#34: So, how about that Clay Aiken?

[ldyjocelyn]

Will smoking that peace pipe help dull my back pain? How about my knee pain?

(For the record, I'm going to the doctor tomorrow...)

Also left work early today. I'm just going to say that I HATE with the passion of a thousand fiery suns being in charge of a huge budget. I used to like working on my own check book, but this? Can't stand it, too much pressure, want to forget it entirely. Also, there's just too many people looking at me like "you can do this." I'm sure I probably can, but I don't wanna. Whine, whine, whine....

In the meantime....the Broadway Cares video is so very pretty. Very. Good Lord, that is an amazing duet -- Clay and Hannah's vocals are simply sublime.

I think I need to watch again....

[canfly172]

I'm sticking to my plan: I'll believe whatever Clay and/or Jaymes tells me. If they don't speak, then I'll treat all this as another media frenzy. As I wrote on CH, I won't trust a taped interview, even by a 'respected' and 'trusted' media rep (See Diane Sawyer/ABC interview); I won't trust a print publication (I'll never forget the betrayal I felt when Newsweek referenced tabloid sources as 'news') and I've given up on any online 'news' outlet, quite honetly.

So Clay or Jaymes will need to blog to me on the OFC or give a live interview--maybe with Linda Loveland--before I'll KNOW the truth. Until then, I'll just go along my merry way---not believing and not disbelieving.

Muski, that's been my view from day one. My brain may be digesting it and going through the what ifs and understanding the media involvement but until we hear from Clay, we just won't know. Well we can strike the if she's even pregnant part off my list cuz she definitely looks pregnant to me.

ETA: I've come up with a million scenarios in my head ranging from ranging from it's not true to one of these 100 scenarios is true and I find that I'm ok with any of them. So now I sit back and wait. I do keep thinking of Clay saying don't believe anything until you hear it from me. My brain won't allow me to stop the "what ifs" but I'm ok with that right now. If it's not true I can so see a statement from him that will just scorch the media without even using one four letter word...he's just that clever. Clay :F_05BL17blowkiss:

to the first part (kinda figured the "she's pregnant" part was true cuz of the confimation from the canadian source. As for the rest... I'm going with "the rest of it is a bunch of hooey" until Clay or Jaymes tells us otherwise.

Hee, I actually said "y'all" today in conversation, with my boss. She kind of blinked but didn't laugh.

Ok, I haven't said it yet but I've typed it a couple of times and went "WTF are you doing?". You're from Canada you idiot. Canadians say "you guys". We do not say, "Y'all". Jeez.

ETA,

:new:

There are a bajillion emotes here but no ????

So, I found Not quite but close.

Y'all need a sign.

ETA,

And

Y'all need

I like to people around.

[annabear]

There are a bajillion emotes here but no ????

So, I found Not quite but close.

Y'all need a sign.

And with that, I'm heading home! :thRoadRunner:

[muskifest]

Well...yesterday I stopped the shit re: my Clay love TWICE! Once with a friend, another with my

HUBBY!!!~

Friend: When my buddy and I were grooving to "Falling" at the softball game yesterday and somebody laughingly (but good naturedly) said "There they go again!", another friend said something, too---and I swear I don't remember the exact words, but it was something against the music.

I said, "And you know what, I bet if you ever just listened to one or more of these songs without knowing it was Clay singing, you'd like what you hear. But you're going to miss out on that because your unfounded prejudice against Clay is depriving you!" She apologized and we're cool.

Then last night Hubby, Alex and I were in the living room. He had been on his laptop ever since we got back from the softball game, creating the spreadsheet of stats from the games, emailing with other softball families re: upcoming tournaments, etc.--all the while clicking away on the remote control and checking in on College Softball playoffs, NBA playoff news and playbacks, etc. I was on the message boards trying to catch up. We were all talking now and then, but the conversations were certainly dissonant---Alex would come in and talk about needing to get a driver's permit and taking the driving test; Hubby would comment on one of the softball team member's at-bat record or how Carrie should've practiced pitching more, etc....I was just trying to take everything in and catch up wtih the news!

Then I ventured somethign from MY world: I said, 'Oh, good. Clay evidently was invited to be part of the entertainment for an annual gala at the Ford Theatre...Pres. Bush....Maya Angelou...etc....."

Nothing. Then Hubby, never lifting his eyes from his laptop said in an uncharacteristically terse way, 'Good."

One word, but I heard a lot more. Normally, I would've just silently let it go, even though I know I heard anger and something unpleasant in that one word. But this time I looked over at him until he finally looked up and I said, "Oh, I guess in order to get your interest I should've said something like 'Wow...the Podunk high school softball team scored seven runs in one inning!' huh?' "(meow---ffft!---fffffttttt! BITCH!)... He just said, "I didn't say anything..." and we got back to our parallel (and therefore at that moment non-intersecting) activities.

Now I recognize that recently both of us have had some challenges to deal with that have left us on edge--individually and as a couple---so I'm letting this one go. But hearing about the shit some of you talk about dealing with ALWAYS from friends and/or family just made me realize how I hated these two incidents pissed me off and made me feel...uncomfortable; and I guess I'm lucky that such feelings aren't the norm...

Hugs to those who have to face derision or other unpleasantness regularly just because you love this man.

[KAndre]

Oh my lord...I was scanning the headlines at MSNBC.com and my eye was caught with this:

Opinions: Clay again spells curtains for Sharapova

and I swear, out of my mouth came, "oh shit, what the hell has he done now..."

then I realized it was about tennis.

Heh.

[canfly172]

Hugs to those who have to face derision or other unpleasantness regularly just because you love this man.

Not sure if it's a good thing or a bad thing but nobody in my sheltered little rural Ontario, country-bumpkin school ever says a word about Clay Aiken.

[muskifest]

BWAH! KAndre, I've had the same reaction before....heard once a commentator say something once like, "she always has trouble with clay"...

and I actually do a little gasp..thinking...

naaaahhhh....couldn't be!

[Ansamcw]

YAY for those taking a stand...

my story of not taking any shit about Clay...

I am a substitute teacher at my girls' school. After AI5 finale Clay was the talk of the school...girls swooning and boys jealous. My girls showed their classmates my Clay websites so they knew I was a big Clay fan. The next time I went to the grade 7 classroom...one of the too cool for school guys pipes up and asks me.."Miss, you like Clay Aiken?" I say, "yeah". "But he's gay!!!" he says laughing. So I look at him straight in the eye...I wasn't angry, I had an amused look on my face then I asked him, "So how do you know he's gay?" "Well just look at him!" "So what looks gay about his appearance?" I ask..."His Hair!" Then I looked at him and his long bangs..."Oh you mean like your hair? So your hair makes you gay?" He starts sputtering and looks around blushing...and just kept quiet. Never got any teasing about Clay after that...

Another time one of the teachers told me that Clay is gay...I told her after all this time I've been watching him I really didn;t think he is gay and he says he is not.She kinda smiles with a knowing look and says, "oh he's gay"....so I just look her in the eye with a raised eyebrow and a little smile...then she says..."oh it really doesn't matter does it"...I said ..."nope, it doesn't." That was the end of that.

I really don;t get upset when I get asked about clay being gay because most of the time people are just curious and it didn't really mater to them anyway. If I came across someone who was obviously homophobic...I think I will just have a really low opinion of that person so their teasing wouldn;t matter anyway. But after all this years I haven't encountered that except for that grade 7 kid.

[Iseeme]

Muski - sorry you had those incidents.....but thank you for making me feel like I'm not the only one! I think it's really easy to say you won't take shit from anybody but it's not always acceptable either to get up in someone's face. That's how I was at dinner last night. Get up and walk out? Oh sure. That would have been very adult-like and it was a long walk home! Yell at them? Nope, that wouldn't be very adult-like either because that would give them the satisfaction of getting to me. Tell them they're wrong? Hah. Why bother. Take son's derision and comment about "he can't even do it the right way!" Well - there I did get up in his face but it was over the phone - and it was an expected comment so I basically told him if he wanted to remain in the will that he better shut up about Clay or I'd spend his inheritance on traveling all over for concerts. Now son isn't worried about an inheritance but it did give him pause for thought. And we finally had a nice chat about it. He said "if he's having a baby with her he should marry her!" That's from a man's point of view. A man who has to share custody of his child with her mother and hates every day she's not with him. So I gave him a pass on that comment. The dinner friends.....well, all I said was "I don't make fun of the things or people you like and I would ask for the same courtesy!" Dinner was a bit tense after that. So for all of you who have the titaniums to not give a shit and not take any shit.....I applaud you. I guess I'm just not made that way.

Day two of bewilderment finds me calmer. Or maybe I'm still licking my wounds from last night. Who knows. I'm starting to feel sorry for Jaymes - whomever the father is. Having a baby at 50 is really running some seriously high risks for complications, birth defects, etc. I hope she's holed up somewhere out of sight and out of media-range. Whoever the father is and whatever the circumstances are.....her health and the baby's health are the most important thing now. If it is Clay's baby ( and wouldn't that explain the silence AND the fact that he isn't touring OMWH this summer?) I just hope he put alot of thought in to all of the ramifications. If Jaymes doesn't live with him or near him.....it's going to be really, really difficult on him I think.

Kandre said:

Opinions: Clay again spells curtains for Sharapova

and I swear, out of my mouth came, "oh shit, what the hell has he done now..."

That's the first BIG laugh I've had over this and it felt good.

[Cotton]

Oh my lord...I was scanning the headlines at MSNBC.com and my eye was caught with this:

Opinions: Clay again spells curtains for Sharapova

and I swear, out of my mouth came, "oh shit, what the hell has he done now..."

then I realized it was about tennis.

Heh.

:cryingwlaughter:

Iseeme, it sounds like you DID stand up for yourself!

I think that one of the reasons this was so hard on you was that we had already been through the "7 stages of grief" so to speak. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

BTW, I love my poster!

And, from Claygary, I did email KMart today! (After calling the store giving them one more chance.)

As for RCA, I was lazy. I just wrote a short note and forwarded them the email I sent KMart.

At least I let KMart know of my displeasure and RCA of KMart's poor business practice.

I do have one question - why do people give TMZ hits?

Don't they realize that going over there puts $$ in their pockets for the very behavior people are decrying??? I mean - one person can "take one for the team" and bring over their shit. But why go over after that?

I don't understand.

[rohdy]

Agree Iseeme....sounds like the proper thing to do to me as well!! Do it enough times...they'll get the hint. Congrats!

And you're not alone....I also get grief from family and friends. Mostly I've just ignored and for the most part they have taken the hint.

Also like you, I was gone for 4 days when this sh*t hit the fan. I was lucky enough to get a brief text or two from a friend. It was nice being forewarned.

The details I do have, I have received from trusted friends in a shortened condensed way. It was enough for me to follow along, without having to read all the panic on the boards.

[luckiest1]

The dinner friends.....well, all I said was "I don't make fun of the things or people you like and I would ask for the same courtesy!" Dinner was a bit tense after that.

I think that was a very good start, and the best point to make. I sometimes will try and compare it to someone else's interest....as in, "well, you love baseball, you watch every baseball game that comes on TV. You follow baseball fantasy leagues on the computer. That is your interest. This is mine. What's the big difference?" That sometimes works. With my mom, who used to drive me up the wall with her comments about my "obsession", the only thing that worked was her seeing first hand what a blessing the people in this fandom can be. She attended a JNT show where so many people came up and hugged me, just because they were glad to see me. They lived in various states and she was just in awe of how everyone knew everyone. And more recently she attended one of our local cluncheons. She enjoyed herself. She now sees it more as a "family" than a fandom. And she also sees that maybe I am not so obsessed after all, compared to other people. My brother was probably the worst.......one Christmas he declared that he would not attend Christmas dinner at my house if I played Clay music. I told him to find somewhere else to go. And no, I am not kidding. He came. We played a variety of Christmas music, including Clay. My brother and I do not see eye to eye on much, and if we can converse for more than a half an hour without fighting, it's a good day.

But in all honesty, I don't fight the gay thing. Yes, the perception of most people who mention Clay to me is that he is gay (and I know that is not everyone's experience, but it's mine). I don't really care if they think that. I may say "he says he is not" but other than that, as long as they are being respectful in their comments (and anyone who knows me knows I don't tolerate prejudice in any form) then I am fine with it. Gay does not equal bad or wrong or negative. So really, what does it matter if they think he is gay? Now, if they say it in a mocking way, I will usually pull out one of my "why, did you want to sleep with him?" comments if it's a guy, or "I'm never going to be lucky enough to sleep with him, and I don't really see what it has to do with his music" comments if it's a woman. If they persist, I end the conversation, because I don't care to talk to them any longer.

I still haven't had one person mention the baby story to me yet. I'm still waiting and wondering why......

[playbiller]

I do have one question - why do people give TMZ hits?

Don't they realize that going over there puts $$ in their pockets for the very behavior people are decrying??? I mean - one person can "take one for the team" and bring over their shit. But why go over after that?

I don't understand.

I think because some people feel they have to be the first with the news, like the people who made PH famous by refreshing and bringing every single comment to the Clay boards. Personally, I would not have any problem if boards banned any post from TMZ or the pig or the frog. I don't need to know. The video of Clay today? I can catch it on TV if I have to see it. I do not haave a tracked TV, so what I watch doesn't matter in the scheme of things (Like worlds smartest model crap which I only watched because it was more manipulated than Ai and the fix was in early, I was amazed at the balls of the people appearing on the show not to be embarrassed as they blatently said someone was the best when they obviously stunk up the place)

[muskifest]

kf--and others, of course, this whole thing of our 'bonding' as a group because of Clay---or at least becoming known to each other because of Clay. I told you how this book I'm reading made me think of 'us'---I'm sure as you read this excerpt, you'll be struck by similarities between this group of women and our own bond as fans of Clay. So many (even if----in our case---tiaras or tee shirts exist instead of red hats, or margueritas await instead of 'tea') similarities! I love it.

An example of women's adaptation {to life transitions in middle age} is the Red hat Society, a group formed in 1998 when five seasoned ladies, inspired by Jenny Joseph's poem "Warning," donned the red hat and purple dress of the poem's protagonist and went out together. "When I am an old woman I shall wear purple/With a red hat which doesn't go, and doesn't suit me." Each member of the group had friends who wanted to join, and before long it became an official society. <snip>

The main objective of the Red Hat Society is to maintain the spontaneity and fun usually associated with youth. While individual chapters often hold fund-raising events for charities of their choice, the society at large has nothing to do with do-gooding. Instead, it's about squeezing as much enjoyment out of life for oneself and one's "sisters." As the Red Hat Society theme song states quite clearly, "All my life, I've done for you. Now it's my turn to do for me."

The Red Hat Society's success lies in connecting a vast web of women. They organize conventions and trips together. They are also connecteed therough the Red Hat Society official website and weekly postings or e-mails sent out to all members. But the most delightful aspect is the face-to-face contact. If a Red hatter is traveling and she alerts the society, other Red Hatters---highly identifiable in even the busiest of airports---mass at the gate, ready to sweep their sister off to tea and a grand tour of their home city. If a Red Hatter undergoes terrifying or painful medical treatment, the broadcast alerts the society and the unlucky Hatter is often inundated with visits, flowers, and messages of love and support. Perhaps most significantly, whatever life challenges a Red Hatter is facing, she knows there's at least one other Red Hatter out there somewhere whom she can contact and comiserate with. This immense network allows mid-tolate-life women to do what they do best: support one another

.

from "Sex and the Seasoned Woman" by Gail Sheehy

[Couch Tomato]

So, I finally called ATT about my crappy wireless conncection and they told me to

a. move my vases

b. move my phone base

c. make sure my modem/router isn't on the carpet.

d. don't get too close to the microwave

Gee, that's so techie.

On topic. I love Clay Aiken. heee.

[keepingfaith]

Looking for information ABOUT this TMZ place, and who holds their pursestrings, I ran across the following which spares no adjective in describing Harvey Levin's suffocating sleazebagginess. Interesting to read that he is backed by AOL/Time Warner. I know there is no good reason to ever underestimate the appetite for corporate greed, but this AOL/TW connection explains why CNN/LKL have attempted to legitimize him. This won't end until people stop tuning in, stop buying the trash rags, stop clicking the websites, and maybe picket and protest on the streets of New York and LA outside some of the studios that produce the garbage. The direct action of people is the truest way to affect change -- apply pressure and dry up the cashflow. Protest to CNN. Protest to FOX-TV. We should use our voices --- and NOT in defense of Clay Aiken, but in defense of our principles and our sense of fair play. There has been celebrity gossip all my life and before, but what's being peddled and exploited now is way beyond that. I notice that the conservatives I know tend to call this "the liberal media" and what it is is unregulated unfettered capitalism that rewards making a buck no matter how vicious the method. You make a lot of money, you must be a BIG SUCCESS, no matter the means by which you "earned" it. That's today's definition.

As soon as people drop the knee-jerk labels of liberal and conservative and realize that each side blames the other for all the same problems, maybe people will look around for the real culprits. They masquerade in both parties, in both ideologies. I'm getting pretty good at nosing them out. But I'm dreaming again about an awakening of the people and wholesale change, huh?

http://tabloidbaby.blogspot.com/2007/12/ta...st-of-year.html

JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR

Harvey Levin

Time Magazine has their Vladimir Putin. We have Harvey Levin, the bronzed, buffed and boy-buffered figurehead and queen of the corporate porn-pushing gossip site TMZ.com, the most noxious news operation on the Internet and its recent syndicated television spin-off, the whitewashed, inconsequential, soul-sucking, corrupt half hour of daily infotainment built around the phony “newsroom” interaction between Levin’s Mr. Chips and his stable of fawning young pretty boys who run off to do his bidding, which is getting in the faces of Hollywood folk as they go about their daily business, with little regard for consequence or perspective .

As our esteemed pal Ray Richmond at The Hollywood Reporter wrote in August on his essential Past Deadline site:

"TMZ is the Antichrist... toxic and tactless... classless... (an) attack-dog corner of cyberspace... backed by boatloads of AOL/Time Warner corporate cash... so unctuous, sleazy and extreme that it's singlehandedly slicing a dagger through whatever credibility entertainment journalism had remaining. It's ruining things for those who are at least fighting to retain a measure of taste and sensitivity, as boss Harvey Levin and his TMZ possess none."

Despite-- and because of-- his crimes, Harvey Levin deserves the title of Tabloid Baby’s Journalist of The Year, and not only because he’s given us so much to write about these past twelve months. Put it this way: who did more damage to entertainment reporting in 2007 than Harvey Levin? In 2007, he and his gutter operation did indeed wield that dagger and in the process almost singlehandedly transformed Hollywood entertainment reporting into a gutter-level street battle fueled by self-hatred, jealousy and anger, with no concern for what once determined greatness, excellence or fame, and in the process, overwhelming the fine reportage of Nikki Finke and Ray Richmond, while sending the Defamer crowd into hiding.

Some credit for Levin’s “rise” must be given to his former executive producer and BFF, Lisa Gregorish, who at the TelePictures mother show, Extra!, cultivated a brawny camp cult following on camera and behind the scenes and, before their Collins-Evans falling out, allowed Levin to branch off, actually establish an office in West Hollywood upstairs from a gym, and water his own crop of wide-eyed boytoys who are the real stars of a sordid series whose ostensible on-air personalities are a bunch of plug-uglies cut from Levin's pre-fab-makeover mold.

Stripped of any moral compass, fueled by crude, vulgar, witless, often disgusting writing, with no regard for fairplay, history, truth, justice or the American way, the cowardly TMZ operation is the apotheosis of Bush-era Hollywood, run as a division by corporate monoliths and concerned only with the bottom line. And as TMZ distracts America from important issues (like war, the writers strike, studio failures and television's ideas crisis) with its frenzied pursuit of unstable young women, it has the lazy “mainstream” news media to thank for welcoming it as a legitimate news source despite its obvious deceptions and lies about its tactics and practices (hey, Harvey's even got the New York Times on his side!).

[Iseeme]

Cotton - I don't know why people patronize TMZ either....but they're probably the same people that go to PerezHilton.com and whatever Paulus' website was. I guess it's like slowing down to see a bloody car accident. Prurient curiosity?

[merrieeee]

I have to chuckle, less than a week ago we were moaning how he was gone and we missed him! We were wondering when we would see him again. Little did we know!!!

I kind of hope he sort of disappears off of the media's radar for a while. I will be quite happy not knowing what's going on in his world for while!

[canfly172]

And more recently she attended one of our local cluncheons. She enjoyed herself. She now sees it more as a "family" than a fandom.

Awwww... CF waves to luckiest's momma!

And she also sees that maybe I am not so obsessed after all, compared to other people.

Compared to WHAT other people?

[FearofH2O]

My husband just came into the sunroom to tell me that they really made fun of Clay on the TV Guide Channel. He said they were laughing about him. I stopped watching that channel after the first Close Up they did fo Clay. They are so witty. Ugh!

My husband is smart enough to run out of the room after dropping off this info. Good thing I didn't have anything nearby that was sharp.

[Cotton]

Did y'all see this?

From CV

Drew Lachey and Stephen Collins replacements in Spamalot

[laljeterfan]

Muski - sorry you had those incidents.....but thank you for making me feel like I'm not the only one! I think it's really easy to say you won't take shit from anybody but it's not always acceptable either to get up in someone's face. That's how I was at dinner last night. Get up and walk out? Oh sure. That would have been very adult-like and it was a long walk home! Yell at them? Nope, that wouldn't be very adult-like either because that would give them the satisfaction of getting to me. Tell them they're wrong? Hah. Why bother. The dinner friends.....well, all I said was "I don't make fun of the things or people you like and I would ask for the same courtesy!" Dinner was a bit tense after that. So for all of you who have the titaniums to not give a shit and not take any shit.....I applaud you. I guess I'm just not made that way.

That seems like a perfectly good response to someone when you know you're going to be in their presence for a while and need to keep the peace. It lets them know that their behavior has crossed the line, and that you won't stand for it. If it's someone you aren't likely to see again, I don't see a problem with being a little more pointed and a little more forceful.

Looking for information ABOUT this TMZ place, and who holds their pursestrings, I ran across the following which spares no adjective in describing Harvey Levin's suffocating sleazebagginess. Interesting to read that he is backed by AOL/Time Warner. I know there is no good reason to ever underestimate the appetite for corporate greed, but this AOL/TW connection explains why CNN/LKL have attempted to legitimize him. This won't end until people stop tuning in, stop buying the trash rags, stop clicking the websites, and maybe picket and protest on the streets of New York and [/b]LA outside some of the studios that produce the garbage. The direct action of people is the truest way to affect change -- apply pressure and dry up the cashflow. Protest to CNN. Protest to FOX-TV. We should use our voices --- and NOT in defense of Clay Aiken, but in defense of our principles and our sense of fair play.

I so agree- and I wish we could all get on the same page and let it start with all of the boards. It irks me enough when I see I see all of the nasty little comments about Clay brought around and shared, but when they include links to the offending site, blog, video, etc- man, I just want to strangle someone! Maybe we could somehow agree (Yeah, I know- the Claynation agree on ANYTHING!? )- to a board-wide moratorium on all of the sleaze sites. I honestly feel that because they know that Clay's fans are going to hit on any mentions of him anywhere, it puts a bulls-eye right on his forehead.

[Iseeme]

Whoa - this brings back memories - not good ones - of CB and the whole Paulus and sekrit thread thing. When asked why some felt the need to go to those websites all the time one of the responses was - "well, I need to know what's going on so that I can defend him!" That seemed so lame to me. Seemed like it was just an excuse to read all the lurid details - whether you believed them or not. At the time I thought if people believed in Clay and who he said he was and what we had all observed....why did you have to know the sordid details to be able to defend him. Or - did you NEED to defend him during the tabloid sharkfest?

I agree with whoever said some of those websites shouldn't be quoted on the boards. But then - some would just go give the sites hits to see what they're saying. Obviously I have no answer.....

[wandacleo]

I was watching the movie The Family Stone last night and there's a very uptight woman in it, and the guy says to her, "You have a freak flag. You're just afraid to fly it."

Honestly, Clay just stands out there with his freak flag, proudly waving it back and forth for everyone to see--no apologies.

I LOVE HIM so much for that!!!!

[justclay12]

I don't even bother with the google alerts because I figure if its important enough, it will be brought to one of the boards where we can choose to support the site if they have behaved and are good, or we can just trash them on the boards. And if it never makes it to a board, then I really don't think I want to know.