10:33 pm.

"Live" should maybe be in quotes. I'm watching on my tivo, just home from the gym. But so what. Who watches anything while it plays now? This ain't no freaking primary election returns.

I'm posting DOWN the thread, not most recent on top, BTW. (It's too jumpy to read that way.)

Jump in if you want, as you watch or after. Here goes . . . 

I am so giddy with excitement for some reason tonight. Dimples out on those (lava?) rocks in the surf to start . . . I could just eat this show up.

And I loved the descriptions people wrote down in the leader vote. "yale-looking black guy" cracked my ass up. a lot of them did.

mmmmmm, and there are some hotties out there. a whole lot of dimples. i think the doctor will be an arrogant ass, though. (doctor, arrogant, that's nearly redundant. one of my best friends is a doc, but still.)

the marine woman shambo is interesting. i'll be she's a control freak, though, will overplay her hand, and be out soon. maybe not.

and what happened to mark burnett? did he cast an intelligent, sophisticated black guy?! TWO? he and/or the casting dpt normally thinks black men come in two flavors: angry thugs and layabouts. this can be the most stereotype-casted show when it comes to race and sexuality. that's my one big complaint year after year. this time, maybe different. i'm very happy so far.

10:47 p

 It's interesting to see on top of that, the leaders have to pick people with various attributes, based again on just body language and observation. It forces them to call out their instincts and mental conceptions of people out loud.

And Mick, to start, picked a black guy as best swimmer? Good lord. That tells me he has no black friends. I know I just complained about stereotypes, but just about every black person I've ever known has told me some variation of "uh, we don't swim." It's just a statistical probability that picking a black person is the worst bet you could possibly make. (Has Mick not even watched Survivor?) He happened to get lucky, but what a dumbass bet.)

That was matched only by dreadlock guy picking Shambo as smartest. What? I laughed when even she groaned, and the brainy-looking guy behind her did, too. (I would have picked him.)

Also very interesting that Mick picked the Asian as smartest, and then she commented (to us) on it. But I will bet the whole million dollars, that when Dimples asked him to pick the smartest, inside his head he shouted, "ME!"

Hahaha. And I am not kidding. I'm only slightly surprised they didn't cut away to a confessional shot of him telling us that thought was blaring in his head.

At least they were both smart enough to pick a woman for agility. I'm not sure about picking the black woman, though: she seems too muscular, higher center of gravity than most women. Those gymnastics medalists are tiny little waifs.

I wonder if buzzcut dimple boy will be that strong. I bet he's very determined and coordinated, but not that big. Nobody on that team is, though. The other team has got most of the brawn. That bodes badly on early rounds of Survivor. Buzzcut may turn out to be my favorite, based on the ridiculously early read I get of his personality from his nonverbals. (I wonder if that will prove way, way off.) I am NOT liking hulking short muscleboy.

11:01p 

OK, I'm going to bed. See you in the morning.

Haha. No, I can't stop now.

(But I'm taking forever pausing to write these things.)

11:03p

Buzzcut has grit!

I knew it. Could he be this year's Brendan?

(Sorry Brendan. There will never be another you. Hahaha.)

 11:05p

Did Shambo get her nickname and her hairstyle in the 80s?

11:07p

Did Shambo get her nickname and her hairstyle in the 80s? 

Just asking. (And the rest of her outfit, too?)

I'm liking her more, though.

11:09

I forgot: Countryboy calling out the "candyasses" cracked me up. I could go either way on him, but I did laugh.

Whoa! Buzzcut just called Alleged Brazilianboy "prettyboy"? Kettle? But he meant it in a bad way. Just a prettyboy, coasting on his looks. I think he just wants to be the prettiest. Maybe. Hahaha. But I bet that's part of it. Could get interesting.

11:13 

Hillbilly wants to be in charge. Has he seen the show?

His ego just got the best of him.

Oh, chubbywrestler is such a dick! All the women are dumb to him. God. But he does understand what game he's playing. How long will it last.

Coplady sure has his number.  I think I like her.

11:23

Shambo is cracking me up, and really perceptive on the alphamales not hearing each other. Engineer (I refuse to call him rocket scientist--what the hell is that hype) may be right on thinking it through first. It's hard to tell. But she's right on the mark about the other dynamics. She can read people, and situations. Good quality for this game. (Good quality, period.) I'm liking her.

But hey, Mark Burnett cast a Latino rocket scientist? OK, they hired a new person to head the casting department. Major props to the new casting head.

Engineer is not likely to last.

The other hot dimpleboy seems to be keeping his mouth shut, maybe having similar thoughts.

Whoa! He took his shirt off. Who knew that meat was under there?

Shit, Shambo is reading the situation, but then ostracizing herself? Craziness.

11:30

Oh, chubbywrestler is telling big lies already. Swinging for the sympathy fences with Katrina. Pathological liar? Or just having fun with the game?

Marisa called him slimy. Hahaha.

He's not fooling anyone. But it may still work for awhile.

Sadist?

11:34

WreslerSadist in his diaper! Ewwwww. He's Baby Huey!

OK, that's his name.

11:37

Buzzcut's whoopass comment. I may just have fallen out of love.

11:38

I can never make myself pay attention when Dimples explains the challenge. Then I don't understand what's going on, and have to rewind. But I can't seem to learn. He starts explaining it, and cut away to the headless fake contestants' arms and legs and half-torsos executing and my eyes glaze.

 11:53

Purple was impressive working together. And the doc redeemed himself. He really laid his body out there for the team. (And quite a body, I might add. A handsome doc, with a killer body? No wonder he's stuck on himself. But that's still no excuse, dude.)

I have no idea who will get the ax. I'm eager to hear them sort it out.

I gots to put my laundry in the dryer. That's my reality.

12:00 a

Haha. Baby Huey flies into a tissy when someone calls him on his shit. I laughed my ass off when she pointed out the obvious: He's a total goon talking to everyone, fooling no one. And he can't bear that someone is smarter than him, so he calls her dumb.

And yet, he's got the balls to go after her, and it might work. In the short run. I don't see this as a long-term strategy.

 12:15

The New Jersey geezer is annoying me. 

And I forgot to mention: is he color blind? At the start, he described the doctor as a red shirt in a green jacket. (Wasn't it orange in tan or khahki or even brown?) That feels a little nitpicky, but it seemed a little odd.  He may well be red-green color-blind. Those are the very colors they have trouble with. Nothing wrong with that if it is, I'm just curious about it.

Hillbilly seems to be bonding with Baby Huey. There's a match made in hell.

NJ Geezer is relishing every catfight, because that's the only way he expects to survive. (What an odd tactic for him to try to focus everyone on physcial weakness. Dude, seen a mirror lately?) I am not digging him.

It was dumb for Marisa to pick a fight with the jackal. I love that she told him off, but not smart strategy. She did figure it out--hopefully not too late.

God, I hope they don't go for Marrisa. I don't want Baby H to win this battle.

Plus, I kinda like her. I'm a little conflicted, but I think I like her.

12:16

Damn!

 Marissa. Ouch.

12: 17

And she looks so sad. A little heart-breaking.

Doc looks like he is attempting to smile while passing a sharp turd.

12:38

Laundry break. Man, I hate folding laundry. Even if I hardly fold anything. But I am sleeping on a clean pillowcase tonight. Nice. And my gym clothes won't stink. I didn't have room for the case and the sheets, though, so the sheets are going to have to go another week, or three. Hmmmm. Was it room, or just my hatred of all the dis-assembly and assembly? It seems like a lot. But I don't sweat a lot and they don't smell to me. All that's getting near my face is the pillow, and it is so much easier on the hay fever when it's clean. If not for pollen, I could go the whole season . . .

Huh. Interesting commercial for that A Christmas Carol movie. I didn't even know that was in production. I do love Jim Carey, though not often his choices in film selection. They put some money into this thing. Hokey, though? And I have always hated that story. I'm not sure why. I don't think Dickens and I mix.

Marissa: Classy exit statement. Sad.

Baby Huey in the previews. What a baby. You will respect my authoriti! Should I be calling him Cartman? He's too much. I know CBS wants to make him out as the big villain, but I bet he's a brief villain. I hope so.

Oh, Doc voted in the minority. That explains passing the brick.

OK, it appears it took me two hours to watch a (38 minute?) show "live." Hahaha. But what a great way to spend it.

Overall, great intro episode. I'm psyched about this season. So much to soak up on this show. 

See you all season.