#34: So, how about that Clay Aiken?

[merrieeee]

Heck if this isn't turning out to be the F****** Cheery board!!!!

I think I'll stay here for a while....it's a lot more fun!

[djs111]

Oh, goodness gracious me! rohdy just reminded me of something!

I just realised that I am in my sixties, and raising my 13 year old grandson, working/looking for data processing work, selling stuff on ebay, dealing with his school and homework, keeping house, and just last week I pushed a fully loaded grocery cart 2.9 miles, from Winn-Dixie to my house. Because my grandson was pretending to drive my truck and got the steering wheel stuck. Sooooo.......I pushed the cart home, he helped when there were no sidewalks and only sand, it was about 85 degrees, when I got home my face was pretty pink, but other than that - just needed a shower. So take heart, don't worry, us oldsters can still get around fairly well. And we still have our wits, most of us!

And my only form of exercise is getting aggravated, doing laundry, and getting corks out of wine bottles.

When I was 50, I was taking 18 hour flights to Japan, and then working 12 or 15 hour days. I have never had this thing called "jet lag". I believe Jaymes will be just fine.

The paradigm has shifted, y'all. (runs off to look up paradigm).

[canfly172]

Pic of kitties. Foreground is Kirby, behind him is Sebastian. They are brothers, turned 5 this spring.

Sebastian let me pet him once and purred but most of the time he vamooses, lol.

canfly re the driving....my spathyfillium can't drive either...and that's the only "us" there is in this house...unless you're volunteering to fly up and drive me? Gawd, I would LOVE that!

Your WHAT can't drive? How close to the Sarnia airport are you, lol? Luckiest or Goldarngirl would have to drive and pick us up at the London airport though, lol.

I only skimmed a little...Back to reports....ugh.

[FromClaygary]

Oh! Oh! I love my spathiphyllum. I had to run upstairs to take a pic:

Well....cough....it DOES look like your Ms Spath is a little OLDER than Mr Spath...and a bit TALLER....but what the heck!

I'll have him give her a call!!

Hee, I am sooooo not a plant person! They die as soon as they are brought into the house....I like the ones that grow in the garden outside without my help, though!

Those are called weeds. I should know.

Yaaay for Sebastian and you!!

Or maybe they'll each take one.

And what if 12 years later, the separated twins meet at summer camp, switch places, and conspire to bring their parents back together again? That'd make a great movie...

Just got a myspace bulletin from one Mr. Clay Aiken....just about hurt myself getting over there!...I have NO idea why! I actually thought it might be an appearance announcement of some kind., really.

It was.

AOL Sessions.

Anyone else but me sometimes wonder if HE does his myspace etc updates when he's bored?

[Gibby]

Oh! Oh! I love my spathiphyllum. I had to run upstairs to take a pic:

Well....cough....it DOES look like your Ms Spath is a little OLDER than Mr Spath...and a bit TALLER....but what the heck!

I'll have him give her a call!!

Sounds good! I'll show her Mr. Spath's pic so she knows what to expect.

[rohdy]

Oh, goodness gracious me! rohdy just reminded me of something!

I just realised that I am in my sixties, and raising my 13 year old grandson, working/looking for data processing work, selling stuff on ebay, dealing with his school and homework, keeping house, and just last week I pushed a fully loaded grocery cart 2.9 miles, from Winn-Dixie to my house. Because my grandson was pretending to drive my truck and got the steering wheel stuck. Sooooo.......I pushed the cart home, he helped when there were no sidewalks and only sand, it was about 85 degrees, when I got home my face was pretty pink, but other than that - just needed a shower. So take heart, don't worry, us oldsters can still get around fairly well. And we still have our wits, most of us!

And my only form of exercise is getting aggravated, doing laundry, and getting corks out of wine bottles.

When I was 50, I was taking 18 hour flights to Japan, and then working 12 or 15 hour days. I have never had this thing called "jet lag". I believe Jaymes will be just fine.

The paradigm has shifted, y'all. (runs off to look up paradigm).

See! that's what I'm talking about!!

How dare you! Don't you know you are no longer capable?!

I read it on a messageboard....so it must be so.

Oh geesh.....I wonder if there is a cut off for grandmotherhood as well? I'm 57 and still waiting.

Think my kids would get with the program if I tell them?

Well, not my oldest, she is 35 and from what I can gather...getting uncomfortable close to that prime egg expiration date.

And totally off topic.

Has anyone else seen the commercial for the new birth control that now limits you to just 4 periods a year?!

I wonder what the side effects and eventual long term effects might be from messing with life's cycles?

[liney23]

Oh, goodness gracious me! rohdy just reminded me of something!

I just realised that I am in my sixties, and raising my 13 year old grandson, working/looking for data processing work, selling stuff on ebay, dealing with his school and homework, keeping house, and just last week I pushed a fully loaded grocery cart 2.9 miles, from Winn-Dixie to my house. Because my grandson was pretending to drive my truck and got the steering wheel stuck. Sooooo.......I pushed the cart home, he helped when there were no sidewalks and only sand, it was about 85 degrees, when I got home my face was pretty pink, but other than that - just needed a shower. So take heart, don't worry, us oldsters can still get around fairly well. And we still have our wits, most of us!

And my only form of exercise is getting aggravated, doing laundry, and getting corks out of wine bottles.

When I was 50, I was taking 18 hour flights to Japan, and then working 12 or 15 hour days. I have never had this thing called "jet lag". I believe Jaymes will be just fine.

The paradigm has shifted, y'all. (runs off to look up paradigm).

djs... I knew there was a reason I liked you! Since there is so much romance going on around here, will you be my bff??? I'm in my sixties, too and raised my grandson until he was 6, then helped.

[pkmiller]

IF IF IF IF IF

Another possible thread title...depending, of course, on if we get confirmation or not of the story before it's time to start the next thread. *g*

Yes! I like that.

I have trouble thinking of Clay's private life as a "perk", on the same order as "news, photos, letters, tickets", and anyway, whenever he blogs, the info makes its way out into the world about five minutes later. Plus I would be astonished if TMZ and others of that ilk have not plonked down their $40 or whatever for a membership. Cheaper than paying stringers, really. Besides, it seems that many at the OFC have spazzed out and gotten downrght ugly about just a rumor - if I was him, I would just let it be.

I didn't mean that his personal life should be a "perk". I think this situation is a little bit different. You can't hide a child. But I see your point.

But ahhhhh, kitties. So sad when they are sick. So sad when they have to leave us. Yesterday I went with my oldest as she had her dear friend Mr. Cat released from his suffering.

Ahhh, rohdy, I'm so sorry.

[wandacleo]

I love that we're such a happy group, celebrating the joys of life.....whatever they may be.

:F_05BL17blowkiss:

Like cat pee.

[rohdy]

Even better....Shrubbery that smells like cat pee!!

(Fine....I miss Spamalot a lot.)

I have found with the FCA it really does take very little to make people happy..... and yay, for that!

[sheiladownunder]

US Weekly:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v50/crim...ekly_6_4_08.jpg

People:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v50/crim...e___4_08_01.jpg

In Touch:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v50/crim...h_6_4_08_03.jpg

I'm surprised that the tabloids are being more civilized (well that word is a stretch for anything to do with tabloids) about this than they have been to him in the past.

I wonder if they're playing nice in hopes of getting exclusive first baby pics. I know how distasteful that is, but all celebrities are doing it and the parents are more in control of the situation then having a bunch of ruthless stalkarazzi hanging from the trees for first baby pics.

They may be being advised to keep mum about everything and sell the exclusive once the baby is born in August.. a nice fund set aside for baby's college.

I heard the bid for Angelina's first baby pics is $15 million.

Again, IIT. I cannot even begin to imagine how bizarre a celebrities life must be so I won't judge.

[djs111]

I heard the bid for Angelina's first baby pics is $15 million.

The money will go to charity, so it's all good - ridiculous, but good.....although I honestly don't know why the pictures are worth that much. I heard that no magazine can hope to recoup the cost of a Brangelina baby pic, but it is just the prestige.

Angelina supports refugee charities, Brad is helping rebuild in New Orleans.

[justclay12]

I heard the bid for Angelina's first baby pics is $15 million.

The money will go to charity, so it's all good - ridiculous, but good.....although I honestly don't know why the pictures are worth that much. I heard that no magazine can hope to recoup the cost of a Brangelina baby pic, but it is just the prestige.

Angelina supports refugee charities, Brad is helping rebuild in New Orleans.

See, this is what I was saying about how someone can overcome bad press, at least in my eyes. Angelina moreso than Brad has had their bad times with the press, and they still take hits, but I don't recall either of them addressing it. They just go about their lives and I wind up respecting them more. Still think Angelina has done some weird things in her past, but I wound up having a lot of respect for her. Sometimes negative press can wind up having a positive outcome because people get so tired of the meanness of the press that they start feeling sympathy for the target.

Now as to that beautiful cd, I was listening to it, like I do everyday, and I think part of what I love about Clay, besides the beautiful voice, is how he makes each word special. I'm no Berkeley, so I don't know how to say it, but not only does he make each song evoke a certain feeling, (like Proud of Your Boy sounding innocent or If You Don't Know Me By Now sounding hot) but he does that with the words in his songs. He knows when to make it soft, or powerful, or sexy, or add your own adjectives here, but they are just perfect. God, I love this cd.

[annabear]

But ahhhhh, kitties. So sad when they are sick. So sad when they have to leave us. Yesterday I went with my oldest as she had her dear friend Mr. Cat released from his suffering.

Aww, I'm so sorry. Big hugs to {{{{{{Mr. Cat's family}}}}}} I lost one of my fur babies 2 summers ago. They are little furry family members.

Yay for Sebastian being well enough to come home! :thumbup:

Hope all is still well with cha cha! :F_05BL17blowkiss: We've got more severe weather moving into our area *soon*.

[canfly172]

Even better....Shrubbery that smells like cat pee!!

(Fine....I miss Spamalot a lot.)

I have found with the FCA it really does take very little to make people happy..... and yay, for that!

CP at the Shed thinks that cat is a dead ringer for her cat...cept not as fat. I think it looks like luckiest's kitty Kirby...cept not as...er...well filled out.

Edited cuz it's "not as fat" not "not at fat", lol.

[duckyvee]

IF IF IF IF IF.

Don't you mean if, if, if, uh.... if if uh....

This whole thing has begun to boggle my mind. My initial reaction was, "You go, Clay. Go after what you want." The thought of Clay being a father was such a warm fuzzy, and building a family in an unconventional way is fine with me. But a few little things have happened over the last 2 days that have made me go..... "Hmmm....maybe Bookwhore is right and this situation really is weird." Of course, those things are no more confirmed than anything else, so I'm ready to let it go. I can wait to find out the truth and can live with never knowing. I will admit to wanting to know, but I can suppress my curiousity. It sure has been interesting.

You know, though, the thought that I keep coming back to is that I'd sure like to see Clay. The pictures of the presidential event, alone, were like a balm of sorts. I don't need him to talk about his private life. I'd like to hear him sing, see him on a talk show, hear a radio interview, hear of something new on the horizon for Clay the Entertainer. Any of those would work. I'm fine with being connected to his professional life and totally out of his personal information loop.

In the meantime, that FCC car sounds like a lot of fun. Where do we go to get picked up?

[annabear]

*ducks lightning bolts*

I've got to sign off early again tonight - damn weather!! Hopefully I can get back online later unlike last night, but before I go....

Hannah mention from Broadway.com regarding the awards ceremony:

If we could've presented an honorable mention for Favorite Entrance of the Evening, the recipient would be Miss Hannah Waddingham. Winner of Favorite Replacement, the Spamalot vixen emerged from the elevator looking effortlessly glamorous with her platinum-blonde hair, basic-black dress and disarmingly bright grin. "I'm thrilled to have won the only thing I'm eligible for!" Waddingham quipped. Then she displayed the trophy just above her ample bosom. "I'm proud of all my own work!"

Unfortunately no mention of Clay.

[ausdon]

{{{ChaCha}}} Hope all is well!

Couchie what is Sewel? And I have also seen posts mentioning "the Santa Monica thing" what is this?

{{{ Annabear}}}

[muskifest]

djs...I'm TELLING ya and all y'all---go read Gail Sheehy's book, "Sex and the Seasoned Woman"...I've been TELLING y'all how so much of what she's writing about addresses this whole misconception of a woman's 'second half of life' and what she does with it!

Read it! It's very empowering!

Interesting...yesterday I took Alex to the DMV---came home early to get her there in time, only for her to discover that she needed BOTH parents' signature (which is something she should've known before asking me to get out of work early, but that's another story)...so I played Clay on the way to and from.

Here's the thing. Near the end of our journey, she was sorta singing along, BUT...she was singing in a 'forced' way. I gave her a funny look at one point and then said, "Why are you sounding like that?"

She said, "Well, Mom, that's how his voice sounds like to me." She was talking about how, to her, his voice sounds forced or reaching for things or...kind of whiny/nasally.

Now before everyone has a cow or baby rabbit, let me say that I know what she means. Because I hear it too sometimes. Maybe just because of the melodies of the songs themselves, but also because I've always thought that the tone of his voice at times sounds kinda brassy...in tune, on pitch, strong, passionate, yes! Sometimes...a bit harsh, too. Listening to the whole CD as Alex was, I was more aware of it than when I'm listening by myself.

My point? I love Clay Aiken and I FLOVE when he sings to MEEEEEEEEEEEE! I think his voice is heaven---a unique mixture of purity, passion, vocal skill and that unnameable 'something' that reaches down to unspeakable places and totally slays me. AND I can understand how some people who might just casually listen to a song here or there, who hasn't had the joy of experiencing Clay LIVE! in CONCERT!, and who doesn't 'know' him as we do might not think that his voice is the endall be all.

That's why I'm always happy to read from the general public an acknowledgment that the man can SANG! ANd I read that a lot (unfortunately, too often right before they add something dismissive regarding something else about what they think they know about him)..

GIbby and other musically inclined folks---do you think Clay's physical posture while singing is part of that sound. I do notice how he usually sings "up" to the microphone, stretches his neck...Does that have anything to do with the sound that comes out? I think some of this 'tone' is just that he's such a strong tenor, right? I mean...he's not a baritone so doesn't naturally have that deeper, fuller sound in the majority of his range...hell...whatever.

Anyhoo....will stop now...and expect to be excommunicated for suggesting that Clay's voice isn't the most perfect one in the universe all the time....

[djs111]

djs...I'm TELLING ya and all y'all---go read Gail Sheehy's book, "Sex and the Seasoned Woman"...I've been TELLING y'all how so much of what she's writing about addresses this whole misconception of a woman's 'second half of life' and what she does with it!

Read it! It's very empowering!

I'll likely read it.......but I suspect I am already empowered! :-0 I'll let ya know how it's going when I get to the second half!

[keepingfaith]

And totally off topic.

Has anyone else seen the commercial for the new birth control that now limits you to just 4 periods a year?!

I wonder what the side effects and eventual long term effects might be from messing with life's cycles?

OMG! Wouldn't the PMS be totally freaking crazy? I think that would be an automatic disqualifier for admittance to the Fucking Cheerful Car!

[Couch Tomato]

Muski, we're going to string you up right now!!

But like you said, to me his voice is beautiful. There have been some things he does that many have found problematic (like his phrasing) but to me they make his voice and sound unique. (although it did take me a bit to get used to his (land of the free, and the home of the brave). The only thing I've ever found jarring is his hard R's. Other than that.. nada. His voice touches me in a way that none other has...can't really explain it.

I found it strange that many reviews found fault with him because his voice was too perfect..like he was just showing off...look what I can do. I have to admit, I don't get that.

Is it 5 yet?

Ducky! Bwah If If Uh...indeed! bwah.

[Iseeme]

Good afternoon. Nothing else. I'm resting. Someone else will have to initiate discussions today....y'all plumb wore me down. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

[liney23]

Good afternoon. Nothing else. I'm resting. Someone else will have to initiate discussions today....y'all plumb wore me down. :F_05BL17blowkiss:

Iseeme... BWAH!!!

Muski... there have been a few occasions where I have felt he was straining, usually upper range without going falsetto, but much much more often, his voice just gives me a sense of peace. I'll have to listen to the cd again with a new ear... dang...

[Ansamcw]

WOW....so many great topics and discussion today.

I wanted to comment so many times while catching up but I see so many people have made their points.

May I say that I am glad that people like Iseeme, pkmiller, BW, CG...do post opinions that they think may be unpopular. You guys sure make us all think and keeps this board really interesting.

Iseeme...a lot of your concerns are valid..and I can;t say that the media does not bother me. But I guess we all have different ways to deal with things. Like I am concerned about the health risks to Jaymes and the baby...but to me, living means taking risks and I can only admire the courage it took for them to take this step. If Clay has to constantly worry about what the media will say or do, then he truly may get paralyzed by fear and he might as well pack up and leave the limelight. So I just take all this in perspective. I know that Clay is not the only one getting this treatment and that I don;t really need to know all the ugly stories cos I really can;t do anything about it. So right now, I just don't go reading stuff. I don;t go to boards that posts all the articles out there...I don't read tabloids or watch Entertainment news shows. I feel better. I suspect this is how Clay deals with all this.

Muski...what songs did you think his tone was forced so we can have a frame of reference. He does use a lot of texture to his voice and at times it sounds brassy but the way he sings can be stylistic choice at times. I know that some didn't like his voice in LAA cos it sounded too weak and light...but I just love that style. So there are all kinds of tone that he uses that get different reaction. One thing I don;t notice is a nasally quality. Now that is one quality I truly can't stand in singers...so maybe I got immune to Clay's nasal quality if its there. But the one artist I thought is truly nasally is Josh Groban...specially when singing live but so many think his voice is just divine...so its all subjective.

I also think that our kids are not so used to the kind of singing Clay does. I noticed that the kind of weak, airy style that Jason Castro had is more familiar to them or the shouty style of cook, Daughtry...So its possible that the qualities we actually like in Clay are what does turn our kids off. I know Sam always think he sounds old fashioned.