Thank God for iTunes.

Seriously, y’all, iTunes lately is my sole lifeline to American Pop culture. What the hell would I do without it?

Between the podcasts I listen to everyday and being able to download a few shows of GREAT import to myself, I really consider it to be crucial to my existence. Where else would I get my NPR and my BBC and my Slate?

I am so damned grateful that Project Runway, season three, is downloadable on iTunes (for a mere buck ninety nine an episode!) and that the inimitable Tim Gunn is also doing his podcast, as he did last season. Woo fucking hoo! Tim’s podcast tends to come out the day after the show is broadcast, with the show itself being downloadable starting around Saturday following that. I wait EAGERLY for both.

So, tell me…WHO totally changed their mind on Malan after that last episode? I was as annoyed by his weird accent as you, though I also recognized him as a CLASSIC expat baby. I’ve met quite a few people like him, now. People who have grown up all over the world and so really can’t say they are “from” anywhere. (I knew instantly he was an expat kid when he said he was "Born in Taiwan" and not "From Taiwan".) My husband is one of them. These people spend the majority of their childhoods bouncing from country to country. It makes for a great world view, but can do a number on your relatability with people, always having to reinvent yourself every time you land somewhere. Anyhow, I felt for Malan from the beginning in that regard, but his accent still bugged me and I do think he is making himself seem more haute couture and interesting than he really is. Name dropping never works, and that mysterioso thing? Gimme a break. But even with that, I liked his politeness and his relative respect for his co-designers. I think he is talented. I also think he had a pretty harsh upbringing and maybe he HAD to re-invent himself as this fabulous creature just to survive. If you haven’t seen the episode, I won’t ruin it, but in the end I found him quite interesting. And a little sad.

I love Laura, as well. She’s so cool, both in style and temperamentally. She actually reminds me a bit of my mom. Mom never lets her standards down, never wore sweats, never fell into the ‘Mommy lets herself go’ trap. So I can totally relate to Laura, having grown up with a mom very similar to her. I would like to see a bit less of her sternum, however.

The other characters, the jury is still out, though I found too much arrogance in some of the designers. Vincent and Angela were just plain appalling together. Vincent needs to let go some control, and Angela needs to stop being so sly. And who loves Kayne? I do! So Oklahoma, it’s wonderful. Total pageant geek. I saw his dress on Miss Universe last night. It looked good.

Only two days until Tim’s next podcast, and then comes the weekend and I can get my next episode! Woo!