Sebastian Goes Out With A Bang

I was sad to see Sebastian Pigott get voted off Canadian Idol last night.

Not surprised. Just sad.


The good news? Sebastian didn't seem a bit sad. In fact, he almost looked a little relieved to be done with this show. So there were no tears or sad good-byes. He high-fived his fellow competitors, took to the mic, and rocked out to "Lucille" one last time.

It was an explosive farewell. He jumped and writhed all over the stage while everyone danced and laughed along with. He wailed on his harmonica with more joy on his face than I've seen from him since the audition rounds.

When Sebastian was done, the crowd stood and cheered wildly. Even the judges were on their feet.

Something tells me I haven't heard the last from this guy, or from his brother. In an earlier Idol episode, their mother spoke of how happy she was that they decided to take on the Idol experience, because it had brought her boys back together again. This morning, on youtube, I watched a performance someone recorded at Holy Joe's in Toronto of Oliver & Sebastian singing "Dream" by the Everly Brothers last week. It was amazing. So my hope is that they continue on together, working together, singing together.

Because they brought magic to Canadian Idol this season. If it weren't for them, I might have stopped watching a long time ago. And if nothing else good comes of this show this season, at least I have Idol to thank for introducing me to the Pigott brothers.

Can't wait to see what they do next.

Sebastian Gets His Game Back

Last night, the faded jeans were back.

The leather jacket was back.

The harmonica was back.

The curly hair was back.

The hat was back!

Ladies & gentleman...Last night, for the first time since the Top 10 commenced, Sebastian Pigott was back!!


And oh, what a relief it was!! While my support of Sebastian has never wavered over the past few weeks, clearly the judges have not been impressed, and neither has the voting public, as he has been a member of the Bottom 3 for 2 weeks straight.

There's no guarantee that he won't be back there tonight, but for the first time since the Elite 10 were chosen, Sebastian finally showed why he was put there. He was sexy and cool and sang "Lucille" with all the bluesy-soul that wowed the judges in the audition rounds.

This was the Sebastian Pigott I've been dying to see again, and was afraid we had lost. I wasn't sure he still had the confidence or the joy of performing on the Idol stage to pull off what he did last night.

But last night, he showed that cocky swagger - he was back in his groove, and for the first time since making it to the Top 10, the judges (for the most part) finally commended him for something other than just looking good. Only Zack, of course, had to pull him down a little, telling him that while he was much better than he was the first two weeks, hopefully tonight Canada will send him home so that they get down to the serious business of finding the next Canadian Idol.

I always take what Zack says with a grain of salt, so it didn't bother me much. The truth is, I feel Sebastian actually could be in the running for this if continues on in the same vein as he did last night. Of course, the "unplugged" sessions this week were more up his alley, taking him back to his busking days. Hopefully he's rediscovered what works best for him as an artist, and I get the chance to vote for him again and again and again!

Sebastian is the first Idol contestant I've felt this passionate about. More than Ryan Malcolm, more than Chris Daughtry, more than Greg Neufeld. Hell, even more than Lukas Rossi, from my Rockstar: Supernova days. He's the first Idol contestant I've voted for this much, and I have my fingers crossed that it pays off again tonight.

My hatred for Mark Day last night grew ten-fold when he sang one of my current favourite songs, Sugarland's "Stay". When I realized what he was singing, I cringed. He completely ruined it for me. Made me want to puke. If there is an Idol God, he'll be in the Bottom 3 tonight and voted out. I don't know if I can stand watching him one more week!

If I could pick a Bottom 3 for tonight, I'd put Mark, Mitch, and Drew down there. I'm still fully expecting Sebastian to be there, though, and probably because last night was his best performance, of course he'll end up going home. That's usually how it works in this unjust competition.

But if that does happen, Sebastian can rest assured that he went out with a bang. Because even though the judges gave the "performance of the night" to Theo, for me, it was all Sebastian.

He was finally back.

In Memory of Buzz

Good Monday morning, everyone!

First of all, I'd like to thank everyone who came out to help me celebrate my birthday this past weekend. Today I turn a quarter of a century old, and while I wasn't exactly looking forward to it, my friends & family have made it a pleasant experience thus far. So thanks again!!

On a more somber note, today I'd like to take a few minutes to remember Tim Kilpatrick. He was better known to Ottawa sports talk listeners as "Buzz", a popular voice on the "Three Guys on the Radio" morning show and "The Buzz on Junior Hockey" at the Team 1200 radio station.

On Friday morning, Buzz passed away at the age of 41 from complications of a lung infection. He had gone to the hospital while on vacation over a week ago, suffering from shortness of breath. Last Monday, he reported to his boss at the Team that he expected to be released from hospital the following day, and back to work by Wednesday. Unfortunately, his condition deteriorated rapidly, and by Friday, he was gone.

I only get to listen to TGOR every morning for about half an hour while I'm getting ready for work. I've never met Buzz before in my life. But when I heard Saturday morning that he had passed away, I was floored. Absoultely shocked. I hadn't heard he was sick. I thought he was still just on vacation.

I cried. I struggled to deal with this odd feeling of never having met a person, and yet somehow feeling like I lost a good friend.

Buzz was a funny guy, and while his undying support of the Leafs would have me madder than a hatter one minute, in the next, he'd have me laughing out loud. He was always getting teased by his co-hosts for his mispronunciation of words and misuse of the English language. I always looked forward to hearing about his adventures with "The Date" (what he referred to his current girlfriend as), and hearing the other guys bug him about having to go to lame concerts with her (he was not looking forward to seeing George Michael in August).

There are countless jokes and "Buzzisms" and stories. This morning, I sat in my room with tears in my eyes as I listened to Steve and Stuntman Stu reminiscing and talking about all of them. I commend the two of them and the rest of the staff at the Team for putting together a fitting and bittersweet tribute to Buzz this morning. I have no idea how they remained so composed and calm. I expect that this morning's on-air celebration of Buzz's life might be one of the hardest things those guys ever have to do in their lives. But Buzz deserved it, and they did it well.

Things won't be the same without him in the mornings anymore. I think the thing about Buzz that I'll miss most is his unmistakable, infectious laugh. You just couldn't help but laugh along with him.


I lifted this picture of Buzz with Spartacat from Stuntman Stu's Blog - Buzz hated being photographed, and as the guys said this morning, pictures of him are about as rare as pictures of Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster - but Stu captured him at the Santa Claus Parade in Ottawa last year , and I think it's a great photo. Also, for more tributes to him by the two men he talked to for four hours every morning, check out their blogs:

http://tgornation.blogspot.com/
http://stuntmanstu.blogspot.com/


We'll miss you, Buzz.

Funky Sh*t Goin' Down in Genoa City

Last week, I was right into the Young & the Restless because the storyline was focusing quite a bit on Daniel & Amber, my new favourite couple on the show. Well, not so much a couple anymore, because Daniel found out that Amber had cheated on him while he was away on tour with his dad. Anyways - the whole week, I was glued to the show, watching the fall-out after Amber finally told her beau that she had slept with Professor Adrian Korbel while he was gone.

This week, I wasn't so interested, because that storyline had slipped into the background, and to be honest, things were getting a little dry and boring on the Y&R.

Ah, but then came last night's episode. It was one of those episodes where you finally get a sniff of interesting things to come - it seems were on the cusp of something big. Definitely some funky sh*t goin' down in Genoa City!

I don't read spoilers, so I'm not sure what exactly is going to happen. You guys have mentioned car crashes, killing off characters, some commotion at the gala - not sure what exactly is going to take place, but if last night's episode is any indication, any or all of those things could occur.

First of all - can I just tell you how much I hate the character of Chloe? She's such a little twit! Apparently she's taken the notion she's in love with Cane, and she's not about to let his girlfriend Lily stand in the way. Last night, while Cane was in the midst of actually proposing to Lily, Chloe marched right up to him and told him she was pregnant with his baby! Now, as I've said, I kind of drift in & out of what's going on with the show, so I don't even know if they ever actually even did the nasty, but something tells me Chloe's not really "with child", and if she is, it's definitely not Cane's!

Then we've got that snake Jack Abbot, whom I loathe even more with each episode. He altered the article in Restless Style to slander Victor's new wife Sabrina just so he could sell more magazines - and by doing so, threw his business partners Nick, Phyllis, Sharon and the author of the article, Adrian, under the bus. Victor's been on a rampage ever since, looking for revenge. I was shocked last night when Jack just waltzed right up to Sabrina and admitted it all to her! I hate that pompous, sneaky weasel!!

But the really, really interesting storyline - and because I've only got bits and pieces of it along the way, I'm not entirely sure what's going on - is that Nikki's husband, David Chow, is up to something big. And I'm pretty sure whatever the big turn of events is that's coming down the pipe at us, he's going to be behind it all. Last night's episode ended with him slipping something in Nikki's drink, and we've got Paul Williams & JT Hellstrom feverishly trying to prove David had something to do with Ji-Min's death. One thing is becoming clear - David is dangerous, and Nikki is in trouble.

I'm assuming things will start snapping into place and fireworks will start going off tonight. I love it when all hell breaks loose in Genoa City!!

New Look

That's right, guys...I'm tryin out a new look for the Blog! Like it? Let me know! If not, I can switch back, or I can try another one - there's a few to choose from! :)

Hanging on by a Thread

As I mentioned yesterday, I was fully expecting Sebastian Pigott to go home last night on the Canadian Idol results show.

I had planned, prepared myself - I was going to be OK with it.

So when Sebastian was brought down into the Bottom 3, I certainly wasn't surprised. I was a little surprised to see Amberly Thiessen down there, though, after I thought she did a beautiful job with Bob Marley's "Redemption Songs". However, with this talented crop of contestants this year, as one of the judges said, someone had to be down there with Sebastian & Katherine St-Laurent.

(In this picture, I love Amberly's look of complete disgust. It's as though she's looking out at the Canadian public and saying, "What the F&$@ is wrong with you people???")

But c'mon, people. The missing piece of that Bottom 3 puzzle was not Amberly. Mark, Mark, Mark!!! Why is he NEVER THERE??? Arghhhhh!!!

In any case, Amberly was quickly sent back to the safety of the couches, leaving Sebastian and Katherine left to face Ben's final verdict.

After watching the re-cap of the night before, I had decided that Katherine was my only hope at keeping Sebastian alive in the competition. The judges have taken such a severe hate for him, and to be fair, he wasn't among the elite on Monday night. But I didn't think he was nearly as bad as they painted him. Katherine, however, wasn't exactly a stand-out either, but mainly because, of all the Joplin tunes she could have selected, she picked one I didn't even know, and I had the feeling maybe other people would feel the same way. At least Sebastian's take on Elvis' "Love Me" was recognizable (and hot).

So finally, it was time for Ben to make his announcement. He began by saying: "Sebastian..." and then he followed it up with a long pause, during which Sebastian put his head down and waited to be sent home. The pause grew longer...and longer...and longer...

And somewhere inside my head, a little hopeful voice cried, He's safe!!!

...and then Ben said the magic words himself: "You are safe!!"

Sebastian's head popped up and, as half the crowd screamed with joy and the other half booed in dismay, there was a look of complete bewilderment on his face. I don't think anyone was as shocked as Sebastian that he was staying and Katherine was going.

So while I did my little happy dance and squealed with glee, Katherine did a graceful job of accepting her fate, smiling and nodding as though she knew all along, and hugging Sebastian before he headed back to the couches.

Her safe Idol counterparts did not do such a smooth job of hiding their disbelief. They stared at each other in shock, mouths hanging open. Atta make a guy feel good about himself, eh?

In any case, I'm thrilled that he's been given another chance so that he can go "unplugged" next week with Gavin Rossdale. And there's something gratifying in knowing I didn't waste 45 minutes the night before hitting redial for Sebastian. Makes me feel like I accomplished something!

The only other note I took on last night was that at the end of the show, with the Idol music playing and credits rolling, they showed the remaining competitors taking turns giving good-bye hugs to the departing Katherine. When she finally got to Sebastian, he held her close and was whispering something in her ear, and she kept nodding and smiling through her tears - I have no idea what Sebastian was saying to her, but all I could think was: Man, I wish I was her right now!!!

And here's the Top 8 of '08!! (One more thing - Kenny mentioned yesterday that Sebastian was singled out on E!Talk as the worst dressed of the contestants. Yesterday, I completely disagreed - I've loved Sebastian's style all along - but that hideous teal blue blazer last night? Me no like. Good thing he's hot enough that I was able to ignore it. )

Confidence Killers

Well, last night, I was fuming in front of my TV again.

Want to know why?

Because the flippin' Canadian Idol judges SUCK!!

They've clearly taken a major dislike for my boy Sebastian. I thought last night, he did a pretty good job. Of course, it was right up my alley that he chose to perform "Love Me" by Elvis Presley on Rock & Roll Heaven night. His performances are always honest, genuine, and how can you not love the hips?? Maybe he could push the vocals a wee bit, but otherwise, I thought he sounded great, looked great, and the whole performance was great!!

Now, brother Luke did make the comment last night that Sebastian could come out on-stage and fart the alphabet and I'd think it was great - that may be true. But honestly - the judges are wayyyy too harsh on this guy. If I could see anything wrong with Sebastian last night, it was that he might have seemed a little bit stiff and nervous.

Geez! Wonder why! After last weeks' comments from Jake, Sass, Farley & Zack, he was probably second-guessing his every decision. In the audition rounds, I thought Sebastian oozed confidence. His strength was smart song choices, and he brought sexy charm to every performance. The judges continually praised him for understanding his limitations and maximizing them with the right songs for his voice.

Maybe when big brother Oliver was booted from the show, Sebastian lost some of his swagger. Maybe he was more comfortable playing the cutesy sideshow in Oliver's shadow. Maybe now, with his brother forced to play the role of cheerleader, Sebastian feels a little lost & alone out there on that big stage.

Who knows. But one thing is for sure - Sebastian just doesn't seem like he's having much fun up there anymore. Can you blame him? After last week's episode, when the judges seemed to gleefully drag him through the mud, they probably killed his confidence. Stamped out his joie de vivre.

I thought they were there to give constructive criticism and help the contestants better themselves. They haven't done that with Sebastian. And it's obvious that the "You can't sing...but hey, you look good!" comment is starting to wear a little thin with him. After hearing it again from Sass last night, he replied cooly, "Thanks, Sass, that's what I was going for", tongue clearly in cheek.

The biggest problem with it all is that I know Sebastian can sing. And he didn't sound nearly as bad last night as they made it out to be. I thought his voice was smooth, and hit the right notes at all the right times. Beyond that, I've checked out his Myspace page, and the music he has on-line is really, really good.

Still doesn't seem fair that that pudgy, goofy pain-in-the-ass Mark Day gets big praise for his Drama Queen theatrics while a truly soulful, passionate artist like Sebastian Pigott gets stomped on all the time.

I voted my butt off again last night, but I'm once again preparing for the worst.

The only consolation if Sebastian is voted off tonight -and I'm fully expecting he will be - is that I know he's better than that silly show, and I look forward to seeing what he brings to the table after the Idol glow has faded away.

To Be, Or Not To Be? That is the Question...

I'm in a dilemma.

For years & years, as long as I've been a Wade Redden fan, people have always asked me, "If he ever got traded, or left the team through free agency, would you still be a Sens fan?"

My standard answer has always been, "Well God forbid, but if it did happen, I'd still be a die-hard Sens fan; however, I'd still follow Wade's career as closely as I can."

As you all know, the dreaded day came on July 1st, when Wade Redden, as an Unrestricted Free Agent, finally cut his ties with the Ottawa Senators - the only NHL club he's ever played for - and signed a 6 year deal with the New York Rangers.

There were no tears or tantrums. I was fully prepared - I'd have to be a dummy to think the Senators would sign him after the turmoil this season. And to be honest, I was almost a little relieved. For such a long time, I'd lived in fear of this happening, and then when it was finally done, it was almost like a weight off my shoulders.

Besides, Wade's last few seasons in an Ottawa uniform could not have been entirely enjoyable for him either, what with the fans and media all over him every time he made even the tiniest of mistakes. Oh yes, and how could I forget, Bryan Murray repeatedly trying to trade him when he didn't want to go? Atta make a guy feel welcome and loved.

Truthfully, I'm hoping that a new team in a new city will give Wade a new lease on life, and that his game will be rejuvenated. It irks me when I hear people saying he's done, and that he never lived up to his potential - that he was over-rated.

For a lot of years here in Ottawa, Wade Redden was a star. He was the assistant captain of this team, he was an Olympian, and he was considered one of the best defencemen in the league. What went wrong? I have no idea. I could speculate until the cows come home, but I'll never really know. I'd just love for him to go into New York and be that player that I know deep down Wade Redden can be.

So thus, my dilemma. To be an Ottawa Senators fan, or not to be? Should I follow Wade to New York, get myself a nice blue Rangers jersey with REDDEN on the back, and become a full-fledged follower of the New York Rangers? Or do I stick by my Sens and let my feverish following of Wade die down until it's almost non-existant?

In my heart, I know I can't turn my back on the Sens, even though I'm not impressed with a lot that has gone on over the past year. With news of every new signing, I can't help but feel that this isn't my team anymore - so many new faces, so many of the old ones gone. It's a little heart-breaking for me.

But at the end of the day, with or without Wade Redden, they're still my team, and I know that once the first puck drops, I'll be back in my Red-Black-n-Gold, cheering for them 'til I'm blue in the face.

I'll just be trying a little harder to get tickets when the Rangers are in town, that's all!

Nothing to Say

I have nothing Sebastian-y to say today. That's disappointing in my world, but I'm sure the rest of you are relieved. I'm willing to bet you're all just about Sebastian-ed out. I glanced down the page today and realized that almost all of my blogs this summer have involved him to some extent. Not sure if that's healthy, but my self-diagnosis is that I'm in Wade Redden withdrawals, and the only thing helping me get through each day without him is Sebastian Pigott.

Alright. I just read that back, and it sounds sick and obsessed, even to my own ears.

I promise, I'm not getting that wound up about a dude on Canadian Idol.

But honestly, I have nothing to say today. About Sebastian or anyone else.

So today I give you the "Nothing to Say" blog, with a promise to do better in the future.

And in the meantime, why don't you look at yet another smokin' picture of the boy.

Sebastian Survives

I honestly would not have been surprised if Sebastian Pigott had been voted off Canadian Idol last night. The buzz in Idol circles was that he was one of the worst, if not the worst, performer on Monday night. I disagreed somewhat, but I was preparing myself. Bracing myself for the worst.

So when the results show began last night, I had the playoff butterflies and everything, but I kept telling myself, "He's going home. He's going home." Deep down praying for the best, yet my head telling me it wasn't likely.

Sure enough, he found himself the first member of the bottom 3. I wasn't shocked. A little pissed, maybe, but not shocked. What did shock me was that Mark Day was not in the bottom 3. How does that little weasel keep going? He's pathetic - an embarrasment to the show - especially after that ridiculously campy peformance he put on Monday night. It still burns me to the core that Sebastian's brother Oliver, or a guy like Omar Lunan, didn't make it to the Top 10, but that goofy, cheesy, roly-poly dink did. Grrrrr...

Anyways - the two contestants who joined Sebastian down in the doom-n-gloom of the Bottom 3 were Mookie Morris and Adam Castelli. Mookie surprised me a little - I agreed that he had a poor song choice on Bowie night, but he's one of the judges' darlings. Adam, on the other hand, hasn't been a favourite of mine for a while now. Initially, I thought he was kinda cute, but then I realized how hot Sebastian was, and Adam got bumped from the list. Plus, he wasn't that great a singer. That being said, his performance of "Rebel Rebel" on Monday night was pretty strong, and when he made his grand entrance on his Harley, I thought it was kinda cool.

Nevertheless, Canada voted him first out of the Top 10.

Didn't really bother me much, I was just so happy Sebastian survived. Would I have rather seen Mark Day going home. Hell yes. But we'll deal with him soon enough. I'm just so happy I get to see Sebastian for one more week. I think next Monday's theme of "Rock & Roll Heaven" will suit him a little better than Bowie anyways. And maybe, just maybe, the people of Toronto will smarten up and start supporting their talent (both Mookie & Seb call TO home, and they were both in jeopardy this week) - also an issue Farley addressed last night on the show.

OH - and I finally figured out who Sebastian reminds me of thanks to stumbling upon someone else's blog yesterday. The hip swiveling and his performance often makes me think of Elvis, but in looks, he's a dead ringer for James Dean. I think this modeling shoot he did probably helped along that comparison, but wowzers...Check it out! (I ripped this off from another blog, hope I'm not violating any laws by doing so.)

I was a little sad last to see that Sebastian had his hair cut between Monday & Tuesday and his beautiful blond curls were all but hacked off, but he was still sexy as hell. From what I could tell, both Theo & Earl were sheared too, so I guess they all spent the day at the barber's. Ah, they're boys. They'll have it all grown back by next week!

Last Night, I HAD to Vote!!

OK, so Sebastian bombed last night on Canadian Idol. Or so the judges said. I thought he was awesome, as usual, but I guess I'm a little biased. But I mean, c'mon...Just look at this face:

How could I sit back and let them just drag him through the mud? I had to do something. I just had to do something!

So I voted. I voted, and I voted, and I voted some more. I think by the time I hung up the phone, we were in the area of somewhere between 40 and 50 votes.

I don't care that Sebastian didn't play his guitar particularly well. I also didn't care that he didn't sing "Let's Spend the Night Together" particularly well. Wanna know why? Because it was Bowie night on Idol, and he didn't come out dressed like a drag queen like some of the others. He came out in a pair of faded jeans and a green button shirt. And he looked hotter than anyone else. He wasn't wearing skinny pants (a fad that I hate, and makes anyone's feet look clown-ish), he wasn't wearing make-up, he wasn't wearing a ridiculous '80's get-up.

He was just Sebastian. And man, was he smokin'.

I hope that Sebastian gets another week to perform. I hope all of his fans out there voted their asses off like I did to keep him around for at least another week to redeem himself in the eyes of Jake, Sass, Farley & Zack. Because while I thought he was still pretty fabulous even on his worst night, I know he's better than that, and he's not the kind of guy who will make the same mistake twice.

Dear God, I hope I'm celebrating on here tomorrow. I hope Sebastian advances on to the next round. Otherwise, I really might stop watching Idol for good!

"The Canadian Idol Farce" Rears Its Ugly Head (Again)

I haven't been updating you guys on Idol for the past few weeks - well, mostly 'cause I know none of you really care.

But last night, yet another case of Canadian Idol Highway Robbery occured, and I just have to Blog about it. 'Cause it pisses me off so damned much.

You've all heard me whine & cry about the past Idol injustices against Chris Daughtry (American Idol a few years back) and Greg Neufeld (last season of Canadian Idol). Both were forced to bid farewell long before their time, and I was a left a bitter little Idol fan.

This year, in the audition process, I was introduced to the Pigott brothers from Toronto - Oliver, the extremely talented one, and Sebastian, the smokin' hot, charming one. I babbled away about them on here and how much I loved them both, and how I had honest-to-goodness hopes that they might stand side-by-side as the final 2 in this year's extraordinarily talented crop of Idol hopefuls.

Last night, the Top 16 were whittled down to 10, and after sitting through an excruciating 25 minutes of eliminations, there were two Pigott brothers left, with only one Top 10 spot to fill.

I crossed my fingers, begged for a miracle, prayed that in this seasons of "firsts" and "twists", that maybe they were going to turn it into a Top 11 and both would get through.

However, that dream died quickly. In easily the biggest Idol shock of the season thus far, Oliver was sent packing, while Sebastian took his seat amongst the Top 10.

While I was overjoyed that Sebastian made it, I was devestated to see Oliver go. I love Sebastian, but it was quite clear from the past month that Oliver is the better singer, and if Sebastian was going to make it, then Oliver should have too. The voting process ticked me off yet again, as a guy like Mark Day makes it based on the fanatical voting from his home region of Newfoundland while an amazing talent like Oliver doesn't, because he's from a big city like Toronto.

(It's been proven that Newfies always make it far in the competition. 'Cause apparently their people have nothing better to do than sit on the phones for two hours straight once a week all summer long. Meanwhile, people from more highly-populated city centres with less "community spirit", are more likely to flounder, no matter how good they are.)

Also a little unfair to Oliver is the fact that, while he can sing his brother under a table, he doesn't have his movie star good looks. Not a bad looking dude at all, but not nearly as hot as Sebastian. Perhaps if he had the adorable curly hair, the killer grin, or the sexy swivelling hips (swear to God, sometimes he reminds me of Elvis) - maybe then the dumb Canadian public would have put him through.

Certainly, Oliver's rendition of "Lean on Me" by Bill Withers on Tuesday night was good enough to get him through. Far better than half the people that got into the Top 10.

It really, really makes me mad.

Thankfully, Sebastian is there, so I'll keep watching to make sure he continues on and does well in the competition. I'm sure Oliver will be cheering him on louder than anyone. But in my heart, I'll know that he should be up there too, and once again, another season of Idol goes sour for me, really before it even begins.

The New Kids Revival

Last night, while flicking through channels on TV, I happened upon the Much Music Video Awards '08, just as the hostess was announcing "the moment you've all been waiting for...Here to perform for the first time in 15 years...The New Kids on the Block!!"

I'm not going to lie. My first reaction was a snicker. An evil little snicker. Like, oh my God, how lame. That is soooooooo not cool.

But then, out came these guys on the stage, and they didn't look so different than they did 15 years ago. OK, so they dressed a little more slick. And they looked more mature and grown-up. But they didn't look ancient. In fact, I think some of them are more handsome now then they were back then.

Then they did a little medley of their old hits: "Step By Step", "Hangin' Tough", "Please Don't Go Girl", and "The Right Stuff". They had all the cheesy old dance moves, but instead of snickering at them, I realized the people in the crowd were loving it, and I started to love it a little too. It was like I had been transported back to a fun time when I spent hours in my basement, trying to match their dance moves, imagining myself as one of their back-up dancers. My sneer had turned into a smile, and I was enjoying every minute of their performance, reminiscing about my old Donnie doll and how much I used to love him & the rest of the guys.

Suddenly I wasn't thinking of this reunion as pathetic. I was starting to think it was pretty neat.

Then they sang their new single, "Summertime", and be damned if the thing isn't still stuck in my head. It's catchy. It's like old-school NKOTB with a new modern twist. Almost has me thinking I might have to buy their new CD.

It's a little weird. It's been 15 years since the New Kids faded out of the music scene, and for a long time in between, they were considered a joke. "Remember when we liked the New Kids? How stupid were we?"

Then there came the spawn of new-age boy bands in the late '90s: The Backstreet Boys, N'Sync, 98 Degrees, and so on. They were always compared to those legendary pioneers in baggy colourful pants, muscle shirts, and goofy hats - and eventually, they were laughed off the stage too.

But now, the New Kids are back, and something tells me, they just might be cool again. At least for this summer. And I know one thing for sure: I'm not going to get caught up in negativity in dwelling on how lame it all is. I'm going to embrace it and re-discover those innocent years of being the New Kids' biggest fan. Opportunities to return to our childhood don't come along very often, so we should all jump back on the NKOTB bandwagon.

It's the New Kids Revival. And I, for one, don't want to miss it!

Kids' TV: Not What It Used to Be...

OK, so the comments section on my last Blog has convinced me that it's time we all sit down & talk about our old favourite TV shows. The ones we watched as kids, before we started school, or in the evenings after supper, or the wonderful Saturday cartoons.

In the past few years, I've had to dive back in to the world of kids' TV, with my nephew Caden around, and also with some of my friends having kids. I've been introduced to the new television programming out there for children: Dora the Explorer, Go Diego Go, Franklin, Little Bear, The Backyardigans, Toopy & Binoo, Four Square - oh, and my personal favourite: The Mole Sisters. Who the heck names a kids show "The Mole Sisters"? And why would kids want to watch the adventures of two moles that are sisters? It's just weird...

When Stacy bought Maddy an old videotape of The Elephant Show with Sharon, Lois, and Bram recently, it brought me back to my childhood. Remember that show? Remember how much fun it was? They sang and played instruments and played games with kids...and it was always interesting to see what michief Elephant was getting into.

It got me thinking about other great shows I used to watch faithfully. Join In - I loved that show. Today's Special - it was the best! With Muffy the Mouse and Jeff the mannequin that only came alive at night, after hours. And those were just the shows in the evenings.

Before I went to school, or on PD Days, or in the summer - you didn't miss Mr. Dressup and Fred Penner in the mornings. Then there was Under the Umbrella Tree, with Iggy the Iguana, Jacob the Bluejay, & Gloria the Gopher. And of course, there was Sesame Street. Where would any of us be without Sesame Street? And I mean the good old Sesame Street - not this hokey Sesame Park or Elmo's World that they've come up with since we graduated from kids' TV shows. They suck!

I also used to love The Flintstones and The Pink Panther - they were usually on around lunchtime, and I have fond memories of watching those shows and eating a grilled cheese or macaroni. Ah, the good ol' days!

I haven't even touched on the Saturday cartoons - Dennis the Menace, Inspector Gadget, My Pet Monster, The Smoggies...I could go on and on. Those were some good shows, and lately, there doesn't seem to be anything like that on TV. Maybe on that Retro Toon channel - but they don't show enough of them. Oh! And those old Bugs & Tweety shows! I used to love watching those on Saturday evenings!

Where did those days go? Seems like only yesterday.

But now I'm stuck watching Diego and Toopy and The Mole Sisters. *sigh* Kids these days just don't know what they're missing...

My Apologies, PIGOTT Brothers!

I felt fairly stupid when I sat down to watch Canadian Idol last night, and very early on, Ben Mulroney made reference to the Pigott brothers. After I spent all of yesterday's blog gushing about the "Spigott" brothers, I couldn't believe I had made such a silly error. The truly funny part is that I actually thought I had researched yesterday's Blog - I went to the CI website (www.idol.ctv.ca) to make sure I got names right, etc. Apparantly between their site and my blog, "Pigott" became "Spigott". (I also spelled "Tetiana" wrong - but that's a tricky one to remember. Why can't people just name their kids easier things to spell? Like "Mookie". I didn't have any trouble with "Mookie".)

Anyways, when you think about it, I should have known that "Spigott" was wrong. I mean, try to say "Sebastien Spigott" five times fast. No parent would ever inflict that on their child.

Well, at the end of the day, it really doesn't matter if their last name is Pigott or Spigott or Presley, 'cause both boys were put through to the next round. At the start of the night, we were told that the judges' task was to whittle down the remaining contestants to the Top 22. By the time the show was winding down, 18 people had been selected already, and 11 of them were males, and neither Oliver nor Sebastien had yet to present themselves for the verdict on their fate in the competition.

I thought they were a shoe-in, but I admit, I was a little nervous. But I had an inkling that maybe they were going to let in more than 22 people, or that they were going to load up on guys, and go with less girls.

Sure enough, both of the Pigotts went through, and then a couple more. That left two final people to go before the judges, fully believing they were going to be cut because there were no spots left. But ta-da! This year it's 24. Welcome, kiddies!!

The other moment on the night worth mentioning was the heart-wrenching performance by Omar. At his first audition, Jake told him he needed to emotionally connect with his songs. So Omar told the judges before his final performance that he was going to sing a song that he had never heard before that had him in tears for an hour during his practice. He then proceeded to explain to them that in December, an attempt was made on the life of his younger brother, and he succumbed the day before his 25th birthday. At this point, the tears were already flowing, so when he started to sing "Break it to Them Gently" - well, just bust out the Kleenex, folks, it was a bawl fest.

Omar made it to the Top 24 also.

I really like the group they selected this year. They all seem mature, professional, and prepared. Can't wait to see how my Pigotts do!!

Call Off the Contest...

...'Cause I already know who the winner is!

Of Canadian Idol, I mean.

I've been watching faithfully since the first episode of auditions. That very first night, these two brothers from Toronto, Oliver & Sebastien Spigott, both presented themselves to the judges.

Oliver went first, and he absolutely blew them away with a song I didn't recognize but instantly fell in love with. Idol judge Jake Gold told him that through all the years they've been doing the show, his audition might have been the single best audition ever.

Then they brought in Sebastien. Oliver was a tough act to follow, and not surprisingly, little bro paled slightly in comparison when he played "Blue Moon of Kentucky". They told him he wasn't as talented as his brother, but that his good looks and charisma should carry him on. Both boys were handed gold tickets. On to the Top 200.

So for the past few weeks, I've endured the rest of the audition process, all the time comparing each new performer to the Spigotts, thinking, "No, you aren't as good. You're not even close. You lose." That's right. No one has even been as good as Sebastien, let alone Oliver!

Last night, I was finally reunited with the Spigott brothers as they began the process of weeding through the Top 200. For awhile, I had started to think that Sebastien had backed out of the Top 200 - they seemed to focus solely on Oliver. They showed his solo performance on Day 1 - which was so good, the judges gave him a free pass - but Sebastien was never even mentioned.

Finally, in the latter part of the show, I got my first glimpse of Sebastien when special guest co-host and Canadian singer Jully Black busted down his hotel room door to see him, Oliver, Tatyana and Mookie preparing for their group performance. It was around this time that I realized I might be starting to like Sebastien better than Oliver after all. He just looked so cute.

The Day 2 group performances were a range from amazing to complete bust. As far as I could tell, two groups separated themselves as "Super Groups". This one group led by the red-head British dude who reminds me of Clay Aitken (unfortunately, 'cause they boy can sing, but when you start thinking Clay, it's never a good thing), and Ollie & Seb's group. The judges loved 'em both.

But for me, it was still all about Sebastien and Oliver. They were amazing, of course, as one would expect two brothers who have played together all their lives would be, but the fact that they found two other competitors in Tatyana and Mookie who blended so well with them in their unique rendition of "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?" - they weren't just really good. They were professional. They were a step above everyone else - a mile above everyone else.

They were amazing.


(Sebastien and Oliver)

So as far as I'm concerned, the contest can go on, but there's really no point. The clear-cut run-away favourite is Oliver, and if, by some chance, people take a dislike for him because he's so awesome, then Sebastien can be the dark horse. Like I said, I think I'm already more in love with him anyways. Either way, I can thank Idol for introducing me to two brand new talents that I might never have heard of before - the Spigott brothers have already made it worthwhile.

As long as there's no atrocity like last year's far-too-early elimination of Greg Neufeld (it still pisses me off), Oliver and Sebastien may be the first two siblings standing side-by-side in the Final 2.

I can't wait to see it all unfold!

Detroit Takes Home Stanley Cup

Last night, after the Detroit Red Wings finally defeated the feisty, never-say-die Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals, I sat watching the Red Wings being awarded the Stanley Cup. Hockey's greatest prize. They passed it on from player to player, each taking a victorious twirl around the ice, while the sea of white in Pittsburgh watched on, and my mind started to drift...

First, I thought of that same scene at this time last season. Except at this time last year, it was the Anaheim Ducks celebrating their claim on hockey's Holy Grail, while I sat watching with tears pouring down my cheeks, knowing my Sens were so close, yet so far away.

Then, I thought back to a Saturday night this past January when my Sens met up with the Detroit Red Wings in their only meeting of the season at Scotiabank Place. It was pumped up to be a clash of the titans - the Red Wings the far-and-away leaders of the West, while Ottawa was sitting pretty atop the standings in the East.

The Sens won that night, and I truly believed back then that my team was well on their way to another appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals. Hopefully they'd be able to repeat their performance that night against Detroit four more times to win that glorious trophy that every player in the NHL covets and desires.

Alas, that victory against Detroit was the beginning of the end. It was just a tease. A horrible, twisted tease. We all know how the rest of the season and playoffs went for the Sens. Dismal. Grisly. Painful.

So last night, as I watched the Red Wings celebrating their victory and laying their claim on the Cup as the best team of 2007-2008, I couldn't help but feel a little bitter; a little sad. Last year, we were almost there. And this year, we couldn't even compare.

Thank God that horrible season is over. Hopefully next year will be better.

And congratulations to Detroit on their win. They deserved it.

Back to the Ball Field

I didn't think I'd be playing ball this year, after it seemed my team from last year had completely dismantled and nobody had signed up to play. Then I found out that most of them had been recruited to play for another team, but I was not included in that select, elite group. (hee hee...Totally kidding...Would I pick me to play on a ball team? Hell no! I suck!!)

Anyways, I guess after the team captains met on Monday night, it was determined that one more girl was needed to fill out a line-up, so I got the call. They really must've been scraping the bottom of the barrel, but anyways...I agreed to play. This year I'm on the old guys' team. That's what everyone calls them. It's kind of an unfair nickname, considering that at least 5 of us that I can think of are under the age of 30. And two of them are under 20.

Doesn't really matter though, 'cause our nickname should be "The Fun Ones"!! OK, my team last year was fun too, but there were a lot of laughs last night on the bench and out in the field. No pressure, no yelling, just joking and giggling. The biggest argument was deciding who would get to sit each inning - because everyone wants to sit.

Well, we played the young lads (also an unfair nickname - 'cause half of them are my age, and no one calls me a "young lad") - and we beat them!! It was great. Especially considering that in the past, they've had a reputation for being a little cocky and arrogant, and I'm sure they thought they'd have no trouble beating us "old guys". We showed 'em!

I never got on base. The toilets still aren't working. The mosquitoes were wicked. Aside from me switching teams, not much changed at the good ol' Quyon ball park!

"Mr. Perfect"

You guys all know how much I love Elvis.

You all know how much I love Irish guys.

You all know how much I love guys who can play guitar.

OK. So I've found my real-life Mr. Perfect. If I find out he plays hockey, I can elevate him to god-status.

Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to Jonathan Rhys Meyers!

I first "discovered" Mr. Meyers a few years ago when he played a young, smokin' hot Elvis Presley in the made-for-TV movie "Elvis". I fell in love with him then, but after I watched my tape of the show a few hundred times, I kind of forgot about him.

This past weekend, I saw another movie which he starred in called August Rush. It's kind of a far-fetched romantic fairy tale which I absolutely adored about a young boy who was given up for adoption as a baby. He has a love and keen interest in music. A child prodigy, he can pick up any musical instrument and become a master of it within minutes. His sole purpose in life is to find his long-lost parents through his music.

JRM plays his father, Louis Connelly, an Irish musician. (I did a little research on him today, he's Irish in real life too. YUM! My love Irish guys was re-kindled big time this weekend, as I also watched PS I Love You again. Ireland, here I come!) So throughout the movie, I was constantly reminded of how his beautiful face was almost identical to a young Elvis'. Then came the scenes where he was on-stage with his rock band. So hot.

My favourite scene of the movie was when Louis, who doesn't even know he fathered a child after one romantic night with the lovely Lyla Novacek (played by Keri Russell), comes upon his son playing in Central Park for tips by chance, and the two of them sit down and jam together and discuss their love of guitars.

August Rush was truly a magical film, and I'm so grateful it reminded me of how much I adore Jonathan Rhys Meyers. My next mission in life is to borrow Kristen's copy of Season 1 of The Tudors television series. I can just imagine how sexy he is playing Henry VIII!!

Happy Long Weekend!!

Hey gang!

It's been another crazy-busy week, no time to Blog...But I just wanted to wish you all a Happy May Long Weekend! If you get a chance to watch some of the hockey World Championship, be sure to take it in - Canada has been playing awesome, especially Dany Heatley. At first, it annoyed me that Dany was scoring so many goals when he couldn't get any towards the end of the Sens' dismal run this season, but I've decided to be happy for him, and proud to call him a Senator.

Also, things in the NHL's Conference Finals got a little more interesting in the past few days - I haven't been paying all that much attention, but Detroit had a 3-0 lead over Dallas and Pittsburgh had a 3-0 lead over Philly before both "underdogs" finally battled back. They're both still a long way from becoming only the 3rd team in NHL history to come back from a 3-0 series deficit, but at least they decided to add a little spark to liven things up a bit! I'll be taking note of those games over the weekend, also.

Aside from that, it looks like it could be a pretty quiet weekend - there doesn't seem to be a whole lot going on, and the weather report isn't sound too crash hot. Regardless, enjoy the rest & relaxation, and enjoy having 3 days off! :)

I Can't Believe It's Already May!!

OK, so I've got some disgruntled fans of the Blog out there. I know I've been silent for far too long, but let me just explain.

First of all, my last Blog was sort of my farewell to Wade. I was emotional when I wrote it, and to be honest, I haven't gone back to read it since. Because I still don't want to say good-bye to him. It makes me sad; it chokes me up. So I wasn't entirely sure how to follow that one up. For the past few weeks, I've been in a funk...mainly because of Wade. I mean, how else can I explain bursting into tears after I lost at the Canada Day Committee Poker Tournament two weekends ago? I made it to the final table, but when I was the first one put out, I had an emotional break-down of some sort. (Alright, so maybe the rye had something to do with it, too...)

Anyways, moving right along... The next obstacle between the Blog and me has been the fact that there's been no Spring this year. We went straight from Winter to Summer; from snowbanks to heat waves. Which means that we here at Mountainview didn't get the opportunity to "ease into things", like we normally would. Things have been kinda crazy. Little time for Blogging.

Last but not least, I can fairly say that last week was my week from HELL. I twinged something in my back blow drying my hair on Monday morning. Then my Simply Accounting program went retarded on me when we updated to the 2008 version. Tuesday, I stayed home, flat on my back all day, doped up on Robaxacet. Wednesday was spent trying to figure out what was wrong with my Simply Accounting program and switching it back to the old version I'd be working with. Thursday, I had computer issues again in the morning, which left me only the afternoon to complete 3 1/3 days work before leaving for Quebec City for the Karate tournament.

Sheesh. What a week. And clearly no time to even think about Blogging.

But don't worry, guys, I never forgot about you! Today, I'm wiping my slate clean. Yes, things are going to get even busier here at work over the next two months, but today's a new day, a new month. Welcome to May!!

I seriously don't know where the time has gone; Christmas feels like it was just a few weeks ago. But here we are, in the month of May, and there's so much to look forward to. I hopefully won't even have time to think about what it was like last year at this time, watching my team storm through to the Stanley Cup Finals.

A new month, a fresh start. And a renewed promise to pay more attention to you, my faithful Bloggers.

Cheers!!

Not Ready to Say Good-Bye...

For most people, it's like he's already gone.

With the Senators down in their first-round playoff series against the Penguins 0-3, and with the great possibility that they'll be swept tonight in Game 4 on home ice, many people have already forgotten him.

But I haven't. In fact, today, while most Sens fans are praying for a miracle, or already counting our team out and thinking ahead to the post-season changes that are bound to occur, all I can think about is him.

Tonight could very well be Wade Redden's last game in a Senators uniform.

It brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it, but it's true. Earlier in the season, I had hopes that he'd return to the player he was 2 or 3 years ago, carry the team on his back, and lead them to a Stanley Cup this Spring. A few weeks into the regular season, he announced to the local media that he'd even consider taking a pay cut to stay with this team once the season was over. On that day, my hopes soared to new levels.

However, since then, he's had a rather dismal season, and has been the biggest whipping boy on this team, perhaps only bested in that department by the wayward Ray Emery. He's even had to use his no-trade clause twice to thwart GM Bryan Murray's attempts to ship him out of here before the end of his contract.

It's been hard to be a Wade fan this season, but I've hung in there. I'll never cheer for another player the way I have cheered for him.

This morning, all the papers are already saying their good-byes. As the guys on TGOR said this, it's like reading his obituary. Chronicling the ups and downs, the good times and bad, the great things he has done for the community (like "Wade's World", the luxury suite he has purchased every season he's been here where kids from CHEO get to go to watch games), the sad times like the year his mother battled cancer and passed away during the Sens first-round match-up against Tampa Bay.

By stark contrast, I can't help remembering the newspaper I picked up eleven years ago, on the eve of the modern Senators' first appearance in the playoffs, which had row upon row of pictures of each member of the team at that time. I remember scanning the photos, and one of them literally jumping out at me.

"Holy smokes, that guy is hot," I said, pointing out this one picture to my mom.

I watched that playoff round, and became absolutely obsessed with the Ottawa Senators, and that rookie who's photo I had seen in the paper: Wade Redden.

I haven't stopped following his career since, and today, little memories of Wade keep coming back to me: Watching him in that first playoff series vs. Buffalo; meeting him at the 65 Roses Sports Gala (when I got to shake his hand and get my picture taken with him, but could barely speak a work); feeling crushed when he was the last man back on the goal that Jeff Friesen scored in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals when New Jersey beat us; watching him singing "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" on TV during one of the Sens' Christmas visits to CHEO; tearing up when he scored and received first star honours in the game after his mother's funeral; feeling complete and utter joy when I found out the Sens had chosen to keep him over Zdeno Chara two years ago; meeting his brother Bart at a game earlier this season...

I could go on and on.

But I hope I'm jumping the gun. I'm hoping the Sens fight hard tonight and win, so that Wade will live to don the Red, Black & Gold at least one more night.

'Cause I'm just not ready to say good-bye...Not yet.

One Mission

You guys know me. You know how wound up I get over my Sens.

So you probably all know how I'm feeling today - absolutely on edge, butterflies in my stomach, biting my nails, just ready for it all to begin!

That's right, folks: It's playoff time again. Which means for as long as the Senators are in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, I'm at risk of having a heart attack.

Yep, it's that serious.

Starting tonight, we will be facing a familiar foe in Round 1 - the young & talented Pittsburgh Penguins. Last year, we handled them easily out of the gate, taking the series 4-1. Throughout this season, we've had a decent record against them, beating them 3 out of 4 contests. One would think we should be the favourites based on those facts, right?

Wrong.

They are the #2 seed. We ended up barely clinging on to #7.

(Ya shoulda seen that last week, going into Thursday night's game against the Leafs - I was an absolute nervous wreck - as bad as I am at playoff time, if not worse. The possibility of not even making the playoffs was so huge, it was suffocating me! Thankfully, we ended up winning that game against T.O. 8-2, and I was able to breathe a giant sigh of relief).

Last year, the Pens were a young, inexperienced squad, many of whom were playing in their first playoffs. The Sens, as a whole, were playoff vets with tons of past failures to ignite them, not only past Pittsburgh, but also New Jersey and Buffalo. Only the Ducks of Anaheim were able to push us back from the final goal of winning Lord Stanley's Cup.

Doesn't really look like we'll come nearly that close this year. The Pens are strong - they've learned from last year, and this year, they are that much more mature. They played hard down the stretch, while the Sens seemed to fall apart at the seams. Our goaltending situation never seemed to get straightened out, even after Bryan Murray gave Marty Gerber the ball and let him run with it. Our defence has been horrible. Even goal-scoring, our forté, hasn't been happening all that much recently.

Oh. I almost forgot. In that game against the Leafs, we lost both our captain, Daniel Alfredsson, and our gritty, full-of-heart assistant, Mike Fisher. Tonight, they'll join Chris Kelly on the sidelines, and depending on how long this series goes, we may never see them back in the line-up again this year.

OK. So there. I've got all my pessimistic negitivity out. Nobody thinks the Sens can win this series - absolutely no one. But I do!! If I had my choice of all the teams I could play in the first round, I probably would've picked Pittsburgh. I truly believe we can beat them!

We might be without Alfie, Fisher and Kelly, but we've still got Spezza and Heatley and Vermette - big offensive talent there. We brought in three former Cup winners in Cory Stillman, Mike Commodore, and Martin Lapointe - this is where their expertise is supposed to come in handy. And last year, the lauded shut-down defensive pairing of the Eastern Conference was made up of Chris Phillips and Anton Volchenkov. Guess what? They both still wear Sens uniforms.

This team is entirely capable of winning, if they can get it together the way we saw them play in the first two months of the season. This is a chance for a fresh start; a clean slate. If they can pull together and get some momentum going, I believe they can do anything.

One Mission.

GO SENS GO!!

Frustration Setting in BIG TIME

I know my faithful readers are out there waiting for a Blog, but I only have one thing to say:

AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGG
GGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

Hmm. That's funny. I don't feel better at all.

The Sens are sucking at the worst time possible, and now we might not even make the playoffs. I'm feeling very doom-and-gloomy today. I know we still have two games left, and all we need are a win & a tie, and we're golden (well...if you can call scrambling to make the playoffs now "golden"...) - but I'm having a hard time getting my hopes up high. We haven't even scored a stinkin' goal in the past 2 games. The last time that happened, John Paddock got fired. Somewhere, he's probably got a smirk on his face.

Our final two opponents are Toronto on Thursday night and Boston on Friday night. At one time, I probably would've said that they'd be easy wins, but not with this Sens team that has been showing up lately. We've lost to both TO and Beantown recently, and I wouldn't count either of them as guarantees.

I'm still waiting for the Sens to come out looking hungry, desperate, and determined. Last night, they played well, but not good enough. Gerber sucks, and nobody trusts Emery. Everything is just going wrong, wrong, wrong...

Let me try it again:

AAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR
RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
GGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

Nope. Didn't work that time either.

Battle of the Hottest Y&R Men

I've been a fan of the Young & the Restless off and on for about 15 years now. As a kid, I tuned in mainly to see Joshua Morrow, who plays Nick Newman. I had a little school-girl crush on him, and followed his dramatic relationship with his on-screen wife, Sharon, faithfully, through all their ups and downs.

But as I got older, a new guy came on the scene - Thad Luckinbill, in the role of JT Hellstrom, a hot bad-boy with a good heart who played guitar. As Nick & Sharon's marriage was falling apart, JT was heating things up with Colleen Carleton. I lived for the episodes to watch JT & Colleen sneaking around behind her father's back, when he'd write her love songs and play them for her. They were an electric couple that caught the hearts of the Y&R faithful.

But then, Colleen left Genoa City, and JT started to change. He was no longer the brooding bad boy. He dropped his music career and got a job working for Paul Williams as a private investigator, and he was beginning to mature and grow as a man. I was so excited when I heard the character of Colleen was returning to Genoa City a few years later, but there was an initial disappointment when it was learned that it would be a different actress playing the role. At first, I didn't really care, I just couldn't wait for the JT & Colleen romance to pick up where it left off. And at first, they did throw them back together. But things weren't working out - JT had no chemistry with the new Colleen, and before long, she was cheating on JT with her college professor. I didn't like those weeks of watching JT pine after her as he watched their relationship dissolve before his own eyes. The pathetic, sappy, lost-puppy thing didn't suit him well.

So of course, JT couldn't be alone for long - they introduced a new flame for him in actress Amelia Heinle, who played Victoria Newman. There had been sparks between them while Colleen was away, and it seemed the best fit for both of them. And so began the dramatic transformation of JT's character. Long gone were those days of the spiky blonde hair, leather jackets and guitars. In the past year or so, JT has begun working for Newman Enterprises as Victor's own PI, he wears a suit daily and his hair has all been slicked back, he & Victoria had a baby together, and then they got married. JT kind of lost his lustre with me - the whole working, family-man thing kind of diminished his sex appeal even more for some reason.

(However, I did find out recently that Amelia Heinle is actually Thad's wife off-screen, and they really did have a baby together, which is very sweet and wonderful for them. It made me appreciate their television relationship more.)

But in the wake of losing JT as my Y&R hot young stud, I've been struggling to find a new man to replace him. At first, I thought it was going to be Cane (played by Daniel Goddard), Jill Abbott's long-lost son who returned last season. Cane's got the whole tall-dark-n-handsome thing going on, and his Australian accent is delicious. But they've sent Cane down the road as a corporate suit as well, which isn't my cup of tea when it comes to the Y&R evidently.

There's also Kevin Fisher (Greg Rikaart), who plays Michael Baldwin's younger brother. He's easy on the eyes as well, but he's got this crazy girlfriend Janna who could go off her rocker at any time, and he's always in cahoots with his loony-tunes mother, Gloria. Kind of a turn-off.

So for the past two weeks, I've had my eye on Daniel Romalotti (Michael Graziadei), Phyllis' son. I'm not sure why, but up until recently, he didn't impress me much. In fact, I found him kind of annoying. He had the teenage marriage to Lily Winters, and then he had the storyline where he became obsessed with porn, which eventually ended his & Lily's relationship. Then, last month, he had this terrible blonde, fluffy hair-do that made him look like a baby chick or something.

But in the past few weeks, he's back to short, dark hair and his smoky, sexy gaze has attracted me. They've sort of got him working towards becoming a photographer, which is pretty hot, and he's started this racy relationship with his best friend, the tantalizingly dangerous Amber Moore. It was in one of his love scenes with Amber that I realized the boy has a pretty nice body to boot.

So that's it: I'm officially declaring Daniel my new Y&R crush! And for the first time in a long time, I can actually say I'm looking forward to watching the show again to see what's going to happen with Daniel. Who knows, maybe he'll take his shirt off tonight.

And it also doesn't hurt that Nick, JT, Cane, and Kevin are all still hanging out in Genoa City too. At least I know if Daniel doesn't work out for me, I have lots of hot stuff to fall back on. ;)

Finally...Something to Talk About!

I'll admit, these last couple of weeks, I was a bit uninspired when it came to the Blog.

My favourite subject, the Ottawa Senators, were floundering yet again. I couldn't bring myself to report on their misfortunes any longer. With each loss came a more intense fear and panic that maybe this would be my first year as a Sens fan on the outside looking in when it came playoff time.

The thought was almost unbearable.

And for a little while last night, I was starting to think it was me. Really, truly all me. I was ready to anoint myself the Senators Jinx.

I know I do that a couple of times every year, when they start to slump. It always seems that their failures coincide with my presence. For instance, Monday night's game against the Habs. I sat down to watch and Wade Redden got hurt. Then the Habs jumped out to a 3-0 lead. Not long after, Montreal's lead grew to 7-1. Completely pissed off, I stomped down to the basement in a huff to watch a Family Guy re-run. (Surely, Peter & Stewie would cheer me up). Within moments, I heard my mom whooping upstairs. Then again. And again. Finally, I flicked back to the game, but the comeback was too-little, too-late. And somehow, I ended up blaming myself, because I tuned in just in time for a Sens 5-on-3 powerplay, which they squandered. Had they scored, perhaps that would have set the stage for the greatest comeback in franchise history.

That brings us to last night's game. I missed the first period and most of the second, but when I settled in to watch with 7 minutes left in the second frame, it was 1-0 Ottawa thanks to a Christoph Schubert goal. Woo-Hoo!

Oh - but wait...The Curse of Jillian hit just seconds after my arrival on the couch. Five minutes into the third period, the score was 3-1 Buffalo. Ouch!!

I was about ready to do my stomp off to the basement again when Dean McAmmond scored off a short-handed rush with Antoine Vermette. Then our blessed captain tied it up at 3. Images of the 7-5 horror show from the night before began to fade, and I started to think that maybe, just maybe, this comeback would actually work.

Anton Volchenkov broke the dead-lock with his first goal of the year, and then Alfie added another to give them some breathing room in the final minutes of the game. Antoine Vermette hit the empty net at the buzzer to seal the victory - 6-3 Sens!!

It was a much-needed win as the season is winding up and the standings are as tight as can be. It seems next-to-impossible to catch Montreal now, as they're up 5 points on us, but with a 7-point lead over the 9th-place Washington Capitals, missing the playoffs is also unlikely.

That being said, it's hardly time to start breathing easy. With only a handful of games left in the regular season, the Sens need to start pulling things together and play strong for the next week or so. Things have been far from smooth since Christmas time, and despite last night's big comeback, there hasn't been a whole lot to cheer about when it comes to this team lately.

I'm hoping Steve Warne from the Team 1200's TGOR morning show is right - he thinks the Sens have enough talent that come playoff time, they'll be able to flip the switch and return to the Beasts of the East that they were last year at this point. They'll start tearing it up, and hopefully return to the Stanley Cup Finals again for the second straight year.

I've never given up before on my boys, so I'm not going to start now. If anyone can do it, I truly believe they can.

I've got my fingers crossed!!

Snow Daze

Well, it's the topic everyone else is talking about, so why not me too?

Snow. And lots of it.

This past weekend, we got a massive dumping of the white stuff, to go along with the already-considerable quantity we've accumulated over the past 4 months. They're claiming on Saturday alone, we received upwards of 50 centimetres, and that doesn't include the snow that fell on Friday night (somewhere along the lines of 15 centimetres).

Now, I work on a sod farm, where the word "snow" is literally an offenisve 4-letter word.

Oddly enough, I really love snow. I have ever since I was a little kid. This winter has been a dream to me. So many mornings I've woken up to a fresh blanket of fluffy white snow, and it literally makes me giddy.

The thing is, I'm not sure why. I haven't participated in any outdoor winter activities in a long, long time. I don't downhill ski, and I haven't had my cross-country skis out since I was maybe 14 years old. I used to love sliding and snomobiling, but now our sleds are stored in the attic year-round, our snowmobile bit the dust years ago and was never replaced...Hell, I don't even own a pair of snow pants. I can't remember the last time I built a snowman, and I out-grew my skates when I was in Grade 7 and never got a new pair.

I work in an industry where this much snow is not just something to sigh & bitch about. A prolonged winter will affect business; the more snow we have, the longer it will stick around, and as long as it's here, the grass can't start growing.

And yet, for some reason, I just can't muster up any hate for the snow!!

They're saying we need 33 more centimetres to break the record, and I'm hoping we get it. I mean, seriously - we've come this far, don't we want something to show for it, people?! A place in the record books; a memorable winter to one day look back on, like my parents do with "The Storm of '71". It will be the winter we'll one day reminisce about, and tell the tale to our grandchildren: I remember the winter of '08 - that was the year we broke the record for the biggest snowfall in one winter. I walked to work everyday, going uphill both ways, in my bare feet, with snow up to my chin.

This winter could be our generation's claim to fame. We only have 33 more centimetres to go.

And I say...Bring it on!!

Tackling the Touchy Subject

Priscilla sent me a message on my Facebook Wall the other day, and she asked when I wrote another Blog if I would be talking about the Sens, or were they a still a touchy subject with me?

Answer: Yes, they're still a touchy subject with me. But I'm gonna talk about them anyway.

A week ago, this team was in complete disarray. They had posted back-to-back shut-out losses to the Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins, which was the rock-bottom point in a long stretch of games in which they had struggled. Instead of looking like that well-oiled Stanley-Cup-contending team of the early part of the season, they were looking more like the early Expansion Sens who only won 10 games all season. Then, following last Tuesday's trade deadline and the measly acquisition of Martin Lapointe from the Chicago Blackhawks (they dangle Hossa, but deliver Lapointe? Puh-leeeze...), Head Coach John Paddock was given the axe and Bryan Murray returned behind the bench, hopefully ready to lead his team back to where he got them last year...and beyond.

Stanley Cup or bust, baby.

Well. It kinda looks like it's going to be bust.

Since Murray assumed his former role as Head Coach, the Sens have been a dismal 1-3. They lost that first game under Murray, to Philly, 3-1. They beat Pittsburgh Saturday in a wild one, 5-4. Then, in Monday night's re-match against the team that beat them for the Cup last June, they lost 3-1 to Anaheim. And then, last night they blew two leads to eventually lose in San Jose, 3-2 in OT.

At least they got a point, right? *sigh*

What has happened to my Sens?? I'm distraught, frustrated, anxious, nervous. We've slipped in the standings, no longer the far-and-away leader of the East, now we're nestled in the middle of the pack in 5th place, only a few points from the top, but also only a few from the bottom. If this slide continues...who knows? Is it possible we don't even make the playoffs?

When Bryan Murray returned behind the bench, I was breathing easier. I thought, "Here we go...We're back!"

Not so much.

While I do think the Sens have played better in the past week, they're still struggling, and now, with Captain Alfie out after being cross-checked in the ribs in the Anaheim game, who knows how long the misery will continue?

They've got to string some wins together and start looking more like that team that steam-rolled through the playoffs last season until meeting their match in the Stanley Cup Finals. Otherwise, that "amazing start" back in October/November will mean absolutely nothing. I've been through a lot of painful times as a Sens fan, but I'm not sure anything will be as painful as watching this season go from "glowing" to "ghastly".

I'm gritting my teeth. Hoping for a win tonight in L.A. Trying to be optimistic and praying for the turn-around.

I don't want this to be a touchy subject anymore.