And I'm Telling You...

... I got through to the next round!

Hohoho... I can finally shake off the embarrassment of last year's 'wrong-category-forgotten-lyrics' saga. I sang Dreamgirl's 'And I'm Telling You' for the audition round ( I heard gasps in the audience. They probably thought I was nuts to do this song.. Either that, or they, like Greg, thought I wasn't going to tell them the title.), and managed to get through it without forgetting a single word.

I promised myself the hand gestures and the waving about wouldn't happen, but it somehow subconciously crept into the performance. By the last 'no no there's no way', the inner diva in me had already taken over, and I was ready to place a slap on anyone within 2 feet of me. My left hand was clutching the mike on the mikestand in a deathgrip while my right was wildly flying about. Must have been a real sight.

But I still got through! So a big ha! to all the suckers who projected their negative thoughts towards me. ("Who does he think he is? Mariah freaking Carey?")

I mainly looked at my class' people when I sang, cause it's so much easier when there's familiar faces in the crowd. So thanks so much to the people who came, even though I know most only came to see the two freaks. I wouldn't blame them, since I was more excited about the weirdos' 'big show' than my own audition.

The freaks didn't disappoint. Both were as horrible as I expected them to be, though I didn't expect the vietnam guy to start shaking so badly. I also didn't expect him to burst into tears after failing to hit a note (which wasn't even that high to begin with.. probably that's why he cried..).

Up next.. I'll be singing Mariah Carey's 'Hero', and if I get through to the next round, I'll be on my way to some money! Yipee!

Who's that girl?!

The more un-glam you are, the better the make over you get. Susan Boyle revealed her new look, complete with a new hairdo (dyes and all), plucked eyebrows, a spiffy leather jacket and a plaid scarf.

Susan Boyle, of course, found fame with Britian's Got Talent. She wowed the world (including Simon Cowell) by turning out to have a voice as beautiful as her face isn't. Her rendition of Les Misérable's I Dreamed A Dream brought tears to the eyes of many, and she shot to instant stardom through the power of Youtube.

I really hope she wins this year's show, and not the annoying little kid Shaheen. This( ----->) is pure singing from the heart. Little Shaheen's just another kid who can drag the hell out of a syllable.

Go Boyle!

The last week of my 17th

"Who says you're only young once?"

That was the tagline for the Zac Efron movie, 17 again. How much I wish that was true.

It suddenly struck me, as I was absentmindedly flipping through my calendar (I do that sometimes to check if they misprinted the numbers), that I was down to my last year of being a child. When you're 18, you would be viewed as an adult by the world. Lord knows there's a whole contingent of above 18s who still act like they're 6 (just look at my school. You'd think it was a kindergarten), but the world doesn't care how you behave anymore, as long as you take responsibility for it. You even have to serve the full sentence for a crime that you commit (Not that I'm intending to commit a crime. Yet.).

There are days when I couldn't wait to grow up. I want to go out and experience the real world, not one where childish trifles and tutorials are one's main concerns. I want to be a driving force, a contribution to the world, not a child who is nagged at and reprimanded. I've even, in moments of insanity, wanted a child. I want to know what it's like to live. But then it hit me. My wish was coming true, and it's coming head on towards me at a breakneck speed. I'm only down to my last 7 days as a teenager now, and before I could blink, 17 would become just another number I have sailed pass, a childhood I could never reclaim would have slipped pass my fingers.

18 is a turning point for many. For some, it would be the age they're enrolled in national service, where they would be tortured for 2 years. For me, it would be the age that I leave for America to begin another life, one where the only one taking care of me is me. A life where I can do as I please, and answer to none. Up till recently, it is a dream that I could not wait to fulfill. But as the impending date draws nearer, I couldn't help but wonder, how will I do it? To be in charge of my own life, my own academic achievements, and consequently, my own career. I can't even begin to imagine supporting a family. Growing up suddenly doesn't seem so fun anymore.

I remember in a Harry Potter book, Hagrid said 'what will come will come, and we'll face it when it did.'. Granted, he was talking about Voldemort, but it's still applicable her.e Evil homicidal wizards don't exist in our world, but the trials and sufferings of life sure do. I dread what is to come, but there's no way I can prevent it.

People always say that they don't want to live a life of regret, but that's exactly how many end up living. Missed opportunities, wasted chances, forgotten dreams. I don't want that to be the caption to my life, so I'm going to hold on to my goals. It's going to be tough living in America, but it's gonna be even tougher if I don't get into the school I want. Hard work! I have to do it. I really must.

And I must watch 17 Again before I turn 18. Or I will regret for life that I can never be 17 again.

Grandma - By Phoebe Buffay

Now grandma's a person who everyone likes
She bought you a train and a new shiny bike
But lately she hasn't been coming to dinner
And last time you saw her she looked so much thinner
Now your mom and your dad said she moved to Peru
But the truth is she died and someday you will too
La-la-la-la..

God, I miss Friends..

And then there was 5

The AI producers have done it again. This time, the only 2 colored contestants left (Lil Rounds and Anoop)) have been eliminated, leaving the top 5 exclusively all white. The new executive producer seems to be making all the big mistakes. I really miss Nigel. He's the one responsible for Arch's loss, but at least he knew how to make a good TV show.

Since the judges have already used the 'save' that made history for making Matt G. the only contestant to have been saved twice (hello..? There's a reason he even needs to be saved. There's nothing glorious about needing to be brought back), this week's elimination was a bit more boring than before. Lil was brutally cut out under 3 minutes, and Anoop was placed in the bottom 3 with Allison (lord knows there's no way he can outlive her). There's no point in trying so hard to make the judges save you anymore, so their swan song was basically pointless. Interestingly, the final songs sound better when they're not desperately trying to make the judges like them again.

Also, this week's opening number was cheoreographed by Paula herself. They lipsynced to some Jackson 5 song, and attempted some very corny and ridiculous moves. Paula must be losing her touch. But it is obvious that the producers are trying to make Paula feel better by giving her more attention than Kara. They even gave her a bouquet of flowers for her effort.

And the final 5:

Lindsay proves she still can act

The Jennifers Battle It Out!

Jennifer Hudson invited the original 'And I Am Telling You' singer, Jennifer Holliday, to her concert in Atlanta for a surprise sing-off.

Today's Reading

Past: The Tower
The Book says: This card represents the unexpected events that can change your life or your perception of things. A rude awakening of some sort, whether it's your old way of life coming suddenly to an end, or release from a situation in which you were stuck.

I say: So true. I saw people in a totally different light, and I'm much wiser about who to trust now. In a way, it really is a release. A release from my naive way of thinking that most people out there have good intentions, when its really the reverse.

Present: The Magician
The Book says: This card suggests a time of action, creative initiative, skill and potential in abundance. The equipment needed is available but steps may not yet have been taken towards achievement of the goal. A great reserve of power and energy is available; it is up to the seeker to decide how it is to be used.

I say: Yes.. I know I have to study hard now.. You don't have to remind me every few minutes, alright...

Future: Justice

The Book says: In a reading, Justice stands for the need to weigh things up, to find fair and rational solutions, for reason and thought to override emotions, although at times Jutice might need to be tempered with mercy. In short, it stands for the need for a balanced mind.

I say: We'll only fight fair with those who fight fair. Mercy for him? Most unlikely. Perhaps in a verrrrry verrrrry distance future.

All of Archuleta's Singapore Interview

Ellen and JHud sing!

Truth

Truth..

You want to hear it
You blame me when you know it
I hate to say it

Truths will set you free
It just ruins relationships
A likely story

Causes great unease
Unable to share burdens
I must hold my peace

I dread for the day
It crumbles beneath my feet
My little white lies

How did I get here
Things don't 'happen' to happen
I want to go back

Scott aka Blinding Boringness is finally out

Scott McEntire, the one extremely talented (in memory work), has finally been eliminated from American Idol. He chose to play the guitar this time (seriously, this guy is amazing. I can't even play with both eyes wide open and he can play with none), but it brought upon him his first criticisms from Kara.

When it was annouced that he was out, the whole arena stood up to give him a standing ovation. Seriously, you guys.. Insensitive much? Like giving a person with no taste buds the most delicious triple-chocolate cake. He can only take Ryan's word for it that it really happened.

He was, like any other contestang, allowed to 'sing for his life', in hope that the judges would save him. By the looks of the intense debate over at the judges table, Kara and Paula wanted to let him stay, but Simon and Randy didn't. What great acting skills from all of them.. As if it's not them who suggested he be kicked out in the first place.

I guess Anoop's gonna be the next one to go. He's been in the bottom 3 much more than is healthy.

And your remaining 7:

David says hi to SG

Hopefully Singapore's not a country he just learnt of before they whisked him here. Doubtful, but we still can dream...



I love how he pronounces 'Singapore'. Makes it sound much more glamorous than it deserves to be.

Crushin' On Singapore

His appearance on Channel News Asia. They talked about his unreleased (and absolutely amazing) song 'Zero Gravity', his fans, his voice..



Him performing 'Touch My Hand. Greg recorded this.



'A Little Too Not Over You':



'A Thousand Miles', with piano accompaniment:



Finally, he ends off with 'Crush'

Photos of Arch's SG event

I SAW ARCHULETA!!!!!!!!

Today is officially the most incredible day of my entire life. Cause I finally got to see DAVID ARCHULETA!

So it went down like this. I met Greg, then arrived at Bugis at around 5pm. We made our way to the ugly sparkling building known as Iluma, and saw that there was already a huge group of people waiting to get in. Not knowing we had to queue (or probably we subconsciously knew but chose to ignore that), we made our way in through another door and got into the cordoned off special area for people with the CDs. No one stopped us, so HAHA SUCKERS (who had to wait outside).

He's supposedly coming at 7, and it was only around 5.10, so we just sat there singing the Arch songs that were blasting (and I really mean blast. Like, hello? The average age group here is 16.. Not 61.. We appreciate the effort, but we can seriously hear it clearly enough. Even Arch's voice can sound annoying when its directed full blast at you with 4 gigantic speakers. (AHHH I can't believe I just said that)

At around 6.50 (after 2 hours of Arch's CD on repeat and staring at a fat woman's butt crack in front of me), some DJ came on to get the people excited about His arrival. We all eagerly waited His majesty, and there were around 10 false alarms. ("AHHHH THERE HE IS!!!" Oh wait. that's security. AHHHH THERE!!!! Nope.. Cleaner...") It got to a point where people don't even care anymore when the screaming starts.

At around 7.15pm (it's good to be fashionably late in this industry. Or else people'll think you're too eager and desperate. They must have timed his arrival to be exactly 15mins late. Thankfully they didn't take a leaf out of Mariah's book and make him come an hour late.), Archuleta finally arrives. He's dressed in a blue shirt, sleeves rolled up, blue black jeans and a black tie. Chic, casual and stylish. I'm so gonna hunt the shirt down and wear it for talentime. But anyways. The moment he stepped onto the stage (you can imagine how loud all the screaming was. Mine was not included, I swear. What's with that skeptical look?), 'Touch My Hand' began. His live singing is soooo incredible. He's also much more confident on stage. He's like bopping up and down and running all over the place.

His next song was 'A Little Too Not Over You'. And HE POINTED STRAIGHT AT ME!!!!! And looked me in the eye. Probably cause I'm tall, so I stand out from the crowd. Don't try to tell me I'm delusional. I swear, its me. It was so funny when the crowd sang the 'whoo-woo' part for the song. Like helping him.. I couldn't hear him sing the falsetto, only the crowd.

He played the piano for 'A Thousand Miles', and was amazing, as usual. The fans sang along for the whole song. It's such an incredible experience to sing it to him. I realized he pronounces 'thousand' weridly. He says 'thousenn'. But whatever.

The last song he sang was 'Crush'. The crowd really went wild for this one. We sang with him, and he let us do the 'away-yea-yea-yea' thing for the last chorus.

The most amazing part of the night was the autograph session. We went up one by one (we were quite infront cause we went at 5, so we didnt wait long) to have his autograph signed. They would only sign CDs made in SG. What bullshit. So obvious that they're trying to boost sales of his CD in Singapore. Greg had to specially buy a CD before he was let in. And the bodyguards have serious attitude issues. They'll drag you away if you stay longer than 5 seconds, and if you try to touch him, you're as good as an Arab (no offence intended) carrying a suspicious object on an aeroplane.

Then came my turn (after watching a guy get dragged away, I didn't dare to do anything funny), and I gave him my CD poster for him to sign. I quickly said 'Thanks so much!", for fear that they would brand me as a threat and drag me out. David (I just realized he's a left hander) looked surprised that someone talked to him (all the while I was thinking how luminous he looks) and he LOOKED ME STRAIGHT IN THE EYE (and my mind was completely blinded by his beautiful misty-grey/hazel eyes) and repled "Oh! Oh, you're welcome."

THE BEST 5 SECONDS OF MY LIFE. Ever.

I can't believe how amazing tonight is. I got to see one of my favourite singers of all time (okay fine. Since last year.). I wish he really had a concert here, that would have been absolutely bril. But I guess I can't be choosy. It's lucky enough that he came to Singapore.

Fantastic night!

The poster he autographed for me =)

Tomorrow's the big day!!!!!

I can't believe I'm finally going to see David Archuleta!!!!! Screw you, physics remedial. Like I'm going to miss this for the world.

Actually, I did see Arch last night while dreaming. I remember I was somewhere in Rome, in an open concept restaurant, and he appeared halfway and said he would give me his email address on the condition that I said I liked his hair. Weird dream, I know. But it can't be weirder than my other dream involving a love crisis between David Beckham, Amanda Bynes, Jonathan Bennett and a nun.

So the plan for tomorrow is...

2.30 pm- Put my bag in locker, take home clothes plus sling bag (deposited earlier). Go for PC. (Note to self: Do not do anything that involves sweating, in case Arch wants a hug.)

3.30pm - Run out of school screaming like a raving lunatic (not much deviation from my usual routine)

3.50pm - Arrive at Boon Lay Interchange. Find the people who are going. Board the train.

5pm - Arrive at Bugis MRT station, locate Iluma Building and recon on the possible campout areas. Locate the other Arch fans and lead them away from building by telling them that the lcoation has been changed, or else we would have to fight with them for space later on.

5.30pm - Forage for food. Do not enter a restaurant as we may be delayed and miss out on prime spots (preferably right in front of the stage; easier for jumping onto stage for the purpose of kidnapping Archuleta. Exact details of what to do with target after aquring is not known as of present moment.)

7.00pm - Archuleta arrives!!!!! Hopefully he's on time. Mariah is usually late for more than an hour. But then again, she's worth every second.

Autograph session - Prepare net for catching target. Hide underneath shirt while waiting for turn. Distract target with CD for signing, then throw net over target. Run off with target.

And Archuleta's mine!!!!!

DBSK = Korean version of N'Sync

The original:



And the copy:

What's Gaga doing on a SINGING competiton?

Yesterday's guests on American Idol's results show proved to us that the judges were just kidding when they said that AI's a singing competition. Or else, why the hell was Cook and Gaga doing on that stage?

Cook did some tuneless bullshit, attempted falsetto and failed (and ended up doing some strange whoo-ing), and was presented with the 'platinum' album award. Oh please. Even Arch's single can reach platinum.

Then came Gaga (is her real name really so horrible that even such a moniker sounds better?)'s performance. She also attempted (and of course, failed) to do the Christina-patented style of singing (the forceful notes) with the piano. Who's copying whom now, Gaga? (My goodness, even typing that pathetic excuse of a stage name seemed degrading to my keyboard.) She then went into some sort of spastic twitching on stage. For a moment, I thought she was suffering from a heart-attack/spasm and was surprised that no one went to help her.

Just how much longer can she pretend that the only reason she's 'hot' right now is not because people are fascinated with her freakishness, but because they like her (god-forbid) 'singing' talents? And to announce her as the 'queen of the charts'? Please, Seacrest. Which charts are you talking about? The Top-Weirdos of the year?

I wish there was a number to vote her into the bottom 3 instead. Lord knows it'll be on my speed dial.

Down Goes Another One

She had it coming for a few weeks now. You can't go on American Idol and expect to be shown mercy if you screw up a few times in a row, Megan. And it doesn't help to tell Simon that you don't care what he says, either.

"With all due respect, Megan, when you said that you didn't care, well, we don't either. So don't expect us to use the safe on you."

And that, boys and girls, is why you should always think before you speak.

When will I ever get to wipe off Gokey's face...

Sexism Has A New Face

It's almost certainly official: men are now the ones being discriminated against.

In the days of yore, women weren't given equal rights. Girls were not allowed to go to school, women were not allowed to vote, women were not given jobs of men, yada yada. Things have certainly changed since then, but a new form of sexism has arisen. Men are now the ones that do not have equal rights, though no one would ever admit it.

Is it fair to expect guys to be the ones paying for a meal? Is it fair to expect guys to do the 'dirty' jobs around the house? Is it fair to expect that men be the ones who go to war and die? If anything, it is an exploitation of a woman's perceived weakness that women use against men. By claiming that men should be this and this and this, cause girls are 'oh-so-dainty-and-weak' (if you've seen some of the girls if our school you would know this is complete bull), they pressurize guys into feeling that they should be doing stuff for girls. The irony of the fact is, women are the ones who wanted equal rights, but coerce guys to be the ones who do all the 'heavy-lifting' (in both sense of the word) for them.

Double standards against men are widely prevalent in our society today. There is the 'Violence Against Women Act', but nothing for men when women cause domestic violence just as often as men. Clubs solely for men are called 'sexist', but clubs only for women are 'empowering'. Women tennis players win the same prize money as men when they only play three sets and men play five (and they say that women earn less than men). When men criticize women it's 'degrading', when women criticize men it's 'funny'. When a woman rejects advances she's 'independent', when a man rejects advances he's 'gay'.

An example, old but still valid:
-If a woman is walking her dog down the street and a man is standing by an open window in his house completely naked, then he is a flasher and she is a victim.
-If a man is walking his dog down the street and a woman is standing by an open window in her house completely naked, then he is a "peeping tom" and she is a victim.

Don't get me wrong. Sexism towards women is horrible, but isn't society mature enough to realize that it's about time we stop feeling so guilty about our ancestor's actions and start thinking about men's rights for a change? I really don't want to have to begin initiating the 'menism' movement...