Survivor Tocantins: J.T. Wins

I was pleasantly surprised to find myself pleasantly entertained by the Survivor Finale, when I got around to watching it.

The final immunity challenge seemed a tad lame. Drop a ball and you're out. J.T. won. That had Errin scrambling. With J.T. reassuring Stephen over and over again that he was going to be true to his word. What's strange about that is, if they had such a strong pact, as soon as Errin dropped the ball, why did the boy's keep competing? They'd promised to take each other to the end after all.

The part where the jury gets to grill the final Survivors was more amusing than most. Usually one or two of the jurors gets sort of mean and nasty. This time that didn't happen. Instead something more entertaining happened. J.T. and Stephen started bickering, sort of like an old married couple. And then when Stephen, under Debbi's prosecutorial inquisition admitted that had he one immunity he would have taken Errin to the finals with him, of course, J.T. was horrible hurt by this. Or so he acted.

Finally the finale vote and we are off to New York City where we learn the women clean up real well, but the guys, except for coach, all looked not so good all cleaned up. Errin went from a frump to a knockout. And Debbi! The wonders of having your hair clean and makeup. Sierra was always cute to me. And Taj. She was a cutie on the show and way more so off. Of the guy's Coach went from being Coach the Nutjob to looking and acting like respectable Ben Wade.

When J.T. won every vote the celebrating began. J.T. was in tears. That was sorta charming.

He and Stephen are still good friends.

I thought the Coach would further embarrass himself. Instead he was good-natured and funny about it all. I like having my opinion switched on me. The guy went from having us think he had no friends to having a girl friend whom Probst got to admit regularly slays the dragonslayer.

Probst had offered Coach a lie detector test so that his integrity could be scientifically vouched for. Coach had declined that offer, then went and got his own lie detector test done, which he presented to Probst in a sealed envelople. Surprise. The test "proved" Coach had not lied. Supposedly.

Speaking of Jeff Probst. From the start of the reunion show he seemed to be on fire. I've not seen him so animated before and so energetically having himself a real good time. That man loves his job. And why would he not?

For Survivor 19 we are back to the South Pacific, for Survivor: Samoa. I'll probably be watching.

I Don't Know Who Won Survivor

I made it through the first hour of Sunday's Survivor Tocantins Three Hour Finale. I never make it all the way through the 3rd hour's Reunion Show. But to only last one hour before I decided I'd watch it later? Am I losing interest? Or was I just really tired? I don't know.

All I know for sure was that when Taj got the boot I hit the off button. I was perfectly happy with any of the last four being the winner. Maybe it was not caring that caused me to hit the off button. If an obnoxious player, like Ben Wade, had made it to the end and a chance of winning, I likely would have kept watching just to see what a fool he made of himself at the jury part of the marathon.

I would be surprized if that pompous dumbass did not manage to embarrass himself some more, during the part where he got to ask questions of the final survivors. I'll fast forward through the last 2 hours of last night's Survivor during lunch.

I'm guessing J.T. won the million. I don't know if they had a final three or final two scenario for this season's Survivor ending. If it was 2 to vote on I think J.T. would beat either Stephen or Errin.

The Real Housewives of New York City Season 2: Alex & Simon's Child Raising Book

Early on in the recently ended season of The Real Housewives of New York City viewers were astounded to hear Simon and Alex talk about the book about child raising the pair was writing. The astonishment came from what undisciplined brats the pair's kids, Johann and Francoise, appeared to be on the show.

I thought maybe Silex were joking about this book. But, no, they have a publisher and the book will be out there for sale in February of 2010.

Below is a press release about the Silex book....I did not realize, til reading this that Simon and Alex were the breakout stars of the show.

LITTLE KIDS, BIG CITY: Tales From a Real House in New York City (With Lessons on Life and Love for Your Own Concrete Jungle)

by Alex McCord & Simon van Kempen

Parenting/Humor
$14.95
5.5 x 8.5 ", 240 pages, trade paper
Publication date: February, 2010

As breakout stars of Bravo's The Real Housewives of New York City, Alex McCord and Simon van Kempen have inspired, infuriated and entertained parents across the country. Their new book, LITTLE KIDS, BIG CITY, is sure to continue that trend, with the added bonus of educating those with the daunting task of raising kids in an urban environment.

Written with a unique insight into the difficulties and challenges facing urban parents today, Alex and Simon's informative, educational and at times shocking stories of raising kids in New York City, coupled with outside expert parenting and pediatric advice, is a sure hit not only for urban parents but also fans of the hit television show.

About the Authors


The married couple of Alex McCord and Simon van Kempen are first and foremost the proud parents of two wonderful and endlessly energetic and creative children, Johan and François. They also happen to star in the hit Bravo television show The Real Housewives of New York City, where they all enjoy (or suffer at the hands of) a modicum of celebrity. Simon runs the upscale boutique Hotel Chandler in Manhattan while Alex writes freelance for parenting outlets and select blogs, including The Huffington Post.

Britains Got Talent: Natalie Okri Takes On Susan Boyle

The UK's Britains Got Talent has found another gem, not quite as jaw-dropping a gem as Susan Boyle, but still, an amazing little 10 year old girl, named Natalie Okri, has the audience standing and the judges praising....

The Real Housewives of New York City Season 2 Reunion: Ramona's Eyes Bug Out While Kelly Shows She's Nuts

Last night I watched the second hour of the 2 part Real Housewives of New York City Reunion Show.

If I was looking for moments of entertainment watching Kelly get her comeuppance, I think I'm disappointed. That woman is so confused, conflicted, contradictory and convoluted, it's not amusing to witness, instead it made me uncomfortable. Clearly, she either has had some brain damage or is suffering from some mental illness, which one viewer asked about during the reunion, as in, "Are you mentally ill?'

One minute Kelly is saying she and Bethenny are totally different, repeating this several times. Then a few minutes later Kelly is saying she and Bethenny should have been friends, because they are so much alike! And then she got totally baffling by saying she and Bethenny were so much alike because Bethenny is a brunette and "I'm a blonde!"

After claiming to be a blonde Kelly was confused for a bit and then went right on saying more stupid stuff.

The Bravo host for these type shows, Andy Cohen, I think is his names, to put it bluntly, sucks.

When the clips were shown of Kelly making a total ass of herself with Bethenny, the scenes that convinced the viewers that Kelly was mentally ill, why did Andy not ask Kelly if watching those scenes was embarrassing to her? Kelly's answer would surely have been bizarre.

Countess LuAnn came out of the shoutfest looking good, I thought. As did Jill and Bethenny. But the one who really came out the best, and got to least air time, was Alex. She's the most articulate of these women. And the least prone to yell. And when she tried to dissect and translate the Kelly-speak into English and to interpret for Kelly, Bethenny's reaction to Kelly's behavior, well, it made Alex appear to be the wise one of the group.

Among the many strange things about Kelly is that she seems to have zero self-awareness. Even as she is shown examples of her behavior, and even when, during the Reunion Show, she does the same dismissive, rude, contradictory, aggravating nonsense that the women are trying to get Kelly to understand offputs them, right when they are trying to wise her up, Kelly just goes into a weird "none of this matters to me" mode.

I've known a person like Kelly. They can not be changed. They will never get what you are telling them. Please, don't have her back for the next round of the Real Housewives of New York City. She is not funny, we don't like her, we don't want to see her fabulous life on our TV screens.

I forgot to mention. Ramona is nuts, but strangely, in a loveable sort of way. And why does she bug her eyes out like that? And how rude for LuAnn to comment on the bug eyes. Rude, but funny.

Hell's Kitchen: Danny Wins The Prize

23 year old Danny won Hell's Kitchen and the quarter million dollar prize, plus being head chef at a restaurant in Atlantic City.

Danny is a culinary prodigy, according to Danny. He did seem to be quiet a good cook for such a young guy.

Unlike Top Chef, I never learn any new cooking ideas when watching Hell's Kitchen. Hell's Kitchen is much more amusing than Top Chef, due, mostly, to Chef Gordon Ramsey's over the top maniac personality. You can't help but like the guy, at least I can't.

The formula for Hell's Kitchen is to have several really bad chefs who provide good fodder for drama. The best this time was Lacey. She had moments when she did okay, but a little stress and she'd start falling apart. She was pretty funny at times. She didn't get booted off the show in the usual way. Instead she was so bad at a dinner service that Ramsey kicked her off the show right then.

And then had her come back, as one of the helper chefs for the finale cook off, with second place Paula stuck with Lacey in the school yard pick, where Danny got first pick due to winning the last challenge, you just knew things were going to be tough for Paula.

I always find the ending of Hell's Kitchen entertaining, this time more so than ever. Both Danny and Paula seemed quite deserving of winning, but when Danny was the one to walk through the door and do the most maniacal jumping up and down and screaming I've ever seen a Reality TV Show winner do, well, it was special.

And then in his confessional, as he talked about how much this meant to him, he started crying and that was the first I learned his mom had died, he sort of broke down when he said he wished his mom could have been there to see her son make something of himself. I'm badly paraphrasing, but it was a good Reality TV moment.

One thing about the cooking shows like Top Chef and Hell's Kitchen that bugs me is how is it that so many chefs and cooks smoke? Doesn't smoking sort of cloud up your taste buds. It seems if your life revolved around making things taste good the last thing you'd want in your mouth would be a cigarette. And yet, most of them smoke. It perplexes me.