FRESH SHEET - February 8, 2012

“We had a very, very strong second place — and it’s going to continue,” a beaming Paul told more than 200 supporters. “We do have to remember: the straw vote is one thing, but then there’s a whole other thing — delegates — and that is where we excel.”

Tucked in immediately after his reference to delegates, Paul belted out an inspired "Yeahhh!" that packed a punch of enthusiasm that Romney's personality coach must envy.

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Filed Under: ron paul ,politics ,video

As Lydia struggled with her own "Identity" the bigger question loomed unanswered. Who's the Daddy?

Wasn't it funny how everyone figured out Lydia was pregnant. Her mother, her partner, and even Tang. Of course the signs were all there but Lydia waited three months to get herself to a doctor. She was definitely in denial.

She seemed to be wrestling with whether a police detective could also handle being a single mother. Or at least I'm assuming she'd be a single mom since she hasn't mentioned the father. 

We're left to wonder if she's still dating her ex-partner's son or if this is a new guy in her life. I hope we get those answers soon.

Ruben's take on motherhood seemed to surprise Lydia. That Melanie confessed to a murder she didn't commit didn't faze Ruben. Admit to a murder or commit murder, all is fair game when a mother's protecting her child. 

Cooper and Tang were a magnet for the crazy people tonight. The invisible guy who fell in love with their car was priceless. And I loved the County workers who tried to pawn off the dismembered body on the railroad tracks until they saw Tang going off on someone over the phone. They quickly decided they'd rather deal with body parts than have to tangle with her.

Tang's commitment to helping the homeless Marine was touching. She fought all day long to find help that no one was willing to give. Then when hope was fading, Cooper stepped up and did what he could. There were no easy answers here but at least they tried. Finding someone willing to do that is half the battle.

Ben and Sammy took the prize for my favorite partners tonight but it mostly had to do with Sammy. First he's prodding Ben to move out of his artsy neighborhood before he starts going gluten free and drinking raw milk. I'm sure some girl will have Ben doing both before long.

Then Sammy felt horrible for shooting the dog. You could see that Sammy's got a good heart when he's with his son but this storyline drove that point home.

He had to promise Lakers tickets to the paramedics to get them to transport the dog to the vet. Then he agreed to pay $1,300 for the dog's surgery so it wouldn't be put down. Just when he's thinking he's got a new pet out of the deal the real owners show up. They loved the dog but were too poor to pay the bill. 

So Sammy's out $1,300 and won't be going home with a new furry companion but at least he'll know he did the right thing.

Tonight's episode was a little more touchy feely than the kick ass Southland I've come to expect this season but it was still a solid hour of television. 

Despite loving this show's intense drama, I do hope Sammy gets some happiness soon. After watching his partner beaten to death and his pregnant wife leave him for another man, he certainly deserves some luck. Which do you think Sammy should get first, a dog of his own or a new girlfriend?

"What Are You Doing Here, Ho-Bag?" made me think that the entire Ringer plot was not unlike one of the word jumbles that Bridget and Siobhan played as girls. Unfortunately, I just don't know how they untangle this web of lies they've created but watching them try is half the fun.

The Ring.  I had wondered if Siobhan had stolen that ring strictly out of spite. Instead it appeared that she needed the cash. I suppose that means the pawn shop owner was out $15,000 for receiving stolen goods. 

I understood that Siobhan needed the passports in another name now that she thinks Bridget knows about Cora Farrell. What surprised me was that she didn't take the passports anyway. She'd already paid for them. They could come in handy.

And why would the guy who sold them leave the fake passports on the top of the trash can other than it made it easy for Henry to find them?

Then Andrew looked so hurt when he found out Bridget hadn't told him she'd lost the ring. Of course he soon had bigger issues to deal with.

The First Mrs. Martin.  OK. Suddenly Juliet's issues were a lot more understandable. Her mother's a drunken nutcase. I know that the video looked bad but Catherine was quick to call her daughter a slut and turn her back on her.

Apparently Catherine viewed her daughter as a fun shopping partner but not much more which led to a great bonding moment between Juliet and Bridget.  "So your Mom was a bitch too?"  That one line brought them closer than all the hugs and heartfelt talks ever could.

Whose Your Daddy?  Tyler was missing a baby that wasn't his and Henry was mourning a baby that wasn't dead. Siobhan sure knew how to create havoc no matter which continent she was on. 

When Siobhan didn't come clean with Henry right away, I thought it wasn't going to happen. That's why it shocked me when it did. Not only did he show him Bridget and confess that she was the real Siobhan she also told him she was still pregnant with his baby. The look on his face was a jumble of shock and glee.

Now will Henry play along with Siobhan's game or will her game blow up in her face. And what are her plans for Tyler as he waits for her and his next meeting with Andrew. 

Ringer is like one crazy word jumble but like any addictive game, I can't stop trying to figure it out.

"Navigant Consulting, Inc.’s preliminary review revealed a challenged and dysfunctional organization suffering from a lack of consistent leadership, a siloed underlying bureaucracy, poorly coordinated capital planning process, insufficient cost controls and a lack of transparent and effective oversight of the World Trade Center program that has obscured full awareness of billions of dollars in exposure to the Port Authority." — Auditors on the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, stopping just short of calling the organization a cesspool of incompetent, detestable humans, in a memo that called for a “top-to-bottom overhaul."

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Filed Under: neighborhood news ,port authority

Happy Anniversary to Callen and Hanna! I'm not sure why, but it seems like they have been together much longer than five years. At the same time, five years is a long time to work side-by-side with the same person, let alone ten years.

In "Partners," the case of the stolen diplomatic shipment provided further insight into Callen and Hanna's relationship and what their future could look like. They have a trust that is unparalleled even more so than that of Dunross and Clark.

While Sam already has a family, Roger wanted that for himself and Callen is all alone, just like Diane. They all lean on their partners in a way that transcended friendship and family -- a unique support system. But, could Diane or Roger have betrayed this partnership and turned to the dark side?

At first I didn't think so. I bought that the boss, Ed Gornt was behind the illicit shipment even though both Diane and Roger acted a little suspicious at times. What I knew without a doubt was that even though the episode started with Sam hitting Callen, it wasn't real. There was no way that Sam would really try to kill Callen. It had to be an undercover situation that was going bad.

I'm getting  a little tired of shows using this plot device of showing us a future scene and then flashing back to the beginning. In this case, it didn't add to the story and I wish the episode had just started with the anniversary gift exchange.That is my only complaint about the episode.

The case was suspenseful and I didn't foresee the twist ending at all. Even Granger's appearance worked well. In fact, it was satisfying to watch his mistake unfold. Until Sam and Callen confronted the couriers at the end, he didn't have a clue what was truly going on. He had offered the wrong courier a deal, at least, he was smart enough to not give immunity for the crime.

In the end, Diane pretended to be Roger to set up the deal. She worked with her boss Gornt to smuggle the ephedrine out of India. Roger was lucky that he was in a remote Malta town when it happened, otherwise, Diane may have gotten away with setting him up.

What a shame that she turned on her partner of ten years because he wanted to make a life for himself and have a family. They weren't even romantic. It would've make a little more sense if she was a scorned lover, but to not want your partner to find happiness is just sad. How unfortunate that she decided to set her future up on money, rather than finding someone to share her life.

I don't see Sam and Callen heading down this path.  Do you?

When Granger first showed up a couple episodes ago, he was universally disliked. Did you find this appearance less abrasive or do you still hate him?

Naomi continued on her quest to become a full-fledged grown-up and almost achieved that impossible dream by landing a big client. Unfortunately it was "No Good Deed" since it was Mitchell Nash's 16-year-old hateful goth-wannabe daughter, Carla. Naomi promised to make her the most popular girl in high school. And boy did she when the brat posted the party on Facebook. Complete with under-age drinking and sex. Like Daddy, like daughter.

Realizing the kid was heading down Naomi-lane, Naomi developed a conscience and dispensed amazingly good advice. And in typical Naomi cat-style landed on her feet with a big star client to boost. Gotta love that girl. She's a born operator.

Pushy Vanessa booked Liam onto a talk show. Himbo Liam froze up. Disaster. But later he ended up saving a drowning girl from the bay and voila! party and reputation saved. Raise your hands if you knew that was a set-up when you saw that twisted look Vanessa had on her face watching the rescue. Manipulative much?

Silver discovered she still had feelings for Navid. It's amazing how quickly her feelings can switch from one guy to another. Wasn't she ready to move to New York with a single dad just one week ago?

Meanwhile Navid "decided" to go to Princeton when all he wanted was for Silver to want him to stay. If he only had known the embers still burned.

Adrianna discovered working with Dixon was a romance killer. Then Dixon added fuel to the fire by asking Adrianna to move in with him out of convenience. The classic fight ensued: Are you just saying nothing's wrong or am I supposed to figure it out while you're suffocating me with a pillow? In the end, Dixon did the right thing and asked her to move in properly. True love conquered all. For now.

Adrianna and Silver consoled each other over their messed up love lives. While it was nice to see the bosom buddies giving each other advice, you know it'll only be a matter of time before their hands are wrapped around each other's necks again.

Ivy's gallery was broken into and defaced. Gee, could that skateboarder have done it? Of course. And were those sparks flying between them? Of course. Here we go...another delusional romance.  At least this guy made Ivy realize the error of her ways and helped her to decide to become a true street artist.

Annie tried to decide what to do with her life and her millions. Castillo Bay Charity to the rescue. Loved the line about Ivy's photo frames matching the towels in some rich person's bathroom. After getting ambushed by a reporter, Annie found out Hilllingsbrook Industries screwed her. And like we couldn't figure out the bartender was the Hillingsbrook prick that did it.

But the best was saved for last. Jen and Jacques are back, bitches! I was actually happy to see them again. The recent cast additions have been lame at best so it was a relief to have Naomi's thorn-in-her-side back from gay Paris.

S'up bitch indeed!

"Politics" is all about the things we go through to make our dreams into realities. The games, the truths, the lies. Everything plays a part, but what matters in the end is how you handle the desires of those you love.

Adam and Crosby
It clearly shows my age, but I absolutely loved that Crosby and Adam were in a used record store with real record albums. I used to love thumbing through the vinyl. There was something almost magical about it. This is something that this generation and their digital music will never experience.

The feeling of seeing an entire marketing campaign designed around the music. Led Zeppelin (look them up on Wiki people!) had an interactive experience wherein the black and white cover revealed colors when you used a brush and water. It was a perfect place for the brothers to be hanging out.

Crosby and Jasmine
They've finally reached the end of their road as a couple. They will always share parenthood of Jabar, but with Jasmine moving in Joe and Crosby willing to let the past remain there, a new future can be found.

I think they will always love each other, but they know they know a relationship would never work. Crosby's continued growth as a character supported his decision to let her go and move his son into a home with Jasmine and Joe.

Amber
Amber was promoted to Bob's assistant. Kristina tried to make it a surprise using the "you might be fired" approach, but after the last episode and how close Amber and Bob became, we knew there was no way he would allow that to happen. The disappointing part of this story is that Amber doesn't know if she got this promotion on merit or because of his obvious attraction to her.

Amber freaked out at the possibilities of what that might mean, and asked him straight up when he delivered her soup for a fake illness if she got the job because he wanted to sleep with her. Turned out that he wanted to promote her and kiss her for the same reasons. I can't think of a better arrangement. Truth. How rare is that?

Sarah and Mark
Sarah and Mark are saying I love you without thinking twice. They're looking at old yearbooks and exploring the past. This is done in preparation for a big family meeting between with Sarah and Mark's family. He had a girlfriend all through high school and college and bad feelings were pouring out as I imagined Sarah meeting them all.

How in the heck did Camille know that Sarah and Mark were talking about having a baby? That would have been the last topic I would have pulled out of the hat. Maybe marriage, moving in together, but baby? I guess that shows how much I know how much I know about mother's intuition.

I didn't buy that Sarah should feel out of place with Mark's friends. He had friends of every available ethnicity, but having an older girlfriend would somehow throw a wrench into his lifestyle? He obviously has no societal issues weighing him down, and I found it a bit upsetting that she went into it with some sort of preconception of what would happen. That was unfair to Mark and his friends.

Sydney and Zoe
Being a little girl, Sydney was talking to Zoe in a little girl way that frightened the heck out of her. So much so that she quit her job and moved out of the Graham house. Yes, we get it. Girls giving up their babies is difficult. But this crap where they constantly portray in entertainment (entertainment!) that a birth mother always has last minute jitters gets old. Could a better family possibly come along for a baby if you had one you weren't certain you could raise on your own?

With the Grahams, there would be no doubt that your ties could be in tact for life, should you so choose. Zoe walked into the perfect situation for a girl in her situation. Instead she is wishy washy and repeatedly leaving Joel and Julia to think the worst. I'm about done with this storyline. Either commit or walk away. The pain Zoe is putting them through is not worth the drama.

While Zoe assured Joel that her stance hasn't changed, I doubt we've seen the last of this scenario before, during or even after their baby's birth.