AI Top 5 Do Neil Diamond

I am not a big Neil Diamond fan. He is kind of so-so for me. The shiny shirts-Vegas style doesn't work. However, there are a few songs that I enjoy. "Caroline" is probably my favorite. BTW, during the show last night, 
the drama daughter asked "So, when was Neil Diamond popular?" I had to answer, "The 80's I guess, not really sure."

Anyway, our top 5 did not disappoint. They were all over the place tonight.

Cook was the best again. He is like the energizer bunny, he keeps going and going and going. The gap between him and the rest is widening.

Gomer Pyle's act becomes more tiresome each week. I am tired of the puppy dog smile. He is a solid 2nd, though Cook is way ahead.

Syesha, what to say? I hate to admit it, but she is growing on me. Randy called her a singer/actress. I think he is right. When she can be a character rather than herself she glows on stage, not the best singer

We have seen Jason each week. He is the same every time. Not great, but exactly what you expect. He is like sitting in the swing on your back porch. Are there better swings? Absolutely. Are there better backyards? You know there are. But you know, for right now, I am content.

Brooke is a train-wreck. I think she was shocked that Carly went last week instead of her. She has to know her days are limited. America just keeps prolonging her (and our) agony.  I don't enjoy her country music-tainted versions of songs, but that is how her voice seems to
work. However,  I do like her more on the piano than standing at the mike or playing a guitar.

Now for the judges. For a long time I have suspected that something was up with Paula. We all know of her problems in the past with prescription drugs. I bet that she also drinks before the show, maybe even during and after. My theory was that she was wearing an earpiece and that a producer would feed her lines. She kind of has a way of speaking with lots of pauses and stops, like she can't quite keep up. After last night, it is obvious that she reads preprepared cards, probably made during the rehearsal. (Who says "lower register") I was surprised how long it took someone to throw her a line. Seems like Ryan should have stepped in sooner. Also it really shows how closely everyone listens. She was able to ramble on for a while before anybody noticed.

Here is the uncomfortable video.

Gardening fun

Inspired by the postings of my longtime blogging friend, Robin, I have started a garden. While I can't compete with the size of her garden (it's about as big as my house) it is a fair beginning.

It is about 4 feet square. I planted 2 big tomato, 2 cherry tomato, 2 grape tomato, 12 onion and 6 cucumber plants. The cucumber plants died right off, but the others have grown great. The tomato plants have grown about 6 inches in the last month.

Notice the cinder blocks. I live in SE Edmond. Our yard has the cable box, the phone box and an electrical box. Also, a gas main runs right under the middle of the yard. When the utility guys come to mark their lines, hardly any grass remains unpanited. There is just nowhere to dig. The cinder blocks were the answer. Just build a box and fill it with dirt, problem solved. If all goes well, I will double the size for next year.

The Battle Hymn of the Republic

Of all the "patriotic songs", my favorite is the Battle Hymn of the Republic. When the Pope was in D.C. a couplel of weeks ago, the US Army Chorus sang it. Here is a link to the video.

Here are the lyrics(they did not sing them all):

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored.
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword;
His truth is marching on!

[chorus]
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.

I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps;
They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps.
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps;
His day is marching on!

[chorus]

I have read a fiery gospel writ in burnished rows of steel;
"As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my grace shall deal;
Let the Hero, born of woman, crush the serpent with his heel,
Since God is marching on."

[chorus]

He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat;
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment-seat;
Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him! be jubilant, my feet!
Our God is marching on!

[chorus]

In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in his bosom that transfigures you and me;
As he died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
While God is marching on.

I get chills everytime I hear it.

American Idol Top 6 Reject Show

Carly is toast. I was a little surprised, but not shocked. Over the last few weeks she had been in the bottom 3 a few times. It was obvious that America was tiring of her. At first, she was my favorite of the girls, but she has faded lately for me too.

Carly, Syesha, Jason and Brooke are all kind of in the same category for me - filler until the Davids finale. The order in which they go really doesn't matter to me.

Funniest Comedy Sketch ever

Click here.

None can compare...

American Idol Top 6 Torture

You know, I am getting into this show. I am (gasp) looking forward to it each week.

Read an interesting article this morning from the New York Times.

Full disclosure here, I have become something of a Broadway fan. When we went to Branson a few years ago, the Best of Broadway show was my favorite. On So You Think You Can Dance, my favorite dances are the Broadway dances. I was kind of looking forward to this show, especially after the last two weeks. If I never see/hear Dolly or Celene(sp) again, it will be too soon.

This weeks thoughts:

Syesha had her best night yet. She has a big voice and showed some great personality - something she had been lacking.
Brooke was not bad, but she is toast, if not this week, very soon. To me, she has lost her confidence and seems exhausted.
Jason was awful and if this is not Brooke's last week it will be his. He just doesn't fit in with any of the others. The Hallelujah song and Somewhere Over the Rainbow were his only good weeks.
David A. was alright, not great, just alright. He is wearing on me though. I am tired of his 
humble, almost Gomer Pyle-ish act. I keep waiting for a "Shazam!", a "Gol-ly" or a "Surprise, surprise, surprise".
Carly was great. I expected this to be a good week for her. Her voice is so big that I thought she would make this look easy. Glad to see her in sleeves. Tired of the gratuitous audience shots of her tattooed freak husband.
David Cook blew everyone else a way. I like his raspy voice.

Not that the results would have been any different, but these each of these songs has history. They are sung by some iconic character, in a specific emotion-packed situation.
If you don't know the facts, you can never sing the song believably. I think this hurt Jason Castro a lot.

Jason and Brooke will be in the bottom 2 for sure, maybe Syesha also. I think Syesha is safe and one of the other two goes this week, the other one, next week.

Saw Paul Stanley in the audience last night. Wow. Maybe there is a Kiss week coming...

Kristy and her horse...

For all you Idol fans out there. Here is a clip from some E Channel show called "The Soup".

The Zipper

My dad sent me this link. 
He has a sterotypical evangelist voice and it is a little long; but it is a funny story.

No way I would ever do this...

Check this out.

I am too much of a chicken ever to do something like that. I get nervous in elevators sometimes. I won't ride tall amusement park rides. I am uncomfortable looking out from tall buildings windows.

BTW, is that girl screaming or yawning?

More song lyrics wisdom

Lately, in the alternative media, AM talk shows, and  at lc.tv, there has been some mention about the feminization of men.

Men are carrying man bags,(purses by any other name are still purses).
Men are getting manicures and pedicures and visiting hair stylists.
Men are going to chick movies in record numbers.
Men spend more time apologizing and being sensitive than at any previous time in American history.

Men aren't women in a costume, we are warriors. Sometimes we are gross. Sometimes we break things. Sometimes we are offensive. Sometimes we stink. Sometimes our aim is bad. Get over it.

The world was better and safer for all when men were men.

I am reminded of the Bonnie Tyler song, Hero. Here are the lyrics:

Where have all the good men gone and where are all the gods?
Where's the streetwise Hercules to fight the rising odds?
Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed?
Late at night I toss and I turn and I dream of what I need.

I need a hero. I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night.
He's gotta be strong and he's gotta be fast and he's gotta be fresh from the fight.
I need a hero. I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light.
He's gotta be sure and it's gotta be soon
And he's gotta be larger than life! Larger than life.

Somewhere after midnight in my wildest fantasy
Somewhere just beyond my reach there's someone reaching back for me.
Racing on the thunder and rising with the heat
It's gonna take a superman to sweep me off my feet.

I need a hero. I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night.
He's gotta be strong and he's gotta be fast and he's gotta be fresh from the fight.
I need a hero. I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light.
He's gotta be sure and it's gotta be soon
And he's gotta be larger than life!

I need a hero. I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night.

Up where the mountains meet the heavens above
Out where the lightning splits the sea
I could swear there is someone somewhere watching me.
Through the wind and the chill and the rain and the storm and the flood
I can feel his approach like a fire in my blood.

I need a hero. I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night.
He's gotta be strong and he's gotta be fast and he's gotta be fresh from the fight.
I need a hero. I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light.
He's gotta be sure and it's gotta be soon and he's gotta be larger than life.


Today's men have lost their rawness, we have become chicks.

American Idol Top 7 Reject

Thankfully, I missed most of the show last night. I only watched the last 15 minutes. Kind of like a NBA game, that is where all of the action is. As I turned it on,  
the contestants were separated into 3 groups:
1. David C, Jason and Carly
2. Brooke, Kristy and Syesha
3. David A, all by himself

Ryan asked David A. to pick the safe group. Now we all know which ones were safe. You know he knew also. But he did the best thing, and just sat down and refused to play their game.

Finally Ryan had to bring the safe group closer to him.

Anyway to finish the story, Kristy is gone. I won't miss her. Like Michael Johns last week, she can't win, so her leaving before the final 4 was inevitable.

I won't miss her.

Anti Christ's Birthday?

According to this website the population of the world will reach 6,666,666,666 sometime on May 10, 2008.

Any significance to this?

I had a friend that was very superstitious about 666. We used to eat at this restaurant together, his bill would be $3.34. If he had a $5 bill, all was good. But sometimes he would pay with a $10 or a $20 and get $6.66 or $16.66 in change. He would make the cashier girl keep the penny. As you can probably guess, I though it was silly.

I wonder what he will do on May 10?

Left Brain Right Brain???

I took an online test the other day to see if I was left or right brained. ( No weak no-brain comments allowed, you all know better.)

The test is here.

I assumed I would be very left brained. I see myself as a logical thinker.

My score was 53% right, 47% left, almost evenly balanced. Not at all what I expected.

My dominant left brain characteristic was sequential. According to the results page:
"Sequential processing is a method used by the left hemisphere for processing information. The information that is received is processed in order from first to last. Information is processed in a systematic, logical manner. Through sequential processing, you can interpret and produce symbolic information such as language, mathematics, abstraction, and reasoning. This process is used to store memory in a language format. Activities that require sequential processing include spelling, making a "to-do" list, and many aspects of organization."

I will buy almost of this.

My dominant right brain characteristic was non-verbal.
"Nonverbal processing is a method used by the right hemisphere to process our thoughts with illustrations. Reliance on this method is why it is occasionally difficult for right-brained people to "find the right words" in certain situations. A right-brained person cannot just read or hear information and process it, but first must make a mental video to better understand the information they have received. For example, through nonverbal processing, a person giving directions may say, "Continue going straight until you see a big, red-brick courthouse. At the courthouse turn right, and go down that street for a couple of miles until you see a gray stone church which will be on your right. Straight across from the church is the road to the left you need to take." With nonverbal processing, the directions that are given are extremely visual compared to the exact, sequential directions that would be given by a left-brained person."

This is me also.

I have always made fun of you right brain creative types. I guess my chickens are coming home to roost, I am becoming one of you...

(Do I have an inner artist struggling to get out?!?!?!)

Wanna buy a ferris wheel?

Then Santa Monica Pier ferris wheel is for sale.

It's even solar powered...

American Idol Top 7 Torture

Mariah Carey night. I wasn't looking forward to this one any more than last week's Dolly Parton show. The only song of hers that I could think of was that Titanic song.

The guys owned the night.

David A. was great, but David Cook was the best. He will be the winner.
Jason's song was OK. He just doesn't hae the power of the other 2.

The girls had all kinds of trouble. Whenever Kristy sings the best, you know it was an off night.

Carly is sinking fast. She can't seem to get over the hump. What about her freakishly tattooed husband? She goes home this week.
Kristy was as good as she could be. She is a country singer, so until she hits heavy metal or hip hop week, she will probably be around for a little while. 
I can't quite figure out Brooke. She has become my favorite girl, but she needs to step it up a notch.

Bottom 3 are all girls, Brooke and Carly for sure.

American Idol Top 8 Torture Reject Show

Michael Johns is toast. Kind of a shock, but he wasn't going to win, so if not this week, it would have been next week or the week after. I enjoyed some of his songs, but for some reason, he always seemed awkward on stage, not sure how to move his body or what to do with his hands.

I liked his version of "Dream On" but felt that he should sing some Doors music. I think he could channel Jim Morrison pretty well, Michael Hutchence of INXS also.

Wait a minute...both those guys are dead...

Maybe that was what was wrong with doing Aerosmith, Steven Tyler is still alive.

My favorites left are Brooke, Carly and David C. Carly is sinking though. She may even end up going before Christy.

David A, for me, is kind of like James on Survivor. The longer he stays around, the less I like him.

Penn & Teller

Here is a great YouTube video from Penn & Teller.

I have always enjoyed their act.

American Idol Top 8 Torture

A strange week for me. One of my favorites did poorly, some of the bottom feeders were tonight's stars.

David Cook was awful. What was up with that song. Bad stuff. 

Carly did Freddie Mercury. Usually I would say that was a mistake, but I thought she did great, no matter what the judges said.

Brooke, David A, and Michael were great. They chose good songs and sang them well.

The shocker for me was that Kristy girl. She hit it out of the park.

Also, I enjoyed Jason Castro. I love that Iz song.

Hard to hate anyone this week, except maybe Syesha. I think it is over for her this week.

What about Paula's chihuahuas? I kept waiting for the blur...

Ketchup Surprise

How about this guy?

Not quite what he expected, I guess.

Blast Door Art

This website article pays tribute to blast door art. Basically, these are pictures from blast doors inside decommissioned nuclear missile silos. The silos were manned by 2 man crews 24/7. I guess, in their free time, some of them painted.

It was this kind of attitude that won the cold war, unlike the spaghetti-spined, European-like mindset that exists today.

Children find woman's head...

This is a strange one. It reminds me of this.

Wonder if they are related...

One for the drama momma

Here is a sport(???) that only drama momma could love. Here is the video.

This might be heaven for her...

American Idol Top 9 Torture

I am not a Dolly Parton fan. I expected tonight's show to be a train wreck at best, but was pleasantly surprised. Full disclosure though, we recorded it and just watched the singing and the judge's comments. We fast forwarded through all of Dolly's parts and Ryan's annoying drivel. We watched the whole show in about 20 minutes.

David Cooke is a star. He was the best tonight.
David A, Brooke, Michael and tattooed freak Carly were great also.

Again, Syesha was a 2nd rate Whitney Houston, maybe someday she'll figure out not to sing her songs.

Kristy was bad as usual, I just don't care for country music and country singers in general.

Ramielle is still Chinese sounding, maybe the only thing worse than country music is strangely accented country music.

Who's left... Oh, Jason - forgettable.

The final 4 or 5 contestant shows should be pretty good, just going to be too long before we get there...