Hey Vern, it's the equinox!

[vovat]

So today is the vernal equinox. Since the autumnal equinox is the beginning of autumn, I suppose today is the beginning of...vern? Verna? How come autumn gets both a modern English name and an older one, but spring doesn't? Oh, well.

What else do I have to talk about? Well, this past weekend, bethje and I watched Friday the 13th Part 8. The alternate title is "Jason Takes Manhattan," but neither Jason nor anyone else even makes it to Manhattan until over two-thirds of the way through the movie. Prior to that, Jason stows away on a cruise ship carrying a class of high school graduates. Apparently the graduating class has been treated to a cruise that included all the basic activities: shuffleboard, disco dancing, skeet shooting, and biology homework. Yes, the teacher on board keeps pestering the bitchy, vindictive cokehead homecoming queen about her biology project, but she decides to come on to him instead. I believe she dies shortly afterwards. Once the survivors finally make it to New York, Jason chases them around town, totally ignoring most of the other people on the streets. And we're treated to one of the most predictable jokes ever, where a girl goes into a diner and says something like, "There's a maniac trying to kill us!" The waitress then responds, "Welcome to New York." Gee, I never saw THAT one coming! :P So, yeah. While the Friday the 13th series (well, what I've seen of it anyway, which is now all but two movies) is never that great, I thought they were steadily increasing in quality up until Part 6. The seventh and eighth, though...not so good.

Speaking of things that are declining in quality, Beth and I have been watching the latest season of American Idol, but we find that we can't remember a fair amount of the remaining contestants. There's that one bald guy (I think he's named Phil), the Justin Timberlake wannabe, that girl who keeps doing a lousy job but Simon seems to think is hot for some reason (that reason most likely being that Simon has bad taste in women), and some others I'm sure I'm forgetting. I can remember Chris Sligh and Sanjaya, and to a lesser extent Melinda and Lakisha, but the others...not so much. Oh, I do remember Gina Glockson, the chick with the red streaks, when I actually see her, but not usually in between episodes. Anyway, I'm sometimes amazed by how people who want to break into the music business can know so little about music. Like, the theme last night was the British Invasion, and a few people said stuff like, "This was all from before I was born!" Yeah, it's too bad there aren't, like, radio stations that play music from the sixties, right? :P On the other hand, two people DID sing Zombies songs, and did so reasonably well, so that's a plus.

Finally, I might as well say something about the dream I had yesterday, since it was pretty star-studded. Apparently I was at a They Might Be Giants concert that the President had attended. Yeah, I know that doesn't make any sense. Al Gore at a TMBG concert might be a possibility, but not Bush. And yeah, I'm pretty sure the President WAS Bush, but there didn't seem to be any active dislike for him by anyone in the dream. Anyway, both of the Johns walked out of the bathroom, one after the other. One of them (I think it was Flansburgh) started talking to some of the people around me about something, and I tried to jump into the conversation, but John didn't seem to appreciate my contributions. Later on, I was on my way to work when Amy Miles showed up in the back of a car with no driver, and we talked for a little while. Then I went off to work at a library, which was also my old room at my mom's house.

Okay, I should probably take a nap or something.

Comments

[countblastula.livejournal.com]

>So today is the vernal equinox.

Yesterday at 5:07 pm, actually.

[countblastula.livejournal.com]

Oh wait, you're on the east coast.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

The difference between the equinox on the two coasts is more than three hours?

[countblastula.livejournal.com]

No, it's probably exactly 3 hours.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

So it would have been on the 20th at 8:07 PM? They were saying at work that it was on the 21st.

[rockinlibrarian.livejournal.com]

On the other hand, two people DID sing Zombies songs, and did so reasonably well, so that's a plus.


Cool.

[vilajunkie.livejournal.com]

I surprised anyone knew who the Zombies were. Do the singers get to pick their own songs or are they given songs? I never understood that part.

Actually, I'm more surprised that you're watching AI. I gave up on that show early into the first season. And that was the singers who actually made some money and fame after the show was over. Oh, and Jennifer Hudson is great, but I think that was a fluke that a runner-up got more attention that the guy who won.

[bethje.livejournal.com]

I believe they pick their own songs, but they have to pick from a pre-approved list. They don't have permission to do some songs (I remember hearing before that Shania Twain didn't want them doing her songs, but I guess she's since changed her mind), and if there's a theme, then they have to pick songs related to that.

And he watches it, because I kind of make him, so I have someone to talk about it with.

[vilajunkie.livejournal.com]

Oh LOL. Doesn't anyone else you know watch it? Why do you like to watch it? I just can't get into it. It's too candy-coated and superficial to me. I enjoy singers who've "made it" through the traditional means more.

[bethje.livejournal.com]

I don't know many people.

You like to ask me why I like things, don't you? {g} [refer to comment asking me why I like the Saw movies]

Just because I watch every episode doesn't mean I don't have issues with it or that I'm some kind unconditional love-having, crying, screaming fangirl. Part of why I like it is because I like picking at it and criticizing. Part of it makes me genuinely angry, and part of it is corny and I kinda like that, part of it is picking someone to route for, part of it is picking someone to shoot hate rays at; and part of it is just wanting to hear what the judges will say. It is among my greatest guilty pleasures.

I initially started watching it, when I saw the very first episode, and was impressed at Simon being nasty to people, because that was pretty novel for me to see. I also liked seeing people crying or getting pissy with the judges and asking the judges who they were to judge them. Then I was curious to see the rest of the season, and then I kept on keeping on.

I admit that I do like AI. I also like watching crap, and I am n ot lumping AI in with the other crap. But there are two kinds of crap: crap I will seek out (Full House, Robin Williams and Meg Ryan movies [and I freaking hate Robin Williams and Meg Ryan and their respective bodies of work], probably half of what I watch, really) and crap that I cannot stomach (Home Improvement, Boy Meets World, Desperate Housewives, Sex and the City, Baywatch). I also watch things, because I like to bitch about them. Haven't you ever read one of Nathan's posts, where he's bitching about O'Reilly or Fox News? It's because I made him watch it. We like complaining about things. Complaining is satisfying to me. I also genuinely love television and what it is and does, has done, and can do. Boy do I love television.

I've never understood the idea that AI is less valid, because it propels its finalists into (usually short-lived) fame. There are artists I love whom I'm not sure have "made it" in the first place (The Last Car, Corn Mo, The Sadies). Or in some cases, what "made it" even means: Sloan is huge in Canada, but not here; Erin McKeown and the Scissor Sisters are famous in some circles, but not in general. Sure, I love me some Monkees (also automatically famous) and Elton John. But I don't see where someone is more valid for having been living in their car (Jewel? Is she better for that?) or playing shitty clubs for years.

[vilajunkie.livejournal.com]

I do like to ask questions, don't I? It's a bad habit of mine, I suppose.

I never said really that AI isn't valid. After all, the Monkees were created by the industry, and Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, et al. were previously Mouseketeers. And I'm sure quite a few famous singers were seen on Star Search, the first incarnation of AI. I simply stateed that just coincidentally I like singers and bands that did get their hands a little dirty.

I'll admit that I like to watch crap too. I've watched my fair share of Home Improvement, Full House, Saved by the Bell, and Jerry Springer. I watch "The Daily Show" basically to complain about Bush. Same goes for reading newspapers.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

I surprised anyone knew who the Zombies were.

Well, the songs they sang were "Time Of The Season" and "She's Not There," which, along with "Tell Her No," are the ones pretty much everyone knows. (I can't say I've heard very many others myself, although I think I might like to.) Still, based on what some of the contestants said, you'd think they'd never heard ANYTHING released prior to the eighties.

Oh, and Jennifer Hudson is great, but I think that was a fluke that a runner-up got more attention that the guy who won.

Actually, that seems to happen pretty often. Clay Aiken has outsold Ruben Studdard, and I understand that Chris Daughtry has outsold Taylor. I understand that Carrie Underwood is played a lot on country radio, but I've certainly heard Bo Bice's single more times than anything she's done. Obviously, the number of times people make toll-free phones calls to vote for a person isn't directly proportional to the number of albums they'll buy. Gee, what a surprise. :P

[vilajunkie.livejournal.com]

Not just stuff only released since the eighties, but the really, really popular eighties songs such as those of Madonna and Michael Jackson. I doubt any of the contestants know the difference between Twisted Sister and the Scissor Sisters.

I think Chris Daughtry (who's been in the local news again for his second album) is popular because he's so different. Who could have imagined that a rock artist would make it into AI?
Obviously the number of times people make toll-free calls to vote for a person isn't directly proportional to the number of albums they'll buy.
You're suggesting that people would rather pay to listen to somebody than listen for free? I'm shocked. After all that downloadable music/Napster crap in the news! Or are you suggesting that people who buy records aren't the same people who like to vote for AI? I heard on the tv or radio (or maybe somebody in the family) that Sanjaya is getting votes from everyone in India, that's why he's still in the competition.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Who could have imagined that a rock artist would make it into AI?

There have been other finalists who seemed to be more into rock music than pop (not that there's always that much of a difference anyway). I was never that much of a fan of Chris's, since he mostly sang the kind of stuff I avoided listening to back in high school. {g} But I think it's significant that he released his albums with his own band, and presumably with the songs he actually wanted to do, rather than the ones AI producers decided to give him. And AI employs some horrible songwriters as well.

Or are you suggesting that people who buy records aren't the same people who like to vote for AI?

Well, sometimes they are, and sometimes they're not. I think there are a fair number of people who like a certain contestant enough to vote for them on the show, but not enough to buy their records after the show. And then you get people who vote hundreds of times in a night, but are unlikely to buy hundreds of albums (although it's likely that these are the people who will buy at least ONE album). And the shitty songwriters are a factor here as well, since I think it's quite possible to like someone when they're singing cover songs that they chose themselves, and then lose interest in them when they start singing stuff like "Invisible" or "Jesus, Take The Wheel."

I heard on the tv or radio (or maybe somebody in the family) that Sanjaya is getting votes from everyone in India

EVERYONE in India? Even the Untouchables? :P

I know some people are voting for Sanjaya BECAUSE they don't think he's very good, and they want to make a mockery of the whole thing. I don't know whether these people are voting enough to make any real difference, but they have to be somewhat of a factor.

[zimbra1006.livejournal.com]

You're right, I think the people on AI this season are just so incredibly dull that I forget they exist in between episodes. Booo-urns. And Sanjaya's performance last night was so bad it actually terrified me. I don't care if it was his "best performance," it still ruined that song forever and I've unfortunately had his rendition stuck in my head all day!

[vilajunkie.livejournal.com]

I wonder if Sanjaya will win the whole competition just by his looks and uniqueness; much like Taylor Hicks in my mind. I never cared for Taylor. And I think part of it had to do with his ridiculous silver hair.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

I kind of wonder if part of why the judges let Sanjaya go so far was some kind of weird affirmative action thing, since I'm pretty sure they've never had anyone of Indian descent make it to the finals before.

[vilajunkie.livejournal.com]

Well, not only is he of Indian descent, but he's relatively good-looking for someone of Indian descent. Gods forbid someone unattractive makes it to the Top 12. You're right, it's likely all a novelty factor.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Simon especially seems to want to pick out people who look "commercial." Of course, plenty of not-conventionally-attractive people have succeeded in music (and some have even helped to alter the general public's conception of what IS attractive), but I think the AI judges and producers often want to be as conventional as possible with their choices. Sure, a gray-haired guy who hugs himself constantly can win, but that's probably about as far as it will go in terms of less typical-looking people making the finals.

Along with that, I've noticed that, once the contestants have access to (read: "are forced to see") stylists, they often lose what was distinctive about them in the first place, like how Kimberley Locke had her hair straightened and got rid of her glasses.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

I actually think that might have been Sanjaya's WORST performance. His others were kind of dull, but not really bad. That most recent one was just ridiculous, though. I think the judges just liked that he sang something upbeat for a change, even though he sucked at it.

[kristenjarrod.livejournal.com]

I won't touch American Idol with a 10 ft pole, but I thin that Justin Timberlake look a like is a local. They bring him up in the news like twice a week, and in the newspaper. *groans*.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

One of the contestants in Season 2 (I think) was from the area where I live now, but he didn't make it to the Top 12, so they probably didn't talk about him quite as much. Not that I would really know, since I don't read the local papers anyway. I know the local news made a big deal out of Justin Guarini being from the Philadelphia area.