I hope everyone had a safe, festive, and ultimately fattening holiday. I sure did my best!

So, last night on Survivor was Extra Footage Night, which I passed on. I don’t know, those never call to me. I’d rather watch the previous episode again. In slow motion. My bet is it would still every bit as satisfying, a week later. Possibly more.

I did, however, catch Top Chef. Sob! They sent Richard and his man crush for Collichio home over some spitty s’mores. Wrong, I tell you, so wrong. They needed to send Howie II and his muttonchops home. Wow, was I disappointed in that decision. Now we’re stuck with him another week. And no cute Richard. Life, so unfair. I did enjoy the whole Foo Fighter challenge, though wow, so wrong with the losers doing clean up while they can hear the concert echoing above, knowing the other team is up there having fun. Especially given how close a call the result was. Still…good challenge, good quickfire. Good season! Just, bad PUYK&G (Pack Up Your Knives & Go) decision.

Looking forward to Sunday’s Amazing Race to the finish. And next week’s Top Chef and Survivor. Then we’re going to have to find some new stuff to watch. Or I’ll be forced to just spend my time here drooling over Simon Baker. Just sayin. (And I caught an interview with him and the rest of the guys on the show - did you know the guy who plays Rigsby is Welsh! Seriously, let these guys have their accents, dammit!)

But right this very second, we’re going to give away an advance copy of Let Me In, my March 09 release. Check out the poor, homely guy on the cover below. I mean, someone had to give him some work this holiday season, right. Of course, being charitable, I offered to also give him a home…. (I’m a giver. I give, and I give.)

Let Me In ~ March 2009

And the lucky Blog Babe who gets to take him (and the rest of the book) home, is? A. Blose! Seriously!

Have a wonderful recuperative weekend and I’ll see you all back here on Monday for some Phil-icious MAC and another contest. Stay safe out there! Shop till you drop….then DISH!

Tags: Uncategorized by Donna
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Wah. I knew after the finale dances that Lance wasn’t gonna get the trophy, but I did kinda sorta think he’d get second place. So, surprised me there. But nothing else did. Brooke for the win, and Warren in second place.

I did really enjoy the finale night and all the dances, from the samba smackdown to the individual routines. All in all, a pretty solid ending to the season. But…and it’s the killer but, Lance/Lacey really fell down with their choice of freestyle. And I don’t necessarily think it was the hip hop idea in general, but picking such old-old-old school music that the audience wasn’t yanked right into it. She needed a great Dave Scott type hip hop routine with that powerhouse kind of song that just grips you….and this definitely didn’t do that. It wasn’t a bad routine, but it really left me disappointed. I enjoyed both Brooke’s and Warren’s more, but while they were entertaining, I didn’t think they were as All That as the judges scoring them thought they were. But, still, a solid finale, all in all.

So, end of season…time to speculate on who is going to be on next season!

Now, on to the actual important stuff…is anyone watching the entirely delightful and adorably smokin hot Simon Baker as the wounded, sexy formerly fake psychic in The Mentalist? Wow, do I love this show. The only thing that would make it better? Let him be the Aussie he is, dammit! Why do the producers of these shows not get how much we love a man with an accent? First Dr. McArmy in Grey’s Anatomy, who is a Scot, dammit. And now this. I’ll just say native tongue is not a bad thing, not a bad thing at all….and leave it at that.

Not sure if I’ll be able to blog the Top Chefs…maybe the MAC will show up Friday. Along with the winner of this week’s contest! See Monday’s post for details.

Until then….DISH!

Tags: Writing by Donna
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So, there’s an hour I can’t get back. Four teams left going in to last night’s Amazing Race episode, and? Still four teams at the end. Andrew and Dan could have been outta there, but no. Thanks, show producers. You could have saved Aja and Ty way back, but no, have the second NEL now…when we really really want someone gone.

I was worried that someone would be Nick and Starr, who deserve the final run more than Dandrew. But then, who doesn’t deserve it more than them? A more bumbling, inept duo to make it this far this show has never seen. I think Phil was really unhappy at having to tell them they were still in the game. I know I was. Very.

Entertaining was them including the other teams ragging on Dandrew’s ineptness. Dan’s “marching” and wow do I use that term loosely. Who can’t do that? Who can’t march? I mean, that takes serious uncoordination to look that bad. And next week? Dancing. Yay.

I loved Toni and Dallas finally getting their first place finish. Well earned. Loved Dallas killing himself so his mom could get to the mat first. Loved her worrying about him. Love Tina & Ken being denied. Seriously loved Bitchy Bakery Woman. HA! And Ken did get brownie points for kissing her. So…a few highlights. But, in the end….Dandrew is still there. So….why, show producers, why?

Tonight? We get Dancing Finale! Yay! Time worth spending. Right this very second, however, we get another weekly contest. Black Friday is coming this week, so with all the crazed, post-turkey consumption shopping, I thought it would be nice if someone got something they didn’t have to shop for….or pay for! Heck…you couldn’t shop or buy this week’s prize anyway, at least not for another four months, since…yes, it’s an advance copy of my March release, Let Me In. Woo hoo!

To enter this week, all you have to do is send me an email to donna@donnakauffman.com with “I Can’t Believe I Ate The Whole Thing” in the subject line. Winner announced Friday.

In the meantime, I will do my best to add to the holiday spirit with some Dance MAC when/where possible. I hope everyone enjoys a safe and wonderful holiday.

So? DISH!

Tags: Writing by Donna
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Whoa. I make things up for a living, and even I couldn’t have dreamed up such an intensely satisfying exit for one of the most miserable human beings ever to grace a reality tv show (and wow, isn’t that saying something right there?)

Susie was right when she said he was sad. Terribly, horribly so. People don’t get like that for no reason. But people do have the power to make a change. And given his exit speech, heck, even if he’s had the displeasure of watching himself at home throughout this ordeal, I’m not thinking this blindside will compel him to do so. And you know what? Ahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. I don’t care. Wow. That felt too good.

Even better? Marcus and Charlie both just losing it with laughter. They may have been allied with him, but only because they had to be. Bob, you are my hero forever and ever. And your story to Corrinne next week as your way of explaining why you thought you had a real idol? Dayum, are you playing this game or what? Again, I bow. Sugar, seriously….I hope Ace is watching and bowing in your general direction. As he should be. And who had who in his supposed pocket? Uh huh.

Such a great week. And also? I believe Crystal is the first person in any season I’ve watched not to follow the suggested vow of silence when whispering her good-bye message while casting vote. Loved that, too. As did everyone sitting there. And even better, was that only Sugar knew where this was going, so we had the pleasure of seeing that dawning of awareness come over ever other single persons face when they realized he couldn’t have the real idol. Except, of course, for Corrinne. Which, fun, squared, really.

Ahhh. Worth the time away from the workbench. Every. Single. Second.

So, let us savor the defeat that is Randy, in so many ways. And wait for Sunday’s final three Amazing Race!

Today we also get to celebrate the winner of the advance copy of my March 09 release, Let Me In. Our Let Me Win winning blog babe (who didn’t even need a fake hidden immunity idol to win!) is Angela N!! Wooo hooo!

Next week being the holiday might be hit or miss with blogging, but with all the semi final and final action next week, I’ll do my best. My youngest comes home from Colorado tonight (Yay!) and it’s a crazy week, but I’ll still run a contest! Have to give away free stuff on Black Friday, right? And there might even be another advance copy for grabs! So tune in Monday.

Have a safe weekend and stay warm…read a book!

Tags: Writing by Donna
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Which is what Liz learned when she cooked up a big ol Ostrich egg on Top Chef last night. Was it me or did she sort of have this perrenial kind of duh, what am I doing here? look on her face? Articulate and sharp she was not. Which should make Ariane happy as that is the oooooonly reason she’s still in it. (Someone with that much experience shouldn’t be sooooo insecure…) And, Ariane, if you know your dish sucks, then FIX IT for god’s sake. I think she wants to go home. It will just prove that she really does suck…to herself. Which, she doesn’t, but seriously?

Like Fabio this time. Thought both of his dishes were interesting. That whole olive thing I still don’t understand but cool. And I like how he is generally kind to those whose path he crosses, whether it be in the kitchen or Whole Foods. He knows what he wants, but he’s gracious. Euro charm. Cool they got to cook in Collichio’s restaurant. Poor Hosea didn’t have a good time in either challenge. (though I thought he peanut butter and jelly thing was interesting…) Oh, and the chick who “needs a boyfriend”…..just eeww. RUN HOSEA!

Thought it was amusing that Stephan got kicked down a notch, being in the bottom three of the quickfire. I was okay with that. You know he’s an amazing chef, so not bad to also be humble once in a while. Everyone else was kind of a blur…not as dynamic as the first episode, but clearly these guys can cook at a pretty high caliber (and shut up chef wannabes…wow, how juvenile was that? Pretentious little…. And you wonder why you’re wannabes….)

Next week, more flurry in the kitchen. Tonight? More flurry in Gabon. Food auction!

Tomorrow? Winner announced in this week’s contest. Don’t forget to enter…see Monday’s post for details.

And….literally? DISH!!

Tags: Writing by Donna
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So, yeah yeah, no surprises on the DWTS final three, Brooke, Lance & Warren. Bye, Cody! But let’s get on with the more interesting part of the show. Aretha (not in fine form but still a diva nontheless) belts out Chain of Fools and lo and behold, could my eyes be deceiving me? Could it be….Dmitri???? It is!! Karina, Anna Trebunskaya, Louis!, and Dmitri….now that is a foursome I could watch for awhile. And it was great getting to see Dmitri in his own element for a change. Please, show producers, bring him on as a pro next year. Plleeeaaase? Also amusing? Tom and Sam outing the not-so-secretly dating Maks and Karina, who were seriously almost just having sex right there on the dance floor. I think we all needed a collective group cigarette after that routine. Whew!

Tonight, it’s Top Chef! Yay! And Probst was on some channel or other proclaiming that this week on Survivor the food auction reignites a battle between two remaining members. Gee….let me stop for a second and try and figure out which two survivors they might be….. Hmmm, couldn’t possibly be Randy and Crystal could it? Naw. But first….more Top Chef! And I think the new Brit judge starts tonight. Can’t wait for him.

Don’t forget to enter this week’s contest! Details in Monday’s post.

So…..DISH!!

Tags: Writing by Donna
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So, the Dancing With The Stars semi-finals were part fab, part yikes. Surprisingly, it was Brooke who contributed the biggest yike of the night. She recovered nicely on the second dance, her mambo, so I don’t expect any major upsets. Although, if you want to see the fringe pants worked like your mama made them? Check out this link. Yowza! Squared. And when you’re on this link, watch it again in technicolor by clicking on the side link to their PBS version. I want them to do a pro demo on DWTS. Weekly.

Back to the semi-final action and…Cody. You work so hard and I was thrilled to have Julianne back, too, but despite the fact that you’re probably a better technical dancer than Warren, I think your skinny-teen-can’t-dance-but-tries-really-really-ridiculously-hard run is over. Aww. But of the final four, this is the pair that excites me the least. (Well, that’s not true. Brooke and Derek are by far the most proficient technicians of dance left in the competition, and Derek isn’t hard on the hips-er, eyes, but Brooke doesn’t bring me into the dance, and at least Cody does that.)

But I think Brooke/Derek are a lock to go on, as is Lance and Lacey, who’s mambo was yowza wowza fun. Loved the jitterbug, too, and Lance losing a shoe and having to do that fast dance on one slippery sock? Double wow. Loved them most this week.

For most grins, Warren and Kym take it, hands down. He’s a horrible dancer, and yet I look forward to watching him have fun every week. He brings the joy, brings the funk. Stay, Warren. (And your dance lesson with Uncle Lenny was hilarious. Loved you teaching him your moves.) Plus, is it me, or is Warren a slightly smaller quarterback killer than he was when he started? Such a great smile, too.

Tonight’s results show brings a list of entertainment longer than the program, and all I’m gonna say is there better be some pro’s dancing along! Dance show, producers. Not singing show. Just sayin. That said, we get Aretha, so I’m officially shutting up now.

So…who do you think is gonna stay? Gonna go? Who do you want to win? I’m on the Lance/Lacey train, but this is no surprise. So? DISH! (And enter this week’s contest to win an advance copy of my March 09 book, Let Me In - see details in Monday’s post!)

Tags: Writing by Donna
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Unfortunately, Terrance and Sarah, not so much. And, it’s really saying something to admit that, for this leg of the Amazing Race anyway, I would have MUCH rather seen Dan and Andrew go home and boy, please let them be out of it next week. Yes, even over Ken and Tina. Just sayin.

This week, Kazakhstan. Gorgeous country, loved loved the Mongol warriors and the clue bearing falcons and eagles, and loved Toni and Dallas even more. My fave team, hands down, at the moment. Dallas in the cow costume, totally having fun with that whole silly detour, was a great thing to see. Nick and Starr take the last remaining fast forward (and have to eat nasty cow bits) and come in first again, Dallas/Toni hit the mat second, followed by Ken/Tina (who made their fair share of mistakes this leg) and Andrew/Dan, who simply are a mistake. Wow. No words. Dudes.

However, all this was quickly forgotten with the major eyebrow porn Phil gave us on the Amazing Bathmat. Smokin’ Phil this week, is all I’m sayin.

Next week, looks like Killer Fatigue set in on the Final Four. I’m looking forward to the race to the finish, even if it looks like that will include Ken and Tina. You can’t have it all your way. But I sure wish I could.

This week, however, to make up for my two week deadline hibernation from hell, we are having a special weekly contest! Yay! I will be giving away an advance copy of my March 2009 release, Let Me In, to one lucky Blog Babe. To enter, simply send me an email to donna@donnakauffman.com with Let Me Win! in the subject line. Winner announced on Friday.

I’m slowly making my way through a week of stuff, but LOVED the first episiode of the new season of Top Chef. Looks like a great season. Love! Survivor, I just have two words: Die, Randy. Wow, a more miserable human being I’ve never had the displeasure to meet. Kenny, on the other hand? Geek Rock Star. Let’s hope it’s buh bye, Corrinne & Randy next. My dream team final three? Sugar, Bob, and Kenny. And/or Matty. Not sure how that would happen, but as long as Randy and Corrinne leave the game, any remaining combination makes me happy. Fong can’t win a damn thing, but they can blindside the strong like nobody’s business. Outwit, Outlast, Outplay my dysfunctional friends.

Tonight, we get Julianne back with Cody, Warren and Kym, Lance and Lacey, and Brooke and Derek bringing us Final Four action. Should be fun!

Aaaaaaand? DISH!

Tags: Writing by Donna
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Sorry to say the deadline hibernation must continue through another week. No time for watching tv (thank god for TiFaux!) much less blogging. But think of all the fun I will have when I resurface!
I am hoping to get out in the next day or two to ship books to those who have won the past two weeks. They’re coming, I promise!

Everyone enjoy the crisp fall air and falling leaves…and don’t spoil anything or tell me who has been sent home as I’m not watching anything until at least Friday. That’s my reward for hitting The End.

We will resume the weekly contest next week and there will be a Very Special Prize to make up for Hibernation Hell. An advance copy of my March release, Let Me In!! So tune in next Monday for the new giveaway rules, and hopefully some MAC as well.

Now….where did I put that big bag of M&M’s….do I have Cheng’s on speed dial? And Dominos? I think I’m good! See you all in a week!

Tags: Writing by Donna
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We broke records in voting this week and we broke records here, too. More entries than ever! Only here, there can be two winners! Yay! Congratulations to Blog Babes Alisa and Yan. Woo hoo! You’ve both won free books. Tune in next week for another contest…and possibly a wee bit o’ MAC if I can squeeze it in. Still slaving….

Have a great weekend everyone!

Tags: Writing by Donna
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