Thursday, January 29, 2009
American Idol - Season 8
Road to Hollywood
A two city show as New York and San Juan, Puerto Rico are combined into one show. The good news is that this is the last audition show and next week is Hollywood week.
Jorge Nunez is a puerto rican who starts out with a spanish song. They of course ask him to sing English as well. He makes it through to Hollywood. Eh... not overwhelmed by him.
Melinda Camille wants to be naked. Yup, you read that right. She likes dancing in her room naked and is all about uplifting the world. I don't actually know her point I glazed over. I think she is obnoxious but she's making it to Hollywood. Her big ass and bald head is going to Hollywood.
Jackie Tohn is kind of a weirdo. She has a gravelly voice. I believe she thinks of herself as a bluesy type. I think she is one of those women that wants to be like Janis Joplin. Anyways, not sure she will make it out of Hollywood week.
Nick Mitchell, aka "Norman Gentle", had quite the schtick but he actually had a decent voice beneath all the humor. Usually these guys can't sing a lick. He was actually one of the few people who made the judges laugh as well as myself. He makes it through to Hollywood just on his humor alone. "You don't have a shot in hell" says Kara but they still let him through. Oh ya he looks old too.
Kendall Beard is a cute Texan that sings well. She might be someone to keep an eye on.
Monique Garcia Torres is a 16 year old Puerto Rican who brings her adorable little brother Christopher. The judges just eat him up. She however barely makes it through. She is young but has some potential. Not the end of the world if she doesn't make it this year.
Oh god Alexis Cohen is back. She was horrible last year. This year she has cleaned up her act and alleges a whole new attitude. I don't believe it. So the judges reject her. I don't usually point out the rejects but it was a bit amusing to see her back in a new look. Oh well.
Patricia Lewis Roman belts out a Whitney Houston song and of course the judges don't like it. It's hard to sing Whitney and very few can pull it off. It is like cooking desserts on Top Chef. Just too dangerous. After being asked to sing another song she gets passed through to Hollywood.
Finally the end of auditions! Next week is the hell that is known as Hollywood week. Thank goodness we are almost to the finals.
Labels: American Idol, Music, Television
Top Chef - Season 5 -
"Super Bowl Chef Showdown"
The quick fire is create Quaker oats with their food group (e.g. meat, poultry, dairy, fruits) they chose in a football square format. No immunity on the line for this quickfire just an advantage in the challenge.
Shockingly enough Leah was one of the losers in the quickfire. Surprisingly Fabio was down there and Jeff's dish was blah looking as he had feared.On the top was Carla (a shocker), Jamie and Stefan. The winner of the quickfire was Stefan. Yet another win. Clearly he is the top dog and the one to beat.
For the challenge the chefs will competing against a chef from a previous season. They will be competing with regional cuisine from an NFL team: Miami, Green Bay, Dallas, Seattle, New York, San Francisco and New Orleans. Stefan's advantage is to pick both the cuisine and the chef to compete against. He picks Dallas and Andrea. The rest of the chefs get to decide what team's food to pick. The complete matchups are listed below.
| The Matchups | ||
|---|---|---|
| Team Cuisine | Season 5 Chef | Past Season Chef |
| Dallas Cowboys | Stefan | Andrea |
| Miami Dolphins | Jeff | Josie |
| Green Bay Packers | Fabio | Spike |
| Seattle Seahawks | Hosea | Miguel |
| New York Giants | Leah | Nikki |
| San Francisco 49ers | Jamie | Camille |
| New Orleans Saints | Carla | Andrew |
The chefs cook head to head. The judges vote gets 7 points, the fans get 3 points. If the season 5 contestant loses the head to head match up than they are up for elimination. The chefs have 20 minutes to create their dish and they are cooking in front of a raucous audience.
Leah and Nikki go first. Leah wins the judges pick, she does however lose the fans.
7 - 3 for season five.
Hosea and Miguel are up next. Hosea wins the judges pick for the touchdown. It is a sweep for Hosea as he wins the fans as well.
17 - 3 for season five.
Carla and Andrew are bringing the spirit of New Orleans to the set. Carla also wins the judges but fails to win the fans.
24 - 6 for season five.
Stefan and Andrea are next in the spotlight. Can Stefan continue the streak of winning over the judges? Not quite. The judges split and the fans overwhelmingly pick Andrea. What a shock. The number 1 contender has a hiccup. Not a good time to have a hiccup. He is the first chef for elimination consideration.
24 - 16 as season five's lead slims down.
Girl fight time as Jamie and the always attractive Camille battle. Camille seemed to get very little air time when she was on Top Chef. That was always upsetting. Again the Judges have a tie but the fans support Jamie.
34 - 16 as Jamie picks up the slack from Stefan.
Jeff and Josie are fighting for South Beach. The judges give the nod to Josie. The fans also preferred Josie's plate. Another 10 points for the All-star chefs.
34 - 26 and the All-Stars are back within striking distance.
The deciding match up will be Fabio and Spike. The judges points go to Spike. The fans save him some face by selecting his dish.
The season five contestants sneak by with a narrow 37 - 33 victory.
If I remember the rules correctly Stefan, Jeff and Fabio will be up for elimination. Leah and Carla are going to hang on for another week? Unbelievable. Stefan should be safe given all his past wins, but the judges always say they only take the current challenges in mind.
Hosea, Carla, Leah and Jamie are asked to see the judges first. They of course are safe per the rules. This week there was a lot going on in the episode so it was a bit tougher to see how people did and decipher their cooking skills. The judges name Carla as the winner. The prize? Two tickets to the Super bowl.
The chopping block is called in. Stefan, Fabio and Jeff stand in front of the judges. This is the first time on the block for Stefan. Tough call to see who goes home. I think they are leaning towards sending Jeff home. That would shake up my standings a little bit.Jeff is the chef that is asked to pack his knives and leave. This is a bit disappointing that a good chef is asked to leave while Leah and Carla get to stay. That is the game though. It is tough to have a tough challenge this late in the competition.
So here are the updated standings. Even with the down week I couldn't drop Stefan. He did win the quickfire but he had a poor showing in the challenge. Jamie has good weeks and down weeks. Seems she only wins with soups. I ended up giving Hosea the nod over Fabio based on their results in the challenge. They are about equals to me though. Carla (despite the win) and Leah are still the weakest chefs in my opinion.
1) Stefan (was 1)
2) Jamie (was 3)
3) Hosea (was 5)
4) Jeff (was 2)
5) Fabio (was 4)
6) Carla (was 8)
7) Leah (was 7)
Labels: Television, Top Chef
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
American Idol - Season 8 -
Salt Lake City
In the land of Mormons will we find the next American Idol? They almost did last year with David Archuleta. Wow, that would've been a mistake. Ugh.And what would a trip to Utah be without a mention of the Osmond family. It just so happens we have a descendant trying out for American Idol. David is the son of Alan Osmond brother of Donnie and Marie.
Oh and he has MS. He's got a sob story and he is an Osmond. Man they should just give him the title right now!
I thought Greg the rabbit's buddy wasn't that bad. They gave him a quick hook, most likely due to his gimmick. That's too bad... for him.
Frankie Jordan is a stay at home mother with a nice voice. She's pretty good looking but the mother and married thing hurts some of her cred. Not bad.
Megan Corkrey also a mother. She is in midst of a divorce. Not quite a terrible sob story but a little bit of one. She is adorable though, a bit bucktoothed. She's a cute girl with an interesting voice but very well. The only down side? Shes got almost a full sleeve tattoo on her right arm. As Kara said she has a "glow". An outstanding audition. I'll be looking for her in Hollywood week.
Austin Sisneros is a high school student. Excuse me, not just a student, the president of the senior class. Interesting song choices. After singing two they send him to Hollywood.
Taylor Vaifanua is a near 6 foot pacific islander. She's a big girl with a decent face. She sails through to Hollywood as well.
Rose Flack is a dirty hippie girl. They show her walking on the street bare foot. That is just disgusting. She also comes into the audition without shoes. In her hair there are faux dreadlocks. She lost both of her parents already, at 17. Her singing was good. Missed a little something but it was good enough to combine with her glowing aura to get four yeses and make it through.
That wraps up SLC. Needless to say there were a lot of christian songs this episode. Tomorrow we wrap it up with a 2 city episode. Next week is Hollywood week. I'm excited for that!
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
American Idol - Season 8 -
Jacksonville, FL
Nice! We start off with some good vintage footage of Randy in his Journey days.
Joshua Ulloa is a huge tool. I can't stand him. I want him gone the second he shows up on stage. I can't explain how much this kid annoys me. I want to see NOTHING from him in Hollywood week.
Now I am a big animal lover but Sharon Wilbur might be a bit nuts with it. She had an interesting voice that wasn't that bad. She might be a bit cute too but she seems weird. She has some weird feathers dangling from her hair. Not sure what her deal is. She also has a sizeable ass. The dog, Sasha, is cute.
Julissa Veloz, who has something to do with Miss Florida Latina USA, is kind of creepy looking. I think she kind of has a drag queen face, a bit masculine. She's definitely a freak. Her voice wasn't that great but might have some potential. Heck, I usually like anyone (that's a girl) who rocks the bangs but she just looks a bit too much like a dude for me. Take a look at the picture of her on the right and judge for yourself.
Jasmine Murray might be Sam Cassel's illegitimate child. She had a very nasally voice and I thought at least one judge would mention that but none did. I however can comment on the looks. Shes kind of cute but her eyes are a bit too far apart. A bit mean to make fun of a 16 year old but I call them as I see them. She is kind of cute from the right angles.Anne Marie Boskovich is told to come back as more of a star. I had noticed she was quite plain and wasn't wearing much make up. They show her outside finding more clothes and adding some make up. She will return later. She should be in just based on the bit of song she sung for Kara. Between the voice and her looks she should've been a shoe in.
T.K. Hash auditioned last year. He is a good looking black man who belts out John Lennon's imagine. After not getting in last year he makes it this year. He has some work to do but I thought he was good.
Michael Perrelli throws a hissy fit and starts crying when he is told he can not have his guitar in the audition. His song was a bit off. His mother than tries to kiss him and he says "don't touch me". What a freaking joke. Man up buddy. You're embarrassing yourself and your family. I don't usually mention people who don't make it to Hollywood but this guy disgusted me with all the crying.
Anne Marie Boskovich is back with some makeup, tussled hair and new shoes. I think she hits the song. I don't know why they are giving her such a hard time. I think she can be a very pretty girl, albeit with some makeup and styling but it is in there. She also needs to shake some of the nerves/shyness and be able to be a star. The problem you see with a lot of these contestants, the ability to be a star on the stage and center of attention.
That wraps up Jacksonville.
Labels: American Idol, Music, Television
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Top Chef - Season 5 -
"Restaurant Wars"
The quickfire challenge is to create one dish to showcase a prospective restaurant. There is no immunity on the line but the top 2 finishers get to be the chef-owners for the restaurant wars.
Jeff was not impressive with his salmon. Fabio's lunch concept didn't do it either. However Radhika impressed the judge. Her opponent in restaurant wars is going to be Leah. Wow. Leah is one of the weaker chefs remaining so it is odd that she will be the chef-owner for this challenge.Interestingly enough, Stefan is the last chef picked despite being one of the strongest. This just shows how much people do not like working with him.
In Radhika's restaurant the meal is received well. That is all the main courses and starters are received well. Not surprisingly the deserts are widely thought to be poor. As usual the deserts are a weak point on Top Chef. This is a reoccurring theme throughout the seasons.
In Leah's restaurant, "Sunset Lounge", the judges like Fabio's greeting but are not impressed with the amuse-bouche. Not a great start. The meal does improve in the appetizers but not by much. The short ribs are cooked well but the fish was not cooked well. That was Leah's fish. Team captain Leah. It would be tough to see her surviving. This time, the deserts are well received and actually called the best part of the meal. Stefan nailed these deserts.
The judges decide the Leah's team was the winners. The attribute the win to Fabio's personality and Stefan's deserts. Leah would've been going home for her cod if her team had not won. Stefan was named the winner for this challenge.
Radhika's restaurant, "Sahana", was the losing restaurant, albeit by a slim margin. The food was probably better in this restaurant but the front of the house and the desert really set them back. Radhika is getting pummeled in this judges table and I think there is really no other choice.Sure enough it was Radhika who was sent home. She was unable to control her restaurant and make the adjustments with the failing deserts. Radhika is asked to pack her knives and go.
As usual I have included where I would've ranked Radhika. This is the ranking of who is most likely to win Top Chef. Not much has changed this week as I was unable to think of a reason to shuffle my top 5 too much. The only change was dropping Hosea down and bumping Fabio up.
1) Stefan (was 1)
2) Jeff (was 2)
3) Jamie (was 3)
4) Fabio (was 4)
5) Hosea (was 5)
6) Radhika (was 6)
7) Leah (was 7)
8) Carla (was 8)
Labels: Television, Top Chef
American Idol - Season 8 -
Louisville
Awesome. We start off with Tiffany Shedd, a long legged blonde. Long legs and all around horrifying. It's too bad she was terrible because her father had real Joe Simpson potentially. He screamed dirt bag daughter toucher.
Joanna Pacitti is recognized by Kara as having been signed. She's a pretty girl with a nice voice. I like her. Despite the annoying sound she was making while crying.
Brent Keith Smith was all right. He seemed off at the start but got better through it. The beard/haircut/cross wasn't working for me but he had an alright voice, eventually.
Matt Giraud looked a bit hokey for me. He also rushed his song badly. Odd shaped head as well. The judges loved him, I wasn't all that impressed.
Day two starts off with Paula showing off her ta-tas.
Alexis Grace is a stay at home mother with a big voice. She also has a "commercial" face as Simon said.
I hate Aaron Williamson. I hated everything about him. I hated that they put him into the show. Ugh ...
Hey Ryan Johnson, get a damn haircut. I hate these haircuts and anyone with the brushed bangs that don't move.
Leneshe Young is a pretty and bubbly young black girl. She has a sob story about childhood poverty as well. That is an added bonus. She decided to sing a song she wrote, never a real good move. The judges usually frown upon this. However this time the judges liked her singing AND her song. A win all around. She was hyped up a lot by the judges which is the only reason I am afraid to pick her as a favorite.
Labels: American Idol, Music, Television
Saturday, January 24, 2009
American Idol - Season 8 -
San Francisco
I'm back blogging after my trip to London. This episode originally aired Tuesday the 20th.
Tatiana Del Toro is a nut and annoyed the hell out of me. She wouldn't shut up and listen to the judges. She kept singing other songs instead of listening to Simon. Just flat out rude. She has no shot.
Jesus Valenzula is a 29 year old father. He wasn't terrible but he just doesn't have the chops to win. Thanks to his kids he makes it through to Hollywood. He doesn't really look like he has good chances.
They play a montage of people who made it to Hollywood. John Twiford looks incredibly boring. Allison Iraheta was a little squeaky to me. Raquel Houghton was cute but didn't seem like she had that good of a voice. Good enough to make it though, just not to win. At least I don't think so.
Hey Adam Lambert, sweet haircut you tool. I hate that haircut it looks horrible. I don't know how people don't get irritated with the hair across their forehead. He has a nice voice but he sings kind of girly. I don't think he can win with his style. And by the way. There was NO way he had a crush on Paula ... a little too "theatrically" as simon said.
Kai Kalama is only 26 but he has grey hairs in his beard. He would be best served by getting a haircut and shaving his beard, help him look younger. I didn't care for his voice, but he has some potential. Oh yeah, he has a nice little sob story as well.
Labels: American Idol, Music, Television
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Friday, January 16, 2009
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Top Chef - Season 5 - "Down on the Farm"
For starters I am still a little upset that Gail is no longer going to be hosting. I liked her and found her to be kind of cute. This new judge is hardly a looker. At least for a straight male like myself.
Hung, the winner from season 3, is back to guest judge the quickfire. The quickfire is to use canned ingredients and make a delicious dish. They only get 15 minutes to make this dish. The disappointments were Leah, Radhika and Jamie. Hosea, Stefan and Jeff were liked by Hung. The winner of the quickfire is Stefan. This gives him immunity for the next challenge. Not that he would've needed it as he is currently ranked #1 in my standings.
The chefs draw knives to divide into teams of three. Pork, lamb and chicken are the proteins. They will need to create a family style meal (including dessert) for 16 people.
The chefs are driven out to go shopping. They are not taken to a grocery store. They are taken to a farm to shop on the farm. This is great. They are getting to meet their future dishes. Not sure I would be able to look them in the eye and then eat them. Of course them being at a farm mandates that I include the Mark Wahlberg talks to animals sketch.
Team Lamb is Hosea, Leah and Ariane. Team Chicken is Carla, Jamie and Stefan. Team Pork is Radhika, Jeff and Fabio. The teams have to make desserts in this challenge. I know that there will be an issue with at least one team's desserts. There always is. It always haunts someone.
Team chicken made a soup, which was questioned on such a warm day, but people liked the taste of it. Team lamb did not produce a good lamb. It had an overpowering pesto. Team pork was not impressive but the fried green tomatoes were the star.
Team chicken makes a nectarine and strawberry tartlet which the judges liked very much, especially Carla's crust.. Team pork create a vanilla and lavender scented crème brûlée. It had a bit too much sugar and sweetness to it. Team lamb made a summer berry trifle that was unappealing to look at and not well received.
Team Chicken (Carla, Jamie and Stefan) were the best of the bunch. This kills my prediction that Carla will be the one who goes home. The winner of the challenge was all of them. All three are given the win. Kind of a cop out if you ask me.
Both the lamb team and the pork team are asked to appear in front of the judges.
The team projects can be tough. Some of the chefs take back seats to the other chefs. Sometimes in these situations the teamwork interferes and good chefs get sent home because of a poor team effort. It is hard to call these ones because the judges can go many ways with they analyzing of the teams.
Someone must go home and today that someone is Ariane. Wow. I had her ranked #3 this week. I really think that she should not have gone home. You could've sent home Radhika for not doing much on the pork team. However the judges decided the lamb team was the worst dish so someone from that team had to go. Hosea was fairly safe from elimination. Leah would've been an acceptable cutting. The judges always say they do not consider past performance and only use the current challenge but still, Ariane has had the better season so far. It is a shame to see her go. Not that I think she was going to win it all, but I think she deserves to be there ahead of Leah.I liked doing the ranked list last week so I am doing it again this week. I included where I would've ranked Ariane. This is the ranking of who is most likely to win Top Chef.
1) Stefan (was 1)
2) Jeff (was 5)
3) Hosea (was 6)
4) Jamie (was 2)
5) Fabio (was 4)
6) Ariane (was 3)
7) Radhika (was 7)
8) Leah (was 8)
9) Carla (was 9)
Labels: Television, Top Chef
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
American Idol - Season 8 -
Kansas City, MO
Idol is in Kansas City Missouri tonight. Let's see what they got.
Ashley Anderson performs a song co-written by Simon and performed by Leona Lewis. Not a bad way to go, picking a song by Simon. Especially if you do it well like she did. Also she kind of has a Leona Lewis look to her so that will help with the act. She's kind of good looking in a weird way but she was a very good singer as well. I like her to make the cut so far.
Casey Carlson is an adorable twenty year old. Not the best singer but as Kara says "I see a package here". I like her too. Wow, two people from KC that I think are decent contenders.
Von Smith started off like he was going to be a clown. Clearing his throat several times. I was actually impressed that he was as good as singer as he was. That said, I thought his performance was over the top and not quite playing to his strengths. I had no idea what the judges were going to think about it. Great time to add in a commercial break. Legit anticipation for me from Idol. I'm surprised. They ended up sending him to Hollywood. He is very intriguing and I would think, if he chooses the right songs, he could be a contender.
Jason Castro's brother is auditioning. I HATED him last season. I hate his brother too with his pink faux hawk and punk bangs. He also has a necklace that is one of those half heart best friends charms. He sings a Gavin DeGraw song. He actually sings that about like Gavin. Not sure he is actually a singer. Especially since he admits to not singing for long. The send him through to Hollywood. Ugh. Not a favorite of mine.
Matt Breitzke is a welder and a father. He actually has a pretty good voice, but he is a big dude with a goatee and bald head. That will hurt him in this competition because image DOES play a role in it. He makes it to Hollywood despite a negative from Randy. I just can't see him winning it but good for him.
Jessica Furney did not impress me at all. I am a bit shocked that they were so unanimous in sending her. Shows what I know...
India Morrison came in with her sister. She made it but her sister didn't. Not sure she was seriously trying out or just there to support India. The best part was that India was a small girl and Asia (her sister) is a GIANT woman. Them standing side by side is hilarious. India was pretty good but an even better dancer.
Jamar Rogers has a piercing just under his eye on his cheekbone. Very odd. He gets in despite an over the top performance which wasn't that good. However he did show the potential.
Jamar's best friend Danny Gokey is next. He lost his wife 4 weeks ago and is still very emotional about it. Danny is a music teacher. He had a nice little Heard it through the grapevine. He is in easily.
Anoop Desai, clearly of Indian descent, was pretty good. After a few racial stereotypes by Simon (IT jokes of course) he makes it through.
I love the montages they do when they pick one song and everyone sings it. Those are favorite parts of these episodes.
Andrew Lang has two cheerleaders perform a routine before performing. He actually wasn't that bad. I expected to him to be horrible after the lead in. Randy actually says yes but then takes his vote back. Actually one of his cheerleaders looked like Maggie Gyllenhaal. 
Asa Barnes has an adorable daughter. Kind of like Raven Symoné, before she grew up and got not cute. Simon was puzzled by his song selection but was disarmed by Asa's response. They like his attitude and singing. He makes it in. Dennis Brigham enters telling Simon he had a dream about him. He was too much of an act. I didn't like him but he eventually begs them into letting him continue through.
Lil Rounds is the last audition. She has a nice sob story background. She is a mother of three that was forced out of their house by a tornado. I had guessed Hurricane Katrina when they were showing the teases for her. Does that make me a racist? Any ways she make it to Hollywood. She was good.
That wraps this up. Can't wait until auditions are over and we can move on to hell week and the finalists.
Labels: American Idol, Music, Television
American Idol - Season 8
Season 8 starts off in Phoenix. Of course we have to sit through endless no-hope people, some I think honestly think they are good. It's a bit sad. I know some only want to be on tv or get noticed but others definitely think they are good enough.
This was also the premier of new judge Kara DioGuardi. She is actually a better looking than I thought she was. She seems to be a bit snippy. She is also a bit meaner than I was expecting. More so than Paula at least.With a two hour episode, it is hard to comment much on all the contestants. I will do my best to mention who I think has a legit chance to win.
Stevie Wright has a bubbly personality and a good voice. Kind of good looking in a weird sort of way. Always smiling. Could become very annoying.
Ok, this alleged bikini girl (Katrina Darrell). Good for you, you got some attention. You also got Ryan Seacrest to come up with any excuse NOT to kiss a girl and act awkward at the thought. So that made it worth it in my book. While singing she had a very weird look on her face. She also got the claws to come out in the new judge. She even dropped a bitch on her. That alone was worth it. Well needless to say I don't think she will make it past Hollywood week.
I was feeling bad for Brianna Quijada because she was so emotional but wasn't the best singer. She was a very nice singer but not good enough really. They eventually let her in (Paula and Simon) mostly because they liked her personality which would be a good thing but really her voice just will turn out to not be up to snuff.
Deanna Brown has a nice accent. A quirky sounding voice to go with a quirky look.
Cody Sheldon is a creepy kid. Clean him up a little and he might get a teeny bopper vote. I don't think his voice is that good but then again I think the men are at a disadvantage in this competition.
Alex Wagner-Trugman is a dorky looking kid but I like his performance. I liked it. Apparently quirky is my word of the day because this kid is quirky. I like him and think he will actually do well.
Scott Macintyre is a blind man. I'm not sure how he would be able to perform down the line. Probably a lot of time behind the piano (he is classically trained) will be in his future. I didn't think he was that good but I'm sure the Idol people will like to show him off. Of course Kara called him courageous which she then clarified that it was because he was without his piano and not because of his blindness.
I'm a little upset we didn't get to see more of the girl in the white skirt they showed in the closing montage. She looked like she might be good looking.
It continues to amaze me that people come from all over to audition at these places. In Phoenix there was someone from Detroit. Is that really the closest place to audition? Did they make this a vacation? I am a bit confused.
Labels: American Idol, Music, Television
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Scrubs - Season 8
Looks like Bob Kelso isn't going anywhere despite what I said earlier. Courteney Cox wrapped up her 3 episode arc and the 4th episode revolved around Kelso's character always hanging out in the coffee shop that adjoins the hospital. Perhaps his character will be returning after all.
Labels: Television
Monday, January 12, 2009
Baseball's newest Hall of Famers: Rice and Henderson
Rickey made it as expected with 511 votes for 94.8%. Jim Ed Rice made it in his 15th and last year of eligibility with 412 votes for 76.4%.
Just missing the cut were Andre Dawson (361 votes, 67.0%), Bert Blyleven (338 votes, 62.7%), Lee Smith (240 votes, 44.5%) and Jack Morris (237 votes, 44.0%).
Mark McGwire only received 118 votes (21.9 percent) in his third year of eligibility. He had gotten 128 his previous 2 attempts. He was a border line hall of famer before steroids and even less now apparently. He was a one dimensional player and even though that one skill (power) is on that writers usually love, it was not enough.
Labels: Sports
Error seen on Yahoo! Finance
I have seen this error a couple of times on Yahoo finance page. The error message is:
Changed Ticker Symbol
'XXXX' is no longer valid. It has changed to XXXX.PK.
The problem with this is that it happens for every stocky symbol I look at.
This usually indicates that you have a changed symbol in your "Market Summary" widget on the home page. Change (or remove) the symbol that is listed in the latter part of the error message and you should be able to view symbol summaries again.
I am archiving this here as I was not able to find a proper solution on the interwebs already.
Friday, January 09, 2009
Thursday, January 08, 2009
Top Chef - Season 5 - "Focus Group"
The quickfire challenge was to create a sweet treat without using any sugar. This is a tough challenge because as I have said deserts kill people on Top Chef all the time. The only difference here is that they all have to do desert so it's not just one standing out. The least favorites were Carla, Ariane and Jamie. Radhika, Leah and Jeff were the top of the group. The favorite went to Radhika, so she will have immunity for this challenge.
Toby Young is taking over Gail Simmons's judge spot for the remainder of their time in New York. The challenge will be judged blindly (they will not know who's food they are judging) but the contestants will allowed free range to cook whatever they choose. Moreover, since they did not eliminate a person after the last challenge, they will be eliminating two people instead of the usual one.Since the group is divided into two groups (because the kitchen is smaller) Radhika gets to choose which group she wants to cook with. She chooses to go with the group that does not include Stefan because she feels he adds a lot of tension to the kitchen.
Of course, this being Top Chef, there is an added twist. The opposite groups get to judge the other groups food.
The top 3 were Stefan, Jamie and Ariane. Not that surprising because these three have been proving themselves throughout the challenges. However the winner of the challenge was Jamie. A nice win for Jamie.
The bottom of the group was Melissa, Eugene and Carla. They were sending 2 people home and the judge decided to send Melissa and Eugene home. I picked these two as the ones to go but after listening to the judges I thought Eugene might be staying and Carla going. Turns out my initial guess was correct. Melissa's whole appearance on this show was uninspiring. She never stood out and never grabbed any attention so I am only surprised she lasted this long. Eugene has shown some glimpses of talent. He has worked his way up from the bowels of the kitchen so he has nothing to be ashamed of. As Tom said he needs his skills to catch up with his creativity. Carla has always seem scattered and a bit of a mess to me. She has not been a favorite of mine from the beginning. I would not be surprised to see her on the cutting block in the next episode.We are almost done trimming the fat from these contestants. Once Carla is gone and probably Leah we will have strong cooks left.
If I had to rank the remaining chefs I would put them in this order.
1) Stefan
2) Jamie
3) Ariane
4) Fabio
5) Jeff
6) Hosea
7) Radhika
8) Leah
9) Carla
I hate Stefan's personality (as do the other chef's apparently) but he has been winning. Really though I think the top three are interchangeable at this time. The key is that I think the 5 are strong and I am still undecided on 6,7 and 8. So it will be interesting to see if there any upsets in the next week or two.
Labels: Television, Top Chef
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Scrubs - Season 8
Scrubs two episode ("My Jerks" and "My Last Words") season premier picks right up where the show ended last season. Dr. Kelso (who makes an appearance in the first episode, so maybe he is not gone yet) is replaced by Cox's character (Dr. Maddox). Cox actually isn't too bad in her role. She has some funny moments but otherwise blends into the cast, which is a good thing. The new episodes also include a new cast of interns including one gruff intern named Denise (nickname Jo by JD after the character on the "Facts of Life"). Denise has trouble saying the correct things to patient and is often saying inappropriate things. This is, of course, an opening for many humorous things to be said.All in all Scrubs picks up as the same show we have come to expect and it doesn't look the change of networks nor the impending end of the show will effect the shows quality this year. For that, I am happy.
You can watch the full episodes on abc.com
Labels: Humor, Television
Nip/Tuck Season 6
Do you remember when Nip/Tuck was a cool edgy show? Well that was probably back 2 or 3 seasons. The last two seasons have just been embarrassing story line after horrible story line. So I finally watched my recorded season premier. I am not expecting much and luckily they deliver. Dr. McNamara gets stabbed multiple times by his stalker/former agent. Then Dr. Troy has breast cancer ... really? That is what we are starting the new season with? Ugh. At least it took the focus off of Dr. McNamara's horrible family. I don't care about his horrible looking wife (and her lesbian wife and her horrible, lion looking, also on 90210 daughter).It is really disappointing because at one time this was a decent show. Edgy and some not-quite nudity. That was when the show was at its peak.
Labels: Television
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Scrubs - New Season Starts Tonight!
Tonight on ABC (new channel for the new season) Scrubs will begin its new season with the first of 18 episodes. This will be the first season of Scrubs away from its previous home on NBC. This will definitely be the last season for Zach Braff(JD or Dr. John Dorian) and creator Bill Lawrence. Lawrence said "I desperately want to do something else". Which is understandable after being involved with this show for seven years. This is one of my favorite shows of all time and probably the funniest most creative show on television the past few years. It is downright silly at times but also has some creative smart comedy mixed in. They achieve a balance in their comedy that is refreshing.
Sure sometimes they hit on cliches as they attempt to wrap up an episode in a nice, neat lesson scene but they control that with the humor dispensed through out the episode and many times in the ending as well.
Now the biggest change in the new season is the absence of Ken Jenkins who played Dr. Bob Kelso. He is being replaced by Courteney Cox's character Dr. Maddox who should be replacing Kelso as Chief of Medicine. However I believe this is only for 3 episodes so I am a bit confused on who is going to replace Kelso as the antagonist long term. Jenkins played the role of Kelso very well. He was able to play the gruff, not caring about personalities, ultimately soft sided Kelso very well. Hey champ, what has two thumbs and doesn't give a crap? Bob Kelso.
Bob Kelso indeed.
Labels: Television
Monday, January 05, 2009
What's G - Gatorade's new commercials
If you watched football on sunday then you were forced to see Gatorade's new commercials. The "What's G" commercials appear to be in coinciding with the rebranding of gatorade as "G". I had to double clutch this weekend to ensure I was buying the correct product. Even worse was I could not find what flavor I was buying. It looked orange but I have been fooled before by the god awful citrus flavor.
Back to the commercials. These commercials are almost shot with a "live" camera filter. They people look very creepy as we pan over them. I'm not exactly sure how this effect is created but it freaks me out a little. I also find it curious that they are using lesser known "Athletes" to promote their product. Demographic grab? Missy May and Jabberwocky are going to get more people to drink your beverage?
I'm not a marketing guy but I know these commercials freak me out and I know when a product is making a desperate "hail mary" to a younger audience. The shortening of the brandname to a "hip" phrase, such as G, is a definite grab for the youth market.
Labels: Sports, Television
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