I stick around for a few days a couple of times a year and you can’t wait for me to run my course.
A few random thoughts…
- VP Palin? Right on. I’m ordering my hat right now.
- VP Biden? Really? I guess Barack’s definition of change is different than mine.
- For those saying Palin only got picked because Hillary wasn’t Obama’s choice for VP, I’m pretty sure the same people would also be critical of the McCain’s choice if Obama HAD chosen Hillary. There’s just no winning with some misogynistic libs.
- Why are the Dems still so hot under the collar about Iraq when we’re actively working with the Iraqi government on a withdrawal plan? I really don’t get why this is a campaign issue when Obama has said he wouldn’t pull troops out right away. The plan will be ratified by the current administrations but if Obama gets in office, I guarantee he will take credit for bringing the troops home.
So The Boss, Bruce Springsteen, has endorsed Barack Obama as his choice for US Pres. Here’s what Bruce had to say…
“He has the depth, the reflectiveness, and the resilience to be our next president,”
That means that Barack has a very large, porous, oily, rubbery fivehead (it’s just a little bit bigger than a forehead). I don’t know what this has to do with Obama’s qualifications to become the next POTUS, but who knows how musician’s minds work.
“He speaks to the America I’ve envisioned in my music for the past 35 years, “
Titles like – Badlands, Streets of Fire, Wreck on the Highway, Two Faces, My Best Was Never Good Enough, My City of Ruins…
“…a generous nation with a citizenry willing to tackle nuanced and complex problems, “
He means – A citizenry who focuses on the tedium and things unimportant compared to the sovereignty of the nation.
“… a country that’s interested in its collective destiny and in the potential of its gathered spirit. A place where ‘…nobody crowds you, and nobody goes it alone.”
Man, even I don’t understand this one. At first I thought he was in favor of population control ala Ted Turner and Paul Ehrlich. But, I think this last sentence sputtered forth from his lips at the exact same time the angel dust finally kicked in.
Lately, people have been telling me I’m looking thinner. Not thin, but definitely thinner. My physical appearance isn’t anything I’ve discussed online before. The only reason I am now is to maybe give one or two people out there some hope that they can accomplish a goal of their own if they wish.
The most asked question of me is, “how’d you do it?” The answer is: I eat less.
Soon, I hope to get my bike tuned up and start exercising, but to be truthful, I haven’t done hardly a sit up or push up in a long time. The weight I’ve lost is simply due to reduced portions. I’ve tried the Atkins diet and had great success in having pounds melt off, but that didn’t last for long. I think the main reason is, you aren’t allowed to eat anything fun really.
For me, the key is making the decision ahead of time to eat a smaller portion. Grabbing breakfast, lunch or dinner isn’t a spontaneous decision for me usually. I almost always know that it’s getting close to dinner time and I have to think about what I’m having.
In the past, I’ve caught myself making the excuse that ‘I just can’t control myself’. I’m here to tell you that is a lie! You are making the decision to eat what you are eating and you have to realize that you have the power to order a small fry (or no fries at all!) and a small drink. “But Rick, I can super size it for just $0.30!” Don’t do it! And, if you find yourself at a fast food joint, go ahead and try a salad now and then. I used to think they were poison but they aren’t that bad, I promise.
Don’t deny yourself the pleasure of eating the things you enjoy. But place limitations on yourself… and stick to them. If you like ice cream, have some. Don’t eat the whole damned tub though. Tell yourself before you dish it out how much you are going to portion. Maybe just a cup full instead of a bowl full. And treat yourself maybe once a week instead of every night. That way, you’re less likely to go on a binge (trust me I know how it works!). The choice truly is yours people.
How much do I weigh now? 232 pounds. Last May I hit 303 and said enough is enough. I hope by this Summer I can drop the last 30 pounds.
The performances were just alright for me. Like the guys, there weren’t any real breakout performances in my mind. Below is my take on the performances. The scores I attached are my impression immediately after hearing their individual songs. My notes about the songs and scores were written prior to hearing any judge’s feedback. Graded on a scale from 1 to 10 with 1 being the lowest.
Asia’h – 8 – Tough to do a Whitney song but she did a good job and did her own thing with it instead of try to sing it like Whitney. Good call.
Kady – 7 – Not bad. A couple of pitch problems and had to slide up to some notes to finally get it.
Amanda – 7 – Her embarrassing story was she burned down a pool? That’s not embarrassing, that’s arsony. Wow, she sang in key this week. Not a good ending to the song though.
Carly – 9 – Great job. Best of the night so far. Probably the most polished of the girls.
Kristy – 8 – Wasn’t a fan of the twang. Don’t think the song needed it. Vocally she did a good job until the end run.
Ramiele – 7 – Eh. Good voice but didn’t do a great job with the song. I think she had a little rhythm problem. Made it difficult for me to get what she was trying to do.
Brooke – 7 – Some pitchy moments. Might be in trouble this week. I disagree with the judges. She should have used the band more.
Syesha – 8 – Nice. No real bad notes to speak of. Was a little slow for me but a solid performance.
A few girls are potentially in trouble this week as I see it. But, my track record wasn’t the greatest last week so I could be way off. I think Kady and Brook are going home.
So the guys didn’t bring the heat tonight. Below is my take on the performances. The scores I attached are my impression immediately after hearing their individual songs. My notes about the songs and scores were written prior to hearing any judge’s feedback. Graded on a scale from 1 to 10 with 1 being the lowest.
Luke – 5 – I just KNEW he was going to sing a Wham song. Bummer.
David A – 8 – Not as good as last week. A couple of flat notes but good for the most part.
Danny – 7 – Had a few problems early on. Best song choice so far.
David H – 8 – Some pitch problems, too but probably the most consistent of all the guys, IMO.
Michael – 8 – Good job. Good song choice. Uh Randy, Michael Hutchence? It was Simple Minds. Thought you were a music guy.
David C – 8 – I like the tone to his voice. Gutsy singing a Lionel Ritchie song and mixing it up. Kinda worked.
Jason – 6 – I love the Leonard Cohen song but he sang it with too much uncertainty. There was not enough power in his voice so he couldn’t push the notes well. I have no idea what the judges heard. I thought it was awful. The only reason Simon liked it is, he actually knew the song for a change.
Chikezie – 7 – A bit sharp at times. I like the song but he didn’t do a great job with it. Too bad, I was liking this guy until tonight.
There weren’t any stand out performances in my mind. The closest was probably David Cook with his “Hello” joint. Hmm… If they’re getting rid of 2 guys this week, I’d have to pick Luke and Chikezie as the ones going home.
The girls needed to bring it tonight, but they didn’t end up outshining the guys. There were some decent performances, but mostly they were just okay. As with the guys, the scores I attached are my impression immediately after hearing their individual songs. My notes about the songs and scores were written prior to hearing any judge’s feedback. Graded on a scale from 1 to 10 with 1 being the lowest.
Carly – 9 – Great start to the night. Vocals were crystal and she showed great control. As an after note, Randy must have misheard. She was on point with the notes.
Syesha – 8 – Got lazy halfway through the song. She laid the vibrato on a bit thick but I enjoyed the song for the most part.
Brooke – 7 – Good song for her but not the best so far. Not worthy of an 8, 9 or 10.
Ramiele – 8 – Big voice. Didn’t pull me into the performance though. She was on cruise control and I don’t think she was into the song that much.
Kristy – 7 – A little phlegmy but not too bad mostly. Go Oregon! (pst… hey Ryan, my eyes are up *here*!)
Amanda – ?? – What in the heck was that?! Hurt to watch and listen to. It was like watching one of the background singers in an off-Broadway version of The Lion King getting her drunk on for 5 hours then singing at a karaoke bar after a Sunday matinée performance.
Alaina – 6 – Singing fell flat at times. She went for it though, so I have to give her kudos for belting it out.
Alexandrea – 6 – First few bars where rough. It got better in the middle but then she lost it at the end again for me. Not the best song choice for her.
Kady – 6 – Not a good song choice. Fell flat quite a bit and her lower register was a problem for her.
Asia’h – 7 – Sketchy at times. She had some unsure moments vocally and I think it ended up affecting her whole song.
I think many of the girls are in the danger zone this week. If we were basing this off just one week, I’d have to say Amanda would be going home, but she’s been pretty solid over the weeks so I won’t give up on her just yet. If we go off past performances + this week, I’d have to say that Alaina and Kady are probably leaving.
So, for the eliminations:
- Luke
- Danny – Just because he annoys me and his one good vocal just can’t make up for that. Haha!
- Alaina
- Kady
If you don’t recognize the title, it’s the theme music to American Idol. What? Were you born yesterday?! I can’t believe you didn’t catch that. Sheesh.
So I watched the guys perform last night. At work, there’s a group of us trying to figure out who the ultimate idol will be. As a result, I wrote down some of my impressions as the guys were singing. I graded their performances also.
So I figured I’d share my thoughts on last night with you, gentle reader(s). The scores I attached are my impression immediately after hearing their individual songs. My notes and scores were written prior to hearing any judge’s feedback.
Michael – 7 – Not bad but a bit sharp on the high notes.
Jason – 6 – Good musician, just not a great singer.
Luke – 5 – It’s ‘Moet et Chandon’ not ‘Moet et Chandron.’ And it’s ‘fastidious and precise’ not ‘deciduous and precise.’ Does he think the Killer Queen is a tree?
Robbie – 6 – Just alright. He’s no Lou Gramm (he’s no Bo Bice for that matter either).
Danny – 8 – Good vocal overall. His contrived vibrato bugged me a bit. He didn’t act like a 10 year old anime girl tonight though, so he didn’t annoy me as much as he usually does.
David H. – 9 – I like him a lot. Good vocalist and he made the song his own.
Jason – 6 – Vocals were flat for half the song. And, he made me wonder if he went to the George Michael school of dance.
Chikezie – 9 – Great range. He looked comfortable up on stage. Did a good job.
David C. – 8.5 – Started the song off a bit iffy but ended strong. Overall, one of the better performances of the night.
David A – 10 – Amazing vocal. I like this kid.
So, there you have it. If I had to guess at this point who was going home, I’d pick Luke. Not sure about the second guy yet.
Who do you think McCain will choose to be on his ticket? I got nothin’
Charlie Crist?
Did you watch the President give his last State of the Union speech? I did. I thought he was relaxed and presented well. I have the most fun watching to see if one side or the other claps or doesn’t clap when presented the opportunity.
Here are a few things the Democrat side didn’t clap for…
- Making tax relief permanent and not increasing taxes.
- Limiting the number of earmarks in bills.
- Trusting patients and doctors together to make medical decisions, not the government.
- Children grades 4 & 8 achieving the highest math scores in U.S. history.
- African American and Hispanic kids achieving all time high test scores.
- Allowing poor children the opportunity to go to private schools through government grants.
- Free trade agreements with Columbia, Peru and South Korea which would help create new jobs in the US and improve our economy.
- The idea that democracy leads to a better life.
- Helping displaced workers learn new skills to find new jobs.
- The expansion of medical research without the need to destroy human life.
- Empowering judges to uphold the constitution.
- Not delaying decisions by providing up or down votes for judicial nominees.
- Working to defeat al-Qaeda.
- Not allowing ground gained in the war on terror to be lost.
- The Iraqi people taking control of their own future.
- Maintaining the security of our country through intelligence gathering techniques.
Interesting list huh?
I got my W-2 forms in the mail yesterday. It used to be that I would wait until the last minute to file my federal and state returns. If you’re taxes are fairly easy to prepare and you’ve never used the online tax preparation program at www.hrblock.com, I’d recommend it. I was able to complete my taxes in around an hour or so… and nearly had a heart attack in the process.
In box 12a of my W-2, there was a fairly sizable number listed. I entered the dollar amount from box 12 in the appropriate field and read the code as being A (which I now know to be the code that designates the money as uncollected Social Security or RRTA tax on tips.) When I was done filling in all the fields, the program calculated that I owed over $2500 in federal taxes! I’m not one to swear a whole lot, but after not having breathed for a couple of minutes while staring blankly at my monitor wondering why I owed so much, I have to admit a couple of expletives parted from my lips.
Rational thinking finally took over and I went back through the form. Box 12a had a little letter ‘D’ to the left of it. This particular code means the dollar amount is a non-taxable elective salary deferral to a 401(k). Non-taxable is the operative part of the description. So, instead of owing $2500, I am getting around $350 back.
Next year I’ll be taking a closer look at line 12.
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