nancy444

You seem to know what you're talking about, so I have to ask...is memory something that can be learned? I always assumed it was one of those things where you either have it or don't. Hey friend, As an educator by trade, I find that memory (specifically, moving something from working-short-term memory to long-term memory) can definitely be improved, but like the other poster remarked, some people are naturally better at it. than others. Also, people whose dominant learning modality is kinesthetic (as opposed to visual or auditory) are going to have an easier time learning choreo. In general, they also tend to catch on quickly to any activity which requires both fine and gross motor skills (from painting to gymnastics). The only exception to this truism is if the kinesthetic learner also struggles with dyslexia. One of my three kids fits this category, and while she can quickly become very skilled at everything from stunting (in cheer) to snowboarding to roller skating, she struggles at auditions which require them to quickly learn a dance combo. Rote memorization is NOT her thing. She's definitely a "take home" girl. Lol. Also, as a former semi-professional actor, I learned several "tricks" to quickly memorize lines, such as rehearsing a monologue while walking around behind someone, follow-the-leader style. The object is to occupy the part of your brain that does things on autopilot while simultaneously learning lines. Our acting coaches (big talent names in Atlanta) swear that it works, and I've found they're right. In short: the more these girls engage in memorization activities, the better they'll become at it, regardless of dominant learning modality. (But being a kinesthetic learner helps.)

I'm not. Christina has never demonstrated anything but humility and gratitude on this show. Because neither Kelli nor Christina herself have ever found it necessary to convince us she's God's Gift to the DCC, no one here feels the need to point out all the ways she's NOT. Funny how that works.

(Smdh) You can post a hundred physically-flattering images of VK on this forum, and it won't matter. We know weight vacillates. What is gained can be lost. Hair can be recut. Teeth can be fixed by orthodonture. Big noses, tiny boobs, saggy tummies, and every other conceivable surface feature...for the right price, all of these can be changed. It's why God created plastic surgeons. And Botox. Looks are temporary. But a $hitty personality is forever.

Yes, she does, actually. Mostly because it's a wide shot, which is thankfully too far away to discern her big gummy smile. You know, I can convince myself that I "look really pretty", too, when I first get out of a long, hot shower. But it's another story when I open the bathroom door to clear away all that steam. Suddenly, the mirror isn't fogged up anymore. Reality sucks like that.

The only reason I speculated about someone on payroll posting positive comments is because some years ago, I taught at a small private school that was doing some shady things to keep their enrollment up. Of course, public sentiment on Google, SchoolDigger.com, and Greatschools.org began rating the school as a 1 or 2 stars out of 5, as dissatisfied former students and their parents began blowing the whistle on the school's antics. So the school's solution (after a name change, which worked for a year or two before eventually catching up with them) was to require all their teachers to go to those sites posing as parents of current students, and post glowing 5-star reviews of the school. Since removing the low ratings wasn't possible, their goal was to try to mitigate the terrible (but honest) reviews written by real former families, making it seem to the average reader as though the school was fantastic. We even implied in our posts that any bad reviews were posted by malicious parents whose kids had "behavioral problems". Obvs, the concept of "influencing web forums by watering-down their comments section" isn't a new one.

But those big horsey teeth certainly are. (*shrug*)

I see what you're seeing, as many of us do. Aside from the one or two on this board who sound like they're on the Cowboys payroll, the rest of us more or less agree with that assessment. This goes back to those of us who speculated that we're being trolled. I think you guys are more right than you know. For those who may disagree with the negative assessments of VK and Kelli, or who think we're being meanies, whatev...Let's be real here: it's not like we're just tuning in for the first time this season, and are assuming everything we see on the screen is just as it appears (sorry Kelli/Tina/CMT). Most longer-term posters are savvy enough to have formulated opinions from last season's edit, as well as all the behind-the-scenes intel we've gathered and shared during the show's hiatus. In other words, we know where our info is coming from, and we're not easily gaslighted. TBH, I think some folks who disagree with the majority opinion (i.e. the ones who want us to believe VK is sweet as Tupelo honey, that Kelli should be awarded Time Magazine's Businesswoman of the Year, and other such fairy tales) aren't really interested in changing OUR minds at all. A couple of these dissenting voices seem to be posting for the benefit of the regular readers/lurkers who tend to be more active while the new season is airing. My guess is they're hoping to steer public opinion back in VKs favor, trying to dilute the majority (admittedly critical) commentary with more "pro-VK/pro-Kelli" sentiments. Good luck with that.

Unfortunately, my understanding comes not from a psych degree, but from the bitter experience of being raised by a mother with a similar Cluster B disorder. (My mom wasn't a Histrionic, though...she's a Borderline.) If you have advanced degrees in psych, then I don't have to explain the particular neediness, emotional smothering, boundary violations, gaslighting, and "splitting" that was my mother's idea of "parenting". So other women with Cluster B tendencies (whether they would qualify for a positive diagnosis or not) tend to ping my radar. VK may not be an HPD at all, of course, but the fact that she gets compared to one is very telling. It's kinda like someone with a drinking problem trying to convince others they're not an alcoholic: generally speaking, truly "normal drinkers" don't ever get compared to alcoholics in the first place. If I was VK, rather than dismiss us as "haters", I'd take the online sentiments to heart. Even if you don't have a PD, Victoria, the fact that you're being compared to one in the first place ISN'T A GOOD THING.

Personally, I grew to LOVE Kashara. She was easily my favorite last season. I did, however, cringe a little to see her in those black Spandex leggings last week. They didn't do my girl any favors. Just goes to show you how abnormally-low the girls' weight needs to be in order to flatter the uniform. Only a handful of girls have the kind of body type and metabolism (like Jinelle) to maintain that weight naturally.

My guess was to try to "humanize" VK by making her seem caring (about other rookies), empathetic, and approachable. Instead, it just came off as stiff, scripted, and disingenuous. Girls like VK who are willing to step on anyone who gets in their way are typically the LAST ones to form meaningful female friendships. They're the ones who say stuff like, "All my best friends are guys." That's because they inherently see other women as competition. In the event they do occasionally hang out with other girlfriends, you'll see that they make sure that THEY are the best-looking girl in the group. Consciously or not, if they have other female friends, they surround themselves with girls who aren't as attractive as they are. Hence the reason why VK was so snippy, defensive, and generally vicious last year: being just out of high school (where this kind of behavior is unfortunately more common), her immaturity and insecurity were on full display. She couldn't handle being compared to all these other (more) beautiful, (more) talented women 24/7. When thrust into a situation where there's a constant, in-your-face reminder that you aren't all that, the "default mode" of the emotionally secure tends to be humility and gratitude: "I know full well I'm probably the weakest in the room, and I'm incredibly grateful to be given the opportunity to continue in TC." Less emotionally-secure people, otoh, will do whatever it takes to make that "yucky", uncomfortable feeling go away: become the center of attention, constantly seek validation, suck-up to TPTB and back-stab others they perceive as threats, etc. But by avoiding feeling those yucky, uncomfortable feelings, they also avoid the opportunity for emotional growth. (Google "Histrionic Personality Disorder", which tends to describe VK.) So for VK to gush over the other girls' "glowing skin" was completely counter-intuitive and not part of her normal lexicon. I don't see her giving two shits about another girl's appearance, even if it was her best freaking friend. Terminally-self-centered people don't know HOW to care, so they fake it when they deem it to be advantageous to do so. Introspection isn't part of her DNA.

See? I just got finished saying that very thing in a DM message. We're totally being trolled. CMT/producers MUST be monitoring these boards. How else to explain the sudden teary, self-indulgent ITM of Kelli's existential angst over her job responsibility? "Oh my God, being the coach is so hard! Sniff, sniff!" Meanwhile, in her head she's thinking, "Do these tears look real? Do I need a little more Visene to make my mascara look more runny? Is there a way I can slide in a mention of Victoria?" (Okay, she didn't SAY that last part. But she would have if she thought she could get away with it.)

That was so cool to read. Thanks. To the deep-cover CIA operatives on this board: which one of you has already puzzled out who that anonymous former DCC was? I have to believe SOMEONE has by now. You guys make Wikileaks look like Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys*. (*I swear to God, if anyone asks "Who are they?", I will grab my Xanax, my estrogen, and my Geritol and go crawl back under a rock.)

Well, that'll make TWO of us. (*barf)

Not only would I love to read that for myself, but I'd also like to see where you ladies are finding these videos of the team performing Thunderstruck at Oxnard or wherever. Where can I find those clips? Forgive me, but I'm just not as technologically proficient as many younger people (including a couple dozen fifth graders who believe I qualify for Special Ed because I don't have an Instagram account.)

I just thought of something... It seems interesting that they threw an old "fan fave" vet into the SG judging panel, almost as though they knew their decision was not going to go over well with the audience (well, at least not with us) and they figured they'd throw us a bone. Like "a teaspoon of sugar" to help us swallow that load of bull. "See, fans? Our SG judging panel decisions are totally above-board! How could anyone doubt our integrity? I mean, gosh...we have Jacie right here to prove it! You trust her, right? My God, what more do you conspiracy theorists want?"