Cheat Work Thursday

Wild I cried by the end of Wild. Me crying over movies and TV shows is no longer news. It would be  several years ago, and several years was a long time ago. Good thing it only happens when I'm watching these movies and shows alone. Wild, co-produced by and starring Reese Witherspoon, is based on Cheryl Strayed's memoir of her three-month journey hiking 1,800km of the Pacific Crest Trail. I'm just being old news here as usual. This movie has already received tons of nominations this year, and Reese Witherspoon has probably made 14 movies since. I loove the idea of hiking. I hate running, but I don't mind walking. So as long as I can walk at my own pace, I'd love to go on, well, this long hike. I'll ask a friend -- we'll set up a camp, have lunch under the tree, and enjoy the views and sounds of nature. I just can't... pee (+more) outside! And if this involves camping, I'd need showers. So that's my T&C. Or if we want to be thoroug...

"MY WHEELS ARE SPINNING" The episode starts with Stephen realizing how out of the loop he is. Then we get to the reward challenge. The memory challenge and the fact that it's held at night are ok, I guess, but a number of fun things happen during the challenge: – Abi walking while others are running like mad. (I would have walked, too, by the second question.) – Kelley getting the idol clue. – Stephen deceiving Abi of an answer. In short, Stephen wins again against Spencer in just a mere second. He brings Tasha and Jeremy to the reward, which is a spa trip that they are flown to by a chopper -- Tasha because he wants to mend his relationship with her, and Jeremy because he owes his life in the game to him. Apparently, this decision snaps another button in Spencer's brain as he feels left out. Well, he's already been plotting Stephen's ouster since the previous vote. While Stephen is telling Tasha and Jeremy about his advantage, people are gossipi...

"LIKE SELLING YOUR SOUL TO THE DEVIL" The episode starts at camp after Kelly's vote. Jeremy goes on a damage control tour with Tasha, and Joe tries to keep his cool losing his strong ally. The next day, day 25, it rains bad at Orkun. So let me repeat one of my Survivor pet peeves here: the breathtakingly piss-poor shelter! Why did you build one crappy roof on day one, then stop? Even if 10 people collectively weave one palm branch a day, you should have one huge bungalow with four walls by the third week. (But don't ask me why I don't have $1m in my bank account right now...) After a good amount of time suffering under the rain, they get to the reward challenge, a basketball in the water challenge, also held under the rain. Joe, Spencer, Tasha, Ciera and Abi win a huge lunch that they enjoy while watching acrobatic, fire-dancing, juggling and more performances by the locals. It feels like Ciera's on every reward to date. This stands out because going ...

"WITCHES COVEN" We start the episode with Stephen talking about boil, toil and trouble. I have zero idea what those are. Apparently they are from Macbeth, Shakespeare -- double, double toil and trouble . Pardon me, I don't know those either. Tom Sawyer, Swiss Family Robinson and Breaking Bad -- I'm in. Shakespeare, Mona Lisa and poems -- probably not. The next morning, Jeremy wants another idol, and he and his winner's edit find it! This is unacceptable, Stephen. At the reward challenge, the players are divided into two teams: Purple and Green. Green, which consists of Jeremy, Keith, Kelley, Kelly and Kimmi, is pretty sad. The poles are not necessarily to be lined up by length, and they couldn't figure this out soon enough. So they lose. Also, because they didn't have Joe on their team. Side notes: – Abi was not picked to participate. – During the challenge, Jeff yelled at reminded Stephen to pick it up because this is why he's out there. G...

"YOU CALL, WE'LL HAUL" Before we start, here's what's happening with this recap(ish): My grammar and I still have no idea if this should be written in past or present tense. What I got from my research (ie going to a total of two grammar sites), plot of a story should be written in present tense. After having used past tense for a while, I then tried 'telling a story' in present tense. But it didn't feel right with some sentences. What if this is a report? Should it be written in past tense then? Consciously trying to decide between two tenses is like running through a maze and still coming out confused. So I'm going to stick to whatever feels right for now. (Advice is welcome. Clearly, I need help with analogies too.) Nevertheless, OMG what a great episode! More people should watch today's Survivor. Borneo finale was watched by 50 million people. Most who have left don't know what they are missing now. (By number of viewers, * T...

"PLAY TO WIN" We start the episode on the morning after Woo's vote with a good line -- from Savage! "These folks are professional,"  he says, annoyed that he gets blindsided. Then he ends the confessional with plenty of profanity. LOL. He also says something about " wimpy little non-leader". Because being a non-leader is the worst thing that could happen to anybody. Spencer, in that weird Spencer-way, asks for a guarantee from Savage to not write his name again, which is, of course, blood-bound useful. No one goes back on their word after giving such guarantee. No one. Nevertheless, these people make up and proceed to make a solid six-person alliance. I've lost count of how many five/six-person alliances Kass and Ciera are now in. Then they are told to merge. Savage, under the rain with arms wide to the sky, tells Survivor Gods that he can't wait to reunite with his Bayon brothers. While enjoying their merge feast, they discu...

"BUNKING WITH THE DEVIL" It was a tough four minutes watching Terry receive the news of his sick kid as a viewer. And Terry had to process that for the following 20+ hours on his journey home and even till today. Thankfully, a good enough development for now, his son has since received a heart transplant and is recovering well. _____ We start the following day at the reward challenge, and the tribes get switched again. This time from three to two. Part of me enjoys this Spencer and Kass digging at each other thing, now that they are switched into the same tribe ie the new Ta Keo. The other part knows these two are so undercover BFFs, especially that now, you know, they both finally are able to recognize feelings. So the challenge is slip and slide and ring toss. The best thing that happened in the challenge is Stephen running. I want to elaborate, but – I realize this guy writes in probably perfect grammar. – that scene of him breaking down in confessional mak...