American Idol: Second 3 Finalists

I hate results shows. They manipulate 30 seconds' worth of information into an hour (42 minutes plus commercials, whatever). So I taped it and watched it after the fact. I fast-forwarded through all the boring group numbers and Ryan Seacrest's endless babbling, to get to the meat of the matter.

First qualifier was no surprise: Allison Iraheta. The pinkish-haired teenager recapped her performance of "Alone", and I listened to the whole thing. I'm a big fan already, although (I sound like my mother!) I wish she'd get rid of the bizarre hair color... I was bummed when they called up Jesse Langseth with her, because it was perfectly obvious which one of them was going to make it through. I like Jesse, too, and she didn't even get the third-place spot. It went to...

Kris Allen. Sigh. He's the one who played air guitar all through his performance of a (shudder) Michael Jackson song, "Man in the Mirror". I didn't watch his recap. He's going to have to do a hell of a lot better to make me a fan.

Aaaaaaaand...... the final placement went to Adam Lambert. No surprise there. He's just spectacular. He far outshines everybody else I've heard so far this season. In fact, I think they should just hand him a record contract and let the other people have a genuine competition.

There will still be three wild-card spots, of course. Unfortunately, there are more than three people who deserve to be brought back. Last week there were Ricky Braddy and Anoop Desai. This week, we have Mishavonna Henson and Jesse Langseth. Well, Mishavonna can always come back next year. She's still very young. So give it to Jesse already!

American Idol, Second Elimination Round

There was some very good singing last night. However, that was overshadowed by the vast amount of horrendous singing...okay, I sound like Simon. Let's break it down:

Jasmine Murray - "Love Song", by Sara Bareilles

I had high hopes for Jasmine going into this competition. She's only 17, and she's got a lovely voice and stage presence. But she didn't sound good on this song. She could do much better. Randy said it wasn't the right song choice for her, and I agree. Simon told her she'll be better in a couple of years, but she's not ready yet.

Matt Giraud - "Viva la Vida", by Coldplay

This is a great song, already a classic, and Matt should have left it alone. He tried hard, but he put in too much ornamentation (I'm sure the pop-music world has a name for this; I think of it as melisma). The judges were disappointed, too.

Jeanine Vailes - "This Love", by Maroon 5

Such a great song, and she murdered it. She was all over the place pitchwise, and it was uncomfortable to watch and listen to. Even Paula couldn't think of anything nice to say. "Great legs," she managed. Randy thought it was the wrong song for her. “I hate to say it, but the best part was the end, that it was over.”

Nick “Norman Gentle” Mitchell – "And I am Telling You", from Dreamgirls

Unfortunately, he's here as Norman – red headband and wrist bands, silver shiny shirt, khaki shorts – and he's making his performance about wanting to stay on American Idol. Over the top, impossible to watch. Simon prays he does not go through to the next round. “One of the most atrocious performances we've ever had at this stage of the competition...sort of horrific comedy, right?” Norman shot back “Well, it takes one to know one, sassy pants.” Randy was entertained. Kara says “At least we remember him.” She enjoyed him. Paula thinks he's a true performer, but she's not sure this is the stage for him. “You're fun, you're memorable.” Please, PLEASE make this the last we see of him on American Idol!

Allison Iraheta – "Alone", by Heart

She's 16 and has dyed crimson hair. "Alone" was #1 on Entertainment Weekly's list of "12 Songs That Should be Banned from the Show Forever!", so I was a little disconcerted when I heard she'd chosen it. But she gave an outstanding performance, the best of the girls tonight. She's got a powerful voice; a little pitchy, but she uses it very effectively for somebody so young. Randy loved it. “Might be one of the hottest tonight.” (It was.) Kara says “This girl is serious. You don't even know how good you are.” Simon says “It's like the competition started right now.” He believes she may be one to watch in this competition.

Kris Allen – "The Man in the Mirror", by Michael Jackson

Weak performance. This song doesn't show off his voice at all. Plus, his right hand keeps making guitar-strumming motions (he's a guitarist). He gets into the song a little bit better by the middle. Kara thought the back half of the performance was way better than the front, but still doesn't come close to what he did during Hollywood Week. Just the wrong song. Paula disagrees completely. She thought he nailed it. Simon agrees with Paula. (Paula gave Simon a kiss on the cheek.) He thought Kris showed some confidence, and the chicks are going to love him. Simon thought he might be back in the running again. I disagree; I thought it was horrible.

Megan Corkrey – "Put Your Records On", by Corinne Bailey Rae

Megan's one of this year's young mothers, of which there seem to be more than usual - she's got a young son. I think this song suits her style, kind of bluesy. She kind of shrieked on the chorus, though and her voice sounded raw and irritating. There are a lot better singers than her in this competition. Paula thought she did everything right. Simon says, “You're a funny little thing, aren't you?” He thought she started out well, but oversang the second half of the song. He hopes she gets through, though. Randy agrees with Simon. Kara says she could be a breakout hit artist with the right song. They're all reacting to the fact that she's blonde and pretty. Based on talent alone, she's gone after tonight.

Matt Breitzke – "If You Could Only See", by Tonic

He's the welder, one of the two blue-collar guys (the other is Michael Sarver, who got through last week). I never liked this song. He's not bad, but he's not outstanding, either. Although, given how bad the guys have been tonight, he's about the best one so far. Simon says he really likes Matt, but hated that song. It was boring and didn't suit him. Randy agrees that it was boring. Kara thought it didn't show them any side of him. He can sing, but it was a poor song choice. Paula agrees. He has a good voice, but the song didn't “celebrate who we all fell in love with.”

Jesse Langseth – "Bette Davis Eyes", by Kim Carnes

Another single mother. She gave what was basically a good performance. She missed a few notes here and there, and I'm not sure the performance was all that interesting, but it stayed with me. The song doesn't have much of a vocal range, and she didn't put in any dynamic contrast, which made it a little boring. Randy thought it was okay, but not really exciting. Kara thought she was interesting to watch, and there were some moments that she liked. Paula says she's captivating. Simon thinks she's forgettable. She's got quite a nice voice, but it was “too cool for school.” Odd, though; after the show was over, it was her performance that I remembered. I hope she gets the wild card spot.

Kai Kalama – "What Becomes of the Broken-Hearted", by Jimmy Ruffin

He's got a nice voice, but this song doesn't show it off. Kara said he had some pitch issues, and the song was a little old-fashioned for her. She'd like to see him do something a little more contemporary. Paula thought he was off-pitch a little bit. Simon thought it was old-fashioned and corny, nothing distinct or original about it. He thinks he'll be a good backup singer. Randy thought it was "safe" - Idol code for "it didn't challenge you at all." I like Kai, but unless he's got a good fan base, he won't get through tonight.

Mishavonna Henson – "Drops of Jupiter", by Train

She's only 18 years old. I really like this song (you've got to love a group that can make someone with my name, Virginia, sexy and desirable!), but I thought it was an odd song choice for her, and I wasn't sure it translated well into a woman's point of view. She's got a nice voice, though. She had some trouble reaching the highest notes at first, but warmed up to it. This is one of the most capable performances so far tonight. Paula questioned the song choice – it didn't excite her. Simon agrees that it was an odd song choice. Something left him cold about that performance. (Paula whispered to him, “Maybe it's the drops of Jupiter...”) He says Mishavonna acts like a 50-year-old. Randy thought she felt old, too. It didn't show off her voice off. Kara wants her to loosen up a little. I like Mishavonna, and if she doesn't get through tonight, I hope she comes back next year.

Adam Lambert – "Satisfaction", by the Rolling Stones

Adam has sung musical theater for years, and it shows in his performance style. In this performance, I think he was channeling Elvis, not Mick Jagger. He had on several necklaces, kind of a Vegas look for me. I still think he's one of the hottest performers in this competition. What a showman! I'll bet this download sells well; I might buy it myself. Paula doesn't have words (which isn't unusual). She thinks he's in a league of his own. Simon is finding this one difficult. He thought parts were excruciatingly bad and parts were brilliant. The end note was terrific, but parts at the beginning were terrible. Randy loved it. “One of the most current artists we've ever had on this show. It's like a combination of Steven Tyler meets Fall Out Boy meets Robert Pattinson from Twilight...My Chemical Romance...” Kara thinks his vocal technique and ability are outrageous. (I think that's a good quality.) This was absolutely the hottest, most memorable performance of the evening. Adam will go far.

Here's who I think will make it through: Allison Iraheta for the girls, Adam Lambert for the boys. Wild card? Jesse Langseth? Kai Kalama? Mishavonna Henson? I kind of hope one of the girls gets it.

Our Beach

My older son found a box full of old photographs that he took when he was a kid. (He'll be 28 in a little over a month.) He's been scanning them into his computer and emailing them to us. One of the pictures he found was one I've been thinking about since I took my Cape Cod vacation last fall. My parents, my kids, their dad and I rented a house in Harwich Port for 5 summers, 1988-1992. During April school vacation in 1993, we went down to visit the Cape - eat at Seafood Sam's, drive by the Chatham Lighthouse, and walk on the beach. We knew we wouldn't be coming back the following summer. I was feeling very sad about that, and my mood was somber. I'm not sure who wrote this in the beach, but:

It's our initials, followed by "This is OUR BEACH." I thought that maybe somehow by laying claim to it, we'd get some good karma and magically convince the Universe to arrange for us to stay there again. But the Universe wasn't paying any attention, and our days of renting on the Cape while the kids were small were over.

Almost every summer, we manage to make a day trip (I go, accompanied by one, two or three kids, whoever else is available). We eat at Seafood Sam's, visit the Chatham lighthouse, and drive around our old neighborhood. Sometimes we walk on the beach. But we go back to our homes near Boston at the end of the day.

Last fall, I finally managed an overnight visit to the Cape when I spent four wonderful days right down the beach from "Our Beach". I talked about it here. I have pictures of the vacation on all of my computers as wallpaper, and they warm my heart as I think of the place where I feel most myself.

Since then, I realized something about "Our Beach." Even though we don't stay there every year, it's still "our beach", and it always will be. It's in our hearts, a part of our lives. We belong there, and the beach knows it. It recognizes us as its own. Odd as that sounds, I feel it very strongly. When I walk there, I'm whole. The little girl who ran ahead of her mother and grandparents, the young mother who delighted in watching the hermit crabs in the tidal pools with her small children, the older mother who brought her growing kids to this place even after they couldn't rent there any more - they all walk with me. That's why I keep going back. All the best pieces of myself can be found there.

American Idol: First 3 finalists

The results show taped while we were out at handbell practice. When we got home, my son was the one who turned on the TV to figure out who got through. All I saw of the show was what he cued up for me. I hate results shows, anyway. And this one had predictable results.

Danny Gokey got through. Huge surprise there. Alexis Grace got through. Ditto. Those two were the top performers Tuesday night; if either of them hadn't gotten through, it'd be a crime.

Which leaves the third-place performer.

Ricky Braddy got a raw deal. The producers chose not to feature him during Hollywood Week, and he came into Tuesday's show virtually unknown. I think he was probably the most talented performer of the remaining 10, but he didn't get through.

Thank heavens, Tatiana del Toro is gone! She did a creditable job on Whitney Houston's annoying song about her affair with a married man, "Saving All my Love for You." (I bitched and moaned about that song last year, too.) But I'm fed up to HERE with her dramatics, and I'm glad they won't be back to haunt us any more this season. Not unless she gets one of the Wild Card spots, God forbid!

Anoop Desai didn't get through, either. He just made a bad song choice. I hope they bring him back as a Wild Card performer.

Brent Keith didn't make it through, either. What the heck - he finished 6th in Nashville Star back in 2007. He's had his chance.

So who did get through? Michael Sarver, the oil-rig dude. His personality (and Simon's endorsement) got him into the Top 12. He won't last there, but maybe he'll get enough exposure to give him a little extra income for his wife and kids. He's a nice guy. But I still think Ricky Braddy got a raw deal.

Condo Dreamin'

From 1998 until 2003, I lived in a wonderful apartment in Somerville, halfway between Davis and Porter Squares. It was on the third floor, with a southwest exposure so that I got a lot of sunlight. I felt as if I were in a bird's nest. My bed, a futon, tucked underneath the eaves. I walked everywhere I needed to go. There were two Anna's Taquerias where I could stop, one in each square. When I was first there, the original Bertucci's was so close by that we could (and did) walk down to pick up a pizza for supper in subzero weather and get back home before the pizza was cold. There was a great bakery-coffee shop practically next door. There was a Starbucks for when I was feeling wealthy and two Dunkin Donuts for when I was feeling cheap. There were four Indian restaurants within walking distance. I wished I could stay there forever.

Eventually, though, I decided it was time to stop renting, and I bought a house. As much as I wanted to stay nearby, I couldn't afford to buy a house in Somerville. So I ended up in a poor city north of Boston. My commute involves a drive, a subway ride, and a bus ride, and takes over an hour each way. There is a convenience mart and a bad coffee shop within walking distance. The closest Indian restaurant is in the food court at the Square One Mall in Saugus. We have to drive 15 minutes to get to a Bertucci's (and they've gotten overpriced anyway), and in order to get to Anna's, we have to return to Porter or Davis Squares. I have a garden, but I feel isolated, and I miss my old home more and more each day.

Some friends who still live in Somerville have been keeping me up to date on my old building. It had been sold and was being converted into condominiums. I had always said to myself that if my old apartment was converted to a condo, I'd buy it. Last week I looked it up in the real-estate ads and discovered that, of the six condos, three were already spoken for. Two were listed, one at $379,000 and one at $539,000, as I mentioned a couple of entries ago. I don't know what happened to the third one.

My son and I made a couple of trips to Davis Square recently - to eat burritos at Anna's and to buy bread from When Pigs Fly. Last Monday we walked past my old building, and I took pictures. Here's a side-by-side comparison:

This is what it looked like when I lived there. If you look carefully through the tree branches at the highest windows on the side of the house, you'll see my "slider-doors-to-nowhere." I think they had hoped to put a balcony on that side when they renovated the house back in the 1970s.



And here's what it looked like on Monday. The slider-doors-to-nowhere are still there! I was sure they'd go. The other windows on that side did. But they added dormers on the front (where my kitchen was) and on the back (where my bedroom was). They've put some kind of balcony in front of the dormer where I could put a small tub of herbs. If I could live there. Which I can't, since I'm guessing it's one of the units that has been spoken for.

Both units that are for sale are on the other side of the building (the shady side...). They've put in central air. The building was gutted and completely remodeled. No wonder they're charging so much for the places, even in this economy. And I'm sure they're worth it for the location alone.

I think maybe tomorrow or Friday I'll call the realtor and ask to be taken through the less expensive condo. Maybe I can get them to take me through my old apartment, too, just because I want to see what they've done to it. I don't know, maybe if I act as if I can afford to move back there, it'll happen. Can't hurt, anyway.

American Idol, First Elimination Round

Twelve of the Top 36 American Idol singers performed last night. This is the first of three elimination rounds; only three people from these 12 will make it to the final rounds (one man, one woman, and the third-highest vote-getter). It was surprising - in some cases, surprisingly bad. Here's my breakdown by performer. I tend to go into excruciating details, so I'll try to be brief.

First up was Jackie Tohn. She turned out to be the one who was auditioning when the window fell down behind the judges, a scene which was played over and over. She chose to do "A Little Less Conversation", which turned out to be an Elvis song; since I was never an Elvis fan, I didn't recognize it and had to Google it to find out what it was. She gave an enthusiastic performance and seemed comfortable on the stage, but her voice was already husky and worn, and she was off-key for a lot of the song. The judges agreed with me. Simon said that she had a good voice, but she played the clown tonight. (He thought her actions on stage were overdone.) The performance was ungainly, the song was a bit gimmicky, and he doesn't think the public is going to like it at all. And besides, he hated her outfit. She was wearing black spandex pants with a wide belt. I didn't especially like it, either.

Ricky Braddy was next. I was relieved when they pointed out that he hadn't been featured in the previous three weeks, because I didn't have the faintest idea who he was. He's actually a pretty good singer. He did "A Song for You" by Leon Russell. Not my favorite style - it's what I think of as a power ballad, loud and fraught with emotion. The judges were impressed. Simon said it was very, very good, but he doesn't think Ricky has any star quality. I tend to disagree, but I don't think Ricky will be moving on to the next round - there are just too many good performers tonight. His parents were there with tee shirts that said "The Braddy Bunch."

One of the best performances of the night was by Alexis Grace. She did "Never Loved a Man" by Aretha Franklin, and she is clearly talented. She was dressed in a very sophisticated style, black minidress, cupid's-bow lips. I think she will win the women's vote tonight. Randy said he was loving her right now; Kara said "The genie is out of the bottle!" Paula sounded as if she were about to burst into tears. Even Simon had praise, for once. He thought she was the best contestant they've had. She has soul, and she may be a dark horse in this competition.

Brent Keith was up next. He's a good ol' country boy, cute, with great dimples. I'm not a country fan, but I liked his performance. He did "Hicktown" by Jason Aldean (according to Google; I didn't know the song!). Randy said he could see him "at a chili cookoff, me and you and Simon Cowell..." Kara thought he should have taken more risks. Paula agreed. Simon thought he was forgettable, and that he may have blown a massive opportunity.

Stevie Wright is just 16, and she needs to go home and grow up for a few more years before she tries to compete on American Idol. Her singing of Taylor Swift's "You Belong with Me" was horrendous, the worst performance of the evening. Her song choice didn't work for her, either; Taylor Swift is a wispy blonde teenager, and the song sounded as if it was written in her notebook during her high-school classes. The judges didn't like the performance, either.

Next up was my personal favorite going into this round, Anoop Desai. He did "Angel of Mine" by Monica. I was disappointed by his performance. He was off-key a lot, and this song didn't show what he's capable of. Randy started his comments with "Anoop Dogg in the house!", but followed up with "Interesting song choice", which means "bad song choice." Simon asked him why he chose that song. He thought it was too grown up and serious for him. Anoop responded that it was about thanks and being grateful for the people who were behind him. I hope he gets through, but if he does, it'll be the third-place vote.

One of my least favorite performers, Casey Carlson, was up next. I couldn't remember her, and then this morning I read one of my earlier entries and discovered I'd complained about her before. She totally destroyed "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic," by the Police, a song I really like. Randy didn't know what to say. “Not good for me, man,” he finally managed to stammer. He loves the song, but it was completely wrong for her and “weirdly karaoke at this point.” Kara said everything about that was wrong. She didn't think people should attempt to perform classic songs by people like Sting. Paula made a remark about how pretty she thought she was. (I disagree.) But that song – her phrasing was weird, she didn't think about what she was singing. Didn't work for her. Simon said the singing was just atrocious; she couldn't have chosen a worse song, and she shouldn't have been allowed to sing it. I don't think Casey will be with us much longer.

Michael Sarver, the oil-rig dude, performed Gavin deGraw's "I Don't Want to Be", which has the distinction of being a country song that I actually like. He didn't do well. He was all over the place pitchwise, and I thought he was graceless on the stage; his movements were jerky, almost spastic. The judges agreed. Simon said “this is a tricky one.” A good honest hardworking guy who deserves a break. But not the best performance. Simon hopes he gets another shot. I'm not sure what I think - Michael is hard not to like, but there were so many guys who were better than he was. I don't think he'll get through, but I bet Simon brings him back as a wild-card pick.

Ann Marie Boskovich did "Natural Woman" (which I always think of as being by Carole King,who wrote and performed it, but they announced as being by Aretha Franklin, who probably had a hit with it that I missed). It was a poor choice for this talented young woman. She couldn't handle it. The judges weren't especially encouraging, either.

Stephen Fowler did "Rock with You," by Michael Jackson, a song I'd never heard before. He wasn't very good. I think the song choice was wrong. His voice cracked on one of the high notes. Clearly this didn't show off what he's capable of. The judges didn't like it much, either; Kara and Paula both thought he should have performed the song he forgot the lyrics for in his earlier solo tryout, David Cook's "The Time of my Life". Simon thought it was a pointless performance with a terrible arrangement. "It was corny."

My favorite train wreck, Tatiana del Toro, chose to take on a Whitney Houston song, "Saving All my Love for You," one of my least favorite songs of all time. There were a few nice moments in it, actually; of all the women who were performing tonight, she's the only one who could have handled a Whitney song. Kara never knows what she's going to pull; thought it was very reserved. “Who are you in the industry? Where do you fit?” Tatiana says she fits anywhere. Paula says she's the most talked-about contestant on the show this year. Simon says she's a complete and utter drama queen. She's desperate to be famous. The song wasn't bad at all, and it was better than he expected, but the whole demure thing has to go. Then they all imitated her weird laugh. She just might make it through on her talent, who knows? But it's more like the disaster you just can't stop watching...

The final performance of the evening was one of the best: Danny Gokey did "Hero", by Mariah Carey, and he did a superb job. Randy says “The redeemer of the night, Danny Gokey, that was blazing hot!” “Kara said he was the hero. Paula said he was stellar, then said “Sold-out arenas.” Simon thought it was good, but not fantastic. Simon's full of crap tonight, as usual.

If Danny Gokey isn't the guys' top vote-getter tonight, I'll be very surprised. He earned it and he deserves it. Alexis Grace should get the women's top place. The third choice? It could be any of several people. Anoop Desai may have the fan base to carry him through. Ricky Braddy has the talent. Brent Keith has the stage presence. Tatiana del Toro has the weirdness factor. Michael Sarver has his blue-collar charm. Who knows? I don't watch results shows (they take 30 seconds of information and stretch it out over an hour), but I'll check in at the end tonight and find out.

American Idol Top 36

Hold on, folks, it's time for my second annual American Idol blog! (Don't look for the first one here; it's completely irrelevant by now, anyway.) I started working on this commentary on the Top 36 last week, and I still haven't posted it. Tonight, 12 of them will be competing, and of those 12, only 3 will make it through: the top guy, the top girl, and the third-highest vote getter. Here's a list of the Top 36, in the order they were announced last Wednesday:

Anoop Desai
Von Smith
Alex Wagner-Trugman
Adam Lambert
Taylor Vaifenua
Jasmine Murray
Arianna Afsar
Casey Carlson
Megan Corkrey
Mishavonna Henson
Stevie Wright
Felicia Barton
Kendall Beard
Kristen McNamara
Alexis Grace
Scott Mcintyre
Lil Rounds
Jesse Langseth
Allison Iraheta
Danny Gokey
Ricky Braddy
Matt Giraud
Ju'not Joyner
Jorge Nunez
Brent Keith
Stephen Fowler
Nick Mitchell (Norman Gentle)
Jackie Tohn
Tatiana del Toro
Nathaniel Marshall
Jeanine Vailes
Kai Kalama
Anne Marie Boskovich
Kris Allen
Matt Breitzke
Michael Sarver

I'm limiting my commentary to the 12 who are performing tonight. First, the guys:

Anoop Desai. He's my candidate for the top guy tonight. Really, really talented.
Brent Keith. He was on Nashville Star, which as far as I can tell is the country equivalent of American Idol. I don't like him at all, and I hope this is the last we'll be seeing of him this season.
Danny Gokey. He's a talented singer who will get the sympathy vote because his wife died recently. I think he'll be the third-place finisher.
Matt Breitzke. One of the two blue-collar guys. He's fun, but I don't think he'll make it through this round.
Ricky Braddy. I do not remember this guy at all, and Googling him didn't help. I guess he's another country singer. I've already picked two guys as going through, so it doesn't matter, anyway.
Stephen Fowler. I like Stephen, I really do. He's the one who forgot his lyrics last week and walked offstage - and still made it through. That's a lot of talent. But he's got some great competition, too. Maybe he'll get put back in on the wild-card judges' vote.

Now the girls: (I was going to say "women" but that sounded odd)

Alexis Grace. Single mom, bleached blonde hair with pink highlights. She can sing, too.
Anne Marie Boskovich. During her first audition, the judges sent off to change her appearance. They thought she could present herself better. Obviously she succeeded. According to stuff I’ve found online, she sang in the Little Mermaid 2 when she was 13. She’s good. She's my pick for girls' winner tonight.
Casey Carlson. Who? I was having trouble placing her, so I listened to her audition, which somebody has kindly put up on YouTube. She's not very talented, and I don't know how she got this far.
Jackie Tohn. I vaguely remember her. When I Googled her, I learned she's an actress. I don't think she's getting through this week.
Stevie Wright. She was named for Stevie Nicks, who (as my kids hear me say frequently) "got my life." (I can explain that in another entry, if anybody's interested.) I don't think she'll get through this round, although I think she deserves her place in the Top 36.
And, last but far from least:
Tatiana del Toro. If she gets through, it'll either be Vote for the Worst or the American Idol producers wanting to keep her around. They love her, and have been showing us All Things Tatiana from her audition. First it was her annoying giggle and her weird outfit. (Think vanity table skirt.) Then it was her frequent tears and loud protests, her begging and pleading, her tearful and noisy rejoicing when she got through. I think she has a decent voice, but I'm sick to death of her dramatics.

So there you have it. Anoop Desai and Anne Marie Boskovich as top vote getters in their gender. Danny Gokey as the other one who will place. Tatiana del Toro may get through, but it won't be because of her talent.

Things are tough all over...

The Hancock Tower, the tallest building in Boston, is facing foreclosure. They're planning to auction it off this weekend. I find this mind-boggling. It last sold for $1.3 billion in 2006. Now it's worth a mere $900 million or so. Somebody could pick up a bargain! Maybe one of those bankers who's been pocketing all that bailout money in bonuses. Or maybe some rock star who thinks it'd be cool to own the building I still think of as the Mighty 'Cock. I worked one day there once when I was temping back in 1998. The windows had stopped blowing out by then. Back in the 1970s there was scaffolding over all the sidewalks, just in case another window blew out. I worked on Clarendon Street and I walked by the Hancock Tower every day, but I never saw one blow out, to my great disappointment.

My old apartment building in Somerville has been sold and renovated and split up into condos. I always said that if I could, I'd buy back my old apartment. Ha, ha. I looked it up on boston.com yesterday and discovered, first of all, that three units are already spoken for. There were six apartments, so I assume there are that many condos. The two I could find prices for were first- and second-floor units (I lived on the third floor) and listed for $539K (first floor) and $379K (second floor). WAAAAY over my price range. What are the odds that the last unit is a) my old apartment and b) $300K or lower? Yeah, that's what I thought, too.

Yesterday my furnace broke. I never turn on the heat before work any more - got to save money somehow! - and although I was colder than usual, I didn't give it any thought. By the time my son dragged himself out of bed at 11 or so, it was down to 48° inside. He called me at work, and I handled it with my usual competence - I panicked. I've never had to call a furnace repairman before! Where do I go? What do I do? Thanks to the various online Yellow Pages I looked at, I was able to locate somebody who would come out sometime between 2 and 5. Suuuuuuure. He showed up at around 5:30. But he fixed it, and it didn't even cost all that much. Yet another crisis faced and handled as I learn how to be a responsible adult at age (ahem!) - well, let's just say way past the time most people learn.

Fun with NaNoWriMo (even though it's not November)

Why do I never have money in February? I guess it's the winter heating bills and the post-Christmas bills. It should motivate me to do my taxes! Or maybe to keep working on my NaNoWriMo novel. Did I mention that here? Apparently not. I've won NaNoWriMo for three years in a row. This isn't exactly an honor; all it involves is writing 50,000 words between November 1 and November 30. I should do this every month. Maybe not that many words, but I should set a goal for how many words to write - and then actually write them.

My first completed novel, in 2006, was called "Everyday Magic" (I still like the title) and involved a divorced woman of my age who developed magical powers. What the heck - I could use all the power I can get. There were fairies and witches and evil developers who wanted to cut down the fairies' woods and build houses. (The woods where I played as a little girl has been pretty much eradicated; McMansions sit there now.) My heroine made some close friends, learned some good things about herself, and, of course, found romance. The resulting story was frothy - light, no substance. Cute. I doubt anybody would buy it.

My second "completed" novel was the post-apocalyptic one I've been developing for the past 10 years. I seem to get it out every 5 years. I worked from my 1997 notes and my 2002 notes, but didn't use anything I'd already written - that's against the NaNoWriMo rules. Once again, you've got your divorced middle-aged woman; this time she meets the daughter she never had, who has come over from a parallel universe. (Are your eyes glazing over yet?) In that universe, a plague has killed off a large percentage of the population. In 1997 I was thinking 90%; in 2007, I was working with more like 50%. I wrote 50,000 new words between November 1 and 30, so I got the "Winner!" graphic, but the novel was nowhere near completion. It still isn't. The story interests me, but I don't think it'd interest anybody else. And it's very dark, so it's difficult to write. Still, I may get back to it someday.

But this year's novel might have some commercial value. I wrote a mystery set in the Boston area. This year's heroine is in her early 30's, never married, no kids; she lives with her cat in my old apartment in Somerville, which I moved to Cambridge for the purposes of the story. I knew all of this going into November, but the basic gimmick in this novel came to me in a dream the morning of November 1st: she's a mind reader. I swear, I'd never read any novels where the main character read minds. When I picked up Volume 1 of Charlaine Harris' "Dead until Dark" series, I was nonplussed. Sookie Stackhouse reads minds? Oh, geez, everybody will think I stole the idea... In that book, though, Sookie refers to it as her disability, and Alex (my character) thinks of it as a talent. Totally different locations, totally different people, totally different stories. Really. Not a vampire to be found in my novel. Or at least not in Volume 1. I've already started preparing a draft for Volume 2, and there's going to be a vampire scare (although not necessarily any vampires) in it. That little aspect grew out of my distaste for Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" franchise. Turns out the same theme is found in the Sookie Stackhouse books - vampires as lovers. Ewwww! There's a name for that: necrophilia. Not my thing at all. I haven't read any of the Twilight books, since I'm not a teenage girl any more...

Anyway, Alex, my mind reader, will end up helping the police solve crimes. Isn't that what mysteries do?