Congratulations to Brooke Burke in winning this season’s Dancing with the Stars. Her final dance, the Waltz, was just as fantastic just like her performance all season long.

Warren Sapp came in second – but as a performer his charm and stage presence was awesome.

Lance Bass came in third and seemed pretty happy about it. Yes, he was most improved, but not a real star dancer.

My granddaughter loved watching Alicia Keyes and of course Miely Cirrus. What a fun evening of entertainment.

Until next season,

Linda

The final was fun, exciting and great dancing by all the stars. But, clearly a leader emerged and should win the mirror ball trophy.

All three stars – Lance Bass, Warren Sapp and Brooke Burke – danced in the Samba Smackdown. Brooke Burke was first and did a fantastic job. Lance was second and looked okay. Warren was the final dancer and his performance topped Lance hands down. As I saw it Brooke Burke was first, Warren Sapp second and Lance Bass third. The judges gave Brooke 28 points, Lance 26 and Warren 25. So maybe the judges were right or maybe not.

Brooke Burke busted out with the free style dance. She danced to a “Grease” favorite – “You’re the one that I want” – and was superfantastic! WOW, WOW, WOW! This was the best free style dance ever. The judges awarded her 30 points.

Lance Bass’ free style dance was hip hop. Now I’m not a big fan of hip hop, but Lance did well. Very creative and fun dance. The judges gave him 27 points.

Warren Sapp ended the evening with his free style dance and boy can the big man shake it!!! What a terrific performer. The judged gave him 28 points.

So there you have it. Brooke Burke came in first and Warren Sapp and Lance Bass tied for second. A perfect final performance.

On Tuesday night the stars will dance one more dance and the judges will score them. With the points and votes from Monday night combined with the last dance points, a winner will be crowned.

Who will it be?

I predict Brooke Burke.

Until later,

Linda

What star was eliminated last nite on Dancing with the Stars? Cody Linley. Just as I predicted. It was sad but he really wasn’t ready to go to the finals next week.

Last night’s show was fun to watch. I do like Aretha Franklin but it sounded as if she was not hitting those notes like she used to. Didn’t matter, love her songs – Chain, Chain, Chain and Respect. Ahh takes me back to my younger days.

Lance Bass, the comeback kid, Warren Sapp, the big man with lots of energy, and Brooke Burke, the near professional dancer, are all that is left. They have all come a long way. Now let’s see what they can do next week.

Until later,

Linda

Last night’s semi-final round on Dancing with the Stars started out not so good for some of the stars. The judges brought their serious faces and were very critical on judging some of the star’s first dances.

Brooke Burk was first and danced the Jive. Granted there were some missteps and her technique wasn’t up to par – but she isn’t a professional. Maybe she did have an off dance, nobody’s perfect. But when she came back to dance the Salsa, she was red hot and spicy! Yes, there were some lifts in her dance – Carrie Ann of course pointed that out – but after two dances Brooke scored a total of 49.

Cody Linley was beaming with delight because Julia Anne Hough was back dancing with him. Their Pasa Dobla was different. Cody looked angry all the time and stiff while dancing. Then they danced the Salsa and poor Cody still didn’t get it. He was stiff and not quite in the rhythm of the dance. His total score was 46.

Then Warren Sapp stepped-up on the dance floor with his Mambo and Jitterbug. Warren’s mambo seemed as though he played it safe, no chances taken and his jitterbug was entertaining and he moved well. But for some reason he just didn’t have the style and performance he’s had in the past. The judges gave him a total of 49.

Finally, Lance Bass was the talk of the evening. His Mambo and Jitterbug brought down the house. Len said that his mambo was his best dance so far. Lance went all out tonite and even lost a shoe while dancing the Jitterbug. Tonite was Lance’s night because he showed that he could step up and perform. The judges gave him a total of 57.

I predict the final three to be Lance Bass, Warren Sap and Brooke Burk – gotta give her one more chance, she’s been working very hard all season and deserves to go into the finals.

Sorry Cody Linley, you have progressed in your dances but not good enough to make the finals.

Until later,

Linda

With the Holidays quickly approaching, many people have asked me what they can bring to a party or even serve at a party that tastes good, is not the same old same old and is easy to make. Cheese Balls have always been the best bet when it comes to appetizers. Inexpensive to make and so delicious.

Here is a delicious and easy recipe given to me from one of my neighbor’s.

Mary Lee’s San Jose Cheese Ball

Ingredients: 

2 (8-oz) packages of cream cheese

2 cups grated cheddar cheese

1/4 – 1/2 cups dried cranberries

2-3 Tablespoons of frozen orange juice

1/-3/4 cup chopped nuts

Mix all the above ingredients and cut in half. Form two cheeseballs. Sprinkle or roll in chopped nuts. Refrigerate or freeze until ready to serve.

That’s it! How easy is that! And so delicious. Serve with crackers and enjoy the party!

Until later,

Linda

I usually don’t watch award shows anymore. I just got tired of listening to the “beautiful” people at the Oscars and Emmys praising each other and dissing the country and the President. But I’ve always enjoyed watching the Country Music Awards because I am a big fan of country music.

Not the latest artists, but some of the “old” timers – like George Strait my most favorite country singer of all times, he’s THE MAN – or Alan Jackson, Reba, Rascal Flatts and Brooks and Dunn. So when THE MAN himself won two CMA awards – Single for “I saw God today” and Album of the Year – “Troubadour” – I knew the show was going to be fun to watch.

For three hours, the show really didn’t disappoint me. I heard some great country music sung, some lame jokes told and watched as Carrie Underwood’s dress ensemble was revealed. Did you know that she had 7 different dress changes throughout the night. Now I know that all of them were designer dresses but some of them were outrageous looking. She is petite so it looked good on her, I won’t be running out to purchase any dresses like that for me.

So what’s up with Kenny Chesney? He won for Entertainer of the Year but lately he is going totally “Jimmy Buffett”!  What happened to his “country” style?  Did you know that George Strait – THE MAN – gave him his first break in country music?  Kenny opened many concerts for George Strait. Now last night Kenny either looked drunk or high when he accepted his award last night. He also sounded lonely – he gushed over how nice looking Shania Twain was, gosh Kenny find a date next time!

Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley hosted the Awards show and did a good job. However, I think when Vince Gil hosted the show he was much funnier. The funniest remark I heard last night was from Brad Paisley at the beginning of the show.  He said that he has big boots to fill from prior hosts of the show because they were great. He then looked at Carrie Underwood and said, “Did you know that Dolly Parton hosted the awards one year?” Too funny because Carrie is a petite thing and certainly won’t be able to fill her “boots” if you know what I mean. I don’t think she got the joke – typical blonde you know.

As the evening wore on Carrie Underwood was jumping around on stage and screeching when introducing the country music stars. Was there some high power drinks back stage that she was getting her hands on? Maybe Brad Paisley should have taken advantage of those drinks, at the end of the show he looked like he was ready for a nap.

Hope next year’s CMA award show will be just as fun and some of the “old timers” make another comeback. Gotta love it!

Until later,

Linda

I must admit I was rather shocked that Maurice Green got the least amount of votes and left Dancing with the Stars light night. Why? Because he seemed to have progressed nicely and was doing a great job. Was he semi-final competition ready? Obviously not.

The four stars left for next week’s Dancing with the Stars are Lance Bass – not semi-final material in my opinion-

Warren Sapp – yes definitely -

Cody Linley – let’s give him one more chance -

Brooke Burk - the most awesome dance star -

It was good to see Julia Anne Hough dance the Jive last night with her brother. Just a couple of weeks after surgery and she was bouncing around the dance floor. Ahh youth! How quickly they can bounce back.

What was the reason for the Dr. Drew episode on the show? A cleansing and get into their minds episode? I thought it was rather dumb myself.

Just two weeks to go until the champion of Dancing with the Stars will be crowned.

Until later,

Linda

This week’s Dancing with the Stars was filled with Ballroom and Latin Dances for the remaining five stars. Let’s see how they did.

Brooke Burke scored a total of 55 points with the judges with her tango and mambo. I really enjoy watching Brooke dance, she is as close as you can get to a professional dancer. Even though she had some missteps on her tango as Len pointed out, I still enjoy watching her. She’s the last woman standing on the show and I really think she will go all the way.

Warren Sapp’s tango and jive got a total of 54 points. What can I say about a big man like Warren. His footwork may not be perfect but he certainly can move and I also enjoy watching his performances.

Lance Bass is an okay dancer. He received 50 points from the judges for his fox trot and samba. He has a certain stage presence but for some reason he is still too stiff on many of the dances and as Len pointed out his footwork is atrocious!

Maurice Green has come a long way with his dance performances and received a total of 48 for his pasa dobla and quick step. I would nominate him as the very most improved dancer this season on Dancing with the Stars.

Cody Linley has certainly come of age and received a total of 48 points for his fox trot and mambo. I loved his fox trot, he was smooth and elegant and his mambo was filled with energy. Good news, if Cody makes it for next week’s Dancing with the Stars, Julie Anne will be dancing with him. It seems that Edyta found out that Cody’s attention span is very limited and that he has problems focusing, but as she said, he was the youngest dancer she ever danced with.

So who will be gone tomorrow?

Next week is the semi-finals and of course the remaining stars are getting better and better each week. This is a tough one to predict. I hope Cody comes back even though he and Maurice have the lowest scores.

If I had my choice I would send Lance Bass packing for home because he still seems like a rebel to me. Dancing with the Stars is a show that counts on traditionalism in dancing and mastering that traditionalism. He just hasn’t cut it for me.

Until later,

Linda

I’m doing good- that’s what Susan Lucci said the other day, but I guess the fans didn’t agree with her. She was voted out last night from Dancing with the Stars.

Okay – maybe she was doing goot- but not good enough. The competition gets really tough these last few weeks and I really don’t think Susan Lucci had it in her to compete at a higher level.

What will happen to Cody Linley? He was one of the bottom two and was looking pretty scared. I hope he picks it up for next week. I know that Edyta can help him dance better but I really think Cody is missing Julia Anne. The only way Cody can survive if Lance Bass and Lacey won’t dance the way Len wants them too. The “old fashion dances” as Len would say. I do enjoy watching their upbeat dances but then when you compare it to the other stars working hard to do the traditional dances, well it just doesn’t seem right.

Two dance routines for each star next week. Should be interesting.

Until later,

Linda

Last night’s Dancing with the Stars was refreshing to watch especially on the eve of Election Day. From Cha Cha Chas to Waltzes the stars provided some exciting entertaintment.

Brooke Burk absolutely tore up the dance floor with her Fox Trot. It was fantastic and yes she does look like she is a professional dancer. The judges agreed and gave her a perfect 30.

Maurice Green made a nice come back with his cha cha cha. He had the beat of the music and looked like he was having fun. the judges gave him a 25. The judges also gave Lance Bass a 25 for his rhumba but I found that it was more playful than romantic and I really didn’t care for it very much.

Warren Sapp’s Fox Trot wasn’t his best dance so far and he only received a 21. Poor Cody Linley. He was missing Julia Anne Hough but Edyta did a great job with the Waltz with him. Unfortunately, the judges didn’t think so and only gave him a 22.

Susan Lucci’s Pasa Dobla was far, I didn’t care for it. But the judges gave her 24.

When the team dances started this is when the show was really fun to watch. Lance Bass, Cody Lindley and Susan Lucci performed the cha cha cha. Not too exciting and the judges really didn’t like it. They gave them a 20.

But when the Pasa Dobla team danced – Maurice Green, Warren Sapp and Brooke Burk – Wow! Powerful dance and great choreography. The judged agreed and gave them all 29.

Because of the election today, the result show won’t be on until Wednesday night. My prediction is that Susan Lucci will be going home. She hasn’t had her best dances in quite awhile and looks overwhelmed with everything.

Until later,

Linda