Ahem....is this thing on?

It's recently come to my attention that some of you may still be checking on me at this blog. I promise I'm still blogging. Just not here.

Update your reader! Come join me at the other blog!! Click here!

Merry Christmas!

Hope your day was wonderful!

P.S. Remember - I'm only posting here for a few more days...go over and follow the other blog if you want to keep up with all the happenings around here.

Need a Last Minute Gift Idea?

Or, are you wanting to buy yourself something fabulous with that Christmas money you're going to get on Saturday?

Consider this:



Time Out for Women is a fantastic tour put on by Deseret Book Company. It's a Friday night and Saturday just for you - spent surrounded by fabulous women, listening to excellent music and uplifting speakers. I had the chance to attend last fall and couldn't recommend it more. It was one of the highlights of my fall.

There are events happening all across the country - there is likely one near you! Check out the full schedule by clicking here!

Plus, they are having a pre-registration sale until December 31! Only $49 for the whole weekend!

Plus, if you live near....

Ogden, Utah

Nashville, Tennessee

Calgary, Alberta

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Pocatello, Idaho

Logan, Utah

Reno, Nevada

or

Phoenix, Arizona

You can come to the Time Out for Women event and hear ME!

That's right! ME! I've been working with Deseret Book over the past year to develop and record my motherhood cabaret-style recital called "Children Will Listen: Reflections on Mothering." We recorded a CD in Utah in September, (it will be released soon, and can be purchased online - I promise to keep you posted) and I'm going out on the road with Time Out for Women in 2011. I'm so excited and honored to have this experience, and so grateful to so many of you who have seen the show already and have offered support, encouragement and suggestions.

As I make this transition in the new year, this blog is going to be transitioned out. As much as I like to think I have the time and ability to keep up with two blogs, experience has taught me that I just can't.

So, I'm moving the family stuff to what has been my photography blog:

http://macyrobisonblog.com

I'll also be posting about my Time Out for Women adventures and all the other fun stuff coming in 2011. Come join me over at the new blog!

We're Back!!

Thanks to those of you who have kindly reminded me that I haven't blogged since August.

I appreciate that you missed me. Only problem was, I didn't have a lot to say.

Or time to write once I had something to say.

Or time to find pictures to help illustrate the things I wanted to say.

And then, I wanted to be chronological about the things I wanted to say, and that was far too overwhelming.

So, today, we will start where we are.

And today, the most exciting thing is that this guy is coming home early from his business trip to sleep in his very own bed.

Not Diggity's bed...

We're pretty excited about that around here. Since we haven't seen each other for a couple of weeks.

And I'm pretending that the coming home early (even a day earlier than the original "coming home early" date) has nothing to do with the total-hormonal-crazy-coming-home-traveling-breakdown that I had yesterday afternoon, combined with the still-recovering-from-the-back-injury-and-I-can't-do-anything-frustration I'm dealing with right now.

But I suspect that it does.

I'm good either way.

Because we've decided - no more long separation trips like this. We all had a lovely time on our trips (G and I to New England, Diggity to California, then Taiwan and China), but this being apart for long periods of time is not for us.

And we've lots to catch up on, so stay tuned...

Moving Week!

It's here! Can't believe it. All our possessions in a truck bound for Texas on Thursday. Today was the last day at our church building. It was truly depressing. Oh, we're going to miss New England.

Finales - SYTYCD and otherwise

I can't really give a full report on tonight's SYTYCD performance finale. I'm currently in Austin, Texas with my family, and we were at dinner for most of the show tonight. I'm trying to download videos from Rickey.org, but the internet here at the hotel is ridiculously slow. So, let me recap a bit:

• I'm glad they kept Billy around a second week, because I loved his dances during the second top 6 performance week.
• Jose was on the show for way too long.
• I still miss Alex, but I'm following him on Twitter (@alexdwong), so that helps a little.
• I love all-star Allison Holker. I like all of the all-stars, but she's my favorite and I'm so glad she's going to be on the tour.
• Cat Deeley has had a pretty good clothing/hair run this season. Only a couple of truly wacky nights.
• I'm glad Mia and Adam are permanent judges. I thought I would miss Mary, but I really don't.
• I am thrilled Adechike was sent home last week. I've been hoping that would happen for a LONG time.
• Such an AWESOME top three! I saw the final number and the recaps, and I really can't wait to watch the whole thing. I hope I get to see the finale tomorrow night.

The end of SYTYCD means the end of the summer. Which usually means I should be getting ready for school. Except, I'm not. Instead of that typical beginning, we have another finale coming up in our family's life. Which is why we're in Austin, Texas. We're moving here next month. I'm excited for a new adventure, but I'm really going to miss New England. I'll try to get through it by blogging some of the things I'm going to miss over the next little while.

We do have one more finale in our family - the finale of G-Man being the youngest in our family. We're having a baby in January. And we get to find out what we are having in just a couple weeks. Can't wait! If you haven't seen the video we sent out as an announcement, click here.

The Beach!

We've discovered something that G-Man loves - the beach.

When our cousins were visiting from China last week, we joined them and some other friends down in Newport, RI at the beach. It was a cold, windy day, but G-Man LOVED the sand. I turned around to check on him, and found this:


He was laying on his tummy in the sand and kept putting his face right in the sand. He was even more dirty about 10 minutes after this was taken. We spent a little time in the water, but he was mostly interested in the sand.

We were able to go to the beach again today with some friends, and it was a perfect beach day. (You may have heard, we've had a bit of a heat wave around here. If you've never visited the Northeast and don't think that heat in the 90s doesn't sound like any big thing, well...you're mistaken. I used to wonder why huge snow storms and heat waves always made the national news, and then I moved here. People die when it gets this hot because of the humidity. We've been really grateful for our central A/C this week. In fact, we don't leave the house unless we absolutely have to.) And this time, we made it to the water. He still loved the sand, but we spent a ton of time in the water. G-Man was even brave enough to let go of my hand a couple of times as we "jumped" on the waves.


(thanks for the picture, Allison!)

We had such a great time. Though, I was annoyed to arrive home and find that I didn't do a good job with my sunscreen. Ouch.

SYTYCD Top 8 Results

• I love Cat's headband.
• I'm still so depressed about Alex's injury. SO depressed. Poor kid.
• Go, Emmy nominations for SYTYCD! (And Glee!! 19 Nominations!! And Modern Family!)
• Loved the opening group number. And I knew it was Mia's piece before Cat told me. Not so much because of the choreography, but because Ade was filling in for Alex. She choreographs so much in mathematical patterns for her group numbers, I knew she couldn't have Alex missing. Go, me.
  

Results:
Alex is already in the bottom. So sad.
Billy is also in the bottom. Why do you hate Billy, America?
Lauren, Kent, Robert, and Jose are safe.
Ashley is in the bottom 3, and Adechike is safe. WHY?!?!?!? Adechike needs to be in the bottom 3. He. bugs. me.

• Dear Anya & Pasha - I love you both. Please dance together always. Love, Me.
• Dear Cast of In The Heights and Lin Manuel Miranda - I love all of you too. I promise to come see you in person some day. I love this song and I wish you had time to do the whole thing. If you want to see this entire song, please watch this video from the George Lopez show.

Billy and Ashley are going to dance for their lives. And I just realized, Nigel hasn't said a thing about Alex's MRI from yesterday. And if his Achilles tendon is truly ruptured, he won't be dancing next week or anytime soon. If that is the case, they'll cut him loose now rather than lose an able bodied dancer.

• Natasha Bedingfield dancing with all-stars! I really do love this new component. And awesome for their resumes. Awesome choreography. I want to know who did this. And Natasha is singing quite well. I'm glad I watched that.

And I was right. Alex has a lacerated Achilles tendon and needs an operation and at least 3 months of rest. I'm a little teary right now. Not gonna lie. Sounds like he gets to come back because he's injured though.

So sad.

SYTYCD Top 8 Performance

First, an update from last week -

Alex and Twitch were my favorite. I've watched it 5 or 6 times since last week.
SO glad Melinda is gone.
And Cat had two fabulous hair/dress nights in a row!

And now, tonight -

• Good hair and dress again for Cat!
• New format this week - the kids dance with an all-star they haven't danced with, and then dance with a fellow contestant. I like it.
• Alex Wong may have ruptured his Achilles tendon?!?!?! NOOOOOO!!!!!! Also, OUCH!!!!

Lauren and Pasha - Cha Cha
Lauren is dressed in a piece of fringe. Just one piece.
I think they took the fabric from Lauren's dress and gave Pasha a full shirt.
Wow! Lauren is kind of awesome at ballroom!
I liked Lauren, so here is Lauren's number: 1-888-6-BEST-01

Jose and Lauren - Contemporary
That was really great. Most connected partnership I think I've seen this season.
Lauren is such a great partner and is really bringing out a great performance.
Cool, cool lift in the middle. You go, Mandy Moore.
I also liked Jose, so you get Jose's number too: 1-888-6-BEST-02

Kent and Comfort - Hip Hop
Kent is not keeping up. And though he said in the rehearsal package that his face would match Comfort's...I still felt like he was overacting at points. I tire of him.
Also, I don't love Comfort.

Adechike and Courtney - Jazz
That wasn't my favorite. I really didn't connect to it, and I kind of quit watching part way through.
Totally in agreement with Mia.

Billy and Allison - Broadway
Wait! Not Allison, Katee!!! So sad that Allison is hurt, but I love Katee.
Ugh. My least favorite musical. I'm liking the dance so far though. And grateful I didn't have to suffer through Tyce in the rehearsal package. Spencer Liff is great.
Billy really did well tonight. Such a huge difference.
Go, Billy! 1-888-6-BEST-06

Ashley and Dominic - Hip Hop
That was really fun. I am continually amazed by Tabitha and Napoleon. So creative.
The fall into the splits was sick. So cool.
Hurray, Ashley! 1-888-6-BEST-07

Robert and Katherine - Jazz
SUCH a fun concept and routine. I really liked that. Very, very cute.
Danced well and it's so fun to see something new and creative.

And now, they dance with the fellow contestants!

Adechike and Alex - Bollywood
So sad that Alex is hurt. SO sad.
Bollywood is so happy. If you don't smile when watching a Bollywood routine, you might be dead inside. Just sayin...
I feel like his movement wasn't as sharp as it should have been, but I could be wrong. It was on the verge of African movement. (Woo!! Mia agrees!)

Kent and Lauren - Contemporary
This is a perfect fit and concept for the two of them.
Lots of pretty pictures. And Kent wasn't doing the hungry jazz face and actually connected with Lauren. I liked that.

Ashley and Robert - Quickstep
I never know if people are doing a good job on quickstep or not. And now that Mary is gone, I really don't know. Though Robert seemed bouncy. I have no idea...

• New Old Spice commercial!!! Well done. I watched an entire behind the scenes podcast on how they filmed the first one in one continuous take. Now I want to see how they did that one. Awesome.

Billy and Jose - African Jazz
So fascinating to watch how the choreographer played to their individual strengths. Billy's plies were crazy low.
I really like Adam's critiques. He does such a great job of explaining very clearly what the other two judges mean. I think that is what makes him a good director. Just my opinion...

Please, please let's get Adechike in the bottom 3. We know Alex has to be there. I'm assuming the third will be Robert because of the quickstep.

SYTYCD - Top 10 Performance & Results

First, I promise that I will get back to posting about my family. We've done a lot of wonderful things this spring, and it's just silly that I haven't been posting.

But until then, the recap:

Performance Show & Results:

*Cat's Hair & Dresses - Loved the hair last night, hate it tonight. Hated the dress last night, love it tonight.

*Fun change for this week - I like that the all-stars are staying on stage for the critique. I think that is a good thing.

Kent & Courtney - I thought Tyce was totally trying to rip off a Sonya routine with that choreography. Maybe it's just me. Or maybe it's because I'm not a huge Tyce fan. Kent gave it a good shot, but he really couldn't keep up with Courtney even though she stuck up for him.
Kent is safe.

Adechike & Allison - I love Allison. Love, love, love. I want her to dance with Billy or with Alex again. Adechike was better this week, but he still has lots of work to do.
But he's still safe.

Cristina & Pasha - Pasha was amazing, and I think Cristina did a pretty good job of keeping up with him. She's not my favorite, but she sure works hard.
And she's the first in the bottom 3.

* Adam mentions that people thought they were too harsh in their criticisms last night. I have to disagree. One of the things I love about SYTYCD is that they are always constructive in their criticism. The judges aren't mean, but they do give their honest opinion. And frankly, dancers are used to that type of criticism. Your toes are either pointed correctly, or they aren't. It's not subjective.

Alex & Lauren - Interesting that Tyce choreographed in the Fosse style, but didn't use a known Fosse song. I didn't love the whole thing, but I completely agreed with the critique the judges gave to Alex. If you watch Lauren on the parts of the dance they are doing in unison, Lauren is doing it correctly. I can't explain it very well in words, but there's a huge difference in the quality of their movement. Just go back and watch.
Alex is safe, so that is wonderful.

Jose & Kathryn - I also love Kathryn. She's a doll. And Jose was adorable and trying his hardest. I'm always happy when I see a Bollywood number because I know my friend Annie is going to be so excited. *grin*
And Jose is safe, of course. Which means another girl is in the bottom 3. America - why do you hate the girls?

Ashley & Mark - I thought this was a little frantic, choreography wise. I wanted to like it more, because I like these two dancers a lot. Some very cool moments, but frantic. And though I'm not sure what Nigel's exact definition of "jazz" is, I think he was right in saying that the choreography was more contemporary.
Ashley is safe.

Melinda & Ade - I HATED Melinda's costume. It was completely distracting. The judges were pretty nice to her. I didn't love this one. Favorite new Mia word = gorgewah (phonetic spelling)
Melinda is in the bottom 3 again. I don't think people like her very much.

Lauren & Dominic - I love the idea behind this and I thought Dominic was great. This new choreographer is awesome. I can't remember which judge said it, but I would have loved to see more realism in the fighting parts.
Lauren is safe. So it's down to Robert and Billy. That's nerve wracking...

Billy & Comfort - This was just uncomfortable. Yeeikes. He just can't pull the attitude off. That was scary.
Billy is safe - luckily the fan base pulled him through.

Robert & Anya - Anya is one of those dancers that will always make the boys look bad. In order to match up to her, they are really, really, going to have to bring it. I don't think Robert quite succeeded, and I was surprised that Nigel thought he did.
And sadly, he's our final person in the bottom 3. At least one of the guys is in the bottom 3 this week...

* Brian Gaynor (awesome guy with scoliosis who has auditioned for the show twice) is performing with his crew. Pretty cool.

SOLOS:
Cristina - meh. I feel badly for her having to do the same thing every week.
Melinda - I wish I liked her personality more, because she's one of the most interesting tappers I've seen in a while.
Robert - Mildly interesting. I'm not sure if that will be enough for him to be kept in it.

* Someone named Debbie Nova is performing. I'm just excited she is being backed up by some all-stars. I don't hate this song, which is new for me with the musical performances. CONFETTI CANNON!! Woo hoo!!

Robert is safe.
Melinda is safe, though Nigel wanted to send her home because the audience isn't connecting with her. (In my opinion, it's because she does that stupid genie bow when she wants to thank the judges instead of doing something normal. Also, she talks a little bit too much about herself and what she has done when she has the opportunity to talk. Maybe it's just me responding to her that way...)
Cristina is going home. No more ballroom contestants. I think that was a good choice.

Next week is going to be brutal. I like almost everyone that is still here.


P.S. I've become a total Bravo reality show junkie this week. I can't sleep lately, and there's nothing else on. Admission is the first step to recovery.

Though, Work of Art is a really cool show. I mocked it when I saw the commercial, but I'm really loving it. It's fascinating to watch the creative process for these people.

SYTYCD - Top 11 Performance & Results

So, I did watch the show last night. But I was in bed and I was too tired to walk downstairs and get my computer. My apologies.

Performance Show:

• I'm not in love with Cat's dress or hair.
  
• That was some AWFUL camera work during the intros. Worst I've seen on the show. And we all know I've seen some awful camera work. Not a great way to start our first live performance show.

Billy & Lauren – Tyce Diorio – Broadway – “Footloose” by Kenny Loggins
I never love Tyce's Broadway routines. They really need some new blood for the Broadway stuff. This routine wasn't completely horrible, and thankfully Billy was able to dance with Lauren. It was cute. I didn't mind it. I thought the feedback they gave Billy about inhabiting the character and filling in the space between the steps was right on.

Cristina & Mark – Sonya Tayeh – Jazz – “Starstruck” by Santogold
I felt sorry for Cristina throughout this routine. I never watched her. I was completely glued on Mark. He owns this style, and he's always brilliant in Sonya's pieces. I thought Cristina was fine, but I didn't think she deserved the high praise she got.

Jose & Comfort – Napoleon and Tabitha – Hip Hop – “Beautiful Monster” by Ne-Yo
I like Jose. I don't like Comfort, though she didn't annoy me as much as she used to when she was dancing something besides hip hop. This dance was great. Love NappyTabs.

Adechike & Kathryn – Travis Wall – Contemporary – “Addicted to Love” by Florence + The Machine
I LOVE Kathryn. She's just amazing. She completely outshone Adechike. It's been interesting to see some of the contestants step up and match the all-stars, and seeing that some of them just pale in comparison. He didn't even belong on the stage with Kathryn. She was dancing her face off.

Melinda & Pasha – Tony Meredith and Melanie LaPatin – Jive – “L.O.V.E” by V.V Brown
I was watching Pasha and his feet. He just looked so much more polished. Melinda had a lot of charisma, but I didn't love her performance.

Alex & Allison – Sonya Tayeh – Jazz – “Hallelujah” by Jeff Buckley
That was amazing. I love Allison, so I was expecting to like it, but it was just beautiful. What a combination of music and talent. And Alex got some high, high praise.

Alexie & Twitch – Napoleon and Tabitha – Hip Hop – “Butterfly” by Jason Mraz
I really wanted to like this more. I like Twitch a lot, and I love NappyTabs. And a hip hop routine to a Jason Mraz song? Awesome! But Alexie really didn't bring a lot to the routine. The judges repeatedly accused her of being just cute. Very true.

Lauren & Ade – Mandy Moore – Pop Jazz – “Oh Yeah” by Yello
I love a good Mandy Moore routine to an 80s song with a piece of furniture on stage! And I really like Lauren, but she just didn't do a great job of interacting with Ade.

Kent & Anya – Tony Meredith and Melanie LaPatin – Ballroom – “Lady Marmalade” by Diva Invasion
Clearly, they love Kent. Poor little kid tried his hardest, but Anya completely dominated him. She's so amazing. Kent is kind of lucky that they weren't doing a waltz, or a different dance that wouldn't have allowed for his personality to come through the steps. He's hard not to like though.

Ashley & Neil – Tyce Diorio – Contemporary – “For All We Know” by Donny Hathaway and Roberta Flack
This should have been better. The steps were there, but I didn't feel much watching them. It was interesting to see Ashley break down when Nigel was trying to critique her and asked her if she'd ever been in love. Clearly, she needs to learn how to channel her emotion into her dance.

Robert and Courtney - Sean Cheeseman – African – “Norweg” Cirque Du Soleil’s Saltimbanco Soundtrack
I didn't think I liked Robert very much, but after that routine, I think I do. He was great, and really kept up with Courtney, who I think is a rockstar.

--------------------------------

Results Show: (SPOILER ALERT!)

• Opening number was pretty fun. I liked last week's better. A new choreographer - I didn't catch her name.
• Another bad wardrobe and hair night for Cat. The lipstick is pretty terrible too.

Alex is safe! All-stars watching from the audience. I like that! (Go Allison!)
Robert is safe.
Kent is safe!
Lauren is safe!
Melinda is in the bottom 3.
Billy is safe.
Ashley is safe. (kind of surprised)
Alexie is in the bottom 3.
Jose is safe.
And it's down to Adechike and Cristina. And Cristina is in the bottom 3. That's a shame. It should be Adechike. All girls in the bottom 3. Poor girls. They never get the votes.

• Performance from the two lead dancers in the new Frank Sinatra tribute dance show by Twyla Tharp. The show is called "Come Fly Away." I loved what Twyla did with Billy Joel's catalog in "Movin' Out," and apparently she did another show that didn't go so well. This new show seems to be going well. I liked their performances on the Tony Awards last Sunday night, and they flew in Karine Plantadit and Keith Roberts (two of the leads and both Tony nominees) to perform tonight. Fantastic performance.

Bottom 3 Performances -
Melinda - I have to say, she's a far better tapper than the girl that was on last fall. Loved the rhythms in that routine.
Alexie - She's adorable, but she's expendable. I'm not sure that performance is going to keep her here.
Cristina - That was fun. Ballroom solos are tough, and I'm not sure salsa steps are very difficult compared to other ballroom steps, but she's such a doll.

• Judges are deciding who is going home. I'm pretty sure it's going to be Alexie. Unless they feel like they can get rid of their only tapper or their only ballroom dancer.
• Usher's had a busy week in LA. Diggity saw him perform a couple days ago at a video game publisher party. It was kind of an amazing party. (Video here, if you're interested.) I actually watched Usher's performance tonight. I like this song, and he's pretty impressive as a performer.
• Justin Bieber's new video!?!? AAAAAAHHHH! (Don't hate. I'm only partially kidding. He's a talented kid. And that was a pretty fun video with lots of fabulous dancers.)

Final Results -
This is going to be rough. We usually have a few more people to let go as cannon fodder here at the beginning. But since they're starting with so few people, good people are already going home.

And I was right - Alexie is going home tonight. Cut to the sobbing dancers stage right.

So, friends, did you agree with the judges and I? What did you think of the routines last night?

SYTYCD - Top 11 Intro Show

I really loved the opening number. Costuming, movement, all of it. The formation changes were astounding. Moving that many people around a stage and making them look good is no small feat. I'm so very happy right now...

Since tonight is an introduction show of sorts, I'm going to give some basic thoughts on each dance. The contestants and all-stars are dancing together, so the names of the top 11 are in bold.

Lauren, Kent, Kathryn & Mark
Jazz/Contemporary - Choreography by Travis Wall
I really liked this one. I have to say though, I was watching Mark and Kathryn a lot. Especially Mark. He's just great with that type of movement. He's been dancing for Lady Gaga for so long now, he just owns that quirky stuff.

Melinda, Alexi, Alison & Lauren
Broadway - Choreography by Tyce Diorio
So cute. Again, I was watching Alison and Lauren a lot because I just love those two. I do like Alexi and Melinda though.

Wow - Cat is so tall. And those little dancer girls are so short.

Jose, Dominic, Twitch & Comfort
Hip Hop - Choreography by Tabitha & Napoleon
I really like the way Tabitha & Napoleon tell stories. This was fun.

I'm really liking how the All-Stars seem to be going out of their way to make sure attention is paid to the contestants. They're all really supportive as they are listening to comments and giving props to the contestants as they leave the stage. Very cool.

Cristina, Anya & Pasha
Latin Ballroom - Choreography by Jason Gilkerson
Okay, I know next to nothing about ballroom, but I don't think Cristina did very well on that. Especially next to Anya. Cristina was too stiff in her upper arms or something. Can anyone help me here? Am I wrong? Usually the ballroom contestants are so strong, and she just doesn't seem to be.

Billy, Alex & Ade
Contemporary - Choreography by Mia Michaels
I love Mia. So glad she's back. That was just beautiful.

Adechike, Ashley, Robert, Neil (Dana's favorite! ;) ) and Courtney
Jazz - Choreography by Sonya Tayeh
I never love Sonya's pieces on the first viewing. I'm not sure about that one either. She definitely has signature movement.

I still hate this new studio stage. Hate it.

I just watched the opening number again. Wade Robson makes me happy.

I was trying to decide if I have an early favorite. I really like Lauren and Alexi. And the boys - Robert, Alex and Billy are just amazing. It will be interesting to see the talent vs. personality thing play out this season.

*sigh* I love this show.

Na, na, na, na....

Dear Nigel,

Thank you for such a short, lovely audition process! I couldn't be more thrilled that the Top 11 (you tricky guy, you. Telling all of us that either Alex Wong or Billy Bell wouldn't make the Top 10 and then making a Top 11. So tricksy!) are all picked and ready to dance their faces off for us tonight! And the All-Stars! I'm so excited for the All-Stars next week!



(For those of you who haven't heard about this new little twist, instead of the dancers picking a partner and a style each week, they'll pick an All-Star and will dance in that All-Star's style. So, for example, if Billy Bell picks Comfort out of the hat, they'll dance a hip-hop routine.)

Congrats, Nigel. I think these changes will energize an already fantastic show. I'm only sorry you aren't involved with American Idol anymore. Maybe if you were, you could fix the atrocity that's going on over there...

Best,
Macy

P.S. Will the All-Stars be going on tour? Because that would be AWESOME.

AI - Top 4 Results

Okay. I'm fast forwarding most of it. And here is your spoiler alert, if you don't want to know who was eliminated. Or maybe you just don't care. :)

Fantasia needs to stick to musical theater, in my opinion.

Fast forwarded to the first result, and I have to say I'm slightly shocked that Casey is in the top 3. Another Vote for the Worst victory. I'm sure they are thrilled. Unfortunately, this means someone I like is going home.

Daughtry. I liked him. Glad he's found some success that really works for him.

Lee DeWyze is also in the top 3. Good. I like him. Further bummed that Michael or Crystal will be going home.

No group performance tonight! Nice.

Crystal is the final top 3 member. I like her, but it's lame that Michael is going home. Lame, lame, lame.

Should have been Crystal, Lee and Michael.

Testing...testing...

....is this thing on?

I am still here. First, let's address the blatant lack of American Idol posts this year.



I'm totally bored with it.

I've been thinking the last few days to try and figure out why. I think my boyfriend Harry Connick, Jr. hit it right on the head last week when he was mentoring - it doesn't occur to these contestants that they are singing lyrics that mean something. And they just don't have the performance skills to be interesting.

Maybe it's Adam Lambert's fault. I was so interested in watching him last season. Just to see what he would do. (And then he releases his album and starts performing and goes COMPLETELY over the top at the AMA's, and I haven't paid attention to him since.)

There's no one like Adam this year.

I had hope for a couple people, but...nope. I like Crystal a lot. I like Big Mike. Lee DeWyze has been the only surprise for me this season - I didn't have any idea who he was and didn't care a bit about him, but he's gotten better. Unfortunately, as individuals, they're just a bit boring. The fact that the duets were the best performances tonight says a lot.

Truly, the stars this year have been the mentors. Adam Lambert was great. Harry Connick, Jr. was completely amazing. I mean, he actually arranged the music for the contestants! And Jamie Foxx was fantastic tonight. The rumor mill has Jamie as a frontrunner to replace Simon next season. And it will take someone of that caliber, talent, and personality to replace Simon.

If you have time, the AI producers are actually running a survey where you can comment on the current season. Click here to take it.

On a positive TV note - I can't wait for SYTYCD (Mia is the new permanent judge with Nigel and Adam! There's only a top 10 - not a top 20! The top 10 are dancing with all-stars from past seasons!) Lost is great this season, 24 is awesome, and Glee is fabulous. (Thanks to Hulu, I can actually keep up a bit while I edit photos.)

-------------------------
Best line from Glee so far tonight:

Puck: I feel like that guy that lost all his hair and lost all his power.
Santana: Sampson?
Puck: Agassi.

Lamest moment from Glee so far tonight:

When I realized they named Rachel's boyfriend Jesse just so Finn could sing "Jesse's Girl" at some point this season. It was a great performance, and Finn rocked the drums, but a bit corny.

But since the corny song was immediately followed by the AWESOME rendition of "The Lady is a Tramp" by Puck and Mercedes, I'm good.

American Idol Redux - Top 10

A week late, but here we go!

Performances:
Siobhan Magnus ("Through the Fire") - That was rough for her. She never found a good placement. (Even more sad to watch in the recap. They chose her bad notes to highlight.)
Casey James ("Hold On I'm Coming") - I didn't hate him for the first time ever.
Michael Lynche ("Ready for Love") - I love him.
Didi Benami ("What Becomes of the Broken Hearted") - That was so awful I wanted to cry for her. Hated her voice for that song.
Tim Urban ("Sweet Love") - I really like this song, and thus, couldn't watch him sing it. Because if I had, I would now hate it.
Andrew Garcia ("Forever") - I really liked this.
Lee DeWyze (I forgot the name - Treat Her Like a Lady) - That was fantastic. I've hated him and kind of thought he was a waste of space until right now. But that was awesome.
Crystal Bowersox ("Midnight Train to Georgia") - I'm so impressed with her musical sense and ability to choose perfect songs for herself. That was great. I can tell she's nervous standing alone in front of the piano, but she's pushing herself, which is awesome. Good for her.
Aaron Kelly - I didn't really listen. The 14 year olds are voting for him, so he'll be around for a while.

Results:

I love Usher, but he needs to hit the gym so he can work on dancing and singing at the same time. The singing suffered a bit, but props to him for singing live.

For a brief moment, I thought Big Mike was going to crush Seacrest between his pectoral muscles. It made me giggle with glee...

P. Diddy? Really?

And Didi is going home. That's too bad. I wish it were Tim.

Easter Morning

I hope you have a beautiful day with your family.

Resolutionary Challenge - Week 12

It's the last week! Here's the last chart!

American Idol - Top 11 Redux

Disclaimer - I'm late watching these shows again. I'm not going to watch the entire episode. For the remaining shows this season, I can only promise that I will watch Crystal, Michael and Siobhan. I really wish they'd cut everyone but those three and just finish the season early, but I'm not in charge. So I'll just suffer through the season until the top 3 show and hope they are the final 3 left.

If I can watch live, I'll twitter my comments and post them here. If I can't watch live, I'll write a short blog post. Cool? Ok!

And now, some notes from the performance show....

Dear Miley:

I'm pretty sure you don't get to criticize anyone's pitchyness. (New word! Whee!) Ever. Since I've never heard you sing well live. You're cute though. And you obviously have show biz savvy. But ease up on people's musicianship.

Thanks!

Macy

Dear America:

Paige Miles is ridiculously awful. Can't sing her way out of a wet paper bag. I can't think of a contestant in recent memory that was so pitchy. Please send her home.

Sincerely,

Macy

Dear Aaron:

You don't have a crush on Miley. That's all I'm going to say about that.

Sincerely,

Macy

Dear American Idol:

Entertainment Weekly had a really great article this week about how you can save your show. You should read it. I really loved two of the suggestions: 1) once a song has been sung two times on the show, it's out of the songbook for the Top 12. No one else can sing it. We're bored. I don't want to hear "Don't Want to Miss a Thing" or "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" again. And 2) Kill the swaybots. That's my favorite suggestion ever.

Sincerely,

Macy

Dear Crystal:

You're awesome. Thank you for trying out for this show. You're saving the season.

Love,

Macy

Dear Michael:

I LOVE you. Love your voice, love your personality, love your confidence. You are the bomb.com. Loved the orchestra on the stage. It actually fit.

Love,

Macy

Dear Glee:

Thank you for the new commercial. The fact that you'll be back three weeks from tonight makes me so happy today I can hardly stand it.

Love,

Macy

Dear America,

I really liked Katie Stevens at first, but she can go home too.

Thanks,

Macy

Dear American Idol:

Siobhan is not from Cape Cod, MA. Cape Cod is not a town. She's from Marston Mills.

Thanks,

Macy

Dear Siobhan,

You have one of the coolest voices I've ever heard, and I think you're awesome. Thanks for rocking out one of my favorite songs.

Love,

Macy

Results Show Notes -

Dear American Idol:

Please don't make me suffer through any more lip-synced group "performances." I have better ways to spend my time. Thank goodness I have a Tivo. Unfortunately, my two year old "likes the girls and the boys singing," so let's just take those group numbers away. Entertainment Weekly agrees with me.

Thanks,

Macy

Dear America:

Thanks for putting Tim and Paige in the bottom 3. Good call. It's too bad we only send one person home.

Thanks!

Macy

Dear Miley:

The onstage convulsions with your hair made me think you fell down while you were singing. (Yelling. Let's be real.) And I had to stop my Tivo, and I'm not happy about that. No more convulsing, okay?

Thanks,

Macy

Dear American Idol:

Is this Disney Channel night? What's happening here? Oldest Jonas Brother and one of those brunette Miley replacement girls? Why are you inflicting all of your tween stars on us in one night?

Not cool, American Idol. Not cool.

Macy

Dear America,

Good choice. Paige needed to go. Such bad singing. So annoyed that she was in the Top 12 instead of Katelyn.

Macy

Confession & Inspiration

I read a lot of blogs.

Let me rephrase that -

I have a lot of blogs in my Google Reader.

Most days, I take time to skim through them quickly, just because I really like to get rid of the numbers next to each category. It's like they're screaming at me when I have blogs there to read.

Most days, I don't have that many to read. I can get done in 30 minutes or so.

But I've been unable to read my blogs for the last couple of days, and the numbers have crept up.

I've read through my "Family", "Friends" and "Fun Reads" sections, and I have 302 blogs left to read.

It's a little overwhelming.

I came up with a great idea, and was going to declare Blog Reading Bankruptcy and mark all of them as read, but I decided to read just one more.

And I'm so glad I did. It might be on my list of top 10 favorite blog posts of all time.

Here's the link, if you are interested in checking it out. I'm inspired after reading it today.

CJane: Manifesto Female