Gibby

Gibby, I am finding myself strangely hypnotized by your avi. Can't imagine why.

Me too!

I'm so glad you're enjoying it! It was thinking about changing my avi after Vegas because there are so many fantastic pics of Clay from that show. Since ya'll like it, though, I'll leave it alone for awhile!

That was so cool to see him before they knew what would happen to him.

I've never seen this one where he and Linda went shopping.

In this clip you can see that Clay is still skinny as a rail, but has put on just a little weight. His face isn't as ultra-thin as it was in the initial auditions, and the little bit of weight really helps his face look even better. Poor baby must have been a starving college student! He may be wearing some makeup in that clip, too.

I am enamored of AIW from Vegas... I keep playing it over and over. So, last night I pulled up AIW from Long Island (the definition of courage and determination), West Point (LOVED that suit and that hair) and Charlotte (feisty Clay). It was as I remembered... Vegas was the BEST version of AIW he has ever sung, IMO! And, it's going to be on national TV! Wheeeeee!!!!

AIW from Vegas is excellent, isn't it? I'm putting it on my ipod, both the audio and the video!

I may be pulling this out of my nether regions, but I vaguely remember Clay talking disparagingly about contestants who were always playing to the cameras while off-stage. He said something to the effect that it was about singing, not being a camera-whore. (Such naiveté!) You can see some of it during the early auditions, but I had the impression that the camera crew was rushed whenever they appeared. I think that's one reason some people, like Marcus, had a lot more tape than Clay did.

Hmmmm, I'm wondering if that's really true. Clay may have said that, but I think that at some point I think he realized that he needed to be on camera, although he probably wasn't a camera-whore per se. I'm interested to see what kind of backstage clack we might get. There may be a lot of backstage footage of Clay that we never saw, but will get a chance to see now. I'm really thrilled with that possibility!

A beautiful wallpaper from Fountaindawg (be sure and double-click):

Have fun, Couchie!

EEEEEEEEEEEEE! Thank you, Gibby!!!!! :F_05BL17blowkiss:

You're so welcome!

And here are a few more screencaps:

Back from my little soiree with Muski and Reiki. Muski is the hostess with the mostest! She provided all kinds of beverages, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, snacks and a huge presidential suite. I contributed a laptop and speakers. With Clay as the entertainment, how could we not have a good time?

Anyway, Lucky, I have a couple little presents for you! No, not a gif of the kiss, but a few screencaps, from CAP:

And for merrieeee, Clay and Quiana:

And for jamar:

There's more of Clay in the actual episode, although they are just brief glimpses. Part one of the episode is now available for download in all of the usual sites. Gerwhisp made a lovely gif of the brief glimpse at the end:

Hmmmm, there seem to be a lot of girls that go for that type. My older daughter is a junior in HS and is currently dating a tall, red-headed guy with freckles, big ears and a heart of gold. Sound familiar? He is in three choirs and in every play or musical the school puts on, and is rather geeky. Not an athletic bone in his body. A lot of the girls have crushes on him, but my daughter is the lucky one who is dating him now!

bottle said CRAP three times and ldyj said WTF. Woweeee they may be on the way over to the dark side.

Oh, and lucky said,

Oh.My.Fucking.God.

What is this board coming to?

Well, it look like I'm on top. So I'm going to add a pic of our hawt, adorable boyfriend and tell you why I think he's hawt:

The kissable neck, the lickable jaw, the suckable lips, the mussable hair, the adorable ears, the long eyelashes, the dark sideburns, and the sensitive fingers. I even like the strong eyebrows. Oh, and let's not forget that he looks young and a little bit vulnerable. RAWR!!!!

Pretty nice neck in that last pic, too! And I hear he has a soft heart for children, and that he's mad talented, too. Oh, and he's charming, as well. Sounds like someone a lot of women would thud over!

Maul me anytime Gibby!!

BWAH! I'll keep that in mind. And I ordered a couple of pins a few days ago. Any chance I'll get them before the Wichita concert, or is that too soon?

Oh.My.Fucking.God.

Sorry for the language, but I had to watch each clip 3 times because the tears that sprung up in my eyes were blurring my vision. Anyone who knows me knows that I have a thing for pre-AI Clay clips. These are such a gift, one I never thought we'd see. I am blown away by the voice, and the gorgeous, gorgeous eyes. And the personality, which hasn't changed one iota. WOW.

Um, yeah, I caved. Hee, only 7 hours till showtime tonight!

Aren't you glad you caved, lucky? Both clips are fantastic!!

"The dashing (Christopher) Enns did deliver with a resonant voice and natural acting ability that bely his 22 years of age. Playing the pigskin-toting varsity champ with goofy sincerity, the faculty of music voice major generated excitement every time he came onstage. His desperate aria "I can't believe this is over" was a joyful highlight."

What an excellent review!! You must be soooo proud. I'd love to hear your son sing!

I love the comments about wanting to work with kids with disabilities...that is one thing that "those who hate for a living" always said he just said because it made for good tv. Since that clip has never been seen it is now obvious that has always been his goal.

Oh, yeah, that 'Miss America' speech was very touching. Especially since we now have the benefit of hindsight and we know that he has more than made good on his promise to help kids with disabilities. He is also helping kids all over the world though UNICEF. What a guy!

Kareneh, your to-do list is making me dizzy! And I'm sooooo sorry I didn't get to meet you in Vegas, even if for a moment. There were so many Clay fans there that it was impossible to meet everyone I wanted to see. Maybe next time!

I was only in Vegas for 20 hours, but they were packed with joy! It was the greatest! I have been listening to AIW over and over and over and finally figured out for me why... it epitimizes triumph for me. The song, the guy who sang it... triumph of spirit!

Yes, Liney, I would agree about the time in Vegas being filled with joy! And I loved meeting you and spending a little time with you at the preparty. And what an apt description of AIW. All is well, indeed!

Does anyone else think this is Jaymes in this photo? The woman in the front row with the camera dangling from her wrist? It looks like her to me, but like I said above, it’s the first day with the new eyeball.

Yes it is Jaymes. We were sitting just up further in that same section. She spent most of the evening there.

goldarngirl - It was lovely to see you again, too! Dinner at Battistas was great. It was noisy, but I was still able to hear eveyone, even over the sound of the cute old guy playing the accordian.

Great pics, AAIT!!

KAndre, I've noticed that you were quieter than usual, and I was concerned. I'll be sending positive energy your way. And I hope you are able to enjoy your time with your son!

And muski hope your Denver Dames get to meet up with you before you leave. Is is snowing in Denver? You'll come back to rain and a horrible oil spill but it's still home sweet home.

Ah, yes, it would be great for the Denver Dames to get together! Perhaps we can even hogtie VWP and tear her away from her new hubby for a little while. No snow in Denver right now. We've had a gorgeous fall - it's been in the low to mid 70's almost every day.

It was a wonderful experience to be in Vegas. I hadn't heard Clay live since the JNT in '05. I don't know how I survived! But none of his tours came close to Colorado, and I simply wasn't able to fly anywhere for a concert, due to family obligations. So it was THRILLING for me to hear him live again. We were standing in line waiting to go into the preparty at the Orleans Arena, and I suddenly heard music. We were behind the black curtain, and I realized IT WAS CLAY!!!!! LIVE!!!!!! I almost melted on the spot. I grabbed Couchie and told her 'that's Clay singing!!" Heeeee. I'm glad Couchie didn't think I was trying to maul her. It was thrilling to hear Clay's voice fill the arena during the show, and to watch his royal cuteness. It's an experience I'll never forget!

Anyway, as someone relatively new, I find that some of the people who have been around from the beginning and have deluded themselves into believing they are essential to the fandom, not only can't accept differing opinions, but have a clique that runs around to Word and Ditto their every utterance. I hated that crap in the 7th grade and my attitude remains the same after all these years.

From Invisible926 at CH:

NCT Kicks Off 25th Anniversary Season with Quiana Parler in Dreamgirls

North Carolina Theatre is very excited to announce that Quiana Parler will star as "Effie White" in Dreamgirls! Quiana has toured with Clay Aiken and Kelly Clarkson as a background vocalist and is thrilled to make her NCT debut in January.

EEEEEEEEE! for Quiana! I hope they'll be a little Quack, because I'd love to see her sing a couple of big numbers.

Quack! BWAH!!! I agree, I'd love to see some of her performance. I'm sure she'll be amazing. Maybe Cotton will go and can report for us!

Very nice jeans!

http://www.people.com/people/gallery/0,,20159324_6,00.html

Kim

Very cute!!!

OTT'ness? I was just over at the OFC in the Skating thread and someone posted a picture of Sasha skating...she is doing a spin on one foot; with the other leg in the air...typical skating pose and Clay is seen in the background. The poster actually blurred out Sasha's lower area because she felt it was dirty that Clay was able to see that area while he was singing...it was a beautiful picture and the editing made it look Clay was pervert for watching while he was singing. I could not believe it when I saw it and what really made my jaw drop was that a mod saw no reason to remove it. A new low in the fandom in my opinion and I hope Clay doesn't hear of it.

Kim

That sounds like a beautiful picture - too bad it was modified! I would have loved to have seen the original pic.

It was so nice to meet several of you at breakfast on Tuesday. I was a little nervous about that since I'm so new here at FCA, but everyone was very welcoming. Then at the preparty, I got a big hug from couchie, which was terrific. :F_05BL17blowkiss: I wish I could have sat with all of you, but felt I needed to stay with my little traveling group. I also won a raffle prize -- the lap desk with my CUTE boyfriend's picture on it.

I enjoyed meeting you at breakfast, Keldankar! And I'm glad you got the lap desk. It looked really nice!

Now I'm off to work. I'm still tired from too little sleep and too much fun in Vegas. But I don't regret a minute of it! It was soooo much fun to meet everyone here, to see a little of Vegas, and to go to the skating show. Wonderful memories, fo shuh!!

Aw, Kim, we love you over here! :F_05BL17blowkiss:

Ansa, here's the definition of a kazoo:

A musical toy consisting of a tube that is open at both ends and has a hole in the side covered with parchment or membrane, which produces a buzzing sound when the performer hums into one end.

It's hilarious when a bunch of people play kazoos at the same time. Makes you bust up laughing so that you can't play any more!

Wanda, I'm glad you're still glowing from Las Vegas joy! It was a joy to meet you and see your smiling face. I'm still on a high today, too, even though I had to work today and I'm sooooo tired. I hope things are okay with your Mom . . .

One of these days I am going to learn that not all boards are the same and that things that can be said on one board are not always welcome on another.

Have you been getting yourself in trouble again, Kim? *HUGS*

WELCOME to Soulsistah and ldsmom1! I hope that you'll really enjoy FCA. It's a great place to enjoy the positive aspects of being a Clay fan. Please join in on the discussions!

The jersey was funny. I had put about 6 raffle tickets in the jar. Gibby said she put all hers in the jar. And then I learned it was an extra small. EXTRA small. Not just small...but EXTRA small. So I was like oh well if I win it's your heee. Cuz I have a lot of Clay stuff in a box but not clothes. I wear all my Clay gear and the jersey would have been no different. And even though I kept saying..I always win the raffles at Clay events I had to LOL when my ticket got pulled. And I was so busy pulling the ticket that I didn't realize I had won the jersey until it was in my hand. I didn't know what I'd won. It looks great on you Gibby.

Aw, Couchie, I love the jersey so much! THANK YOU again! I've been sleeping in it. Heeeee! I'll wear it during the day when I'm not working sometimes, too.

I ADORE Miss Kendra! How cute and funny is she?

And Jesse continues to amaze me with his many gifts.

Miss Kendra is adorable! And I agree with you about Jesse - he was amazing at the skating show. He's very inventive about his accompaniments, and has added some jazzy elements to a few songs. I really enjoy listening to him play!

So, instead of being yelled at by the doctor, I was congratulated for correcting the mistakes others made. Hey, get enough breaks and sprains and your body knows!! Guess people won't be so impressed now that I went to LV with a bad sprain instead of a break. But I am celebrating having heat and being able to shower!

Play, I'm so glad it wasn't a break! But sprains are nothing to sneeze at - they are extremely painful, too. I'm still impressed that you did LV. And I didn't think you were grouchy at all!

EEEEEEEEEEEEE! More "New" Vintage Clack!

YES!!!! I'm so looking forward to this part of AIR. New Vintage Clack sounds WONDERFUL!!

Oh, I can't wait for the next Rewind!

Today's lunch was a fuckin' disaster...enough blame to go all around on this one--just remind me not to listen to my executive director when he tells me to slash the food expenses in order to make up for crappy revenue figures. Of course, I was the person everyone bitched to---that's my job, you know.

GOnna take a break for an hour or so before the receptions and opening session tonight. Hope I remember to wake up....

I'm sending positive energy your way, Muski! And I'm mad that you're right here in Denver, and I can't get together with you!!!! Are you sure you don't have any breaks? Even a break to bitch and moan about the conference for a few minutes, and maybe to gush over Clay for a few more, over drinks? :bier: Reiki asked about you, too, and wondered if we could see you at all during this trip!

Thank you sooooo much for the new pics, ldyj! I love this one, with all of the skaters looking at Clay. They know that he's the star!

Oh, and keepingfaith?

This choir reject just has to ask .... what is a vocal cavity?

I'm not sure what it is, but I'm pretty danged sure Clay can fill it.

I'm pretty danged sure you're right, Muski! The vocal cavity would be the area in the mouth and the back of the throat that needs to be open for the sound to resonate. If it's not open far enough, the tone quality will be nasally, thin and unpleasant. To open the vocal cavity, the mouth needs to be open pretty far, and the soft palate needs to be raised. It sounds easy, but is difficult when you're singing different vowels, and when you're concentrating on the notes, the rhythm and on breathing correctly. It takes training and concentration to keep the vocal cavity open, and to properly support the breath with the diaphragm at the same time. Singing well is harder than it looks! And Clay does it so well.

Good luck at the conference, Muski. Sounds like there won't be any time for us to get togther this time. Darn it!

BTW, I posted a pic in the 'Members Only' forum, in the 'What Happens in Vegas' thread.

I promise to scan and post the insanely funny picture of my daughter and I riding the Manhattan Express roller coaster when I get home. As long as Gibby & Fearof H2O post theirs.

*waves especially to couchie, who must be asleep at her desk by now* She is insane, in a good way.

Heeeee, Lucky, I will definitely post the pic with Fear and I! Your pic is hilarious, and must be posted. Yes, Couchie is insane, and she's wonderful, too! I loved meeting all of you. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

!

So I may have just watched the WAYDNE clip at my desk - unofficially of course - and it sure looks to me like Sasha hands Clay a pair of black skates. And yet he glides out wearing a pair of brown ones. What's up with that? And just who, pray tell, was backstage doing up his laces?

Yeah, what's up with that? I noticed the same thing, black to brown! Did Jaymes scurry backstage to do the laces and where was Mary? I'm sure they have professional lacer's...now that would be a good job because he would be sitting while you were lacing and you could just sneak a quick peek upward and

We noticed the change in the skates, too, and no one seems to know why. I will say that the black skates looked really nice, and the brown ones didn't look quite as purty, so maybe that's why. Who knows?? And I sure wish I could have seen behind the sparkly black curtain several times, including when Clay was back there getting laced up by unknown persons. Ummmm, is that like tying showlaces????

Keepingfaith, I am thrilled for you! What a huge relief to have your son in the states.

My 2-cents on the spontaneous screaming in the middle of a song:

It's OK when I'm there and doing the screaming. It's not OK when I'm having to watch Clack from home and can't hear the song. HOw's that for logic?

Yup, I agree with this perspective. And since I was there last night, I can tell you that it would have been pretty darn hard to be there last night and not cheer at the glory note. We were encouraged to make lots of noise for the sake of the TV show, and we cheered every time the skaters made their jumps or did a particularly good combination. So, why wouldn't we cheer for Clay when he did particularly well? It fit the mood of the night. If it were a concert of classical music, it wouldn't have been appropriate to cheer at the glory note. But last night it felt right.

And all you FCA'ers, I want to share a proud mother moment with you. Tomorrow evening, my DS#2 will be singing the lead tenor role in a modern Mozart opera on the stage of the Centennial Concert Hall in Winnipeg. Although he has sung solo on the stage many times, Thursday will be his debut lead role in an honest to goodness opera. He is only twenty two years old and my favorite classical tenor in the world. And wouldn't you know it, the best I could do on TM was the 11th row. And I wish I had some quick lessons in taking subterfuge Clack or in this case Chrack for Christopher so I could save a few moments of it for posterity sake, but alas, I'd probably get thrown out of the concert hall, and wouldn't that make the lead tenor proud? Or not.

Wow, zena, this is waaaaay cool! I'm so excited for you. Come back and give us a report, okay?

Liney, it was wonderful to meet you, too! I enjoyed reading your recap.

Now I'm off to scan in my pic of Fear and I on the coaster, so I can post it later!

Hi from Vegas, ya'll! I've been having a great time exploring Vegas and meeting all kinds of Clay fans, including people from FCA! Earlier today some of us met for breakfast, and then Lucky, Fear, Crimsonice and I all went on the HUGE New York rollercoaster. I have a great pic of Fear and I on the coaster!

Tonight the preparty was wonderful! Clay signed some items for the BAF auction before the preparty. I'm looking forward to hearing how much money was raised for the BAF, because I think it was probably a sizeable amount. I talked to a security guard when I was going into the preparty, and he told me that Clay had been rehearsing with the skaters a lot of of the day. He also said that he had met Clay, and that he was a really nice guy.

As was posted earlier, Couchie was a wonderful dear and gave me the XS BAF Hockey Jersey she won in the raffle. However, if she ever wants it back in the future, it's hers!

MUCHO HUGS to Couchie!!! :F_05BL17blowkiss:

That's all. The rest of the evening was uneventful.

NOT!!!! Heeeeee. We got to see our fantastic boyfriend look soooo handsome and do wonderful job on all of the songs.

As you've heard, Clay wore a sharp-looking black suit with a burgundy shirt and tie for the first half, and changed into a black shirt with an ivory tie for the second half (with the same jacket and pants). The hair looked good! The stage area was relatively small, and he mostly stood still or sat on the stool when he was singing. He did move around a bit for a few of the songs. The skaters didn't enter at the very beginning of a couple of songs, which allowed the focus to be on Clay for a bit, which was nice. He was a little raspy on the first two songs, but then had a break while some of the skaters performed to canned music. I didn't notice the raspiness when he came back. Clay did some really cool vocal change-ups on a couple of the songs. A couple of the songs had absolutely gorgeous, spine-tingling notes, especially at the ends of the songs.

The skaters ended their routines close to Clay's stage on several of the songs, and held out their hands to acknowledge him. Clay was self-effacing, as usual, and gestured back to the skaters to acknowledge them. Clay also got hugs from a couple of the female skaters, and he shook hands with Philippe Candaloro. It was fun to see the interaction between Clay and the skaters.

The last song was WAYDNYE, and Clay sang it so wonderfully! It was a group skate, with the girls and guys skating in pairs. Sasha Cohen came out at the very end with skates for Clay, and held them out to him, as if to indicate that she wants to skate with him on New Year's Eve. It was very cute. There was canned music for a bit, and then Clay came out in skates. Clay was joined by Sasha and Surya as soon as he came out on the skates, and they skated arm-in-arm around the entire arena. He appeared less sure of himself on the skates than I've seen previously, probably because they were figure skates.

I watched the skaters, too, and they were wonderful! Some of the performances were really breathtaking. I especially enjoyed the pairs and the female skaters. There were several numbers done with prerecorded, non-Clay music.

Here is a list of the songs Clay sang, and the skaters who performed to the songs:

Christmas Waltz - Group Skate

DSIAFCD - Shae-Lynn Bourne

AIW - Todd Eldridge

Christmas Song - Sasha Cohen

Sleigh Ride - Phillippe Candaloro

MCWL - Jenni Mino & Todd Sand

Winter Wonderland - Sasha Cohen

WAYDNE - Group Skate

I had fun meeting with Farouche and Thankful4Clay after the show, and got to see their pictures and video. As a result, I'm getting to this recap pretty late. I'll probably remember more details tomorrow, but I'm tired now and should get to bed. I'll be traveling home tomorrow, but will post more if I can.

Wow! Sounds like it's going to be a great show.

I'll be meeting Reiki4Clay and flying out to Vegas in a few hours. I'm taking my laptop, and will give you a report at some point. The FCAers in Vegas are going to meet after the show, so I may not be extremely speedy with a recap, but you'll get it eventually!

I like D, too!

Muski, you're a hoot!

I actually prefer pin B. They're all nice, but I like it that pin B has more red lettering.

Question: I'd like to do both a Clay and a family calendar for next year. Can anyone tell me from their experience, which are good sites and which might let me actually use my Clay pics for a calendar without copyright issues? (The Clay calendar is of course for my own use only)

Claygary, I use EZ Photo Calendar Creator for my calendars. It's easy to design your own calendar, and has a lot of options for cool graphics. You can either print it yourself, or send it in for printing. Here's a website where you can get the software, and order paper and binding if you want to print the calendar yourself:

http://www.spectrumsoftware.com/ezphotocalendar.htm