AI-S11 Billy Joel Results

   Who was that girl who sang first? She had on a weird outfit, and sounded strange.

   Haley Reinhart's return was very...uh, Haley Reinhart.

   The medley song was kind of...I don't know, something...

   The Ford video was all right, kind of lame.

   I was wrong again. Bottom three were DeAndre, Erika and Heejun, Erika went home, not Elise.

American Idol Season 11 Top 10 - Billy Joel Night

Well, that was an interesting show....I really liked some of them, really won't remember most of them, and really detested a few.

Tommy Hilfiger seems like a neat guy, it was interesting to hear his advice on clothes for the contestants.

DeAndre Brackensick - Only The Good Die Young - I had never heard that song before, from its' being mentioned in Kenny Chesney's "I Go Back", I expected it to be a sad type of ballad, kind of a story song. It was weird to hear that it was so upbeat and catchy. Kinda liked it, he was having fun, it was an all right beginning, got us into it. That jacket thing he was wearing was kind of cool.

Erika Van Pelt - New York State of Mind - I had heard this one before, but didn't know it was Billy Joel. It's a nice song, I guess, not a fan of her haircut, she was boring and forgettable. Or maybe that's just cause I'm not from New England.

Joshua Ledet - She's Got A Way - Okay.

Skylar Laine - Shameless (??!!!!) - THIS WAS A BILLY JOEL SONG? Garth Brooks didn't do it originally? Actually, after I got over that shock, my next thought was a line from another Kenny Chesney hit, "Big Star". Skylar was Garth in a skirt, I liked it better than his version. My fourth thought was how stupid an outfit she was wearing.

Elise Testone - Vienna  - On the edge of good, possibly even great, but it was never quite there, all the way through. And the drop-off on that ledge is a huge space of weirdness.

Phillip Phillips - Movin' On - What kind of effects did they hook up to that guitar? That was cool! It was simple, kind of funky,  pretty good.

Hollie Cavanagh - Honesty - She looked hilarious, like some character from "Matlock" or some even older TV show. I couldn't even watch because I wouldn't have been able to hear her over my laughter. Not her best, quite possibly her worst, it was a little dull. But even so, it was still good, and despite the dire predictions of my discussion group cousins, I will be shocked if Hollie's in the bottom three.

Heejun Han - My Life - I freaked out when he missed the lyric. And then I freaked out when he couldn't remember it. And then I freaked out when it went uptempo. That was crazy! And I loved it! He won't win, but he sure is entertaining to have around. In the middle he kind of sounded like a weird Asian dude.

Jessica Sanchez - Everybody Has A Dream - That was old. And pageanty(First time that adjective has been used this season. Amazing we got this far without it.) Yawn-inducing. Forgettable. And bad.

Colton Dixon - Piano Man - I've always kind of liked that song, that was a seriously RED piano...he was VERY GOOD, I want his CD when it comes out. It was a great way to end the show.

Bottom three-
Elise,
Erika,
DeAndre.
I'll won't jump on the DeAndre's leaving bandwagon just yet, Elise leaves for home first.

Sportsthoughts

   Well, Peyton Manning had the longest adolescence of any football-playing equine in history...he was a Colt for fourteen years before becoming a Bronco. But really, seeing him in Denver, instead of Indy? That will take some getting used to.

   John Elway never liked Tim Tebow. We already knew it, but now we really know it. And of all the teams to get him in a trade, it's the New York Jets? For only a fourth-round pick? This will be an interesting story to watch....hard to imagine a worse NFL enviroment for a Christian to play in...much less in the largest city in the country, with the Enormous Microscope of Scrutiny every single semi-famous person on up is under.

   I don't really understand why everyone was so horrified by the Saints' bounty system...yes, it's technically against the league law, but every team has a bounty system! Football's a violent sport, people are going to get hit. Some are going to get hurt. The defensive players were trying to hurt people....hmm. That seems like kind of a gray area to me. No, they shouldn't try to actively hurt people, but they should be rewarded somehow for big plays, for playing hard. Doesn't seem like Sean Payton should've been suspended for an entire year. Isn't that like unfairly penalizing all the offensive players?

   I guess I'm going with Kansas or Michigan State in the NCAA Tournament...don't like Syracuse or Ohio State, North Carolina doesn't look to have a shot any longer, with their point guard hurt, how much longer can Wisconsin's defense-first methodology win the Badgers games? Those highlighter Baylor jerseys are awful...almost as bad as Maryland's flag football uniforms. It'd be kind of cool to see Ohio vs Xavier in the title game...not gonna happen, though. And all the great stories that could come out of a Cincinnati-Xavier rematch...

   Idol's going to be Billy Joel Night tonight. Hooray.

Senior Pics, Upsets, Free Agents, and Other Forms of March Madness

   It's March, cue the Madness.

    Two No. 2 seeds lost to No. 15 seeds? Thank you for busting nearly everyone in the USA's brackets, Missouri and Duke....Seriously, even the people like my aunt who knows nothing about sports, the kind who always end up with good brackets, they're toast. Not to mention everybody else.

    An American Idol contestant was kicked out for having FOUR outstanding warrants?? True, Jermaine was extremely irritating, and he needed to go home, and it's a flagrant violation of the show's rules, but it was still an unexpected way to leave.

    We saw Peyton Manning, of all quarterbacks, become a free agent??? HOW we we adjust to him in a non-Colts jersey?

   High school basketball finished up their playoffs, with all the crazy, intense pride and emotions they bring.

   And, of course, there's the inevitable spring break countdown, and the graduation countdown, and (I suppose) the prom countdown(Do people really care about proms, or is that just a movie thing?). And there's graduation parties, and senior pictures, and planning for graduations, and applications, and forms, and various other things that need filling out in order to attend an institute of higher learning in a few months. Plus, of course, there's those last pesky seven or eight weeks of high school....

   Anyway, when you add in the fact that the tornadoes are biding their time, waiting for the precisely right moment(whatever that is, I don't understand tornado logic), and that there's cute little baby goats and kittens and other animals, and memories of loved pets gone past, you get about one conclusion: It's springtime. More specifically, it's March.

   So, as part of the Madness, my small contribution(besides watching, only watching) quite a bit of college basketball, was having my senior pictures done. It's a weird experience, so....school-like and ordinary. (Laugh, it's a homeschooler thing.) We grabbed a notebook, couple cameras, an old press pass and my guitars and headed down to the football stadium, one of the few places a photo shoot would feel normal in. (Okay, I'm a guy. Girls...I don't know, seems like they'd feel comfortable shooting pictures anywhere.) So, we snapped about six hundred eighty-four pictures or so, at various places in the stands, on the sidelines, by the old football field, on the (stereotypical) railroad tracks, around the neighbor's farm, by a few buildings in our very small downtown area, and in the middle of the road. (Literally, on the center line. Right in front of a curve. Dangerous? Yep! Frightening? A little. Will it make good pics? Hopefully, we'll see how they turn out.)

   It was really weird....getting all my stuff together, heading to the field, just like it's a fall Friday night....knowing it's actually a spring Saturday evening, and we're just trying to fake the experience of reporting well. Actually, the whole thing felt like acting, really; a very peculiar type of acting, with all the action in still format.

   Fun, but a strange.experience, knowing that this means it's almost over, that it's time to actually leap out there into college, and from there, life as an adult. Just brings the whole thing of being a senior really home, you know, says "This is real. This is happening." Like being on a plane bound for Baltimore and realizing you belong to a select group of the best writers in the state. "I am? I mean, sure, here I sit, and there was that dinner last night at the hotel, but really, I'm one of the state's best writers?"

   There were a few downsides, though, it was cloudy, spitting rain occasionally(and so no Golden Hour of light as the sun drops off past the horizion), a screw from one guitar dropped loose and had to be re-tightened(it was found and put back on just fine), and I missed a good friend's graduation party.

   But overall it was a good, though strange, experience, and it was a fun time. Now to fling together tomorrow's church clothes, take a shower, cram in some extra practice of the morning's worship songs, and finish off a mocha Rockstar while rereading this blog post for errant typos.

AI-S11 YYWB Results

   I was wrong - again.

  On the other hand, so was nearly everyone else in our discussion group.

   The bottom three were Elise, Erika and Shannon, Elise was then safe, Shannon was kicked out, the judges had no intentions whatsoever of saving her.

   Demi Lovato was boring, she didn't look a thing like herself, Daughtry was awesome.

   And my bracket is about 75-80 percent right, for now. On AI picks, I'm 7-13(0-3).

American Idol Season 11 Top 12/11 - Year You Were Born Night

   By far my favorite theme.

   The judges sure were colorful last night, weren't they? A guy I know said JayLo looked like a tulip. They also had their "Let's give these people nothing to work with" thing going on.

   It wasn't cool that Jermaine was arrested, but at least we won't have to watch him any more. Felt bad for the producer.

   Anyway, here we go on the performances...

Phillip Phillips - Hard To Handle - He had stage presence, it was very cool, I liked it. That was a great way to kick off the show.

Jessica Sanchez - Turn The Beat Around - "And they voted. They did, they elected all the diff'rint ones of 'em that they liked, and she wasn't on there. She wasn't. Because she did, friends, she did exactly what her song said, and she turned that beat right around and is in danger of going home! She is!" (Said in Andy Griffith type voice.)
   It had a good beginning, from there...it was rough. Wild, all over the place. Shiny, shiny pants. Felt like a concert, and at that, it would've been all right. But we're not at a concert, we're trying to find the best singer in America that will sell records this year. And she ain't it. Judges' criticism sounded fake, like "We have to say something, and we need to say something encouraging, because if we said how we really felt about it, like Jimmy will tomorrow night, you'll be crushed." (This half of Jessica's critique said in my normal tone of voice.)

Heejun Han - Right Here Waiting - Voice wasn't quite right for this song, I liked it anyway. He was emotional, he was into it, he was feeling every little nuance of the tune, and it showed. Not perfect, but it worked. It was very authentic.

Elise Testone - Let's Stay Together - It was a boring song. Up and down, here and there...I felt like I was on a roller coaster. I hate roller coasters.

DeAndre Brackensick - Endless Love - I wasn't feeling it, quite forgettable. Really wished he would have done "Can You The Love Tonight" instead, like he planned originally. Then I could have had pictures of Simba and Nala falling in love instead of a weird-looking guy who's full of himself and who needs a haircut.

Shannon Magrane -One Sweet Day - Good. Were the notes a little too overpowering for her, though? She looked mad.

Colton Dixon - Broken Heart - GOOD. I loved that. Somebody set it on radio, please! Thinking of maybe downloading it, at least watching it several more times.

Erika Van Pelt - Heaven - Odd entrance, but it was kind of nice. I like that song(though now it's stuck in my head with Heejun's and that other Bryan Adams song from the Kevin Costner Robin Hood movie...) it was good.

Skylar Laine - Love Sneakin' Up on You - Don't mess with Mississippi girls...they'll smoke you. That was good, not her best, but again, she was the best girl of the night at this point.

Joshua Ledet - When a Man Loves a Woman - The crawfish intro was awesome("What if you have a shellfish allergy?" "Then you don't eat it." Channeling his inner Heejun, maybe?) Once the song started, though...it was pure torture. I detest that song, it's like a man's version of "Natural Woman" or something....EVERYone sings it, they all sound alike, and I can't wait for it to end. But hey, it could've been worse(like "Fever" or...)

Hollie Cavanagh - The Power of Love - She's likable, funny, her dad was hilarious("Hi, I'm Hollie Cavanagh. Wait...no, I meant, hi, I'm Hollie's dad...") When the cameras switch on, it's game time. When she hits the stage, she commands it. Blows all the other girls(yes, even Skylar) out of the water. It was kind of mesmerizing. Not my favorite she's done, but still, it was amazing.

Best of the night - Colton, Hollie. No question.
Good - Erika, Heejun, Phillip, Shannon and Skylar.
Forgettable - DeAndre, Elise.
In Trouble - Jessica, Joshua.
Arrested - Jermaine.

Who will miss out on the Top 10, and so not go on tour this summer? It's easy to say DeAndre, Elise or Jessica. Joshua was horrendous. People might not have voted for Heejun. Since I'm 0-2 as far as finalists go at this point(7-12 if you include my finalists list), this will probably be wrong. I say Joshua leaves.

Kick, Pass and Run

   Well, most of the school for today is finished. The sun's shining brilliantly, it feels like I should be about five years old, visiting my grandma on the farm. Since I obviously can't do that, this is about the next best thing, reposting an expansion of a kid's book I used to love. It's an adaptation of "Kick, Pass and Run", by Leonard Kessler. The bracketed places are straight from the original text.

  [Rabbit was the first one to hear it.] He usually was, having large ears and curiosity.

[Duck was the first one to see it], as she also possessed curiosity, especially in gossip around the woods. So when this thing flew into the leaves and twigs, she knew about it, and pretty soon everyone else did, too.

[Cat was the first one to feel it.]  He jumped back, startled. He’d never felt anything like that before. It was smooth, but had little bumpy places all over it, and it moved when it was touched. Not a lot, just kind of a rocking motion.

[“What is it?” asked Dog], voicing the question many animals felt when they saw it. “Um...I don’t know.” Cat said warily, licking the unfamiliar smell off his paw. “I don’t know what it is, but I’ve never seen anything like it before!” Duck stated positively.

   Most of the animals had fled by this time.

“Why don’t we ask Owl?” Frog suggested.

   As Owl was generally considered the most book-smart of the animals, this idea met with approval and Owl was quickly summoned. “What is that?” [Owl said, “It’s an egg!”]

   A rush of twittering came from the animals still assembled. [“An egg?” asked Frog] dubiously. [“Yes, it is a elephant’s egg.” said Owl] more firmly this time.

   Arguing broke out as to what color elephant eggs were, or whether they even laid eggs or not. [“No, an elephant’s egg isn’t brown.” said Turtle] “It isn’t?” Owl asked, momentarily confused. “Well, then [it’s a brown bear’s egg!”

More arguing, over whether bears laid eggs. Duck walked closer to get a better look. [“Bears don’t lay eggs.”] she said, then [she laughed. “I know an egg when I see one, and THAT is NOT an egg!”]

Before anyone could ask what it was, Cat spoke up. [“Shh!”] he whispered. [“Someone is coming!” They all hid.] Behind a bush, the animals, who had shrunk to Cat, Rabbit, Dog, Owl, Duck, Frog, Turtle, and three little birds, saw a boy in funny clothes looking for something. His fur had numbers on it, and bars were coming out of his face. [“Here it is!” said the boy. “Here’s our football!” “It’s a football.” said Owl in a quiet, wise way.

[“What’s a football?” asked Frog.] Owl gave him a look, then with even more noble bearing, said simply, [“A football is a football.”]

  

Before this profound statement could be analyzed, there was a suggestion, for which Owl felt somewhat grateful. [“Let’s go and see what the boys do with it.” said Dog].

   This was looked on as a good idea, and so they went up the hill towards town, near a clearing with skunk grass, then [they all hid].

   “Shh, be quiet,” cautioned Owl. “Let’s see how the boys play football.”

    There were two teams on the field, each made of boys dressed sort of like the boy in the woods. [One team was the Jets. The other team was the Giants.

   “I am for the Jets.”] Duck announced. “Well, [I am for the Giants], then.” Rabbit replied. [“I am forQUIET!!”] Owl hissed.

   “Here comes the kickoff.” yelled the Giants’ kicker. The football went up into the air and into the hands of the Jets’ fullback, who ran up the field. [“Stop him! Tackle him!” yelled the Giants.

    “Wow, that looks like fun.’ Duck said. She tackled Rabbit. “Stop that.” said Cat.] “You’ll miss a play.”

    “Ready, set, down….hup 1, hup 2, hup 3, hike!” The center gave the ball to the quarterback. He flipped it to the halfback, who gained five yards before the Giants tackled him. [“Go team, go!” quacked Duck.] The quarterback dropped back, looking for a receiver. “Look out for a pass!” the Giants yelled. “Look out for a pass!” yelled Frog. The ball spiraled through the air, where a Jet caught it and ran all the way into the end zone. “It’s a touchdown! Yay! Six points for us!”  the excited Jets hollered.

   “It’s a touchdown.” Turtle said in a happily amazed voice. “Wow, he made a touchdown.” Duck commented. [“What’s a touchdown?’ asked Frog.] Dog opened his mouth to say something, but Owl interrupted. “A touchdown is six points.” he said wisely. “Anybody else want to try that?” Dog wondered. Yesses followed. “Let’s play football!” Cat smiled. “Yeah, I wanna make a touchdown.’ said Duck. So, they ran back into the woods.

    [“Here’s a good spot to play.” said Turtle. “Let’s choose teams.” said Owl. “Dog, Cat, Rabbit, Turtle and Frog will be the Giants, and my team will be the Jets: Duck, the three little birds, and I!”]

    “That Owl is such a big boss.” Turtle muttered under his breath. [“Oh, forget it.”] Dog replied. [“Let’s play football.” “But we need a football.”], Frog pointed out.

This puzzled the animals for a minute, then Owl spoke up.

“How about an apple?” [“No, thanks.” said Frog. “I’m not hungry.” “How about an apple for a football?”] Owl clarified his question. [“An apple will be fine.” said Duck.] “Let’s get this game started, then. Kickoff!” Owl announced as the apple flew in the air. Rabbit caught it and ran towards the end zone, only to be tackled by Duck.

 The Giants went into a huddle. “Frog will carry the ball around the left end.” Dog said softly. The Giants came out of the huddle. “1st and 10…ready, down, hike!” He got the apple and gave it to Cat, who gave it to Rabbit, who handed it off to Frog. All the Jets jumped on Frog.

    “Who has the apple?” asked Owl. “Not me.” said Rabbit. “Me neither.” Cat agreed. “Nope.” said Dog.  “No, not me.” Turtle said in his quiet way. They all looked at Frog.

    “I guess I was a little hungry.” he admitted.

    “You ATE THE FOOTBALL??!!” Duck squawked. “Now we need a new one!”

   “How about this paper bag?” Owl suggested.

   “We could blow it up, then it would make a good football. “ Dog said practically.

   (puff, puff, puff) Owl blew up the bag. [“Some football.” said Duck  “OK, it’s our turn to get the ball.” Owl said. “Ready, set, down…”] “Hop, hop, hike!” quacked Duck. “Hup, not hop.” Owl corrected. “Up?” asked Duck.

[She took the ball and flew up into the air. “”Hey, that’s not fair!” yelled Rabbit. “You can’t fly! Only the ball can go into the air.” “Yes, I can, you stupid rabbit.”] she countered. “No, you can’t, you silly duck.” he shot back. “Oh, joy.” Dog muttered. “Another fight.” Frog pronounced gloomily. Owl tried to calm them down. “Stop it! Stop it! That is NOT the way to play football.” 

    “It isn’t, Mr. Genius? Fine. Then I won’t play.”

Duck walked off. “Oh, let her go.” sighed Turtle. “But we need her.” Dog objected. “The teams won’t be even if she doesn’t play.”

   Owl was appointed to go persuade her to come back and keep playing, as he was the one who made her quit. “Come back and play, please? We need you.” He almost sounded humble. “Really.” She thought a minute. “Okay.” She picked up the paper bag football.

    “Time for a big kickoff!” she hollered. “STOP! YOU CAN”T KICK A PAPER BAG!!!” shouted Owl in alarm. POP. But it was too late. “No more football.” Dog unhappily stated the obvious. “That’s the end of the game, looks like.” Turtle agreed. Just then, something happened. Rabbit was the first one to hear it. Duck was the first one to see it. And Cat was the first one….to CATCH it! “Hey, look! It’s a REAL FOOTBALL!” he shouted. And before any of the Jets could react, he ran down the clearing. “Tackle him!” yelled Owl futilely. “Stop him!” Duck quacked in vain. They couldn’t catch him. He ran, and ran, and ran, all the way past the end zone tree marker. “Touchdown!” “Touchdown!!” “Six points for us!” the Giants cheered. Rabbit was so happy, he jumped up and down. The celebration ended quickly, however, as Frog spotted something.

    “Look out, somebody’s coming!” Cat dropped the football, and they all hid. “Oh.” said the boy. “Here it is. I wonder how it got all the way back here?”  

Thoughts on Writing

   For a contest sponsored by the college I'm headed to this fall, I was searching through some of my last articles to be published for entering. It made me think back on my writing overall, and its place in my life. How many people have an opportunity to work part-time at newspapers for five years, before college? How many people are published at least 237 times in newspapers, magazines and websites before they graduate from high school?

   It was fun. Hard, time-consuming, but fun. Of course, some things are easier to write about than others, for example, football is easier than track, and basketball easier than wrap-ups or previews. Some sports were awful to watch(Baseball, for one), some were painful, most were enthralling, quite a bit were nerve-wracking. But, you know, it makes sense that out of football; basketball(guys and girls); baseball; softball(fastpitch and slowpitch); tennis(guys and girls); track(guys and girls); archery; arena football; doing profiles of players, coaches, or announcers; statistical roundups of the seasons, talking about schedules; (and if you include for fun, ping pong, volleyball, really slow-pitch softball, mini golf, Ultimate Frisbee, or Bible trivia), some of those stories stacked up over awhile would be easier to narrate than others.

   When I started, I was a short, skinny eighth grader, terribly shy and scared out of my wits, who liked sports, and who enjoyed writing. From having to talk with coaches, players, people behind the scenes in the press boxes, parents, etc; I learned to conquer most of that shyness, and as I type this I'm a short, skinny high school senior, who still loves sports, and enjoys writing, though he knows he needs a lot more work to improve to where he wants to be.

   For a while, it seemed kind of...I don't know, I guess boring would be the right word, everything was so routine. Not enough of a challenge, most of the time I could pretty accurately predict the synopsis of how the game would go before it even started, and could get a good idea of what coachspeak would be used to describe it. And then fighting through to get the tale, basically the same as the one two days before, out to the people, who would read and then forget about it. I guess it was probably about March or April of last year that something felt like it was just a little off, a little wrong. So I examined it, and it seemed like the Lord was gently pointing out to me, "Wesley, you've got a gift here, but you don't have the right attitude about your gift, you aren't using it the right way." My focus was off, on myself instead of the people involved. So, I, little by little, began to back off the intensity and focus on other things(Like schoolwork.)

   You know how there's that saying about how God works in ways that to us seem mysterious, or the analogy about the cross-stitch that's our lives? That we don't usually understand what's going on until we step back? Well, after winning a slot as part of the Oklahoma delegation for the nationwide Youth Tour, and the trip to Washington D.C. that was the prize, (and thus, since the group was the best writers in the state, a little too proud of myself, though surprised I was in that category), about two days after we got home, I found out the website I'd been writing for was closing down. That was tough, it had meant a ton of exposure and great criticism for improvement. And about this time, things weren't going quite so well at the paper I'd been doing most of the sportswriting for, either. The guys from the bigger paper up the road wanted more space, and since daily papers are higher on the pecking order than twice-a-week papers, and since I wasn't technically an employee, merely a freelancer, I had less and less to cover. When fall came around, bringing with it the return to school and school athletics, for various reasons I was assigned the task of following the fastpitch softball team of the secondary town in the coverage area, instead of football at the main school, softball at the main school, or even football at the second school.
 
   Was I disappointed? Yeah.
 
   Was I a little mad? Yeah.
 
   Bit I figured that as long as God had placed me here, I may as well do the best job at it that I could. It was either that or quit writing altogether, and I needed all the published stories I could get to impress colleges. So I wrote about softball, which I don't really understand, and is only a slightly prettier cousin of baseball, which is incredibly hard to write about, and even harder to stay awake while viewing. And you know what I found out? That yes, softball is baseball's cousin, but it's interesting to watch. And yeah, it's basically the same game, but the strategy is so much different. And I think most of all, the atmosphere was so much in contrast to the baseball I'd seen so much of. You know, where the players stoically observe, only to make noises when barking(literally) encouragement to the batter. And parents and grandparents either watch tensely, yelling at people for mistakes, or talking quietly amongst themselves about Ford's new cars, why Jessica couldn't babysit the kids, or debating the merits of the political candidates. Nope, softball players make up cheers(which, if you stop and think about it, isn't all that strange, since most of them are cheerleaders), bunt often(creating dramatic moments of "Will she beat out the throw?") and the parents, they were some of the friendliest people I've come across as a group, around any field. Lady everyone called Grandma B passing out pop to fans(or thirsty sportswriters) on hot August days, the way everyone seemed to know everyone else's grandkids and were all keeping an eye on them, the little kids praying a ball would fly foul so they could chase it, encouragement shouted loudly towards whoever needed it, the amused counting of how many balls would hit the roof of the concession stand each game, it was just a pleasant, relaxed atmosphere that was so different from any of the others. I enjoyed it. They didn't complain much about mistakes, just occasionally correcting my spelling, glad that their daughters and nieces and granddaughters got some notice for their efforts out on the ball field.

   With the close of the season in October, I was left without a job, so it's been a pretty quiet winter. Hard to adjust to causally spectating during a game, though I'm slowly relearning a process first grasped at ten months. Hopefully this fall or a little later I can find a place onto a newspaper or something, Lord willing, but if not, well, I'm happy for the time I've had.

AI-S11 Stevie Wonder/Whitney Houston Results

Didn't really watch tonight...busy with college apps and graduation planning...

I guess the bottom four were Elise, Jeremy, Jermaine and Shannon, and they sent Jeremy home.

HOW did America not kick out Jermaine?

I'm 0-for-2 on my picks this season....

American Idol Season 11 Top 13 - Stevie Wonder/Whitney Houston Night

 

   Last night I discovered I hate Whitney Houston songs, and I dislike most Stevie Wonder music. Or maybe I just detest two hours worth of them without a break.

Joshua Ledet - I Wish - High energy to kick off the show, he was all right, not awful. Forgettable all over, and I was impressed by his ability to shout that loudly for that long.

Elise Testone - I'm Your Baby Tonight - She sounded old. Her vocal wasn't the best tonight, it was forgettable.

Jermaine Jones - Knocks Me Off My Feet - ZZzzzz.....I yawned eight times during his performance. That says all you need to know.

Erika Van Pelt - I Believe in You and Me - Dull. The guitar was cool, the chorus was okay.

Colton Dixon - Not great, but good. The song was too dated, it sounded like it came off some type of cheesy musical.

Shannon Magrane - I Have Nothing - Some kind of soundtrack, is what this was. Just couldn't figure out what movie it should have gone with, only thing I was coming up with was The Little Mermaid, which wasn't quite right. She was okay, didn't see what all the judges were yapping about(But then, I usually am watching a different show than they are.)

DeAndre Brackensick - Master Blaster - Cool title. Bad dancing. Voice, eh....It was just a little strange.

Skylar Laine - Where Do Broken Hearts Go - Good. Pretty song. It could still be played on the radio, it's the main credits song.

Heejun Han - All in Love is Fair - Good. Dull, but good.

Hollie Cavanagh - All the Man That I Need - Very good. I hate Whitney songs, but that was very good.

Jeremy Rosado - Ribbon in the Sky - Straight up from Dullsville, USA. It was boring, but all right, I suppose.

Jessica Sanchez - I Will Always Love You - Should anyone else sing this? I couldn't tell much difference between her and the real thing, which I suppose means she's a phenomenal vocalist, but it was just okay for me.

Phillip Phillips - Superstition - Guitar! Great. Good song. Interesting voice. He was shouting too much, but I liked it.

I have no idea what's up with this font...I changed it for emphasis on Elise, and then it switched itself a couple of times after that....

Best of the night - In order of performance - Hollie, Skylar, Colton, Heejun, and Phillip. 

In trouble for sure are: DeAndre, Erika, Jeremy, and Jermaine, Shannon might be on the bubble. The bottom guy/girl will be Erika and Jermaine, they'll send Jermaine home to make it an even six-six split for the Top 12. 

Encouragement from VeggieTales

   Getting ready for college can be kinda stressful. And a little scary. So...uncertain, of not knowing what's up ahead.
 
   Anyway, to procrastinate filling out the seventeenth or so application I need to finish, I watched an episode of VeggieTales with my little brother. (Was it nice? Yes. Was it slightly selfish? Uh...maybe. Does he hate VeggieTales? Unfortunately, yes. File under culture class, I guess.) He seemed to think it was okay, the one we watched was "Josh and the Big Wall".

   It was ever better now than I remembered then - the wonderful little background touches like the sheep falling over(a nod to "Dave and the Giant Pickle", remember?) or during applause following a rousing inspirational speech, a character asking Pa Grape; "How are we clapping?" His response: "I have no idea." The crazy, outlandish things like getting pelted with slushies, the priests playing "When The Saints Go Marchin' In" while the Israelites march around Jericho, or Jimmy and Jerry Gourd building the Wallminator 3000 rocket to blow the wall to smithereens.
 
   And of course, you can't forget Larry's Silly Song, can you? In this case, "The Song of the Cebu," usually ranked in the top three of all-time classic VeggieTales tunes. The reason Archibald was so hilarious in that is because of his rigid, tell-the-story-now, get-on-with-it demeanor, and getting all flustered at Larry, Jimmy, Jerry and Junior for their low-key attitude towards the unprecedented, multi-media event. "WHY is the sad cebu sad? Does the hippo SEE them? Is the poor mute cebu able to effectively communicate the imminent danger to the other passengers? Is the boy injured? Is the canoe wooden, or aluminum?" I can laugh, because I completely understand how he felt. I'm like that about watching movies, or reading books, or whatever, too, and get irritated with people who merely watch passively as entertainment, not trying to think deeper about every little detail. (Maybe that's why I don't watch much TV or movies, I'd drive everyone nearby insane with my questioning, minute inspections of every facet of how they told the story, and memorizing the entire script.)
 
   The was a song that first Larry, as Joshua, sang, and then Junior sang also, that goes like this, "God has given this land to us/No need to fuss, He knows what He's doing/The Lord has given this land to us/If we will follow Him." Fits well in the story, knowing that even though walking around the walls of Jericho to destroy them sounds crazy, but also knowing that God had a reason for it, some plan that they didn't see, they were going to try it anyway, just (more or less) trusting it would work, that God would lead them through it.

    Leaving this familiar world of home and high school into the college enviroment of dorms, studying for a degree, and who know what else is kind of frightening. But it's also just part of life, of growing up. Which brings a whole lot of things to think about, and wondering if the crazy thing that seems like it might ought to be started should really be tried or not. This is a confusing, post to follow, I imagine, since I can't even follow which way I want to lead these points to, but what I'm trying to say, I guess, was that it was just a blessing to be reminded that God's there, working things out the way he wants them in my life. If that involves some things that seems to me to be crazy, well...I just need to examine carefully if they're really something I need to do, and if so, hang on to wherever they lead.

   It's funny, though, that I've always pictured Jericho just like it is in the show - A tall, dark, menacing stone fortress set in the middle of an arid desert with no signs of life anywhere nearby.

Eye of the Reindeer

     Me and my sister were playing one of our ping pong marathons one night in December a few months ago. The thing you need to realize about this is that while we love each other, and would generally give a favorable opinion of the other if asked, we hate losing. (Blame our dad, we got it from him.)
    So, to ramp up the competitive energy, we cranked up the high-energy country and rock music. After listening to Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger", one or the other of us said, being full of holiday spirit, "It's the eye of the reindeer/It's the thrill of the flight..." Then we got to thinking, "Hey, that might be something...." So we finished our game(she probably won, she wins sixty-five percent of the time), and I grabbed a notebook.

Intro-

(Bells for two measures, then electric guitar, drums, etc. jumps in.)

Verse one-

Risin' up, back in the sky

It's my time, on the team

Went the distance, now I'm back on my hooves

Just a buck living out his dream...

Verse two-

So many times, it happens so fast

You trade your passion for glory

Don't lose your grip on the dreams of the past

You must fight, just to keep that joy alive...

Chorus-

It's the eye, of the reindeer, it's the thrill of the flight

Risin' up to the challenge of the elves

There's that one set of presents that needs to get out tonight

And he's watchin' us all with the eye, of the reindeer...

Verse three-

Face-to-face, out in the cold

Hangin' tough, flyin' hungry

They stack the odds, still we take to the sky

For the thrill of the squeals of delight...

[Chorus]

Verse four-

Risin' up, straight to the top

Had the guts, got the glory

Went the distance, now I'm not gonna quit 

Just a buck and his will to please kids...

Chorus-

It's the, eye of the reindeer, it's the thrill of the flight

Risin' up to the challenge of  the elves

There's that last set of presents that need to get out tonight

And he's watchin' us all with the eye, of the reindeer...

Outro-

The eye of the reindeer...

The eye of the reindeer...

The eye of the reindeer...

The eye of the reindeer...

American Idol Season 11 Top 13

   Well, since they chopped down the semifinals into ONE week due to overshowing Hollywood and Las Vegas, we've already found who's in the Top 13. I can live with most of the picks, and 7/10 isn't a bad way to start the season.

We have....

Colton Dixon, from Murpheesboro, Tennessee - He's pretty distinctive, not that many guys wear mohawks. He's likable, friendly, has stage presence and can sing. He's ready for the radio right now, but a little coaching wouldn't hurt.

DeAndre Brackensick, from San Jose, California - Again, easy to tell which one he is (The guy with flowing curly locks). You don't hear a voice as high as his very often, he won't last too long.

Elise Testone, from Charleston, South Carolina - She's all right, not great. Just solidly pretty good, though on the forgettable side.

Erika Van Pelt, from South Kingstown, Rhode Island - This former DJ doesn't have much to remind America of her, except a tendency to select songs that focus on vocal power, but otherwise, she's nothing special. Had to get a wild-card, she won't get much farther.

Heejun Han, from Flushing, New York - This guy is...how you say it?...hysterical. And he can sing very well. One of the front-runners at this point.

Hollie Cavanagh, from McKinney, Texas - This girl is GOOD. She could totally be on the radio right now, I'd buy her CD. She's pretty, in a common sort of way, and she seems friendly, like that girl you go to school with. Best shot to break the five-year streak of guys winning the show. If she's going to do that, though, she'll need to capitalize on the coaching she gets.

Jeremy Rosado, from Valrico, Florida - He's a nice guy, but that only gets you so far. His voice isn't enough to hang with some of the others in this group, I think he'll get a mid-round exit, based on personality extending his stay. Had to get a wild-card to get this far.

Jermaine Jones, from Pine Hill, New Jersey - UGH. He loves his mama, we know that. He has the deepest voice I can remember hearing in a while. He's a wild-card, who I predict will be among the first to pack his bags.

Jessica Sanchez, from San Diego, California - I'm not sure why America let her in. Not a fan of her voice, doesn't seem to have much personality.

Joshua Ledet, from Westlake, Louisiana - He's a black church singer. He might be good, but I detest that style of music. He'll get farther than Jermaine will, because the black people will vote for him.

Phillip Phillips, from Leesburg, Georgia - He seems like a good guy to know. He's quiet, so you don't remember him off personality, but isn't that kind of a good thing? Most talented this season at arranging his performances, he's a very good guitarist.

Shannon Magrane, from Tampa, Florida - Somehow she rubs me the wrong way, I'm not sure why. The song she picked Wednesday was nice.

Skylar Laine, from Brandon, Mississippi - Terrific. She's country to the core, and you can feel that, unlike some contestants this year and previously. Funny, and a lot like Miranda Lambert. She definitely has a shot at winning.

So, that's that. Of the guys, I think Colton, Heejun and Phillip are the leaders, and the girls' only hopes are Hollie and Skylar. It's a five horse race for now, even though we're just getting into the starting gate, but it should be a good one to watch.

I Love This Barn

Toby Keith's "I Love This Bar" has always been begging for a parody. And while it's nowhere close to Tim Hawkins or that Asian guy's hysterical "Jesus Take The Wheel" spoofs, it was fun to pull together.
 Thus, I Love This Barn. (Now to make a video for it...)

 VERSE ONE

We got caprines, we got rust stains

We got a slick floor when it rains,

And we got cute chicks, we got dog ticks

Food sacks, discarded guitar picks

And the dogs sing about their broken hearts...ohhhh, I love this barn...

CHORUS

I love this barn

It's my kind of place

Just walkin' through the front door

Puts a big smile on my face

It ain't too far, come as you are

Ohhhh, I love this barn...

VERSE TWO

We got security guards,  we've got plenty of hay

We've got roosters that will crow any time of day

And I've seen layers, I've seen fighters,

I've even seen crazy zip-liners

There's that pile of broken mower parts...ohhh, I love this barn...

CHORUS

I love this barn

It's my kind of place

Just walkin' through the front door

Puts a big smile on my face

It ain't that far, come as you are

Ohhhh, I love this barn

BRIDGE

Well, I liked my job, I like to see the Cowboys win,

I like eating out for dinner, I like a movie now and then....

CHORUS

But I love this barn

It's so peaceful in here

None of that stressful atmosphere

It's free of charge, so come as you are

Ohhh, I love this barn.

American Idol Season 11 Top 12 Girls

The girls started out awful, and by the end edged up slightly to okay. With two notable exceptions.

Chelsea Sorrell - Cowboy Casanova - She did a god imitation of Carrie, but nothing more. That's not enough at this point.

Erika Van Pelt - What About Love - Really? ANY girl could sing that song and sound good, it's just that type of tune. It doesn't showcase anything, and easily classifies as "Forgettable". She did look comfortable out there, though.

Jen Hirsh - One and Only - Dull. Excruciatingly dull. I like her in Groovesauce and Lady and the Spectacles, but never liked her much as an individual singer.

Brielle Von Hugel - SIttin' on the Dock of the Bay - Interesting beginning, her sitting with the guys and then flouncing upstage, but the song...is...
If it must be sang on Idol, it should only be an audition song. And she has WAY TOO MUCH New York attitude.

Hallie Day - Feelin' Good - Boring. Bad all over. Her lips are enormous, her face looked predatory and masculine. Yawnnnn....

Skylar Laine - Stay With Me - This girl has ATTITUDE!!! The good kind! Skylar ROCKED it. Very good.

Baylie Brown - Amazed - As soon as Ryan told us which song she'd be attempting, I was like, "Oh crap," And I was right. That was horrendous, girls. do. not. sing. this. song.

Hollie Cavanagh - Reflection - Nervous at the first line, but after that....she was wonderful. She looked at home, she's nice-looking, she has a great voice, she, like Colton, could be on the radio RIGHT THIS SECOND. That just left us all like "Wow." Very, very good.

Haley Johnsen - Sweet Dream - Haley, Haley, Haley.....you could choose any song you wanted, and you went with...whatever that was? If she would have picked almost anything else, I think she'd be through, but with that ninety-second freak-out, she bombed her way out.

Shannon Magrane - Light Up Your World - It's a nice song that you don't hear often enough, it was kind of good.

Jessica Sanchez - Love You I Do - Catchy song, hate her voice, it was forgettable. And the glitter on her chin...seriously?

Elise Testone - One and Only - Multiple contestants shouldn't be allowed to sing the same song in the same show. It was okay, still dull, boring and forgettable, but much better than Jen's version. The piano was a nice touch.

Hollie blew everyone out of the water like I was hoping she would, she's a lock. Skylar's in. The other three...I'm not sure, nobody else really stood out all that much. I guess Shannon, Elise and Haley, because either America or the judges will take sympathy on that nightmare performance. The girls overall are even more unimpressive than last year, and they're picking even worse songs.

Now to see how accurate my picks were...(I'm an awful prognosticator, routinely finishing in fifth or sixth place of our six-person group.)