Samantha Ling

So the final episode of America's Next Top Model is over and they picked Whitney, which I am not unhappy about.

Out of the top four, her and Anya were the least offensive. I didn't like the personalities of either Dominique or Fatima because they were both so snooty, but in different ways. I would have been equally as happy if either of them won. It's always a crapshoot when you get down to the last two. Why they picked one girl over the other was always a mystery to me. I think the Cover Girl people may have some input in it. I've heard now that the only reason Whitney was chosen was because she was a larger model and the show wanted some extra publicity. To me, it's sad that people can't accept that Whitney may be a good model, that she can take pictures even though she's not a size two. I've watched the show from the beginning and there wasn't a point where they got rid of a girl and I didn't understand why. And maybe she can't take the modeling world by storm, but at least she'll show that larger girls can be beautiful too.

In other news concerning my life, I don't know if you guys remember way back in December I had problems with the vaccuum cleaner. It just wouldn't suck, and after a while, I realized that the brush head wasn't spinning, so I opened it up and took a look. The belt had been broken, so we bought a new belt, which also disintegrated into nothing. The doohicky was spinning, but the belt wasn't, so it just ate through the rubber. Well, people told us to put it on our registry, but we were like, we can't wait until September to vaccuum again. That would just be nuts. So we did some research and got a nice cheap vaccuum, except that it weighs 50 pounds. The upside of this is that I'll get a good workout vaccuuming.

And then, my laptop decided that it didn't want to live anymore either. At first, there was only one vertical line, which I can handle. Most of my programs run on a white background so I don't really notice it that much. Then a second one appeared, which was also fine. It was also a light color, so I didn't notice it much. But yesterday, there was a third line, at which point, I thought that it might bite the big one any day now. I've read that the lines will only get fatter and more numerous and it would only be a matter of time before it won't work altogether. The problem is that the laptop itself seems to work just fine. It's just the monitor. To replace it would be $400, which is ridiculous. I could buy an external for $250, but then where would I put the laptop? I basically need the screen open to start it and to get it out of hibernation. The alternative is to get a new desktop altogether, but I don't want to spend the money right now. I've got a wedding to pay for! So I'm going to put off this purchase as long as I can. I just know that a third thing will go terribly wrong and I'll have to spend another big bunch of money. Because horrible things always come in threes.

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With Project Runway over with, I watch America's Next Top Model. The first
thirty minutes or so generally don't interest me. I'm interested in the
photographs. What makes a good one, what makes a bad one. Half the time, I
don't see what they're seeing.

I don't know why they keep one girl over another. And I definitely don't
know how they pick the girls originally. Because let me tell you, some of
those girls don't look that great. But I suppose they're used to seeing
people without their makeup on and can tell who's going to look good on
camera.

I like that they've started accepting the weird awkward girls. I like that
last season, they picked a girl with Aspergers and she did quite well. And
I like that they also choose plus sized models to include in their line up.

They've already gotten rid of one of my favorite girls,
Marvita. The first episodes made her seem mean and harsh. But as the
episodes have gone on, I grew very much to like her.

She revealed that she'd been sexually abused. I think her presence showed
that you can survive and continue living your life, pursuing your goals and
dreams. But having had a hard life, she had some self-esteem issues. The
moment that she showed that, they let her go. I think that it's a shame
because I think she could have been a good role model. But the competition
is for a Cover Girl contract and I think Marvita might not have softened up
enough for their image.

I don't have any great love for the girls that remain. It won't stop me
from making predictions though!

I originally liked Lauren, the awkward nerdy girl. But
she continues to be awkward. And as a Cover Girl, she'll need to do
commercials and I have no confidence in her public speaking ability.
Besides which, she doesn't know how to walk.

Whitney, the plus sized girl, takes good pictures. But
she was destined to fail in the go-see episode because she's a size ten
(which, last I heard, is smaller than the average size of the American
woman). I'm glad that they didn't get rid of her then, though I'm not sure
how long she'll last. Plus-sized models tend not to lst long on this show
and I feel like her face only has one expression.

Dominique is mean, so she won't last. They never pick the mean girl. She
also has one weird raised eyebrow look that she changes. Besides which, I
find that she photographs old and they didn't pick those girls from past
seasons for that reason.

Fatima is also mean and a little too self-confident. I don't find her as
gorgeous as everyone else does. But even then, I think she over-analyzes
herself and her poses come out stiff. I won't be suprised if she gets
kicked off in the next two episodes.

Katarzyna, Anya, and Stacy Ann all have left me rather cold. I don't really
find them all that interesting. But I think these three will be the one's
that will be left. And I think that Katarzyna will be the ultimate winner.
I think she knows how to model better than the other two. Though Stacy Ann
may be really close because she had the most jobs booked and that's always
important for a model. Anya's accent is a little too difficult for me to
understand and that will ultimately work against her.

So those are my thoughts. What about you?