Final Post before we know the Winner, 2009

HELLO EVERYONE!!!!!

The big day is FINALLY here!!! Tonight, we'll have ourselves a new Miss America!!! Whooooooo Hoooooooooo!!!!

Before I get started, I must say that I appreciate the encouragement I've received from those of you who have told me to "hang in there" after the Vermont Episode... I was about ready to throw in the towel last night, but I have decided to PRESS ON and go with my gut for tonight!

Before I give you my picks - please know that the Reality Series has thrown a slight wrinkle into the overall choices this evening... But nothing too overly significant. One question I keep hearing is "what if a girl with a Gold Sash gets voted in by the public and they numerically qualified for the Top 10?" My understanding is... They are going with the public's choices as the "official choices" and then filling in the gaps with the judges choices. Therefore, the 4 "People's Choice" winners will reflect the wishes of the public and if they also qualified for the Top 11, then the next highest score from the pageant will advance to the Top 15... NOT - the next highest set of votes from the public. I'm not sure it's really going to matter - but thought I'd explain anyway.

OK - I'm confident of my Top 15, Top 10 and Top 5... It's the Winner I'm not so sure about... Here we go!

To 15 - Oklahoma, Florida, Indiana, Georgia, North Carolina, Delaware, Virginia, Alabama, New York, Mississippi, South Dakota, Texas, California, Connecticut and Michigan.

Top 10 - Oklahoma, Florida, Indiana, Georgia, New York, California, Virginia, Mississippi, Michigan, Connecticut

Top 5 - Georgia, Indiana, New York, California, Mississippi

Winner - I'm choosing Georgia... Although I'm personally hoping Indiana pulls it out. Kind of a "head vs. heart" thing.

Please note - I have not included Vermont out of my own personal protest. I'm sure she's a lovely girl - but I don't really care.

There are several others that I don't think have a chance at all, but I'll keep those thoughts to myself. Even though I've obviously violated the "if you can't say something nice..." motto --- I should at least stop while I'm ahead (lol).

The big event begins tonight at 7:00pm central... And I'll be faithfully watching all the festivities from my California home. I did discover that we're all watching it live, together - so feel free to email me or call if you have thoughts that you're desperate to share (although I prefer commercial breaks - smile ). I'll be online checking out a few "live blogs" from around the country... And wishing I had joined "twitter" prior to this whole thing taking place (if you don't know about twitter yet - it's amazing - google it!).

That's it!!! Thanks for reading --- I'll be sure to send up a follow-up email tomorrow after the pageant happens --- and you still have time to send me your picks!!! If you win, I'll brag on you to the whole email contingency :) Best of Luck!

crl

Day 6 from 2009 --- one of the biggest days in Miss America History...

Ladies and Gentlemen………..

We’ve been trudging our way through Miss America week with great anticipation and amazement… we’ve seen beautiful girls walk away with preliminary awards and some really bad dresses make their way onto the evening gown stage. As suggested earlier, we’ve tried to adjust my medication to accommodate those of you who aren’t quite as passionate about the yearly pursuit of the world’s most coveted crown as I am… and in the end… here’s what I have to report….

I MISSED BOTH WINNERS LAST NIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

“NOooooooooooooo!” you scream…. “This isn’t possible!” you gasp… “How could that happen?” you moan while shaking your head in disbelief…

It happened. I suck. Just wait until you read what I’m about to tell you…

Swimsuit Winner = New York --- who looks all of 5 foot nothing --- and was the 3rd runner up at Miss Virginia twice before deciding to take a job in Manhattan, run for Miss Brooklyn and then she became Miss New York. Poor girl has a bunch of articles from NYC calling her a carpet-bagger (I googled her name). She is another brunette – and frankly, everyone who’s won swimsuit this year has been shall we say “petite” in form. Nobody over 5’7 --- which leaves me wondering what the judges have against tall girls!?!

Talent Winner = Vermont. Yes – I said VERMONT!!!!! For those of you who haven’t fallen out of your chair already, you should know that Vermont has never had a Miss America. Vermont has never had anyone finish in the Top 5. Vermont has never had anyone finish in the TOP 10! AND – VERMONT HAS NEVER HAD ANYONE WIN A PRELIMINARY AWARD IN ANYTHING!!!!!!!!! Let me say it another way…. Vermont is like an automatic “write off state” every year in my book because essentially my Grandma Doe could walk on the stage and become Miss Vermont! But not this year! NOooooooo --- This year, the girl sings a beautiful a capella rendition of God Bless America and it “Wows” the crowd so much that she wins the flippin’ preliminary award and ruins my record. I’m still bitter about it, but I’ll get over it. Ok. I’m better now. :)

So I’ve included photos of both for you --- including Miss Vermont walking out to receive her award. She looks so floored and overjoyed --- I decided to put together several photos of her reaction to make you smile. I’ve also included this year’s ballot for you to print and fill out should you choose to do so on your own. I’ll be sending you my picks tomorrow afternoon after watching the final episode of the Reality Series on TLC tonight and would love for you to “play along” by shooting your picks my way.

Closing comments… nope. I got nothing. Vermont won a stinking preliminary award and to borrow a phrase I heard on every broadcast from Washington earlier in the week… that means “The World Has Changed”. I need to evaluate my picks tonight and see if I can get in the judges heads… you’ll hear from me tomorrow afternoon!

Don’t forget Abbybollenbacher.blogspot.com has tons of photos of swimsuits and evening gowns… and didn’t I tell you the TLC videos from You Tube were funny????

Put your picks together!!!!!

TTYL –
crl

Day 5 from 2009

Hey Gang!

Welcome to another email from yours truly – providing all the up to the minute information about Miss America Week! We had another set of winners last night… so without further adieu…. Let’s just get down to it!

Swimsuit Winner = Mississippi (whooo hoooo for a correct pick!)
Talent Winner = Georgia (whooo hoooo for another correct pick!)

Here’s what I love about both these girls… Mississippi was the FIRST girl in her group last night – which means she stunned the judges and they didn’t like anything else better! And Georgia – over the last 4 years, has produced 2 Top Ten finalists and 2 Top Five finalists. Talk about a strong program!

One more piece of information for you… all of our preliminary winners thus far have been BRUNETTES!!! Not a blonde in the group! Now, who knows if that’ll hold true tonight – but I find it interesting to say the least. Of course, I’ve provided a few photos for you – but seriously, I’m not going through and cutting & pasting all of those swimsuits again when Abby Bollenbacher has done it for me… check out her blog if you wanna take a serious look at your potential favorites. She also has all the evening gowns as well… and apparently white lace that looks like a tablecloth is very “in”. Not my personal favorite, but nobody asked me. Abbybollengacher.blogspot.com. You can also click on the upper right hand side for additional links to photos. And I know I continue to harp on this… but TLC.com has these hilarious videos from UTube – after you put the kids to bed tonight, set aside 45 minutes to an hour just to play around here. It’s totally worth it J

Ok – so moving on to tonight… Last night was “Top Talent Night” in my book --- and since they chose a piano player on night one, and a vocalist on night two – I’m going with the thought of a dancer tonight (although the flute may pull it out). Considering there’s 8 DANCERS tonight, I’m really just playing the odds (Welcome to Vegas). Regarding Swimsuit – I think they give it to another brunette tonight J However, in the interest in complete disclosure, there’s only 3 blondes and 2 red-heads competing, so my odds are pretty good here too (I would sound so much more impressive it I didn’t share all my secrets with you!) Here’s my picks!

Swimsuit = Alabama, Virginia, Kentucky, Washington
Talent = California, Minnesota, South Carolina, Arkansas

If I pick both of these competitions correctly, I’ll be 5 for 6 this year…. Which was my original goal and would be the best finish I’ve had since my neurosis began! If I miss one, then I’ll finish 4 for 6 and tie last year’s finish --- missing them both would mean I have lost my touch and you should stop reading these immediately. Perhaps even start your own crazy email cult following… because anybody with a brain in their head can go 3 for 6. (lol) – ok, sorry, that may have been a bit harsh

Now – after tonight, we won’t have any further preliminary competitions… it’s down to the real thing! That means come Friday afternoon – maybe Saturday morning, I’m going to send you my picks for the Top 15, Top 5 and Winner. I’ll also be sending you a ballot tomorrow so you can fill out your own picks – and can email them to me if you wish. I always love seeing everyone’s picks --- it’s kinda like we’re all sitting at a Miss America party in the living room together!

It’s still anyone’s game to win right now… We’ll see after tonight’s picks who’s going to be happy on Saturday night and who’s going to be eating donuts during the commercial breaks :)

Love to all –
crl

Day 4 from 2009

Hello Again Miss America Fans!!!!

Whooooo Hoooooo for the first night of preliminary competition!!!! And Whooooo Hoooooo for extra-curricular commentary from the peanut gallery (Brian and Jimmy)!!! So glad we can all share in the joy of what this week has to offer – thanks for participating and making it fun! I’m thrilled to share with you the results from last night’s performances!

But before I do… did anybody see Miss America at the Inaugural Parade yesterday? Apparently she rode in a float and then sang the National Anthem at two of the Inaugural Balls before heading back to Las Vegas this morning. I missed it - although I’ve heard a Miss America sing at an Inaugural Ball before… ask me about it sometime! On second thought – don’t! LOL :)

Enough chit-chat already! Who won the preliminaries last night?

Swimsuit Winner = Indiana (ya for picking her correctly!)
Talent Winner = Delaware (boo for not picking her correctly!)

Delaware is a piano player on a night that saw 6 different piano players tickle the ivories in total. I would venture to say Delaware is probably the best piano player out of all the contestants… so be sure to include her in your top 15. How do I know? I don’t know. Again – I’m just guessing… but if you can beat 5 other girls head to head on the same night, you can probably beat the rest of ‘em. Also ---- Indiana was a bit of a no-brainer. The girl is drop dead gorgeous and has a stunning body. Even though I wasn’t a huge fan of her evening gown, I think this girl is gonna go far as well.

Other points to note include the MILLIONS of photos I finally found!!! I’ve included many for your review (Jules, please pass them to Issac and Craig for their expert opinions). And I’m a bit nervous about my picks for tonight. Talent could go anywhere – as it looks like the night is stacked with girls who won the talent competition at their state pageant… and Swimsuit has a ton of “maybes” as well. As a small tangent – the swimsuit competition has really “heated up” dramatically now that the girls are in 2 pieces. Plus – now the pageant is in January instead of September, so the girls have 4 more months to work-out and get themselves in peak condition. Talk about a major difference from when I competed! The swimsuit winners 10 years ago wouldn’t have a chance today (or cough, cough 12 years ago – I’m getting old)!

Ok – back to my picks for tonight:

Swimsuit = Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas and Michigan. I’m torn because I want to include Arkansas also – but I’m guessing she might come across as too trashy (don’t laugh! It’s true!).

Talent = Georgia, North Carolina, Wisconsin and Tennessee (I want to include Louisiana, but I’m not. Must limit myself to only 4 options)

Insider Observations…. Florida looks radiant. The girl is in tons of press photos and has a gorgeous evening gown. I’m not sure if she can win the whole thing – but she looks better to me all the time. Also = this is where the rubber starts to meet the road… girls who don’t win tonight start to get a bit panicked that they may not make the Top 15 and start to “over-do” it. Most importantly – I found a couple of new sites that are hopefully easier to navigate for you…

http://www.vegasdeluxe.com/blogs/luxe-life/

pageantcast.blogspot.com

http://abbybollenbacher.blogspot.com/

GO TO ABBY BOLLENBACHER’S website from now on… she’s done all the work downloading the photos I’ve included on this email – it’s already been done for you! J She’s a former contestant for Miss Ohio and seemingly shares my love of all things Miss America (although I picked the winner last year, and she didn’t). My other suggestion for the best place to go is TLC.com – find the Miss America link and click on “polls”. There, you’ll see “U Tube” (which is the best) – followed by the Swimsuit competition.

Otherwise – keep counting down the days… the reality series this Friday night on TLC and the pageant itself on Saturday night!!! Oh – and yes – Robin Leach was the first to report the winners from last night! Miss America should hire the guy for pete’s sake!

P.S. ---- Can someone please tell Michelle Obama to stand with her legs together? The first lady should not look like a half-back.

Until tomorrow –
crl

Day 3 from 2009 --- First Day of Competiton!

Hello Again Miss America Junkies!!!

Here we are! The first day of on stage competition for the title of Miss
America! I'm guessing the girls are ready to "do their thing" --- After
watching the Inaugural ceremonies earlier today - I can truly say "Let's get
on with it already!"

Ok - So --- today is the day when the 3 groups of girls go through what we
call the "Preliminary Competition". Over the next 3 nights, each girl
participates in Talent, Swimsuit, Evening Gown, and will answer an "on-stage
question". The judges score each girl in each category - and those scores
from the preliminary competitions give us our Top 15 that compete on
Saturday night for the title. Each night, we'll have a Talent Winner and a
Swimsuit Winner --- and my job is to choose 3-4 girls that I think have the
best shot of winning those awards. For the record, I've never seen any of
these girls in person nor have I ever heard any of their talents.. I simply
research the internet ferociously and through a process of elimination, I
guess who's going to win. I usually end up 50/50 by correctly picking 3 out
of 6 --- last year I was 4 for 6. so this year, I'm feeling the pressure of
going for 5 for 6. we shall see.

Before continuing, there is one more thing you should know. Sometimes the
Swimsuit Winner is truly the best girl in a swimsuit. But sometimes, the
Swimsuit Winner is a girl the judges REALLY liked in their personal
interview and also happens to look darn good in a swimsuit. How to tell the
difference? Well - that's why you shouldn't try this at home. HA! I'm
Kidding! I have NO CLUE how to tell the difference. That's why I give
myself 3-4 girls out of 17 to choose from.

So - here they are! My picks for Swimsuit this evening are.
Indiana, South Dakota, Hawaii and Oklahoma

Picks for Talent winners tonight are.
Ohio, Virginia, New Hampshire and Alabama

Quick note about this year's Talent Competition. there are a plethora of
piano players competing this year! A total of 11 girls are playing the
piano - but what's worse --- there are dozens of dancers as well! 17
dancers (ok - not quite dozens, but I was going for the alliteration
factor)! Everyone else is a vocalist - save 2, Miss Maine is a Violinist
and Miss Arkansas plays the flute. What are my thoughts you ask? Well -
it's one thing to dance ballet --- but they're not gonna crown a jazz dancer
with white gloves and a top hat as Miss America. Further, a piano player
hasn't won the crown since Marjorie Vincent in 1991 (yes Brian Taylor, I knew that without looking it up.  I know, it's scary. Like I said, don't try this at home). Just my thoughts. after all - a baton
twirler won talent last year and I totally didn't see that one coming!

OK - That's it! I'll report back to you tomorrow - or you can check for
yourself at MissAmerica.org. or any of the websites I've previously given to
you. I'm going to laugh my head off if Robin Leach has news before the Miss
America site does --- but I'm going to be checking both sites regularly!
Pictures Tomorrow!

Follow up with you then!
crl

Day 2 from 2009

Whooooooooo Hoooooooooo for Miss America Week! I realize the rest of the world thinks there’s something else going on… (something to do with the President?) but I’m here to make sure you have all of the up to the minute information on the contestants who would be Queen! J Today’s email – has plenty of info in the form of my attachment… I decided it might be a bit easier to read and follow – given the wealth of information that goes into each of these notes! Plus – I’ve just had my first Miss America injury ---- I broke a nail while opening my personal laptop to get this information out to you! Oh the sacrifices I make to ensure you get everything you need to make an informed choice!

Today’s email is about JUDGES! As you all know (ok, at least those of you who have been receiving this email for the past 3 years) your Miss America Judges make a HUGE difference in determining the winner. A different set of judges, means a different outcome in most cases – especially when we’re talking about this level of competition. So – who are they? Check out my attachment (and comments of course) to find out!

Also included – a few photos of the girls being introduced in Vegas and the fun things they’ve been doing prior to the official competition which started today. Four words – Race Track and Pancakes (although not together)!

Further – I’ve included the girls’ competition groupings for your perusal as well… Remember, each group will have one swimsuit winner (excuse me – “lifestyle and fitness winner) and one talent winner. When filling out your ballot (to be received at a future date) don’t forget to take such factors into consideration. After all – if you choose 8 girls from the same group, the chances of it working out, aren’t so good.

Finally – while the interview competition was today and tomorrow morning, the on stage portion of the competition will be Tuesday-Thursday… which means I’ll be sending you my picks tomorrow! Also – I’ve found the best source of information to date is Robin Leach’s blog (HA!) at http://www.lasvegasweekly.com/blogs/luxe-life/. However – PROCEED WITH CAUTION if you have sensitive eyes, because this is not what I would call a “G Rated” blog. Great pics though!

OH! And you HAVE to go to TLC.com and check out the YOU TUBE videos of the girls that they sent in themselves! Maybe that was an attempt to get “reality” – but I saw it more as a ploy for HGTV to get in and re-decorate a few houses! Miss Nebraska’s in particular (lol)! Check it out! They give you a wonderful chance to see the girls’ individual personalities and demeanor…. Plus you can see who’s well spoken and who’s a bimbo.

So there you go! Tomorrow we’ll see who my picks are for Talent and Swimsuit and hopefully get a few more photos J I know you’re all chomping at the bit – just try to keep from breaking a nail --- one injury of this magnitude is one too many!!!

Miss You All!
crl

Day 1 from 2009

Ok, Ok, Ok!

So I thought I might be able to go a year without my entire "crazy-obsessive" Miss America psychosis that happens each January... After all, I do have a new job, a new child and a new appreciation for the insane amount of energy a 4 year old brings to an middle-aged woman like me ("Slow down River... you didn't get one of those young mama's you know..." ). But, it turns out that I can't get away - I can't pretend it doesn't exist - and I can't NOT make time to research all 52 girls in entirety!!! I admit, I might need a support group. But if someone was going to do an intervention... You should've done it a few years ago... Too late now!!!

YES ------ it's MISS AMERICA WEEK!!! And YES, I've been watching the Reality Show on TLC! And YES - I'm planning my weekend around the 5pm Pacific TV schedule! And YES - I will be providing my ever extensive, highly opinionated and slightly disturbing, daily updates. :)

If you haven't been counting down the days as I have, here's a quick re-cap.. TLC is running a 4 part Reality Series where all the contestants live on a boat (ok, a cruise ship) and take part in a series of team competitions and individual challenges. At the end of each episode, someone chosen by the judges, wins a "Golden Sash". I've yet to discover what the "Golden Sash represents --- they keep saying it has something to do with the public getting the chance to vote in one of their favorites... But no actual details that I can find. Anyway - the first 3 episodes saw Miss Indiana, Miss Georgia and Miss South Dakota winning Golden Sashes (whooo hooo!)

I'm watching it so I can check out all the contestants before the big night. I've got some favorites... But honestly - I've found this series has given me a picture of who I DON'T LIKE more than who I do :) The next episode is Friday night at 7 and 9pm Pacific and will be the last one before the big event. If you've missed any of the previous 3 shows, TLC will be airing a Miss-America-Mini-Marathon starting at 1pm Pacific (3 pm Central)... I'll be planning my M & M's and microwave popcorn a bit earlier in the afternoon - that way I can enjoy the whole thing :)

Two quick notes that prove it's a small world after all... My Aunt Cathy has previously rented gowns to the older sisters of Miss Nebraska (who has an outside shot at the top 15) --- and --- Miss Hawaii's father (who is also a front-runner in my book --- the girl, not the father) happens to be the independent contractor/maintenace man where we live! Just goes to prove I can't get away from Miss America - no matter how hard I try!

As always, you're welcome to forward this email to anyone else who wishes to participate - the only change is, I'll likely be sending afternoon updates instead of morning updates. Sooooooooooooooooo ---- GET EXCITED!!! And start checking out the websites....

MissAmerica.org -- look for contestant profiles
TFTJ.com -- http://www.tftj.com/db/delegates.htm/22/Miss/2009 will take you directly to the Miss America page
TLC.com has better contestant profiles - and some extras if you wanna waste time looking at your favorites :) Plus, with a nice headshot - you can 'crown yourself' online (don't forget to choose your favorite rhinestone earrings!)

OK - here we go!!! How will we ever make it to Saturday!!! I can't hardly wait!!! By the week's end... We'll all be singing together... "There she is... Miss America.." :)

Hugs to all -
crl