Kool Aid Crazy!! And a Random Wrap up!

I have turned into a massive Kool Aid Junkie. I search every place I go to see what new flavors I might find. I scour the shelves for more and more packages. I scared the nice checkout lady at Meijer's when I bought 20 packs all at once. Do I want all this Kool Aid to drink? No way. I need it to dye more yarn!! Yarn that I have no idea what I'm going to make with it. Yarn that may never move beyond it's neatly wound center pull ball. But still, I need to dye more yarn.

Monday, I went on a massive Kool Aid hunt. I searched Target (which does not carry Kool Aid by the way), Meijer (the mecca of Kool Aid flavors), Walgreens (another non-Kool Aid market), and another Kroger store (which had only the basic flavors). Meijer is by far the Kool-Aid Hook up. They had an entire display of Kool Aid with flavors I had seen no where else (although the most wonderful Pina Pineapple was missing). I finally found some blue flavors--Berry Blue and Blue Raspberry Lemonade--as well as some more interesting ones--Maderine Tangerine, Soarin' Strawberry Lemonade, and Watermelon Cherry. They also had some Lemon Lime, Cherry, Orange, Grape, Strawberry, and the ever popular Tropical Punch along with some unhelpful "invisible" flavors (clear drinks with fruity flavors--not good for dyeing yarn).

I made a trip to the new Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market last night since I needed to get some milk and looked at their Kool Aid selection, but they didn't have much variety. I'm hoping that if I pay a visit to the Meijer out in Hamburg they might have more fun flavors for me to play with.

I haven't yet had the chance to try out the new flavors I found. I'm planning to give it a try on Saturday so we'll see how it goes. I may not get to take pictures, though, since I don't have a digital camera here. Oh well.....

Now to wrap up some unfinished business.

1.) The Amazing Race Wrap up.....

Really, after the double episode, I found myself totally bored with the whole thing. I watched until the end, I really did, but I just didn't care anymore. In the end, it was the Boobs that won it all. The Beauty Queens (Dustin and Kandice) took second with Charla and Mirna coming in third. Maybe it was the utter lack of teams I cared about that made me not care. Danny and Oswald did make it to the final four, but after they were Philliminated I had no one to cheer for.

2.) My Bracket Wrap up.....

I didn't win the pool. I didn't even come close despite the fact that I picked Florida to win it all (again!). I just missed too many games in the second weekend to overcome. Oh well, maybe next year UK will stick around for more than two games. Hear that Billy G? We want more than just a one weekend engagement next year in March.

3.) 3K / 5K Racing...

The 3K I ran back on St. Patrick's Day (yes, that long ago) went well. I finished with an official time of 18:41 and placed 6th in my age category. And, most importantly, I ran the entire thing without freezing to death! I've been running pretty steadily since and I can now do about 3.5 miles at a time so I'm ready to tackle a 5K. First up is the Fancy Farm Picnic Run on August 3rd and then Sarah (from work) and I are going to do the Midsummer Night's Run on August 11th. Hopefully both will go well. Hopefully I won't die.

4.) That Stupid Committee update....

I just had to get this most lovely pic of Kyle up here one more time since the Committee that had no end finally ended!! We hired the most wonderful Associate Pastor ever Diane Baldwin back in the spring and she officially started the Sunday after Easter. We couldn't be happier with our choice! And I'm glad to finally be done with that committee, although Kyle wants to make me an elder this fall and so I'll have to serve on Session. Just say No Kimmy, just say No.

5.) Scopeman update....

Really, here there is nothing to update. Haven't seen him much this year so far. He stopped by once in February just as I was getting ready to go to the gym and we chatted for a second, and then I saw him the other day, but he paid very little attention to me. Apparently we can talk once a year at the Christmas party and that's that. Oh well.

6.) Knitting WIPS Updates....

The Aunt Purl's Magic Scarf is still not done. In fact, I haven't even picked it up in months. I need to get back to work on it, but really, I just don't want to, although I do need those needles back. I have started yet another project, however. I am making a lap robe using the very fun Feather and Fan pattern. I started it to send as a Mother's Day gift to my Grandmother, but got about 1 1/2 skeins in (out of 5) and quit. I still pick it up every once in awhile, but it may or may not be done by Christmas.

My newest knitting obsession is Baby Stuff!! since everyone I know is Pregnant. It almost makes me scared to drink the water. So far I have finished two very adorable baby hats for my cousin Logan's little boy-to-be due the first part of July.

This one is done in UK blue and white (since it's never to early to be a wildcat fan) Lion Brand Microspun from the Karlchen pattern I found for free using Crafster. It's knit from the crown down (which is cool) and very easy. I used some size 7 DPNs for the whole thing rather than switch to circs half way through and I like the way it turned out. The Stripes are a simple 2 row white/3 rows blue pattern (although if I had it to do over again, I would make them thicker).

And this one is the hopelessly cute Umbilical Cord hat from Stitch N' Bitch done in a sort of Electric Blue Sugar and Cream yarn. (I refuse to put babies in nothing but pastels.)For this one, I used my size 7 16" circs until it got too small and then switched to DPNs. The I-cord is wider than it should be (8 stitches instead of 4) since I apparently can't read a pattern all that well, but it is cute none the less. I can see more of these on the way.

I also picked up the book Mason-Dixon Knitting from the Library in order to see the Log Cabin Blanket pattern (which I was going to make for another Baby that is one the way). I discovered, however, that there are many, many fun patterns in there and I may have to go buy the book so I have my own copy forever. I have made the Ball Band Dishrag and the Baby Genius Burp Cloth so far both out of Sugar and Cream Cotton Yarn with size 7 straight needles. The dish cloth I have a photo of, the Burp Cloth I just finished last night, so no pictures for you. Notice, I had not yet woven in the ends. Now, however, they are tucked safely away. I need to use it and wash it to see how it holds up before I go crazy and make more, but I want to make tons and tons of these. It was so simple and quick!! And I like quick.

My next project will be the Bibs from Mason Dixon and then, hopefully, the Modern Baby Blanket. I just need to do a few test swatches to make sure I can handle the Log Cabin style of knitting before I jump into that one.

7.) Last but not least, my TV Wrap Up....

Now that summer is here and good TV has gone away until fall, I am longing for the days when I at least had something good to watch on Thursday nights.

Ugly Betty ended very sadly with the possible death of Santos, Henry flying off to be with Charlie who he thinks is pregnant with his baby, but may be pregnant with the crazy dentist's baby instead, and Amanda and the Scottish lady locked in the "Love Dungeon" finding out that Amanda is actually Faye's daughter. Oh whatever will I do until Fall?

Supernatural ended well. No huge cliff hanger this year. The Yellow Eyed Demon is dead, shot by Dean with the last bullet from the Super Special Colt that doesn't always kill everything after a recently released from Hell Daddy Winchester distracted the YED for just a moment. Dean, however, has only one year to live after he traded his life to bring Sam back from the dead, so I'm assuming that will be the crux of next year's plot lines. The CW is showing reruns on both Thursday nights and Sunday night now, so they will get through the entire season before the new season starts (and I have something to watch anyway).

8.) I know, I said TV was the last thing, but I thought of something else....

The little sister is in Italy right now supposedly studying Italian. Check out her blog for more details, but I get the impression she is studying food, wine, and boys more than the language.....

If I Were in Town, I'd Ask for Your Number

So, as usual, last night (being Sunday) there was a new episode of The Amazing Race. I watched, I swear I did, but I can't tell you what happened really.

If I Were in Town, I'd Ask for Your Number

It was a double episode so we got to see two legs (I thought it might have been one of those double legs, but no--just two legs shown on the same night due to the extreme spread of the teams). There was a lot of time spent in airports (to get to Poland) and lots more anti-bunching because apparently it is impossible to fly into or out of Zanzibar quickly). Then we had some forced bunching (and anti-bunching) to even things up a bit. The double episode had to be due to the fact that for the first time I the teams were so spread out that the first teams were starting the next leg before the last teams had finished the previous one (hence the forced bunching).

The teams went to Auschwitz, which was very cool and very somber. Quite the downer moment in the middle of the episode, but still, I don't suppose you could go through Poland and not visit the most famous Concentration camp in the world. Not surprisingly, each team had their own reaction to it (and Mirna managed to make it all about her). This also led to the revelation that Joe (of the Guidos) was (or has been at some point) Catholic since he made a very nice Sign of the Cross.

Charla & Mirna did a lot of yelling, which I assume means that they were no longer in front. (They yell much less when they are winning.) There was an intersection which is always interesting since it makes teams work together (and is even more fun when teams that hate each other have to work together ie: Guidos & Boobs). The intersection also served to spread the teams out even more by making the Beauty Queens wait on another team to work with as they were the third team to the Intersection after Uchenna/Joyce & Danny/Ozwald.

There was the first (and I hope last) eating task of the race where teams had to eat 2 feet of Polish Sausage (which I hope Charla & Mirna appreciated since they had been pestering their cabby about Polish Sausage since they landed in Poland). This led to much puking and very little drama. It also led to perhaps the only funny thing Eric (of the Boobs) has said on this race, ever which was "Ladies and Gentlemen....Miss California" after Dusting (or maybe Candace, I still can't tell them apart) puked up a pile of sausage.

In the end, it was the Guidos (despite their lovely Catholicism) who were Philiminated. Oh well, I didn't really care all that much.


What we learned this week: Joe is a Catholic (or at least a recovering Catholic, because God knows once they've got you, you are never the same again). Too much sausage is not a good thing. Never try to fly into or out of Zanzibar if you are in a hurry.

Best line of the week: Eric's "Ladies and Gentlemen, Miss California."

The Amazing Airport Debacle

Yes, I know it's Tuesday, not Monday and so I really should have talked about this week's Amazing Race yesterday, but oh well....you get it one day later.

This week's episode was titled We are Going to Trade you for Food Now which was just one of several jokes made by [my favorites] Ozzy & Danny that Mirna didn't get at all. I swear, for a lawyer, she isn't very with it sometimes.

We start where we left off last week in Mozambique and the first clue tells our teams to "Go directly to the airport, do not pass go, do not collect $200 dollars (but here's your money)." The teams have to fly to Tanzania (which turns out to be the most challenging part of this leg of the race). Mirna & Charla leave first this week and have decided they are "Too Hot to Handle" (really, they had matching shirts with that on it--yeah, I know). The BQ's leave next ahead of Teri & Ian in their funky awful hats which they wore through the entire leg (special people, those) as they implemented their strategy of Stop, Look, & Listen (a close cousin to Stop, Drop & Roll).

Ugly Hats

Ozzy & Danny decided they might have careers as hand models after the race is over and if that doesn't pan out, Ozzy can sub for Tim Gunn on Project Runway since he did a wonderful Tim Gunn impression in the cab on the way to the airport when he found out their diver's name was Andre (either that, or he did a great impression of Santino doing a Tim Gunn impression). That was, hands down, one of the best moments ever (right next to Ozzy & Danny chasing Phil at the Pitstop last week).

Danielle (of the boobs) informs us that she is not letting Eric take charge and make all the decisions because they are team and teams don't work that way. My response: Really? Because so far your purpose on this race is limited to carrying an extra bag and giving Eric something to talk about. But good for you if you are finally going to do something.

Charla/Mirna make it to the airport first thanks, I'm sure, to their wonderful accents as they were directing their cabbie to the airport. I don't get how they can have almost no accent when they are talking to normal people but if they are talking to someone who's first language isn't English, they have the most bizarre accents. They accents may have gotten them to the airport first, but it didn't do them much good since it was the middle of the night and everyone had to wait until morning before they could do anything. You gotta love that beginning of the leg bunching (although this would be the last bit of bunching on this leg).

Once everyone is collected at the airport, we spend the next 20 minutes watching the teams jockey for seats. Charla/Mirna manage to find an early flight to Johannesburg that will connect to Tanzania (although they will have to be on standby for the connecting flight). Everyone else is left sitting at the airport waiting on seats to open up on the only direct flight. None do, so we have more scrabbling. Now, everyone wants to fly to Jo'burg, but we have to wait for the ticket counter to open--or do we? The Guidos and Teri/Ian decide to wait in line, but everyone else goes up to the airline office and gets the agent there to book the tickets to Johannesburg as well as put them on the standby list for the connecting flight. Everyone gets tickets to Jo'burg, but only the first three teams (BQ's, Uchenna/Joyce, Ozzy/Danny) make the connecting flight. The Boobs got on the plane, but then got pulled off because they had been given someone else's tickets, so they were left in Jo'burg with the Guidos and Teri/Ian. Eric was calm and managed to get their names on a Priority Standby list for the next flight out (the next morning) while Danielle helped out by crying hysterically (way to take charge, babe). In the end, only the Boobs get on the early flight out of Jo'burg while the other two teams have to wait another couple of hours.

Now that all the teams are finally out of airports, not much else went on. We sailed on some boats (where Charla lost her breakfast). The Detour was pretty lame (Solve it or Schlep it) and most teams picked solving the fish puzzle. The Roadblock was kind of cool--the best part being Phil's description with his trademark eyebrow lift--where Uchenna got to "jump with the Maasai". Charla/Mirna came in first (although I'm not sure either of them appreciated their prize--a Catamaran--since they didn't seem to have any idea what that was until Phil explained it to them), Ozzy/Danny second, Uchenna/Joyce third (even after their 30min penalty), the BQ's fourth, the Boob's Fifth, Guidos sixth, and Teri/Ian came in last and were Philiminated.

What we learned this week: Always take the first flight to Jo'burg you can get. Charla gets seasick. Ozzy & Danny may not be a help in an avalanche, but they do know some first aid "beauty tips." Stupid looking hats won't help you get on a plane.

Best line of the week: Ozzy's Impression of Tim Gunn "Andre, where are you Andre."

Supernatural shout out?: Charla/Mirna were helped onto their connecting flight in Jo'burg by a well meaning airport worker they hijacked named, of all things, Christo. I guess there is not way he could be possessed, huh?

Bomb Sniffing Rats (And a Bracket Update)

First, my March Madness Update.

I did okay in Round 1 getting 25 out of 32 games correct. Not the greatest ever, but not too badly. I also only missed two games where I had the team going on to the third round, so no long term damage done. Round 2 went much better for me. I picked 13 out of 16 games correctly (and the 3 wrongs includes the 2 games I couldn't get right because I picked them wrong in round 1). The only game I missed that I could have gotten right was Texas. I thought Durant would have been able to get them to at least the Elite Eight. Oh well. My Final Four is still intact, though, so that is good. And I have 7 of my 8 Elite Eight teams still going (Boo Texas).

The best news of the day, though? That Kyle had Wisconsin winning it all and only 6 of his final 8 are still standing. That means that I stand a very good chance to beating him in the brackets this year. And everyone knows that is the entire point of March Madness.

Now, on to the Amazing Race (yes, I watched a lot of CBS yesterday)....

This time, with Rob & Amber gone (heehee)the other teams could finally concentrate or racing rather than on what Ramber was doing right?. Well sort of. We start off with everyone talking about how glad they are that it was Charla & Mirna that got to keep racing rather than Ramber and how much they didn't like Ramber and how much more interesting things were now, without them. Then. Finally. I think we are done with Ramber. Moving on.

The first thing we get to do this week is....dig in the snow while looking for buried avalanche beacons. Interesting, I guess, but let me just say that if I'm every buried in an avalanche, I want Joe & Bill to come looking for me rather than any other team. They were the only ones that seemed to be able to work the beacons. If the Beauty Queens (who can't follow arrows) or Ozzy & Danny come looking for me, just go ahead and start planning the funeral. It might be a while.

Next....stupid travel agents and airport jockeying with the end result that every single team ends up on the exact same flight. Oh well. At least we leave this hemisphere and end up in Africa!! Then there is some totally pointless argument between the Guidos and the Boobs which was totally built up in the promos to be way more than it was (which was nothing). So much for all that excitement.

And finally, we get to the most awesome Roadblock ever!! Really. It involved landmine sniffing trained rats! How cool is that! Although about half the people there thought the rats were gross, so maybe not so cool for them. Joyce, however, thought her rat was just adorable, so props to her. Just another reason I love Joyce and Uchenna. Apparently, rats love them too but not as much as rats love the Guidos. Their rats (Nelson) was some kind of super mine finding machine. Rats don't like Charla & Mirna (see, I always knew those rodents were smart) since their rat was not all that interesting in doing anything. Too bad that even though they left in last place, they made up time on the Detour.

Speaking of the Detour....this time is was a choice between Pamper (paint nails) or Porter (fill bags and haul coal). Now me, I would have chosen the non-lifting heavy bags task, but apparently nail painting is a scary things because everyone except for Charla & Mirna, Kandace & Dustin, and Teri & Ian chose to do the coal task. Ironically, the three teams which picked pamper finished 1, 2, 3 even though they were some of the last teams to finish the Roadblock. That coal is a bitch.

Ozzy & Danny finished 4th with the Guidos right behind them in 5th. That left only the Boobs and Uchenna & Joyce. Except, Uchenna & Joyce couldn't find the right house to deliver the coal to, so they fell behind. The Boobs finished 6th leaving Uchenna & Joyce for last. This made me very sad until Phil said those most magic words...."I'm pleased to tell you that you have not been eliminated from the race." (One of these days he is going to slip up and say Philiminated, but not yet.) Uchenna & Joyce are, however, "Marked for Elimination" so they have to finish 1st on the next leg or wait out a 30min penalty which could get them eliminated. We'll see what happens.

What we learned this week: Rats hate Charla & Mirna. The Guidos would make good search and rescue guys. Ozzy & Danny would not.

Eric's weekly Boob comment: Are you ready for this? There wasn't one. We managed to make it all the way through one episode with no references to Danielle's boobs.

Best Moment of the Day: Ozzy & Danny chasing Phil around at the Pitstop because they wanted to give him a hug even though they were covered in coal dust. Priceless.

Amazing Monday

Ah, another Monday. Today everyone is gone to "Neuroscience Day" so I'm here all alone (and loving it!!) Now, how about an Amazing Race Update?

This week's episode was titled: No Babies on the Race. I second that. Please, no babies on the race. The race is not the time nor the place to be making/having babies. Moving on...

This week we started off with Rob and Amber talking about how they have done so well up to this point and how they are peaking, Mirna talking about how she has to do more than any other person on the race EVER! because Charla is a little person. Eric talking about Danielle's Boobs.

Then we have yet another leg in South America. We stayed in Chile for awhile then moved on to Argentina (or Australia according to Danielle--I can see how you might get those two confused since they both start with A and all). Going to the end of the world is cool and all, but really, let's move out of this hemisphere now.

The Detour was a choice between building a sign post that chronicled Magellan's voyage or using a compass to navigate due South to a building. Uchenna & Joyce were the only team to do the sign and get it right. Rob & Amber tried, but couldn't spell Philippines (Philippeans) right and then spent A LOT of time rearranging their signs rather than checking their spelling. Dustin & Kandace started with the signs, but couldn't figure out that it didn't matter what direction the arrows pointed in as long as you had them in the right order (and spelled correctly) so they jumped ship with Rob & Amber. Charla & Mirna tried, but had some issues getting the materials to where they needed to be. Charla tried hard, but she just couldn't carry things fast enough for her shrieking cousin who did nothing but yell at her until they decided to switch tasks.

The Navigation task was pretty simple (as long as you read the directions). You went to such-and-such plaza, found the sailor, got a compass, and walked due south to the Nautilus Building. Apparently reading a compass is too hard for some teams (Rob) who got confused between North and South. Oh well. At the end of the Detour, we have our mandatory bunching. The teams had to sign up for one of two (only two? what happened to our normal three?) charter flights that leave three hours apart and land in Argentina (Australia). Bunching and Separation all at once? Who'd 've thunk it?

We land and Teri/Ian pull a Fran/Barry where they walk right by the race flag several times before they finally see the darn thing. I think they make them Red/Yellow for a reason guys. We find the clue and get to.....ride in boats! to the end of the world! But only two teams to a boat and they leave 20 minutes apart. Ozzy & Danny and Eric & Danielle are in the first boat. Teri & Ian are in the second boat (alone).

RoadBlock: Search through this massive pile of letters to find one of two letters addressed to your team (from a team from your first race). Then run to the pit stop to find Phil. Ozzy hits first with a letter from Blake/Paige. (And can I just say, it's about time these guys won a leg. They are just too much fun!) Eric is second and their letter is from the former partners whose names I can't remember. Teri & Ian come in third (letter from Flo/Zach).

Back at the airport, Rob steals a taxi from Charla/Mirna. More yelling. Then Amber lies about where they found the clue and lies about lying while they wait on the boat. More yelling. Guidos and the Beauty Queens get on a boat. Waiting. Uchenna/Joyce & Rob/Amber get on a boat. Waiting. Complaining. Charla/Mirna get on their boat.

More letter sorting. Joe/Bill come in fourth (letter from Frank) with a little man on man action at the mat (go CBS). Dustin/Kandace get fifth with a letter from Lyn, but no Karlyn. (She is apparently still hating them.) Uchenna/Joyce get sixth and a lovely letter from Susan/Patrick. Up until this point all the letters are very positive (or at least funny) but things, they are a changin'.

Rob goes for the letters, but he can't find the one he is looking for. Mirna joins him. Mirna prays to her dead Grandmother to help her win. Mirna finds her letter (God might have been in the bathtub, but Grandma wasn't) from Marshall/Lance (who I think are the only team to not make it to a pit stop to be eliminated) and it's not nice. Oh well, they finish seventh with a little help from Uchenna who hauls Charla up onto the mat. Along the way Mirna yells more.

Rob finds his letter (from Susan/Patrick). It's not all warm fuzzy either. Then, joy of joys, Rob and Amber finish last and are Eliminated!! No Non-Elimination leg. No more Rob/Amber. What a wonderful day (even if the Cats did end up as an 8 seed).

What we learned this week: Rob can't spell (or use a compass). Mirna yells (A LOT). Eric is still obsessed with Danielle's Boobs. Uchenna and Joyce hate people who lie.

The weekly Eric Boob comment: "She's just like a man, but with boobs."

Best line of the day: Ozzy & Danny: "Phil, will you go with us?" Phil: "That would be another reality show entirely."

To update, so far we have:

My new favorite (s) to win:



Still around:



Get off my TV now, please:



Note: I am renaming Eric/Danielle the Boobs since Eric seems to see Danielle as nothing but two boobs and he is one. From here on out, that is how they shall be called. Maybe they should change their team picture?

Just another Manic Monday

Actually, not much about this Monday is Manic. I actually have a bit of a break this week, but you won't hear me complaining.

Being that yesterday was Sunday....how about an Amazing Race All Stars Update? I don't remember if I've mentioned that the Amazing Race is back on, but it is. This time around it's an "All Star" edition which, to me mean that they take the best of the best teams and race them against each other (maybe the winners from the previous seasons or the second place teams). To the producers of the Amazing Race, however, this means they take a random selection of teams from other seasons. Here are this year's racers:

Kevin & Drew (Season 1) "The Frats"

I didn't start watching the Amazing Race until Season 5 or so, so I don't know anything about these guys. They seemed okay, but nothing special. They were knows as the frats, but I guess that's what they were on Season 1. This time around they were just "friends". Drew had all kinds of medical issues before they got "Phil-liminated" on Episode 2.

Ozwald & Danny (Season 2) dubbed the "Cha Chas"

I don't remember these guys from their Season either, but they are a ton of fun. They are both Cuban immigrants from Miami and very fun and friendly but good racers too. Both are gay (I'm pretty sure anyway) but they are not dating or life partners or anything. They are just best friends. One of them (I still have trouble remembering which is which) gave us the best line of the season so far when he commented in the first episode "I told you, less Martinis, more Cardio." My response: Yes, but martinis are much more fun.

John Vito & Jill (Season 3)

Again, a team that was before my time. They were "dating" in the first go round and are now "formerly dating" so I guess that is sad (maybe). I think their hook was supposed to be that they would get back together during the race, but alas, it was not to be. They got the boot on Episode 1. At least they get to spend some time together in a really sweet villa in Ecuador. That's probably a much better place to find love anyway.

Uchenna & Joyce (Season 7)

Now I do remember Uchenna and Joyce. They are one of my all time favorite teams and the only returning team to have won their race. Back then they seemed like such nice people and they still do. They were my pick to win on Season 7 (the only time other than the shall-not-be-spoken-of Family edition that that has happened) and I was glad to see them back. Who can forget Joyce in tears as they shaved her head to win the fast forward? I hope they do as well this time around. We need more nice people to win.

David & Mary (Season 10) "Kentucky"

Alright. I know that I should like these guys. I liked them the first time around. They are from good old KY. David wears something UK in every episode. But this time around, they just got on my nerves. I wanted to like them, but really they weren't that great of racers the first go round and I thought it was kind of funny that they got asked back. They seem like good people, though, so I'm glad they got the chance (twice) to race around the world. Unfortunately (maybe), they were the team to say Bye last night.

Charla & Mirna (Season 5) "Mirna & Schmirna"

For the record, I didn't give them that nickname. It came from someone on their first race. Still....you want to cheer for this team, but they just don't make it easy. Both of the grate on my nerves and I wasn't sorry to see them go out early on their first race. I won't be sorry if they go out early this time too although last night Mirna did make the wonderful comment (to a local who was helping them out) "I'm in a bathing suit. It's weird. I know."

Rob & Amber (Season 7) "Ramber"

(because apparently they are a Hollywood power couple)

This has got the be the most over exposed couple on TV. I can't stand these guys....well, Rob really, Amber has no personality that I can see. She just does what Rob tells her to (he spends an inordinate amount of time shouting instructions to "Babe"). They were annoying on Race 7 and they are annoying now. One of the other racers commented in an early episode this go round that they should have their own cable channel that just shows the reality shows they have been on. The sad thing is, you could probably make a channel like that pretty easily. They were the final two on a season of Survivor (that I didn't watch) where they hooked up and got engaged on the finale. Then they did Amazing Race 7 and changed the face of the game with their "Survivor-esq" strategy (although I have to admit that convincing everyone else that they couldn't do the Roadblock and to just take the 4 hour penalty was a brilliant move). Next, their wedding was televised. And I'm sure there was some other stuff in there somewhere that I didn't watch and don't know about. Now we get to see them run around the world one more time. Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy! Unfortunately, they are great racers and have come in first on every leg so far, so I think they are hear to stay for awhile.

Teri & Ian (Season 3)

This is another team that I have no previous knowledge of. Still, they seem like they could be fun. Ian (or Eye-an as Teri calls him) is a former Cop and they seem to be strong racers that don't create a lot of waves good or bad. They do seem to think that everyone will underestimate them because they are "old". I guess maybe they are but I don't think they look that old. Maybe I'm just weird that way. I wouldn't mind getting to see more of them but I also wouldn't be too sad to see them go. Also, I have no idea why they seem to be dancing in their photo.

Eric & Danielle (Season 9)

This team is the team that makes the least sense to me. They weren't originally a team at all. They came from two different teams on Season 9 (neither of which I remember) and apparently they had a "thing" so they decided to bring back two people from teams that weren't all the memorable the first go round (I wouldn't have had a clue who Eric was if they didn't feel the need to show me his nipple rings again--yes he has both nipples pierced) to run again. So far, he seems to be running the race on his own, just bringing her along to carry more baggage I guess? Who knows. They did better this week, but mostly because they got lucky with their flight.

Joe & Bill (Season 1) "The Guidos"

First things first, I don't have a clue who these guys are, but I wish I did. Apparently they are "life partners" who became the ultimate Amazing Race villains (which compared to villians in the rest of the reality TV world, aren't so bad, but still...). Their nickname comes from their dog, I guess, and they have it embroidered on the vests they are wearing in the photo (and every episode). So far, they seem to have mellowed some for this go round, but I have a feeling that things could get ugly fast. Also, one of them....Bill I think (this is another team that I have a hard time keeping track of who is who) always looks like he's wearing too much eyeliner. Lay off the make up for the race boys.

Dustin & Kandice (Season 10) "Beauty Queens"

These girls are from the most recent Season of Amazing Race (along with David and Mary) and they drove me crazy then. One is a former Miss New York and the other is a former Miss California (I think). They used that fact, and the fact that they are beautiful shamelessly on their last race, but seem to have figured out that it didn't really get them anywhere, so they dropped it this go round. They were the highest finishing All Female team on the Amazing Race, to I guess they do actually qualify as "All Stars" but I'm still not sure how I feel about them coming back again so soon. At least they admit to having "blond moments".

So, in summary here is my break down of teams that I like, don't like, or just don't care (yet):

• Like: Uchenna & Joyce, Ozzy & Danny, Teri & Ian
• Dislike: Rob & Amber, Eric & Danielle, Charla & Mirna
• Don't Care: Dustin & Kandace, Guidos
• Eliminated: John Vito & Jill, Kevin & Drew, David & Mary

And my predictions:

• Final Three: Rob & Amber, Uchenna & Joyce, Ozzy & Danny
• Next three: Guidos, Dustin & Kandace, Teri & Ian
• Next to go: Charla & Mirna (we can only hope)