2025 NHK Trophy Womens FS PBP - Wonder Women (In Their Flesh Colour Tights Sliding On The Ice)
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Wyliefan
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I wish Kaori had something better than Disaster Movie La Vie En Rose for her swan song, but I understand why it's meaningful to her, and it will probably look great on Olympic ice. She's such a bright light in this sport.
Kateri
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Thanks to you and @skatingguy for pbp!Yay, had fun. Thanks guys!
Kateri
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Midori Ito is giving the medals!! 
Private Citizen
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Quite a lenient panel today that made heavy use of q. Results could look a lot different were < to be used instead.
Ridiculous that Sakamoto's lutz was not called and received +3s. I'll die on this hill! She'll still win by a mile. Is it so hard to call?
Ridiculous that Sakamoto's lutz was not called and received +3s. I'll die on this hill! She'll still win by a mile. Is it so hard to call?
Coco
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Kaori's face is just so radiant with all the good things. I'm so glad she is healthy for her final season, it doesn't always work this way.
I didn't know Young was working with Tammy G. Maybe her other skaters can absorb some of those jump rotations.
I almost wish Elyse was less beautiful and less graceful. Being the focus of so many other people's hopes, dreams and expectations must be stifling. She's making progress and has some great moments. I wish her team would back off the difficulty and see if she can get a clean skate.
Sofia looks so petite and charming on the ice. I had no idea she was so tall. Now I have to like her even more, as if putting a 3t on the end of her final jumping pass wasn't reason enough. Love her confidence and presentation.
I didn't know Young was working with Tammy G. Maybe her other skaters can absorb some of those jump rotations.
I almost wish Elyse was less beautiful and less graceful. Being the focus of so many other people's hopes, dreams and expectations must be stifling. She's making progress and has some great moments. I wish her team would back off the difficulty and see if she can get a clean skate.
Sofia looks so petite and charming on the ice. I had no idea she was so tall. Now I have to like her even more, as if putting a 3t on the end of her final jumping pass wasn't reason enough. Love her confidence and presentation.
SkateFanBerlin
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This is the ugliest, bombastic version of these French classics. Bombast. To me they spoil the swan song.
annie_mg
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I am worried Kaori is peaking too soon this season. She needs to be delivering that performance in February. Hopefully she can keep it up. Her programmes are brilliantly choreographed to emphasize her strengths and hide her weaknesses.
I was again impressed with Samodelkina, who, despite being a bit rough around the edges, makes me excited to watch the next four years. I love her spark and in some ways she reminds me of Kaori.
Loena was underwhelming, but she needed a good programme to boost her confidence so I'm happy for her.
Aoki. Give her all the 10s in PCS, that's all I'm going to say.
I was again impressed with Samodelkina, who, despite being a bit rough around the edges, makes me excited to watch the next four years. I love her spark and in some ways she reminds me of Kaori.
Loena was underwhelming, but she needed a good programme to boost her confidence so I'm happy for her.
Aoki. Give her all the 10s in PCS, that's all I'm going to say.
SkateFanBerlin
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Off topic, but wish they would take the elements out of PCS. Why are they there? Plenty to work with in GOE. Often in the men a jumping machine suddenly gets 8`s in PCS. Thinking of Leona today. Such a dramatic skater, beautiful lines, connections between moves, etc. Her PCS is not much different from skaters around her. Just too much correlation between Tech and PCS.
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Just watched the last four women plus Aoki. I teared up a bit after Kaori’s skate. What a champion, as a skater and a human being.
Just love Sofia. It’s marvelous to see a talented Russian with a healthy body and great technique. She and Loena could be sisters, facially. Am a bit sorry for You, always painful to lose a medal by a fraction, but she is really a viable contender for a Korean Oly spot, which I didn’t see happening.
The three U.S. ladies better be in their game in Milan, there’s plenty of talent elsewhere.
Just love Sofia. It’s marvelous to see a talented Russian with a healthy body and great technique. She and Loena could be sisters, facially. Am a bit sorry for You, always painful to lose a medal by a fraction, but she is really a viable contender for a Korean Oly spot, which I didn’t see happening.
The three U.S. ladies better be in their game in Milan, there’s plenty of talent elsewhere.
skatingguy
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zigzig
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Kaori - sheer brilliance but echoing others who are hoping she can keep up this pace for February.
Sofia - she's so casual going into these jumps and they come out so nicely. She was lucky to get a lenient call on the 3Lo+3T since that may have been the difference between silver and bronze for her. Great musicality and expression.
Loena - nice redemption from the short. There's not much to this program besides gimme points cuz I'm hot but the judges are buying what she's selling so why bother with choreography. Some tight rotations so lucky to squeak out with just one q.
Young - feel bad that she had two of the skates of her life and could only manage fourth here. She got hosed on PCS and while she isn't the most thrilling skater I thought she had a nice connection to the music and choreography and her performance quality did blossom as she went along (and was landing jumps).
Sarah - definitely an improvement but needs a quicker snap into rotation and a better air position or she's going to continue being plagued by q and < (and the clean call on the 3+3 was definitely a freebie).
Yuna - she had the program of the night for me. Would be great in ice dance and frankly had the only program out of all these women that I'd be interested in watching again.
Ahsun - tech panels are really harsh on her. She needs a bit of reinvention if she's ever going to break out of the middle pack.
Pezzetta - sloppy skate and also in need of reinvention. Good ingredients but the chefs in her kitchen don't really know what they're doing.
Wakaba - didn't realize she was injured. Hope she gets better and ends her season with a feeling of accomplishment. Also seemed to get < on some jumps other skaters got away with q's on...
Elyce - so timid and always skating not to fall - which she invariably ends up doing. Needs attack and a program that will help her connect with the audience.
Sofia - she's so casual going into these jumps and they come out so nicely. She was lucky to get a lenient call on the 3Lo+3T since that may have been the difference between silver and bronze for her. Great musicality and expression.
Loena - nice redemption from the short. There's not much to this program besides gimme points cuz I'm hot but the judges are buying what she's selling so why bother with choreography. Some tight rotations so lucky to squeak out with just one q.
Young - feel bad that she had two of the skates of her life and could only manage fourth here. She got hosed on PCS and while she isn't the most thrilling skater I thought she had a nice connection to the music and choreography and her performance quality did blossom as she went along (and was landing jumps).
Sarah - definitely an improvement but needs a quicker snap into rotation and a better air position or she's going to continue being plagued by q and < (and the clean call on the 3+3 was definitely a freebie).
Yuna - she had the program of the night for me. Would be great in ice dance and frankly had the only program out of all these women that I'd be interested in watching again.
Ahsun - tech panels are really harsh on her. She needs a bit of reinvention if she's ever going to break out of the middle pack.
Pezzetta - sloppy skate and also in need of reinvention. Good ingredients but the chefs in her kitchen don't really know what they're doing.
Wakaba - didn't realize she was injured. Hope she gets better and ends her season with a feeling of accomplishment. Also seemed to get < on some jumps other skaters got away with q's on...
Elyce - so timid and always skating not to fall - which she invariably ends up doing. Needs attack and a program that will help her connect with the audience.
Matryeshka
Euler? Euler? Anyone?
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(BTW, I have no desire to go back to 6.0, but it's nice to be nostalgic sometimes).
Dear second group skaters: thank you for doing what many of the ice dancers could not and make me sentimental about the 90s and 90s skating. So many lovely skaters who were meant to do 3/2 and salchows perfectly timed to the music and big sweeping arms and ina bauers and true laybacks. Spence was meant to duke it out with J-Ro's lovely single axel/double toe combo (no sarcasm, I really loved that move from her in her little polka dot dress) at Canadian Nationals. Aoki's steps and glide going head-to-head with Fumie's gorrrrrgeous change of edge camel. Elyce duking it out with Jenny Kirk on the junior circuit in the late 90s/early 00s, all of us on F$World waiting for them to put it together as seniors.
Ah, Wakaba. We will always be Running up That Step Sequence with you
Ah, Pezzetta, I just don't think this is your year. Skating in a home Olympics, is, ummm, completely overrated.
Sarah Everhardt's program is too on the nose. Firstly, I don't think a reanimated corpse is a good look for her as she's already wooden. Secondly, the program requires you to be familiar with the movie, and most (not all, I know some on FSU are super cultured and avant garde or whatever) of figure skating's demographic and frankly the judges are probably not. There are operas/movies/musicals where the music is so strong you don't need to know the story to enjoy it and it's easier to interpret it literally or not--East of Eden, Gladiator, Nessum Dorma, Swan Lake, Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet, Pride and Prejudice. This music is just odd, strange, and discordant. Josie Taljegard could do this program and make it work, but I'm not sure anyone else could or should.
Loena was great. I think an Olympic medal is probably a long shot unless she has the skate of her life and everyone else does very badly, but today she looked like a Euro champion. Love what she brings to the ice.
Young You, so happy for her to skate so well!
Sofia. Listen, if you're going to skate to Eastern Sunset Boulevard, you need to be the most wicked, most fabulous babushka on the block. I need fur and crazy eyes and a dress so bedazzled AP McDonough's mom and Kirsten Moore-Towers are judging you. She needs to dig deep, channel her inner Maria Anissina, and terrify the judges and the audience. She was DAMN lucky to hang on to silver here.
Kaori, what a storybook ending for her for NHK. I would not be shocked if this is more of a pressure cooker for her than the Olympics.
After a rather sorry SP, the top four were really excellent. What a worthy podium this is.
Dear second group skaters: thank you for doing what many of the ice dancers could not and make me sentimental about the 90s and 90s skating. So many lovely skaters who were meant to do 3/2 and salchows perfectly timed to the music and big sweeping arms and ina bauers and true laybacks. Spence was meant to duke it out with J-Ro's lovely single axel/double toe combo (no sarcasm, I really loved that move from her in her little polka dot dress) at Canadian Nationals. Aoki's steps and glide going head-to-head with Fumie's gorrrrrgeous change of edge camel. Elyce duking it out with Jenny Kirk on the junior circuit in the late 90s/early 00s, all of us on F$World waiting for them to put it together as seniors.
Ah, Wakaba. We will always be Running up That Step Sequence with you
Ah, Pezzetta, I just don't think this is your year. Skating in a home Olympics, is, ummm, completely overrated.
Sarah Everhardt's program is too on the nose. Firstly, I don't think a reanimated corpse is a good look for her as she's already wooden. Secondly, the program requires you to be familiar with the movie, and most (not all, I know some on FSU are super cultured and avant garde or whatever) of figure skating's demographic and frankly the judges are probably not. There are operas/movies/musicals where the music is so strong you don't need to know the story to enjoy it and it's easier to interpret it literally or not--East of Eden, Gladiator, Nessum Dorma, Swan Lake, Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet, Pride and Prejudice. This music is just odd, strange, and discordant. Josie Taljegard could do this program and make it work, but I'm not sure anyone else could or should.
Loena was great. I think an Olympic medal is probably a long shot unless she has the skate of her life and everyone else does very badly, but today she looked like a Euro champion. Love what she brings to the ice.
Young You, so happy for her to skate so well!
Sofia. Listen, if you're going to skate to Eastern Sunset Boulevard, you need to be the most wicked, most fabulous babushka on the block. I need fur and crazy eyes and a dress so bedazzled AP McDonough's mom and Kirsten Moore-Towers are judging you. She needs to dig deep, channel her inner Maria Anissina, and terrify the judges and the audience. She was DAMN lucky to hang on to silver here.
Kaori, what a storybook ending for her for NHK. I would not be shocked if this is more of a pressure cooker for her than the Olympics.
After a rather sorry SP, the top four were really excellent. What a worthy podium this is.
skatingguy
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Medals were presented by Midori Ito.
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I'm from Switzerland; I worry that trying to skate despite this injury will harm Livia's reputation in the future. The lasting impression is stiffness and stumbles, and that's terrible for a skater who's put in so much work to attempt to be here and obviously has ambition.Livia Kaiser
Rank after SP: 12
Coach: Linda van Troyen, Sindra Kriisa
Music: Infinity Cycle. Attacca
3Lz+3Tq
3F< - fall
3S
2A
Change Foot Comb<o Spin 4
1Lz+2T+2Loq
3F!+REP - fall
3Lo - fall
Step Sequence 2 - big stumble
Flying Change Foot Combo Spin 3 (4 after review)
Choreo Sequence
Layback Spin 3
Kaiser's skating is a bit stiff, her posture too upright, and her air position too lose, and all of these things are making skating with an injury that much harder.
-4.00 = Falls
86.26 = 1st Place
134.21 = 1st Place
Miezekatze
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My friend and I don’t get why she‘s competing in this state. It was already horrible to watch at Nebelhorn Trophy.
I mean Switzerland has 2 spots anyway (?), Kimmy Repond is also injured and resting, what’s the point of finishing last everywhere with terrible skates? I can’t think of any injury that improves by competing a lot and what is it supposed to achieve?
Karen-W
How long until GP assignments are announced?
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Livia has to achieve a total score of 185 or more by Jan 18, 2026 in order for the Swiss OC to use the 2nd spot she & Kimmy earned at Worlds. That's why she is competing so much.
I'm watching the replay on Peacock. It must be awesome to compete in Japan. Not only is it a full house, the audience is so supportive and into the music. Katherine Spence of Canada skated to "Moonlight Sonata" and you could just feel how with her, with the music was. Of course the crowd is thrilled for home skaters, but they are thrilled for everybody.
Miezekatze
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hmmm, ok, didn't know that. But a) I still think it might have been more realistic to give it 1 or 2 good shots later and b) realistically: is there really a point to go to the Olympics under these circumstances?
Karen-W
How long until GP assignments are announced?
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You get no argument from me on that. Her team should have absolutely not had her competing at Swiss Open the week after GPdF - and they probably should have had her WD after the SP at GPdF because it was clear she was NOT competition ready there. She needs to take a few weeks off and aim to achieve that score at a competition like Golden Spin in another 3.5 weeks.
skatingguy
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I think this is less of an issue in singles than other disciplines. She was never the most fluid skater, but once she starts landing her jumps her GOE, and PCS will come back relatively quickly.
Sally1214
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I DID it! Finally finished watching ALL of the NHK Trophy events. Finishing with the women's FS. Some thoughts:
Livia Kaiser - Aww, poor Livia. That was one of those nightmarish skates that you just want to end so that she can be put out of her misery. I felt so sorry for her in the K/C. Poor girl. Kudos to the Japanese audience for being supportive and trying to help her get through it. Surely, that will be Livia's worst skate this season and it will all be better from now on.
Katherine Medland Spence - Some nice moments mixed in with quite a few sketchy landings. It wasn't horrible but Katherine doesn't have the technical difficulty to go anywhere. She looks like she's enjoying being at this event though, so good for her.
Wakaba Higuchi - Well, that was certainly emotional. She did quite well in the first half until she ran out of gas or maybe the pain from injuries took over. Aww .... her tears .... I wish this skate could have gone better for her.
Yuna Aoki - She's fun. She radiates her joy of skating and it's infectious. Good skate for her and the colour of her dress looks lovely on her.
Elyce Lyn-Gracey - Things just fell apart in the 2nd half of that program. Another skater trying to recover from injuries. Too much of that going on these days...you really have to feel for them. A couple of nice spins to end the program. Get well soon, Elyce.
Anna Pezzetta - Black Swan is such big music and Anna was trying her best to skate "big" to do it justice. Soooo, some jumps were BIG and well done but at other times it was kind of wild. The step sequence contained a fair amount of flailing about and then sequed into such a lovely spin combo. So, a mixed bag from Anna today. She looked quite disappointed with her score but I thought it was about right. I really liked her dress and long gloves.
Sarah Everhardt - Decent skate by Sarah. I was so hoping she would land the last jump but it was not meant to be. Not keen on her dress at all.
Ahsun Yun - That's a really beautiful program which was going SO well ... and then 2 consecutive falls. Sigh. I would love to see this skated perfectly cleanly before season's end. I think it would score very well. Wow .. 60.36 for both TES and PCS. How often does THAT happen?
Loena Hendrickx - YESSSSS!!! Loena is BACK!!! As Mark said, that was a STELLAR skate. SO happy for her. Only negative for me was the dress. Although Loena looks stunning in anything, that dress doesn't have enough color in it for me ... the tights/dress all fade in together. But, that's nitpicking. Leona, you were GREAT!!
Young Yu - Wonderful skate by Yu. I thought she had done enough to stay ahead of Loena (given her 5-point SP lead) but, alas, those pesky rotation calls did her in. Have we seen closer final scores?
Sofia Samodelkina - And, the great skates continue. Sofia isn't just good, she's gutsy. Making that last jumping pass a combo with a triple on the end was awesome. Oh, wow, she got 200 points! She's happy ... Rafael's happy .... we are all happy. Well done, Sofia! And I loved her dress too ... a lovely color for her.
Kaori Sakamoto - Just fabulous. What a perfect ending to the women's FS. Kaori has given so much to the sport and continues to give even more. I'm really going to miss her when she retires. Is there anybody who doesn't just love her?
So, that's it. I'm completely done with NHK. Managed to see every single performance. I'm really looking forward to Skate America next week with just a one-hour time difference for me. I can watch everything LIVE (for the 1st time this season). No late nights .... no early mornings .... it's going to be GREAT! See you all then.
Livia Kaiser - Aww, poor Livia. That was one of those nightmarish skates that you just want to end so that she can be put out of her misery. I felt so sorry for her in the K/C. Poor girl. Kudos to the Japanese audience for being supportive and trying to help her get through it. Surely, that will be Livia's worst skate this season and it will all be better from now on.
Katherine Medland Spence - Some nice moments mixed in with quite a few sketchy landings. It wasn't horrible but Katherine doesn't have the technical difficulty to go anywhere. She looks like she's enjoying being at this event though, so good for her.
Wakaba Higuchi - Well, that was certainly emotional. She did quite well in the first half until she ran out of gas or maybe the pain from injuries took over. Aww .... her tears .... I wish this skate could have gone better for her.
Yuna Aoki - She's fun. She radiates her joy of skating and it's infectious. Good skate for her and the colour of her dress looks lovely on her.
Elyce Lyn-Gracey - Things just fell apart in the 2nd half of that program. Another skater trying to recover from injuries. Too much of that going on these days...you really have to feel for them. A couple of nice spins to end the program. Get well soon, Elyce.
Anna Pezzetta - Black Swan is such big music and Anna was trying her best to skate "big" to do it justice. Soooo, some jumps were BIG and well done but at other times it was kind of wild. The step sequence contained a fair amount of flailing about and then sequed into such a lovely spin combo. So, a mixed bag from Anna today. She looked quite disappointed with her score but I thought it was about right. I really liked her dress and long gloves.
Sarah Everhardt - Decent skate by Sarah. I was so hoping she would land the last jump but it was not meant to be. Not keen on her dress at all.
Ahsun Yun - That's a really beautiful program which was going SO well ... and then 2 consecutive falls. Sigh. I would love to see this skated perfectly cleanly before season's end. I think it would score very well. Wow .. 60.36 for both TES and PCS. How often does THAT happen?
Loena Hendrickx - YESSSSS!!! Loena is BACK!!! As Mark said, that was a STELLAR skate. SO happy for her. Only negative for me was the dress. Although Loena looks stunning in anything, that dress doesn't have enough color in it for me ... the tights/dress all fade in together. But, that's nitpicking. Leona, you were GREAT!!
Young Yu - Wonderful skate by Yu. I thought she had done enough to stay ahead of Loena (given her 5-point SP lead) but, alas, those pesky rotation calls did her in. Have we seen closer final scores?
Sofia Samodelkina - And, the great skates continue. Sofia isn't just good, she's gutsy. Making that last jumping pass a combo with a triple on the end was awesome. Oh, wow, she got 200 points! She's happy ... Rafael's happy .... we are all happy. Well done, Sofia! And I loved her dress too ... a lovely color for her.
Kaori Sakamoto - Just fabulous. What a perfect ending to the women's FS. Kaori has given so much to the sport and continues to give even more. I'm really going to miss her when she retires. Is there anybody who doesn't just love her?
So, that's it. I'm completely done with NHK. Managed to see every single performance. I'm really looking forward to Skate America next week with just a one-hour time difference for me. I can watch everything LIVE (for the 1st time this season). No late nights .... no early mornings .... it's going to be GREAT! See you all then.
Aussie Willy
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Got a chance to watch this on the weekend.
Everhardt - I really liked both her programs. The dress I was perplexed at first but then when I saw it was Poor Things soundtrack I got it. And I think she did really well with the music. However she had a golden opportunity to do the dance scene from the movie which is pretty bonkers but one of the best parts of the movie. It would have been great for the steps or chorey sequence.
Aoki is gorgeous. Beautiful highlighting of the nuances. Knows how to reflect the phrasing of the music and takes time. It is not just randomly thrown out there for the sake of doing choreography. Each move has purpose. The difference between the SP and FS is really portrayed through the character of her interpretation.
Samodelkina - liked her at worlds and here she is the real deal. Lovely to watch, uses the music and technically very strong. I think she is a future world medalist. This season if others don't perform and she does she will be in the mix.
Leona - I really like her but I don't find anything exceptional in the choreography.
Kaori - freaking amazing. Love her.
Everhardt - I really liked both her programs. The dress I was perplexed at first but then when I saw it was Poor Things soundtrack I got it. And I think she did really well with the music. However she had a golden opportunity to do the dance scene from the movie which is pretty bonkers but one of the best parts of the movie. It would have been great for the steps or chorey sequence.
Aoki is gorgeous. Beautiful highlighting of the nuances. Knows how to reflect the phrasing of the music and takes time. It is not just randomly thrown out there for the sake of doing choreography. Each move has purpose. The difference between the SP and FS is really portrayed through the character of her interpretation.
Samodelkina - liked her at worlds and here she is the real deal. Lovely to watch, uses the music and technically very strong. I think she is a future world medalist. This season if others don't perform and she does she will be in the mix.
Leona - I really like her but I don't find anything exceptional in the choreography.
Kaori - freaking amazing. Love her.
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annie_mg
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I'm still gushig over Aoki and I wish there were still pro competitions because she would win them all. She is the most musical skater since Miyahara and she might even be better than her. Oksana Baiul was similar.
These aren't things you can learn. You are either born with it or you aren't. Sure, skaters like Kostner are known for how they interpreted the music well, but actually, she learned to use the music and skate to it as she matured. It wasn't natural and it was never as impactful as Aoki.
Arg. I just love her.
These aren't things you can learn. You are either born with it or you aren't. Sure, skaters like Kostner are known for how they interpreted the music well, but actually, she learned to use the music and skate to it as she matured. It wasn't natural and it was never as impactful as Aoki.
Arg. I just love her.
Aussie Willy
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Totally agree. You cannot teach what she has. It is natural.
