Unfinished Dad

I'm In Hiding Listening To Backspacer

I'm In Hiding Listening To Backspacer, originally uploaded by unfinished dad.

A full review to follow on Monday for the official release of Pearl Jam's newest.

So You Think You Can Dance Season Six, Phoenix

Long Lost Emily,

For once, I endeavor to be brief.  I am worried about our favorite show.  I know you are half a world away and only receive snippets of news about SYTYCD, but I will complain to you anyway.  I mean, let's be honest, no one is reading this post anyway.  My worry stems from the lack of talent this year.  We can't be more than six months removed from the season five auditions and the dilution of dancers is obvious.  You and I may have really made it this year kid.

I'm not sure the producers realize that the contestants travel for the auditions.  They were in phoenix for the first time last night and they kept talking about discovering new talent, but only the crazy people were from Phoenix, there was no new talent.  One dancer of note auditioned last night and she was an early contestant from season four.  I will put her in my Top 20, because the judges cried when she danced (some sob story about loving her family, which didn't really hold up in the weeping dept. because a deaf girl made it through to Vegas) and because she was, you know, a really good dancer.

That's it, one girl all the way through in Unfinished Dad's Top 20, a deaf girl, and,oh yeah, we had another same sex couple try out last night.  Unlike the couple from last year who fell mid-dance in a heap of crashing meat, this couple was graceful and smart enough to designate a traditional male and female role.  They went to the choreography round and then on to Vegas with Nigel quasi apologizing for making the season five male/male team dance with girls.  He said he got into some hot water for the way he disparaged them.

Emily, my only question for you is should I be keeping these episodes on DVR for you to watch when you return from your boring trip of historic sightseeing, drinking, eating, bullfighting, and studying (in that order) so that you can sit on the couch with us and watch them all over again?

Skeptically, 

Joe

Top 20 Bound: Sasha Mallory

"Helping"

"Helping" With Chores, originally uploaded by unfinished dad.

The kids are getting older and it's high time they did some chores around the house to help lighten the load. They love emptying the dishwasher, but good luck finding a salad fork when you're over for dinner.

Hmm, That Doesn't Seem Right

Hmm, That Doesn't Seem Right, originally uploaded by unfinished dad.

I alternate between being disturbed and pleased by this photo. Since Annie created this potato all by herself, let's assume that it isn't intended to terrify Matilda, though they have been fighting a lot lately.

Tilda Walks

Tilda Walks, originally uploaded by unfinished dad.

A little wobbly at seven in the morning, but without further ado I give you...Joe's newly complicated life.

Roadtrip To Winston-Salem

Our summer of road trips ended this weekend with the relatively short drive to Winston-Salem, North Carolina for the wedding of our friends Amanda and Mike.  Six hours on a map turned eight hours in real life seemed a breeze compared to the drive to Surfside Beach or the interminable trip to Meredith, New Hampshire.  It was like a long commute.

We returned to CCMD last night around bedtime with two surprises that we couldn't stop talking about, which quickly turned into three when we saw and smelled the half-eaten zucchini I left on the counter.  The only problem being that I left a whole zucchini on the counter.  Apparently a Lion came up from the basement for a little mid-nite snack.  Seriously, if a mouse can eat that much I am moving.

The Winston-Salem surprises we'll take in order of importance, least to most.  I was prepared to be afraid of a place that took its name from two cigarettes.  I was ready for a town not unlike the worst of Shreveport.  What we found instead was a thriving, clean, kind, reasonably cultured city that reminded us of what we liked about our year in Louisiana—no traffic, good barbecue, simple manners, and plenty of friends.  Our hosts for the weekend were the kind of family that makes you want to find an excuse to stay the night.  I found myself, as the clock rolled past noon and the girls frolicked with the puppies and giggled at the cows, thinking that it might just be a little too late to get everyone home by bedtime.

The biggest surprise of the weekend came while dancing at the wedding.  No, my Carlton still still needs work.  But the night took off when Tilda, unprompted, walked across the entire dance floor to get to the instruments.  Keep in mind, her previous distance record spanned the space between the couch and the coffee table at Grandma's beach house.  Somehow a switch flipped in her head and now she walks.  She's good at it too.  I think waiting for as long as she did allowed for a bit more muscle mass hiding beneath her thigh rolls than we realized.  The bride's mother and photographer thought this was tops, so some professional pictures are to follow. 

Scatter

Scatter, originally uploaded by unfinished dad.

Camp Dani has ended for 2009 and all the campers are sad. She was kind enough to take some pictures of my family in Glen Echo Park this weekend before she left. We all came to the realization that the challenge of getting four amazingly dissimilar subjects to look up at the same time was a difficult one. This craziness is not only my favorite picture, but also sums up how the day went.

Hiding

Hiding, originally uploaded by unfinished dad.

It's hard to hide when you are having your picture taken, but these two managed to do it.

So You Think You Can Dance, Season Six

Dear Emily,

Stop reading.

Dear All Other Readers,

My apologies that SYTYCD is back so soon.  Emily is in Spain for the semester so it's just me.  And listen, I was picking up on your vibes during season five, I am not planning on inundating you with posts about this.  Frankly, I think it's a shame that the show is back less than two months after season five ended.  The producers know this.  Normally the audition shows are two hours long and last night was one city, one hour.  Fall primetime is not the place to show a new viewer two straight hours of inside jokes and random dancers.  Hell, the show's own announcer sounded tired and maybe a bit bored.  Sorry Cat.

For season six we are going to do things a bit differently.  No crazy chats—although to be fair, I wouldn’t be able to resist this if Emily wasn’t abroad—and only one post a week.  You will have to get by without an individual dance recap until after the dancers are voted off.  If you can't live with this setup, do let me know, I'll send you a personalized email.

Also, I'm going to lay it out on the line for you this season.  After each audition I will predict which dancers will make it all the way through to the Top 20.  The only caveat is that I reserve the right to drop a few off, as there is no way to know how many from each city will make it.  We could end up with the first ever Top 24.  I promise not to go back and add any.

The season opener was a decent show after you got over the hangover of season five.  Ultimately four dancers stood out.  Mollee Gray, who looks like she is 12, stood out somewhat for her dancing and mostly for her personality.  Ryan Kasprzak (yes, Evan's brother) stood out if only because he looks like he's Nigel's age.  He can dance, but a la Natalie v. Kaytee, I don't think he's going all the way through.  Bianca Revels, another tap dancer, came back for more and went through to Vegas without an audition.  It really pays on this show to have some name/face recognition.  Lastly, Paula, the spritely girl from season five tryouts who I loved.  She didn't get a full segment in the show, however she looks good and made it deep into last season's tryouts so I believe in her.  Remember, I predicted Evan would be a big part of last season.

Okay, three dancers from the opener will go all the way, and sadly Ryan isn't one of them.  I predict some mediocre work with choreography and overall baldness will undo him.

Top 20 Bound: Mollee Gray, Bianca Tapdancer, Paula Pixie Girl

 

Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration Cont'd

A quick note for all of you under __ somethings who do all of your banking online and thus never write checks.  A canceled check is a check that has been written out, processed through your bank, and then returned to you as proof of payment.  A check on which you have scribbled VOID is not a canceled check.  As a secondary helpful note, MVA has no wiggle room on this fact.