Check ‘em out:

Classic fall in our neighborhood…love it.

The new wing of the Nelson-Atkins is very photogenic.

Brownie points if you can guess who is Cassie’s replacement!

It’s no secret that I’m a little obsessed with Skins, the UK show about cheeky teenagers with a little too much time on their hands.  MTV is now bringing us Skins US, a US show about cheeky teenagers with a little too much time on their hands.

The preview for Skins US is here. I was pretty pumped for the preview, because Skins UK is such an intense representation of teen life  — maybe a bit sensationalized, but that’s what makes it fun – and manages to be somewhat artsy. There are so many possibilities for a US version: surely kids here are just as crazy as they are across the pond, right? There must be tons of interesting stories to tell about the lives of teens in a larger city. Or…not.

Skins US is an exact copy of Skins UK, down to the characters’ lines. Sure, “Sid” is now “Stanley” (because that’s more American?), and “Tea” will replace “Maxxie” as a lesbian (…cheerleader…such an edgy choice) character instead of the token gay character (and why, seriously, if you’re copying the UK version, would you replace one of the best characters?) – but really? It’s the same, all the way down to the terrible nickname Tony gives Michelle  (uh, yeah. It’s “nips.”).

I hate to say it, but they’re totally Office-ing this one. The first several episodes of the US Office were exact replicas of the UK Office, and it simply didn’t work. Luckily, the US Office worked its way out of that rut and into something more original and, let’s admit it, American. Shows from the UK can do well here – obviously there was a following of the Office before it ever showed up on NBC’s schedule, and Skins has a pretty strong cult following here.  But The Office was able to deviate from copying UK scripts, which was really important to its success. The Skins preview, based on my copious consumption of the UK’s first season, is a start-to-finish American copy of the original. It makes me sad. Frowns to you, MTV. Frowns.

I’ll still watch the first few episodes, but I’ll probably bitch about what they did to Sid and Cassie the entire time. I can’t seem to stop watching the occasional Glee episode even though it’s ceaselessly obnoxious. Why can’t I quit you, terrible TV about teenagers?

I know just how you feel, Cass.

Did you know that The Celtic Ranch in Weston has a fairy room?

And that the fairy room has a pony in it? It does. (Pony not pictured, but I swear to you.) Did you know that if you go to the Celtic Ranch during Irish Fest you can get Irish coffee (yes, with whiskey)?

Weston is pretty freaking awesome.

(my own image)

I may be doing some occasional writing for another blog or two. We’ll see. I’ll post a link here if I do.

Don’t worry! This one will remain up in case you need to read about how much I hate Twilight or look at pictures of my dog. Who knows, I may want to resurrect it someday.

In the meantime, you can still find me here, here, and here.

Thanks for reading.

In case you were wondering, things don’t go great for our newly tattooed friend.

Watch if you dare.

Oh, also, they’re in Iceland.

*Now with working links!

I don’t advertise it, but I won’t deny that I watched the last season of The Bachelor and am now watching The Bachelorette. I should probably quit for my own mental health, but something keeps drawing me back to the two-hour episodes. Why are they two hours? Probably because you can’t understand the complexity of the plot without the full two hours each. Trust me. This show is a roller-coaster ride of emotion.
Since you probably can’t travel down this road with me, I’ve condensed this week’s worst five moments. (Unfortunately I can’t figure out how to embed Hulu videos with WordPress, so I’ll just have to link to the clips. Sorry!)

5. This week’s group date (for those who don’t know: there are so many dudes on this show that for most of the episodes, there’s a date with…a lot of them) involved “auditioning” for a “part” in the Lion King on Broadway. You guessed it – most of the guys can’t sing. That is, until Jessie from Peculiar, Mo. steps up to the plate…and everyone hates him. Just watch the other guys’ faces writhing in agony when he can hit some notes!

(There was also dancing! It was bad, too!)

4. Ali and Roberto don some fantastic outfits to perform their air-dance in The Lion King. The other dudes express their stabby, stabby emotions.

3. Kasey sings. Inspired by R. Kelly, Kasey expresses his budding love for Ali via song. Then, later, he sings again.

Kasey’s shtick is that he will “guard and protect” Ali’s heart. I don’t know about you, but to me that sounds like something a creepy dad would say when giving his daughter a purity ring. Ali was initially charmed by it, but it seems to be the only phrase he can say, and I think she’s starting to get creeped out.

2. Jonathan, the weatherman, sings, as part of his last-ditch effort to not be so nervous around Ali. I think maybe he’s just afraid of ladies. There was a lot of singing this week!

1. After their disastrous date, where Ali tells Kasey he needs to be himself more, he decides to get a tattoo to…show how serious he is, I guess. Oh god, it’s awful. He tells the other bachelors that he accidentally burnt himself, until another guy (Justin/”Rated R”) calls him out on it. Here’s what happens next. The eleven diamonds represent the other guys? I have no words.

So there are your top five moments from this week. Consider yourself educated in the realm of horrible, useless reality TV knowledge.

(photos via ABC)