Nice little heatwave here in Firebaugh...

Now I see why they call this place Firebaugh. It's like, 110° in the shade... too hot for outdoor exercise, so I have to use my alternative fat loss plan. Otherwise, things have been going pretty good with the program. Exercising, running, and doing some isometrics and push-ups seems to be doing the trick. My new running program is an hour-long run, four times per week. Since my 10K is about an hour, I'm actually running 24.8 miles per week. I do ab-work Monday, Wednesday and Friday, so we'll see how the plan goes. I'll weigh in every Friday, so right now I'm at: 226 lbs. My gol is to be a nice, ripped 185 lbs. So here we go!
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My prediction: Sayonara Syesha!

She's cute, sexy and has a very nice voice, but I predict after last night's all-around mediocre American Idol show, that the Sarasota sweetie is gonna say "see-ya". Syesha Mercado delivered last night's audience three utterly forgettable performances-- the predictable Alicia Keyes "If I Don't Have You" predictably chosen by the predictable judge Randy Jackson; a cabaret performance of Peggy Lee's "Fever" complete with prop chair; and, ummm... some other song. (Was it the penguin song from "Happy Feet"? I think so...) *Sigh* And I like her, too. She just never really defined herself as to what kind singer she is. "Generic Pop Singer" seems to be what she's shooting for. I guess that's not necessarily a death-knell in Idol-World. Jordin Sparks won last year, and she didn't really have any kind of musical style to lay claim to. But Syeha's lack of gravitas (YES! I used a political word!) in last night's performances, not to mention the judges outright candor (even Paula!) in basically telling her she's done, suggests I write a pre-post-mortem on Ms. Mercado.
That presumptively leaves the two Davids-- guitar-playing rocker Cook, and dreadful balladeer Achuleta to vie it out for the final victory. My money's on Mr. Cook for a number of reasons, not sucking being the top reason, but we'll have to see how it plays out. Archie's somnambulant croonings do seem to rank high amongst Idol voters (at least female, under the age of fifteen). As Simon Cowell stated several weeks ago, if this is still a talent competition, and not a popularity contest, David Cook's got it hands down.
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Back to Busking...

It took no Einstein, or crystal ball to predict who'd get the footprint-on-the-ass on this week's Idol. Dreadful, dreadlocked Jason Castro-- who relied on sheer cuteness to get him this far, got bumped after crapping out a version of the Bob Marley classic "I Shot the Sheriff", then proceeded to mangle Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man". Bo Bice, my personal pick for season 4's Idol, summed it up pretty well when he commented on the decision to let this season's contestants play their instruments--it's OK to an extent, but some performers hide behind it. Right on the money, Bo... Jason C was a one-trick pony, and basically gave us the same performance every week. Essentially displaying none of the versatility that is required of all Idol aspirants, Jason brought his subway busking-style performances to the Idol stage relentlessly until I think even he himself couldn't believe he'd lasted that long.
As a final 10 contestant, he's earned himself a place on the American Idol tour, so concert-goers will be treated to more of his repetitive musical musings. I'm not sure how many songs they allow these performers to solo on, but I think a better venue for Jason would be on the downtown platform of the 1/9 trains in Times Square. It would be perfect--these trains go right down to Greenwich Village! Utterly appropriate, and a great audience for Mr. Castro.
OK, so that's settled... now let's focus our efforts on that other one-trick-pony, David Archuletta. He sings just like he talks--boring, yawning; always schmaltzy ballads. Another crappy performer propped up by the pubescent-girl vote. Syesha's very sexy, and I can see her in an acting career, probably musicals and musical theater. I even wouldn't be too disappointed if she won the whole Idol pie. But I think the deserving winner this year is David Cook. He's talented, versatile, and interprets his cover tunes in a very creative and personal way. He also displays his rock-n-roll roots, without being a complete sell-out (as much as a show like this will allow). OK, there's only two more weeks of Idol, and this season really did prove to be a snore. Let's hope that next season will give us a little something more. And, keep the instruments at home, kids. I don't really think it worked, David Cook aside. Let's get another Melinda Doolittle onstage next season. She was the best, and most talented performer that ever set foot on the American Idol stage.

Yay! Finally getting my dogs back...

After two weeks, I'm getting my two dogs back from boarding at my in-laws. We had to seperate them, because Cowgirl is well-behaved, and Bocce is, um... not. I'm leaving in about 15 minutes and driving first to San Francisco to get Bocce, then Modesto to retrieve Cowgirl. I'm so excited...

There's jut an emptiness without those two little guys.

Mourning Brooke White (But I saw it comin' a mile away!)

I could feel it, I knew it, I watched it unfold before me--and from the look on her face, I could tell that Brooke White felt the exact same way I did. As I watched the elimination of perhaps the purest, and absolute sweetest of any Idol contestant ever, I couldn't help but say to myself, "I can see where this is going..."
The sensitive, yet plucky Miss White got clipped after singing "I Am... I Said" on Neil Diamond week, after seemingly weeks of slowly coming unravelled. I was pulling for her from early on, especially after my main man Chikezie got whacked, but recent performances of hers showed signs of slippage, which is often fatal to an aspiring Idol. I witnessed not one, but two false starts (once on her own with a piano, and once with a full orchestra behind her!); and saw her almost lose it during her piano-playing performance of Mariah Carey's "Hero"; barely stumbling through the number. Alas, the voting public had finally stopped dialing her number.
I really did like this contestant, and it was with no amount of my usual American Idol schadenfreude did I feel for the 24 year-old nanny from Mesa, Arizona. She was an absolute sweetheart, and a very good musician; playing both piano and guitar for several numbers. She has an great voice--somewhat country, with a reminiscence of Carly Simon. She's also stunningly beautiful. Tall, blonde, and with the perfect balance of sexiness and pure innocence; with just a touch of almost goofiness thrown in to round out the mix. Where many aspiring Idols fall because they don't connect with the audience despite an above-average singing voice, I really believe Brooke did connect with the audience--which kept her afloat despite weeks of shaky performances. Sadly, in the end, her nerves just got the best of her.

Happy Birthday, Aunt Harriet!

Harriet Lloyd Ross
May 2 1896- August 1994

Today, my little auntie Harriet, Hyatt as we all knew her as, would have been 112! It's amazing to think that she saw in her lifetime everything from the Wright Brothers' first flight, all the way to the space shuttle missions.
Our dear Hyatt was quite an interesting woman. she was rather eccentric, but to her own right she was very successful in a financial company on Wall Street. She was an office manager which, sadly, was about as high as a woman could go in those days. Her boss was a man named Mr. Horner. Hyatt was very intelligent, and quite a conversationalist. And she'd be very upset with me if I didn't mention that she was a Methodist! We all miss her a lot...
Happy Birthday, Hyatt!