Wednesday, October 23, 2013

A DC Blog Primer on Orange County

By DC Cueva
@DC408dxtr

As autumn rolls on and some of my very good twitter friends have now flown out of the country & out of the social media world for the next month or so, my attention in the MTV world turns to two sets of great people who I've become great social media friends with as of late. In fact, most of them - all but three in total - have given me a follow, much in the same manner that some in the Real World & Challenge community have given me ever since I joined twitter last year.
   First, there's the beautiful ladies of Big Tips Texas who currently occupy the night usually accompanied by RW/Challenges: Wednesday. And Typhani, Kristin, Morgan, Amber, Jillian, Claire, Mercedez, Sabrina, Macy and Mimi will all keep me company on hump day until Real World Back to San Francisco takes over in the new year. And tomorrow night on that Thursday 10pm slot recently occupied by Jersey Shore and once owned by the medical drama E.R., the nurses of Scrubbing In will take center stage. And the great interaction among cast members of both shows, their fans and, most especially, between both casts, have caught my attention so much that they've caught on to my idea that they're part of "Team MTV."
   The ladder will see its premiere this Thursday (or "NurseDay" as they're calling it) with buzz being generated by press on both sides of the ledger. And it was this fan who's done his part to help build buzz for the show, and although I don't like starting any drama, I inadvertently added some extra fuel to the fire too - albeit in a good way. When I posted a screen-cap of my iPad lock screen changing over to a newly-posted press pic of the Scrubbing In cast and tagging all of the cast members/nurses - Tyrice, Chris, Chelsey, Michelle, Crystal, Nikki, Heather, Adrian & Fernando, it caught their eye almost immediately on Instagram & they were able to help spread the word as well.

The place that will serve as the backdrop for Scrubbing In is a familiar one to MTV viewers: Orange County, California. Nine years ago, this was host to Laguna Beach, that groundbreaking high school melodrama that made LC and Kristin household names. This time around, although we'll be seeing the cast have plenty of fun, it's not necessarily your typical summer vacation as these people are also registered nurses and are very skilled in what they do: saving lives, while also enjoying themselves after work.
   Some facts on Orange County: it's the 3rd largest populous county in the nation's largest state: over 3 million people live in the O.C., placing it behind only Los Angeles and San Diego Counties. As it is the smallest county in area in SoCal, it is also the region's most-densely populated county, and placing second only to San Francisco County in California amongst all counties. It's the 6th largest populous county in the U.S., also joining Cook County, IL (including Chicago), Harris County, TX (including Houston), and Maricopa County, AZ (including Phoenix), and placing it ahead of counties that include the Bronx & Queens in New York City, Dallas and Miami. And unlike other major population centers, there is no defined urban center in the county, as there are more suburban areas than usual, aside from county seat Santa Ana, tourism hub Anaheim, Irvine - anchor city of commerce, Huntington Beach and Fullerton; with the first three having populations over 200,000, Anaheim being the largest at over 330K followed by Santa Ana at 326K.
   Before Detroit went broke earlier this year, Orange County was the largest U.S. county & municipal area to declare for bankruptcy - that happened nearly 20 years ago, but it has since recovered to become one of the most-affluent counties in the country. It forms part of the Tech Coast where a number of information technologies call the Southland home, much similar to the Silicon Valley. A number of Fortune 500 & Fortune 1000 companies call the O.C. home (largest being computer hardware company Ingram Micro), while Irvine also lays claim to a number of start-ups and other key corporate headquarters/hub offices. And while it shares most of the same attributes of whites being majority & Hispanics being the largest minority, the thing that differates the OC from LA in its racial makeup is that the largest concentration of Vietnamese people living abroad resides in the county - nearly 190,000, part of nearly 370,000 who've deflected from the country to the LA market.

Of course, thanks in no small part to the fine Mediterranean climate & sunny skies that SoCal enjoys year round and brings travelers in from all over the world, the O.C. is well-known to most of us for its tourism, which represents a huge chunk of their economy. And you've no doubt heard about that great theme park Disneyland: two theme parks, three hotels and the entertainment district Downtown Disney, and I've been there three times when I was a kid. It's also home to Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park and many beaches along its 40+ miles worth of coastline. Across the street from "the happiest place on earth" is the largest convention center on the West Coast, the Anaheim Convention Center. And the largest mall on the West Coast calls Orange County home - South Coast Plaza.
   In the sports front, Anaheim is home to the Angels, who broke my heart when they beat the Giants in the '02 World Series, and later divided OC fans when they changed their name to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim to tap more into the market of the larger neighbor city to the north. The Ducks became the first West Coast NHL franchise to lift the Stanley Cup in 2007, years after it came into the league and bearing the original nickname of the Disney film The Mighty Ducks. And Huntington Beach, "Surf City USA", is at the heart of SoCal's surf culture as home to the U.S. Open of Surfing & other surfing competitions, along with AVP volleyball, skateboarding and being home to USA Water Polo.
   For pop culture fanatics, most of us know Orange County has served as host to a number of movies & TV shows. As mentioned above, there's Laguna Beach, plus there's The O.C., which helped to increase tourism even more to the places seen on those shows, as well as The Real Housewives of Orange County and Arrested Development. In movies, the films Orange County, Better Luck Tomorrow and Ocean's Eleven, among others, were filmed there. All that aside, a recent local TV shakeup saw OC-based public TV station KOCE become the LA market's primary PBS member station when cost-cutting measures saw longtime member KCET disaffiliate from the pub-caster.
   And some other factoids: what article on this SoCal locale wouldn't be complete without mentioning automobiles? Three interstate and 13 state highways form the OC's highway system. Several colleges and universities call the OC home, including the University of California-Irvine, Cal State Fullerton and the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising. And who is the county's most well-known resident? Richard Nixon, who was born in Yorba Linda, became the 37th President of the United States and settled in San Clemente after his resignation. A presidential library in his hometown bears his name, just like the area's international airport, which is named for Newport Beach native John Wayne. Others who are natives or residents of the OC area include No Doubt & front lady Gwen Stefani, Will Ferrell, Kevin Costnwr, Tiger Wooda, Kobe Bryant, Linkin Park's Chester Bennington and MMA fighter Tito Ortiz.

Lastly, I forgot to mention in my BTT/SI post about the reason why I'm looking forward to watching Scrubbing In, and I actually told one of the new people, Chelsey, about this too. While I might not be interested in working in the healthcare profession - at least for now, in a way I can relate to the cast. I having great respect for the job they do, especially working in a tough, demanding and pressure-filled environment as working in hospitals, where lives are often on the line. My mom works for a company that provides renal testing facilities to kidneys. My uncle who lives in the New York area works in a hospital in Queens. And one of my high school friends, who also got to meet Steve Nash in my IG repost, also works in a hospital, also based in Southern California. Those reasons, along with having some of the same attributes I'm accustomed to on The Real World & other reality shows (laid-back atmosphere, some partying and drama) and the fact that this actually features those who have career aspirations (reminiscent of old-school RW), will all give reason to look forward to watching tomorrow night.

So, there's DC Blog's primer of Orange County. And a decade has past since I last went not only to the OC, but to Southern California, having last went in 2002 for my sister's college graduation. And because I'm so fascinated with SoCal, I feel like I'm well overdue for a trip. And especially since I have a couple kids, maybe soon we'll be taking them to Disneyland. So to sis & bro, can we make it happen?
   Stay tuned here to DCB as we cover sports, entertainment and some other things too. If you're a Real World/Challenge fan, check out my full coverage of Rivals II, with a season wrap up coming up soon, followed by RW Back to San Francisco. For now, thanks for reading and until then, have fun. And enjoy Scrubbing In. And to the nurses, welcome to Team MTV and good luck.

- DC


Sources
- Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orange_County,_California.

Sunday, October 13, 2013

DC SocialPulse: Real World & Challenge - Cast Quotage

By DC Cueva
@DC408dxtr

Over the course of the last 16 months, I've been so fortunate to have the opportunity to talk & interact with people from the TV franchise I follow the most - MTV's The Real World & The Challenge. Of the over 200 people who've appeared on those shows and Road Rules, I've gotten a reply, favored tweet, RT or even a follow from over 100 of them on Twitter or Instagram. Yes, that's just about half of the entire community, a pretty remarkable feat considering it's my favorite show.
  With The Challenge: Rivals II in our rear view mirror after crowning a pair of deserving champions, filming of Real World Back to San Francisco rolling along in the City by the Bay, and buzz among fans continuing surrounding potential competitors on the next Challenge, this is the perfect time for DC Blog to share with you many of the comments the RW/Challenge family have left me in the social media world during this ride.
   Here now are a sampling of the best quotes, starting all the way back just as soon as I joined Twitter on June 27, 2012 - fittingly enough, season premiere night of Real World St. Thomas.

"Thank you so much I'm glad to be a part of it! I can't wait for the show to start ahhhh I'm going nuts!"
Laura Waller, Real World St. Thomas (@LauraLeeMTV) - just before season premiere, and first comment

"It definitely wasn't easy to watch, but it was a lesson I has to learn by watching it."
Robb Schreiber, Real World St. Thomas (@RobbMTV) - just after seeing himself do self-harm during EP

"Living in that house is harder than you would think! No communication back home and isolation with competitors all trying to win."
Dustin Zito, Real World Back to Las Vegas (@DustinZito)
"Agreed (Dustin). Living in that house alone was harder than any challenge we ever did."
Nany Gonzalez, Real World Back to Las Vegas (@NanyMTV)
> Both on the atmosphere of The Challenge BOTS house in Turkey as members of Team Vegas, and after she got in an argument with Knight & threatened to leave

"Thank you. I know I live 35 minutes away and have 2 god babies so it was a little too close to home for me."
Ashley Kelsey, Real World Back to San Diego (@AshleyMarieMTV), just after the Sandy Hook school shootings in her home state of Connecticut

"Thanks homie I'm excited. It's gonna be a good season, crazy drama. It was fun doing too. I hope people watching really get to see the realness of our lives. Definitely gonna be a wild ride.
Marlon Williams, Real World Portland (@JDeezyMTV), during the season lead up

"I am a twitterholic and love everyone so you'll def be hearing from me babe. I'm just a normal person just like y'all. Just fortunate to be on TV for a minute and learn a lot! I feel almost like a new person."
Jessica McCain, Real World Portland (@MTVJess), during the season lead up

"Thank you dear...2013 is going to be a beautiful whirlwind! Hopefully you will enjoy me, you won't be disappointed! It's real this time, promise. ;)"
Anastasia Miller aka "Bird", Real World Portland (@QueenBirdness), during the season lead up

"Wasn't difficult to mesh with them at all! I love being the new kid on the block. Plus I'm super comfortable in my own skin. :)"
Nia Moore, Real World Portland (@TheRealNiaMoore), during an OK Magazine tweet chat on moving in as the new roommate & having to fit in with the present cast after replacing Joi

"Thanks brother. Keep getting the word out. I've stayed on them for years but they've never giving me the chance. Now's the time."
David Leach, Road Rules Viewers Revenge (@MrDavidLeach), on his future aspirations on being on a Challenge

"Realllllllly? It's not like baseball where they play until the sun comes up as long as someone wins lol."
Sandy Kang, The Challenge: Fresh Meat II (@SandyKang), after the 49ers/Rams 24-24 tie during the 2012 NFL season

"Really appreciate that my man. He was a great dude for sure."
Dave Sky, Real World Hollywood (no longer on twitter), just after the death of cast member Joey Kovar in August 2012

"...I wasn't living the good life. But I'm glad people have someone to look to."
Brandon Kane, Real World St. Thomas (@B_Brutality), on the struggles dealing with drugs & trying to stay sober during RWSTT

"Well it's something we used to back in the day. All the 'fun' stopped happening after the Inferno 2."
Veronica Portillo, Road Rules 1999 & The Challenge (@V_Cakes), on comparing early & recent challenges and their environments

"I was absolutely stoked to get a shot at a Challenge. I would never allow myself to feel 'drawbacks' from such an amazing experience/opportunity. I am always aware of how lucky I am. World travel with friends? Yes plz!"
Lacey Buheler, Real World Austin (@ImaLacey), on experience on being on her first Challenge, Battle of the Seasons as part of Team Austin

"I'm blessed and thankful for everything."
Brandon Swift, Real World St. Thomas (@BSwiftMTV) - during a week where he was a key figure in a RWSTT episode and hosted Wiz Khalifa at Temple University

"Thanks brother! It was an incredible experience. Zach is a beast and one of the best athletes I know."
C.J. Koegel, Real World Cancun (@JDeezyMTV), on , after posting pic from their arena on The Challenge BOTS, which also aired during week of his birthday

"Yes, definitely watch it all...it was a great movie with a touching story."
Mike Ross, Real World Back to Vegas (@MikeRossMTV), on the movie Slumdog Millionaire

"@gaby she is awesome!"
- Jasmine Reynald, Real World Cancun (@JazMTV), on Gaby Douglas

"I'm always on vacation"
- Carley Johnson, The Challenge (@CarleyJohnson)

"Thanks! Will be a great season."
- Trishelle, Real World Las Vegas (@TrishelleC), before Challenge BOTS

"Yes we did."
Derek Chavez, Real World Cancun (@MTVDerek)
"It was pretty awesome man."
Joey Rozmus, Real World Cancun (@Joey_Rozmus)
> Both on LMFAO appearing on an episode of their season, two years prior to their 2011 breakout year

"...indeed I am truly blessed to have friends like that... #thankful"
- Eric Banks aka "Big Easy", The Challenge (@EricBanks), on being friends with GB Packers players including Aaron Rodgers

"I am beyond excited and can't wait to cheer for my teammates. #TeamNOLA"
- Ashlee Feldman, Real World Back to New Orleans (@AshleeFeldman), before Challenge BOTS

"SUPER excited. I can't wait to watch #TeamCancun #TeamSanDiego. Or should I say...#TeamSancun"
- Emilee Fitzpatrick, Real World Cancun (@EmileeMTV), before Challenge BOTS

"Thank you DC. Happy birthday."
Trey Weatherholtz, Real World St. Thomas (@JDeezyMTV), on my 29th birthday

"#GOTEAM ;-)"
Camila, The Challenge (@CamilaMTV)

"So gnarly bro!"
TJ Lavin, The Challenge (@TJLavin), on the hardest mission on BOTS, Logged Out

"Happy Happy Birthday!"
Devyn Simone, Real World Brooklyn (@DevynSimone), on my 29th birthday

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!"
Latoya Jackson, Real World St. Thomas (@JDeezyMTV), on my 29th birthday

"BadabingBadaboom! :-)"
Theresa Gonzalez, The Challenge (@TheresaMTV)

"Only the best come from the mitten."
Wlll Gill, Real World Hollywood (@WillGill)

"So stoked! Don't know what to expect. Thank you!"
Joi Neimeyer, Real World Portland (@PeaceLoveJoi), before the cast's first public appearance at Portland Comic-Con in February

"It's true. I couldn't just leave her."
Averey Tressler, Real World Portland (@Ave_Tress), on her dog Daisy and why she decided to bring her to Portland

"@dc408dxtr welcome back Johnny. All of your fans have missed you on here, glad you're back." "RT Not as much as I missed all of you."
Johnny Bananas, Real World Key West (@MTVBananas), after returning to twitter following filming of The Challenge: Rivals II

"I may not ride bikes but I own the slopes!"
Luke Wolfe, The Challenge (@L_WolfePack)

"Filipinos represent!!!"
- Heather Cooke, Real World Back to Vegas (@CookeMTV), before Rivals II

"Never seen this before... Where you find?"
Davis Mallory, Real World Denver (@DavisMallory)
"Cute... But the main promo shot they chose is a lot cuter! It's super cute, was in US Weekly!"
Brooke LaBarbara, Real World Denver (@BDoll82)
> Both on my TBT pic of the RW Denver cast from the RW calendar

"Only one of the most amazing!"
Preston Charles, Real World NOLA (@PrestoMagicMTV), on the Frank vs. Dustin fight on BOTS

"living in the house is the hardest part of the challenge."
"the friendships with me. Plus you learn a lot about yourself when you are put in those type of situations
Jemmye Carroll, Real World New Orleans (@JemmyeMTV), on the living environment during The Challenge: Rivals II, and her favorite parts of her Real World NOLA & Challenge experiences

"the rivals2 house is awesome!! Tune in on July 10th at 10pm to see for yourself!!""
Sarah Rice, Real World Brooklyn (@SarahRiceMTV), during the season lead up

"Get the Elmer's glue ready! Rivals II is a goody!"
Paula Walnuts, Real World Key West (@PaulaWalnutsMTV), during a pre-season marathon of The Challenge Rivals

"Thank you DC! You're the best! Always so supportive! Continue being amazing."
- Anastasia, Real World Portland (@QueenBirdness), after she & Jessica were eliminated in the first girls jungle on Rivals II

"it was really hard to watch it again."
- Trey, Real World STT (@MTVtrey), after watching episode where he & Zach were disqualified & eliminated in the jungle on a technicality

"What its a real condition?"
- Diem Brown, The Challenge (@DiemBrownMTV), after finding out from me that EP9 of Rivals II was being appropriately titled, "Diemnesia"

"Thanks man, it's been a ride!"
- Jordan Wiseley, Real World Portland (@JordanMTV), after he & Marlon finished 3rd on Rivals II


In the course of the past year-&-a-half, I've had a great time talking and interacting with the RW/Challenge community on social media, not just these cast members, as this extends also to a slew of fans who I talk to regularly about these shows & a few other things. Though time has flown by considerably, it feels like I've know these people for so very long, and I know them just about as well as my actual friends, and I've been great supporters of all of them.
   If you're a cast member who happens to read this, watch DC Blog in the coming days for a thank you note as my way of saying thank you for these great seven months I've had of talking to you here.

Our coverage of The Challenge: Rivals II will officially wrap up in the coming days with a full recap of this exciting season, from covering all of the episodes to giving away my season awards. After that, DC Blog will cover sports, entertainment & more during the fall & winter with an occasional RW/Challenge post sprinkled in between, before it goes into full-blown mode again once the buzz starts for RW Back to SF. For now, thanks for reading and until then, have fun.

- DC
@DC408dxtr




Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Why Do They Call It The Metroplex?

By DC Cueva

With the ladies of Big Tips Texas taking center stage in MTV's 10 Spot tonight with its official premiere and a double-dose of episodes to boot, just a week after being given a sample sneak peek after the Miley Cyrus Movement documentary, DC Blog likes to take a look at the market where the show takes place in, the Dallas/Fort Worth area, and why people refer to it by its nickname, the Metroplex.

While I have not been to Texas (or any other place east of the Pacific time zone except for two trips to New York), I've had some sort of fascination with the Lone Star State. And when out of town'ers travel to Texas, there seems to be something grand about the state. Or course, there's that saying "Everything is bigger in Texas," and rightfully so. It's the largest state in terms of size amongst the 48 continental states in the this country, and is the 3rd largest state in terms of population.
   Already the country's largest land-locked metropolitan arealast year Dallas/Fort Worth surpassed rival Texas city to the south, Houston, to become not just the largest population center in the South, but also the nation's largest combined statistical area (metropolitan areas with one or more cities of significance in population) outside of the Big Three, with a population total of over 6.7 million people, placing it 4th behind the New York, Los Angeles and Chicago metropolitan areas. It is presently the nation's 5th largest TV market, having leap frogged San Francisco and Boston in the past few years into the Top 5. There are 13 counties classified in the DFW area, and 13 cities have at least 100,000 residents, the largest, of course, being Dallas at 1.2 million, followed by Fort Worth at nearly 758,000.
   In the grand scheme of things, one of the world's largest airports is in the DFW area. The Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport is the busiest airport in the country, and is also home base for both American and Southwest Airlines (based at nearby Dallas Love Field). There's a larger concentration of corporate headquarters than any other U.S. city with many other top Fortune 500 companies & 10,000+ companies large & small calling the Metroplex home, including Exxon/Mobil, AT&T, JCPenney, Texas Instruments, GameStop and the Dr. Pepper/Snapple Group. American Airlines is the area's largest employer at over 22,000, followed closely behind by Wal-Mart at 21,000.
   In pop culture, there's the prime time soap Dallas, with Southfork Ranch a popular tourist stop. In the sports scheme of things, it's one of 12 U.S. cities with a team in all four major sports: the Rangers, the Stars, and the Mavericks, led by controversial owner Mark Cuban. And of course, there's the Cowboys, whose appeal as America's Team and the NFL franchise that's both the most-loved & hated is undeniable. Their new stadium is now the model sports stadium of the 21st century, and their broad reach helped put a positive stamp on the area in the years after what happened 50 years ago next month. You can ask someone who lived through that November day in 1963 when JFK was assassinated.

Now, comes the question, why do locals refer to the Dallas/Fort Worth as "the Metroplex" instead of North Texas? When you get down to it, the term is a compound word: a combination of Metro as in "metropolitan" or "metropolis", and -Plex as in "complex". And its definition: per Wikipedia, "a contiguous metropolitan area that has more than one principal anchor city of near equal importance."
   The North Texas Commission adopted, and then copyrighted, the term "Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex" in 1972 to replace the term "North Texas", for which studies found that it lacked identifiability outside the state. In fact, nearly 2 out of 5 people in a survey group identified the two cities as part of North Texas, with the Panhandle also receiving a correct answer to those questions, being the northernmost part of the state.
   It's because of the "near equal" term defined in Metroplex that sees cities like New York, LA, Chicago, Houston and others not be considered metroplexes, though secondary anchor cities are generally found there. Other big markets that might also consider themselves metroplexes include the San Francisco Bay Area (San Francisco, Oakland & San Jose), Minneapolis-St. Paul (aka the Twin Cities), Tampa-St. Petersburg, Baltimore/Washington, and Miami-Fort Lauderdale.

So, that's DC Blog's primer of the Dallas/Fort Worth area, better known as the Metroplex. And if you happen to go and see the BTT ladies at Redneck Heaven, tell me hello on behalf of them, will ya?

Stay tuned here to DCB as we cover sports, entertainment and some other things too. If you're a Real World/Challenge fan, check out my full coverage of Rivals II, with a season wrap up coming up soon, followed by RW Back to San Francisco. For now, thanks for reading and until then, have fun.

- DC
@DC408dxtr


Sources:

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Welcome to Team MTV, Ladies & Nurses

By DC Cueva

So, we're into the month of October and for the first time since last winter, there's no new episode of The Real World or The Challenge to look forward to on Wednesday nights, well at least until early in the new year. Filming of a new Real World continues up the way in San Francisco, with the season 29 cast slated to return to social media world after filming later this fall, and their trailer expected to debut over the holidays, for which I'll be embracing them in the same manner that I did for St. Thomas and Portland. And after a great season of Rivals II that ended with deserving winners & a smack on the live reunion, there's already speculation around the hot stove of who could possibly be on the next Challenge, with that taking sometime in the next month, which means some of my favorites might not be able to wish me happy birthday in less than 45 days from now.
   But for me, no worries. I've always been a big Real World fan and have become a new Challenge enthusiast as of late, but I'm also an overall MTV fan too. Earlier this year, I got a good warmup for RWPDX with the folks in the NYC neighborhood of Washington Heights, while I also had some fun & laughs in West Virginia with the Buckwild crew. And thanks to buying that Season 1 DVD & all the buzz it generated, I'm starting to get into Catfish. Being used to RW's way of doing storytelling in documenting young adults in a mostly laid-back atmosphere (which I actually prefer compared to The Challenge's cutthroat nature), I'm actually one of those who appreciates great television and is open to whatever format or show that's out there. And I wouldn't mind watching an episode or two of Teen Mom, that's just the way it is for me. I'm a storytelling junkie.
   With those thoughts in mind, I have already extended the welcome mat to two new docu-series that premiere this month that, per an MTV presser, "focus on the lives of two diverse and dynamic groups of young people working hard to pursue their dreams," and I always like shows that follow in that mantra, reminiscent of old-school RW. And I've already given a twitter follow - and my customary "Welcome to Team MTV" greeting - to all of the cast members from those two shows below, some have gave me a follow back too, so thanks, much appreciated. For those who might bemoan having no RW/Challenge until 2014 but also have a good eye for the same balance of storytelling & fun that we've become used to on the legacy series, than you might be able to give these two a try.

BIG TIPS TEXAS
First up on Wednesday, October 9th - or check that, later tonight with a special sneak peek to come our way after the Miley Cyrus: The Movement doc - it's Big Tips Texas. From first glance at the trailer, fans might look at it as a mixture of Jersey Shore, The Hills and Buckwild, or a real-life Coyote Ugly. But it also looks to be a very good show documenting a close-knit clique of girls who work at a bar in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, or as locals call it, the Metroplex. Big Tips Texas will follow the lives of four veterans and six new girls serving it up at Redneck Heaven in Lewisville, 25 miles north of Dallas, while also hoping to realize their own dreams, and having some fun along the way as only Texans know how. One of a number of RW/Challenge people who follow me on twitter, Jasmine from RW Cancun & the last four Challenges, can relate to these ladies as she has also worked in a bar down in Houston.
   Taking a page out of one of The Challenge's formats of The Gauntlet (something fans are desperately wanting to see on a future season btw), there's veterans and rookies. For the vets, there's Taphani, the boss lady; Claire, the bar's top bartender; Sabrina, a well-rounded student working to build her college fund & eventually go to Harvard Law School; and Amber, who knows how to do her thing but can also cause some tension with the staff. For the newcomers, we got Kristyn - a waitress with her ambitions set on climbing her way up the RH corporate ladder & launching her own clothing line; rodeo princess Morgan (a barrel racer); Mimi, someone who might also get into an argument, Chicago girl Jillian; the so-called "biggest little Texan of all" Macy, and southern server Mercedez.
   There will be laughs, there will be drama, there will be heart, and there will be a whole lot of sisterhood & friendship, all as they work towards adulthood one day at a time, or "one crazy shift at a time" as the presser likes to call it. We'll find them spending free time at the nearby lake, mapping out their future, having fun at the ranch and everything else Texas style. And there'll even be some fighting & making up as well, just as any tight-knit group of girls have to go through. If you're one of those who'd wish there would be a 2nd season of Buckwild by now, Big Tips Texas should be able to suffice for that and you'll all be in good hands with these ladies. And tonight it begins with a special sneak preview, if can stay up long enough after watching what's been going on with Miley.

SCRUBBING IN
And then on Thursday, October 24th, it's Scrubbing In. As Congress continues to debate over the future of healthcare and whether or not to take the President's way of controlling how families get their medical insurance, it's surprising to think that working in hospitals & healthcare facilities has become a rapidly growing occupation among young people. A recent National Society of High School Scholars survey of MTV's demographic concluded that 8 of the top 25 preferred employers were hospitals & health service companies, and St. Jude's Hospital was the top choice. And Millennials have figured out that working in this field gives them financial security & benefits while also giving them a good work-life balance too. One of my FB friends, Ace (the same one who met the Lakers' Steve Nash in one of my IG pics), works in this field.
   With that in mind, cameras will follow the lives of nine traveling nurses who've relocated from across the country to Orange County, CA for the summer...but this is not necessarily your typical SoCal vacation. They're working a 12-week stint at a hospital in the O.C., leaving behind their hometown lives for short-term hospital jobs and exploring a new city too, as in The Real World. For TyriceChris & Fernando, this experience isn't new to them, they've been at this before and they're now experts at it. But for newcomers transplanted in from Pittsburgh, ChelseyMichelleCrystalNikki & Heather will all go on this new endeavor together, having worked as nurses in the Steel City. Also joining those ladies for his first go at this is Adrian from down the way in nearby San Diego.
   This group will all be having a monumental task ahead of them in dealing with the responsibilities & challenges of the always-intense nature of nursing. Outside the emergency room, they'll have to make new friends, maintain friendships already in place, dive into the local dating scene and, most importantly, continuously prove what they're made of to the staff at their new hospital. But it isn't just work 24/7 for them, they'll still have plenty of downtime to relax in the glamourous SoCal locale. In all, this is a big three months ahead for this group of young nurses. But, as the MTV presser states, "this energetic, fearless and outgoing group of young nurses are determined to have it all, including a rewarding career and personal life." The O.C. will be producing another fine show from there.

So, that's that. And if you're a cast member of Big Tips Texas or Scrubbing In who might happen to be reading this post, if I haven't greeted you with my salutation yet, Welcome to Team MTV. It's also been really cool to see members from both shows interacting with each other on twitter in the last few days as BTT's premiere has been moved up one week to tonight & the Scrubbing In trailer debuting during last night's Catfish, and realizing that they're part of the same great family as the Jersey Shore, Teen Mom and RW/Challenge folks (both shows also happen to share the same executive producer, Shannon Fitzgerald, who also EP'd Washington Heights, which also followed along the lines of both shows in documenting cast members' aspirations). 
   And as what I'll be telling the Real World Back to San Francisco cast in a few weeks' time, you are all about to go on a ride you will never forget. To you all, enjoy his ride, and can't wait to watch all of you starting this month. And for the ladies in the Metroplex, it all begins tonight. 

- DC
@DC408dxtr

For more - MTV Press Release:
http://mtvpress.com/press/release/mtv_to_debut_two_new_docu_series_big_tips_texas_and_scrubbing_in_this_octob