I'm hooked. Well, we're hooked. My 10-year-old and I have found some common ground. We're into Ninja Warriors on G4. We've cleared out about 10 of them on the DVR. You can also keep up with Ninja Warrior podcasts. (must have iTunes).

I just read a TV blogger say that she didn't like I Survived a Japanese Game Show because it seemed the Japanese were being condescending toward Americans and that "it seemed as if they were thinking ..."Look what they are willing to do for $250,000."

Duh. That's the whole point.

Ever since the late Chris Farley was tortured on a Japanese game show on a Saturday Night Live sketch, I've been interested in wacky Japanese game shows.

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I've watched every second of AMC's Breaking Bad. I thought I'd seen the best show going with AMC's Mad Men ... until this show came along.

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Texans had trouble with vowels today.

Aditya Chemudupaty, a 12-year-old seventh-grader at Nolan Ryan Junior High School, was the Lone Star State's last hope in the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

The word "grenache" got him. He used an "a" in place of the "e" in his spelling, earning him the hook.

Oh well, Texas still has the National Geographic Bee. To all you other states: Scoreboard!

On the bright side, Aditya Chemudupaty, a 12-year-old seventh-grader at Nolan Ryan Junior High School still has a shot.

Aditya took on "poivrade," which is a peppery sauce. He got it right and kept the Lone Star State in the running for a winner.

Said one of the ESPN commentators: "He fired it in like a Nolan Ryan fastball."

Check the Twitter coverage here.

One stinking letter. Mouctika L. Paluri encountered laeotropous in the fifth round of today's Scripps National Spelling Bee semifinals. She missed the "a" in her spelling.

She asked for the word's language of origin. Gave it a shot, let out a soft "awww," when she found out it was wrong and exited stage right.

It was her third shot at the Bee. She finished tied for 25th last year.

Follow the live Twitter feed here. 

Speaking of baseball similarities, Texas Rangers President Nolan Ryan should be pulling for Aditya Chemudupaty, a 12-year-old seventh-grader at Nolan Ryan Junior High School.

Nolan Ryan Junior High is in Alvin ISD, a few hundred yards from the Nolan Ryan Expressway in Pearland.

By the way, Aditya, contestant No. 255, nailed the spelling of "eland," and like Nolan, slowly walked off the mound to the dugout ... or to his little chair.

Follow the action here.

North Texas has the National Geographic Bee champ in The Colony's Eric Yang, who was welcomed back with fanfare by Griffin Middle School this week.

Wouldn't it be cool if Carrollton eighth-grade student Mouctika L. Paluri won the Scripps National Spelling Bee?

I'm just sayin'. It could happen. Stay tuned here.

By the way, you can see Eric at 7 tonight on the broadcast-TV debut of the Geographic Bee on KERA/Channel 13 on your dial.

It took nearly an agonizing two minutes, but Carrollton eighth-grade student Mouctika L. Paluri -- our No. 251 -- passed her first test in today's semifinals. She spelled "flittern," asking the judges multiple questions about the word's usage, origin, etc. (I would have asked them how to spell the word just to see whether they'd trip up.) I knew how to spell it the moment it was flashed on the screen. Follow the Twitter feed here.

The Scripps National Spelling Bee has kicked off on ESPN, and I'm waiting for Carrollton eighth-grade student Mouctika L. Paluri. You can watch it or monitor the Twitter feed like we're doing.

It's been a couple of years since I've watched it, not since Samir Patel of Colleyville was competing.

The purists who only believe sports is defined by a ball or puck will disagree, but it does belong on ESPN. You would think it belonged on a more hi-brow network or, with so many channels these days, spelling would have its own place on the dial.

But it is very much like a sports event. It's competitive, of course, and it has the nuances of a sporting event. Competitors are numbered (Mouctika is No. 251), and the kids dig in at the plate like a seasoned hitter, asking judges for definitions, the word's parts of speech, usage, root meaning, working the count.

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