Avaleigh

I'm kind of a party of one on this issue because I don't think skating to a warhorse is much different than a ballet dancer wanting to finally have the chance to perform Giselle or be the Sugar Plum Fairy. Nor is it all that different from an actor taking on the role of Hamlet or Ophelia or even Elizabeth Bennett. Sure, there have been dozens or more Giselles, Swan Queens, Ophelias, Lizzies, etc. over the years, but I don't think that new and emerging dancers and actors shouldn't get to make a role their own if that's what they want to do. I personally like being able to see people do their take on classical pieces. I like seeing certain skaters bring life to familiar pieces, and I enjoy comparing and contrasting with performances other skaters have given. Whether or not it'll be a fresh take depends on a variety of factors including choreography, costume, and the selection and cut of the music. There are definitely ways to make a warhorse feel new and exciting when done the right way. Nina Pinzarrone made her Swan Lake short this year feel like a fresh take. When Ashley did Samson and Delilah, she totally made it her own. That being said, I think a little common sense needs to factor into people's music selections too. If somebody in your discipline just won worlds or the Olympics skating to Scheherezade, maybe put that particular warhorse on pause for 4 or 5 years. Also, people aren't wrong for wanting more variety from skaters when it comes to music selection. There's a lot of music that hasn't been done, so it’s strange how few skaters are willing to try something different. Ideally, we'll continue to have a mixture of new and classical. I should note, I understand that challenges with music are harder than ever because of the new rules regarding what's available in terms of the licensing rights being clear. Still, there is a LOT of classical music that hasn't been used or hasn't been used much that is in songview, and I'd like to see skaters have at least one season in their career where they think outside of the box in terms of music selection. All this being said, like anyone else, there are several pieces of music that I'd be happy to have a 20 year break on, but for me it's more about personal preference over the issue of these pieces being done too often. (Which, to be fair, they are indeed used too often.) Hallelujah is at the top of the list for me. Some people find it brings emotional and inspiring performances, but for me it's a flat drag from start to finish.

Scott Hamilton won, but I think that's the only gold that year for the US.

Omg, you guys!!! That actually made me tear up!!! Well won, Alysa!! I can't believe it's been almost 20 years since the last American woman won. That was so exciting. Now I get to catch up with the dance.

Quad God.

I am curious about why they don't even have one entry. Months back I read that Wenjiing Sui was training with a new partner, but I have no idea if that was accurate or not. It's surprising that they don't have at least one team that is competitive. They basically have been (mostly) MIA in pairs for as long as the Russians have. Speaking of pairs, I love Riku and Ryuichi, but I thought Minerva and Nikita should have won last night. One team clearly had a winning performance. The other team was shaky throughout. With some notable exceptions, I'm not generally fan of reusing programs two seasons in a row, but Pereira and Michaud's long is so gorgeous, I think they should hang onto it because it's worthy of being performed on Olympic ice. Also, their pairs spin is a dream. I definitely look forward to seeing how they shape up over the next few seasons.

I have been a loud cheerleader for Team Amber since 2019, so nothing would please me more than to see her win tonight. She's everything this sport needs and I want her to keep her new found confidence going into the Olympics because I think she has a real shot at the top prize. That being said, I feel like it's more realistic for me to hope for a podium finish tonight. I want clean skates from all of the ladies tonight and let the chips fall where they may. @CeeBeeGee, I have enjoyed reading about your experience as a spectator at this year's worlds. Please keep sharing! I went to Boston for 2014 (nationals) and 2016 (worlds), and I had an amazing time. 2014 was especially exciting because it was essentially an Olympic trials too.

Kevin was amazing. Fingers crossed he has the same energy for the long! Mikhail's jumps are crazy good. Isn't it crazy how commonplace it is now to a quad lutz in a short program? Ilia seems to have this thing in the bag. Yuma was wonderful. He really fought for that program.

I feel like Wakaba is consistently underscored and I have no idea why. Why do the judges seem so lukewarm about her skating? I thought she should easily have been in third today. I'm happy if a US woman wins, but it doesn't seem like a foregone conclusion to me. Yeah, they wanted it to be Amber, but I don't think that's happening unless a couple of the others make mistakes. Kaori and Mone are still very much in the mix. With Alysa, I think it will depend on whether or not she has any UR issues in the long. Whatever happens, it's been an exciting competition. The standings aren't what I predicted at all. I thought Kaori or Amber would be in first.

My heart broke for Gubanova. Seeing her look of disappointment after seeing her scores was hard to watch. I hope she's getting all the hugs right now. I just took it for granted that she'd at least secure her spot on the Olympic team. Alysa was so lovely. A small gold for her, and it happened in her home country. I feel so happy for her. She really did create a moment. Mone Chiba's program is so fun. I won't be surprised if she stays on the podium. IMO Wakaba was underscored as usual. I'd love it if she could medal again. It's been seven or eight years, I think. I really hope that Nina Pinzarrone stays in the top ten. I want her and Loena to be in the Olympics next year. Amber was disappointing, but at least she didn't give up. Hopefully she has an awesome long.

Unfortunately, people who opposed the rent control proposition spent millions of dollars to confuse voters into thinking that a no vote would somehow be harmful to them personally. The proponents didn't have as much money to spend bombarding people with ads. They also manipulated people's concerns about the homeless crisis to get them to believe that a yes vote would result in the housing crisis being made worse. It was such BS and was hard to watch happen in real time. Even people in blue states will vote against their best interests if there are enough rich people around to convince them.

I 100% agree with you that they are going to complain either way. It's what they do. My concern isn't about whether or not these guys are getting their feelings hurt over DEI hires. My concern is when people in power say that they plan on appointing/nominating the first [insert minority] for whichever position in such a way where the inference is that people from other groups, including other minority candidates, aren't also in consideration. It's especially concerning from a DEI perspective because it comes across like people from other groups will just have to wait their turn until someone in power thinks it's finally time to focus on their group. Everyone who is qualified should be up for consideration, and their years of hard work shouldn't take them out of the race because they don't happen to be apart of the group whose turn it is to get a first. It's a little concerning to me that this sort of basic level of fairness is considered a hot take from a lot of the people who support DEI. Everyone who is qualified should have a fair shot at getting these sorts of positions. If you make an announcement that you're only looking at candidates from one group then you aren't being fair to the candidates from other marginalized groups.

Kevin Sorbo and Kelsey Grammer are hurt that you forgot about them.

Yeah, "most qualified" arguments don't seem to come into the conversation from right wing supporters when it's people like Trump, Cavanagh, Hegseth, etc. I wonder why? Regarding your first point, from a basic fairness perspective, it seems like it's a mistake to make a declaration that you want to appoint/nominate the first [fill in the blank minority] candidate for whichever position. If you acknowledge that you aren't even going to consider other candidates, including other minorities, then there's no way of knowing whether or not you'll choose the "most qualified" candidate. You'll get a qualified candidate, yes, but to get the "most qualified" you will only know if the search is open to every qualified candidate. It's better to acknowledge that you'll consider everyone who could do the job and then consider the diversity part. At the end of the day, there are so many marginalized groups that it won't be difficult to meet DEI goals without having to declare that other marginalized groups aren't even in the race because the decider feels for whatever reason that it wants to focus on one particular group. You can be fair and still make history. JMO.

Yeah, the comments really are that bad. I am someone who has defended him in the past, but I just can't this time. I've always felt that his love for skating is genuine and, as the sport has dwindled in popularity over the years, I've always appreciated his enthusiasm even if I haven't always agreed with what he says. It's a bummer, but there are consequences for being an asshole. He's already making it seem like he's a victim by saying his comments were taken out of context. I admit, I'm curious to see if he'll still end up attending worlds considering they're being held in Boston.

It depends on the hotel. Two places I worked, if you had the breakfast package, then that meant a 20% gratuity was already included. All the person had to do was sign it to the room and the front desk would take care of the rest. The server would include the 20% and the front desk would make sure the guest wasn't charged anything additional because they'd already paid to have the breakfast included. Also, some places like a luxury hotel in downtown LA that I'll refrain from mentioning by name, they put an autogratuity on. Where they're kind of scummy/rude is that they'll include the 20% but the receipts still print with the place where an additional gratuity is optional. Some people don't look carefully at their bill and they might unknowingly leave a double tip. Most servers will let their guests know the deal, but some are greedy assholes who are hoping they can sucker one or two people a shift. In places where it's a very basic buffet there's no need to leave a tip. That being said, sometimes there's a person making omelets and stuff--I'll leave them a tip. Sometimes they'll even have tip jars. Finally, when in doubt, since different places have different set ups, it doesn't hurt to ask. Servers always appreciate it when someone cares enough to check.