#47: That's not just any man... That's OUR man! You're a GOOD MAN, Clay Aiken!

[Couch Tomato]

I think 'we' put a far more negative spin on the word than any of the 'not just us' people do.

I do too. Frankly the average person on the street doesn't know what a claymate is IMO. Oh the hatahs and some media that we jumped on know but even most media just looks at is a exuberant fans of clay.

So how would one know that the "majority of the world' thinks of the word "claymate' negatively? To me, it is just a word and has as much power as you want to give it. Claymate/Clayfan...all the same to me. No different to me than calling fans of The Grateful Dead...Deadheads...just a word.

Kim

exactly. If the word claymate were never used and instead they used clay fan but every thing else remained the same how would people feel.

And I know some people hate the term for other reasons so I'm not speaking to that.

I don't give a rat's ass what anybody I don't know thinks of Clay fans. Hell I don't care what people I do know thinks of Clay fans. I just use that to prove I'm not crazy. Being a Clay fan doesn't embarass me on any level whatsoever. I wear my Clay tshirts out in my neighbordhood which is deinitely multi cultural. Nobody has ever looked at me sidesways. I'm proud to be a Clay fan AND a Clay mate. Claymates who also proudly support Clay and his charities and have done way more good stuff than bad. Frankly some people think we are nuts just because we love Clay. I will never be ashamed about being a fan of Clay based on some label that has nothing to do with me.

ETA: You know I had some concerns about the photos and would have not posted them had they not been made public. However now that they are hiding them away and not discussing them is not an option. Maybe that makes me a hypocrite but aren't we all at some time or another.

I received a tome from someone today that gave me a rundown on their displeasure with Clay after all she has done to support him all these years. He is a liar and how dare he not tell US that he was gay before he told People. After 6 more paragraphs that I'm sure is being to sent to anyone she thinks cares, she closed by saying I'm sure I will remove her from the membership of the FCA. Hmmm, she got one thing right. Good riddance. Go out and find something to make yourself happy rather than prolonging the complete waste of time that was apparantly the last 6 years. Geesh.

[tribeca]

My friend Dave wore a Clay Aiken concert t-shirt to work on day.

He recieved many strange looks.

But I think it may have been because he wore a Christmas concert t-shirt in September (the day of the People magazine cover).

My friend Dave wore a Clay Aiken concert t-shirt to work on day.

He recieved many strange looks.

But I think it may have been because he wore a Christmas concert t-shirt in September.

[claytonic]

well that lady lost out but to tell the turth the first time I went to Spamalot some Clay fans/Claymates ruined my show.

The 2 ladies behind us said every darn line of Clay's with him. It was very annoying.

My niece wanted to tell them she didn't pay to hear them talk . I would have said something but they scared me a little.

There is no way I would have allowed anyone to continue doing that for more than 60 seconds. I might have allowed the first 60 seconds of indulgence, then I would have turned around and put my finger to my lips. If it continued, I would have then said something.

I rarely go to the movies now but years ago when I went every week without fail, I had movie buddies who would not even tolerate the slightest distraction because this was their precious time to relax away from work etc. Those who were actors themselves or involved in the production of movies were the least tolerant and would usually never hesitate to express their extreme annoyance. With the movies, you could often just find other seats to move to, but at a live show, it usually wasn't possible to do that.

When you've paid for tickets, taken the time to travel to the theater, be it a 10 minute walk or 10 hours of air and ground transport, you're entitled to fully experience the show, and those who don't know how to behave at a live performance of any kind really need to be enlightened. (At least with a movie, you have many more opportunities to watch it again).

[frangomint]

I just have wave to frangomint lurking down there! I don't know you, but your screen name reminded me of a friend I've somewhat lost contact with over the last couple of years. Whenever she went to Chicago, she'd go to Marshall Fields and bring back Frango Mints - love 'em!

Hi annabear! I'm just a lurker who enjoys reading this board. It's the best one! I love frango mint candy - all kinds - and usually have one every night when I'm lurking. When I signed up for this board, I was probably munching on one.

Sounds like the GFI was a lot of fun and I appreciate the all recaps and videos of that event as well as all the others. I saw Spamalot both in the Spring and Fall and hope Clay takes a role in another production sometime in the future. I thought it was a perfect introduction to Broadway for him and he was surrounded by such a great cast both times. I'm curious about what projects he has lined up....

[KAndre]

I am so with couchie on the "don't care" wagon except for one thing...Hell, I knew this whole Clay thing was crazy back in '03. But personally, I think I deserve a little crazy. I think incredible numbers of people are crazy such as people who would buy something or vote for someone because some celebrity told them too - helicopter parents - members of PETA - vegetarians - people who claim they can tell when their martinis are shaken or stirred - people who think Halle Berry deserved that Oscar for Monster's Ball - people who prefer ST:TNG over ST:TOS - people who like poetry - people who inject collagen in their lips - people who sit all the way through horror movies - people who think lima bean pie is a good thing - people who spend hours on end playing Everquest or WoW instead of AoE III or Cleopatra or the Sims - or my boss who claimed "numbnuts" is not a vulgar term (he claimed it had something to do with handtools - yeah right)...the list goes on and on and on... Crazy is as crazy does...and my crazy is and will be a hell of a lot of fun. As long as they enjoy their crazy and it doesn't impact me in a negative way, I say let the crazy rock on. Now constant bitching? Especially under the guise of "ooooh, I'm just expressing my opinion about how something you like totally sucks donkey balls and yes, I have a context of I have taste and you don't but I have enough plausible deniability that I'll try to make you look like a whiner if you object" does impact me negatively and I don't enjoy it and therefore don't participate in that and try to avoid the people who do it.

Claymate? No worse than "trekkie" or "four-eyes" or "smart-ass" or "Miss Thang" - all of which I've been called. Hasn't stopped me from watching Trek (though that new movie is so anti-canonical it should explode on contact, I'll go see it anyhoo), wearing my glasses, being smart or having a divalicious attitude.

[claytonic]

Oh absolutely, I would seriously never trust a sane person until they demonstrated some kind of craziness.

[Scarlett]

I have a new entry at Carolina On My Mind entitled Aiken's 'Souper' 2008 in Review. Along with the clack, including cindilu2's February calendar and no-date version, I updated my soup/one dish blog from last winter and hope you enjoy!

Thanks for that blog, Caro! By coincidence I was not only baking a batch of yummy brownies but I was also making some beef with potatoes and cabbage soup tonight. Yes, it a great time to bring out those soup recipes.

I made a great chocolate chip coffee cake this afternoon if you're interested in a recipe...

:pickme: spikesmom, I'm interested!!!

I think 'we' put a far more negative spin on the word than any of the 'not just us' people do.

I do too. Frankly the average person on the street doesn't know what a claymate is IMO. Oh the hatahs and some media that we jumped on know but even most media just looks at is a exuberant fans of clay.

So how would one know that the "majority of the world' thinks of the word "claymate' negatively? To me, it is just a word and has as much power as you want to give it. Claymate/Clayfan...all the same to me. No different to me than calling fans of The Grateful Dead...Deadheads...just a word.

Kim

exactly. If the word claymate were never used and instead they used clay fan but every thing else remained the same how would people feel.

And I know some people hate the term for other reasons so I'm not speaking to that.

I don't give a rat's ass what anybody I don't know thinks of Clay fans. Hell I don't care what people I do know thinks of Clay fans. I just use that to prove I'm not crazy. Being a Clay fan doesn't embarass me on any level whatsoever. I wear my Clay tshirts out in my neighbordhood which is deinitely multi cultural. Nobody has ever looked at me sidesways. I'm proud to be a Clay fan AND a Clay mate. Claymates who also proudly support Clay and his charities and have done way more good stuff than bad. Frankly some people think we are nuts just because we love Clay. I will never be ashamed about being a fan of Clay based on some label that has nothing to do with me.

I think more Clay Aiken fans spend more time calling other Clay Aiken fans names than all the non-fans in the world combined. We all have our own "niches" of what we're comfortable with and anyone beyond our own little spot in the spectrum of Clay fan "enthusiam" gets to be labelled a Claymate. Not that many people outside the fandom recognize the term Claymate unless it follows "Clay Aiken". For every poster on this board and other boards who comments on other fans' behavior, I can name another fan who sat beside them and/or travelled with them during a Clay Aiken show and has complained about their behavior. It just goes 'round and 'round.

Why are we less respectable than football fans? People may roll their eyes at some of them but as a whole it's like a huge fraternity. Only a tiny fringe will paint their faces and/or other body parts but other football fans who see the painted ones don't cringe, turn away or explain to their friends that while they follow the sport they're certainly not like those crazies over there. Tell a football fan that you've got 50-yard line tickets to the Superbowl and they'll say wow, clap you on the back, and proudly introduce you to all their friends instead of wondering whom you slept with to get them. Mention to someone that you went to a Superbowl party and they won't demand an instant recap of every detail of the evening.

I think other people will treat us (Clay Aiken fans) by following our lead on how we respect each other. Many of us are somewhat in doubt about how to act, having never done anything like this before, perhaps because we've had to devote a lot of our time to caring for family members and running households. We need to have more confidence in what we do, believe that we have a right to do what we do and enjoy it. We don't need to point to a more enthusiastic fan to justify our actions (I only went to 3 shows but she went to 10 so I'm ok). Rude people need to be told off there and then by the people they affect but we don't need to keep bringing back war stories to our boards as though rudeness were something unique to this fandom.

[Couch Tomato]

crap just lost a post. Meant to respond to LadyJ with a hell yeah. Some of the stuff I do IS bat shit crazy and I am so happy I can still laugh at myself. Some of it is eye raising... as I would look cross eyed at somebody who told me they traveled over the world to see chess games or Brittany Spears. I think a lot of the crap we get as Clay fans is not because of our behaviour it's because we're women, a lot of us of a certain age that are supposed to remain faceless, and he's Clay. Really? Really? You like THAT guy? Those people are ignorant to me and I give them no more consideration than I would give the dirt on the bottom of my shoe.

The superbowl was GREAT. My rooting interest was Arizona but I had no horse in the race. It was the best 4th quarter evah and Jennifer Hudson was fabulous. I know they usually pre tape the SSB but damn it was good.

But the main reason I disappeared is because my sister and I did some major reorganizing of my mom's room, moving furniture, cleaning, dusting (thought of you wandacleo LOL). I also moved my desktop computer and desk into her room and I'm going to teach her how to use it. When I moved my computer set up I didn't connect it back correctly and it took me forever to get my DSL working again. Only had minor shakes. But another hour or two and I may have required hospitalization.

Welcome frangomint...where exactly do they sell those..I think I've heard of them but only online.

BWAH KANDRE..Love you girl..and agree on the collagen thing. Why would people do that to themselves or do any sort of plastic surgery. And ditto on the lima bean pie

Scarlett: Good points all. I KNOW I'm guilty of some of that. I have the power to work on myself and really that's all I can do. heee..and you're right..it's always been the people over there on that other board that are crazy. I'm the sane Clay fan. :thbighug-1:

ETA: What is a helicopter parent?

ETA: BWAH as always Clay is ahead of the curve when it comes to fashion trends. He's way too cool for me!

[jmh123]

Helicopter parents - CNN. I've known my share of these.

[canfly172]

For the record in the middle of all of this profundity...

I never said I wasn't crazy. I just said that I wasn't a Claymate, lol.

[smittenwithclay]

hee according to Kandre Im super crazy...Im a vegetarian and not only do I like Poetry but I write it

and Im a Clay Aiken fan..all kinds of crazy!!

all joking aside, I dont even get embarressed if other clay fans do something embarressing..I can only be in control of my own behavior, I dont do anything embarressing to me (or anyone else i dont think lol) and so I dont feel embarressed for what someone else done..to me, getting embarressed for someone else is giving the media and people who think we are one big borg instead of a bunch of individuals to much power...I had a mullett in elementary school, it takes a heck of a lot to embarress me, just saying lol

scarlett that was a WONDERFUL post!

[canfly172]

Helicopter parents - CNN. I've known my share of these.

Ah...hovercraft. Gotcha.

[Couch Tomato]

For the record in the middle of all of this profundity...

I never said I wasn't crazy. I just said that I wasn't a Claymate, lol.

ha ha

notice I have nothing to say to those that just flat out hate the term cuz it's cutesy or sexist or feel it's belittling to them as women. I have strong opinions like that on some things, ok a lot of things

does jumping out of a moving car cuz you see Clay's bus count as embarrassing?

what about driving through 100s of miles of desert in what would have been considered an undriveable vehicle by most certified mechanics. No I'm not the kooky one, it's those other claymates

[liney23]

When does the pregame start?

Bwah! Here in Tampa, it is All Super Bowl All The Time -

Example of BREAKING NEWS!!!!! - the Lingerie Bowl was canceled because people who lived near the proposed site objected to the unseemly display of skin. Those mean people questioned the intent of the sporting event, saying that they didn't think it was really a sporting event.

So a nudist resort offered to host the Lingerie Bowl - but then some of the scantily-clad participants quit because they were horrified at possibly playing football whilst clad only in wispy undies in front of old people who might be unattractively nekkid.

I would not have been surprised to switch to a local channel and see reporters huddled in front of Raymond James Stadium, talking quite seriously about whether there would be Dijon mustard available for hot dogs, or just the regular bright yellow kind, and see a crawl at the bottom of the screen announcing a meteor was going to strike Earth next Wednesday, obliterating large parts of the planet.

First things first.

I do wish to report that I went to the Publix on Boyette Road yesterday and I did not see P. Diddy.

That is the extent of my on-the-scene Super Bowl reportage.

I'll update y'all if I run into Bruce Springsteen at the Hess station.

djs... BWAH!!! And, a double BWAH!!! to your calculations post. I'll renew, by the way! He Blogged! cannot be ignored!

I am so with couchie on the "don't care" wagon except for one thing...Hell, I knew this whole Clay thing was crazy back in '03. But personally, I think I deserve a little crazy. I think incredible numbers of people are crazy such as people who would buy something or vote for someone because some celebrity told them too - helicopter parents - members of PETA - vegetarians - people who claim they can tell when their martinis are shaken or stirred - people who think Halle Berry deserved that Oscar for Monster's Ball - people who prefer ST:TNG over ST:TOS - people who like poetry - people who inject collagen in their lips - people who sit all the way through horror movies - people who think lima bean pie is a good thing - people who spend hours on end playing Everquest or WoW instead of AoE III or Cleopatra or the Sims - or my boss who claimed "numbnuts" is not a vulgar term (he claimed it had something to do with handtools - yeah right)...the list goes on and on and on... Crazy is as crazy does...and my crazy is and will be a hell of a lot of fun. As long as they enjoy their crazy and it doesn't impact me in a negative way, I say let the crazy rock on. Now constant bitching? Especially under the guise of "ooooh, I'm just expressing my opinion about how something you like totally sucks donkey balls and yes, I have a context of I have taste and you don't but I have enough plausible deniability that I'll try to make you look like a whiner if you object" does impact me negatively and I don't enjoy it and therefore don't participate in that and try to avoid the people who do it.

Claymate? No worse than "trekkie" or "four-eyes" or "smart-ass" or "Miss Thang" - all of which I've been called. Hasn't stopped me from watching Trek (though that new movie is so anti-canonical it should explode on contact, I'll go see it anyhoo), wearing my glasses, being smart or having a divalicious attitude.

KAndre... You are a joy, ya' know! So sensical in your thinking!

frangomint... WELCOME!!! Thanks for coming out of lurkdom!

Arizona almost pulled it off! Jennifer did an amazing job! Bruce was awesome! Best since U2! The clydesdale comercials were the best! The careerbuilder ad was the absolute worst! Arizona almost pulled it off! Boo Hoo!!!

[muskifest]

Good grief.

I don't like the Claymate term.

So freaking sue me.

I guess I'm just in some sort of arrested development and will feel differently when I've 'found myself'.

For me, "Claymate" is to "Clay Fan" as "Fat" is to "Voluptuous"...

I'd rather be seen as voluptuous than fat.

Even though the weight is the same.

Good night.

[Couch Tomato]

Good grief.

I don't like the Claymate term.

So freaking sue me.

I guess I'm just in some sort of arrested development and will feel differently when I've 'found myself'.

For me, "Claymate" is to "Clay Fan" as "Fat" is to "Voluptuous"...

I'd rather be seen as voluptuous than fat.

Even though the weight is the same.

Good night.

I don't understand how anything said here usurps your right to hate the term. I totally understand that a lot of people hate the term and have every right to. And I believe I've said that at least twice during the course of the conversation. But when people point to how OTHER people see claymates as somehow being part of the issue for them, I will always speak to that as I feel as strongly about that as you do about the term claymate. They are not even the same issue, just tangentially related. Although this is an issues that continues to come up I still like hearing what everyone has to say - no matter what side of the issue they may fall.

Michael Phelps is an idiot. Wonder if he'll lose his millions in endorsements. I know in the scheme of things smoking weed is not huge but in this camera phone world?

ETA: This post is apparantly brought to you by the word issues but I'm sleepy and going to bed.

[ausdon]

I am so with couchie on the "don't care" wagon except for one thing...Hell, I knew this whole Clay thing was crazy back in '03. But personally, I think I deserve a little crazy. I think incredible numbers of people are crazy such as people who would buy something or vote for someone because some celebrity told them too - helicopter parents - members of PETA - vegetarians - people who claim they can tell when their martinis are shaken or stirred - people who think Halle Berry deserved that Oscar for Monster's Ball - people who prefer ST:TNG over ST:TOS - people who like poetry - people who inject collagen in their lips - people who sit all the way through horror movies - people who think lima bean pie is a good thing - people who spend hours on end playing Everquest or WoW instead of AoE III or Cleopatra or the Sims - or my boss who claimed "numbnuts" is not a vulgar term (he claimed it had something to do with handtools - yeah right)...the list goes on and on and on... Crazy is as crazy does...and my crazy is and will be a hell of a lot of fun. As long as they enjoy their crazy and it doesn't impact me in a negative way, I say let the crazy rock on. Now constant bitching? Especially under the guise of "ooooh, I'm just expressing my opinion about how something you like totally sucks donkey balls and yes, I have a context of I have taste and you don't but I have enough plausible deniability that I'll try to make you look like a whiner if you object" does impact me negatively and I don't enjoy it and therefore don't participate in that and try to avoid the people who do it.

Claymate? No worse than "trekkie" or "four-eyes" or "smart-ass" or "Miss Thang" - all of which I've been called. Hasn't stopped me from watching Trek (though that new movie is so anti-canonical it should explode on contact, I'll go see it anyhoo), wearing my glasses, being smart or having a divalicious attitude.

Oh absolutely, I would seriously never trust a sane person until they demonstrated some kind of craziness.

Why are we less respectable than football fans? People may roll their eyes at some of them but as a whole it's like a huge fraternity. Only a tiny fringe will paint their faces and/or other body parts but other football fans who see the painted ones don't cringe, turn away or explain to their friends that while they follow the sport they're certainly not like those crazies over there. Tell a football fan that you've got 50-yard line tickets to the Superbowl and they'll say wow, clap you on the back, and proudly introduce you to all their friends instead of wondering whom you slept with to get them. Mention to someone that you went to a Superbowl party and they won't demand an instant recap of every detail of the evening.

For the record in the middle of all of this profundity...

I never said I wasn't crazy. I just said that I wasn't a Claymate, lol.

Kandre, Claytonic, Scarlett, Canfly Word Word Word!!!!

[duckyvee]

I don't like the Claymate term.

I don't like it, either, but I've become inured to it, and don't have that kneejerk negative reaction anymore when it is used in reference to me. I think my issue is just not being a joiner and not wanting to be stereotyped, no matter what the qualities are that are associated with the term. My issue, I know..... oy, I tire myself out sometimes.

Waves to JaMar who saw one of those kneejerk reactions in public once... not one of my finer moments.

I have to laugh that we're having this discussion.... again. Slow times in the Clay Nation. It's sort of like that Song that Goes Like This.

[luckiest1]

This is the song that never ends.......and it goes on and on again........

I think it's silly to say "I'm not a Claymate" because no matter how you choose to self-identify as a Clay fan, those outside of the fandom can't differentiate anyways, so you'll always be a Claymate to them no matter how hard you argue against it. And.......everything else cindilu2, Scarlett, couchie & Kandre said. (Except...........Hally Berry did so deserve the Oscar for Monster's Ball! ) I just can't get riled up about any of it. I love Clay. I'll tell anyone I love Clay. If they don't get it, it's their loss, not mine. If they ask am I a Claymate? Sure! Does that mean I travel around to see Clay in concert? Damn right I do! Now.....when's the next concert????? I mean, seriously, when the big boss recently started demanding that we give her our entire vacation schedule for 2009, no fewer than 3 of my co-workers were horrified....not for themselves, but for me! How can luckiest1 do that? She doesn't know Clay's schedule yet!

[preden]

This is the song that never ends.......and it goes on and on again........

I think it's silly to say "I'm not a Claymate" because no matter how you choose to self-identify as a Clay fan, those outside of the fandom can't differentiate anyways, so you'll always be a Claymate to them no matter how hard you argue against it. And.......everything else cindilu2, Scarlett, couchie & Kandre said. (Except...........Hally Berry did so deserve the Oscar for Monster's Ball! ) I just can't get riled up about any of it. I love Clay. I'll tell anyone I love Clay. If they don't get it, it's their loss, not mine. If they ask am I a Claymate? Sure! Does that mean I travel around to see Clay in concert? Damn right I do! Now.....when's the next concert????? I mean, seriously, when the big boss recently started demanding that we give her our entire vacation schedule for 2009, no fewer than 3 of my co-workers were horrified....not for themselves, but for me! How can luckiest1 do that? She doesn't know Clay's schedule yet!

I totally understand about giving our vacation schedule in advance, I will have to give mine for summer by the middle of march. I hope we hear about a tour schedule soon if not I'll have to do a lot of trading days off to get away for a few days to travel to a concert or two or three or four, lol!

[jamar1700]

Hey you left off the best part of those lyrics!

Some people started singing it, not knowing what it was,

and they'll continue singing it forever just because...

---

Meh on Springsteen. Always have been. Always will be. I've seen all of those songs performed in almost the exact same way before. Yawn. I half expected him to launch into Dancing in the Dark and pull Courtney Cox out of the front row. Hee.

eta....thought the inclusion of Glory Days in the set was ironic on more than one level.

---

It's okay ducky ... Franco survived. And we did drop some coin in his establishment in the end.

[Couch Tomato]

Waves to JaMar who saw one of those kneejerk reactions in public once... not one of my finer moments.

I have to laugh that we're having this discussion.... again. Slow times in the Clay Nation. It's sort of like that Song that Goes Like This.

I would have loved to have seen that kneejerk reaction.

Jamar and Lucky this also applies:

Let's stop this damn refrain

Before we go insane

but nope, every 4 monthes like clockwork.

Come back Clay!

Our challenge will be to start some new gerbil wheeel topics that will join the current list that we can also beat dead for the next 6 years. I know it's a challenge but we can do it. Oh I forgot Clay has given us some new ones this year. I'll start with...

lying about lying

Lucky...don't remember being overly pissy that Halle stole someone's oscar that year so I guess she deserved it. Can't remember who she was up against.

Now ya'll KNOW how much I love Denzel - well if you don't I haven't been properly annoying about him. Up until about the last oh let's say 6 years my cousin and I went to see his new movie opening day without fail. Hmmm one of those habits that have fallen by the wayside - dont really know why heh. Anyway, when he won for Training Day I actually went WTF? heee. Russell Crowe SO deserved that award. I think Rusell also had a WTF look on his face.

[duckyvee]

lying about lying

I'm covering my ears in horror! That's worse than an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical.

[djs111]

Now constant bitching? Especially under the guise of "ooooh, I'm just expressing my opinion about how something you like totally sucks donkey balls and yes, I have a context of I have taste and you don't but I have enough plausible deniability that I'll try to make you look like a whiner if you object" does impact me negatively and I don't enjoy it and therefore don't participate in that and try to avoid the people who do it.

Yessssssss!

Heeeeee........except those people are the only ones who truly embarrass me - it seems ludicrous to spend wads of time bitching and complaining and being generally unpleasant about someone you are a "fan" of - being a fan is not a job or an obligation - just move on to something you DO like.

If there is anything, of course.

But yeah, people I know are more puzzled by the haters and bitchers than the fans, everybody I know is a fan of something. Shoot, when I was a yooge Magic fan, I was puzzled by all the venom towards players and management and owner, and at first I was embarrassed by the pudgy lawyer (his official name was The Fat Guy) who would dress in a team uniform and run around the O-rena floor yelling and waving his arms and stirring things up - then I started to miss him when he wasn't at the game!

Just being at the game was the fun part - the fans, the familiar fans, the OOT fans - it was the experience that made it fun. I just learned to ignore the grimly critical people because they sucked the fun out of my day. Why should I let them do that?

The people who only wanted to be fans of a team that won all the time eventually moved on.

And we all paid a whole fucking lot more for tickets than a fan club membership.

If people say they hate "Claymate" and other people say they don't, that is expressing different opinions. If anyone thinks that their opinion should just shut everybody else up, or only be answered with agreement, they should prolly start their own board, and mod furiously or hand-pick their members.

Um, for some reason, that sounds smutty.

Anyhoo, that is NOT saying "leave the boards", it is saying "expressing differing opinions is how boards work".

I used to not care one way or the other about 'Claymate" - but now I am finding myself kinda liking it. Certainly nothing to get all spazzed out about!

Talking about all boards here.

I understand that Pittsburgh won! Heeeee...back in the day when I followed football players, um, I mean teams, I was irrationally mad at Pittsburgh because they dumped Franco Harris. And Franco seems to be doing just fine. So I got over it.

[Kareneh]

Well this crazy person got up at 3:00 am so she could watch the Super Bowl live and her crazy husband got up with her and stayed home from the office until noon so they could sleep off some of their insanity.

Hmmm........I prefer to be called "Collect"....."Hurry up and get your butt online, Clay's got a tour starting this summer and the tickets go on sale in the morning!" Other than that I am kind of indifferent to who calls who what....when....where....or how.....

Secretly, I am voluptuous.

Nobody I know well cares one way or the other what Clay related things I do anymore. The shock value of multiple 3 day trips with people I've met "on the internet" has long ago worn off. I honestly think I brighten the days of several people and give them something to talk about around the water cooler. It's nice to feel useful and bring laughter, and sunshine, into the dull gray world of others.

Let's see, I am sure there are some fatal equine assault issues that I haven't resolved yet. Did anyone ever figure out for absolutely, positively sure if that Mezghan/Boobgate photo was a fake or not?