Jon is doing all of the things he wanted to do before he got married and "all this race did was help me out!" Chip asks Reichen "Am I that bad of a driver?" to which Reichen replies "I'm not answering." The Chipsters pull into te parking area and "look for Phil". More interviews. Kelly and Jon pull in and jog up the sand to Phil who tells them that they're the last team and this is not an elimination leg (big surprise). Kelly then tells Phil: "We came to one very sad conclusion today, that we cannot have children because we do not want them to inherit our stupidity." Another big surprise.
Next week: so here we are - the final leg (of what may be the FINAL BROADCAST OF THE AMAZING RACE if CBS doesn't get it's act together!!!) « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Carol - Three Years On
Three years have passed.
I still have my wife and life is good.
OK, sure, I don't have a job and we'll be out on the street in a few short months - but I have her.
I wrote about it in detail last year (go there if you want the details), but the short and sweat is that Carol had a double mastectomy three years ago this morning. She's still doing fine. I always sit back and think about how fortunate I am the she's still around. Everything else will just work it's way out.
So, I snuck into her truck last night to leave some azaleas for her and a card. I try to show her that I love her and care for her, but today I hace to throw her a little curve.
posted at 08:53 AM | Link | Family § |
Wednesday, August 13, 2003
Flyers BaseballCarol has a company outing to see the Schaumburg Flyers tonight, se we went to socialize and watch some baseball. Before the game, the Flyers have tents set up for companies to use for their parties. We had some great Bar-B-Q pork with Famous Dave's sauce. Yummm.
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posted at 10:22 PM | Link | Baseball § |
Big Brother 4 - Episode 17 THEME
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Well, I was at a baseball game tonight, but I had purchased a new Sony Walkman that has a TV band, so I listened to the show from my seat (trust me - it was more entertaining than watching the ball game). The twist for tonight is that the Eviction Voting (which is usually done in the house sometime on Tuesday) was done live on the show (with houseguests going into the Diary Room and casting their votes). Nathan was voted out 5-0. Then came the Head of Household competition - the "Steel Cage Match". It's a little convoluted, but basically it's an endurance challenge - stand in a cage with your housemates and be the last one standing. No food, no drink, no sleep. This started around 10 minutes before the hour (that would be about 6:50 BBT - Big Brother Time, which would be Pacific Time). The show ends, so to follow the competition, you had to go online and watch the live feeds.
Update: What did you miss? Well, around 10:17 BBT Jun finally can't take it anymore and asks Jack for his shirt which she wraps around her waist to cover her butt as she pulls down her pants to pee. Yes, she peed live on the web. At around 11:17 BBT Alison borrows Jacks shirt and pees as well. Ew. Just a few minutes later, Robert leaves the cage, says he has a migraine, goes inside and starts swearing about Jack being ready to fall and in general being his normal pissy self (if you ever watched the live feeds, you know what I'm talking about). At 11:35 BBT Jun leaves the cage. Not sure why. Now comes a lot of negotiating and strategizing with those people left in the cage. At 1:19AM BBT Jack leaves the cage, followed just 4 minutes later by Jee, and one minute later Alison leaves. Erika is the last in the cage and wins HOH. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
*bang* *bang* *bang* *bang
7am and I'm awake from trying to catchup on my sleep. 7am. I'm hearing something that sounds like pounding. It's coming from the house behind us. They're having their roof replaced.
At 7am in the morning.
Crap.
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This is happening all over the neighborhood. A siding/roofing company came through a month or so ago to do "free inspections" on everyone's roof and siding to check for hail damage from one of the storms that came through about 2 months ago. The came and inspected our stuff, said there was damage, and had us call our insurance company to have a claim inspector come out and confirm the damage so this company could do the repairs. Guess what? Our insurance company told us that our roof is in exceptionally good shape and didn't need any work (of course pissing off the roofing company). It's obvious that this roofing company was able to get a lot of business from this cold calling judging by the amount of new roofs and new siding I'm seeing in the neighborhood. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 07:53 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Tuesday, August 12, 2003
To sleep, perchance to dream- ay, there's the rub.That's it. It started. The sleeplessness. I've only been unemployed a few weeks and it just started to kick-in. I sprang awake at 4 this morning. Went downstairs and watched TV until Carol got up to take her morning walk. Went back to bed and was awakened at 8 by the thumping of a bass line coming from the TV downstairs that Carol had left on with the volume up a bit too high. My mind is starting to get to me. The stress is starting to get to me. The fear is starting to get to me.
It's going to be a fun ride...
posted at 08:36 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Monday, August 11, 2003
To do my duty, to God and my country...I drove into the city tonight to pickup my Mom. We went to a wake tonight, a wake that I felt I needed to go to.
My scoutmaster had died. His wife was my Den Mother in Cub Scouts. He was the scoutmaster of my Troop. Scouting was a big thing for me growing up. It carried into my teens and later. His family has been deeply involved in scouting ever since. I just needed to go - both the support my mom who is friends with the wife, but for me as well.
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Two vignettes during the evening stand out.
The first was meeting some of my scout mates. These are people I haven't seen for 25-30 years. It was the first time in my life where I am standing in front of a man and I can barely see the boy I knew and camped with 30 years ago. The years reel and you try to figure out how a pudgy kid you once knew is now a successful, thin, dentist.
The second was meeting the parents of a guy that I played with for years when I was in grade school. I played every day. During the summer, it was baseball, baseball, baseball. We played everything - full fledged games over at Steinmetz, maybe a game of fast pitch in front of our houses, maybe running bases in the alley.
I haven't seen these people in 30 years. Yet, the experience was almost as if I was back 30 years ago. It's one thing to see a kid all grown-up. It's another to see the parents of the kid. The parents, to you back then, were older and didn't change. And here they are in front of you. Sure they're both a bit grayer, and may not move as fast, but it's the same faces, the same voices, the same smiles, the same glint in their eyes.
And that one meeting tonight is what I bring home with me. That quick connection to the past. The realization that the parents were pretty damn cool then and they're cool now. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 11:14 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Sunday, August 10, 2003
White Sox 5 - Athletics 1
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We're back at "The Cell" this afternoon and I have a Public Service Announcement: This is addressed to all those people out there that will be singing The National Anthem before a sporting event:
THIS IS NOT A FRIGGIN' AUDITION FOR AMERICAN IDOL!!! SING THE DAMN SONG!!!!!!
The anthem has a certain "pace" to it. Though difficult to sing, it does NOT need further embellishment. Sing it straight" and in the correct tempo!!!! The fans would be appreciative and I believe it shows more respect to the The Anthem, Flag, and Country.
Thank you.
We now return to the regular sports drivel... A much better game today. Oakland started rookie sensation Rich Harden. We saw him last month as the starter for the World team at the 2003 Futures Game during All-Star Week. We started Esteban Loaiza, who lasted 8 innings giving up only 1 run and 4 hits striking-out 6. Harden only lasted 4 innings giving up 2 runs and 6 hits striking out 8. We had 4½ inning of scoreless baseball and it was a real pitcher's duel. It was great and it was fun. Konerko & Everett had homers in the game.
Unfortunately, KC won so we're still ½ game behind them in second place.
(Boxscore) « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 04:54 PM | Link | White Sox § |
Killer Chihuahuas???OK, there's an article in today's Chicago Tribune by Jon Kass about. Chihuahuas. In LA. Wild, feral, but demonically aggressive and deformed chihuahuas.
A pack of them, that once numbered 269 dogs (They're down to 175). A reporter in Pasadena that's from Australia said the chihuahuas would probably kill large dingos. Dingos.
And Kimi Peck wants to save them. That's Peck, as in daughter-in-law of Gregory Peck.
Weird.
posted at 09:30 AM | Link | Odd | 1 comment § |
Saturday, August 09, 2003
White Sox 2 - Athletics 7
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Back at "The Cell" tonight. We got there a half-hour early and I'm glad we did - there was 36,151 at the game, a crowd we don't normally see. Even though we felt OK walking to the park through the parking lot, when we got to our seats during Oakland's BP, the wind was whipping around the park and we were cold. We didn't expect that. It was bad enough that Carol had to go to the gift shop and buy some sweatshirts - which I never had to wear because the place seemed to warm up as the people came in.
The game was a disaster starting with the first batter. Scott Hatteberg hit a grounder to Konerko, who booted the ball. Jose Guillen bunted and got an infield single when Konerko juggled the throw. Then (after Chavez lined to short), Miguel Tejada hits one to left and Carlos Lee loses the ball in the setting sun. They went on to score three times in the inning, and one thing you don't let Oakland do is get into the game early. And all of those runs were unearned. Jon Garland had over 50 pitches in the 3rd, so he didn't last all that long - 5 innings with 95 pitches.
We were losing 6-0 in the 5th when we started scoring. We had the bases loaded and one out when we chased their starter Ted Lilly, which means he wouldn't get the win (since he didn't pitch 5 innings). So, they bring in a former Sox - Chad Bradford. When he was with us, I remember him having something like a three-quarter sidearm delivery. He's full underarm now. His knuckles, during delivery, are literally just inches above the ground - he's almost scraping them.
Anyway, we scored twice in the 5th and that was it. Bradford got the win. To add insult to injury, Billy Koch - formerly Oakland's closer - finished the game and gave up another homerun. Then Keith Foulke - formerly the Sox closer - mopped us up just fine. Hindsight is always 20/20, and this trade for this year just didn't work out. Koch: 50 G (48 IP), 5-5, 5.65 ERA, 11 Saves (of 15), 53 hits, 32 runs (30 earned), 10 HR. Foulke: 50 G (60 IP), 8-1, 2.40 ERA 28 Saves (of 32), 43 hits, 17 runs (16 earned) 7 HR.
*sigh*. Our time alone in First Place only lasted a day, and now we're a half game out.
(Boxscore) « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:04 PM | Link | White Sox § |
Phone callsYesterday the house was exceptionally quiet. How quiet? For the first time since I can remember, from Thursday night at 07:13pm until this morning at 08:26am, the phone never rang. No damn telemarketers for a day. (OK, I have Caller ID software on one of my machines at the house so I know exactly when the phone rang.)
Now, the phone call this morning wasn't a telemarketer - it was my Mom, who woke me up from my sleep. She wasn't feeling well and wanted to go see a doctor. Since my sister who's normally closer, wasn't (she was at her house in Michigan), I got the call. I got dressed, drove into the city, and to her to an immediate care center since she doesn't have her own physician (which, of course, is another story).
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Since my sister lives closer to her wasn't available (she was at her house in Michigan), I got the call. I got dressed, drove into the city, and to her to an immediate care center since she doesn't have her own physician (which, of course, is another story). The doctor was nice and after a very thorough checkup, can't find anything wrong. Her BP is high (170/86!). Oh, and she has a little bit of hearing loss (HA! If you only knew! Diane and I knew that for a while now!). But he can't figure out what is going on. So, after a a quick blood draw and then a quick trip to the Jewel, I brought home. She'll be OK. She feels better knowing it's not something significant. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 01:06 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Friday, August 08, 2003
Friday 5 - Travel
Time for another Friday Five...
1. What's the last place you traveled to, outside your own home state/country? State = My sister's house in Michigan. Country? That was in 1993 when Carol and I flew up to Toronto for the day to watch our White Sox lose to the Blue Jays during the playoffs.
2. What's the most bizarre/unusual thing that's ever happened to you while traveling? No bizarre things that I can remember... unusual? How about being in the cockpit of an American Airlines 707 at 39,000 feet over the Pacific on my way to Hawaii? I'm sure I have something better... I just can't think of anything...
3. If you could take off to anywhere, money and time being no object, where would you go? I want to go to Australia and Japan.
4. Do you prefer traveling by plane, train or car? Plane. I love flying. Don't like the security hassles right now, but I love flying. Hate cars. If time wouldn't be an issue, and depending where I was going, train would be great, too.
5. What's the next place on your list to visit? I NEED to get back to Las Vegas. BAD.
posted at 08:11 AM | Link | Friday Five § |
Thursday, August 07, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 11 THEME
"Such a Nice Pheromone Smell to You -- Just Makes Me Want to Stay Close to You!"
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Oh, well, it's the beginning of a sad episode for certain fans...
Teams are still at the Pit Stop at Gyeongbokgung Palace. Kelly & Jon depart at 3:46am. Teams must now make their way across Seoul to Hangang People's Park on Yeouido Island were locals go to fly traditional Korean kites. Once there, they must pull on the string that is attached to a marked pedestal. This will release the clue that's attached to the kites flying overhead. Jon & Kelly try to find a cab driver that speaks English. Reichen & Chip depart the Pit Stop at 3:55am. They, too, try to find and English-speaking driver. Kelly decides they should go to a hotel for help. The Chipsters settle for a cab driver they think knows were Yeouido Island is. Jon & Al leave the Pit Stop at 4:04am. They get a cab driver right away that speaks "perfect English". Kelly & Jon go to the Koreana Hotel and ask for directions at Registration. They get directions on a map and go outside to the doorman, who's standing next to 2 Korean drunks that are mock-fighting each other, and get a cab. Jon & Al see the kites illuminated in the night sky. Chip & Reichen see the kites as well, and Chip is flipping out, trying to get his driver to turn and get over to the beach that the kites are flying from. He's slamming his hand against the window and yelling "Hurry!!! I'm not going to pay you!!!" Jon & Al run onto the beach and start to tug on the line. The Chipsters arrive as Chip exasperatedly say "Just let me out! You speak no English - I shouldn't give you any money! Speak English!" What the hell??? You are in Korea, you idiot! Nice reinforcement of the ugly American stereotype! Jon & Al's clue floats to the ground in the night. Teams must now travel nearly 7,000 miles to Brisbane, Australia. When they land, they'll have to make their way to the Brisbane Holiday Inn, check-in with the concierge and be escorted to a penthouse suite. The Chipsters are on the beach and pull down their clue. Kelly and Jon see the kites from their cab. The Chipsters read their clue. The Clowns get a cab. The Chipsters get a cab and Chip tells the driver "Go-go-go-go-go!!!" before they even get inside, and "Quick-quick-quick-quick-quick!!!" as the sit down. Kelly & Jon hit the island. John starts pulling on a rope. In the background, you can hear someone say "ooooh no..." and that's when you realize Jon is pulling down the kites! What's worse? The string breaks!!!!! Kelly says "That sucks." Jon laughs as you can see the other kites rise further in the air. David & Jeff leave the Pit Stop at 5:15am. Jon realizes he was pulling on the wrong string and finds the marked one and they get their clue and leave. Jon & Al arrive at the airport. Team Who? arrives and pulls down their clue. Jeff hand David the Fast Forward as they read the clue and leave. Back in Kelly * Jon's taxi, you realize that some really bad fog has rolled in and you can barely see the road in front of you. Back at the airport, Jon is making phone calls to a 24-hour travelers network to get the best flight to Brisbane, which is a Korean Airlines flight to Singapore and then on to Brisbane. The Chipsters hit the airport and realize there are two flights - the Korean Air and a Singapore Air flight. Chip goes up to Korean Air ticket counter and requests booking on the flights. The counter books fro both Korean and Singapore Airlines and they find out the Singapore Airlines flight gets in earlier. Kelly & Jon show up as The Chipsters are at the counter. Jon comes up and tells the agent "Could I have exactly what they have?" Kelly laughs an evil laugh. Jon says he wants their ticket pointing to The Chipsters. Jon then says to Reichen to title of the show. The teams wonder where The Clowns are. In the meantime, The Clowns are at the Korean Air terminal, watching it getting brighter outside in the dense fog, wondering where the other teams are. Team Who? arrives and gets the Singapore flight. Lots of shots of the fog outside and teams worried about the fog. The fog starts to lift, and the Singapore flight starts to board. Jon calls Al over to the window to show that what he thinks is their plane is in a holding box on the tarmac, behind the plane that is currently at the gate. They have only 2 hours to make the connecting flight and they find out from a pilot of their flight that the departure is delayed by at least two hours. The Singapore Air flight leaves at 2pm and it's already boarding (as we know). We see the other teams sit down in their seats on the plane. The clowns negotiate tickets and get to the gate, but find out that because they are late - they are being denied access to the plane for security reasons. The door closes, the plane pushes back and The Clowns are left in Korea.
The Clowns are now really stressed. They negotiate a flight that is a direct flight to Brisbane. The Clowns start, well, clowning to lighten the mood. (Now, based on other detective work from other websites, this direct flight actually gets The Clowns to Brisbane one 30 minutes behind the rest of the teams.) The teams are shown queuing-up to leave their plane in Brisbane and are talking about not knowing where The Clowns are. The door opens and there's a mad sprint outside - except for Kelly because Jon is still on the plane somewhere. Team Who? grabs a van and they're off to the Fast Forward. In this Fast Forward, teams must drive an hour away to a beach (in Caloundra City) and pass a local lifeguard test. After paddling surfboards through the heavy surf, they must pull a swimmer out of the water and return her safely to the beach before they can claim the Fast Forward award. Reichen & Chip get a taxi at the airport (at least they shouldn't have a language problem here...) Jon finally meets up with Kelly, who finds out that taking a train is faster than a taxi to get into the city. The hotel happens to be at the transit center. Jon gloats over the traffic that their train is passing over. The Chipsters hit the hotel first, followed by Kelly & Jon. The elevator opens on the 17th floor, and a quick walk through the Penthouse Suite door puts then - out on a patio outside, overlooking the city. The Route Marker is here. The clue is a Detour - "Face First" or "Foot First". "In "face First", teams put on safety gear, step out onto the ledge of the building, and do an Australian, or Face First, rappel right off the ledge of the building 200 feet down, one team member at a time. It's a terrifying task, but if they muster the guts, they can finish it fast. In "Foot First" teams must spot the building with the race flag on top. (it's the Sheraton Brisbane) Then, they must travel on foot down the stairs, walk all the way to the building and climb up 30 stories to the roof where the Route Marker is waiting. There's nothing scary about the task, but traveling all the way on foot could tire them out and take a really long time. The Chipsters and Kelly & Jon decide "Face First". Kelly worries about her hand, which is still a mess since the board breaking last week.(she can't make a fist). The Clowns arrive in Brisbane. Team Who is still on their way to the beach. Chip & Jon go over the side and rappel down. Kelly gets nervous. Team Who? hits the beach, grabs two lifeguard long-boards and paddle into the surf with 2-4 foot waves out about 150 feet to the victim. They absolutely struggle trying to get the female victim on the board. On the roof, a worker comes up to Kelly, says "Welcome to Australia" and shakes her hand which now becomes more painful. Reichen & Kelly go over the edge. Reichen just walks down the side of the building. Kelly thinks she's not heavy enough to do this. Kelly comes to a planter at the side of the building, gets stuck, and freaks out and just about loses it.
Reichen gets down, Kelly is spinning. She's afraid. She's eventually down. In tears, she says "I didn't like that!". Teams must now chose one of these cars (more Mercedes SUV's. Sponsor?) drive themselves 43 miles to the town of Mooloolaba and find UnderWater World. Once they arrive, they'll follow the marked path to their next Route Marker. The Chipsters leave, but Reichen can't find the town on a map. Back at the beach, Team Who is still struggling to get the victim onto a surfboard. They seem to be continually dumping her off the side or rolling the board over. They finally get the "solid girl" onto the board and paddle in. They win the Fast Forward and must now drive themselves to the Pit Stop - the Mooloolaba Yacht Club, "a legendary haven for Australia's famed yachtsmen". The Clowns arrive at the hotel. Jon goes over the edge first and makes it - Al looks a bit worried. Turns out, The Chipsters didn't get a map and are trying to find UnderWater World by themselves. The next shot is Kelly reading a map as they approach the exit on the freeway for UnderWater World. Al is struggling to come to grips with going over the edge, but he finally does it and makes it. The Chipsters catch up and both teams find parking spaces at the same time and run into the facility. The Route Marker is a Roadblock - "Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water". In this Roadblock one team member has to put on scuba gear and cross a tank and grab a clue in a treasure chest. While this task might seem easy, consider this: the tank is home to rogue's gallery of sea creatures including 100 sharks. Man, these sharks are huge! Then again, this is Australia. Reichen & Jon decide to go. One piece of information is overheard as they get their instructions from a handler off-camera: And you're not allowed to stand on the sharks underwater. Otherwise, they'll bite you. Great. Another one: Put your arms together. You must stay like that because you can't trust the animals' behavior. Whoo boy. Jon is first in. OK, they're not swimming. They're weighted-down, so the walk across the bottom, holding their hands clasped together to their chests. Reichen, still above water, says "I asked him if the sharks bite and he said "let's just go'". Jon gets buzzed by a stingray and gets to the treasure chest and grabs the clue. Kelly, outside the tank, has been watching and trying to wave to him. Reichen is moving slower than Jon, and the cross paths just a a huge shark swims by. Reichen is more tentative and definitely more scared than Jon. Reichen slips a little, and instinctively throws his arms out to tread water to stabilize himself - just as another huge shark is swimming up!!!! Could this be it???? The first shark mauling on network television????? His arms are flailing as the shark comes up behind him - Kelly & Chip are yelling at him to put his arms back! And then... commercial!!! Damn.
Ok, so Reichen rights himself, clasps his hand together and the shark swims on by. Damn. Jon gets out of the tank. Reichen gets to the Treasure Chest and gets the clue. Jon & Kelly are together as Jon gets dressed. Kelly reads the clue. Teams must now race on foot to a nearby marina and find the Mooloolaba Yacht Club, the Pit Stop of this leg of the race. The last team to check-in here will be eliminated. Kelly emphasizes to Jon the words "on foot", and they start jogging. David & Jeff have found the yacht club, as they're parking their SUV in the parking lot. To run onto The Amazing Bathmat and are greeted by a blonde with a white sash, so she looks like a "Miss something". Phil proclaims Team Who? as Team Number One, and that they're one of the three teams racing for the $1 million prize. Oh, they also win a vacation to "exotic Mexico" compliments of American Airlines' website "which you can enjoy after the race". Reichen finally comes up out of the water and they're off. Kelly & Jon find someone who knows where the yacht club is (straight down the road they're on). Reichen & Chip leave the building, with Kelly and Jon already passed them. They start to run after them. Jon asks Kelly if there's any additional info. She says they have to go on foot. Notice how they're emphasizing something here. Chip insists that they should drive. Reaching the SUV Chip is just saying "c'mon - let's go - I've made a decision." Yep, they're going to violate the rules of the clue. Chip pulls out of the parking place. Jon & Kelly are running. Reichen says to Chip they may pass them on foot. Jon & Al reach UnderWater Room. Al will do the Roadblock. The next shot is of Al, hands clasped together, in the tank, waiting for a shark to cross right in front of him. Jon is trying to tell Al to "duck under him, just duck under!" Al nods back a definite "No". Kelly and Jon are now walking and Jon says "I can see the Pit Stop". They start to jog. The Chipsters pass Kelly & Jon as Kelly says "Chip & Reichen! They didn't walk! Jon they got here before us - they didn't walk!" Chip pulls the SUV into the parking lot. The two of them bail out and run around the place, up the stairs and onto the mat. Now, Phil has a few words for them: "Reichen & Chip - you're the second team to arrive. (they celebrate) However, (they stop and turn to Phil with that look of "Huh?) you chose to drive to the Pit Stop and the clue clearly states that you need to walk, (now the audio goes into a post production voice-over by Phil) so you've been assessed a penalty of 5 minutes for the time you've gained by driving the short distance, and an additional penalty of 30 minutes for the mistake. (back live). Your penalty is 35 minutes. You'll have to wait and see if the two remaining teams arrive here within 35 minutes.If they do, you'll be eliminated." YEAH!!! WOOO HOOO!!! The Chipsters are penalized. Come on Clowns! Kelly & Jon run in an Phil has news for them: "Kelly & Jon - You're the third team to arrive. However, (voice over again... I wonder how they handled it live way back when?) due to a penalty given to Reichen & Chip, you're Team Number 2." Al gets the clue out of the treasure chest. Al & Jon meet up again topside and read their clue. They run in, up the stairs, and walk onto the mat. here it is - the big news: "Jon & Al (Phil Keoghan patented long pause here) you're the last team to arrive.Now you do need to know that one of the other teams made a mistake and received a penalty (Jon & Al look at each other, and painfully giggle. Al wipes his eyes) However, the penalty was not enough to put them behind. So I'm sorry to tell you that you both have been eliminated from the race."
NNNOOOOOOOooooooooo!!!!!!! Not The Clowns!!!! Damn you Chipsters! Damn You All To Hell!!!!! These guys enjoyed the journey so much and played the game so hard, they deserve to be in the final three.
Next week: It's the final three - no more eliminations, it's the final run to the finish (OK, the start of the run to the finish since that's in two weeks) Kangaroos! Horses! Dune buggies flipping over!!! (Oh, and Chip runs over Reichen's foot with their car.) « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
30 months of probation???The father of the shirtless father & son thug team the attacked Royals First Base coach Tom Gamboa last September was sentenced yesterday to 30 months of probation, community service, undergo addiction counseling, take part in parenting classes and remain under a 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. curfew for the next 90 days.
That's it.
This guy pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated battery back in May. He and his son rush the field and start beating the crap out of Gamboa. Gamboa has a permanent hearing loss in his right ear from the attack. The guy's son was sentenced to five years' probation and 30 hours of community service but a judge has recommended he be sent to a prison boot camp following a probation violation.
The went onto the field of play and blindsided the coach, and all they get is probation. This is just so wrong. This sends all the wrong signals to the obnoxious drunks in the stands who get up the liquid courage to go onto the field. The judge cited the behavior of baseball players encourages fan violence at ballparks. Huh? A first base coach incited this? Here's a quote from Judge Leo Holt, known around the Cook County Criminal Court building, as Judge "Let 'Em Go, Leo" Holt: "What fan has not seen a pitcher intentionally hurl a baseball at a player's head at 90 miles per hour? Who has not seen a batter leave home plate headed for the pitcher's mound, bat in hand, bent on mischief and mayhem? ... [Baseball] ranks alongside mom, apple pie, hot dogs and Chevrolet. It is America's summer pastime. It teaches teamwork, sportsmanship and a host of wholesome and desirable character traits, but baseball is not immune from the frailties of human conduct.''
Now, as a side note, it's important to know that people have actually died because of how this judge has ruled in the past. He's had rulings overturned. In recent years he has complained that prosecutors systematically move high-profile murder cases away from his courtroom—because he has a reputation as being friendly to the defense.
(I wonder if the court date was done to coincide with Kansas City being in town again? I can tell you that having them back in town just seems to bring out the weirdness in Sox fans... thank God they don't allow the people with upper-deck tickets to have access to the main level... 5 people were arrested on Monday because of fights in both the right-field and left-field corners of the upper deck)
posted at 09:48 AM | Link | Baseball § |
Wednesday, August 06, 2003
The Governator? Is he a Running Man because of a Total Recall?
I would love to live in California. And then, there are times when I'm glad I don't live in California. I guess Arnold Schwarzenegger announced during a Wednesday afternoon taping of NBC's "The Tonight Show" with Jay Leno that he's running for governor.
Now, as I write this, there are 389 other people that are running right now, including Gary Coleman, who played Arnold Drummond in the 1980s sitcom "Diff'rent Strokes, Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flynt , the melon-smashing comedian Gallagher, comedian D.L. Hughley and socialite-turned-columnist Arianna Huffington. Oh, and then there's Bob Dole and Michael Jackson, but not the people that you're thinking of. You can check out the Candidate Status Report here.
It only takes $3,500 and 65 people to sign a petition. I can't wait to see who actually qualifies and gets certified to run.
posted at 10:05 PM | Link | Current Events § |
Big Brother 4 - Episode 14posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
This has to end sometime, right?
I'm watching the White Sox game (they have a day game here in town) and it's looks like a great day to be at the park. The place is full, it's warm, and the sun is out. In the meantime, all of a sudden there's thunder outside. Then high winds. Sure enough, here comes the rain again. We had two great dry days and here we go again. This time, the wind is really whipping the rain against the house. No hail this time, though. Does that make it any better? Trees are bending from the winds. This is going to end sometime, right???
posted at 03:26 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Targeted?
Does it make you wonder when you find a spent bottle rocket on your lawn if your property was targeted? Or is it the constant news stories on possible terrorism targets that seems to bring it up in your mind?
posted at 12:20 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Tuesday, August 05, 2003
Recycling under cover of darkness
I keep missing the recycling truck every Wednesday morning for the last couple of weeks. It just seems to show up before I get out of bed. I guess the object is to do it the night before. Anyway, what a gorgeous night outside! It's been great since we shook all of that damn rain. Now, there's just a very slight breeze out there. The neighborhood is quiet. It just made me want to go take a walk.
Update: Crap... Wednesday morning the garbage truck came first instead of the recycling truck and I missed taking out the garbage!!!
posted at 09:03 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Another part of my childhood gone
I'm all for new technologies being used in day-to-day things, but this is just upsetting. Carol bought some Hershey bars. I went into the fridge to grab one (yes, I keep them refrigerated - they don't melt and have a nice "snap" to them when you crack them along the correct lines), when I noticed they changed the packaging. They messed with a classic. Gone are the paper sleeve over the foil/paper wrap. It's been replaced with that vacuum mylar crap. I feel it's just another part of my childhood ripped away.
posted at 06:53 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Monday, August 04, 2003
Bald Hawk
White Sox TV broadcaster Ken "Hawk" Harrelson made a bet - if the Sox won 10 straight, he's shave his head. The Sox never made it. Then he made another bet - if the Sox swept Kansas City, he'd shave his head. Well, that one he won. The Sox swept Kansas City and for one brief day last week, we were tied for first - the first time since last year. Pitcher Mark Buehrle shaved Hawk's head. Now, Hawk has been hiding the head... until the 7th inning stretch in tonight's game.
Oh, Sox 9 KC 13 tonight, and are now 3 games behind KC.
posted at 09:50 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Dangerous Intersections
Every town has at least one of these - a dangerous intersection that has had an awful lot of accidents, some of which you may have been a part of, or, if you're lucky, you were almost a part of.
There's a Walgreen's less than a mile west of us on Golf Road. Though I didn't see it, as I was leaving Dominick's this afternoon I noticed another bad accident right at the light. There' something weird about that particular intersection, where people - for some reason - don't see the traffic light. Today's accident was between a car and one of those mini shuttle busses from a retirement home. They were pulling people out of the bus and car and putting them in ambulances.
I always wonder when the municipalities will do something about these kind of problems, especially since it's just not a one-time event.
posted at 04:11 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Unclean
OK, I have to come clean on something... I've had a problem for almost two weeks now. It's embarrassing. It's gross looking.
I have to hide my hands. Why? Because the skin on my fingers is pealing. All 8 fingers and 2 thumbs. It started at the tip of each finger, and now it's just spreading. The skin is drying-out, getting hard, and just sloughing off. Like I'm shedding my skin in some terrible B-Movie. This happens every once in a while, maybe about once a year. I don't know if I touched something and it did this, or it's an allergic reaction, or God knows what. It's gross.
posted at 10:42 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Sunday, August 03, 2003
Ark Building for Dummiesposted at 02:33 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Saturday, August 02, 2003
Nothing
Nothing much to say about today. We did nothing today. Didn't go anywhere, didn't do anything around the house. Nothing. No sports events, no movies. Nothing. Tonight, weather was moving through again, mostly north of us. It's just really cool when weather moves through right at sunset. The setting sun illuminates the clouds from below and you get some really great colors. Fortunately, the rain lasted just a few minutes and everything was back to normal again. A whole lot of nothing...
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Friday, August 01, 2003
Really wet...
These weird, intense thunderstorms have been rolling through all day. You go from sun, to darkness, to downpour, then add wind & hail, only to stop again and the cycle repeats. Some areas have gotten over 4 inches of rain so far. There was one thunderclap this afternoon that scared the hell out of me. There was no lightning, no rain, just this huge thunderous explosion - I though a plane had crashed nearby or that Woodfield Mall exploded or something. Eventually more thunder and lightning came through and then I realized that there wasn't a major catastrophe in the suburbs.
posted at 03:15 PM | Link | Mundane § |
BB4 Erika in a movie? THEME
I was watching the live feeds just a few minutes ago, and found out that Erika said that she was a dancer in the movie Dance with Me (she was a Club Salsa Dancer and danced on-screen for a few seconds with Chayanne) and that she has had an agent. Now, I'm not surprised by this. I was a year or two ago when I was naive enough to realize that Reality Show Contestants may have alterior motives and actually signup with agencies...
posted at 12:09 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Friday 5 - Starting the day
Time for another Friday Five...
1. What time do you wake up on weekday mornings? When I used to work, it was 6:30am. Now it's about 7:30am-8:00am
2. Do you sleep in on the weekends? How late? I try, but it's usually just until 9:00am
3. Aside from waking up, what is the first thing you do in the morning? Check my email. It's not like I get a lot of mail (OTHER than the spam I get)
4. How long does it take to get ready for your day? 15-30 minutes
5. When possible, what is your favorite place to go for breakfast? I hardly ever have breakfast, so I don't go out for it. Denny's maybe? (shudder)
posted at 09:14 AM | Link | Friday Five § |
*nose wiggle*posted at 06:51 AM | Link | Memes § |
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