Whine & Cheese

AI6: Better Men

Couldn't find a new picture of the American Idol Top 10 Guys... so apologies to Paul and Rudy for the unceremonious X on the face.  The guys were definitely better this week, though still have a ways to go before they even start to approach the top gals.  Here are my rankings:

#1 - Blake ("Virtural Insanity"/Jamiroquai) - With Blake in the top spot for a second week in a row, I guess you know who my "guy" favorite.  This wasn't as much as a slam-dunk as last week, I wondered whether it was a bit too much this week, but it was fresh (I was a little familiar with the song, but not enough to know of the copy-cattting that Simon spoke of).  Blake's got that white boy funk... something white boys often think they have, but don't.   

#2 - AJ ("Feeling Good"/Nina Simone) - In all honesty, this was probably my favorite performance of the night.. but this is one of my favorite old songs and was nicely arranged last night.  AJ was in my den of anonymity last week and at least for me he successfully climbed out with this performance.  That said, I am still a bit worried about him... not that I doubted it before, the "Praise Jesus" move halfway through the song definitely sent the whole "radar" off, if you know what I mean .. nudge, wink, nudge...

#3 - Chris S. ("Trouble"/Ray LaMontagne) - A much better vocal from Chris last night... not that he has anything to worry about... his unique look and humor already have him a few weeks into the finals at minimum. 

#4 - Chris R. ("Geek in the Pink"/Jason Mraz) - I am still not a huge fan of the type of music he likes to sing... but it is hard to deny that Chris is quite good.  While I didn't have much of an opinion of him before the live shows, I think he is pretty safe to make the finals (particularly in this not quite stellar group).  He also gets the first awwwwkwarrrrd dedication nod...  this one went out to Gramma ("Big Mamma")... after some research this morning I find out this song is ... ahem... about .. ummm... performing on a woman with one's mouth (tongue)... if you know what I mean... nudge, win, nudge. 

#5 - Sundance ("Mustang Sally"/Wilson Pickett) - A much needed comeback for the Sundance Kid.  In the auditions, I thought Sundance was a sure thing for the finals... but he has stumbled ever since.  However, if he keeps on doing the crowd pleasers like this one, he might just get there.   Plus the genuine emotion over being separated from his newborn will surely win him some votes as well.

#6 - Jared ("Let's Get It On"/Marvin Gaye) - Awwwkwaaaarrd dedication #2 ... this one going out to Mom & Dad!  But I guess if they didn't "get it on"... we wouldn't have Jared to do this quite entertaining and well-done imitation of Marvin Gaye... too imitative, probably.

#7 - Phil ("Missing You"/John Waite) -  A decent vocal... but by the end of the night I have to admit it was not very memorable (Phil was first up).  He has a nice tone, but it also sounded a bit hallow (don't know if that was a mike issue or not).  But as Simon said, his voice isn't anything terribly unique or special.  Again missing a baby and his military back-story will likely keep him in.

#8 - Brandon ("Time After Time"/Cyndi Lauper) -  Brandon is my my biggest disappointment thus far.  I sense he has a terrific voice but he is doing absolutely nothing to showcase it.   He needs to make an impression and this bland take (Grandma dedication or not), didn't do it.

#9 - Nick ("Fever"/Peggy Lee) - Have to admit that I am a little surprised that Nick is still around, he has a good voice... but like Brandon a tad too vanilla in these live shows... and it is certainly not a good sign when your performance gets upstaged by the drummer... who seemingly got as much screen time as Nick. 

#10 - Sanjaya ("Steppin' Out With My Baby"/Fred Astaire, Tony Bennett) - Oh boy, this one was almost painful to watch.  The kid is just too darn timid and is clearly not ready for the big time.  That said, the cliffhanger last cut from Week 1 was between Sanjaya and Rudy... and there we learned Sanjaya was one of the Top 4 vote getters after just a marginally better performance than the one from last night... so who knows.

Elimination Prediction:  If you haven't made an impression by now, you are likely in trouble... now that doesn't necessarily mean by performing... the all important "back-story" is just as important (i.e., Phil, Sundance, and Sanjaya).   So with that, I don't see how Nick can escape elimination tonight... and I think he may be joined Brandon or, unfortunately, AJ... okay, can probably throw in Jared as well ... anyone else would be a surprise.

Speaking of elimination, it just totally cracked me up when Ryan said on last week's result show... "I wish we could make this easier" or something like that to one of the eliminees... umm, how about making the show the 5 (ok, 10) minutes that it would really take to tell them without all the mental torture?!? Haha!  But we know that ain't gonna happen...   

The Tender Bar (#6)

We now return you to your regularly scheduled blog...

For my Amazing Race "fans," I'll do my best to double up on the commentary next week...

It is a good thing I am backlogged a couple of book reviews as it might take me awhile to finish my current book.  It is a fairly long and dense book (and I don't mean that negatively)... but not quite the most ideal type of book to be reading with a puppy in the house.  But alas, I tried to get back on track last night... seems that watching Rocky sleep does not require 95%+ of my attention.

Ok, the latest... J.R. Moehringer's memoir The Tender Bar.  Again, I have to thank James Frey (grrrr!) for making me so skeptical of this genre.  I used to read memoirs in a pretty carefree manner.  Now I am obsessed with what is truth and fiction and how the author could possibly remember all (any!) of what I am reading.  Heck, I can't remember a conversation I had yesterday, let alone a drunken conversation from my college days 20 years ago. 

You may be wondering who the heck is J.R. Moehringer?  More often than not, best selling memoirs are "written" by the famous (or infamous). The quick answer... Moehringer is a national correspondent for the LA Times.  (Though come to think of it, I had no idea who Jeanette Walls was either... a fellow  journalist who authored of my non-fiction book of the 2006).

This book falls into quite a few categories, but I think it is best as a "coming of age" story, much of it formatively coming via the local bar (but I bet you figured that much out by the title).  Personally, it clicked on several more levels... we are around the same age, he primarily grew up in Long Island (I'm from NJ, but many folks think that's the same thing), and he also spent time in Phoenix.  So a couple of nice coincidences that I was not aware of going in to it, that certainly added to my enjoyment of the book.

I was a bit wary that it was going to be a depressing... why else write a memoir?  While I wouldn't say the Moehringer had an easy or ideal childhood, I wouldn't call it "tragic" or that I ever wondered how he managed to survive it.  Also, given the title, I thought it might dissolve into a tale of alcoholism and recovery.  But again, while Moehringer deals with some booze issues, it is pretty minimal.  So what is the book about?!?  Basically, it's about a guy trying to break out his lower-middle class upbringing... be one the first in his family to attend college (and a quite prestigious one)... and find a way to make a living doing something he love... being a writer.

I have to give Moehringer credit for keeping some suspense with that last one.  I often found myself rooting for him to make it... which is pretty darn silly when you are holding a book in your hands by the person you are reading about... a book that trumpets it as a New York Times Bestseller and a "book of the year" by several other noteworthy publications.  Umm... I'm thinking that's a pretty good give-away that Moehringer "makes" it.

The book is filled with a lot of colorful characters, bar regulars and quirky family members, who are provide a very entertaining backdrop to Moehringer's story... so recommended, particularly if you don't have any issues with "bar culture"... it certainly made me fondly recall my college bar days at Tierney's -- so nice to see the 'ole place again via the Web -- ah, good times!! 

2007 10K Reading Challenge:  + 413 pages (Total Pages: 1978 pages)

Introducing...

ROCKY!

ROCKY!

ROCKY!

Now remember... keep those non-positive thoughts to yourself!  So yes, after much debate and discussion, we settled on Rocky... a name that admittedly was never under consideration prior to his arrival.  We had been leaning towards Barney (that was the GOP-name I was telling you about... Dubya's dog if you are still not sure what I'm talking about)... but he seemed more spunky than goofy (despite any of the pictures I have shared thus far)... so that's it!

The stats:  He was born on 12/29/06 (he was 8 weeks old on Friday)... and comes in at just under 6 lbs.  I know it is hard to tell his size in tightly cropped shots... but as you can see above, he is not much longer than a TV remote and he is about the size of Toby's head.  Both of his parents are under 20 lbs (I want to say 14 and 16 lbs)... so he likely won't even be a very big Boston.

Rocky is a very happy dog, we were a bit surprised just how easily he has adjusted to his new home.  He didn't even let out a peep on the way home, so we thought we had a shy one.  But he immediately started playing with Toby and was curious about the cats.   Toby has been pretty good... but, as expected, he has been a bit moody.  Still trying to figure out the "dance" at meal times, Toby will still not just eat his food... the little guy is scarfing down his mix of wet and dry puppy food.

Watching Rocky move around is hilarious.  I guess with all the growing he's doing, he can't quite get a good footing.  We almost think we have a rabbit... it looks more like hopping, skipping, and jumping than walking or running.  That's kind of how he got his name too... he has that "bob and weave" boxer moves.

We've been vigilant about bathroom time and he has had very few inside accidents.  He's going regularly and in the right places... so we're thrilled about that.  But it is better to have an accident inside, so it can be corrected?  Or will he just figure out on his own that outside and on the grass is the right place? I try to praise him after he goes on the grass.

We have him in a crate at night... and although he may whine for a minute when he gets in, thus far he has been making it through the night just fine.

He's also very human-friendly.  We read that Bostons prefer/crave human attention to that of other dogs.  Toby was so independent from Day 1, even just a little bit of cling-y behavior is throwing me off.  I have been tripped up a few times with Rocky at my feet... heck, even as I type this he is sleeping right below me.

I guess that's it.  Though I know there will be challenging times ahead, we could not have asked for a much better start.   

Express Lane: Issue 24

'Skating' Sweethearts Become Parents - Well, at least one person will always be thankful for 'Skating With Celebrities - Magnus Hart - born to Kristy Swanson and Lloyd Eisler on February 16th.  (2/19/07)

Kathy Griffin's Dad John Has Died - Sad news,  if you've watched Kathy's Bravo reality show, you know her parents are one of the funniest parts of it.  Cheers John, we'll have a glass of box wine in your honor. (2/19/07)

Top 10 Lesbian Cars - My current car (MINI Cooper) and last car (Honda Civic) crack the list at #7 and #3... great, who knew my taste in cars was "queer chick magnet"?!? (2/16/07)

'Battlestar' Invades Sci Fi for Fourth Season - For all my BSG fanatics, good news... the show will be back for a new season in January 2008.   Now, we still haven't found the time to watch this season since its return last month... might just postpone it until it gets to our HD channel (they just started airing the first half of this season). (2/13/07)

Amazon, TiVo to test movie downloads direct to TVs - Not that we need MORE stuff on on TiVo, but at least it's nice to have the option. (2/7/07)

Manhattan or Sydney? Its all family, says Billy Crystal - Since I recently mentioned this, thought I would post this one about Crystal taking '700 Sundays' Down Under. (2/5/07)

Look Who's Here!

Just a quick post to let you know our new arrival made it home... what a cutie!

The introduction with his big brother went quite well... they have are having fun playing and getting to know each other... big sister Lola (lower right hand pic) isn't quite on board just yet.

More pix (and hopefully a name!) on Monday! 

P-Day

It's P-Day... Puppy Day!!   

(Hopefully, not well...umm...  pee-day... but I am sure we are in for some of that as well).

We are pretty excited.  We confirmed with the breeder and are all set to pick up our Boston baby boy this afternoon.  Good news, as of this morning, the exchange location is even closer.  As mentioned, the pup is coming from North-Central AZ.  We originally planned to rendezvous at a highway rest-stop around the half-way point, but the gal has some horse business down here... so we are meeting in Phoenix.  However, given the size of the Phoenix Metro area, we still have a 43 mile drive and never "leave town!"

Of course, we are a tad anxious too... sending prayers to Saint Cesar -- patron saint of calm, submissive, well-behaved doggies and pack-leading humans.  But I am confident... or more confident.  I learned some lessons with Toby (the first child) and The Dog Whisperer.  If I only knew then, what I know now!!   So I'll just keep Cesar's mantras in mind... "animal, dog, breed, name"... "exercise, discipline, affection"... though I have a feeling that will be a tougher task with a puppy... with that whole  built-in "Ain't I cute?!" defense mechanism!

Speaking of which, it is just a little crazy to think the new guy will be the 7th pet to live in this house.  When we moved in, we brought a trio of somewhat elderly animals.  Two months later, Toby joined us and now, just 5 years later, he is elder states-pet.  If the new addition brings us as much joy as Marius, Maggie, and Mindy (3 Ms!), that's all we can ask for... whether Toby, Lola, and Elvis feel the same way about the new arrival we can only hope!

We've already received some puppy-warming presents!  Scott & Buckaroo stopped by yesterday afternoon with gifts and a couple of puppy books they had from their recent four-legged addition.  Thanks guys... very much appreciated!    We'll have you over soon for the mandatory "awwww-ing."

Also yesterday, it hit me that I needed to get over to PetsMart to get the basics!  Put in that buy order for PetsMart company stock now and thank me later.  $75 and I really didn't feel like I bought all that much (food, bowls, stain/odor remover, toys?!!)... good thing we already have higher-end items like doggie crates, pens, and gates.  Other than the pet store, only our vet will be happier...  a whole new revenue stream!

Finally, thanks for all the name suggestions!  Some of them are tempting.  But (you know what that means!), I think we are leaning towards a name (and as I warned not really "Boston" related)... but we are not settling on anything until we see if he/his personality leads us in another direction.  But no comments if you don't like the name (remember what mama said, if you don't have anything nice to say... yes, even in the blogosphere, well okay just in this case)... you can just get your own puppy and name it whatever you want!  Ha!

AI6: Black Don't Crack

Ok, that might be not the most politically correct post title that I have ever come up with... but let's say the ladies, particularly a quintet of African American gals, got the Titanic of the TV ratings back on course last night... 

#1 - Lakisha ("And I Am Telling You" from Dreamgirls) - Ok, it seems as if every BBB woman gets around to singing this one (BBB? That would be Big, Black, and Beautiful) ... but Lakisha knocked it out the proverbial ballpark.  I had goosebumps and that was even before she really started getting into it.  The hard part... trying to top that next week.  (Heck, even as I am typing this they are talking about in on ABC and Good Morning America).

#2 - Melinda ("Since You've Been Gone (Sweet Sweet Baby)"/Aretha Franklin) - As with Lakisha, Melinda has such a winning personality, that they could almost get by without having the best voice.  But fortunately that's not the case, spot-on vocals and for someone who sang backup she certainly has some stage presence.

#3 - Stephanie ("How Come You Don't Call Me"/Alicia Keys) - When Stephanie started off the show, I said to Todd that this was already better than anything I had seen last night with the guys.  Just a hot vocal and again a very good performer... and heck, I didn't even know it was an Alicia Keys song until this morning (thanks goodness, not another version of "Fallin'" or "If I Ain't Got You").

#4 - Sabrina ("I Never Loved A Man"/Aretha Franklin) - Another great and spirited performance, though I kept on being thrown off as she kinda looks like Cher in profile... in fact, I think she did the head flip, lip thing combo.  Definitely give Sabrina kudos for her research, saying that ballads don't work well in this round... how true!  For the record, my other half would flip Sabrina and Stephanie.

#5 - Jordin ("Give Me One Reason"/Tracy Chapman) -  Our Arizona Idol did us proud on her first night of competition.  She has some serious pipes and natural talent... but she still seemed a just a tad green in performing, still a bit too bubbly. 

FYI, I would probably put my top guy from last night, Blake, in this slot if I was doing an overall ranking.  Congrats again to the gals.

#6 - Gina ("All By Myself"/Celine Dion via Eric Carmen) - A very good vocal... and you know I usually like spunk, but like Mr. Grant I hate Gina's spunk... something about her rubs me the wrong way.  But its a singing competition, so can't fault her for what I heard.

#7 - Leslie ("Natural Woman"/Aretha Franklin) - Now we start to experience some fall off, but Leslie is on the cusp.  She has a unique voice, kind of smoky (even when she's talking she seems a bit hoarse)... the facial ticks and body movement through me initially, but still pretty good.

#8 - Nicole ("Stay"/Chaka Khan) - This one probably doesn't deserve to be so high... it was so over the top, just plain crazy... I could go so far and call it "violent" vocalizing... but I think she has a good voice, but she just has to turn everything down a couple of notches.

#9 - Hayley ("It's All Coming Back To Me Now"/Celine Dion) - The often used criticism of "a song being too big for one's voice" certainly applies here.  Hayley may be the Celine of San Antonio, but we're in Hollywood now baby.  It was not bad by any stretch, but one can't afford to sing something that shows off vocal limitations at this point in the competition.

#10 - Alaina ("Brass In Pocket"/The Pretenders) - Now, there is probably no one who does NOT like this song... but as Simon said (I believe) it's not the type of song that is going to make anyone go "wow!" and it a night of a many "wows"... this puts Alaina in the danger zone.

#11 - Amy ("I Can't Make You Love Me"/Bonnie Raitt) - While Simon's everything was "utterly forgettable" remark even made me cringe, as is often the case he is/was right. 

#12 - Antonella ("I Don't Want To Miss A Thing"/Aerosmith) - Again, that big song/small voice problem.  I sensed that Antonella (and her Jersey girlfriend) were not really "singers," just girls who could sing... and pretty good, if that's the case.  But she's way over her head here.  Likewise, I don't think she has benefited from a great "story"... she comes across as one of those "Mean Girls" in school... and some photos surfacing on the Web (here and here, use caution rated PG-13) are not helping change that image either.

Elimination Prediction:  It really doesn't matter much... unless one of my Top 5 from this week seriously screw up in the coming weeks, there will only be one available "girl" slot left...the "15 Minutes of Fame" clock is ticking loudly for Hayley, Alaina, Amy, and Antonella.

AI6: BoyOy Town

Here are my rankings of the Boy's Round #1 on the first night of American Idol 6:

#1 - Blake (Keane's "Somewhere Only We Know") - If last night's show was a flight on Southwest Airlines (and it certainly had the quality level of it!), Blake is the only guy I would put in Boarding Group A.  He managed to that even without a stunning vocal... but in a snoozer of night, he was the one who stood out as an original.   

#2 - Brandon (Michael Jackson's "Rock With You") -  A very (very!) distant second... thought he had some originality going into the song, but as Randy said it was pretty conservative once he got going.  Not bad, but he is better than that song and performance... though I still think he has to be careful walking that confident/cocky line.

#3 - Chris S. (Mute Math's "Typical") - The fact that I had never heard this song likely allowed Chris to make it this high on the list.  If he didn't have the screen time, personality, or charisma... he would have been in some trouble with this performance that really didn't show off any vocal chops.

#4 - Chris R. (Gavin DeGraw's "I Don't Want To Be") - I absolutely hated his take on the song (whiny, boy-bander)... but it had a pulse and at least had some originality to it.

#5 - Phil (Edwin McCain's "I Could Not Ask For More") -   Well, actually I could... and I will these guys for "more" next week... but Phil recovered somewhat nicely from a cringe-worthy start.  But those opening notes were enough to not make it the "best vocal performance" of the night by any stretch as Randy dubbed it.

#6 - Jared (Brian McKnight's "Back To One") - Good voice, good-looking... and that should be enough to keep him in another week.

#7 - AJ (Luther Vandross' "Never Too Much") - I wrote down "variety show" and a few minutes later Simon dubbed it "theme park"... so I guess that's my thoughts.

#8 - Rudy (Edgar Winter's Group's "Free Ride") - Another "cabaret" note for me and was quite the ominous opener to this not terribly memorable evening of music.

#9 - Sanjaya (Stevie Wonder's "Knocks Me Off My Feet") - Ah, I feared the "deer in the headlights" and Sanjaya delivered that... of course, with his trademark smile.  Now, I don't think it was as bad as the judges said... but it certainly was not a promising start.

#10 - Nick (Richard Marx's "Now and Forever") - Oh my Nick.. you get all the way back to the Idol stage and this coma-inducer is what you give us?!

#11 - Sundance (Moody Blues' "Nights In White Satin") - Ok, I am officially over Sundance... actually what am I saying, I was never that crazy about him in the first place.  But this was just strange all over... him, his name, his look, song choice, etc.

#12 - Paul (George Michael's "Careless Whisper") - This was another really strange one... his tone was so guttural in the beginning that it was hard to understand him... and the fact that Ryan Seacrest went barefoot with him on the first night is probably not a good sign that he will be sticking around.  Though foot fetishist must have just been going gonzo.  Anyhow, he lands at the bottom for singing a song that has the word "feet" in ... "guilty feet have got no rhythm"... guilty and charged!

So you see my two eliminees would be... but I sense both could survive this week... at least they are memorable ...and whether that's for good or bad reasons, it probably does not matter at this point.  More in danger I would say are the interchangeable AJ or Rudy or Nick, particularly Rudy who had to go first in a very long night of competition.

I sure hope the girls are better tonight!

Dancing With The Stars 4 - The Couples

Ah, so much reality this morning... but Dancing With The Stars 4 pairings have just been announced and I had to share.  The "star" is listed first and in bold, though after three seasons of the show I think some of the professional dancers may be more famous!

Laila Ali (Boxer/Daughter of Muhammed Ali) & Maksim Chmerkovskiy
Billy Ray Cyrus (Country Singer/Actor) & Karina Smirnoff
Clyde Drexler (Former NBA) & Elena Grinenko
Joey Fatone (Former boy-bander) & Kym Johnson
Shandi Finnessey (Miss USA 2004) & Brian Fortuna
Leeza Gibbons (Talk show host) & Tony Dovolani
Heather Mills (Ex Mrs. McCartney & has artificial leg) & Jonathan Roberts
Apolo Anton Ohno (Olympic Champ/Short Track Speed Skater) & Julianne Hough
Vincent Pastore (Formerly "Big Pussy" of The Sopranos) & Edyta Sliwinska
John Ratzenberger ("Cliff" from Cheers) & Edyta Sliwinska
Paula Porizkova (Former model) & Alec Mazo
Ian Ziering (Actor) & Cheryl Burke

Well, I heard rumors of many of the participation of many of these folks (Ali, Cyrus, Fatone, Mills, Ziering)... so not many surprises, though one of them was Ohno.   Nice to see pros Jonathan Roberts and season one champ, Alec Mazo, back.  Poor Edyta is stuck again... and not sure Cheryl Burke is going to make it a 3-peat with Ziering.

Early favorites anyone?  I see no slam dunks (pardon the pun Clyde).

DWTS4 kicks off with a 2-hour premiere Monday March 19th (it will typically air on Mondays & Tuesdays)... no eliminations until week two.

Boston Baby Boston

... 18 day after the 7 Reasons Not To Get A Puppy post

... less than 24 hours after the Must. Be. Strong. post

Well, ummm...  this post is not about a trip to Massachusetts...

We're getting a Boston Terrier puppy.

As a couple, it worked out quite fine, if not a tad unusual.  I hate (bordering on phobic about) making phone calls, so there was little to no likelihood that Todd would come home to find a new puppy... whileI could be vocal (or public, as in yesterday's entry) about my thoughts... Todd still had a safeguard in having to "seal the deal." 

So a bit of surprised, but admittedly a bit thrilled too, when Todd e-mailed me this morning saying he was able to get in contact with the breeder of the two puppies that I showed you yesterday -- and that one of them was still available!  I know, I know... ok, we're rescuing a pure-bred puppy from a loving, non-puppy mill family-oriented home in the rural town in Central Northern Arizona... think of the horrific life this dog would have had it were it not for us!

Here is the little boy we will be picking up on Friday (yes, in 3 days!).

Isn't he adorable?!

I told Toby that he was going to be a big brother and he seemed pretty excited about the news... though I sense he doesn't quite grasp what he's in for (nor do we!).

We've looked at quite a few puppy ads in the last few months...and the two pups in that ad definitely jumped out at me... they had those intangibles... that something special, "I'll know when I see it"... so I am feeling good... even though it's still a bit scary. 

Now, I was much more prepared with girl names (you know, my whole Noah's Ark theory)... so my list of boy names was not very extensive.  Todd sent through a shortlist and while I think we have a winner (or two, we'll have to see if he thinks)... thought we'd still open it up for suggestions!

Even though he is not a Red Sox player anymore (but given the SNL Jimmy Fallon Boston skit), we were considering Nomar (as in Garciaparra), but then we figured he'd think he name Mar (No! Mar .. No! Nomar!)...

Any ideas folks?   "Boston" related/themed names to the top of the list... though we are not necessarily going there ourselves... and "Mitt" is not an option (though we are seriously considering a famous GOP dog name).

In all likelihood, we will not use your suggestion(s)... but you won't know unless you try!