may 18 doesn't get any more hectic. you've read my post above, so here's the other half of what made my day "all shook up": finales.

as i prepared going out, there was the season finale of The Amazing Race 9. three teams slugging it out. i was so into wishing BJ & Tyler would win... i mean, after eating a big bowl of crispy/soggy crickets and still having fun, aren't they sport? and mega karma-lucky too! Eric & Jeremy are just as f'd-up as they can get, only with eric lying low and jeremy in the front and center of almost every action -- frat girls! Ray & Yolanda are really swell with how they've achieved so far... i was happy when they placed first 2 weeks ago (the benz price), just goes to show they're a great team if only they've got the energy and team spirit. nevertheless...

THE AWAITED JAPAN LEG!!! woohoohoo i was finally going to see magnificent japan in AR! (pickled as their most expensive destination ever..) and phil in heavy winter clothes! *mwah* ... this was probably (no, definitely) the place the Hippies always wanted... advantageous to them too, since tyler could speak japanese to know how stuff goes! which leaves the other two teams in a slight rut. but there always are mistakes and surprises...

i'm not going to post the events in detail, so lemme just tell you what i thought was fun: #1) the whole japan leg, of course. #2) the "messenger" detour with the hippies riding on portable bicycle w/ bells & whistles... #3) Fujikyu Highland and the rides -- save for the inconvenience that the challengers can't enjoy everything because they have to search for a giant board... #4) the old man at the toll gate copping Ray's butt... it was totally uncalled for, and i always get off-guard by that "moment" -- i mean getting surprised three times (seeing 2 reruns already... *wha-pakk*) ... #5) the Swan Boats! it was crazily exciting to see them 'mobilize' it...

so there went your tokyo hijinks... it's time for the serious buckeroos! :)

the teams have to fly back to the states (as AR finales usually do) so they can get closer to the whiff of $1M... where else, but in snowy, frostbitten Alaska. just when japan wasn't cold enough. the hippies & the frats racing neck-to-neck, while rayYo lagged behind as a result of getting 'lost in translation'. the tasks, save for the drilling, weren't that strenuous in this final leg. (tyler: "where could those chalets be?" grandma moment. *hee*)

as they head back to chilly colorado, the DECIDING task was a ROADBLOCK. as much as it was similar to last season's judgment point (alex linz & wally bransen with the 51-state jigsaw puzzle), this time 1 person out of the duo must put up the flags (from a big field of nation-banners) of the countries they've visited to, in correct order, for a foot race to the finish. they've got a placard guide on how the leg flags were supposed to look like, but obviously you can't trust it with your life. and my heart was thumping with excitement...

as the boys (hmm) sprinted back and forth among the flags, the 'lost' guys were nowhere -- were they actually able to do this final task? i wonder. eric (back from the dead) almost got it right -- but all of a sudden went awry, and bj flustered about the russian flag (2nd in order) which made their seemingly correct line-up invalid. i'm not making suspense sense, yeah. but it was exactly a competition between them as to see who's got it first!

and guess who won... BJ & TYLER!!!!! TTOW! TTOW! TTOW!

it was a most fulfilling moment. seeing phil and the other (eliminated) teams just grinning and everything... couldn't blame the hippies for tearing up (tyler was crying! :D)... wow, a cool million dollars! i love it that they won! (they're "my team", they're "my team", blah la la...) i like what they said about "giving people their adventure energy"... with their enthusiasm for things, they're deserving. stay hippies will you? =D

things turned wounded when eric & jeremy came... placing second was very sad of them ("we're this close to winning!", i can hear them seethe), and i gotta hand it to them for being consistent in their game and being very competitive. and ray & yolanda may turn up last, but who knows what they could've done without japan? they've got a trip to sydney anyway. so at least these teams all have something to look forward to after the race, having had placed first at least once in former legs (and some bonuses). everybody needs to have some cheer :)

... and before i wrap my season 9 baby up, the bj/tyler scene in the mat was giving me goosebumps... when phil announced they won, the two guys just stared into each other's eyes and gave a big bear hug... and after that they were just... tender! eric & jeremy were skulking with nary a contact, while on the flower power side i could (unmistakably) SMELL LOVE! whatta finale. ;p

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