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Monday, October 12, 2009

30

I've been planning on doing a blog about being thirty since well, I turned 30. I'm about to turn 31...yikes...so I guess I better share my thoughts, wisdom, etc soon.

The only thing is, when I planned on writing this blog, I was in a much different place mentally than I am today. This year has probably been one of the most eye opening of my life, to put it gently. I thought I was just going to make this happy list of how great it is to be thirty (mostly) but then life kicked me upside the head and made me grow up.

So here is my big revelation about being thirty; if life/God/the universe hasn't dropped a big bomb on you yet, it's going to. You can't stay in a fairy tale forever (that was me) as much as you want to. Now, I'm not saying lose touch with your childhood self by any means. I wouldn't trade all my NKOTB insanity this past year for anything. I'm just saying, don't assume that just because you are thirty, you've got it all figured out. Don't live in a fog. Keep your eyes open and if they aren't open yet, open them before something makes you do it. That's not fun. At all.

I HAVE gathered some wisdom about being thirty that is a little easier to swallow, so here it is:

1. Teenagers think you are old and you think teenagers are babies. Realizing that you actually contemplated getting naked with another teenager when you were a that young is pretty freaky because you now know, you knew NOTHING.
2. You will no longer be able to tell who is 21 vs. 25 vs. 32. This is because you don't really feel like you've changed much since you were about 25. It blows my mind every time an employee has a birthday and I assume we are close in age...it turns out he's only 22! Which means he was in like 6th grade when I finished high school.
3. You know exactly where all your wrinkles will be when you are 40 because they are now fine lines that will not go away.
4. You realize all that obsessing over your body, how you acted around others, if you were cool or sexy, was a big waste of time in your teens and twenties. You are great just the way you are. If only you could be skinny, eat what you want, be wrinkle free like back then AND feel so confident in yourself! Damn! Youth really is wasted on the young.
5. Everything you liked as a kid is now labeled "classic" or "retro". Teens are watching movie versions of it, wearing it on their Hot Topic tees, acting like they created it all while you think "Are they nuts? We did that 20 years ago!" (boys in neon high tops, really?)
6. By 30, you probably know who your real friends are because they are still around. That is awesome.
7. Women really do reach their sexual peak in their thirties...woo hoo!(If only you could be skinny, eat what you want, be wrinkle free like back then AND feel so confident in yourself! Damn! Youth really is wasted on the young.) I think it's more a mental thing than a biological thing...but that's just my opinion.
8. You start to realize why that "pervy older dude" or "creepy old lady" stared at you when you were younger. It's because you were young and hot and they still felt young and hot. Examples for me, Taylor Lautner and Zac Efron. Hotties...Taylor isn't even 18. Yikes.
9. It's time to make some big decisions and do something about it. You are going to be FORTY in ten years. Does twenty really feel that long ago? No, I didn't think so.
10. Suddenly, it's not totally weird to think someone 35-40 is attractive and a potential bf/gf/spouse. Oh wait...no that still feels weird. Unless it's like Joey Mac or Johnny Depp.
11. You can relate to your parents so much better now.
12. Every time you get carded for alcohol it is the coolest thing EVER. It's even cooler when the liquor store clerk looks at you like you are crazy because he KNOWS there is no way you are old enough to drink and then your license says 1978. Just smile.

30. Embrace it. Be ready for it.

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Super quick book and movie review

I know, I know! I'm so lame right now...life is just kinda jacked up and I feel like all I do is talk about it so I've had very little desire to blog about it.

Let's see...a little normalcy has returned so I did finish a book and squeeze a movie in this past week.

The book is really old. I recently finished Firestarter by Stephen King.
Review: Good to great classic King. Read it, you'll like it. I believe there is a movie starring Drew Barrymore as the little girl.

The movie is Harry Potter 6.
Review: You can definitely tell it's the transition story in the series, so in that respect, it's just like the book. I thought the scene transitions were kind of crappy though. I just felt like it jumped from part to part...and it was still 2 1/2 hours. Don't get me wrong, it was a very enjoyable 2 1/2 hours. The hormones of the now grown characters provide a lot of laughs. I felt like they skimped out on the Tom Riddle memories though. I guess they chose to keep us more in the present and only show the vital memories to help us understand the two part finale we have to look forward to. Go see it. It won't be a waste of your money.

The end. Sorry, lame, I know.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Can We Go Back?

I know it's been a long time...my life is well, kind of a mess. Rather than give personal details I'm just going to post the lyrics to "Can We Go Back" from Kelly Clarkson's latest album All I Ever Wanted. I think you are all smart enough to draw your own conclusions. It's almost scary how perfectly this describes what I'm dealing with....

Can We Go Back

You're complicating things
I need some room to breathe
I gotta get back to simplicity
If you want more than this
Then tell me what it is I gotta do
Oh, this is killing me
I need you to see
That somethings gotta change

Can we go back to the way we used to be
Back to the butterflies
Staring deep in your eyes
Can we go back to how we used to be
Cause livin and lovin was easy
We gotta find a way to fool reality
And go back to the way we used to be

When did we mess it up
What happened to love
We had it good
But it wasn't enough
We shouldn't let it fade all the way
Were over thinkin this way too much
I want you next to me
But somethins gotta change

Can we go back to the way we used to be
Back to the butterflies
Starin deep in your eyes
Can we go back to how we used to be
Cause livin and lovin was easy
We gotta find a way to fool reality
And go back to the way we used to be

Oh, can we go back

No it doesn't have to be this hard
And this isn't the way we are
Our love was effortless
Now it's tearin us apart
Oh, I'm getting tired of the fight
We can't pretend that it's alright
I'm slowly losing hope
Baby can we try

Can we go back to the way we used to be
Back to the butterflies
Starin deep in your eyes
Can we go back to how we used to be
Cause livin and lovin was easy
We gotta find a way to fool reality
And go back to the way we used to be

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Book Review: The Taking by Dean Koontz


Published 2004, approx 410 pgs, paperback

Just the other day, a coworker comes up to me and goes, "How many books have you read since you started working here?" I answered, "A lot." Honestly, I don't know, but it is quite a few. I'm a receptionist, I'm responsible for guarding the front door (anyone who knows me realizes how comical this is if anyone really dangerous came in) so my days have a very strict schedule. One 15 minute break at 10am and 3pm and a one hour lunch at noon. Because my schedule is so strict, I can rarely get out during my lunches, so I read. I have a pretty large collection of hard cover books at home I still haven't touched so in this past year, I've finally made a dent.

Now that Idol is over, I've been struggling to find something to write about so why not the books I'm reading? If I ever catch up to SYTYCD, maybe I'll cover that too. We'll see.

Anyway, Koontz and I go way back. He was one of the first horror writers I read after discovering Stephen King. I read a lot of his books in high school...not so much as an adult. What brought me back was my recent trip to Florida and the obnoxious amount of flying I had to do. I needed a paperback and I knew I could count on Dean Koontz.

The synopsis starts like this "On the morning that will mark the end of the world they have known, Molly and Niel Sloan awaken to the drumbeat of rain on their roof." Sounds interesting right?

The book is basically about the take over of the planet by an alien species in a 36 hour period. Rather than just showing themselves, the aliens appear to be reforming the planet to suit the life forms of their planet/species. The main characters are Molly and Neil, a childless couple in their late twenties. It follows their discovery of the changes happening to the planet, their struggle to survive, and their desire to help others in their town.

Their are quite a few parallels with the story of Noah's Ark and references to the religion vs. science debate. I always enjoy the combination of these two themes as I consider myself a fence sitter on the issue. Regardless, the book is fast paced and I found myself surprised that little more than a day passes in the story. It's not ground breaking or exceedingly original but it was a good book. Koontz does throw in a good little twist at the end on the science vs. religion topic that wrapped up the story nicely. So, if you are into sci-fi/horror and need a solid read, I recommend giving this a try.

Friday, June 5, 2009

When two loves combine

Books and Joe Mac. Joe Mac and Books. HEAVEN.

Joey started the Let's Get This Foundation and his first "step" as he calls it, is a book drive. Joey needs new books for kids between 0-5 years old. If you donate $10 (buys 5 books) you get a free download of his new song. Anyway, my brain is still mush from Florida so just go here, www.letsgetthis.org for all the details.

Me and my NKOTB friends in sunny (HOT) Florida.
As you can see, none of them are axe murderers and nobody is crazy. We had an awesome time despite our dates standing us up.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Kris Wins and Adam doesn't have to record No Boundaries!

Ok, so I kinda wanted Adam to win and I am a little bummed but...he doesn't have to sing that horrible song ever again.

Overall, I thought the finale was great.

Highlights: BEP, David Cook (what a tear jerker), Allison w/Cyndi Lauper (who is like, 55 or something and looked great, wow!), Kara vs. Bikini girl (Kara gave her a proper beat down both vocally and visually), Kris and Keith Urban (double yum), Alexis just being damn cute, Jason Mraz, QUEEN and KISS with Adam, Norman Gentle, Adam and Kris geniuinely being happy for each other.

Lowlights: Lionel Richie had to sing with Gokey (How dare Gokey do "Hello" after David Cook slayed it last year) so I ended up fast forwarding...sorry Lionel, Lil and Queen Latifah...FF, sorry Queen, Lil getting a duet but Matt G didn't and he got fifth wtf?, Rod Stewart practically falling on his face (painful, had to hit FF), Tatiana Del Toro, Gene Simmons tongue, and Kris saying "Adam deserves this."

Did I miss anything?

Congrats to Adam and Kris. I will buy both your albums but Kris, I will not buy that horrid "No Boundaries" even if Joey Mac's best friend Eman produced it. Or if you do a country album. Adam, do your thing, I WILL buy your album.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

American Idol Finals-Adam v. Kris

Well, this is the first time I like each of the final two enough that I'd buy both their albums. As usual the final showdown was kind of a letdown. I mean, by this time, everyone pretty much has their favorite and the contestants have had their best performances. This is just a formality really. Adam and Kris both had to sing 3 songs; their favorite from the season, a song picked by Nygel Lythgoe, and Kara's co-written piece of crap.

Adam was up first and he chose "Mad World" as his favorite of the season. He came rising up out of the stage with a Matrix coat on and had fog on stage and everything. I loved it simply because he had the balls to do it. His vocals were gorgeous. Simon complained that it was too theatrical but whatever. Adam replied something about "well, they said they had this elevator and dry ice..." Gee, me thinks the show was HOPING Adam would let them use it. Have they ever had a contestant that could have pulled off that much drama?

Kris chose "Ain't No Sunshine" (uh, I had to look it up...my mind went BLANK). As before, he sat behind the piano and it was amazing. Simon gave the round to Kris. Yes, I realize I say a lot more about Adam but that's the beauty. Adam is so HUGE and Kris is so simple and I love them both.

For round 2 Nygel chose "Change is gonna Come" for Adam. I have to Admit I spent half the performance thinking, "Why did he choose an R&B song for Adam?" when all season it's been ballads and rock. Well whatever. Anyway, Adam sounded really good and did a lot of crazy vocal stuff. I guess, it was a good choice in a way because we got to hear him sing something different.

Kris was given "What's Goin On?". He did a stripped down acoustic version with his guitar and the bongo guys. I liked it...it was totally Kris. Then the judges start rambling about how his performance wasn't "big enough" for the importance of the night...wtf does that mean? He did HIS thing and he did it well. He can't be Adam...and the next round proves my point...

Round 3 the guys had to sing the dreaded Idol ballad...these things are always so bad...so sappy, horrible lyrics, ugh. I don't get why some seasons the contestants have two to choose from and then other years they have to sing the same song. The "song" is called "No Boundaries". I cannot even remember how it goes, it's that catchy. I actually couldn't remember the title of the song until a little bit ago.

Anyway, Adam did okay with it. Even he was pitchy on this thing and like rock week, the background singer was trying to out sing him or something. Kris looked terrified from the moment he got on stage, alone with just a mic, poor guy. He even messed up the lyrics (nobody said anything though). It was just, not good. He was straining. I felt so bad for him. The judges said the key was too high and for both performances said not to vote for the guys based on that song. Way to go, Kara!

The judges- Simon seriously needed to button that shirt. It was almost to his belly button. Paula looked like she got stuck in a tanning bed. Kara was way too intense and scared me. Randy was just Randy.

Who will win? It's a toss up as far as I'm concerned.

Friday, May 15, 2009

No Service Part 2

Life is funny...life can suck and it can also be amazing. Notice, I'm not using CAPS? It's because I'm not totally devastated and angry anymore...well, I'm a little bummed I'm not trapped on a cruise ship with NKOTB this weekend but I digress.

Let me tell you a story:

Last May 16th I fell in love with my favorite boy band all over again. Then they did a show in San Jose and I really thought that would be it, that I would be satisfied. The thing is, in the meantime, I had met all these amazing fans online and they were doing all this crazy stuff to meet the guys. The guys have been nothing but amazing towards their fans, unlike any celebrity I've ever seen. I decided I wanted a piece of that. So, my new friends and I decided we would all go to a big concert together this summer. I started recycling cans and bottles when my bonus' were taken away because I was determined to go on this trip with CASH.

As you know, the trip was all set to happen. VIP passes, plane tickets, hotels, outfits...all bought. 10 girls were ready to go...and then Monday it all got ripped away from us. Everyone was upset but most felt the worst for me because I was the last "VIP virgin"...the only girl who had not met the guys yet. Then something amazing happened...

My friend Katie was determined that I would meet Joey Mac. I guess one of her twitter followers realized what happened and offered to GIVE me her meet and greet pass (her name is Jen) for her show in Connecticut. Katie lives in Connecticut...could I use my refunded VIP money to fly to CT? Katie and the rest of my friends donated a little money so I can stay in a hotel the night of the concert...

None of these gals have met me yet in person but I love them. They are amazing. So, in two weeks I'm still headed to Florida, but instead we are going to Disney World. It will be fun. Then 3 weeks after that I will get to meet Katie and FINALLY meet NKOTB. Life is funny...

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

American Idol Finals-Final 3

This will be my first ever "Drunk Idol Review". Hehe. Hubby actually decided he wanted to go to Chili's and have margaritas on a Tuesday night (his weekend, not mine). Ok then! I was nice and tipsy by the time I hit play on the Tivo...

Danny was up first and he sang some song by some artist I'd never heard of. It fit his voice...but I noticed he licks his lips a lot and it was grossing me out. I also found his facial hair extremely annoying. Idol is funny when you are drunk. His performance still seems spastic to me. Ok, yeah. The guy can sing, blah blah. I still wouldn't go see him in concert or buy his album.

Kris was second. Kris sang "Apologize" by One Republic, chosen by Kara and Randy. I thought he did a good job and I'm glad he didn't' really change it. That song is still pretty popular and I think it would have weirded people out if he had rearranged it. Kris' funny singing faces were much more noticeable in my drunkenness. His jaw went farther to the right than normal and he kept scrunching his face like something smelled really bad. Was I the only one that noticed his chest in the black shirt? (at this point I start thinking about one Jordan Knight and Twisted)

Adam was third and he sang "One" chosen by Simon who was quite proud of himself. Alcohol kinda made Adam seem not so amazing to me. He was still great but I was just like, "yay. Adam, you did it again." I really liked the beginning....it was weird when he went into his crazy high stuff...but he still has amazing control and hits all the notes...it just didn't seem like an Adam type of song.

Round 2

Danny. Again. What did he sing? Wonderful World or something? I can't remember. I remember I thought he did really well. The acoustic thing was cool. I can see what we all saw in Danny at the beginning, but dude, you sucked for most of the finals and you really sucked on the Aerosmith last week...so just to be fair, Kris and Adam should be in the finals for being mostly awesome the whole season. Besides, you will just end up like Taylor Hicks if you make an album.

Kris sang "Heartless" by Kanye West. Um what!? Dude! Cool! I hate this song, it's on the radio too much and Kanye sucks (his singing). I loooooved Kris' version. Great job Kris! Look, Kris just had a moment. And he did the acoustic guitar thing Kara whined about after Apologize. See Kara? He didn't want to do the same thing twice, duh. Woot woot! Yep, still tipsy.

Adam sang "Cryin" by Aerosmith. Well, at least Danny isn't singing it, thank god. I feel like the background singers ruined it actually. I kept going "what is that noise?" and it wasn't Adam, it was the harmonies. Ick. Shut UP! Well, anyway I think it was just decent. Nothing amazing. Adam set the bar so high for himself that anything less is kind of underwhelming. Or, maybe he was amazing and I was too drunk.

The judges-Kara is really annoying when you've had a few margaritas. That's all I remember. Oh wait, and I'm really pissed that Step 5 happened of the judges plan, with Allison as the victim. Danny shouldn't have been here.

Songs I'm most likely to download- Kris' take on "Heartless"

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

No Service

Warning: I need to rant again...I need to throw a little tantrum. Sorry, it's been a rough few days...

NKOTB CANCELLED MY FLORIDA CONCERTS! I don't blame them for stuff they can't control but still...IT'S JUST HITTING ME THAT I'M STRETCHED SO THIN I WON'T BE SEEING THE FULL SERVICE TOUR AT ALL! (barring some miracle)

NO MEET AND GREET, NO FLIRTING WITH JOEY MAC (assuming I'd been able to) NO SEEING THE BLUE EYES IN PERSON, NO MEETING ALL THE OGG'S, NO SEEING A CONCERT FROM THE FIRST FEW ROWS FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER. NO SCREAMING AND CRYING WITH GIRLS THAT FEEL JUST LIKE I DO ABOUT THE GUYS....*sob.

The guys will be touring and I will just be reading other people's accounts of meeting them like the last year....I don't know if I can handle that anymore. I think I may have to just be thankful for my two concerts and block the rest out.

At least I get a girls weekend in Florida...

Monday, May 11, 2009

B*** S***

I HATE it. I know hate is a strong word but it's the only one that fits. I mean really...come on, I'm NOT an idiot, but people try damn hard to make me feel that way.

Most of this is going to be just vague generalizations because I do have to protect my livelihood as much as I'd love to rant openly about exactly what is driving me nuts.

Look, times are tough. EVERYONE knows that. Why hide it? Why try to act like everything is great ALL THE TIME? Most people can see through the facade. Stop pumping people up only for reality to come crashing down a week later. You know you only do it for your own ego. "I know what's really going on because I'm special, and you're not." Whatever. Get over yourselves. We all know...or at least have an idea. You know what...?

We'd be...I'd be...much more useful to you if you treated me as the intelligent, trustworthy person I am. I'd know why and what I'm working for. I'd be better prepared to handle surprises from the "outside".

But no. Instead you want to keep me, and most everyone else in the dark because you figure your secrets won't get out. Guess what moron? People on the outside know more than we do apparently. Good job at being all secretive. It just makes YOU look like a b*** sh**ter. And I hate that.

Friday, May 8, 2009

NKOTB on Today Show

A full year after their first televised appearance, they are still going strong (to the chagrin of husbands and boyfriends everywhere) and better than ever.



Thanks to my friend Katie for the two soundcheck vids.
Now I just have to get my butt home so I can see it on TV! I'll try not to scare Tully with my squealing (yes, I'm still squealing a year later).


Wednesday, May 6, 2009

American Idol Final Four-RAWK!

I'm going to do things a little different this week...no organized recap of each performance. I'm feeling lazy. I'm tired. I've had a horrid cough all week...hopefully my abs have gotten a good workout.

I am really happy Idol finally did a Rock week. The last few seasons it's been pretty apparent that "rock" performers can hold their own and it's about time they get to show what they can do. From the moment the contestants came out on stage, you knew it was going to be Adam's (and his little sidekick Allison's) night. He came out, in all his rock god glory...eyeliner, awesome hair, skintight black shiny jacket and pants...standing like, a foot taller than everyone else. "I am ADAM, and these are the other three who are going to finish second, third, and fourth." Now, I'm not saying Adam was acting cocky (that's Danny's job)...he literally stood out next to the other three with his confidence in who he is.

The show basically went like this: Adam ABSOLUTELY NAILED a Led Zepplin song and Simon was right when he said nothing would top it the rest of the night. I found it oddly hot, given his penchant for kissing boys...but I did grow up watching 80's glam rock videos...

Allison did great on a Joplin song, yet the judges didn't get it (whatever), so she had to talk back a bit to defend herself (you go girl!). Loved her clothes all night...and the new hair was awesome.

Kris and Danny did an awkward duet. It was basically like well, two Idols battling each other, standing as far away from each other as possible singing the same song. They both struggled on the solo parts so Simon saying Danny was "better"...well, that was the first step of "throw Kris under the bus so Danny makes top three and we don't look like tools for saying he'd be in the finals" project.

Step 2 of "throw Kris under bus..." was making Kris sing right after his duet. I totally enjoyed his take on Come Together. It was very Kris. It wasn't as good as Adam obviously, but there was no reason for the judges to all of a sudden hate on Kris (step 3).

Danny sings and destroys "Dream On" by Aerosmith. Picking up the mic stand and waving your arms at the end of the song does not make you a rock guy. And yes, he went for "the note" and failed FAILED FAIL WHALED it. Then! Then he had the audacity to say that he'd have to watch the tape to see if it was really as bad as a horror movie like Simon said. EVEN WORSE...(sorry, I'm gettin upset here...) Step 4 of "throw Kris under bus..." was Paula, Kara, and Randy not saying how bad it was and instead giving him A++++'s for "effort" and crap like that. Since when was this show about "effort"?

Thank goodness the show ended with the Adam/Allison duet. It was Amazing...talk about two performers totally in their element and feeding off each other. Love them.

Songs I'm most likely to download- everything Allison and Adam

The judges-complete morons, hopefully step 5 (yes, I went with a NKOTB thing) of their "plan", voters going for Danny over Kris or Allison will not happen. Besides Jon never sings Step 5 anyway.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

American Idol Finals-Rat Pack Week

Simon was saying the opposite of everything I expected this week...and how cool would it have been (for ME) if Joey Mac could have mentored....but Jamie Foxx was frickin' awesome anyway.

Kris singing, "The Way You Look Tonight"- as soon as he started I felt a spontaneous EEK! rise from my gut. I had to stifle it, of course, because my significant other was iTouching right next to me. I love this song and Kris was yummy as always and I loved his take on it. I love Joey Mac's version so that's saying something. As for Simon's wet comment...well, I don't think Kris was but I'm sure he had fans that were. (no kids read this right?)

Allison singing, "Someone to Watch Over Me"- I thought she looked beautiful and that is was her best vocal yet. She was sincere and her voice was controlled. 16. Craziness. Simon is a freaking jerk for asking a 16 year old to say she thinks she should win over the hot 4 older guys she lives with (well, 3...Danny is ick to me). She said she thinks she has a chance to win...isn't that good enough? Just for that, I voted 10 times for her and none for anyone else.

Matt singing, "My Funny Valentine"-I don't know if Jamie's advice to change the key was a good thing, though I think his advice to just hold notes was good. Matt sounded strange in the beginning. I can't even really say what was wrong, it just was. I liked that he kept the vocal runs to a minimum and the ending was strong...still he could be in trouble.

Danny singing, "Come Rain or Come Shine"- OK, OK, I liked this performance. Even though we all know Danny should just NOT dance, he seemed really stiff behind the mic, like someone glued his feet to the stage. Once he blasted towards the front of the stage though, he actually didn't look like a big dork. His vocals were really good, OK?

Adam singing, "Feelin' Good"- can I just say I loved Adam's totally showboat catwalk strut down those stairs? Adam is loud and proud and a star. I was also digging that we had rocker Adam from the neck up and ballady suit wearing Adam for the rest of it. That long high note at the end....hello! I swear, I've never seen a guy sing this song but it worked for him.

The judges- I basically disagreed with Simon all night which was weird. Kara, Paula, AND Randy all made sense, which was also weird.

Songs I'm most likely to download- everyone but Matt. Sorry Matt.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Have you ever...?

Ever had a moment where you suddenly feel like a stranger in your own life? I just did. Not really sure if it's going to change anything but still...odd feeling.

Sorry, I know that is a little deep for a Thursday afternoon but I guess you can't always control these things...like PMS.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

American Idol Finals-Disco Week

Top 7 take two:

Well, it finally happened. Every year my husband says "I'm not watching anymore." when his favorite gets voted off. This year he really meant it. Alexis was his favorite so it's been 4 weeks now since he's even cared about the show (minus a couple Adam Lambert performances). With that, plus the fact that my house was 85 degrees inside, we weren't really in the mood to watch TV. We ended up laying on the bed in nothing but our undies trying not to die.

I did get up and power Tivo it through the show this morning before work so I could write this review for you ( I only vote once per favorite so I doubt it will affect the results that I didn't).

Lil singing, "I'm Every Woman"- First off, props on the cat suit...that took some guts. Hated the hair. I think Lil's performance was good and she actually showed some personality but the vocals were mediocre and all over the place. I've always noticed that about Lil, so it's not like I was surprised. At least she had fun.

Kris singing, "She Works Hard for the Money"- Sometimes a white t-shirt and jeans can be so hot, you know? But really, it doesn't matter because Kris took a total 80's dance track and made it into this cool acoustic thing. The beginning guitar totally reminded me of a Doobie Brothers track (the name escapes me). Overall it was amazing...the performance of the night.

Danny singing, "September"- I'm not big on disco but this is one track I do like. I wasn't too thrilled about Danny singing it, but he did a good job. Am I the only one that is embarrassed watching him though? If I close my eyes and just listen, he's a pretty good singer. Then I open my eyes and all I think is "dork with no rhythm singing karaoke". Kara saying he always has perfect pitch was a joke. Paula saying he's going to the finals was a slap in Kris' face.

Allison singing, "Hot Stuff"- I wasn't really sure how she was going to do this and not sound karaoke but the slow rock arrangement did just that. I thought it was hot and totally Allison. Loved her outfit. She is still one of my faves but I think Kris has taken the number 2 spot from her. I did NOT think it was indulgent. (Whatever Randy...you just stole Simon's line because the only thing you could think of all night was "you can definitely sing")

Matt singing, "Stayin Alive"- This could have been really cheesy and it wasn't. Matt had the JT/Matt look tonight. It reminded me of his Stevie Wonder night but not quite as good. Definitely not bad though. I think he's on the fence in regards to getting voted off.

Adam singing, "If I Can't Have You"- As soon as I saw Adam in the suit and pompadour I knew he was going to do a slow song (watch out Adam, getting slightly predictable). That said, I didn't even recognize the song and once again his vocals were gorgeous. Between him, Kris, and Allison, disco night wasn't feeling so disco-ey...thank goodness.

Anoop singing, "Dim All the Lights"- I didn't recognize this song at all and I missed Ryan saying what it was (did he?) so I had to look it up on Idolatry. With the shadow, light suit, and pink shirt, he reminded me of the guys in Miami Vice. Anyway...he was boring and cheesy. I could have sworn for one minute the light hit his face and his upper lip was all wet and I got grossed out.

The judges- didn't talk too much but Randy kept reminding America that these contestants can sing....uh they are Top 7 on American Idol, we know that. Simon was right on pretty much, Paula didn't get too mushy, and Kara evidently hates Lil now.

Most likely to download- Kris, Adam, and Allison

I think Anoop and Lil should just go away now, bye bye.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Sometimes a title isn't necessary...

...when someone puts their heart into something like this;



"Final" Lyrics (between me and Katie and a 100 or so listens of two different YouTube's)
Friday afternoon in Boston town and
Still know my way around and
Trying to find a rehearsal spot for
the reunion of New Kids on the Block

Gonna rip it like we used to do
Good to be back too with the crew
Don't know how it's gonna be but
Last time we made history so

Tell your momma and your sister too the
New Kids are comin back for you
In my mind I knew you'd never forget but
To see you again like this makes me feel
like I'll never be alone

Chorus
Where ever it is I'm going to
Whatever I am is because of you
and I thank you, and I thank you
Five brothers and a million sistas
Didn't know how much I missed ya
Thank you and I thank you

On my way back and on to rehearse
Call it What You Want but I call it love <---hehe, clever
Some people said we couldn't do it again but
the New Kids had the last word in the end

See what happens when you follow your dreams and
See what happens when you just believe, yeah
The whole world opens up her arms
Everything is easy that used to be hard

Tell your momma that I love her too but
Don't you know we did it all for you, cuz
In my heart I knew you'd never forget but
To see you again like this makes me feel
like I'll never be alone

Chorus
Where ever it is I'm going to
Whatever I am is because of you
and I thank you, and I thank you
Five brothers and a million sistas
Didn't know how much I missed you
Thank you and I thank you

You build me up, you make me high
When I feel your love I wanna fly, I wanna fly, I wanna fly
(piano)
And I thank you, and I thank you
Wherever it is
Whatever I am
And it's all, it's all because of you

Five brothers and a million sistas
Didn't know how much I missed you
I didn't know it, didn't know it, I didn't know

You pick me, you make me high
When I feel your love I wanna fly
No matter what I'm goin through, Oh!

You pick me up, you make me high
When I feel your love I wanna fly
No matter what we're goin through
There ain't nothin we can't do

(piano)
And I thank you, and I thank you
And I thank you, and I thank you


People often roll their eyes, make jokes, and laugh at us New Kids fans. They say they "don't get it", "the music sucks", "don't sing very well". I can't 100% disagree with any of those statements and neither can the "Kids" themselves. Nobody has ever claimed they had the greatest music or were the greatest singers. Does that mean they don't have a place? Does that mean they deserve the ridicule? The answer is no. This original song (no title as of yet), written by member (and my fave) Joey McIntyre, is the perfect example as to why we love them. It's because they TRULY love and appreciate their fans.

I did go to the Fresno show last week and it was a blast. My mom loved it. And you know what? Despite 2-3 of them being sick (Jon especially looked like he was going to pass out for most of the concert) they sang live and had the crowd up on its feet the entire show. (Unlike some super pop stars who get their music played all over the radio, tons of media attention, and then rip off their fans by lip syncing and barely even engaging the audience.) Sorry, rant over.

Thanks Joey. See you in West Palm Beach.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

American Idol Finals, Week Whatever- Movie Music

I learned in Speech 1A in college that you never start anything with an apology. This isn't college however, this is real life, so I'm starting with an apology. This won't be my best review because this week has been tough personally and it was hard for me to care A LOT about Idol. Anyway, here it goes:

Allison singing "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing"- yikes...David Cook did this really well last year. I even have it on my iPod. This performance was a mixed bag for me. I love Allison but this was not her best week. She was really cool on some parts and really a mess on others. I don't know why Simon was praising her so much unless he is trying to make up for kissing Lil's round this whole time when we all knew Allison was the stronger competitor.

Anoop singing "Everything I Do (I do it For You)"- did I type that super long title right? I don't know...anyway...it's one of those songs I loved growing up. I think it came out when I was in the 6th grade. Anoop sang it well but here's the thing...all Anoop can do is sing some soft syrupy ballad. Whenever he tries an upbeat song he falls apart so...he won't win this thing.

Adam singing "Born to be Wild"- haha. Adam. I missed crazy rocker Adam and his eyeliner. When Adam does the crazy rocker thing, it doesn't exactly make me want to listen to it on my iPod BUT his voice is exceptional and he's such a showman I always end up enjoying the performance. He even collapsed on his knees at the end and wailed. Gotta love it.

Danny singing "Endless Love"- I liked seeing Danny without the glasses...any change for him is a good change because every week feels the same. I thought the beginning was rough and pitchy but as usual, on his power vocals, he sounded great. Also, I did agree with Simon that he really connected to the song emotionally. I appreciated that.

Matt singing "Have you Ever Really Love a Woman"-jeez, I forgot about Bryan Adams ridiculously long song titles.... Matt had good parts and bad parts. That's really all there is to say about it. There wasn't anything special about it. He over sang it I guess. Matt frustrates me. One week (last week) he's great, the next week (this week) he's all over the place.

Kris singing "Some song I have no clue what it Was called but he was Awesome!"- I didn't hear Ryan say the title and I couldn't catch it in the song but who cares? Kris was amazing. Subtle and relaxed with his vocals. Hung on to the mic stand in a way that kind of drove me bonkers (in a good way). Randy must have been twittering or something because he was dead wrong in his critique of Kris. Kara was completely correct (in my opinion).

Lil singing "The Rose"- before I vomit over her song choice I just want to say that Simon was really harsh about her arrangement. She finally did what they asked and he totally thumbed his nose at her. I give her props for standing up for herself. That said, "The Rose" makes me gag. I was a band geek and that's one of those songs you learn and play a million times. It's so depressing. As for the performance, well, the beginning was horrible, the end was horrible, and the only good part was her gospel twist. Props for that but I think it's too little too late for Lil.

The judges- had to speak as a couple because they ramble too much. After last week's mess with Adam and Tivo the contestants only got two opinions after their performance. Poor time management annoys me.

Song most likely to download- Kris'

Monday, April 13, 2009

Do Somethin'-Britney comes to Sacramento (oh, oops! San Jose)

i see you looking at me
like i`m some kinda of freak
get up outta your seat
why don`t you do somethin`?

The lyrics to Britney's "Do Somethin'" were strangley ironic by the time she got to them Sunday night. By this point most of the audience was sitting and there wasn't much reason for us to get back out of our seats.

I was soooo excited for this girls night with my mom and sister. Our theme song is "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" by Cyndi Lauper, and boy could Britney take some lessons from Cyndi (and Madonna, and New Kids on the Block...) We are rarely bored together...but Brit managed to make it happen.

Here's the thing...there was A LOT going on; circus performers, hot dancers, tons of lighting, the circus style stage, and a huge circular monitor...oh and Britney was there. The problem was, unless you were fairly close, I doubt you could even tell it WAS Britney on the stage. We were on the upper bowl so we were praying that circular monitor was for us...so that we could connect and see her face. No such luck. The monitor was just filled with more visual effects.

I was prepared for lip syncing, little audience participation, and a big spectacle. What I wasn't prepared for was Britney saying "How you doing Sacramento?" after 40 minutes, and never seeing her face. You could hear the audience do a collective "WTF?" when she said that.

Anyway, she did mention San Jose a few times later on. Yippee. My favorite part of the night was her original hit "Hit Me Baby (One More Time)". It was the only time I felt a collective excitement in the crowd as we remembered the original Brit song. She should have ended there...but she left again, changed again, and ended with Womanizer.

Britney didn't sing
She mostly walked around on stilettos or was pushed around stage
She barely talked (and screwed up when she did)
She didn't show us her face
Britney, why don't YOU do somethin'?

Luckily, I have another New Kids on the Block concert on Thursday. Thank goodness. They know how to entertain and make you feel appreciated.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Not 20 years in the making...

Ok, so something pretty major happened today...something I never thought I'd do....something that I've been planning since October when I met a bunch of really awesome women online. Yeah, me...I made friends online. I will never tease anyone for doing that. Most people say, "20 years in the making" but if I said it, it would be a lie. ( I have a feeling a lot of people out there do exaggerate their dedication for attention) Anyway, this isn't 20 years in the making, its really only 6 months (to clarify, I was a fan as a kid, I grew up, moved on and am overjoyed they are back. I wasn't waiting this whole time) but 11 year old Myka is dumbstruck, terrified and over joyed.

I bought VIP tickets that include a Meet and Greet with New Kids on the Block. A few of my loyal followers may laugh but most of you gals won't because you are coming with me, lol. So, when I was 11, like most girls my age, I was in love with a member of a boy band. My future husband? Joey McIntyre. I, like many, lay on my floor and really believed "Please Don't Go Girl" was meant for me. I was going to marry him when I was 20 because he'd be 26 and that seemed ok at the time. (Ironically, I met my real Joe that year) I did get to see them in concert with my sister in 1990. We were way back on the lawn but I didn't care...they were so close, breathing the same air. Unfortunately, I was in such shock I only remember a few things: Jordan's torso and white shirt during Baby I Believe in You, Joey wore a gold sequin jacket, and my dad complaining about the screeching girls, then making us leave before the encore.


I saw the guys reunion show in October...this time I was a little closer but not so much, top of an arena. I remember the entire show, which is nice.

April 16th I am taking my mom (who has a cougar crush now that they are Grown Men) to see them in Fresno. We will only be 20 rows away. A little closer still...

May 30th, my friends and I will be in Florida enjoying the show from somewhere inside the Ford Amphitheatre. May 31st however...

I will get to hug Joey McIntyre and the rest of NKOTB. I don't care if it last 2 minutes (so many people complain). For that moment, I will have my arms wrapped around him, his around me and my 11 year old self can feel really really good. It will be worth every penny.

To NKOTB and my GG's...thanks for teaching me to LIVE. Everyone who knows me, knows I don't do these kinds of things...and I can't wait.

American Idol Finals-Songs from the Year they were Born

Talk about a disappointing week for me. I knew most of the songs would be from the 80's. I love 80's music...love it. Once again this group managed to pick mostly lame songs or perform them karaoke style. It was odd.

I am glad the judges didn't do that walk out intro. Seriously, it's not about them and that just seemed indulgent (can I just say I'm sick of hearing that word? It's like, Simon's favorite word this year). The contestants came out and the two remaining ladies, Allison and Lil, looked hot. They might as well work the sex appeal since that is one advantage they have over the guys.

1. Danny- "Stand by Me" His clothes look good so the fashion disaster era of Danny seems to be behind him. The intro was really nasally and then he started that goofy head bob he does. I really did not like the arrangement. It had a Megan Joy feel to it, lol. The end was good when he got into his power range.
As for Randy emphasizing that this is a "vocal talent show", it was like he was trying to convince us to vote for Danny because he sings well and forget the fact that he lacks the star quality Adam/Kris/Allison/Matt have. Haven't they been harping about the "package" and "artistry" all season. Unless your Danny, I guess...I'm just not impressed by him anymore. He isn't growing.

2.Kris- "All She Wants to Do is Dance" man he's cute. Ok, sorry...I've got boyband brain right now so my cuteness radar is in hyper sensitive mode. Nice jacket. Uh, I don't have much to say. This week he was just decent. The arrangement was boring. I did not think it was "indulgent" as Simon called it but it was kind of boring. Bummer.

3.Lil- "What's Love Got to Do with It" Lil, can you get rid of the stupid hair? Please? Your own hair was fine. Her shoes and outfit were hot. Her makeup was great. The performance, boring again. Just another "Lil trying to copy the original artist" night. I am starting to wonder if she EVER had a personality. Paula was right on in her critique. I'm really glad the judges finally see what I saw back in Hollywood. Hello guys...it's not just a "vocal talent show" as Randy said. (unless you are Danny) Lil saying that she'll show us next week made me roll my eyes...has she been listening at all? Alexis where are you?

4. Anoop- "True Colors" Well, he's back in the dorky preppy clothes. A lime green sweater? Really. I love this song and the performance came off well. Not great, but good. It helps that everyone before him was pretty weak. Paula bringing up rainbows during her critique? Gag. Simon calling Anoop a "yoyo singer" was hilarious. It's called inconsistent.

5. Scott- "The Search is Over" Does anyone else find it hilarious that a blind guy wanted to be a train conductor? At least trains have tracks. Scott cracks me up. First off, I was totally shocked to see him standing and with a guitar. The singing was just painful though. Especially his falsetto if that's what it was. I have to admit, I'm getting a little annoyed that he can't take a criticism without interrupting the judges and making a joke.

6. Allison- "I Can't Make You Love Me"- omg, she was born when I was in 8th grade! I was really impressed with her delicate side. So far we haven't heard much of her soft voice and it was really good! She just hit it out of the park with the power section and it was the soft parts that helped that stand out. Great job. And...she looked hot. Awesome outfit.

7. Matt- "Part Time Lover" Wow, Matt looked really good last night. Other than a little too much with the goat vibrato he really owned the whole performance. I think it was one of his best.

8. Adam- "Mad World" the Pimp spot again? Well, last night it was the "no show" spot because everyone's tivo's cut off early. I'm on the west coast and mine caught it...barely. Adam's surprise this week was he DIDN"T go all crazy at any point in the song. It was just calm and subdued and pretty and Simon gave him a standing ovation.

If you missed it, here it is:




Most likely to download- Allison and Adam

Judges- pretty much right on tonight except with Danny

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Megan, "bird girl", Joy


You know, it's weird how you can go from thinking someone is quirky and cute to just annoying and rude.

That is my "relationship" with Megan Joy from American Idol. She was eliminated yesterday and I am totally ok with it.

What bothered me the most is she was so disrespectful. She was making weird faces the whole show and then she caw'd and "flew" over the elimination stool. Later she told Simon she didn't care about his review. Once that came out...and the way she said it...I practically yelled at the tv "Then just leave!"

I feel bad for the other top 36 contestants that were more deserving and were taking the show more seriously. I can't even imagine what Alexis Grace was feeling sitting there in the audience. Yes, we still miss you Alexis.

Off topic-I should (probably will!) have some super exciting news next week! EEK!

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

American Idol Finals Week 4- Top Downloads

I'm probably not the only person that was surprised by all the old songs the contestants sang last night. It was kind of a let down. I thought I was going to hear the idols' take on stuff we are downloading right now, that's playing on the radio now. Oh well. Next time I hope Ryan clarifies what download chart "Play that Funky Music" is doing well on. Let's get to my review, shall we?

1. Anoop, singing "Caught Up" by Usher-aww my hubby wrote a little "I <3 U!!" note in my notebook! (total dork I know. I did take some notes last night...good thing because overall, I was so underwhelmed I knew I'd forget most of the songs) Sorry Anoop! Moving on. His vocals were good and I'm glad he toned down the frat party dancing. His clothes were better too. Unfortunately, Anoop looks too much like the Silicon Valley engineers I see every day for it to be believable. He has no sex appeal/star quality...whatever you want to call it.

2. Megan, singing "Turn Your Lights Down Low"-ok here is what went through my head within the first line of the song... She has this laid back style but she looks so tense and awkward and her mouth is tense and ouch! 8th or 9th word in she totally missed the note! The song choice was better but boring like the judges said and her vocals are just not strong enough anymore. Please leave now, its painful.

3.Danny, singing "What Hurts the Most" by Rascal Flatts- he looked thinner last night, clothes were fine, he didn't dance (thank goodness). I wasn't as blown away as the judges. Maybe it sounded different in the studio but the whenever the background singers came in, they were all I could hear and it made Danny sound off key. Danny's losing me. There are a few other contestants that are so much more interesting AND can sing.

4. Allison, "Don't Speak" by No Doubt- Allison made me feel old when she said "I grew up listening to this song". I was a senior in high school when this was a hit on the radio. Allison was like 4. Ugh. I still love you Allison. Anyway, her outfit was just too much. Hubby liked her shoes though, lol. For me, it was one of her weakest performances. It just did not sound right for her voice. I happen to be a big No Doubt fan, so that could be why I was disappointed. She did end stronger than she started and I was impressed by the guitar.

5. Scott, "Just the Way you Are" by Billy Joel- I'm not sure if I loved or hated Scott's new hair. It depended on the angle. The clothes were WAY better. Scott actually almost looked cool. This was by far his best performance. SCOTT's best performance. I'm not sure if that means good enough to stay out of the bottom three but I think this week anything is possible. He should definitely stick to the stripped down singer/songwriter style.

6. Matt, "You Found Me" by The Fray- I will admit, I don't follow The Fray so this song was completely new to me. I personally thought Matt's logic was right on. He did what the judges wanted last week and ended up in the bottom 3 (total crap btw) so why not sing something he loved and see what happens? I enjoyed it. You could tell he felt the song. Did it suit his vocals as well as last week? No. I thought the judges were just mean and nasty to him. Did they totally ignore his taped piece? You can't force a guy to be something he doesn't want to be.

7. Lil, singing "I Surrender" by Celine Dion- First of all, Lil needs to just stick to her natural hair. That dress was horrid. She looked 50 (and I don't mean hot Madonna 50). She sang the song in key, yes, and with power but my gosh was it BORING! Lil has gotten so boring. I've never loved her but seriously, what happened to all her attitude?

8. Adam, singing "Play that Funky Music"- I was like, "Huh?!" When it comes to Adam though, you just kind of sit back and wait and see what happens. As usual he took a totally weird song choice and rocked it out. The guy is just a natural. Everything seems so easy for him. From the hair (go back to the emo look for a bit) to the flared pants, the the little disco moves...he makes everything work for him. Then there is always his voice. Whether you love or hate his style, he has crazy skills. He finally woke me up...and there was only one person left.

9. Kris, singing "Ain't no Sunshine"-Yay! He got the Pimp Spot. Finally. Kris, again took a song I usually would avoid and made me love it. Last night he was on a keyboard and looked totally hot rocking his little self on that bench. I think my hubby was annoyed with my Kris love last night. He's growing on me. The guy gave me chills in the first line of the song...I mean, come on. Let's all get over the Danny thing and hop on the Kris train. I think I have a crush on his wife too. They are just too darn cute. Kris had the performance of the night I think.

The judges- at least they didn't draw on each other this week, jeez.

Most likely to download- Kris

Friday, March 27, 2009

Just Dance....gonna be ok

Gasp! Two blogs in two days!

This will be short though...

People can say what they want about pop music...that it has no soul, that it's manufactured, that it has a short shelf life but I have to disagree. Pop has given me more joy in my life than any classical piece (though there are a few that have a special place in my heart) has ever done.

Anyway, in the words of the great Gaga (that's Lady Gaga to you) Just Dance, (it's) gonna be okay.
I was feeling like crap yesterday and not really sure why. Just down. I had a workout ahead of me and didn't want to do it. "Just Dance" came on my iPod...so I did as Gaga instructed.

I went home, threw on some jeans and tennis shoes, hooked the iPod to my pocket, and danced to my 15 favorite songs (as of right now). I sweat, I jumped, I shook my booty, my dog thought I was losing it. But you know what? I felt sooo much better. Money problems, and all the other little things that bug me everyday were forgotten.

Screw the music snobs. I'd rather listen to Gaga

Just Dance, gonna be ok, da da do do, just dance
Spin that record babe (I always think of DJ Streamline here--->dh before we married)
da da do do,
Just Dance, gonna be ok, da da do do
Dance, Dance, Just, j j j just dance.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

American Idol Finals Week 3-Motown

What a relief! Soooo much better than country week and also it is soooo obvious who the weakest performers are.

Before I get into my recap/review though, a little about what is going on with me. Not much! Pretty boring stuff. I've just been working, chatting, Twittering, working out, and gardening. Hubby and I have some sprouts peeking through the soil...it will be interesting to see if we can keep them alive and eat some home grown produce this summer. Watched the Twilight movie last night...it could have been better, but overall, it was enjoyable. Hubby spent the whole movie going "He's going to bite her now right?" I need to go buy books 3 and 4. ONE freakin summer tour date leaked for NKOTB's tour today. ONE. In OHIO. Come on! Stop torturing me! I have a trip with like 10 girls to plan.

Ok, now... AMERICAN IDOL!

1. Matt, singing "Let's Get it On"- right off the bat, I was impressed. He is very talented. He's the guy that I had no clue about and now I thoroughly enjoy. I like that he got away from the piano a bit. I agree with Simon that the other guys need to keep their eye on him. His biggest weakness though...Justin Timberlake. He reminds me of him a lot, and that's not always a good thing. Is he unique enough to make it in the industry? I'm not sure.

2. Kris, singing "How Sweet it Is"- So normally this song makes me nauseated in it's "sweetness". Kris, however, brought it up to date for me with his Mraz-ey version of it. As usual, he looked hot. I absolutely adored his wife's reaction. What Kris has going for him is that his style is unique to everyone else in the competition and he always makes songs work for him. He could have the same problem as Matt in the industry though...is he unique enough?

3. Scott, singing "You Can't Hurry Love"- I think Scott is getting close to the end of his Idol run. He may make it another week, thanks to Megan and Michael, but this week it was really apparent he is nowhere nearly as strong a contestant as the top 5 or 6. Scott started the song off slow and I just thought "Oh god, Scott...not again!" Then he picked up the tempo. It was a nice effort but again, Simon was right. The piano playing was weird. Scott's comment about his pink pants "they told me 10 min before the show" was priceless.

4.Megan, singing "For Once in My Life"- Song starts...10 seconds later, I curl in a ball and just turn away. What is she doing? She picks songs and turns them into cheesy cruise ship material. Apparently, she doesn't know how to make a song her own. Everything cool about her just gets destroyed. Why are the stylists making her so glam? She's the cool, hippie chick. Oh, and Megan, don't walk. Just stand still and do your little shimmy. It was sooooo awkward.

5.Michael, singing "Ain't to Proud to Beg"- I don't think he understood what Smokey meant when he said to be grittier with the song. I thought he would be able to do it but the big guy couldn't. He was one of the few that obviously doesn't meet the caliber of the other contestants. He'll probably be forgotten along with many other former Idols, sad to say.

6.Lil, singing "Heat Wave"- Lil looked great. Well, I loved her dress, not the hair. Anyway, the beginning was awkward but at the end she really turned it up. I thought the judges were right on in their assessments. It was her week to shine and she just sparkled for a bit.

7.Anoop, singing "Oooo Baby Baby"- I think Anoop did really well. I was impressed. I didn't realize he had such a nice falsetto. Now if he can only do an upbeat number without seeming like the drunk guy at the party, he should stick around a while.

8. Adam, singing "The Tracks of My Tears"- When I first saw Adam looking like Elvis, I freaked out a little. "Noooo Adam, don't sell out!" He tricked me! Yeah, so he looked different ( and very handsome, fyi) but he still pulled off a killer performance. It was so mellow and I always wondered if he was capable of mellow. I have never heard that song...I would download Adam's version in a second. By far, the best performance of the night.

9. Danny, singing "Get Ready"-Ok, let me just say that I have been a big Danny fan from the beginning. I forgave his "drunk guy at the wedding" the first week. The thing is, its two weeks later and well, he's still really awkward to watch on stage. His clothes were better. I guess I just feel like all his songs are starting to sound the same to me. Still love his voice...I'm just getting bored.

10. Allison, singing "Papa was a Rolling Stone"- first I just have to say "No Simon, she did not SUCK last week. It just wasn't a strong week." Ok, Allison closed out the show with a bang. Another raw, rocker, holy cow how can a 16 year old sing like that? performance.

The judges-Paula is too old to wear a tutu dress. Kara made a lot of sense this week, and she looked gorgeous. The guys were the same as usual.

Most likely to download:Matt, Adam, Allison, and maybe Anoop





Wednesday, March 18, 2009

American Idol Finals Week 2-Grand Ole Opry

Due to wasting 3 hours of my evening watching the movie I reviewed in my previous post I can't do a play by play of American Idol this week...hubby and I power Tivo'd through 2 hours in 40 minutes.

1. I always DREAD country music week. Not only am I NOT a big fan of country...for whatever reason, its almost impossible for the idols to make country music interesting.
2. Kris Allen did great.
3. Adam Lambert was the only interesting one in the bunch. Was his version of "Walk the Line" really weird? Yes. I really liked his vocals. Insane. That guy is insane. I mean that in a good way.
4. Lil took one of the few country songs I like and made it super boring. I still think the show really over hyped her and now her weaknesses are starting to show.

I honestly have no clue who is going home this week...it could be anyone.
Most likely to download based on vocals-none

Movie Review: The Watchmen

When you've been with your husband for 10 years and he texts you and asks you on a date, you say "YES!". The date went fine, the movie however, was not. Hubby did not pick the movie, I sort of did and we agreed on it so the only people we can blame for wasting three hours (yeah, it's 3 hours...I had no idea) is ourselves.

We decided on the "superhero movie" because, well, you can't really go wrong with a "superhero movie" right? Even the not so good ones are entertaining and full of fights and special effects. The Watchmen, however, was a way to serious super hero movie. Let me put it this way; ever wonder what Superman, Batman, and Spiderman would do if they retired? Yeah. That's this movie.

Basically, during the opening credits you see some superheros in the 1940's rise to fame as The Watchmen and then one by one they are either killed, go insane, or retire completely. You then see the next generation rise up and retire. This is where the movie starts. It's 1985, America and Russia are in the middle of the cold war, Nixon is still president (???) because the superheros helped win Vietnam, and one of the retirees (Mr. Manhattan, a scientist who turned into a pretty hot naked blue guy who can manipulate matter after a nuclear accident) is working on developing clean energy to end our dependence on fossil fuels, etc. (Yes, we have been trying to deal with the fossil fuel mess for YEARS) One of the original superheroes gets murdered, another one is running around trying to convince the other retirees they need to find out who's behind it, and another one is super rich from exposing his true identity and marketing toys and such of himself. Anyway, all this stuff happens and it feels like the story is NEVER starting. Occasionally, the heroes have to pull out some old school moves to defend themselves, there is some super hero sex, and a lot of flashbacks.

I think they finally got to the plot the last 30 minutes or so. One of the retirees has gone rogue and is trying to cause a catastrophe ( I won't say why or there is NO point to watching it), and the remaining finally out of retirement heroes try to stop him. TRY.

None of the heroes except Mr. Manhattan really have any special powers besides speed and strength. It's about the closest thing to what I think it would be like if normal everyday people decided to put on a crazy costume and help out law enforcement.

None of the actors are recognizable, which is fine, but frustrating at the same time. There is full nudity quite often...Mrs. Jupiter gets it on with a couple people (nice to see natural breasts on screen for once), and Mr. Manhattan apparently does not care that his junk is swinging in the breeze the entire movie.

When the last thing you say is "Does this movie ever end?" and the first thing your husband says when it's over is, "Thank god that's over", its usually not a good sign. I could have been at home watching country week on American Idol, and being that is my least favorite week every year, I think that sums it up. Don't let the previews fool you. Those are literally the only cool super hero ish parts of the movie.

Babe, thanks for the date. Sorry the movie sucked.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

American Idol Finals Week 1-Michael Jackson

Around 6pm I started getting tweets from my east coast friends saying things like "my ears are bleeding" "that person should never sing again" and "I'm remembering how talented MJ really is/was"...so needless to say, I was not very excited about what I was going to witness when I finally got to see the episode.

Last night was the first of 10? weeks of the American Idol finals and the theme was the King of Pop's catalogue. I was pretty surprised...I mean...that's a tough first week! Anyway, lets got to the performances shall we?
1. Lil Rounds-for me the most over hyped contestant on the show. The judges and producers obviously expect her to make top 3 or something because they are surprisingly deaf to her bad notes. Ok, not BAD, but not GREAT. I have been unimpressed by her since she sang "I Will Always Love You" by Whitney Houston. Nothing about her seems any different from today's r&b diva. Last night she sang
"The Way You Make Me Feel", one of my MJ faves and she said "makin'" not "make" every time she sang the title line. Makin made me think of bacon. None of the judges seemed to notice. Overall, it wasn't very inspiring and I forgot about her by the fourth or fifth person. Simon was right about the outfit...it was straight out of 80's fashion hell.
2.Scott-I love Scott. He's not the best singer but how can you not love him? He's so genuine. I was really surprised that his sister was blind too. Scott sang "Keep the Faith" I've never heard it and I think that was to Scott's advantage...nothing to compare it to. I think he sang it well. I don't know if he's going to get a ton of votes for it, but I did give him one.
3. Danny- first off, his outfit was horrible. That jacket looked like it barely fit. And the dancing...well, it was bad and he knew it. His dancing reminded me of that drunk white dude at the club that has no clue he can't dance. He asked for a choreographer, which I found cute. Once I got passed how dorky he looked though, his vocals were insanely good. I can't really knock a guy who was having such a great time AND sounding so good. Got my vote.
4.Michael-Hardworking family man with a nice voice. He sang "You are Not Alone" well. There isn't much that grabs me about him though. Plus whenever I hear that song I think of junior prom with my ex and the fact that MJ was naked and had short hair in that video. He'll probably be gone around the top 10.
5.Jasmine-I had high hopes for her after her initial audition. She is definitely the total package, young, pretty, stylish, good voice. Unfortunately, she sucked her first week in the top 36 doing an uptempo song so now she's stuck on dreary ballads. I love "I'll be There" ( I prefer the nkotb version with Joey Mac singing, lol) but Jasmine just made it boring. If she survives this week, she'll have to do an uptempo song and show some of her attitude.
6. Kris-Kris is cute. Kris has a cute wife...aww they remind me of me and Joe. I love that! Kris is singing "Remember the Time". Oh dear. This is one of my top 3 fav
orite MJ songs. Please don't suck! He didn't suck...I really liked his Jason Mraz-y version. Too bad you could barely hear his guitar. Stupid sound guy. Kris definitely has his niche in this group. Got my vote.
Simon really pissed me off with the "you shouldn't have shown your wife this early" comment. How rude! I LOOOOVE that Kris' wife was so pissed. I would have been too. Simon, you are a moron. Chicks vote for cute guys regardless of their relationship status because deep down we think we always have a chance.
7. Allison-god I love this girl! 16, huge voice, not annoyingly sweet, rocker style. She sang "Give it To Me". I have heard this MJ song before but its not one of his well known tracks. She did great I think. It was dark and rocker and I loved her little retort to Simon about not being so dark. "Uh, well it's not a happy song...I don't cut myself or anything..." Allison, don't ever change. Got lots of votes.
8.Anoop- As soon as Ryan said Anoop was singing "Beat It" I knew it would be a disaster. I mean, nobody else can sing "Beat It". I doubt anyone could change it around the way Chris Cornell changed "Billie Jean" (that David Cook performed last year) It was pretty cheesy and karaoke. Poor Anoop. I like him but that was a dumb choice.
9.Jorge- I'll be upfront and say that I don't really know why he made it into the top 13. He's a likable guy with a good voice but that's about it. His left eye drives Joe and I crazy. He sang "Say Goodbye". Eh. Nothing special, not horrible. Won't miss him when he's gone but I think he'll stick around for a bit since he's got all of Puerto Rico voting for him....kinda like Jasmine Trias with her Hawaii backing.
10. Megan-ok, Megan is beautiful and quirky. I get it. I had high hopes for her back in the middle rounds but that crazy jiggle dance drives me nuts. At least tonight she did it on beat last night. She sang "Rockin Robin" though! Oh my god, all I could think about was the chicken dance at a roller rink. It was cute, but it just made her seem so cheesy. Hitting the notes can't save you from looking dumb on that song. And she "caw caw! ed" at the end. Oh dear.
11.Adam- Adam sang "Black or White". I wasn't sure how this was going to work...but I liked MOST of the song. I didn't like the bridge part with the strobe lights...he just over did that part in my opinion. The guy has major stage presence, great style, and can do crazy stuff with his voice better than the 80's rockers he emulates. So far the only Idol that matches his vocal craziness is the one and only Kelly C.. Adam will definitely go far in the competition...though I found Paula's reaction and tears pretty ridiculous for week 1. Got my vote.
12. Matt- Matt sang "Human Nature" and for whatever reason I thought the song was called "Why". Anyway, he played the piano and did his whole JT thing and I thought it was great. His best asset is his voice so the more he plays up his skills, the longer he'll last. He got my vote.
13. Alexis- my husband loooves her. She is like his fantasy of what I would be like as a super sexy rock star. She is pretty much MY fantasy of what I would be like as a super sexy rock star. LOL. Anyway, I love "Dirty Diana" and how she totally went for it. I didn't agree that she over did it at all. Have the judges seen the Dirty Diana video? Loved it. She got lots of our votes.

The judges-Simon was Simon. Randy was Randy. Paula, after being really coherent and pretty so far, is totally Drunk Paula again. It makes me sad. I'm embarrassed for her. Her hair and makeup were all shiny and it made her drunkenness seem even worse. The dress was weird. Ugh. Kara, after saying she was going to be "meaner" wasn't really mean. I liked her better in the first auditions. She's seems to be morphing into some combination of the three other judges. Come on Kara! Be the female Simon I want you to be!

Songs I'm Most Likely to Download based on vocals alone- Danny, Allison, and Matt

Is anyone else kind of burned out on the whole young mom/single mom thing?

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Disneyland and the 30 year old knee

FYI-THIS IS GOING TO BE A LONG ONE.

Hhahahaha, I can't even BELIEVE my body was an issue on a freaking theme park vacation. I work out 5 days a week! Come on now! More on that in a minute...
Do you watch Biggest Loser? I do. Dude, what is up with the Blue Team? Are they missing a few IQ points? Your team loses a weigh in even though 4 of 5 members did great, so you vote out your strongest man? You keep the almost 400lb crippled guy? Ron is a sweet heart but seriously, all this sacrifice for his son but then he doesn't do the same for his new team. LAME! He seriously pissed me off this week almost as much as the stupidity of the 4 team members who didn't vote for him.
One last tv show, American Idol. Last night was the second group of 12 and can I just say, wow did they mostly really suck. It wasn't just a bunch of mediocre, average, "forgettable" performances...I mean, they SUCKED! Why did all the singers insist on picking songs completely different than what got them there? Stupid. Alisha (the 16 year old with pink hair) totally smashed Heart's "Alone". Thank goodness because to sing that song bad would have been painful. Adam "emo broadway twilight pete wentz wannabe with the pretty eyes" was my second fav. Still a little over the top but boy, he wails like the 80's rockers I loved.

Joe and I had so much fun on our vacation. Seriously, whenever Joe and I do get a chance to spend more than 3 hours awake together, I remember why I married him. We really are bffs. Everything is just easy (most of the time). Anyway, we had no rain and it was 73 degrees. Disneyland was just as magical as I remember. At first my grown up brain kind of resisted the kiddie stuff but by the end of day two I was enjoying the storybook rides as much as the coasters. Dland has this thing called Fastpass where you get a ticket at the entrance to the ride and it says to come back at a certain hour and you can go right up front. It was awesome. During the interim we would go on the less demanded rides then the hour on our ticket would roll around...we'd book it over to Space Mountain or whichever ride we'd gotten the ticket for and legally cut in line! Day one we were practically running around the park trying to go on as much as possible so we were starving the whole time (yay! we got to gorge on junk with no guilt). I think we hit Space Mountain 3 times the first day. So the goal of day one was to get on every ride we absolutely could not miss and we did that. At about 1? we headed over to California Adventure and went straight to the Tower of Terror.


Me and Mr. Toad, one of my favorite storybook rides


Space Mountain, our first ride of the trip. (Joe was using multiple 4 letter words)

Let me give a little backstory; as we were arriving in town, I could see the tower and I said to Joe, "I hate rides that drop, but I hope you talk me into that ride." I don't know where that came from. My family would think I'd lost my mind or something. I have never been on Drop Zone or the Edge. I avoid them like the plague. Something about being with Joe and I think my age was telling me to do it just once. So, I did. I was freaking out and hyperventilating in line (surrounded by kids half my size, so VERY small). Everyone around me could tell I was a mess. Anyway, we get to our elevator (the story is you are going to relive an event that a family lived through 60 years ago...lightning hit the hotel while they were in the elevator and it plummeted to the ground). Anyway, our car arrives and the attendant can tell I'm more scared then anyone in the car because I'm talking to Joe and not listening to the rules and the whole car gets quiet and I look up and he's just staring at me with this "you're really scared and I'm going to stare at you and make you even more scared" smirk. So I shut up and find my totally insignificant handles and GRIP. The doors closes and you get a virtual reality screen telling the story and then basically you just DROP FAST. The first one is short though so I didn't even really get to let out a full scream before you are SHOT BACK UP FAST. Up is worse than down in some ways. And you go WAY UP and then the doors open in front of you so you can see how high you are. I knew that meant the fall was coming because you can see the doors opening from the line outside. Then you just FALL REALLY FAST. I just screamed and crammed my eyes shut and then as soon as you stop you GO UP AGAIN! So this happens three times and each drop is a different distance. My right leg started to spontaneously shake (like when you scratch your dog in the perfect spot) and I had no control of it. Somewhere during the ride my sunglasses flew off my collar and landed at my feet. When the ride was over I picked them up and they were bent from the impact of the car I think. I survived. I can't tell you if Joe was screaming or quiet or anything. My entire body was shaking as I got off and I was wondering how to get down the stairs without embarrassing myself. I ended up on the curb outside with my head down just trying to deal with the adrenaline in my body. That was basically the end of Dland Day 1. I was emotionally and physically spent. Joe and I walked back to the hotel, our legs sore, and passed out on the bed for 2 hours.

We woke up and showered...headed out to Sonic Drive In. Their damn commercials play all the time in San Jose but the closest one until recently was like 2 hours away. So we gave it a try. It was good I guess but not as good as I hoped.

The next day Joe suggested we alternate parks and head to Universal. My legs were so sore, especially my hamstrings. The 40 minute drive to Universal took over an hour. I hate LA traffic. Its horrendous. After we got in the park and battled the photo guys and the credit card "you get a free bag!" guys we did a quick walk through their haunted house. It was pretty good. One room had a chain saw murderer and Joe decides to egg the guy on and bolts out of the room like a girl leaving me to fend for myself. I was not impressed by my prince. From there we went straight to Jurassic Park. Poor Joe had a stomach bug the last time he had been at the park with his family and missed the whole day. So, this would be his first time. It was as fun as I remember. I love that they play the movie soundtrack...I get all sentimental because I played that music in marching band. We made it down the totally fun hill without too much water hitting us. Lunch was next...we ended up eating burgers and fries. Joe suggests the Mummy ride next. He says the pamphlet doesn't really say what it is...ok, well, I'm up for new stuff right? So, there is no line and we're walking up and I see the safety sign and it mentions something like "rapid backwards motion" and I hit the breaks. I think my shoe even squeaked on the pavement. The attendant goes "It's not that bad." So, I go in. I still don't know what kind of ride this is. I just hope its not a vomit machine. There is a monitor showing a video of riders right as you get on the ride. You can tell three things, its dark, its a fast roller coaster type ride, and people look terrified. Ok, well I can handle roller coasters in the dark right? That's what Space Mountain is. So Joe and I get front row (which we are told is less scary) and there are no shoulder harnesses so we know there is no upside down (plus its within a building) so Joe assumes it can't be that bad. The ride is themed and its all creepy like the Mummy movie with bugs on the walls and a freaky mummy king and its dark and scary and the kings voice is low and evil, its cold...I mean, regardless of what's coming, you are kinda nervous. The ride takes off and its soooo fast and its pitch black and you have no clue what's happening and well here is what you look like (pic is at the beginning unlike most rides)



Uh yeah. Need I say more? Most people would be embarrassed to post a pic of themselves like this but I feel like it's my duty to warn people. If you go on the Mummy ride, you'll make an ugly terrified I'm going to die face. Oh oh oh but it's not over! The ride stops! And GOES BACKWARDS! Just as fast and just as long. Every surge and turn made my stomach clench and I really thought I was going to be seeing my burger and fries again. Backwards and me just don't get along, even if its a roller coaster. Then...the ride stops again. At this point, Joe and I were pretty freaked, I was hysterical in a quiet sort of way and we're facing another wall and...the ride rotates 90 degrees and...there is the beautiful light of the docking station with victims waiting to ride. Another ride that had my entire body shaking. Seriously, maybe I am gettting to physically old for this stuff.

Guess what? Joe loved it and wanted to go AGAIN! I held him off for 4 hours or so and we did go again...and it was almost worse because I knew what I was voluntarily doing to myself. That day we checked out the Backdraft show...which was ok but disappointing. We also did the tram tour and I was bummed because they didn't do the California earthquake part. At least we got to sit for 45 minutes, lol. I got soaked on it during the flood scene. I was one of two people sitting in just the right spot. We also watched Shrek 4D and it was really good. You wear 3D glasses. The 4D comes in when you get splashed with water or hit with blasts of air from the seat in front of you. Donkey sneezes, you get water in the face. That kind of thing...and the seats move around. At the end of the day we decided to check out the Simpson's ride even though we both hate the Simpson's. It's a virtual ride like Star Tours at disneyland but about 10 times better.

So, we considered leaving the ride a couple times because being stuck in Simpsons was really obnoxious. Cartoons everywhere. Vulgarity with children present. Crusty never shutting up...but we toughed it out. You get locked in a little room with a total of 8 people and you have to watch more Simpson's followed by a Simpson's style safety guide...you can imagine. From there you crawl into your virtual roller coaster car. Let me just say, I felt like I was going to throw up on this fake roller coaster it was so good. The entire room in front of you is a screen and the car moves so it felt REAL. Joe was cheating and looking at the wall behind us and going, "it's only moving 5-10 feet". I just said told him to stop ruining it and enjoy the ride. Such a mechanical nerd. It ended up being one of our favorite rides of the trip. Day two was ending and my left leg was really starting to bother me. When we got home I soaked in the tub and then iced the back of my knees. I think we ordered in that night...I may be mixing up my nights. Oh well, lol.
Day 2 of Disneyland-we started at California Adventure. The park is going to be so cool when its all done. Each section of the park looks like a part of California and its done really well. We did the Condor Flights ride first. It was another virtual ride. It was mellow ( a nice change) and beautiful. There are fans mounted in front of each seat so the wind blows on you and you really feel like you are flying. The rows of seats are massive and they lift off the ground so your feet dangle as they tilt you around and you virtually fly over California. Definitely worth checking out.

We were now Fast Pass masters so we managed to go on California Screamin 3 times! Awesome, old skool with new technology giant dipper coaster. The best part is it launches you straight ahead rather than dragging you up a hill and then letting gravity take over. It was so refreshing to ride a coaster outside in the sunlight, lol.



I think the only other ride we went on was Mulholland Madness...kind of a kiddie coaster that ended up scaring the crap out of us. It hold 4 people per car and is full of sharp turns that don't bank...so you totally feel like the car is just going to topple off. I think we annoyed the teenagers behind us with all our screeching, lol. We had lunch and decided to go back to Dland.

But first, Joe wanted me to pose with the N for New Kids!

Well, it was Friday so the park was packed. The Fast Pass wait for the rides was 3 plus hours. We spent most of our time riding the smaller rides, Astroblasters, Peter Pan, Small World, Alice in Wonderland. On the way to Small World I felt sharp pains in my knee like I'd never felt and got a little worried. I had to stop walking it was that scary. We ended up at the nurses office and they gave me some pain killers. After two more goes on Space Mountain, we left and went and had dinner. Super Mex....mmm yummy, low prices, sneaky margarita! It was great! Walked over to Target and got me a knee brace for the rest of the trip. We had a 9:30pm Fast Pass for Indiana Jones so we did that again and then Joe said, "Let's go to the Haunted House again." Sure, ok...just as we pass the river/lake in the park...they announce Fantasmic. Joe gets all excited and asks if I'd like to watch. I can sit, so I say yes. Let me tell you, it was a show beyond anything I thought it was. Lights, water fountains, disney movie scenes projected onto mist so they were floating, a live Peter Pan pirate ship fight, Princesses dancing, EVERY Disney character on the steamboat, an evil queen, a dragon!

So, our trip was ending. Fantasmic represented everything I loved about being a kid and being in Disneyland. I literally started crying, I was so overwhelmed with emotion. It really caught me off guard. I looked up at Joe and said, "I don't want to go home." He said, "Me either."

So, we had one last appointment with space mountain at 11:05pm. We took it. Then just because we are grown ups and we can, we went and got ice cream right before the park closed. So, I limped and Joe walked, and we ate full fat sugary ice cream with waffle bowls at almost midnight as we headed back to our hotel. It was great.

The last day we did check out Downtown Disney and the resort grounds. My legs were shot. Joe was disappointed I didn't want to head to Knott's Berry Farm but I think he got over it. We ate at the Rainforest Cafe which was very cool. One teary jerking moment that happened for me; a wedding was going on and we saw the bride and we saw CINDERELLA'S CARRAIGE! Omg, the little girl in me just about died with excitement. The attendant saw me and Joe and told us to take a pic so we did. He asked if we were already married then said to Joe, "Oh, your off the hook then, lol". I said, Tahoe was beautiful, I'm just fine.

So, that's pretty much it. Our drive home was uneventful and the rain started up again. We are happy to be home but we keep saying we want to go back. It's Disneyland...can you blame us?