Dancing With A Crash

I'm not embarrased to admit that I do LOVE the National Geographic Channel (and Discovery too!). I specifically am fascinated watching these two NatGeo shows: Air Crash Investigation (ACI) and Seconds From Disaster, but i'm more of a fan of the former than the latter. I'm not sure if working in the airline industry has influenced my fascination for ACI, but it's just very informative to know the causes of some of the air crash accidents that have headlined the news in the past years. If not for that reason alone, then you at least have an idea what to specifically pray for before boarding, through the course of, and during landing of a flight.Ü

Seriously speaking, every episode of ACI just rouses my curiosity. At the beginning of each episode you'll start asking why and how did such a thing happen? Then bit by bit and like pieces of a puzzle, the reasons and series of events that occured resulting to the accident is given to you in a way that could be understood by a 5-year-old (well...probably not a 5-year-old, but i'm sure you understand what I mean Ü). Then, by the end of each episode, all of your questions are answered, leaving you with a sense of satisfaction knowing the cause (or probable cause, in some cases) of the accident tackled in that particular episode.

Having downloaded Seasons 1 to 3 of this series (If i'm not mistaken, Season 4 is currently being shown in the National Geographic channel), two of the episodes that I vividly remember (and i'm not really sure why) is Ghost Plane (Wow! Very timely for Halloween...Ü) and Hidden Danger.

In Ghost Plane, Helios flight 522 is found circling the sky with all of its passengers, pilots and cabin crew included, seemingly unconscious, as described by a fighter plane that flew beside it. As it turns out, all those on board suffered hypoxia (a shortage of oxygen in the body) which was a result of the pressurization panel switch being left in MANUAL rather than AUTO mode without the pilot knowing about it.

In Hidden Danger, three different aircrafts (United Airlines 585, US Air 427, and Eastwind 14) suffer what seems to be a very similar problem: the pilots being unable to control the rudder of the plane resulting to the aircraft spinning out of control. As it turns out, the mechanism that controls the rudder gets jammed due to extreme changes in weather temperature. It took 10 years and 3 aircraft mishaps for NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) to finish their investigation, the longest ever to be performed as mentioned in the episode.

One other TV show that started another season this fall (in the US) is Dancing With The Stars (DWTS). I originally didn't pay much attention to this show since it's not shown in any of the cable channels here in the Philippines, and I just often hear about it in US gossip shows like E!, Insider, and The Daily Ten. Funny though coz it's also through these gossip shows that I learned about Jennie Garth's guesting for this season (DWTS Season 5). [Snippet: To those who don't know, Jennie Garth played Kelly Taylor in the long-running-but-now-defunct-TV-show Beverly Hills 90210...the BEST TV series of all time...from a very biased point of view...Hehehe...]

I got excited after learning that Jennie Garth will be guesting in this season's DWTS because i'm such a big fan of hers! So, come 2-3 days after it premiered in the US last September 24th, I was up and about tinkering with my PC, searching the net for Dancing With The Stars Season 5 torrents.Ü After being able to download all 3 of their season premiere episodes (it was a 3-night season premiere that started with Ladies' Night, Men's Night, and the Results Show), I began watching what I didn't know then would be a weekly addiction to celebrity dance competition.

I don't know if this just fascinates me because I love to dance but this show is very much addictive! Trust me! The celebrities really put their hearts into making their dance numbers great such that you wouldn't even know that they're novices to dancing (unless you're a professional dancer or one of the judges, I guess)!Ü Plus the sneak previews that are shown before each dance allows the viewers to have a behind-the-scenes view of how big of an effort both the celebrity and their partners (professional dancers) put into each dance, making us, the viewers, appreciate their performances all the more.

Just so you know, stars of the show have been known to lose quite a lot of weight during the course of a season. For this season alone, Wayne Newton and Mark Cuban have been the biggest losers so far (they've also been voted-out so the term "loser" can actually mean two things...LOL!). Well, I wouldn't be surprised. Imagine having to add several hours of dance practice to your existing routine and on top of it, trying to do your day job! Whew! Quite an exhausting (but I guess, rewarding) endeavor indeed! But it's not just the celebrities who put in all the hard work. The professional dancers should be given equal credit as well, since they're the ones who choreograph their weekly dances and are responsible in making their celebrity partner look good on the dance floor. So, BRAVO! to them!Ü

Well, there you have it. Two of the TV shows that's keeping me busy at night and on weekends (aside from Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives, of course). To those who want to catch these shows: Air Crash Investigation is currrently aired every Tuesday, 9pm @ the National Geographic Channel, while Dancing With The Stars Season 5 is aired every Monday and Tuesday (Results) Nights in the US @ ABC.

Please do vote for Jennie Garth (to those who can Ü) and her partner, Derek Hough (who, BTW, is a cutie!Ü) in this season's Dancing with the Stars!!! As of writing this blog, there are 6 pairs left, and Jennie and Derek are one of those pairs!

For AT&T Subscribers: call 1-800-VOTE4-01 (1-800-868-3401) or text "VOTE" to 3401.Ü Thank you!Ü