American Idol night and personal info

I've spent most of today with my mom. Her only remaining living relative, her brother, died in his sleep last night. My sister called me this a.m. and I went over to Mom's house and we broke the news to her together. Hospice was called in last week and luckily, Mom went to see him last Wednesday. She was upset today though of course and kept saying she had planned on making him his favorite cookies this week. He was 87 and has been bedridden for about a year. The funeral will be on Friday.

So, Sonny and I sat down to watch American Idol tonight. We usually wait until it is on about 1/2 hour so we can fast forward through the commercials. We only got to hear one singer when our power went out!!!! Oh No!! It was out for about 1/2 hour and when it came back on, we were able to hear singers 1-6. The electicity being out kept it from taping singers 7-9 but we picked back up with singers 10-12!! I heard them all sing at the end (the little snippets they do) and I checked another internet site to see what she had to say about all the singers. So ....my synopsis below is partly from me and partly from what I gleamed elsewhere. I think I may have missed the ones who will win though. I didn't vote tonight since I wasn't sure about all of them.

• Von Smith - You're All I Need to Get By: I thought he started the show off great. Simon says he reminds him of Clay Aiken and that he dressed appalling! But, overall, the judges liked him. I did too.
• Taylor Vaifanua - If I Got You by Alicia Keyes: She's got a great voice but was really kinda boring. The judges thought so too and wished she had put more of her personality into it.
• Alex Wagner-Trugman - That's Why They Call It The Blues by Sir Elton: This guys is pretty dorky (and his Dad is a lot dorky!!) Paula thought he was a true showman; Simon thought it was just stupid; and Randy said he was "buck wild!" At least he sang an upbeat song but he was actually growling the words!! Ummmm, I don't think so!
• Arianna Afsar - Winner Takes It All by Abba: This girl is sooo cute - as the judges have said "she's cute as a button" which she doesn't want to be remembered by! I was really hoping more for her but the song was just too much for her. She definitely can sing though. We'll probably see her again - but not this year.
• Ju'not Joyner - Hey There Delilah: I love this song and he wasn't bad. He put his own touch to it. But again, another slow song. I think they get better reviews when they sing more upbeat songs. This guy has a darling little boy which helped him get to this point. I don't think he'll get voted in though.
• Kristen McNamera - Tracy Chapman song: I wasn't so into her when our power went out.

The itallic part of this next segment was taken from another site. Coments at the end are my take on the little bit I heard at the end of the show:

• Nathaniel Marshall — I Would Do Anything For Love by Meatloaf. Hope this guy doesn’t ruin it for me forever. Omigosh. I can’t stomach it. Okay, so you know what, he can actually sing. I can’t help but feel like I’m in a karaoke bar though. I love Simon. “Excruciating.” “Olivia Newton John headband.” Kara nailed it — he’d make a great karaoke buddy. That’s Nate. American Idol — notsomuch. I sure wish I'd heard this guy!! He's an interesting character to say the least!! He was very dramatic in Hollywood.
• Felicia Barton — No One: I like this chick. Good song choice. Finally someone tonight who is relevant. My main criticism is that you don’t really get a sense of her range with this song. I’d like to see her back next week.
• Scott MacIntyre — Mandolin Rain: This guy is SUPER talented. Top 5. For sure. Kara’s right; the imperfections didn’t matter because his passion is undeniable. I can’t wait to see him with the piano. This guy is blind!! I have been a fan of his from the "get-go" and think he will go far!

Now our power came back on!!

• Kendall Beard - This One's for the Girls: I like country and Martina is one of Sonny's favorites, so this one was a hit for us. She was a little shrilly toward the end which the judges commented on, but on a whole, they like her. Simon is definately not a country liker so he was not as sold as the others.
• Jorge Nunez - Don't Let the Sun Go Down: This guy has gone above and beyond the call of duty. He is from Puerto Rico and has an accent big time, but had a linquist he has been working with to make his English more understandable. He really sounded great! I'm not sure about him. He was crying at the end he was so emotional and said when he got that emotional, he couldn't think in English!!
• Lil Rounds - a Mary J Bilge song: She was great! The judges loved her and so did I. She has 3 children at home so this would be a big deal for her.

Ok - IF I had voted - I would have voted for: Von, Taylor, Scott; Jorge and Lil Rounds; Kendall

I think these will get through: Lil Rounds, Scott MacIntyre; Jorge Or Kendall