The exception to the rule

The Twins TV boycott is officialy still on (again, Thanks Brad!) but I really couldn't pass up the chance to watch a pitching matchup between Francisco Liariano and Felix Hernandez. And it was just as good as I hoped for. Liariano pitched five shutout innings to get the win, Joe Mauer homered, Rondell White actually got a hit and Torii Hunter made an awesome shoestring catch to start off a double play and escape a bases loaded nobody out situation. Plus they had a big ceremony before the game as Governor Pawlenty signed the new stadium bill. They pulled in a bunch of old Twins including the usual suspects like Killebrew and Carew, guys I don't remember from the 80's like Dude Somethingorother, and some very nice guys who we don't have much reason to remember like Ron Coomer.

If I thought it was painful being a Twins fan....sheesh, I'm glad I'm not a Cubs fan. Today Carlos Zambrano took a no-hitter into the 7th, with a 4-1 lead (he'd walked in a run). With two outs Jacques Jones loses a flyball in the sun and it's ruled a hit. The subsequent Cubs relievers absolutely fall apart, culminating with closer Ryan Dempster giving up three runs in the ninth (including walking in a run) and Nefi Perez comitting two errors in the space of as many seconds to allow another run...and the Cubs end up losing it 6-5. Even for me, that was painful to watch.

The Asianscene interview with Lee Anne is here. Interesting, the very first question they asked her was about her ethnicity. Is that really the most important thing to ask? Hm. She says she's 100 percent asian. Would the interview have continued if she was insufficiently Asian? Anyway, one can easily gleam the idea of her and Harold dating from this article.

A Few Last Thoughts (On Harold Dieterle)

Well, Top Chef in general, I just can't resist a cheap opportunity to draw in readers.

- I enjoyed the show, despite it's various flaws. Some of the challenges were ridiculous, the guest judges were uniformly annoying, Lee Anne was unfairly jobbed etc. etc... But it was a good cast of characters and that really carried it through. I would rate it as somewhat less entertaining than Hells Kitchen (Returning June 12th! Yes!) In HK, the elimination challenges are always the same, line cooking on a busy night, but I can relate to them much more.

- No, I'm pretty sure Harold isn't gay, and I never really thought he was. And he and Lee Anne sure seem cozy. Good for them.

- I ragged on Harold a lot for being boring and unspectacular but I really did like the guy. While his whole "I'm a chef, that's what I do" thing got cliche it really did describe him. I wish I was as good as Harold.

- Anyone else notice Miguel and Lee Anne in the culinary school commercial? What's up with that?

- Suggestions for Season 2. Move it to Chicago. Less dopey guest judges. More focus on the cooking, less on the bitching and backstabbing (but I guess that's what moves the ratings). No challenges involving creepy drag queen parties. Pick me.

- I should have mentioned this yesterday when my readership peaked, but if you also like Hell's Kitchen check back here when it returns on June 12th for my recaps. Maybe, you like.