SYTYCD top 6 again

Guest Judge: Toni Redpath (ballroom expert)

Kent Boyd

Chacha with Anya – My first kiss (3oh!3 feat Ke$sha) choreographed by Jean Marq Genereaux

The judges were nitpicking. I thought Kent was great in his performance. It wasn’t as masculine as it should maybe be but he really did a very good job with it.

Solo – A song for you (Elliot Yamin)

Marvelous as always.  Not Jeanine or Brandon level but okay.

Robert

Contemporary with Kathryn – Heaven is a place on earth (Katie Thompson) choreographed by Stacey Tookey

Beyond expectations say the judges. It was a joy to watch especially the first part when the movements were so tender, so light and soft. There was a part in the middle, one of the lifts was a little ‘forced’. It didn’t flow a smoothly but I maybe the one nitpicking this time. Robert is not exactly one of my favorites.

Solo – A beautiful mess (Jason Mraz)

It was fine.  I don’t really enjoy any of the solos in general this season coz they all just keep doing the same thing.  Nice music though as Cat said from my favorite Mr. AZ.

Jose

Solo – Giant Squid (RJD2)

He rarely does anything new in his solos. Unlike the other breakers who have been on the show who does tricks after tricks after tricks, Jose is kind of boring. Just a lot of fancy and not-so-fancy footwork.

Hiphop with Comfort – Try a little tenderness (Otis Redding) choreographed by Marty Kudelka and Dana Wilson

Nigel loved the dance but not Jose’s dancing. Adam says dance the intention. I think I also get what the judges are saying but I loved it! I loved the dance. I like the ghetto-ness feel. I like that Comfort’s dress was so in contrast with the sharpness of her locking. I like the groove and the feel of the entire dance. It was a really fun dance to watch.

Adechike

Jazz with Courtney – Manteca (Dizzy Gillespie) choreographed by Tyce Diorio

Too many lines almost says Nigel. Ade really needs to loosen up and really dance. It was powerful but like what the judges said, lacked style.

Solo – Pretty WIngs (Maxwell)

Wow.  That straddle jump was 10 feet high!  Very strong indeed and by strong I just mean physically.

Lauren

Solo – You make me feel like A natural woman (Aretha Franklin)

As always, Lauren was beautiful and powerful and flexible (pronounced flexibul so everything rhymes. Hahaha).

Broadway with Allison – Who’s got the pain? (Damn Yankees) choreographed by Tyce Diorio

Fantastic.  Nothing to critic.  And the judges are absolutely right.  I love Lauren and she’s a fantastic dancer and she was fantastic in the routine.  Allison is there so it’s doubly fantastic!

Billy

Solo – Lights go down (Telepathe)

It was better than his previous solos.  At least it didn’t show too much of his quirky, what-the-heck-are-you-doing extensions.  But there’s still enough crazy for him to retain the title of season 7 resident nutjob.

Contemporary with Ade – Mad world (Michael Andrews feat Gary Jules) choreographed by Stacey Tookey

Sheer perfection from Mia.  Great maturity and restraint.  Magnificent.  It was a very moving routine danced beautifully by both Billy and Ade.

Broadway with Kent and Jose – From this moment on (Kiss me Kate) choreographed by Spencer Liff

Fantastic. Born to do it.  Fits like a glove.  All these comments were for KEnt.  Jose was just an after thought.  The style really suited Kent and showed off his playful personality.  His technique of course is superb which also showed how weak Jose’s was.

Foxtrot with Adechike and Lauren – Fever (Beyonce) choreographed by Jean Marq Genereaux

Nigel said it was danced more like a jazz dance rather than ballroom.  I think both did well, not perfect technically but it was respectable.  I was watching it knowing that something is wrong with Lauren because of the tweets from the All Stars so I was really concerned and worried that she might not finish the routine.  Thankfully she was able to.

Bollywood with Robert and Billy – Ganesh (Bombay Dreams) choreographed by Nakul Dev Mahajan

Nigel reminded the people again of Billy’s injured knee but all judges were pretty satisfied with the performance.  It was a very energetic routine.  There were some issues with synchronization in some parts but overall, okay.  Robert for me was the better dancer.

dance deja vu

Déjà vu (pronounced /ˈdeɪʒɑː ˈvuː/ ( listen) DAY-zhah VOO; French: [deʒa vy] ( listen), “already seen”; also called paramnesia, from Greek παρα “para,” “near, against, contrary to” + μνήμη “mēmē,” “memory”) or promnesia, is the experience of feeling sure that one has witnessed or experienced a new situation previously (an individual feels as though an event has already happened or has happened in the recent past), although the exact circumstances of the previous encounter are uncertain.

– Wikipedia

It’s happened twice  on So You Think You Can Dance, though in different countries.  This first is the highly-praised breast cancer routine by Tyce DiOrio.  It was performed first by Melissa and Ade on Season 5 of SYTYCD US (July 22, 2009).  The routine brought the judges to tears.  But in January 22, 2010, Charlie and Robbie from SYTYCD UK Season 1 performed the same routine and still earned praises.  Here are both routines.  See for yourself.

Magic Track Pad

Love, love, love this!  I’m getting my new mac mini soon, I hope.  Then a wireless keyboard and this trackpad!  Woohoo!  Now, the only problem is money.  How easy is it to rob a bank?  Or maybe apply for a job at MWSS.  Wait!  Damn! PNoy is on to them already.  Nuninuninu…

My 2 cents on PNoy’s SONA

A lot has been revealed in the first State of the Nation Address of the fifteenth president of the Philippines, Pres. Benigno Aquino III.  Corruptions, allegedly (but hopefully, all these would be proven soon and the culprits made to pay and put to jail) happened in a lot of agencies of the government.  Highlighted were the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewarage System whose members of the board allegedly received millions of pesos in bonuses while retired employees were made to wait for their benefits, the National Food authority who allegedly imported more rice than needed, the Department of Public Works and Highways and the National Power Corporation.

Part of the SONA also mentioned the fact that only 1% of the national budget is left for each of the remaining months of the year!  It makes my blood boil.  Even calamity funds were misused.  Goodness!  No wonder we are in such debt and in such state!

But the SONA was not only about exposure of the alleged wrong doings of the past administration.  PNoy made it clear that his FIRST STEP is to end corruption so the country can finally move on and help itself out of the pit the previous administration has created.  To quote:

Ang malinaw po sa ngayon: ang anumang pagbabago ay magmumula sa pagsiguro natin na magwawakas na ang pagiging maluho at pagwawaldas.

Kaya nga po mula ngayon: ititigil na natin ang paglulustay sa salapi ng bayan. Tatanggalin natin ang mga proyektong mali.

Finally, a REAL State of the Nation Address

This is the SONA of President Benigno Aquino III,  taken from http://www.gov.ph.

State of the Nation Address
of His Excellency
Benigno S. Aquino III
President of the Philippines
to the Congress of the Philippines
Session Hall of the House of Representatives

July 26, 2010
[Batasan Pambansa Complex, Quezon City]

Speaker Feliciano Belmonte; Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile; Vice President Jejomar Binay; Chief Justice Renato Corona; Former Presidents Fidel Valdez Ramos and Joseph Ejercito Estrada; members of the House of Representatives and the Senate; distinguished members of the diplomatic corps; my fellow workers in government;

Mga minamahal kong kababayan:

Sa bawat sandali po ng pamamahala ay nahaharap tayo sa isang sangandaan.

Sa isang banda po ay ang pagpili para sa ikabubuti ng taumbayan. Ang pagtanaw sa interes ng nakakarami; ang pagkapit sa prinsipyo; at ang pagiging tapat sa sinumpaan nating tungkulin bilang lingkod-bayan. Ito po ang tuwid na daan.

Sa kabilang banda ay ang pag-una sa pansariling interes. Ang pagpapaalipin sa pulitikal na konsiderasyon, at pagsasakripisyo ng kapakanan ng taumbayan. Ito po ang baluktot na daan.

Matagal pong naligaw ang pamahalaan sa daang baluktot. Araw-araw po, lalong lumilinaw sa akin ang lawak ng problemang ating namana. Damang-dama ko ang bigat ng aking responsibilidad.

Sa unang tatlong linggo ng aming panunungkulan, marami po kaming natuklasan. Nais ko pong ipahayag sa inyo ang iilan lamang sa mga namana nating suliranin at ang ginagawa naming hakbang para lutasin ang mga ito.

Sulyap lamang po ito; hindi pa ito ang lahat ng problemang haharapin natin. Inilihim at sadyang iniligaw ang sambayanan sa totoong kalagayan ng ating bansa.

Sa unang anim na buwan ng taon, mas malaki ang ginastos ng gobyerno kaysa sa pumasok na kita. Lalong lumaki ang deficit natin, na umakyat na sa 196.7 billion pesos. Sa target na kuleksyon, kinapos tayo ng 23.8 billion pesos; ang tinataya namang gastos, nalagpasan natin ng 45.1 billion pesos.

Ang budget po sa 2010 ay 1.54 trillion pesos.

Nasa isandaang bilyong piso o anim at kalahating porsyento na lang ng kabuuan ang malaya nating magagamit para sa nalalabing anim na buwan ng taong ito.

Halos isang porsyento na lang po ng kabuuang budget ang natitira para sa bawat buwan.

Saan naman po dinala ang pera?

Naglaan ng dalawang bilyong piso na Calamity Fund bilang paghahanda para sa mga kalamidad na hindi pa nangyayari. Napakaliit na nga po ng pondong ito, ngunit kapapasok pa lang natin sa panahon ng baha at bagyo, 1.4 billion pesos o sitenta porsyento na ang nagastos.

Sa kabuuan ng 108 million pesos para sa lalawigan ng Pampanga, 105 million pesos nito ay napunta sa iisang distrito lamang. Samantala, ang lalawigan ng Pangasinan na sinalanta ng Pepeng ay nakatanggap ng limang milyong piso lamang para sa pinsalang idinulot ng bagyong Cosme, na nangyari noong 2008 pa.

Ibinigay po ang pondo ng Pampanga sa buwan ng eleksyon, pitong buwan pagkatapos ng Ondoy at Pepeng. Paano kung bumagyo bukas? Inubos na ang pondo nito para sa bagyong nangyari noong isang taon pa. Pagbabayaran ng kinabukasan ang kasakiman ng nakaraan.

Ganyan din po ang nangyari sa pondo ng MWSS. Kamakailan lamang, pumipila ang mga tao para lang makakuha ng tubig. Sa kabila nito, minabuti pa ng liderato ng MWSS na magbigay ng gantimpala sa sarili kahit hindi pa nababayaran ang pensyon ng mga retiradong empleyado.