Brokeback Doogie

So I'm committing to writing some actual "Web journal" type content this week, since it's been a long freaking time. Today's topic: The un-closeting of Neil Patrick Harris. The big question floating around about all of this is "Were you suprised?". Me? Actually, I was and I wasn't. Afterall, the guy have been a broadway actor forever. But it's still hard to picture Barney, his beloved gigelo character on How I Met Your Mother (Mondays at 8:00pm, CBS), taking it up the tailpipe.

And then George from Grey's Anatomy came out the same week. That one was strange because I wouldn't expect it. Here's to hoping that they don't go and change their characters in anyway on their shows. That would be stoopid.

Friday Random Ten

1. Hey Foxymophandlemama, That's Me - Pearl Jam from Vitalogy
2. Helter Skelter - U2 from Rattle and Hum
3. Silent All These Years - Tori Anus from Star Lounge Collection 1996
4. Miami - Will Smith from Big Willie Style
5. Lovesong - Mars Hill from The Scenic Route
6. Little Man Big Man - Toad the Wet Sprocket from Coil
7. Idiot Box - Aquabats from The Fury of the Aquabats
8. Like a Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan from Bootleg Series Volume 4
9. Grand Illusion - Styx from Return to Paradise
10. Stand Inside Your Love - Smashing Pumpkins from Rotten Apples

T.R.T.

Hey remember when we all used to do a Friday Random Ten? Yeah, it's been a while. Here's one for this week, a day early.

1. Emily's Love Song - Skypark from Am I Pretty?
2. Disappear - Hoobastank from The Reason
3. Thirty Three - Smashing Pumpkins from VH1 Storytellers Bootleg
4. Rag Doll - Aerosmith from Big Ones
5. I Wanna Hold Your Hand - The Beatles from Anthology
6. Shut Your Mouth - Garbage from Beautiful Garbage
7. We Dance Alone - Beck from The Information
8. Losing My Religion - R.E.M. from SNL 25 Years of Performances
9. Run Around - Van Hagar from The Best of Both Worlds
10. Ground Beneath Her Feet - U2 from Live at Irving Plaza

Even Fatter Than the Real Thing

Taking his title as the world's biggest rock star a little too literally, the U2 frontman proudly showed off his ever-growing food baby that he's stored in his midsection while vacationing in Croatia. The 46-year-old rocker was with his wife of 24 years enjoying the Adriatic sun when onlookers spotted a beached Bono relaxing by the shore. No rescue efforts were made to return Bono back into the ocean.

Happy Lost Day!

Season Three starts tonight at 9:00!!!!!!

List of the Day: Favorite Lost characters

1. Kate (was there ever any doubt)
2. Hurley
3. Charlie
4. Locke
5. Sawyer
6. Jin & Sun
7. Jack
8. Desmond
9. Mr. Eko
10. Alvar Hanso

Farewell, Fish!

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2604570

One of the best players and best character guys in the history of the Anahiem Angels is going to retire on Thursday. Tim was such a great player and I've grown up watching him since he won AL Rookie of the Year when I was 15. He will go down as my second favorite Angel ever. #1 on my list was the other player I grew up watching. He stays #1 because I have a more romantic take on things from when I was even younger. I was 9 when he was a rookie and he hit back-to-back home runs when I was there for my 10th birthday the following year. That kind of memory can't be beat. My favorite Halos of all time (in my lifetime, that is):

1. Wally Joyner
2. Tim Salmon
3. Chuck Finley
4. The Wonderdog Rex Hudler
5. Dick Schofield
6. Gary Discarcina
7. Mark Langston
8. Troy Percival
9. Troy Glaus
10. Darin Erstad
11. Kirk McCaskill
12. Jim Edmonds
13. Adam Kennedy
14. Bob Boone
15. Vladomir Guerrero
Honorable Mention: Mike James' Sideburns, Jack Howell, Mike Witt

Dishonorable mention for my least favorite Angel's - Mo Vaughn, Cecil Fielder, Tony Phillips, Brad "Roids" Fulmer and of course..... Mr. Clean - Garrett "Friggin" Anderson.

He's Still a Genius (in France)

Weird Al's new album is coming out next Tuesday. I know I'm a nerd, but he's still REALLY good at what he does. He did a spot on rendition of You're Beautiful, that won't be on the album:

http://media.thechrispirilloshow.com/mp3/yourepitiful.mp3

And the newest video is for "White and Nerdy" An amazing Chamelionarre parody:

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoID=1194164636&n=2

He will also have a Green Day parody: "Canadian Idiot" and parodies of Usher, Taylor Hicks and R.Kelly (Trapped in the Drive Through), which is sure to be funny.

Life with Coaxial

First off: I'm going to my Bosses house to watch the finale of Rock Star: SUPERNOVA tonight. I really don't know who is going to win. Last year we knew for a few weeks. This year Dilana was the shoo-in, but Toby has made a serious case for himself and I don't think Magni is out of it. As far as who I WANT to win: EVS!!!!!! I'd be happy with any of the four.

The good news is that I did get cable in time for September and the new season of television. The bad news: I have more than one conflict in need of resolution, having only one tv and one tivo. The following is my nightly breakdown of what I'll be watching this fall, or at least, what my Tivo will be watching. When I start my early mornings at Target, I'll be in bed at 9:00 (except Wednesdays for LOST, of course), so I'll have alot of TV catch up to do on the weekends.

Sunday (while watching Sunday Night Football during commercials)
8:00 - The Amazing Race (I'll have to catch Makeover: Home Edition and the Simpsons in reruns).
9:00 - ESPN
10:00 - Without a Trace

Monday (whilst watching Monday Night Football during commercials)
8:00 - 1st half of 7th Heaven
8:30 - How I Met Your Mother
9:00 - The Bachelor: Rome or Heroes. If one sucks than it'll be the other. If Heroes rocks, then I'll be watching that.
10:00 - What about Brian (although I might be watching Studio 60 if it blows my mind).

Tuesday (my go-to-bed-early night)
8:00 - Gilmore Girls
9:00 - ESPN
10:00 - ESPN

Wednesday
8:00 - 20 Good Years
8:30 - 30 Rock
9:00 - LOST, baby!!!!!!!
10:00 - coinflip: The Nine or Kidnapped, which ever pilot I like better

Thursday
8:00 pm - Survivor
9:00 pm - Grey Anatomy
10:00 pm - Shark

Friday
8:00 pm - The Ghost Whisperer
9:00 pm - Close to Home
10:00 pm - Numbers

TOP FIVE MOST ANTICIPATED RETURNS:
1. LOST
2. Gilmore Girls
3. Grey's Anatomy
4. Amazing Race
5. Survivor

TOP FIVE MOST ANTICIPATED PILOTS:
1. 30 Rock
2. Heroes
3. Studio 60
4. The Nine
5. Shark

5-0

Being a temporary "bachelor", I took part in five fantasy football drafts this year. I had a pretty good start this weekend as all of my teams won. I have the Bankers Bunch, which you can link to from the right hand column. I've been in this league with a bunch of Biola grads for eight years. I've never won and I've only come close twice, but it's the best league I've ever seen. I got criticized big time for one of my early picks this year, but so far so good. I beat Josh! Then there is the Cramer league, which I've been in for eleven years, since my junior year in high school. I also have a four-man league with the Hutch Bros. and Mark, which we draft through email every year.

This year I added two more leagues, since I'm solo up here and didn't have any reason NOT to. I am in a league with people from work and a league with people from church.

A New (old) Look

+ =

A SECOND JOB!

Yup, I just got hired at Target to work the Flow/Truck Unload shift, 4am-9am!

It's Been Awhile

So I haven't posted any actual text on this blog in ages...Still kickin' it in Eugene solo. I love my job and love the people I work with. I just hope that I can have my family with me soon! Outside of work, I've had a little extra free time, but no money, so that has translated into the following activities:

1. Fantasy Football - This season I am in five leagues - The Bankers Bunch (see link on the right) which I've been in for 8 years, the Cramer League, which by my count I've been in for 11 or 12 years (I don't know if we started my junior or senior year in high school), a church league up here and a work league up here. Plus with The Hutch Bros and T-Boy we do a four-man league that we draft over the internets. The other four we all do live drafts for (two this weekend!). Needless to say, when my family and i are back together, I won't even dream of doing this much. Too much time away from home for the drafts. I'll stick to the SoCal ones, where I'll be drafting on-line anyway.

2. $1.50 Movies - We have a cheap theater here, so i've actually been able to see quite a few movies this summer. I usually sneak into a second movie, so really, my movies are costing $0.75. Not bad.

3. Poker! - I actually got to play poker on Sunday night for the first time in MONTHS. A person I work with does a $5 buy-in tournament with her friends from Church and they invited me this week. Only four of us showed up and I finished second, so I kept my $5. Sucky the way I got eliminated. We were heads up and our chip stacks were pretty even. After some agressive betting on both parts, the board read 8-10-J-9 (the 9 came on the turn). I had 7-J suited, so I had been agressive with top pair. I got my straight on the turn and went all-in. The second she called me, I knew she had a queen for the higher straight, and that was all she wrote. She had Q-10 off-suit, so I was suprised that she was keeping up with my agressive betting the whole way.

4. TV - We're getting cable in the apartments today! (I live in a campus apartment right now). I have been living off of high-powered rabbit ears since I got here. I have a good signal on ABC, CBS and NBC and a decent black-and-white view of Fox. Now I'm going to have a clear picture on all of those, just in time for the fall seasons to start! Oh yeah, and a little thing called ESPN...just in time for football season. I'll have another TV post at some point.

5. Church stuff - I was blessed to walk into an awesome church group right away up here, since our friends Katie and Craig are already here and Craig is the Associate Pastor at Calvary Fellowship. On monday nights a bunch of people get together and do some fun activity at the church (Bocce ball, frisbee golf, etc.) and then we go to the music leaders house for a firepit, roasting smores and dogs. Then we usually play some sort of group board game. That has been fun and a great distraction my loneliness.

It's not Louie at the last supper, but it's good...

Flashback of the Day

Season Ocho

For my birthday last month, I got a handful of giftcards for best buy (and I've had some Itunes giftcards for a while), and they've been burning a hole in my pocket! Tommorow I'll finally use some of them as the Simpsons Season 8 DVD set comes out. I've been saving my gift cards for this and a few other things that are coming out soon: a new Weird Al album, the new Killers album, the new Bob Dylan Album and the U2 ZooTV Live from Sydney DVD.

Wisdom of a Friend

My friend Kate said something remarkable on her Blog that really hit home with me: Transition is Tiring. When I first left home to come up here to Eugene, I had a very tough few weeks of depression. I was just tired all of the time. Then we got word of the house selling and we were in a happy transition period, anticipating and planning for the move. Then we fell out of escrow and the bottom fell out again. I still got to go home for six days and spend some time with the kids and with Melissa, but then I had to come back, alone, again. Since I got back almost a week ago, back into this period of transition and an unknown future, I again feel tired all of the time. I didn't get out of bed until 1:30 in the afternoon on Saturday. I've had to drag myself out of bed every day.

I'm ready, Lord, for this transition time to be over! I'm ready to have my family all back together again! I'm ready for answers!

New Bat? Saunders Out?

All of a sudden, this is turning into an Anaheim Angels blog, because that's all I seem to be posting about lately....

Regardless, I'm intruiged by the news today that Andruw Jones has been claimed on waivers by an unspecified team. Could it be the Halos? I would be pretty happy if it were, and if the trade got worked out for Saunders and/or Bootcheck. As long as Weaver isn't part of it. Weaver would have been worth it if we had pulled off the Soriano deal, but not for Jones.

Here's to hoping that we get a bat, so that we can stick with the A's for the next two months...

What happened to Chip?

Lazy Eye and Reichen sitting in a tree....

First Place, baby!

The good son is 7-0 and the Angels are back in first place in the AL West...It's good to be a halo fan!

Shine On, Syd

Roger Keith Barrett, January 6, 1946 - July 9, 2006

Friday Random Ten

1. Addicted to Love - Robert Palmer from Billboard 1986
2. Same - Snow Patrol from Final Straw
3. Wicked Ways - Garbage from Version 2.o
4. Poncho and Lefty - Willie Nelson with Merle Haggard from Super Hits
5. It's Not Fair - Mars Hill from Mars Hill
6. Biding My Time - Pink Floyd from Relics
7. You'll Be Back For Me- Crystal Lewis from Greatest Hits
8. Rollin' and Tumblin' - Eric Clapton from Unplugged
9. If You've Got Trouble - The Beatles from Anthology 2
10. Folding - Sonichrome from Breathe the Daylight

Too little, too late?

Well, what every Angels fan has wanted all season finally happened on Friday as Bill Stoneman finally got the stones to send down Jeff Weaver and bring up STUD minor league pitcher Jared Weaver.

Ever since the World Series win in 2002, everyone has sort of perceived Bill Stoneman to be a golden-boy, but ever since, through MULTIPLE stoopid moves, he's come down to earth. I hated in in the late 90's and I still don't like him today. Letting Troy Glaus go was a mistake, and I don't just say that because he was my favorite player. Glaus was only one year removed from his Lasik and before the knee injury was hitting the snot out of the ball. Stoneman got trigger happy and as a result, made two mistakes at once. He let Glaus go and in the process, made Chone Figgins the defacto third-baseman. I love Figgins and he is a pure catalyst for this team. But he was a perfect role player. The club had the ability to start him every day somewhere, whether at DH or filling in to give anyone else a day off.

Then he let Bengie Molina get away last year. The better Napoli develops, the less this one is going to hurt, but really that's just dumb luck for Stoneman. The biggest clutch-hitter on the team and the leader of the "Latino Half" of the club, Molina was not resigned because Stoneman didn't find him worth the cost when he had a solid defensive catcher in Jose Molina and he also had.....Josh Paul. Well Paul turned into a big-ole bust, the likes of which haven't been seen since Justin Bauchman. Napoli got called up and has been incredible, but Stoneman gets ZERO credit for that one.

And then the team was looking for another bat over the past month, which they desperatley need and apparently, the cost was too high for Stoneman to pull the trigger on trading prospects. I'm sorry, but other than Jared Weaver, there are three other starters at Salt Lake who are valuable. Stoneman was probably demanding that Jeff Weaver be part of any deals, and nobody wants to touch that plague. Now we get NOTHING for him, no power hitter, but a stronger rotation? As long as Colon can get back into form (I give him 5 starts before I give up hope/2 down, three to go), we'll be ok with pitching and the same rotation (Weaver, Colon, Escobar, Lackey, Santana) should be in one piece next season, and that's pretty damn good. a #1 guy, two young potential #1 guys, and two solid #2/3 guys in Kelvin and Lackey.

But without a deal for a bat, it's too little too late for this season. Pack it in. Let the young guys (Morales, Napoli, Murphy, Kendrick) continue to get experience at the big league level. That will only help them out for next year and the years to come. All four of them were rushed to the show, but now that they are here, let them get their AB's.

And one more note to Stoned-man: Since we're going to phone in the rest of the year anyway, isn't it time to dump JC Romero and let JONATHAN ROUWENHORST get up to the show, too!?!?! Between him and Esteban Yan, you're 0-for-2 on signing lefty relief. Give your own guy a shot now!

The Nerd Is Still Alive

The nerdy part of me that loves Weird Al Yankovic, I don't think, will ever die. He finally has a new album coming out later this year (it's been three years) and he has released the first single, a James Blunt paroditty called "You're Pitiful".

Check it out HERE.

Monday Random Ten

Still alive and kicking in Eugene...working my tail off right now...

1. Creep - Radiohead from Pablo Honey
2. Fuel - Tom Wuest from WOW Worship: Green
3. Welcome to the Machine - Pink Floyd from Wish You Were Here
4. Anna Begins - Counting Crows from August and Everything After
5. Crash Into Me - Dave Matthews Band from Crash
6. Questions - Plankeye from The Spark
7. Damn - Matchbox 20 from Yourself or Someone Like You
8. Say Goodbye to Hollywood - Billy Joel from The Essential Billy Joel
9. Dead - They Might Be Giants from Flood
10. Happy Jack - The Who from The Ultimate Collection

Greetings from the other side of the world

Well, it's just Eugene, but without my family, it sure feels like the other side of the planet! I'm safe and sound in Oregon, just finishing up my first day of work. Then it's back to my 400-square foot apt. to set up shop and watch the basketball game (fortunately, ABC is one of the two stations that I get reception for!).

Please continue to pray for us. For sanity while we are apart and for our darn house to sell quickly!!! We just lowered the price, yet again.

Another Story...

I almost forgot the funniest thing that ever happened in the Brant days! File this under boys-will-be-boys:

One night after a concert at Red Hill Lutheran, we were fooling around in the parking lot with a flat rolling dolly, 'cause we were loading equipment into cars and such (remember, I was a first-class roadie back then). Someone came up with the brilliant idea of doing a JackAss style stunt where someone goes Indiana Jones and jumps into the side of a Van, off of the Dolly, which was going at a high rate of speed.

I was the idiot who volunteered to try the stunt. So I get on the dolly, in position to make the jump and they push me towards the van. As I get closer I begin to realize "If I push off of this dolly to jump, it will come out from under me and I will eat it straight into the pavement." So I froze up and ended up careening right into the side of the van. Somehow with how my leg hit the side of the van, I got a puncture wound on my leg. It didn't bleed or anything, but you could see about two millimeters down into my knee. It was pretty cool.

I still have the scar from it!

Long Live Holy Cow/The Glovers/MALICIDE!!!

I just reconnected with one of my best friends from High School, Brant Debow (Blog link on the right). Brant and I became friends through the quasi-retarded "christian club" at Woodbridge High School, when he was a senior and I was a freshman. I quickly became his lackey/hanger-on/roadie for his glam/metal band "Malicide". We became really good friends and I got to know a whole new group of people and started going to a second church (Red Hill Lutheran). I got in the most trouble of my life with him, too. We had gone to a concert (Focused, Unashamed, Dog Baby, etc.) down in southern OC and I was supposed to be home by midnight. Well, we were kinda-sorta working the show and kinda-sorta stayed until 2:00 am, and I kinda never called home to tell my mom where I was. Ooooops.

Anywoo...Brant and I were pretty good friends, we just lost touch after high school. He had moved on to play in Holy Cow a sortof Biola Band, when I was still in high school, and I would go see him play a TON. When I got to Biola and had a radio show on KBBK, I thought it was cool that I wasn't the only one who wanted to hear "Raid" on the radio. (I'm playing the Chrysanthemum E.P. on my Ipod as we speak).

Brant was also a drummer for Plain Jane, and the Holy Cow redux band, The Glovers. Good times!

My funniest memories with Brant were playing Zootball at the tennis courts in Turtle Rock and yelling "C-MON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" really loud out the windows of his white van, scaring the crap out of joggers and what-not.

Now we're both married dads, we still have a ton of the same interests (poker, d-land, etc.) and we reconnect just in time for me to move to Oregon. Bummer!!!!

Happy 6-6-06

Monday Random Ten

My last random ten until I get settled in Oregon, So I'll do two.

1. Who's Gunna Ride Your Wild Horses - U2 from Achtung Baby
2. Time to Get Ill - The Beastie Boys from Licensed to Ill
3. Ready for the Rain - Dime Store Prophets from Love is Against the Grain
4. Extra Pale - Goo Goo Dolls from Dizzy Up the Girl
5. Happiness is Warm Gun - The Beatles from Anthology 3
6. Never on Sunday - The Chordettes from The Wonder Years Soundrack (Disc 3)
7. Do You Feel Loved - U2 from Pop
8. Alex Descends Into Hell for a Bottle of Milk/Korova 1 - U2 from The Fly Single
9. The Great Gig in the Sky - Pink Floyd from Dark Side of the Moon
10. Desire - U2 from Live at Irving Plaza, 12-05-2000

Four u2 songs and I wasn't even trying.

Now my "Road Trip" playlist. I'll take the first random song from each of the following artists, in honor of my dad and I driving up to Oregon together on Father's Day.

First, the bands/people that we have seen together in concert

1. Paul Simon - Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes
2. Merle Haggard - Pennies from Heaven
3. Amos Lee - Soul Suckers
(We've also seen Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, The Beach Boys and Chicago)

Oh and Dylan, of course(four times) -

1. Every Grain of Sand (Biograph, disc 2)
2. Not Dark Yet (Best of Volume 2)
3. Highway 61 Revisited (Best of Volume 2)
4. I Believe in You (Biograph, disc 3)
5. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight (Best of Volume 2)
6. Lay Lady Lay (Best of Volume 1)
7. It Ain't Me Babe (Biograph, disc 2)
8. Cold Irons Bound (Time out of Mind)
9. Jokerman (Best of Volume 1)
10. Baby, Let me Follow You Down (Bootleg Series Volume 4)

Sicky Sicky

Mel took Drew into the Doctor this morning, because he still has a fever (it got as high as 103 on Tuesday). Turns out he has a mild ear infection, AND some tonsilitis. He has a non-penicilin med for the ear infection (since Abby and Mom are both allergic) and the tonsilitis should run it's course on it's own.

Fun, fun!

Also, I got the details on my apartment in Oregon: 400 square feet, baby! It comes with a bed and built-in dresser, a closet and....that's about it. The kitchen has a fridge, a range and a sink. My boss, Corey, is giving me a recliner-type chair of his to use and I'll be bringing a card-table and chairs to eat at (and play poker at, of course). He's also trying to get ahold of a microwave for me. If we don't find one up there, I'll go to a thrift store or, worst-case, I'll rent one. Gotta have a nuker!

I am definitely not looking foward to being a bachelor again, especially with the great-unknown ahead of us: How long will it be for?!?!?!?! But I am looking forward to the road-trip to get there. I'm going with my dad, so it'll be nice to get a little time with him, since it might be one of the last chances to do that for quite a while.

List of the Week: Computer Animation

Cars comes out in a few weeks, and my kids are more excited for this than anything they've ever seen. "Look Daddy! Car race movie!!!" In anticipation of (hopefully) another gem from the good people at Pixar, here is my list of the top-ten computer animated movies.


1. Finding Nemo - This is the creme-de-la-creme of the Pixar library. Wonderful story, great characters, perfect voice cast, and it looks spectacular.
2. Toy Story 2 - The first was great and this one improved upon it in so manys.
3. Shrek - I'm in the minority, I think, of people who liked the first one better than the second one. I think it was just so unique and distinguished itself from the Pixar films, that as the original, it really set the tone that was continued in the sequel.
4. Toy Story - Another amazing film. It's crazy, though, how the animation seemed so incredible at the time, but now, compared to the latest CGI flicks, it seems so primative.
5. Monster's Inc. - I love the story so much, and the adventure of it all, that it makes up for some questionable casting (Steve Buscemi, Jennifer Tilly). I'm not a fan of gimmick voice-casting, just to get big names. The voice actor has to fit the part. You want to remember the character, not just who did the voice. If it's a super recognizable voice, it usually doesn't work. John Goodman and Billy Crystal, however, work perfectly. I'm sure it's darn near impossible to get the perfect mix.
6. A Bugs Life - Another great pixar Flik (ha! get it?). A great case of perfectly cast voices. Kevin Spacey is the main villain, but you don't think "spacey" you think "Hopper".
7. Shrek 2 - Maybe it's over-saturation that drops it this far, because the kids watch it so darn much in the car. This is one of the best adult-inside-joke movies in the genre.
8. The Incredibles - Another fun story with perfect voice-casting. Bravo for NOT hiring Patrick Warburton for Mr. Incredible, but another deep-voiced actor: Coach! (Craig T. Nelson). Samuel L. Jackson is my favorite voice in the movie, with Jason Lee a close second.
9. Antz - Too "adult" many times, if I remember correctly, but I know that I enjoyed it.
10. Ice Age - You can tell that the quality really drops off by the end of this list. The first one was unique and fun and had a great adventure story, but it fell victim to the gimmick casting problem with Ray Romano.

Honorable Mention:
Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie. It was good, but it was so far below the Veggie Tales episodes, that I just can't rank it any higher.

Another MAJOR wt-freak from last night

Watch at your own risk


I still don't know what he won't do for love.

One Love, One Life, One HORRIBLE MOMENT

Why? Why oh why would Mary J. Blidge agree to come on and allow Elliot the Troll to butcher One? I think last night Bono died, rolled over in his grave, and then came back to life. So Elliot's mom won an award for best "family moment" or some crap like that (we have only watched bits and pieces so far). I have to say, after they gave her some much screen time, we know where Elliot gets his looks from. I think they used that family as models for some of the Lord of the Rings creatures. Watching her made me throw up in my mouth a little.

So Taylor won. Woopie! Welcome to the world of Fantasia/Reuben/Justin/Bo and Diana, where your albums don't sell crap.

Now back to take another headache pill...my brain still hurts from trying to take in everything on the Lost finale....a foot statue with four toes?!!?!? WTF?!?!?!?

And The Next Singer to be destroyed by 19-entertainment will be...

Go ahead and crown Mr. Hicks as your next American Idol. Simon hand picked him to be the winner last night and that ALWAYS leads to a victory. The fact of the matter is: Katharine didn't pull it off last night. Frankly, neither did Taylor, but he had enough momentum coming in and a big enough fanbase already in place, that he should walk away with the title tonight.

The evening came across pretty anti-climatic to me. Taylor was flat-out boring during his two redux songs. Katharine was solid in her two (I'm really starting to dig Black Horse and a Cherry Tree), but she sang both of them a lot better the first time around.

After those performances, I was still up in the air with who I would vote for. Katharine sang a hunk of pre-made pop crap called "my destiny". Your destiny? to finish second, sweetheart, sorry. It was a TERRIBLE song, and Cat was completely uninspired. I think she sounded a ton worse on TV than in person, because the judges liked HER, but she did absolutely nothing interesting with the song and in a matter of 2 minutes, turned herself directly into a cheap knock-off of Kelly Clarkson, who has emerged from the Idol shadow to be a legitimate pop star.

Taylor's song sucked equally as bad. Taylor himself, however, made it work for him. The first half of the song was miserable, and I thought that he was also being victimized by the crappy-song-that-he-shouldn't-have-ever-had-to-sing-in-the-first-place. About halfway through, however, it all of a sudden became a Taylor Hicks song and a solid Taylor Hicks performance.

My American Idol: Taylor Hicks.

One interesting note: I have always wanted the person that goes on to win. I wanted Kelly, Ruben, Fantasia and Carrie (although last year was the toughest call). I think I'm going to be right once again. According to Dial Idol, I am right, and it won't even be close.

Somewhere over the Rainbow

I realize that my reviews haven't had that unique attempt at "humor" that I usually throw out there lately, and I think it's because all of the crap-tacular performers have long gone, and they're the easiest ones to throw the poisoned darts at. Well, maybe it'll be back this week as I have new-found loathing for the troll-boy, for one simple reason: He is NOT an american idol. Simple. He doesn't look like an American Idol and as was evidenced last night, he only sounds like an American Idol about 33% of the time. And if you open your eyes and try to watch the stiff wigger, it just gets worse, again. But more on Mr. Tunnis in a minute.

Let's talk about one of the shining moments in Idol HISTORY: Catherine McPhee rockin the Rainbow. Cat freaking nailed one of (if not THE) biggest moments ever on this show when she blew the roof off of Somewhere Over the Rainbow last night. I still have to consider Fantasia's "summertime" to be the biggest moment for me, because A - It propelled her to victory the next week and, B - I was a fantasia-hater for most of the competition and that completely turned it around and made her my favorite.

Last week I said that Cat phoned it in and wasn't taking it seriously enough. Maybe she was just feeling defeated, knowing that she couldn't do justice to Elvis week, because this week she was on top of her game. Granted, if I knew she was going to do R-Kelly, I would have hoped it was Trapped in the Closet, but I digress... I also thought that her Billie Holiday-ish third song was PERFECT and absolutely what I would love for her to do. Queen Latifah put out a Jazzy type of album last year. I wish we could go back in time and have Cat record that exact album and have Queeny stick to Chicago songs (which she nailed). That jazzy/bluesy stuff is RIGHT where Cat needs to be.

And what about the Ass-soul Patrol? He was good. No, he was GREAT. Taylor is awesome. His moment long passed when he did George Harrison's Something, but he is still a great soul singer.

I have to pick a new number one, since Chris is gone, so who's it going to be? Isn't it obvious from my rant above??!?!

1. Catherine
2. Taylor
3. The Toad-Faced/Buck-Toothed/Less-personality-than-David-Blaine - Elliot

Yeah. Um, what the heck is that guy still doing in this competition?!!?!?!! Nikki McKibben made the top three of season one, so strangers things have happened. I called him a wigger earlier. The dude has ONE move that isn't stiff - He moves his right arm up and down like he's Eminem, or something. This isn't a battle, RABBIT! You freaking sing SOUL music. News Flash - YOU'RE NOT A GANSTA.

Anyway: I have avoided Dial-Idol until after I type my prediction, but I doubt it will change: Elliot will be going home, they will first tell Taylor he is safe.

Now what does Dial-Idol say? ..... Closer than I thought it would be....

Site News: Back in Black

I think I read somewhere that Black is the new Orange, so out with the old, in with the new. I revamped the linkage, now on the right. Now Odelay is color-blind-friendly! And, I don't have to change the text size everytime I post, which is good.

Basically, I just got sick of the look of the old site.

If you regularly read my blog, post a comment somewheres so I know! I'd love to add to my friends and family sections, so if you blogsterbate, let me know that, too!

Better Late Than Never

I'm home sick, so my review and predictions are a little late. Sorry about that. Last night was good. I liked seven of the eight performances. Cat was unimpressive in her first song and forgot a word or two in her second. Not good at this stage of the competition. My ranking of the four will probably shock you.

1. Chris - Flawless again. I loved the songs he chose
2. Taylor - He has such a great voice and he was able to show off both sides of himself last night, which was good.
3. Elliot- I've officially changed my tune on the troll. Dude was amazing last night. period. He picked the perfect songs and i was even able to watch him with my eyes open and still enjoy it!
4. Cat- I don't know what it is. I still love her, but she just didn't seem to take it seriously enough last night.

Predictions: Cat and Elliot will probably be in the bottom two and Cat will probably be going home. I think Elliott did enough to move on. I don't think Cat has Paris' votes locked in, they could scatter to all three, so that won't help her.

NOTE: There have been many shockers with the final three, and I won't be surprised if Chris goes home. Taylor is 100% safe and would be the only one to completely shock me. Elliot was AMAZING last night, and enough people might assume Chris is safe and spend more time voting for Elliott. It's happened before. It would SUCK SWEATY DONKEY GNADS, but it could happen.

Cherry Trees, Styx and...the BEATLES?!?!!?

A strange night on Idol. Paris was great, Elliot was....Elliot, Chris rocked Styx, Taylor CHEATED and Catharine had her "moment". It's actually a bummer that one of these five has to go home, especially since it'll be Paris and she's a good enough singer to make the top-three.

1. Chris (Renegade, I Dare You) - I wish I has put it in print last week, when I heard they were doing songs from the year they were born. I was hoping he might get crazy and do a Styx song. I was actually thinking "Babe" would have been a great choice, even though I don't like that song. Instead, you goes the Billy-Madison route with my #2 favorite styx song, and IT ROCKED. The judges didn't like the second song, moreover, they didn't like him singing it, because his voice is TRASHED. So what? He's a hard rocker. With his style of voice, it'll go out on him occasionally. I still liked the song, even though I had never heard of it and still have no idea who sings it. It was a perfect choice for him.

2. Catharine (Against All Odds, Black Horse and the Cherry Tree) Apparently, America stayed focused on her rough first performance because she was second-to-last in voting on Dial Idol. Against All Odds was bad. She was off from the first note and never fully recovered. However, she MORE than make up for it with her second song. I strongly dislike the original version by KT Tunstall, I don't know why. Catharine put enough of her own spin on it, had fun with it and it was FREAKING AMAZING. I don't know what happened with her voice on that first song, because we all know she can sing. Hopefully this won't kill her.

3. Paris (Kiss, Be Without You) If you add in the degree of difficulty that she gave herself tonight, it is all the more remarkable how well she did. I REALLY liked her take on the Prince classic. Then, she goes after, perhaps, the biggest song out there right now (other than "Bad Day") and she did a good job with it. I like Mary J. Blige and Paris didn't quite live up to the original, and she went with a carbon-copy, but it was still pretty damn good.

4. Taylor (Play that Funky Music, Something) - Was it a good move? Probably. Does anyone else even CARE that he didn't choose an actually current song? Probably not. Taylor cheated and took the Beatles "Something" with his second song, since it is currently on the Billboard Catalog Album chart (probably on "1"). At first I was thinking it was weak, but then he sang the song. Holy Crap. Best version of Something since the original.

5. Elliot (On Broadway, Home) - I really wish Simon didn't steal my line: Why on earth would he pick a song where the lines are "I want to go Home"?!?!?! That's just bad kharma. And it's stupid. The good thing is, He sang it VERY well. I love Michael Buble and it wasn't as good as the original, but it was still his best song of the night. I did my whole eyes-closed thing during On Broadway (actually it was eyes-on-the-laundry). I think he sang it very well. There is no doubt that he's a good technical singer. The problem was, I HATE THAT SONG, and just like Simon, it's really easy to be biased against a performance if you can't get turned on by the song.

Bottom two prediction: Paris, Cat

Going Home: Paris.

I think at this point, we are headed for a Taylor/Chris finale, which I think would be the best finale yet. Both of them are out of the American Idol traditional mold and since (other then Kelly Clarkson's "Breakaway" album) I don't normal like the pop-centric music that this show has spit out, That is a very good thing.

Day Without an Immigrant

I, for one, had an AWESOME commute to work this morning!

FRT

1. Only Fools - Crystal Lewis from Greatest Hits
2. With a Little Help From My Friends - The Beatles from Sgt. Peppers
3. Marquis in Spades - Smashing Pumpkins from Judas O
4. Powdered Milk Man - The Aquabats from The Fury of the Aquabats
5. Hit Me With Your Best Shot - Pat Benatar from King Biscuit: 25 Years of Rock
6. Tommorow - U2 from October
7. Geek U.S.A - Smashing Pumpkins from Earphoria
8. Fuel - Sonicflood from Resonate
9. Coming into Los Angeles - Arlo Guthrie from Woodstock
10. Lurgee - Radiohead from Pablo Honey

A Christian Random Ten

1. A Million Miles Away - Mercy Me from Undone
2. Love is Against the Grain - Dime Store Prophets from Love is Against the Grain
3. The Walls - Israelites from Washaway
4. Blessed Assurance - The O.C. Supertones from Faith of a Child: The Supertones Worship Project
5. Lay Your Hands on Me, God - Steve Mills from Don't Forget
6. Boy on a String - Jars of Clay from Self-titled debut
7. Mr. Moresby - Mars Hill from Self-titled debut
8. Did You Feel the Mountains Tremble? - Delirious from Cutting Edge
9. Dichotomy - Plank Eye from The Spark
10. But Now My Eyes are Open - Tree63 from The Answer to the Question

Andrea Blind-chelli and the love songs

Another miserable week overall on Idol. Song selection was pretty bad, especially for Taylor and Paris. Cat was pretty darn good, but the judges slammed her. I thought that was odd. Chris was the only one to pick a great song and nail it. Elliott....well, just read below.

1. Chris - (#1 this week) - Have You Really Ever Loved a Woman - It wasn't his best performance, but he nailed it once again and was far and away the best of the night. I'm starting to think he's got a legitimate chance of making the final-two against Taylor, but Catharine can still get there too, if she quits over-singing.

2. Catharine - (#3) - I Have Nothing - It's a close race again for second between her and Paris, and I think she did just enough with a tough song to keep her here for another week. The judges bashed her up and down for not coming anywhere near Whitney. They may be right, but I think she can get there, eventually. I liked the performance better than they did.

3. Paris - (#4) - The Way We Were - I'm not a Barbara-Big-Nose fan, so I wasn't excited about Paris doing this song. She sang it REALLY slow and boring, even for an already slow and boring song. I LOVE PARIS, but for some reason, she isn't clicking with the voters, and I'm afraid that she's going home tonight. Brutal. She has a great voice and a great personality, what's not to like?!!?!

4. Taylor (#5) - Just Once - Taylor did a terrible job tonight, with a really terrible song. Not much else to say. He's going to stay on top of the voting and out of the bottom three anyway, but he was simply brutal last night.

5. Elliott (#2) - A Song For You - I made a committment to watch his performance with my eyes closed this week, so I could focus on his voice. I'm glad I did, because I'm now starting to come over to the parrallel universe. This was a pretty bad song and a very scatter-brained arrangement, but he sang REALLY well through the whole song. I still don't think I'd rush out to buy his album, but he is a good singer.

6. Kelli (#6) - Unchained Melody - REALLY risky choice, seeing as how it is Simon's favorite song. Hopefully the honeymoon is over between her and her fans, who have to be realizing that she doesn't have anywhere near good enough pipes to keep going. Tragically, She's got enough of a fan base and will get just enough kick from vote-for-the-worst to stick around another week and unjustly go further than Paris. That is just insane.

Bottom Three Prediction: Kelli, Paris, Catharine

Going Home: Paris. It's wrong. Just plain WRONG I tell ya!!!!!

Life, etc.

The start of another long week in the life of the Askews! Another weekend has passed and two agents came through the open house and that was it. It's wierd. We thought this thing would sell really easy and really quick, but instead, we're becoming the poster children for the whole "housing-market-is-slowing-down" rumors. We reduced the price of the house this week, so hopefully that will do something soon. It's really hard to keep from going completely in the tank on this. I pray every night asking for God to continue to work and I truly believe that everything is in his control. Everything that has happened to this point with the job, the move, etc. has been completely from him. We KNOW that this is all going to work out the way it is supposed to. But the further we get from what WE think is best (selling NOW, moving TOGETHER), the harder it becomes to trust in the path that lies before us. My life verse has always been Jeremiah 29:11. I sure need to remember it now more than ever. It's just hard to imagine that I might not be with my family if I have to go up for my June 1 start date and we haven't sold yet.

Jamie, Jack & Stench

So, apparently Jamie, Jack & Stench are off the air on Star 98.7. The stupid station, which has changed course twice in the last 12 months (first to the whole "LA's Best Variety" crap) is now going to LA's Best Alternative, or something like that, and they have canned all the DJ's. According to Jack's Blog, The latest news is that they have just been put on hold and haven't been fired YET. There is a ton of uproar and public support, but it seems that Star is going the way of the current radio trend that Jack FM is capitalizing on. I think it's lame, because a TON of people WANT to listen to a talk show on their morning commute and I'm one of them. I never really got into Mark & Brian or Kevin & Bean, I won't go anywhere near Adam Carrolla, so that leaves me with ESPN Radio or AM Talk. Colin Cowherd is the worst sports radio guy on earth. So I'm stuck listening to Bill Handel on the news. This is fine and all, but not as entertaining as Jamie & Co.

Then there is the whole idea of Star calling themselves "Alternative" radio. What exactly is the definition of "alternative" music this week? Alt used to be the grunge movement of music, then in the mid-90's all of KROQ's playlist (Beck, No Doubt, Blink) got grouped there. Then it morphed into the new KROQ standards of the Killers/Keane/White Stripes/etc. Now Star is trying to call their generic/mostly Adult Contemporary mix "alternative"? I give up.

I am a Poker god!

Ok, maybe not, but I did finally win my first tournament in a long time on Saturday night, beating some formidible on-line players in a five-handed sit-and-go tournament. The most seasoned on-line player and frequent casino cash-game player was Brad Hutchins and he was the first one out. Paul Hutchins followed suit, playing the role of gracious host by taking third.

Then we were three-handed when Mark Ford went all in with pocket dueces. I made the call with A-8 of hearts, assuming Mark had a small pair. Any large pair would have enduced a slow play, because he would want to ensure action. Surpisingly, Shawn Bleid called behind me and we gave Mark a chance to double-double. Shan and I made an agreement to check the hand down to the river, since at least 50% of the total chips were already in the pot. We all flipped and Shan had an A-5? (some low card) - off-suit. Surprising call with an all-in and a call already in place. An Ace came on the flop and I held on to win, taking a commanding lead and knocking T-Boy out.

I'm a terrible heads-up player, or at least I have been in the past. I lost the first few pots because Shan was playing perfect agressive poker. I was still around a 3-2 chip-leader when he went all in. I read that he had a modest hand and was trying to steal the blinds, so I called with 10-9 of Hearts, suited connectors. It wasn't a great call, but I figured, I was happy to get in the money and get my 10 bucks back, if he has an Ace with another card, then I'm only down about 70%-30%. I sucked out a 9 on the river to win it, so I was pretty happy.

We played a cash game after that ($4 buy-in, nickel/quarter limits), and I won two bucks more, so that was cool.

It's Friday

1. Walking After You - The Foo Fighters from The Colour and The Shape
2. Bugs - Skypark from One More Night With The Frogs
3. The Candyman - From Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory Soundtrack
4. Why Can't This Be Love - Van Hagar from The Best of Both Worlds
5. Alimony - Weird Al Yankovic from Even Worse
6. Things Have Changed - Bob Dylan from Best of Vol. 2
7. Piano Sonata 15, Op.28, 4th Movement - Beethoven from Baby Einstein Traveling Melodies
8. If You Wear That Velvet Dress - U2 from Pop
9. Rocketown - George Michael W. Smith from The First Decade
10. All Falls Down - Kanye West from The College Dropout

Leaving the Beard Behind

Brian and Ron, sitting in a tree....k.i.s.s.i.n.g.

Crooning and Bewildering

How is it that someone can get this far in the competition and then have a performance SO bad, that it wouldn't even have made it past the first round? And I'm not even talking about Gary, er...Ace... whatever. Kelli's performance of Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered was so bad, I have propelled Elliot above her, against my better judgement. Paris and "Cat" rocked the house and Chris put in another solid performance, taking a bold move on one of my all-time favorite songs.

The following are my up-to-date rankings. I think that my ever-fluctuating 2-4 reflect the fact that for the first time, I think, ever, we don't have a clear-cut Final TWO, like we usually do: Kelly/Justin , Clay/Ruben, Fantasia/that other chick, Carrie/Bo. This year I can realistically see any of five people in the top-two (and I would have said six before Kelli's choke-job last night).

1. Chris - Dropped it down a notch with What a Wonderful World. Looked lame, sang great. Proved to any doubters that he can ACTUALLY SING, when he isn't belting at the top of his lungs.

2. Paris - Back in shot-gun for me after a perfect week with Foolish Things. I do this silly point-system thing most weeks that I get from Slimtainment. She got the first perfect 25/25 that I have ever scored. Simply amazing.

3. Catharine - And she gets a 24/25. She sang Someone to Watch Over Me and absolutely rocked it. If I had to have any critisizm, it was just a little vampy, a little broadway, and a LOT of makeup. But does any of that really matter? Paula made the best comment for her: She seemed like a previous Idol, already a professional, coming back to perform.

4. Taylor - I love the guy. I love his voice and he belted on You Send Me, but I was just a little bored. I guess I'm sort of getting tired of the "act" a little. I don't think he SHOULD win the show, but I definitely think he COULD.

5. Elliot - I still have this whole parrallel universe theory. EVERYBODY seems to like the way this guy sings and I simply DO NOT. He was fine last night, but I just don't like his voice. And why was everyone shocked last night when Simon pointed out that the dude has NO personality? I should also mention that a certain friend of mine likes him and my wife and I figured out why: He kinda looks like your hubby. Close your eyes for his next performance. Maybe you'll come around to the "dark side" with me, too.

6. Pickler - Wow. So bad that I am out of words. She did the best thing she possibly could by saying "I butchered it, y'all" (why could I picture Amy Poehler playing her the entire time, too?). Admitting it was a bad week makes her look good, in a wierd way, as opposed to last week when Ace was torn a new one by all three judges and then he has the balls to say "Well I think I rocked." She will stick around, but can she keep performing up to the level she has truly only shown once or twice during the finals?

7. Gary..er...Ace - Actually did a pretty good job last night, singing That's All. He looked obnoxiously boy-bandish with the hair pulled back into a gay cinna-bun, though, and that is a BIG mistake to mess with your looks when your bread-and-butter is your faggy pretty-boy looks and not your voice.

I think it's ironic that for the first time Ace-hole sings REALLY WELL, and he'll probably be going home this week. That's my hunch, anyway. At least he gets to go out on a good note with a good song. Although, It would be pretty funny if Pickler had to sing the Bewildering thing-a-ma-bob again.

Bottom Three prediction: Gary, Elliot, Pickler

Going home: Gary.

Slogan of the Day

"Johnny Damon - Looks Like Jesus, Acts Like Judas, Throws Like Mary"

Friday...er...Monday Random Ten

1. Subterranean Homesick Alien - Radiohead from OK Computer
2. All the Way Home - Spinal Tap from Break like the Wind
3. She Belongs to Me - Grateful Dead from Postcards of the Hanging: Grateful Dead Sing Dylan
4. Sing for the Moment - Eminem from The Eminem Show
5. You Make Me - Wierd Al Yankovic from Even Worse
6. Summertime - DJ Jazzy Jeff& The Fresh Prince from MTV Party to Go Platinum Mix
7. Summer Rain - U2 from 7
8. Play That Funky Music - Wild Cherry from Billboard Top Hits: 1976
9. Radar Love - Golden Earring from 1970's Classic Rock Compilation
10. It's Easy Mmmkay - Mr. Mackey, Stan Marsh & Eric Cartman from South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut Soundtrack

I'm in Love

I've experienced heaven in an 8-ounce glass bottle. Coca-cola Blak is the new coke/coffee hybrid and it is incredible. When I saw ads for it last week I was very curious: Is it a coffee drink that tastes like Coke? Or a soda that tastes like coffee?

Well, I'm here to tell you, friends, that it is the latter. First there was cherry coke. Then vanilla coke. Then coke with lime. And now, topping them all. Coffee Coke.

The revolution has begun people! Go out and buy a four-pack. Target has 'em for sure.

I haven't done a list in a while. Here's my new top-ten morning caffeine pick-me-ups.

1. Coca-Cola Blak. Once the honeymoon is over (I'm drinking my very first one as we speak), I'm sure it'll drop a little.

2. Starbucks store-bought carmel frappucino

3. Venti Triple White Chocolate Mocha (starbucks, of course)

4. Monster-Khaos

5. Store-bought vanilla frappucino

6. store-bought double-shot espresso&cream

7. Venti Black Iced Tea, with sweetener (eight pumps) - this is my #1 afternoon/evening caffeine drink.

8. Dr. Pepper

9. Grande Caramel Macchiato

10. (R.I.P.) - 8-oz. Chantico

Honorable Mention: Toffee Almond Bar, my favorite breakfast snack

Queen Week: Better Than Expected

I wasn't very exited about the kiddies doing Queen this week, but for the most part, it was a very solid week. Remember, these are my overall rankings, not based solely on last night. Last night's rank in parentheses after the name.

1. Chris Daughtry (5)- He sang Innuendo, an extremely choppy and sloppy song. There is a reason why the band never perform it live, it is a MESS. Just a terrible song and a terrible choice. I agree 100% with Simon that this was a perfect week for him to have his "moment" and it just didn't happen. He still sang great, but picked a bad, bad, bad, bad song.

2. Katharine McPhee (2)- Sang Who Wants to Live Forever, a slow ballad. On first listen, I was mezmorized and captivated and thought she absolutely hit a grand slam. She has amazing stage presence and has the best, most consistent voice in the competition. On second listen, I could hear the missed note or two, but she still had the 2nd best performance of the night.

3. Taylor Hicks (3)- Taylor reminded the judges, the audience and me why we loved him in the first place. He sang Crazy Little Thing Called Love. Great job.

4. Paris - (4) She's slipping a little, and it's not because of her voice. She still has a great personality and an awesome voice. I actually loved her performance, but the more I think about it, the more I agree with my wife and Simon: It was just a little "off".

5. Kelli Pickler (1)- By far the best performance of the night. She kicked total butt performing Bohemian Rhapsody. Stage presence, vocals, outfit: everything was amazing. Far and away above what I expected from her. I'm starting to come around, I guess.

6. Cletus Jones (6)- Bucky was boring, singing Fat Bottom Girls. It just didn't work for me. I think he's got a great country voice, and I want to see him stick around, at least for another few weeks, to show off the voice.

7. Elliot (7)- I swear, I feel like I'm in a parallel universe. I thought he was absolutely TERRIBLE last night, singing Somebody to Love, but the judges continue to heap praise onto his heaping pile of Rhinoceros Dung.

8. Ace-hole (8) - How the freak is he still here? Dial-Idol says he's going home, and they BETTER be right. His We Will Rock You will make a hilariously ironic closing song tonight after he get booted.

Bottom-Three Prediction: Ace, Bucky, Chris

Back to the Couch: Chris

Going Home: Ace

Friday Random Ten

1. Switch - Will Smith from Itunes
2. Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star - Veggie Tales from Bob and Larry's Toddler Songs
3. Losing my Touch - The Rolling Stones from Forty Licks
4. Heaven is a Place on Earth - Belinda Carlisle from Billboard: 1987
5. Hot Hot Hot!!! - The Cure from Galore
6. Summertime - The Sundays from "Double Take" (a cheesy Targhetto comp)
7. Rock the Casbah - One Bad Pig from Live: Blow the House Down
8. In My Time of Dying - Led Zepplin from Physical Graffiti
9. Girl Dreams - Beck from One Foot in the Grave
10. Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll - Bob Dylan from Biograph

Gotta get a U2 song, let's see how long it takes:

36. (not bad) Party Girl - U2 from Under a Blood Red Sky

Rank Idol

For such a stellar top of the class, this was only bad week for Idol. Some good performances on country night but some disappointing ones too.

1. Chris - He was awesome.
2. Catherine - She was amazing last night. Jumped over the next two, who were rather underwhelming
T3. Paris/Mandisa - They were both a little dissappointing last night, especially Paris. I still love them both, they just struggled with a genre that they had no business singing.
5. Taylor - I nearly fell asleep during his performance. Just not good for him, at all.
6. Kelli Pickler - She's growing on me, I hate to admit it. She's got a great voice and, obviously, kicked arse last night.
7. Cletus - I was actually disappointed last night. I didn't expect a ballad from him on the one night he could have shined brightest with a strong fast/fun country song. I think he played it safe (which might have been the smart thing), showing off a little of his actual singing voice (which wasn't bad) on the night that he got to be in his comfort zone.

Professor Chan at Vote for the Worst summed it up: "I was expecting a Garth Brooks-ian fireworks show and flying through the audience on wires theatrics as Bucky makes a last ditch stand to stay on the show. But instead Bucky takes it down a notch and sings a bittersweet, soulful hymn. And he sings it great. For one song he made me like country music. Bravo, Bucky!"

8. Elliot - I still think I'm the only one who doesn't care for his voice. He absolutely BUTCHERED a Garth Brooks song, and that's a no-no in my book. He must sound totally different in the studio.
9. Ace must die. Seriously, dude. Go home. Please.

Bottom three prediction: This is tough, but: Paris, Elliot, Mandisa. I'm trusting Dial Idol for this one
Going Home: Elliot.

Music Survey

1. Of all the bands/artists in your cd/record collection, which one do you own the most of?
Well this one is easy: U2. Behind them would be Dylan, Pink Floyd, Garth Brooks and the Smashing Pumpkins
2. What was the last song you listened to?
Enter Sandman by Metallica on some sports talk show.
3. What's in your record/CD player right now?
James Blunt
4. What song pretty much sums you up?
I hate questions like this.
5. What's your favorite local band?
Still existing? Mike Barnet. No Longer? Mars Hill
6. What was the last concert you attended?
U2 & Keane (and Mary J. Blige) at Madison Square Garden
7. What was the greatest show you've ever been to?
#1 - U2 -Madison Square Garden
#2 - U2 - PopMart in San Diego (first U2 concert)
#3 - U2 - Elevation post-9/11 at the Pond
#4 - KROQ's Acoustic Christmas with Billy Corgan, Depeche Mode, Garbage, Brian Setzer Orchestra, Fiona Apple...
#5 - Dylan at the Sun Theatre in Anaheim.
(This list changes ALOT)
8. What's the worst band you've ever seen in concert?
Only One? Thanks to a few Acoustic Christmases, I've seen Chumbawumba AND the Sneaker Pimps.
9. What band do you like musically but dislike the members of?
Good Question, but hard to answer. Oasis.
10. What is the most musically involved you have ever been?
(I'm copying Pauls answer) I had a radio show at Biola and helped put togther some concerts and in studio performances. (We had Mars Hill in studio!!!) I also MC'd a Blue Christmas.
11. What shows are you looking forward to?
There are a few performers that I've never seen that I would like to: Paul McCartney, the Stones, Elton John and especially Garth Brooks.
12. What is your favorite band shirt?
Gotta be the bright Orange O.C. Supertones Shirt with the Orange on it.
13. What music posters do you have up in your room?
None right now. I have a bunch of U2 stuff to put up in the new garage when we move. I have a Beck poster and some Pumpkins stuff, too.
14. What musician would you like to be in love with for a day?
Only One? just kidding. It'd have to be Shirley Manson. An old school shout out to Stephanie Kelly of Hume Lake fame, too.
15. Pat Benatar or Cyndi Lauper?
My sister would probably want me to say Cyndi Lauper.
16. Sabbath or solo Ozzy?
Ozzy. Crazy Train and Mama I'm Coming Home (and War Pigs) outweigh Paranoid.
17. Commodores or solo Lionel Ritchie?
Uh...
18. Punk rock, hip hop or heavy metal?
Depends on my mood. I don't have an overridding preference.
19. Doesn't Primus suck?
I'm not qualified to give that an answer.
20. Did you know that filling out this survey makes you a music geek?
Of course.
21. What was the greatest decade for music?
As a U2 fan, I would probably say the 00's. But definitely the 60s.
22. How many music-related videos/dvds do you own?
Nine -
U2 (Rattle & Hum, Joshua Tree documentary, U2 Go Home, Elevation in Boston, Vertigo in Chicago)
Pink Floyd (The Wall, Pulse - live concert)
OC Supertones at the Movies
Green Day - Bullet in a Bible
23. Do you like Journey?
Not really.
24. Don't try to pretend you don't!!
Well....
25. What is your favourite movie soundtrack?
Rattle & Hum, of course!
As for a score, it would be Instinct or Edward Scissorhands (both Elfman, of course) or Braveheart.
Musically, it would be Dazed & Confused, Wayne's World, Moulin Rouge and Chicago.
26. What was your last musical phase?
I listen to everything, but I had a pretty bad ska phase. In high school I had a disco phase, too.
27. What's the crappiest CD/record/etc. you own?
Only One? Velour 100
28. Do you prefer vinyl or CDs?
Cd's, unless it's my dads collection of 60's rock (especially Tommy or Blonde on Blonde).
29. All totalled, how much do you spend on music a month?
Nothing. Usually presents these days. Plus the occasional dollar or two from Itunes (next up will, sadly, probably be "Bad Day" by whoever sings it. I just bought Johnny Cash's "Hurt", too.

A Year Ago This Week...

My beautiful wife and I were touring SoCal on a mini-U2 Vacation. In a span of six days, we saw the Vertigo//2005 Tour four times, catching four of the first five shows of the tour. We saw the first three nights of the tour, including Two shows in San Diego and one in Anaheim. Then it was off to Staples early that next week.

Now THAT was a good week.

Friday Random Ten

I'm up to 4479 songs.

1. You Really Got a Hold on Me - The Beatles from Anthology 1
2. To Be a Man - Saved from Now and Forevermore
3. One Day I'll Fly Away - Nicole Kidman from Moulin Rouge
4. Sad But True - Metallica from S&M
5. Everybody Have Fun Tonight - Wang Chung from Rock of the 80's Volume 4
6. Casey Jones - The Grateful Dead from SNL:25 Years
7. Walk Like an Egyptian - The Bangles from Billboard-1986
8. Victim of the Game - Garth Brooks from No Fences
9. Whoomp There it Is - Tag Team from the Targhetto Hip-Hop Comp
10. What Would You Say - Dave Matthews Band from SNL:25 Years

Dr. Demento does a funny-five, I'll do a funny-ten

1. Life As a Father - Jeff Foxworthy from You Might be...
2. Medical Love Song - Monty Python from Monty Python Sings
3. Fat - Weird Al from Even Worse
4. It's All About the Pentiums - Weird Al from Running With Scissors
5. Oh Mom - Adam Sandler from They're All Gunna Laugh at You
6. Lunchlady Land - Adam Sandler from They're All Gunna Laugh at You
7. This is the Life - Weird Al from Greatest Hits Volume II
8. Bitch School - Spinal Tap from Break like the Wind
9. Penis Song (Not the Noel Coward Song) - Monty Python from Monty Python Sings
10. Ti Kwan Leep/Boot to the Head - The Frantics from Dr. Demento 20th Anniversary

WHAT IF This week sucked?

Overall, a pretty poor night on Idol. Mandisa gets props for preachin' it and staying true to herself, even if it was an un-even performance. Paris was great, because she had fun and still sang great. Taylor rocked. Cletus actually had one of the best performances of the night.

My top ten:

1. Chris
2. Paris
3. Mandisa
4. Catharine
5. Taylor
6. Lisa
7. Cletus
8. Elliot
9. Pickler
10. Ace

My bottom three prediction: Ace, Lisa, Elliot

Going Home: Lisa

una selección hecha al azar de diez por viernes

1. Try - Janis Joplin live at woodstock
2. Polly - Nirvana from MTV Unplugged in New York
3. Bones - Radiohead from The Bends
4. The Rain Song - Led Zepplin from Houses of the Holy
5. Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around the World - U2 from Achtung Baby
6. No Money No Honey - Beck from Stereopathetic Soul Manure
7. See Emily Play - Pink Floyd from Relics
8. Eat It - Weird Al from Dr. Demento's 20th Anniversary Collection
9. Sweet Sweet - Smashing Pumpkins from Siamese Dream
10. Malted Milk - Eric Clapton from Unplugged.

I swear my Ipod is more diverse than that. I have 3,780 songs!

Not so random/no "favorites" ten:

1. Let Your Day Begin - Tree63 from The Answer to the Question
2. It's Over - Squirrel Nut Zippers from Perennial Favorites
3. Can't Truss It - Public Enemy from Power to the People
4. Babe - Styx from Extended Versions
5. Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes - Paul Simon from SNL Live: 25 Years of Music
6. Eric the Half a Bee - Monty Python from Monty Python Sings
7. De Here to Love Me - Norah Jones from Feels Like Home
8. It's a Small World - from Classic Disney
9. Jessie's Girl - Rick Springfield from Pure 80's
10. You've Got Another Thing Coming - Pat Boone from In a Metal Mood

90's Music Ten

1. Cradle of Love - Billy Idol
2. Have YOu Seen Me Lately - Counting Crows
3. Cycle Me Through - Skypark
4. Letters - Vinegar Joe
5. Sad Songs and Waltzes - Cake
6. Lady With the Spinning Head - U2
7. Dumb - Nirvana
8. Unskinny Bob - Poison
9. Immortality - Pearl Jam
10. There Was 2 - Sonichrome

That 90's Music playlist is all screwed up. It took me 27 songs to get ten from the 90s. I have a lot of compilations that were RELEASED in the 90's, so they all show up in that playlist. Lame.

Bottom Half Shake Up

50's Night truly separated the top of the heap even further. This has to be the strongest top five in Idol history. Most seasons you easily forget everyone but the top two, with a handful of exceptions. This year, five of the contestants are going to have strong careers. Here's my top-eleven. Small change in the top-five (which will probably happen every week, since 3-5 are all VERY close to each other). Big changes in the bottom.

1. Chris Daughtery - Two weeks in a row he has done a performance that could easily be at the top of the charts next week. He is smart, rearranging I Walk The Line to sound like a Chris Daughtery song. Brilliant, as always. Simon complemented him by saying that he is the first "rocker-type" that refuses to compromise himself. VERY True. Simon Cowell - Voice of Reason.

2. Paris Bennett - Other than a small hiccup vocally in the first part of her song, Fever, she was brilliant.

3. Mandisa - She had her "Kelly-Clarkson-on-Big-Band-Night" moment last night. She rocks!

4. Katharine McPhee - Solid as always. I love her voice. To me, and I'm probably crazy, the performance came off as a little to broadway/cabaret/cheese to me.



5. Taylor Hicks - Taylor didn't pick the best song last night, in that, it didn't show off his voice well enough. It was fun, but bland.

6. Lisa Tucker - The perfect example of "Good is not Good Enough." She sang well, but is once again being completely overshadowed by Paris and Mandiva. She is my prediction for who will go home tonight.

7. Kelli Pickler - I have to put her at the top of the crap pile this week, because she had a VERY strong performance, doing Patsy Cline's Walking After Midnight.

8. Elliot Yamin - This guy just bothers me. He has the personality of a rock. The judges said he sang great last night, so the must have had a different performance in the theater than we saw on T.V. I thought it was terrible the first time. After the judges praised him, I watched it a second time (with my eyes closed, so I could focus on the voice) and, while it was better, it still wasn't great.

9. Cletus - He's now 1-for-2 on attempts to put his voice into the selected genre. Why he didn't do a country song from the fifties, I'll never know. HE could have kicked butt with Walking After Midnight, ala Garth. He HAS to try and make it a country song every week, no matter what the genre is. Unfortunately, he doesn't have the musical smarts that Chris has shown, so it's probably going to get worse before it gets better.

10. Ace Young - He sang well last night, but I still want to kick his Ass. Melissa asked me last night if I only hate him because he's a pretty boy. The answer is no. I hate him because he's a pretty boy and his "name" is Ace. C'mon.

11. Chicken Little - Kevin won't be going away anytime soon, which is too bad. He's got the Vote-for-the-worst seal of (dis)approval, and unfortunately, he has a strong legitimate fan base as well. He doesn't appeal to the 8-to-80 crowd, he appeals to the 8 AND 80 crowd. He'll be the only performer to have granny-panties and disney-princess underroos thrown at him on stage. He was so beyond terrible, it's not funny anymore.

FridayRandomTen

1. Float On - Modest Mouse from Good News for People
2. Cry - Vinegar Joe from Live at the Mixing Lab
3. Roxie's Suite - Danny Elfman from Chicago
4. Seen It All Before - Amos Lee from Amos Lee
5. Under My Thumb - Rolling Stones from Forty Licks
6. Youth Culture Killed My Dog - They Might Be Giants from Best of the Early Years
7. Cry!Cry!Cry! - Johnny Cash from The Legend of Johnny Cash
8. Within You Without You - The Beatles from Sgt. Peppers...
9. Found - The O.C. Supertones from Adventures of the O.C. Supertones
10. War Pigs (1970 Basement Tapes) - Black Sabbath from The Ozzman Cometh

Rolands gotta laugh at the Supertones followed by Sabbath....


FridayRandomRapTen

1. Jump - KrisKross
2. Soldier - Eminem
3. Boyz-N-The-Hood - Easy-E
4. Touch the Sky - Kanye West
5. You Can't Touch This - M.C. Hammer
6. Can't Do Nuttin' For Ya Man -Public Enemy
7. Stan - Eminem
8. Diamonds from Sierra Leone - Kanye West
9. Bombs over Bahgdad - Outcast
10. I'll Be Missing You - Puff Daddy & The Family

Spring Fever

James is ready for his first season of Angels Baseball!

His first words are going to be "Jeff Weaver Sucks!"

AI: Week One

Here's my rankings of the contestants after the first week of performances. A very hot/cold season. I have a strong top-five, all of whom I would be ok with seeing them win, at this point. There are two stuck on neutral, who I don't really love or hate, and then a dismal bottom five, who ALL need to dissapear. Quickly.

1. Chris Daughtery - I love this guys voice and so far he has been 100% flawless. He has a strong rock voice and truly shouldn't be in this competition. He need to be fronting a rock band. He's miles ahead of Bo Bice, in that: he's real. Bo Bice, who I still like, played the southern rock role well and should just go on tour singing with Skynyrd. His album was pretty tame southern rock, not what I had expected from him. CHRIS, can be a legit lead singer of a "Live" style band. He reminds Melissa of Ed Kowalczyk. He might have a problem with some of the theme weeks that this show has, but so far he's 1-for-1, sailing through Stevie Wonder week with a rock version of Higher Ground, ala the Chili Peppers. Hopefully he'll get so lucky every week.

2. Paris Bennett - Another seasoned performer, who hasn't taken a misstep. I REALLY like her, Chris is higher because he's much more in my prefered genres musically. Paris is fun to watch. She's young and cute and can sang. She has the best stage presence, and is probably the one who "should" win this show. Chris is awesome, but he's not the best "american idol" type of winner.


3. Taylor Hicks - I was saying to some friends last night: If I were, for some reason, going to see the top-12 on tour this summer (which, of course, I won't), THIS is the one guy I would be most looking forward to seeing. He is so fun to watch. He's a total kook, but he's got a great voice, a unique style and he stands out as a VERY original performer. I can't wait to see what he does post-idol, when he gets to work the harmonica on stage. He mentioned that the show stylists want to change his grey hair. That would be a huge mistake. I think if he dyed his hair, he would lose some of the unique appeal he has accross America.

4. Katharine McPhee - After last night's performance, I, too, have the McPheever. My hesitation with her has always been that she comes across as a cocky, seasoned performer, and just sort of fake. But the chick can SING. She got her first comparision to Kelly Clarkson, how they both truly emerged as front runners at this part of the contest.


5. Mandisa - Being a big-boned guy myself, I've got a connection to this next-aretha, and I want to see her to REALLY well. She stumbled a little last night, but that doesn't detract too much from the fact that she has THE best voice in the competition. As Randy says, "The girl can BLOW."


6. Lisa Tucker - Lisa has a great singing voice, but her youth is going to come into play pretty soon. No matter how great a voice she has, she just can't stack up against Paris and Mandisa, and, unfortunately, That is where she's going to be compared first, and where she's going to lose the votes. It's also fun to root for a local girl, since she goes to high school in Anaheim.

7. Cletus - As my wife mentioned last night, I just don't know how anyone can say "Bucky" and not start laughing at him. He is a TRUE redneck. He is a hick-from-the-sticks in a way that Bo could have only dreamt about. Where Bo was sort of a manufactured NECK, Bucky is a true-blue southern-fried white trash trailer jockey. With all that said, He's got a GREAT country voice. He, too, will struggle fitting his style into the themed weeks. Where Chris seems to have more musical "know-how" and can work with the band to tailor a song to fit his needs, Cletus will probably just try to fit his voice INTO the other genres, and that will be his down fall. He's still about 42 miles ahead of the bottom five...

8. Elliott Yamin - Congratulations! You're at the top of the dung heap!! This kid can sing well, about one out of every three weeks. But he's got the personality of a rotting tomato.

9. Melissa McGee - She probably has the worst voice of anyone in the top 12, and shouldn't have made the top-12 over the basketball player, but she's got a good personality and I don't exactly hate her. She can stay a while, as far as I'm concerned, just to get the next three gone as QUICK as possible.

10. Kelli Pickler - Read This. She makes me want to vomit.

11. Kevin Covais - He's cute, he's cuddly, and he's annoying as hell. He just simply isn't an american idol, no matter how great his personality is. Since he's the Vote-for-the-Worst pony this year, he might make it as far as Scott Savol did last season. And that would just be sad. But funny.

12. Ace Young - I just want to kick this guys ass. I know he'll be around for a long time, and he's got the chick vote, He's the biggest poser ever in this competition. And DUDE needs a flipping haircut!!!!!!