Project Runway Season 9 Episode 1: Come As You Are - Mini Recap

Last night was brutal!  I was a little late to the live-blogging party but I'm all caught up and all I can say is: Wowzers, this will be a very interesting season...

Can I just have a moment for my bb Gunner?  What the popsicle sticks?!  I thought I had you all figured out - the 21 year old fresh faced designer with new ideas and silhouettes.  I mean, isn't that what got you through casting?!  That poufy medieval-style skirt, right?  I like it. Not for myself but I still like it



I don't know. I guess he shouldn't have opened with that Kentucky Derby dress. Maybe they thought back to Kane and realized that Kane did the crazy ultra-girly dress circuit the best. I don't know. That still doesn't make sense, though, because they now have an actual beauty queen on the damn show.



I feel like Anya has made a joke out of the whole thing by declaring she had only learned how to sew 4 months before the show. And Tim was impressed with skills. WHAT SHOW IS THIS? The one thing I will say is that even though she just learned how to sew, she had completed garments - unlike those of Santino Rice. BAM. But I'm not going to declare that too too early because next week, she might be getting a piece together and have open seams come runway time. One can only hope, right? Does she get on anyone else's nerves, too?

After what I read over at Tom and Lorenzo about Viktor, I indeed, did NOT forget his answer to the model question. Let me bring that one back for ya:

What do you look for in a model?
Size 2, long blonde hair, light-skinned, tall (6 feet), nice bone structure, a little figure (proportionally), LIPS and knows how to sell the garment.

UM...NO. And when he was holding up his pieces to be judged, I was all "NO, Viktor! Stop it! Stop it now!" I just...I just can't.  Model answer aside - I just can't.  Sorry.

Ugh.

And Rafael.  Poor, poor Rafael.  I kinda felt his elimination.  Especially once those pants hit the runway.  OUCH.



No. Just........NO. Sorry, bb.

Maybe next week will perk up a bit (especially since they won't be designing with their jammies) and we'll the the FULL CRAZY we all know Mormon is packing.  Yeah, I can see it in your eyes, Joshua C.


Let's raise a glass to our eliminated friends


Until next time, friends!
Katzi
S.L.Y.A.S.D.I.

Project Runway: Season 9 Premiere; The Live Blogging

Tonight's the big night!

Join us here for all the live-blogging fun!



See you tonight!
-Katzi
S.L.Y.A.S.D.I.

Project Runway Countdown: Meet the contestants!

Since I'm going crazy counting down the days to the premiere, I figured we'd take a moment to meet the season 9 contestants

Amanda - 24, NY, NY

Anthony Ryan - 28, Baton Rouge, LA

Anya - 29, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago

Becky - 38, Portland, OR

Bert - 57, Los Angeles, CA

Bryce - 26, Portland, OR

Cecelia - 34, New York, NY

Danielle - 26, Minneapolis, MN

David - 29, Boston, MA

Fallene - 29, Denver, CO

Joshua C. - 29, Snohomish, WA

Joshua M. - 25, Sunnyside, NY

Julie - 35, Grand Junction, CO

Kimberly - 35, Brooklyn, NY

Laura Kathleen - 26, St. Louis, MO

Olivier - 22, New York, NY

ATL-ien Rafael - 27, Atlanta, GA

Serena - 31, Brooklyn, NY

Viktor - 30, New York, NY


And last, but certainly not least: Gunnar Deatherage - 21, Louisville, KY


You might be asking yourself, "Katzi, why on Earth did you screw up the alphabetical balance and save Gunnar for last?" If you know me personally, you wouldn't be asking that question. I mean, his name is fucking GUNNAR DEATHERAGE. WHAT. THE. AWESOME NAME. Whether it's his real name or his stage name (his "When I'm not designing, I'm ____" is being in a band.  J/K - he's a hair stylist WIN!), I dig it.

Who do you think will be in or out?
Katzi
S.L.Y.A.S.D.I.

Dear Starz, Why are you killing the show I love?!

Starz is great.  First they came out with the bloody and extremely epic Spartacus: Blood and Sand.  The show was sort of comical, in the trying to capture the spirit of 300 kind of way, BUT it brought out the secret blood lust in me.  The desire to watch scantily clad men fight each other to the death was high.  And having a sexy cast didn't hurt either.
Lucy Lawless was amazing as Lucretia, Andy Whitfield was incredible as Spartacus and Manu Bennet was swoon-worthy as the Champion of Caupa, Crixus.  Everyone else was wonderful, too.  I can't forget the rest of the amazing cast Spartacus had but there was one thing that hurt the production of the second season and that was the illness Andy Whitfield was battling: non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. I'll admit, the compromise pre-quel season 2, Spartacus: Gods of the Arena was a little hard to watch since Andy Whitfield was not included at all and it seems as though Andy Whitfield has passed the torch to Liam McIntyre as the new Spartacus.  While Spartacus: Gods of the Arena was still epic and bloodier and sexier than ever, I still missed Sparty himself - even though Gannicus had won me over by the season's end.

With all that going on, I understand Spartacus can't be the same without Andy Whitfield but I would much rather him rest and fight the good fight and make it through before he over-works himself.  I am getting excited because Katrina Law is tweeting about behind the scenes antics on the set of Spartacus and she has said that Liam McIntyre will be joining her and other members of the cast at Comic Con this year! YES!!  I kinda wish I was going (to see Manu Bennett up close and personal).

But there was a void.  A blood thirsty void that Spartacus left.  It needed to be filled and Starz' other original show, Camelot, fit that bill perfectly.

While Camelot wasn't as bloody or as full of nakedness as Spartacus, Camelot was - for the lack of a better phrase - FUCKING AWESOME.  I've seen the Merlin tv movie, I've seen most of the King Arthur movies (not Russel Crowe one though...), I've read the books (a long time ago but still) and I LOVE the Arthurian legend.  Camelot captured what all the other tv movies and regular movies couldn't.
Camelot's cast was gorgeous too.  Jamie Campbell Bower - abandoning his seat with the Volturi to become the boy king and the always flawless Eva Green - showcasing her smoldering sultry-ness as Morgan Pendragon.  Those two alone were enough for me


I mean, look at them! Gorgeous, young, talented, badass...And then Starz had to throw in Joseph Fiennes as an even more badass version of Merlin



And on top of THAT, Starz had to throw in Clive Standen as Gawain, a warrior living on the outskirts of Camelot who gets recruited as one of the King's men.

We liked to refer to Gawain as the "Andrew WK of Camelot".

Le swoon

Besides the insanely sexy cast, Camelot reignited the Arthurian legend in me.While I remember key bits and pieces from the legend,  Camelot made them that much more entertaining.  Especially the Lady of the Lake story and the sword in the stone.  Both are familiar stories but Camelot gave them the Starz twist.  Not to mention the "killing" of Morgan Pendragon and the "birth" of Morgan le Fay.  But one thing was missing: Lancelot.  Sure, Leontes was like the Lancelot we all know but his story was downright awesome.  And they kind of left it open for season 2 as they were putting together the legendary "round table" that Lancelot would be coming.

But alas, Camelot will NOT be picked up for a second season.  WHY STARZ WHY???!?!?!  Don't wimp out because of Game of Thrones or ratings.  You have what those shows don't have: Accessability to MORE viewers via Netflix Instant after the season has ended.  I'm sure a TON of viewers have been watching via Netflix Instant (including me).  Is there no way to monitor those views?  I read (here) that one of the challenges of filming Camelot is conflicting schedules with the cast but you know what, if viewers can wait forever for Spartacus, we can wait forever for Camelot.  We don't want to but we will.  I know I will.  I love Camelot and I want more.  LOTS MORE.  I want to see the story progress with all the characters we all know and love.  And I want the introduction to Lancelot and the Knights of the Round Table!  Give it to me, Starz!  Why would you let the season end in such a cliffhanger and then not renew it?!?!?!

I am truly devastated.

I guess I'll just have to re-watch season 1 on Netflix Instant.  And stare at this Gawain gif forever



This gif lives here

Katzi
S.L.Y.A.S.D.I.

Body Politik's Super Secret Video Project

Onisha asked me to help her shoot a video for Body Politik over the weekend and while I was capturing the footage this morning, I was really pleased with the results!
I can't say much about it except we were lucky to have the two performers we had:

The lovely Martina


And the very talented Adam


Both were total champs during the shoot and gave me some great material to work with! And as a bonus - we found out that, with a little moving around, we can turn Onisha's bedroom into a makeshift studio space.

I also found out I need more lights but I'll cross that bridge the next time I come to it...

We tried to take some behind the scenes shots but amidst all the chaos, we were only able to take a couple
















Thanks to everyone that helped and I hope to have something ready to post soon!

Katzi
S.L.Y.A.S.D.I.

Atlantic City - the final day in NJ

Oh Atlantic City. Your wonders are many and extremely entertaining.
We went to a psychic and for a half tarot reading, she was VERY thorough. Here's the breakdown:

• I don't like taking orders from others too well and I should think of my own business...
• A change of address is coming soon
• When asked if I thought about having children, my reaction was a hearty laugh followed by "No no no no nooooo". She laughed and said to expect children very soon. How soon? I'll find out I'm preggers in NOVEMBER. Lolwut?? Aaaaaaaand I'm supposed to have 3 kids - 2 boys and 1 girl. Ummmmmm NO
• Marriage is on the horizon around the time I'm 33/34 (not too far away) even though I was *supposed* to get married when I was 28. Again, lolwut?? She asked me what happened and why I didn't get married then and I didn't have an answer.

• She said someone around me is very very jealous of me right now so be aware of that. I kinda sense what she's talking about, actually...
• And I smile with my face but my heart is sad. Hmmmm...
• She also said that I'm feeling particularly lucky today and I should expect a lot of money coming to me today. Yeah, so what do me and Cassie do? Gamble. Do I win? Not really. I evened out quite a lot so it wasn't a total loss...

Fun fun fun. Actually, I wouldn't mind going back to that same gal and having her do a full card reading - just to see what else she can find out about me...
Good times! I was impressed with the "Las Vegas of the North East"! I'd love to come back and spend a full day and night gambling some allowance money (away from my savings account - far far away) and partying it up, seeing some lights, checking out a show and all that good stuff. Hopefully that will definitely be on my horizon very very soon!

Katzi
S.L.Y.A.S.D.I.

As with all good things, my trip to Jersey has come to an end

And what a trip it was! I got fireworks on the very first night at Seaside Heights. Got something airbrushed. Went to the Secret Stash AND the Clerks Quick Stop (yep, you're never going to hear the end of that). Liberty Science Center. Experienced a Drag Show at Asbury Park. Rock and Roll Karaoke. Bro Central. Good ole family fun. Work-related things (obvs). Participated in 2 classes back to back (apropos). Watered down Seaside Heights club scene. Beach, beach and more beach. And the most important thing of all: quality time with Cassie. Although the kitchen karaoke might've been a little too much but I think overall, I was a pretty good house guest. I hope she's not totally sick of me already! Especially because I think I talked her face off about the View Askewniverse and all the nerdy things in my life. I guess all the office dish I gave her was fair.

This trip was non-stop and I loved it! I'm almost sad that it's over but I am kinda missing my old man back home and I'm pretty sure he's kinda missing me too. And I can't wait for all the goodies that are awaiting me at work. Can you just feel the love? Me too.

Tonight, we celebrated the 4th by watching 10, yes 10 fireworks shows from Union Beach. I was so amazed that if you're on any shoreline here during a holiday like 4th of July, you can see fireworks shows happening at the same time at multiple beaches in New York AND New Jersey. It was amazing! We were able to catch 5 simultaneous fireworks shows the other night from the Clam Hut - which was crazy - so having 10 shows tonight at the shore was beautiful! There's NOTHING like that in Atlanta...

I also learned what a zeppole was tonight. And a zeppole is freaking delicious. I wish we had those readily available in Atlanta...*le sigh*

I also learned that I suck at carnival games. I tried but I guess I'm not competitive enough. I think Cassie is competitive enough for the both of us. That's why she won us two cheetah/leopard stuffed animals.
Meet Sebastian.

So this is it. My last full night in Jersey.

Since I'm flying out of Atlantic City tomorrow, we're going to *try* and get up early to get to AC early enough to have a little of the AC experience - which I'm really excited about. That way, I can get my Mom her mandatory magnet and maybe get a little something for a co-worker who was supposed to join me but couldn't. Let's hope I don't get caught up in Eli Roth's Tumblr. That kept me up for a good few hours last night (and so did the Red Bull vodkas)...

Happy Fourth everyone!
Katzi
S.L.Y.A.S.D.I.

Jersey, Jersey I am disappoint

Jersey?! What's going on? Last night was fun. I got the watered down version of Jersey Shore-style partying at Windansea with DJ Encore - who gave me a sort of shout out with "ATL in the building" and a CD (which I can't wait to load up on my phone when I get home for some in-office listening)...but tonight...Jersey, I am very disappoint.

First we partied it up at the UB house with the family for a soggy pre-4th of July bar-b-que (which was a little overwhelming) but it was still fun. Then, we did a little karaoke in the kitchen after everyone left. Well, me and Cassie's old man did some karaoke and probably irritated Cassie a l'il bit...then we decided to go out with Cassie's friend who was partying in Red Bank. Good old Red Bank. Home of the Secret Stash, of course. But what awaited us was something I would never flock to back in the A: bros. Lots and LOTS of bros. It's Jersey, so that's to be expected but...not like this.
We met up with Cassie's friend at The Downtown, a place whose upstairs area (where we were) reminded me a little of the layout of 529. But what was going on upstairs was truly a sight to behold: Rock and Roll Karaoke with a live band. Yes, a live band. Sounds awesome, right? It kinda was. The guitarist reminded me a little of Doc Hammer but he looked like he was totally hating life all night. Like, "Okay, that guy decided to be a smart ass and request Sweet Child O' Mine so I have to play that fucking guitar riff..." Poor guy. And the crowd - not the type of crowd I would party with back in Atlanta that's for DAMN sure.
Anyways, people were enjoying themselves while I watched the guitarist expressing a little of how I was feeling at that point but I was still having a good time since I was doing something I wouldn't normally do. Expanding my horizons - always a good thing. But then these bitches started talking shit to Cassie for some reason - even though they were the ones who couldn't stop bumping into people as they danced around like drunken fools (to be totally expected). Now, I know Cassie can take care of herself, absolutely, and I was too busy working off my all day buzz by focusing all my concentration on the situation that was slowly unfolding in front of me - hoping that there wouldn't be a fight. While all of that was going on, I didn't realize that I did my old high school fight move of moving my high profile ring from my ring finger to my middle finger (for maximum face damage to the unsuspecting victim). Luckily there was no fight, even though the girls kept point at Cassie and flipping her off. Cassie handled it like a true lady and for that, I salute her. But I told her that it's kids like that that make me not go to places like that and that's probably why Doc Hammer's dopplegänger was hating life too. I hope he got paid some good money for that gig...

But the whole time I've been here, Cassie has been having me compare the places we've been going to here to places in Atlanta and I have to say that I couldn't find an equivalent to The Downtown because that's not my scene. At least with Paradise I could say it's like Jungle, Funk and Standard is like Junkman's Daughter-ish but the way it used to be before it was in the building it is now, Jay and Silent Bob's Secret Stash is my new mecca BTW, Windansea is like a mashup of MJQ and dress code clubs (like Opera or Cosmo/Lava-which I don't go to) and then there's The Downtown. It was like Athens threw up in there. I was kinda wishing we were back at Windansea for some party rock shuffling.

But I guess there's always "those girls" everywhere - which is what I told Cassie. There can't always be winners. Like I said, at least I did something I would never do at home unless it was somewhere I would normally go. I don't know though. I bet there's a place like that somewhere in Atlanta - live rock band karaoke - I just have to find it and check it out for myself...

Tomorrow is my last full day in Jersey so let's see what the mood will bring. Hopefully I'll get more love because I'm still reeling over the negativity from Paradise and tonight. Yikes! Maybe I didn't get enough sun so some beach time is definitely in order...

Happy Fourth everyone! Stay safe and spread the love! <3 <3 Katzi S.L.Y.A.S.D.I.

Here's some rock and roll karaoke antics for your viewing pleasure:

Paradise Lost

New Jersey. WTF happened?! You were winning me over with your insane charm but today...WHAT THE FUCK?!

Here's the deal - I researched the "hottest drag show" in all of New Jersey and came up with a place in Asbury Park called Paradise. I mean, if Raja (from RuPaul's Drag Race) is performing there, it HAS to be good, right?
Ummmm...define your definition of "good", New Jersey, please, because I don't think I understand.

The drag show at Paradise was good BUT the hostess, Juliza Alezae, said it was going to be a "long show with a bunch of performers". Now, in Atlanta, "a bunch of performers" is the amazing lineup at Tijuana Garage or those badass ladies at Blake's but in New Jersey, "a bunch of performers" means 4. Yep, only 4.

Oh, and don't let me forget the HATERS. Holy shit, I've NEVER seen so many haters in my life! But apparently, Jersey is full of haters. People here don't like to mingle, from what I've seen and been told. People show up in cliques and stay there. There's no interaction whatsoever and people just do NOT talk to others outside their groups and that really pisses me off. I had totally hyped up this drag show to Cassie - based on my experiences in Atlanta - and it was totally NOT the same. We sat next to these guys that were talking shit about me because I was *gasp* actually interacting with the show! What?! Who the fuck am I??? Yes, I was yelling and encouraging the hostess (Juliza Alezae) with her jokes and banter and the guys next to me were NOT having it at all. Boo on them (and I was so happy when they finally left). And people were just not into it like I was. I was yelling my support for ALL the performers (although there was one performer, Octavia, that should TOTALLY perform in Atlanta). But it felt like people were just really cliquey and not having it at all. For once on this trip, I felt like the tourist for having a good time and engaging with the show.
Wow. Seriously. I feel like I have been taking my experiences in Atlanta for granted now. Shit, even my awesome gay bar/club experiences in New York - all those have been taken for granted because here in Jersey, it's so not even like that at all and that hurts my heart.
It could be because I'm still a little tipsy right now but I don't know. I felt like the performers needed more audience participation but the audience was too cool or too snobby to give it to them.
Shit, even on the fucking dance floor I felt the cold shoulder.
What's up with that, Jersey?! I've been loving you so hard so far and the gay scene is, like, not even what I expected at all. I was hoping for more love but I guess everyone was too busy eye-fucking themselves in any reflective surface, too busy hating on the performers to spread the love and too busy hating in general to spread the love on the dance floor. That makes me sad.
We'll see what other treats I have to look forward to...and let's hope they're filled with more love and less hating...

Katzi
S.L.Y.A.D.S.I.

PS - if ANY of those performers from the drag show tonight performed in Atlanta, I bet you they would get all the love and recognition they totally deserve because all those ladies were AMAZING tonight and I'm just really sad and upset that the show wasn't longer

Jersey - Day 2: The View Askewniverse

My second day in Jersey was AMAZING. First, we started where everyone should start: the beach. We went to Sea Bright and got some sun on the beach. We even braved the chilly waters of the North Atlantic and waded around until the water was somewhat bearable. Me personally, I'm used to the warmer beaches of the South Atlantic. Think Jacksonville, FL...
After that, we headed to Cassie's favorite store Funk and Standard. If you're from Atlanta, think of it as like, the Junkman's Daughter of this particular neighborhood. After that, we headed over to a thrift store across the street. While I was looking for Foursquare check-ins for that particular thrift store (which I couldn't find, hence I can't remember the name of it), I saw Jay and Silent Bob's Secret Stash on the list of check-ins where I was and it was 35 feet away. I started to freak out.
Of course I knew Kevin Smith and View Askew crew (nice) were from Jersey but I never think about things like that! What kind of fangirl am I? Of course we had to go check it out!!

So here we were, outside the Secret Stash. Holy shit. All my high school memories of Clerks and Mallrats came flooding back. This was it. This was the place I had seen in many an interview about the whole Jay and Silent Bob phenomena - AFTER it had been actualized. I was there. I was totally there!!
Once we were actually inside, I was in complete awe. It was full of comics, memorabilia and more. I recognized Brodie's corner instantly and remembered that scene in Chasing Amy about "tracers".

Then, we were lucky enough to have some quality time with Mooby AND Buddy Christ - which was AMAZING.

Aaaanyways. After I was done nerding out and giving Cassie a little too much of my (limited) knowledge of Kevin Smith and how Clerks was made and my experience with Mallrats and how Kevin Smith kind of helped me hone in on my dream of being a filmmaker (it's still alive - most days) in the 90's, she told me she could take me to THE Quick Stop where they filmed Clerks. WHAAAAAT?!?!?!?!! It was a real place? Yes. (Of course it was) It was actually called "Quick Stop"? Yes. Was it open? Yes. Holy shit. We were going. We were going to THE Quick Stop.

As we pulled up, I nerded out some more and took photos (of course) and noticed there were some kids hanging around at this abandoned place across the street with their skateboards. As we went inside, I looked around in total awe...of a freaking convenience store. I mean, who the fuck gets all giddy from being at a freaking convenience store? This chick does. Because I will say that Clerks, in all its vulgarity and silliness and relatable-ness, was one of my favorite movies as a teenager. I mean, who hasn't felt like Dante every once in a while? I had to resist the urge to say "I'm not even supposed to be here today!" while at the register AND as we exited, out of all the lines from Clerks to utter, "Hey-try not to suck any dick on the way through the parking lot!" was the only line I could think of at that particular moment. That and "She sucked 37 dicks." "In a row?". WHY? Why oh why were the only lines the fucking dick ones? Oh well. At least I got out one "I'm not even supposed to be here today" in the parking lot before we left.

So - to recap: beach, Jay and Silent Bob, dick jokes. Holy shit. 17 year old me is really impressed with that. So is current me. It was really fucking amazing! I even bought some Monroeville Zombies t-shirts at Jay and Silent Bob's - which was awesome because now I have a gift to bring back my old man. Everybody wins!

Oh sweet, sweet New Jersey...you're really shaping up to be quite the vacation for a nerd like me. And to think, the Jersey Shore was all I could think of as being quintessential Jersey. NO! The View Askewniverse is HERE! Why on earth could I not remember that??? Oh well. It was definitely a wonderful surprise. Hopefully, there will be more to come!!

Katzi
S.L.Y.A.S.D.I.
"I'm not even supposed to be here today!"