Hey, did you know Andy Pettitte is a starting pitcher?

Hattip: Sports Hernia

Someone else thinks that So You Think You Can Dance is better than American Idol!

Check it out.

Some of what’s there, that I’ve been saying to other people:

to me, the talent is just better on that show

It really is.  These people are so amazing to watch.  Which gets me to:

It’s just more fun to watch. When they do group numbers on So You Think You Can Dance, it’s not to sell gas-guzzling American cars. They’re legitimately interesting large-scale dances. They also dance as partners, then split up the partnerships, so there are little mini-dramas stuck in-between the larger drama of the competition. But even without all the peripherals, watching people dance on TV is just inherently more interesting than watching them sing.

The choreography is amazing.  Not just the dancers and their talent, but the routines that are custom designed for them.

But, most importantly, in terms of making for an enjoyable show, the judging.

I’d say that the judging on So You Think You Can Dance is better all around. Even the crazy judge—Mary Murphy—knows a lot about ballroom and seems to scream like a wild woman or not scream like a wild woman based on actual merit.

It’s true.  The judges on SYTYCD are truly knowlegdeable about the field.  The know things, can pinpoint things and offer intelligent, cogent and constructive remarks.  Nobody on SYTYCD is going to say something completely idiotic like “For me, for you, dawg, I just don’t know.  For me.  For you.  Not your best.”

There is no “song choice.”  The songs, the outfits and the choreography is all chosen by someone else.  The dancers are there to dance.  It makes the judging focus on what’s important, instead of getting “critiques” like those that Alison Iraheta got this season that judged her outfit instead of her singing, and managed to give her negative comments after a performance that was entirely positive and amazing.  That doesn’t happen on SYTYCD.  For those of us that watch both shows for the performances as well as the competition aspect, the judging and its creditibility are important.  SYTYCD gets it right.

 

Hattip: Warming Glow.

Ed’s Note: My apologies to those of you, my dear readers, that can’t watch videos from wherever it is you read this blog; this will be a video-intensive entry.  My opinion: worth logging in at home for.

Season 5 of So You Think You Can Dance started last week.  Two nights of auditions continue this week, starting tonight.  Of course, the show gets exponentially better when we reach the finals, the Top 20 (after Vegas Week, which is next week).

In the past, I’ve had conversations (not to mention blog posts) with people that usually go like this:

Me: “The show is freaking awesome!!  I love it!”

Them: “Really?”

Me: “Yes, I like it better than American Idol, it’s that good.”

Them: “No.  Really?”

Me: “Yup.  Check it out.”

So, as a public service to those who are intrigued enough to follow my advice and check it out, and for those that might otherwise be too obstinate, I present my favorite numbers from last season.  Before each video is the performers, the genre, and the song name (if I know it).

Katee & Joshua, Hip Hop, No Air:

Chelsie & Mark, Hip Hop, Bleeding Love:

 Katee & Joshua, Bollywood:

Katee & Joshua, Samba, Baila Baila:

Katee & Twitch, Contemporary:

Kherington & Twitch, Contemporary, Dreaming with a Broken Heart:

Katee & Joshua, Broadway, All for the Best:

Jessica & Will, Contemporary, Alone:

 And one fave from Season 3:

Lacey & Danny, Samba, Hip Hip Chin Chin:

It’s totally OK to admit that I was right.  This stuff is awesome!

Meanwhile, here’s the Season 5 audition of Natalie Reid, who auditioned with Katee (they were roomates) last year, and was the 21st person, the last one cut before the finals.  She’ll be there this year:

Family simchas are wonderful.  When they’re my neice’s Bat Mitzvah, they’re wonderful and they make me feel old.  When, on the drive home, I think about how old I’ll be when my younger daughter is a Bat Mitzvah, I nearly crap my pants and swerve off the road.

So, yeah, my neice had her Bat Mitzvah last night.  It was a wonderful, amazing, beautiful affair, and I really have to give my brother and sister in law credit for throwing a great party.  I very much like that they did a regular, standard affair, with good food, a live band and dancing and speeches, etc, as opposed to some small, just the ladies party at some restaurant with a DJ or something.  Yeah, it probably cost a LOT more, but it was worth it (imho).

I went to a wedding last night, of a school friend of my wife.

Something about weddings is just so nice, so beautiful, no matter who or what, I can’t help but get into it.  Whether it’s the music (soft and beautiful at the chuppah, loud and blasting at the reception) that I love, the general idea of the whole thing (ya know, two people coming together to be one, yadda) or some of the language and words we use in the ceremony, I just really get into weddings.  I love them.

With that, let’s wish a hearty mazel tov to Dan, who will, iy”H, be getting married this weekend.  Unfortunado, I won’t be able to go to the wedding.  As you can tell by how much I love weddings and that this one is my friend, I’m disappointed.   Mazel tov, Dan.

Season 7 of 24 ended, and it’s clear to me now that reality has no meaning, even within the somewhat skewed rules of  the 24 universe.  The producers/writers simply have no regard for the actual history that they’ve created.

First of all, and I’ve mentioned this before, Tony Almeida was dead.  I don’t care what they say, or how they try to overcome it, he was dead.

In trying to give him proper motivation, they decided to retroactively to make his wife, Michelle Dessler, pregnant.  Fine, whatever.  But then it isn’t enough to have Tony scream about losing his baby, he has to add: “and it was a boy!  you killed me son!”  First of all, as if that makes it worse?  Second of all, Michelle certainly didn’t look pregnant (see the scran grab at the 3:37 mark of this video or the 4:24 mark of this one).  So let’s assume she was very early in her pregnancy, and not showing even a little, with no other outward signs.  Fine.  So, then how in the hell does Tony know it’s a boy?  She certainly wasn’t 20 weeks, to have an ultrasound to determine!

Yeah, maybe I’m nitpicking, but something about that just rubbed me the wrong way.  It seems indicative to me about the shows own reality and history don’t even matter.  Like the writers don’t care enough to pay attention, so why should I?

“Time to see what all the fuss is about.”

So went my first “tweet” on Twitter.

Follow me here.

Oh, man.

For like the first time in WEEKS, I am at the office late enough to warrant ordering dinner.  I find a new place on my seamless list that I want to check out, see something on the menu that I like (in general) and order to see how well the new place does it.  In the subsequent few minutes, I get very excited about said food item.  New place calls to tell me that they don’t have said food item.  Doh!

Now I am reeeeeeeallllllly in the mood for bean soup.  I may have to send Mrs. G to Hapisgah for me tomorrow.

Seriously, can we?

Here’s a guy who went from looking like this when he was with the Twins:

and hitting 10, 18, and 20 homers at ages 24, 25 and 26 (2000-2002), to looking like this with the Red Sox:

and hitting 31, 37, 41 and 54!!!! homers at ages 27, 28, 29 and 30 (2003-2006).

As if that’s not enough, he hasn’t hit a single home run yet this season.

Look, I’m not saying this because I think he’s the only one.  Far from it.  But on the heels of Manny’s admission and suspension, and this article by Bill Simmons, who is a HUGE Red Sox fan, can we please acknowledge that the Red Sox are just as tainted as anyone else, including the Yankees, and that all the BS Yankee hating was totally unfairly focused on one team, and the fact that the Mitchell Report focused mainly on Yankees and somehow left out all the Red Sox is a little more than curious?  Can we?  Thanks.

So, apparently, despite the fact that American Idol is ostensibly a “singing competition,” singing is really the last thing that matters.  Some examples from last night:

Paula Abdul’s performance last night was so clearly lip-synched (see: WWTDD), it made a complete mockery of the concept of the show that she’s a part of.  Yes, I think it’s worse when Paula lip synchs than when, say, Jamie Foxx does it, because Paula should be bought into the concept of singing.  Well, I guess since she’s not really so good at it (anymore?  ever?) I understand her motivation.  That doesn’t make it OK.

Last night’s sent-homer, Alison Iraheta, was clearly above and beyond, in singing and musical ability, Danny Gokey, who is a one-trick pony (growling) that doesn’t have such a great voice, has limited range and has no musical originality at all.  But he stays.  Why?  Because the judges, ignoring the fact that his singing was absolutely atrocious last night, managed to give him a review that had the words “A+” in it, while, in weeks past, after Alison ripped songs apart (in a good way) got negative reviews for ridiculous things like her outfit, or not smiling enough, or anything else not related to music.