American Idol - Hollywood Round #1

Okay, so I sort of bailed on posting about the first-round auditions. Let's face it - it sort of all runs together. There wasn't really a stand-out whacky person, and we didn't really get to see many of the contestants who made it through.

So.

Let's get to Hollywood, shall we?

I think Barry Manilow has had some work done, don't you? He's my fave.

And now we're on to the first eliminations. I DO NOT get why people act like total fools when they're eliminated. Seriously, as Simon told young Dennis, "You just reinforced my decision...."

Y'all, this little Nathaniel with the earrings in his face? How precious is he?

Oh, and Anoop? Love him.

Also loving Rose from Idaho with the blonde dreadlocks. She's a doll.

I am SO surprised that Nick Mitchell came to Hollywood with this Norman Gentle schtick. The guy can freaking sing; why does he insist on diluting it with the foolishness? And somehow he got through to the next round.

Bikini Girl is ridiculously arrogant and I'm very disappointed with Simon for supporting her. Hopefully it's a joke. It's got to be a joke.

Still love Jeremy Sarver from Jasper, Texas. So glad he's through to the next round.

Love David Osmond, love Emily the Punk Rock Girl.

And here's where my closing would go if I had time to write one.

How was it for you? Do you have any favorites yet?

American Idol Season 8 - Week #1 Auditions

THIS is American Idol.

Can I tell y'all something? I was SO not into last season's American Idol. Maybe I'm getting too old; I don't know. I just know that everyone I liked left early and I lost interest.

So anyway.

This season we have a new judge, and I am SO over the drama about that.

Do I sound cranky? Dang, I don't mean to.

And on to Phoenix.

Poor little Randy the Rocker. He hasn't even sung yet and he's got my heart, the little crybaby. And his voice just wasn't there. Wah.

HEY, I thought there weren't gonna be as many horrible people this season. WHAT IS UP?

Did you see the guy with the star rhinestone earrings? I SWEAR, I had those same earrings in the late 80's.

Hello, Michael from Jasper, Texas. Like ya.

Bikini girl? HORRIBLE. And also rude.

I liked the blonde girl with gorgeous eyes.

And most important? I like the new judge. Cara. So far, anyway.

Yeah, that's all I got tonight, aside from stomach pain. Catch ya next time.

Dancing With The Stars - October 6

Hey, y'all. Back, by popular demand, it's my witty commentary on Dancing With The Stars!

I believe it may be random.

Observation Number One: Julianne Hough's wig is whack.

Observation Numero Two-O: So are Toni Braxton and Cloris Leachman's!

Now let's get down to the dancing.

Susan Lucci and Tony Dovolani - LOVE me some Tony Dovolani! But Erica seems very tentative tonight, doesn't she? Maybe she's intimidated by the jive?

SCORE: 21

Lance Bass and Lacey Schwimmer - I gotta tell y'all, I'm not a big Lacey fan. She was okay on So You Think You Can Dance, but she's way too mouthy on DWTS. They did do a much more traditional choreography this time, though, so that's good.

SCORE: 22

Maurice Green and Cheryl Burke - I started out apathetic about this couple, but NOW I'm a Maurice Green Fan! He's so engaging in this dance, and I can't stop watching his fancy cute little footwork!

SCORE: 24

Rocco and Karina - Bless his little geeky heart, it seems more like a circus dance than an elegant waltz. Might have something to do with the jangly house band, though. How dare they ruin one of my favorite Tom Jones songs?

SCORE: 20

Warren Sapp and Kym Johnson - Before they start, let me tell you that this guy was THE BOMB last week doing the Pasa Doble! How cute is this big ol' teddy bear of a football player? (I must say, though, that I think there's nothing more putrid than maroon and pink together. ICK) Loved their Viennese Waltz, though. Aw...do you think he might have a little crush on Kym?

SCORE: 25!

Cody and Julianne - He's such a kid, isn't he? And did I mention that her wig looks cheap? The dance looks GREAT though.

SCORE: 21

Toni Braxton and The Guy With Long Hair - This costume? Y'all, please. The dance, together with the music, are interesting. But how can the judges see what her legs or feet are doing with that big ol' curtain hiding her bottom half? Plus, my Tinkerbell thinks she spotted a lift.

SCORE: 22

Cloris and Corky: Oh, give me strength. How incredibly sad was that?

SCORE: 16

Brooke and Derek: Beautiful. And also sort of boring. And what the heck was that song?

SCORE: 28

So. My favorites tonight? Warren for sure, and maybe even Maurice. Rocco because I root for underdogs, and of course I do love me some Erica Kane.

Going home? Cloris Leachman. Please.

What did you think about tonight's show? Leave a comment and let me know!

Big Brother Observations

Hey, are y'all watching Big Brother? It's one of my guilty pleasures, and I've noticed something very unusual about this season.

Nobody's walking around half-nekkid.

If you watch Big Brother, you've surely aware of the fact that the women walk around the house in bikinis, even the last season that was filmed in winter.

It's always puzzled me why these people seem to wear their swimsuits 24/7. But this season? Not so much. I'm not complaining, mind you. The guys are probably hatin' it, but me? I'm cool.

Dancing With The Stars Contestants!

Hey, y'all! I feel like the Olympics lasted a dadgum year, and I am OH SO GLAD to have something to crow about.

The contestants for the next season of Dancing With The Stars have been announced, oh happy day!

I'm looking forward to Rocco DiSpirito, Maurice Green, Cody Linley, Misty May-Treanor, Ted McGinley and Warren Sapp. I'm warning ya, though, my picks are subject to change at a moment's notice.

Who will you be rooting for when Dancing With The Stars returns on September 22?

So You Think You Can Dance ~ July 23

I haven't blogged about SYTYCD in a few weeks, and I really hadn't intended to put anything out there tonight, but hey, I can't seem to keep my thoughts to myself lately, so here ya go.

First observation, WHAT IS UP with Mary Murphy tonight? She looks oh, so pretty, almost like she had some work done. Is it her teeth? Her hair? She had no time to have actual work done, but something looks spectacular.

And speaking of spectacular-looking judges, how about Toni Basil? She hasn't aged a bit; in fact, she looks so much better than she did in her Oh, Mickey days.

Katie and Twitch's contemporary routine was absolutely brilliant. P.S., I went straight to Amazon.com and downloaded that song, Mercy, by Duffy.

Will's James Brown routine was cute.

LOVED Comfort and Mark's Hip-Hop routine. Loved it. And also, did I mention that I loved it?

Yeah, not so much the Fox Trot. It didn't suck, though.

Joshua and his little blonde doing Disco was fun. Love that song, too!

I think my favorite guys are Joshua and Twitch...oh, wait what about Will? Okay, let's just send Mark home this week and sort it out later.

As far as the girls go, I'm only really crazy about Courtney. After her, my order is Chelsea, Katie, Comfort.

What did you think about tonight's show?

John & Kate Plus 8

Y'all.

Is this woman serious?

We've been watching John & Kate Plus 8 for a long time. I've always been bothered a little by the way that John and Kate speak to each other, but think that Kate is particularly hateful and demeaning to her husband sometimes.

I've seen interviews where Kate says something along the lines of, "there's no time to be polite," or, "if we don't say what we mean right away, we'll never have time to communicate."

Okay. I've never bought those excuses for belittling your spouse, but hey, if it works for them...right?

So today we're watching the "Embarrassing and Favorite Moments" episode. In the first 5 minutes of the show, here's what we see.

First there's a very old clip of John making an unkind remark to Kate. They discuss the clip, where John says he shouldn't have said it, he realizes it was rude and unkind, etc. Kate says she can't believe he said that, and explains why she was particularly grumpy that day. She educates John on the proper way to express one's dissatisfaction to one's spouse, and says that she's tried to train him for their entire marriage.

Next up is a clip where Kate shouts at John in the toy store. Her first comment is that John was playing like a child in the store instead of helping her. John attempts to explain what he was doing. Kate insists he was "playing like a child." She then goes on to say, "Well, I really wasn't that loud. It just sounded louder because I was wearing a mic."

So, in other words, Kate, you're saying that it was an embarrassing moment because John was misbehaving and when you corrected him it sounded louder than it really was because of the microphone? "I don't know what I would have done differently...but I just wish John...I wouldn't have yelled, obviously, but I wish John would be more sensitive and pay attention to the big picture of what's going on."

Now I know I can just change the channel. I know I can turn it off if it bugs me. But it's like a train wreck - I just can't stop watching. I'm fascinated at how deluded some people are about their shortcomings.

I'm not a perfect person, and you know what? I shout at my kids more than I should and I'm even catty with my husband occasionally. But I KNOW THAT IT'S WRONG and I try to improve. I don't try to justify my behavior by blaming it on someone else.

What makes me sad is that Kate Gosselin isn't the only wife (or husband or supervisor or etc.) who behaves this way. She's just the one who is so sure she's right that she'll go on national television and say so.