Jerry
Age: 75
Hometown: Magnolia, TX via Wilkes Barre, PA
Occupation: Great Grandfather/Retired Marketing Executive / Former Marine
Marital Status: Married

AND

Memphis
Age: 25
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Occupation: Mixologist (Bartender)
Marital Status: Single

Remember, Thursday, 28 August is Double Elimination.  I will post as it happens in real time.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I jumped, O my brothers, and I fell hard but I did not snuff it, oh no. if I had snuffed it, I would not be here to tell what I have told. A Clockwork Orange

Paramore-CrushCrushCrush

Slipknot-Pyschosocial

Linkin Park-Shadow Of The Day

Foo Fighters-The Pretender

Fallout Boy-Beat It

Head of Household:

Renny

Nominations:

April
Age: 30
Hometown: Higley, AZ via Arlington, NE
Occupation: Financial Manager
Marital Status: Single

and

Jerry
Age: 75
Hometown: Magnolia, TX via Wilkes Barre, PA
Occupation: Great Grandfather/Retired Marketing Executive
Marital Status: Married

This past spring, I had the honor of taking out a producer and a videographer who were in the early stages of a documentary about the cultures and way of life that will be gone when the Louisiana wetlands are no longer here.

It is my pleasure to ask you to take a few minutes of your time and visit the website for the documentary: Tide of Tears.

Then, if you would, please click the link below to help nominate this documentary to win some of the money American Express is so eager to give away. This banner should take you straight to the project we would like you to nominate.

I trust the producer, Stephanie Kovac, to do a good job of relating to the nation and the world what is at stake here if America does not stand up and lay claim to coastal Louisiana in the form of substantial coastal restoration. I could go on and on, but I won't. It's crucial that you go nominate this project and let the voice of the Bayou People be heard through those who have the means to shout it the loudest!

And from the bottom of my bayou heart, thank you all very, very much!

Merci beau coup, mon ami!

BW

8/18/08 My net has been down for two days. I have new posts I want to make but a pressing project has me seriously occupied from sunup until sundown.

Please go to AE and nominate "Reclaiming the Cajun Coast" project. We have until September 1st to help it reach the top 25 nominations! Please, you can help make a difference for the culture and way of life for all bayou people with just five minutes of your time. To all who have already voted, I can't thank you enough. Merci a thousand times!!!! And please pass the word on nation-wide, no--worldwide! BW

The Associated Press reports:

The American Bar Association is calling on the next president and Senate to reduce partisan tensions in federal judicial nominations.

The incoming president of the lawyers' group, H. Thomas Wells Jr. of Birmingham, Ala., said Sunday that he also is enlisting the help of retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor to study threats to fair and impartial state courts.

At the federal level, the White House should create a commission of Democrats and Republicans to recommend nominees for federal appeals courts and the two senators from each state should establish similar panels to evaluate and recommend federal trial judges, the ABA says in a resolution inspired by Wells. The proposal is certain to be adopted at the group's annual meeting in New York.

The bipartisan panels would help "avoid the times when there have been really rancorous debates in the confirmation process," Wells said in an interview with The Associated Press.

Michelle

Age: 28
Hometown: Cumberland, RI
Occupation: Real Estate Agent
Marital Status: Single

And the nomination are:

Keesha

Age: 29
Hometown: Burbank, CA via Sterling, OH
Occupation: Waitress
Marital Status: Single

Keesha is actually 30 now. She had a birthday a few days ago

and

Libra

Age: 31
Hometown: Spring, TX
Occupation: Human Resources Representative
Marital Status: Married

LAS VEGAS - Hillary Rodham Clinton told an exuberant crowd Friday she wants Barack Obama to win the White House, even though he dashed her own presidential dreams — and she wants her supporters to vote that way, too.

"Anyone who voted for me or caucused for me has so much more in common with Sen. Obama than Sen. McCain," Clinton told her cheering audience in the Las Vegas suburb of Henderson. "Remember who we were fighting for in my campaign."

Though she has endorsed her former rival, the speech was Clinton's first appearance at a rally for Obama since the two appeared together in Unity, N.H., in June.

In another sign of growing detente between the House of Clinton and the House of Obama, Democrats said Bill Clinton would speak on the third night of this month's national convention in Denver.

The Clinton's' efforts on Obama's behalf may ease worries within the party that bad feelings from the long primary battle might erupt at the convention.

She said Friday that "we may have started on two separate paths, but we are on one journey now." She said her long primary campaign against the Illinois senator showed her "his passion, his determination, his grace and his grit."

The crowd let her know they still held her in high regard. They cheered Obama's name and waved his campaign signs, but no mention of him won as loud a roar as Clinton's introduction.

Still, she kept her focus on making his case, mentioning key Democratic issues where Obama and McCain would differ — U.S. Supreme Court nominations and health care reform, for example.

She noted Democrats have had difficultly reaching the White House recently and said Obama would need a surge in turnout — and registration — to win in November.

"Which is why Sen. Obama needs all of us, he needs us working for him," she said.

Some of her backers have complained loudly about the way the only female candidate was treated during the primaries. And Clinton supporters have succeeded in getting language into the draft of the Democratic Party platform that says, "We believe that standing up for our country means standing up against sexism and all intolerance. Demeaning portrayals of women cheapen our debates, dampen the dreams of our daughters and deny us the contributions of too many. Responsibility lies with us all."

The platform committee will be reviewing the draft Saturday in Pittsburgh.

After weeks of private talks about exactly what the Clintons will do at the national convention, no decision has been reached on whether delegates will actually hold a roll call vote that includes her candidacy.

Such a move could disrupt or distract from the point of the convention — showing a unified party raring to return a Democrat to the White House.

On the other hand, she has suggested that letting her supporters whoop and holler for her might provide a catharsis and help the party move on.

"It's as old as, you know, Greek drama," Sen. Clinton told supporters in a recent speech to a private gathering, which was later posted on the Web.

In this particular drama, the Clinton's insist they are doing everything they can to get her supporters on board with Obama. Any reluctance, she says, is not hers, but comes from those who committed to her historic bid and are still unhappy that she did not prevail.

Clinton did not mention any convention disputes in her remarks Friday. She later told reporters the two campaigns were still in negotiations.

"We're going to have a very clear message about how the campaign will cooperate and how the convention will be conducted when it's appropriate to make that announcement," she said.

Clinton and Obama may be on the same team, but in the past week they seemed to be running in different directions.

In political terms, one candidate's catharsis is another's car wreck. Conventions at which the party appears divided can prove disastrous to the nominee's chances in the general election.

Obama told reporters Thursday he thought the negotiations with Clinton aides had gone "seamlessly," but he also rejected the notion that there might be a need for emotional release on the part of some Democrats.

"I don't think we're looking for catharsis," said Obama. "I think what we're looking for is energy and excitement."

Giving both Clintons big speeches at the convention may help generate excitement, but it also gives them a lot of attention at a gathering that's supposed to be about the nominee, Obama.

And Bill Clinton in particular has at times seemed grudging in his praise of the man who stopped his wife's able ascent.

Asked earlier this week if Obama was ready to be president, Clinton gave a philosophical, not political answer.

"You could argue that no one's ever ready to be president. I mean, I certainly learned a lot about the job in the first year. You could argue that even if you've been vice president for eight years that no one can ever be fully ready for the pressures of the office and that everyone learns something, and something different. You could argue that," Clinton said.

The Clinton's argued through much of the primary that she, a former first lady, was ready to be president on "Day One," suggesting Obama was not.

The Obama campaign is pretty tired of that argument, particularly since it has become a key refrain of Republican John McCain.

Bloomberg reports:

An election-year standstill in Senate confirmation of George W. Bush's judicial nominees will give the next president a chance to tip the ideological balance of U.S. appeals courts that decide such issues as job discrimination, national security and pollution-cleanup disputes.

The Democratic-controlled Senate has stopped filling vacancies on appeals courts, which in many respects have greater impact than the Supreme Court. The high court decides about 70 cases each year, while the 13 appellate courts issue thousands of rulings.

A carryover of the 10 vacancies would have the greatest effect if Democrat Barack Obama defeats Republican John McCain in November. It would let Obama move quickly to put his stamp on the courts after eight years of nominations by Bush. Six of the 13 U.S. appeals courts are closely divided between Republican and Democratic appointees.

Senate Republicans have been frustrated by the slow pace of confirmations, especially in this last year of President Bush's tenure.  According to the article, the Senate has confirmed 10 appeals-court nominees since early 2007 compared with 15 who were confirmed at the end of President Clinton's Administration.

HoH: April

Nominated: Jessie and Memphis

Here is the first photo of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's new twins, who smile and cuddle with their famous mom as their proud pop looks on.

The pair, Knox Léon and Vivienne Marcheline, grace the cover of People magazine, which reportedly paid $14 million for the exclusive family album.

The adorable infants were born by Caesarean section on July 12 in Nice, France.

Knox Léon weighed in at just over 5 pounds, and Vivienne Marcheline tipped the scales at exactly 5 pounds.

The twins boost the Pitt-Jolie household to a half-dozen children, including Maddox, 6; Pax, 4; Zahara, 3; and Shiloh, 2.

"It is chaos, but we are managing it and having a wonderful time," Jolie, 33, told People magazine.

The celebrity couple and their brood are all enjoying the summer at their sprawling home, Ch%E2teau Miraval, in the south of France.

"[It's] still a cuckoo's nest," Pitt, 44, said of his growing family.

Jolie said her other children have welcomed their new siblings with open arms.

"[Shiloh and Zahara] pick out [the twins'] clothes and help change and hold them," Jolie said. "It's sweet - they are little mommies."

People magazine's 19-page photo spread of the bouncing newborns hits newsstands today. The celebrity glossy teamed with London's Hello! magazine to score the big-bucks exclusive.

In the Hello! cover, the twins lie on a bed with their eyes closed as their parents stare down affectionately at them.

The doting dad confided to Hello! that his new kids have seemingly inherited various personality traits from him and Jolie.

"Viv is proving to resemble Ange in spirit, attitude and physicality," Pitt said. "And Knox, he's a bit of me."

The twins already boast bragging rights over two of their siblings: Shiloh's first baby pics sold for $4.1 million to People, and the magazine paid $2 million for its cover of Pax, who was adopted from Vietnam.

Like they've done in the past, Pitt, who earns about $20 million a movie, and Jolie, who earns $15 to $20 million a flick, plan to donate the money they receive for the exclusive baby photos to charity.

Jolie and Pitt established their own foundation in 2006, often making children the focus of their charity.

The mega-millions deal is likely to be well worth it for People. The issue with Shiloh on the cover sold 2.2 million copies, making it one of the magazine's biggest sellers ever.

source

Bernie Mac in 'very, very critical' condition Comedian Bernie Mac is reportedly in "very, very critical" condition after checking himself into a Chicago hospital with pneumonia.

Days of 'Thunder' - Tropic Thunder Ben Stiller made $40 million last year to act silly. But let's really get serious. What he really wants to do is direct.

Abba hits strike gold again Abba have made history with the return of their greatest hits album to the top of the UK album chart. Gold - Greatest Hits is the oldest album ever to reach number one.

Worrall Thompson recommends killer plant for salad Celebrity chef Antony Worrall Thompson has apologised after accidentally recommending cooks use a potentially deadly plant in organic salads.

Glitter set for release from Vietnamese jail THE disgraced musician Gary Glitter, currently in a Vietnamese prison after being convicted of molesting two young girls, will be released this month.

Vodafone Live Music Awards noms announced Entertainment Reporter Amy Winehouse and The Verve are among the nominees for this year's Vodafone Live Music Awards.

Kate Moss' holiday snaps She's used to posing for the world's top photographers... but there's a special reason why Kate Moss looks so relaxed.

"Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback, a Republican, had held up her nomination over concerns that the Bush administration was overlooking human rights abuses as it pushed ahead with a multilateral effort to get North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons program.

Votes on nominations can be blocked by any senator, and the tactic is often used on Capitol Hill to exert pressure on the executive branch.

Brownback said he had stopped obstructing Stephen's nomination after Chris Hill, the top U.S. envoy to talks on North Korea's nuclear activities, denounced North Korea's human rights record on Thursday and pledged to exhort Pyongyang to improve it."

April

Nominations:

Jessie

and

Mephis

And of course there are rules (aren't there always?):

1) Place the logo on the site. CHECK!

2) Link to the site that nominated you. For me that is Ms. Sara from The Innocent Primate blog. The Innocent Primate is already on my blogroll, so please visit! She has fantastic recipes and is a very informative writer. CHECK!

3) Nominate 7 other blogs for the Brilliante Weblog Award. Hmmm, I will have to do some thinking on this one. So...NOT CHECK! Why can't it just be 3? Wouldn't that make it more special? And clearly easier for those stressed about choosing just the right nominees......

****Hours and Hours....and Hours Later****

Okay, I've come up with 7 other blogs to nominate, it was rather difficult for me!! I kept trying to put Innocent Primate but Sara nominated ME, so that wouldn't work *sigh*...everytime I thought I was done I wasn't. Anywho, here are my selections (with much MUCH difficulty I might add), they are in no particular order:

Ruby Red Vegan

Mon's Appetit Recipes

The Urban Vegan

Mad About Udon

Eat Air

Just The Food

Vegan Bean

4) Let the 7 you nominated know about the award nod. Well dammit *sigh* NOT CHECK! My check list was doing so well too....

5) Comment on those you nominate websites.....NOT CHECK...AGAIN. Damn checklist....

**UPDATE** I have commented and let the individual blogs know of their nominations....so I combined 4 & 5, so sue me :)

Thanks again to Sara on The Innocent Primate blog!!!

Keesha
Age: 29
Hometown: Burbank, CA via Sterling, OH
Occupation: Waitress
Marital Status: Single

Noms:

Jessie
Age: 22
Hometown: Huntington Beach, CA via Rudd, IA
Occupation: Professional Bodybuilder
Marital Status: Single

Angie
Age: 29
Hometown: Orlando, FL via Virginia Beach, VA
Occupation: Pharmaceutical Sales Representative
Marital Status: Single

- Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series

- Outstanding Cinematography for a Half-Hour Series (Rosemary's Baby)

- Outstanding Comedy Series

- Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series (Rosemary's Baby)

- 4 of the 5 Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series nominations: Rip Torn as Don Geiss, Will Arnett as Devin Banks, Steve Buscemi as Len, Tim Conway as Bucky Bright

- 3 of the 6 Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series nominations: Carrie Fisher as Rosemary Howard, Edie Falco as CC Cunningham, Elaine Stritch as Colleen Donaghy

- Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (Alec Baldwin as Jack Donaghy)

- Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (Tina Fey as Liz Lemon)

- Outstanding Picture Editing for a Comedy Series (single or multi-camera)

- Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series (half-hour) and Animation

- Outstanding Special Class - Short-format Live Action Entertainment Programs (Kenneth the Web Page)

- 2 of the 5 Outstanding Writing For a Comedy Series nominations (Rosemary's Baby and Cooter)

DUM DUM DUM DE DUM!

There are rumours flying around the internets today that Big Brother has somehow fixed the nominations by preventing two housemates from nominating, thus securing their own nominations for eviction. But more on that later.

The hellish housemates have to chop onions. The heavenlies have a lovely conversation about how to fix their teams ensuring that Luke, apparently, stays in heaven constantly. I still don't know how Rex ended up with Dale and that gaggle of idiots, I really don't. Nominations begin, and Dale nominated Mo Mohammed. "He is so greedy he jumped over the wall and took a banana. But one banana wasn't enough, so he took lots of bananas, just took them, without thinking about the consequences." But replace the word "banana" with Dale's fancy word for A Woman Of Sexual Attraction, "Fanny", and we have a night out with him: "Dale is so greedy he jumped over the wall and took a fanny. But one fanny wasn't enough, so he took lots of fannies, just took them, without thinking about the consequences." 

Anyway, nominations continue apace and oh! Darnell and Mo Mohammed get votes at a rate of knots. I understand that Darnell is a hotpot of furious anger and is doing things that aren't socially acceptable - TODAY HE KICKED SOME ONIONS IN ANGER! - and I think he'll watch this and quiver, because it's not good for him. By the time all the Heavenlies have nominated, Mo Mohammed and Darnell have 4 votes each. Anyone can see that they are heading for the vote, right? Amongst the housemates, I would be tempted to say that it's a fix. Darnell nominates Bex and Luke and we should be seeing the start of another trend, with people on this side voting to get rid of the awful Coventry land-manatee and her tiny warped twig-man husband. 

Back in the pool, Bex - speak of the devil and lo she doth appear - gets a tiny cut on her hand, screams like a harpee, claims she will "bleed to death" and "needs stitches" and just invokes all manner of demons with her guttural howling. This woman looks after children. What happens when they scrape their knees? They cry really loudly. This is the problem; she's spent all her time with people for whom howling is socially acceptable. A cut on her hand leads to her wearing a sling and having to have a lie down. No joke. This is one of the most pathetic and embarrassing things that I have ever seen. And, as if by magic, she suddenly picks up a vote from Kat, along with Luke. Here's the second trend!

Lisa nominates Rex and... Darnell. She doesn't like his attitude and outbursts. I have to say, it's fair enough. Darnell casually mentions the concept of heaven and hell voting together because of the dividing line between the house, and this makes Stuart burn his bra. I have to say, I don't get this: Darnell's right. It's divided into friendship camps, makes sense they won't vote for their friends, right? Mikey votes for Darnell - he's definitely up for eviction, fact-fans, whatever occurs down the road - because of his slackened leadership skills. Mikey's second nomination is for... Kat. Kat. Because she has shattered his eardrums. (Sensitive hearing, don't forget.)

"How many nationalities do we have in the house?" asks Rex. "I'm part Irish," says Lisa - like everyone else in the British isles - "Maybe that explains why I'm so mad, such a crazy character." She IS crazy, eh? Never a dull moment there. "I love the Irish for going out partying with," Rex says, stereotyping an entire nation into a bunch of drunkards and mentals. Well done, Rex. Mo Mohammed nominates Bex - that's 4 for Bex, same as for Mo - and Stuart. He also asks if he can nominate Dale, despite knowing that he can't. Why? Come on, Mo, get with the programme!

"I'm either extra nice or extra asshole," Darnell says. TRUE DAT PLAYA. Kat lounges around in her romper thing like a giant baby. Have you seen Wall-E? Great film. In it, the human race are reduced to the status/stature of Giant swollen babies. Hm. Rachel nominates Luke and Bex. Big Brother man says that Darnell and Bex will definitely face the public vote. YES! We can get her out, right? To the loudest boos in Big Brother history! HUZZAH! Sara nominates Mo Mohammed and Rachel, meaning Mo definitely joins the nominations fray. A THREE WAY!

Hang on, so what's the internet buzzing about? Well, in the live feed, after the nominations all happened Big Brother cancelled Mo, Darnell and Kat's votes because they ate the bananas, and so Bex was no longer up for nomination. The Channel 4 forums exploded, and Big Brother swiftly did a u-turn. Where's this on TV, BB? Why aren't we seeing this U-turn? I know we can never have definitive proof of what occurs, but this is fucking ridiculous. It's a bit of a farce, BB.

I have an idea for something to do with the Heaven and Hell: Daily tasks that the hellish ones all take part in with one winner. That winner can choose to swap with somebody in Heaven. It would be interesting to see who picked who etc. Sigh. This 4th quarter of the show is dull as all heck. Bex froths some beer, Mikey talks slowly, people go to bed. AND THEN BEX POUNCES ON LUKE! "Not on Dale's Bed not on Dale's bed not on Dale's bed!" he shouts, knowing full well that Dale's bed usually = rape. Instead she drags him to the pool and throws him in, getting pushed in herself by Stuart. Thanks, Stuart: more dripping wet saggy glands. GREAT.

And Darnell, Mo and Bex are up for eviction. Just like that, eh, BB? It's that easy to reverse your decision? Well well well.