idol and other observations

i have idol paused right now, and i didnt watch it last night. i saw the first little quincy jones skit in tonight's episode, and i know this to be true: the person who should win will come in second, and the person who should have been voted out weeks ago will win. basically, this is a replay of last year when katherine was clearly the best vocalist, and the most annoying mildly retarded person won. in this incarnation, jordan is clearly the best (i dont care about lakisha - she's good but can only sing one style, and melinda not only has no neck, but also has been a backup singer for how long? if she was really star material, you're telling me NO ONE would have picked up on that before now? riiight...) talent, and phil is clearly the most mildly retarded. he's even begun to channel rain man hicks with the awkwardly time hey and uncanny and slightly disturbing appeal to older viewers. so you heard it hear first - phil is going to win, jordan should win and will come in second. thank god i havent wasted/invested too much of my life into this stupid show this season...

in far more interesting and talented news, the kokua festival was last weekend in oahu. for those of us who couldn't make it, the glorious internets have come to our rescue (sort of): you can watch jack's set and encore on the kokua myspace page. you can't start or stop the show, but it just continuously loops - about 90 min total. obviously the whole set is pretty cool, but seeing three of my favorite artists (jack, ed and zach) on the same stage, and walking off hugging, was pretty cool. highlight: jack, ed and ernie cruz singing constellations, best song ever. not exactly the best version ive ever heard, but pretty cool.

seeing the kokua set also got me super excited to see alo at martyrs exactly four weeks from tomorrow. they're on tour, the new cd is released next tuesday and i highly recommend checking them out if they stop near you.

MO

good, bad and ugly

good - baby audrey was born on saturday - 7.8lbs and 19in of beautiful baby girl. unlike most babies, which either look like every other baby or look kind of odd, audrey has presence, which is more than i can say for other people i know. jamie and jenn seem super giddy, and will make great parents, so i'm sure it will be fun to watch audrey grow. seriously, the baby needs a blog/website - make that happen...

bad - it's unbelieveable to me what the current administration gets away with. i dont generally get to uptight about politicians - they all lie and cheat. but this white house crosses 18 million different lines. and the blatant cockiness with which they do it is what i find so amazing. it's leaked that staffers illegally sent emails from unofficial addresses, and thus emails about the firing of federal prosecutors have been deleted. this white house is so corrupt, and things it is so far above the law, it doesn't even pretend to make excuses. it simply says yes, they're gone, sorry. of course they hide behind the good old accident excuse, the same excuse every 8 year old uses when they break a glass (jamie and jenn - get ready for that, it's going to happen in the next ten years, i guarantee it). and absolutely no one seems to care. and this lack of caring is exactly what's feeding the cockiness - it's a cycle. we do what we want because no one will care and no one is going to do anything about it. unbelievable. here's to barack next year - stop the madness, please...

ugly - the cubs might be the saddest sports team i've ever had the pleasure, if you want to call it that, of following so intently. anything that can go wrong does. except for ryan "the riot" theriot - i love him. a lot. their pitching staff is a mess - after another sorry performance tonight zambrano looks like he forgot how to pitch and only rich hill is dependable. lilly, marquis and miller are terrible. aramis is hurt - a little earlier than normal this year - but is still putting up numbers. soriano has already been bit but the cub bug, and sweet lou hasn't figured out that murton, theriot and pie need to play everyday. yet. he's figuring it out, but until he does, and until they get better pitching (marshall and guzman will be starting by the all star break), they shall remain the ugly... note: i am 2-0 at cubs games this year, something ive never been - a good sign? maybe? probably not...

MO

lolla who??? lolla what???

lollapalooza is back in chicago for the third year. the first year temps hit 104 on sunday (we nearly melted in the upper deck of comisky watching the red sox lose to the white sox). last year we were busy with wedding stuff and what not. which brings us to this year. rumors have been circulating for weeks (dare i say months) that pearl jam would be headlining this year. well that glorious rumor was confirmed yesterday, and tickets went on sale today. i instinctively bought tickets once i heard pearl jam was confirmed, and then i suffered a 4 hour bout of sticker shock - $165 per. ouch! but then, in typical fashion, i rationalized it as only $55/day, and if i see 5 bands a day only $11/band. not bad right? anyway, get psyched - summer is around the corner...

in other summer-related news, we're making the trip to milwaukee friday to catch our first cubs game of the season. even more exciting is the prospect of tailgating in football-like weather - low 30s with 15mph winds. good times...

MO