#38: The man just oooooooooozes awwwwwness

[jamar1700]

I'm on VACATION!!!!

---

Not sure there will be any sort of announcement. JMHO. Don't think it's really that big of a story to the entertainment media for them to snoop out on their own. They had their fun with the initial "reports" but I don't see anyone having any kind of babywatch on the story. She may have already had the baby somewhere up in Canada.

[KAndre]

Oooo, me 'n couchie semi-agree - I don't particularly care for Emmanuel because I find it fairly bland generally, but Jacob brought something to it for me. Mandy, now, that's the perfect ballad for me (unlike something like, oh, let's say....Sailing! heh!) But I have a tug-of-war in my heart over LI AIW and DSIAFCD. Those are two of my favorite Christmas songs now thanks to Clay - and those performances were so...oh man. If you just listen to the audio, they are just beautifully done, with Clay's voice a little less front and center than usual at the beginning of DSIAFCD but he goes back to normal toward the end, and AIW is just audibly perfect. But watching the video? Dear Lord. (kf, don't let me forget to get Scarlett's xVID to you [unlike a number of 2007 AIW's I may be waiting on. Just sayin' I see a bus coming!]) That mike drop. To those who say he's not quite an artist yet, I watch that and say "idiots". That was passion - that was striving to communicate his art directly to his audience, and man he succeeded. To have what would normally be an glorious ephemeral performance that would only be held in imperfect memory recorded....oh wow. But he shocked the fuck out of me coming back for AIW. That was simply done for love of singing and love of us. I didn't expect it, but I am oh so grateful. The dichotomy was so POWERFUL. Oh, it HURT to watch him do that. Physically HURT. As unsympathetic as I am, I wanted to cry. But his voice...ah, his voice. As good as the recording is (and we have some freakishly good recording), and the audience was good...being on the front row, I could hear him directly - even over the speakers. And that man, when he is on, is one of the best singers ever. Period. No ifs, no ands, no buts. And I wouldn't give that up for anyone. And pray fervently that he doesn't have to do it again. But if he does, I hope to be there, suffering and glorying along with him. And unlike Merriville, oddly enough there was absolutely no fear that he couldn't do it - I was just afraid he was gonna kill himself making it perfect.

[Cotton]

I vote for Raleigh getting (keeping) the heat and the Coast getting a cool down!

I'll let Fear fend for herself!

<snip>

Thanks a lot Cotton Hoping for rain as we are in an extreme drought again this year. Maybe Clay will head out this way. High Point has some amazing furniture shopping.

Well, we have potential good news on the weather front today - still hotternhell today, but late today/tonight we're supposed to get the cold front inspired storms . . . meaning rain and a cool down! Thank goodness!

And - yeah! That's the ticket! Clay should go furniture shopping in the world famous High Point!

You keep a sharp lookout - K?

I loved the Vegas skating event, too, and part of that is meeting so many fans for the first time. (and seeing some familiar friends again, too!)

DH and I have watched SYTYCD, too! I swear - the things those kids can do with their bodies is Amazing!!! And they seem like such nice kids. Hopefully they don't just play nice kids on TV! LOL! I like Josh, too. But I think Kaytee is the best DANCER. I almost voted for Josh last night, but in the end, I like his dancing and his personality, and am very impressed by him, but decided to just see it play out. I was very surprised to see Twitch beat out Will!!!

Christmas?

My very most favorite Clay Christmas show was the play! I LOVED it. I don't think he'll ever try anything like that again on his own. I'm sure it was expensive. Just like JBT. I loved it, too. But it must have really cut into Clay's income!!! That's a lot of trucks and buses to fuel and drivers to pay. It's amazing that so early in his touring life he pulled those two tours off, IMO!

ETA:

As far as announcement, I'm not holding my breath. But IIU, Clay could just pick up the phone and call Linda Loveland to get the word out on his and Jaymes' terms.

Or he could just live his life and not say anything for quite a while.

Did anyone see Penelope Cruz on GMA this morning?

She is very hands off where her private life is concerned. Quite pointed about it with DS!

She was polite, but def. drawing a line between her public life and her private life!

EATA:

I don't think I ever knew that I was born on a Friday! ( November)

[jmh123]

Another Friday's child here. I knew that because I had a little thingie with the verse on it that finally disintegrated a few years ago.

:bday: YSRN!!!

[Gibby]

So, I need to know which LI AIW people like the most. I have to go download it again! Any preferences?

ETA: Just watched Scarlett's, and it's gorgeous!! He sang so amazingly well in spite of being so obviously sick.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, YSRN!!!

:hb2: :hb2: :hb2:

[luckiest1]

Not sure there will be any sort of announcement. JMHO. Don't think it's really that big of a story to the entertainment media for them to snoop out on their own. They had their fun with the initial "reports" but I don't see anyone having any kind of babywatch on the story. She may have already had the baby somewhere up in Canada.

Hee, you make it sound like it's so northern......maybe amongst the igloos and eskimos, where no reporters live? I don't know where the baby, IIT, will be born, but I doubt that it will be kept under wraps for long, again, IIT. Probably not by Clay & Jaymes choosing, but by the media. If the baby is Clay's child, I still don't believe he'll never mention him or her publically. Just doesn't sound like Clay, to me. I think he'd be so proud he'd be shouting it from the rooftops, eventually. On his own terms. Hee. Ok, I admit it, I really don't know what to expect.

Well, I've done the groceries. Now I gotta wake the kid up so I can tear the laundry room apart, searching for the camping equipment. Not my favourite part, by a long shot. The part I like best is kicking back, feet up, in a lawn chair with a good book. And toasting marshmallows by the fire, in the dark. The set up and tear down, not so much.

Please, please, please someone text me if all hell breaks loose while I'm gone, k? I'll be back Sunday evening.

Happy Birthday, YSRN!

[liney23]

I sure wish he was back in California sining to me about now.

Gotta go. See y'all in a few days.

Perma... I bet you wish that... I love typos! :F_05BL17blowkiss:

Oooo, me 'n couchie semi-agree - I don't particularly care for Emmanuel because I find it fairly bland generally, but Jacob brought something to it for me. Mandy, now, that's the perfect ballad for me (unlike something like, oh, let's say....Sailing! heh!) But I have a tug-of-war in my heart over LI AIW and DSIAFCD. Those are two of my favorite Christmas songs now thanks to Clay - and those performances were so...oh man. If you just listen to the audio, they are just beautifully done, with Clay's voice a little less front and center than usual at the beginning of DSIAFCD but he goes back to normal toward the end, and AIW is just audibly perfect. But watching the video? Dear Lord. (kf, don't let me forget to get Scarlett's xVID to you [unlike a number of 2007 AIW's I may be waiting on. Just sayin' I see a bus coming!]) That mike drop. To those who say he's not quite an artist yet, I watch that and say "idiots". That was passion - that was striving to communicate his art directly to his audience, and man he succeeded. To have what would normally be an glorious ephemeral performance that would only be held in imperfect memory recorded....oh wow. But he shocked the fuck out of me coming back for AIW. That was simply done for love of singing and love of us. I didn't expect it, but I am oh so grateful. The dichotomy was so POWERFUL. Oh, it HURT to watch him do that. Physically HURT. As unsympathetic as I am, I wanted to cry. But his voice...ah, his voice. As good as the recording is (and we have some freakishly good recording), and the audience was good...being on the front row, I could hear him directly - even over the speakers. And that man, when he is on, is one of the best singers ever. Period. No ifs, no ands, no buts. And I wouldn't give that up for anyone. And pray fervently that he doesn't have to do it again. But if he does, I hope to be there, suffering and glorying along with him. And unlike Merriville, oddly enough there was absolutely no fear that he couldn't do it - I was just afraid he was gonna kill himself making it perfect.

KAndre... the strength of spirit and courage LI showed makes it my favorite Xmas show of all, with West Point being second and Raleigh where he sang to Poppa being third. My favorite video of AIW at LI was not the best visually, but the fan crying quietly while watching him just gets me everytime. And, he was so friggin' funny that night!

Just so you know... I won't be able to watch the Wed/Finale of SYTYCD until Friday night, so I won't be on the message boards until Saturday to avoid finding out who won.

I was born on Wednesday... dang it!

[Cotton]

Perma - since YChrome is leaving you for some time - you really shouldn't be killing off your friends like that.

You might be needing us, dontcha think?

But you just keep right on killing us softly with that beauty! Somehow we keep managing to revive ourselves to be slain again with the next one!

:F_05BL17blowkiss: to you and my DH's twin!!!

Safe travels to him . . .

and a swift return . . .

[Couch Tomato]

I don't particularly care for Emmanuel because I find it fairly bland generally, but Jacob brought something to it for me. Mandy, now, that's the perfect ballad for me (unlike something like, oh, let's say....Sailing! heh!)

BLASPHEMY I love Saling.

If it Friday yet?

[Claygasm]

:bday2: My Darling Twin,YSRN (who I miss....)!!!!!!!

:F_05BL17blowkiss: :F_05BL17blowkiss:

My heart almost stopped this morning. MSN is our home page at work and I was glancing at the Entertainment news and saw this headline: "American Idol Runner-up Welcomes Baby".

But phew! It was only Bo Bice's baby!!!

Back to work.... Oh joy!

[annabear]

If it Friday yet?

It is for me! :nana:

Wishing you a verra :bday: YSRN!

[muskifest]

KAndre...you said it, woman, re: LI DSIAFCD and AIW....I was there, of course (You might recall that I subjected brought my older daughter with me to join the eHP for a pre-show dinner. and I was sniffling through both of those last songs. When he dropped the microphone I remember thinking, "This is one of THOSE moments" and I felt so blessed to be there to experience it.

I was absolutely FLOORED that he came back to sing AIW. I honestly thought he wouldn't/couldn't do it (and actually would have understood if he hadn't). A man was sitting next to me and at one point during the song, I heard him say softly to the woman next to him, "He's gonna hurl"...Clay's face was pale and he was holding on to that stool with all his might and I just didn't know if he was going to make it...I had my hand on my throat and I even remember that I thought "God, I must look like the stereotypical pearl-clutcher female!"...

I was so awed by him that night...so in awe...and gratitude. I tried not to let the judgmental glances of my daughter piss me off while I tried not to totally lose it. And as we left the theater and the sniffles of other people surrounded us, I just gave in to the emotion and without shame wiped my tears.

What an amazing gift he is. That he can touch people's hearts and souls so beautifully.

YSRN! WOMAN! It's your freakin' birthday! :thbighug-1: Do it up right! :F_05BL17blowkiss:

:ura: :fest30: :09: :nana:

[laljeterfan]

Happy birthday, YSRN!

BWAHA! Someone at CH posted this pic (NOT A PHOTOSHOP! ) to remind us not to get too excited over the idea of Clay wearing a tank top...

Remember this? Clay's idea of daring tank top wearing?

WOO HOO!!! That's MY "tank top"! When they were auctioning off some of the original jersey's from the AI tour, I somehow convinced my husband that I needed one, and that was the one I got! (Not because I'm from Indiana or love the Pacers or whatever, but because it was the cheapest!)

I've been on vacation all week, but have only been able to check in sporadically. My husband and son went away for the week on a fishing trip, so I decided that it was a good time for me to take some vacation time too, to get some things done around the house. I spent Sat- Mon cleaning out the drawers in our computer room, and shredding papers- had 6 bags of shreddings, and the garbage men only took 3 of them on Tues. Mon- Wed was spent painting the room- not a fun endeavor, cause while the room is small, it has a high ceiling, and lots of heavy furniture. Somehow I managed to get it all done.....AND hook up my new computer monitor, which is a major feat in itself! Usually for anything computer related I call in my BIL, but I managed to do this myself- and everything seems to be working. Yay me!

My son called me on Tues with the news that they were discussing Clay! My husband took 7 kids with him on the trip- our son, his best friend, one other friend, our 15 year old niece and her best friend, and our 13 year old nephew. He told me that he and his BFF were discussing music, and that there was one song on Clay's new CD that they liked, but wanted to make a little "heavier", so he asked me to name some of the songs, and then relayed them to his friend. I started with "Falling", then some of the other songs that I thought a teenage boy might like, till I got to "As Long As We're Here", and hit the jackpot! I guess all of those hours holding them captive to Clay's music while chaufferring them around has finally paid off!

On a more somber note, I got an e-mail several days ago from a lovely woman whom I met through Clay. Her 23 year old daughter has been diagnosed with colon cancer. If you're so inclined, could you say a prayer or send healing thoughts out to Heather? Thanks.

[TimetravelerPax]

Happy Birthday YSRN, and a million thanks for this, one of my favorite tour photos ever! Have a beauty of a day.

:5:

http://findingclayaiken.invisionzone.com/i...=si&img=871

[muskifest]

OOOH! I just remembered that Clay was in my dream last night! I was with some other people at some sort of game--like a basketball or hockey or some sporting event. Left the arena to find our car and who was walking in front of us?

Clay! he was wearing baggy long shorts and a couple of loose-fitting short-sleeved tee shirts/shirts and had a bucket hat on and was wearing glasses. He had some sort of bag over one shoulder, like a small backpack. With him was a girl with dark blonde/light brown hair that just reached her shoulders--straight, not really styled at all. I never saw her face in my dream, but they were definitely together as he reached for her arm at one point to help her in the jostling crowd.

They couldn't seem to find their car, either! Clay was walking but looking at something in his hand at the same time (no doubt that ubiquitous iPhone, eh?)..I saw her sort of pinch his left forearm at one point and he responded by sorta bumping her hip with his and smiling.

sigh

I was so conscious of not staring, not making him feel watched. I honestly was lost in this cavernous parking garage, anyway, so I had to really look for my car! But then I saw him and the girl turn away and he said, "THERE it is!"...and they turned a corner around a wall and were gone.

I remember that I thought he and the girl seemed so comfortable with each other, so close without being clingy. I know that I immediately thought they were 'a couple', rather than 'just friends'...and I was all giggly and happy about that.

heee!

[Tijala]

Happy Birthday YSRN!

:bday:

Hugs for all who need one...

[Ansamcw]

:7252:

YSRN

[Couch Tomato]

lajeterfan...Loved your story. ALAWH remains my favorite. I never tire of it. I'm totally obsessed with it and the way he sings it and the tempo changes (total wrong word LOL). It just has everything I love about Clay in one song.

[merryclay]

Happy Birthday YSRN.

A long time ago I used to go to the "Weapons" site to look at all the pretty pictures. I hope you have a great day.

[liney23]

OOOH! I just remembered that Clay was in my dream last night! I was with some other people at some sort of game--like a basketball or hockey or some sporting event. Left the arena to find our car and who was walking in front of us?

Clay! he was wearing baggy long shorts and a couple of loose-fitting short-sleeved tee shirts/shirts and had a bucket hat on and was wearing glasses. He had some sort of bag over one shoulder, like a small backpack. With him was a girl with dark blonde/light brown hair that just reached her shoulders--straight, not really styled at all. I never saw her face in my dream, but they were definitely together as he reached for her arm at one point to help her in the jostling crowd.

They couldn't seem to find their car, either! Clay was walking but looking at something in his hand at the same time (no doubt that ubiquitous iPhone, eh?)..I saw her sort of pinch his left forearm at one point and he responded by sorta bumping her hip with his and smiling.

sigh

I was so conscious of not staring, not making him feel watched. I honestly was lost in this cavernous parking garage, anyway, so I had to really look for my car! But then I saw him and the girl turn away and he said, "THERE it is!"...and they turned a corner around a wall and were gone.

I remember that I thought he and the girl seemed so comfortable with each other, so close without being clingy. I know that I immediately thought they were 'a couple', rather than 'just friends'...and I was all giggly and happy about that.

heee!

muski... I like your dream! Hope you're seeing the future for him. And, I liked your LI recap. I know I would have lost it if I had been there. I almost did just watching the clack. Not sure why he came out for AIW, but what a memory to have!

couchie... ALAWH is also my fave on this CD. The other day I kept it playing that song over and over and over for a 35 minute drive. Something about that song just hits the right chord with me.

[saltwaterdog]

KAndre...you said it, woman, re: LI DSIAFCD and AIW....I was there, of course (You might recall that I subjected brought my older daughter with me to join the eHP for a pre-show dinner. and I was sniffling through both of those last songs. When he dropped the microphone I remember thinking, "This is one of THOSE moments" and I felt so blessed to be there to experience it.

I was absolutely FLOORED that he came back to sing AIW. I honestly thought he wouldn't/couldn't do it (and actually would have understood if he hadn't). A man was sitting next to me and at one point during the song, I heard him say softly to the woman next to him, "He's gonna hurl"...Clay's face was pale and he was holding on to that stool with all his might and I just didn't know if he was going to make it...I had my hand on my throat and I even remember that I thought "God, I must look like the stereotypical pearl-clutcher female!"...

I was so awed by him that night...so in awe...and gratitude. I tried not to let the judgmental glances of my daughter piss me off while I tried not to totally lose it. And as we left the theater and the sniffles of other people surrounded us, I just gave in to the emotion and without shame wiped my tears.

What an amazing gift he is. That he can touch people's hearts and souls so beautifully.

What a show that was! I was sure he wouldn't come back. Jessie started to grab his music off the piano, if I remember right, and back came Clay. I cried through both songs. Gift is the perfect word - such a gift he gave us with the performance. I felt that so strongly because I had come all the way across the country for that one concert. My DH thought he was going to get sick, too, or fall off the stool. I had almost a physical reaction at times, wanting to hold him up! (With only good intentions in mind, of course.)

[PermaSwooned]

Just peeking in while I eat lunch. I'm pretty sure I wrote up a big post about the LI AIW just a few weeks ago. The awe I feel for what Clay was able to do that night will never get old.

Gotta get back with helping with the packing.

But first....holding on for dear life:

[liney23]

Just peeking in while I eat lunch. I'm pretty sure I wrote up a big post about the LI AIW just a few weeks ago. The awe I feel for what Clay was able to do that night will never get old.

Gotta get back with helping with the packing.

But first....holding on for dear life:

Perma... I love that picture! Wish I could even see his hands. I know where they are, tho... gripping the stool with all he's worth! What a man he is!!! What a very fine man!

[clayzedover]

That whole LI show was very special for me. Not only was Clay so professional and so determined not to let us down, but I also remember that he said his manager was in the audience that night too. Made me wonder if anything had been "in the works."

The show was so special because I dragged my two brothers there...one (the part time musician) was kicking and screaming all the way. The other goes with me to see Clay at every tour and enjoys the shows, but the musician had no idea what to expect. The trip from Staten Island to Long Island that night was really horrendous. Going over the Verrazano Bridge was an adventure. Fog was so thick you could not see more than ten feet before you, and then the Belt Parkway to Long Island skirted the shore which was blanketed with fog. The 45 mile trip was almost four hours long, and the parking lot was just about full when we arrived.

The musician came away from that show a Clay fan. He'd experienced something similar to what Clay was going through once during his own shows and said he didn't know how Clay did it, yet he did it so well. He really was impressed with his gift of comedy too, never expected that at all. I didn't sit with them during the show, but they both came away with such respect for Clay that I was amazed at how honest they were because they usually tease about my "addiction." They talked about the show all the way home.

That show was a real turning point for them, and my musician brother has gone to three other shows since then, very willingly.

[annabear]

Great pic, Perma, and great story, Clayzed!

The day/week is finally over! I'm heading home! And, as always:

:F_05BL17blowkiss: