10086 Sunset Boulevard

Did I say I was starting to feel sorry for Antonella? I’m back to wanting her voted off Idol. She has no business being there and her crack at Simon about him being wrong about Jennifer Hudson was really off the mark. She’s no Jennifer Hudson and Antonella’s popularity has nothing to do with her limited talent.

None of the women are stand outs as Idols. Leslie Hunt is the only truly unique one of the bunch, but she’s a little odd, in a deranged kind of way. She sang “Feeling Good” and the a cappella opening was promising, but then she got that look in her eyes, started scatting and then morphed into “Crazy Leslie”.

House is back next Tuesday, which means a little less Idol and a little more substance to our television viewing.

Nope, still a bunch to weed through. The guys were pretty good last night, my favorite still being Blake Lewis. I even lightened up a bit toward Chris Sligh, who dedicated “Trouble” to his wife. Sanjaya was the weakest link and I’m sure this is his last week on Idol.

I thought the judges were in rare form last night and were actually amusing. Simon and Paula seem to be having a thing……. and Simon and Ryan seem to be having a thing too. I don’t think Randy is included in their “thing” though. The thing must be pretty good judging by their moods.

Tonight we have the girls and I’m actually starting to feel sorry for Antonella Barba, and all the photos floating around on the Internet. And with friends who take pictures of you on the toilet, who needs enemies? Wait, why on earth would someone pose for a picture on the toilet? Apparently, that’s what they do for kicks in Point Pleasant “Toilet Photo, USA” New Jersey:

”It’s the way this town is: Everybody knows everything about their friends,” said Mark Dillon, 17. ”At least half the people in this town have pictures of their friends on the toilet. I’ve personally seen at least 20. It’s only because she’s on TV that they’re online.”

Maybe someone can send these kids some video games or take them to the movies.

The girls are pretty good, but other than Antonella, I have a hard time remembering even one of them.

When is House going to be back on?

The Academy Awards show was more entertaining this year, thanks to a relaxed and funny Ellen Degeneres. I enjoyed the easy way she mingled with the crowd, bypassing Clint Eastwood’s wife to reach across and hand the camera to Steven Spielberg, so that he could snap a MySpace photo of her and Clint. She did a top notch job of hosting the show.

Last year Charlize Theron wore the dress with the most annoying big thingy on the shoulder, this year Nicole Kidman did the honors with a redder than red Balenciaga gown.

Gwyneth Paltrow was old Hollywood glamorous in a Zac Posen creation and Reese Witherspoon makes the best dressed list in her aubergine Nina Ricci gown.

Then there is Helen Mirren in a class all by herself. What a woman. I was happy to see her win the Oscar last night.

Peter O’Toole was there. I was sad to see him not win the Oscar, but you know, he should have won for Lawrence of Arabia. I’m still expecting them to correct that little mistake.

Big improvement over last year and other than the Dreamgirls medley of songs performed by Jennifer Hudson, Beyonce and Anika Noni Rose in her $500,000 Diamond Dream Shoes, I didn’t feel much like snoozing through the Award Ceremonies this year.

Over the last couple of years, I’ve made a point of taking better care of myself, part of recovering from my past life and transitioning into my new life. Besides improving my diet and working on the weight loss side of things, I’ve also worked on putting time aside to pamper myself - mind, body and soul. A list has grown, the “JO” list. Things I like to keep on hand so that I never again return to a state of self neglect. I’m going to share some of the items from the list with you from time to time. Chances are you already enjoy some of them, but perhaps I’ll turn you onto something you didn’t know you couldn’t live without.

I’ve decided that fine, hand milled soaps are a “must have” and can really add to a sense of well being. I have, like a lot of people this winter, suffered with dry, itchy skin. No amount of moisturizing seems to have done the trick – until I spent a nice evening in a steamy bath with a bar of BC Spirit Soap. After the first session, I noticed a difference in my skin. It was softer and I slept through the night without waking up to the usual itchiness. I’ve been using it ever since and I can’t imagine going back to a commercial brand of soap.

This soap does not lather up in the same way commercial brands do, but it left me feeling much cleaner, softer and smelling good. Hand milled in Nelson, British Columbia, BC Spirit Soaps are made with olive oil, glacier water, pure essential oils, beeswax and lye. I asked Linda, the soapmaker, about the lye in the soap. Her reply was:

Fine hand milled soap has lye in it to set it. The lye over the 5 weeks of curing changes chemical composition so it is no longer harsh or caustic. Lye is in commercial soaps, usually listed as sodium hydroxide.

It is available in the following scents:

• rose
• geranium
• jasmine green tea
• rosewood
• peppermint
• lavender
• cedar
• pine
• lemongrass
• unscented

I use BC Spirit Soap daily and it has me feeling comfortable in my own skin. It’s going on my list as a necessary luxury. Go to BC Spirit Soap and order yourself a treat.

I’m not even sure I can sit through another minute of American Idol this week. I might just watch CSI instead. Gil Grissom is back, so it’ll be the real deal. I’ve already cheated and looked at the results of tonight’s American Idol elimination show. If you want to sit through your fifth hour of Idol tonight, then don’t click on this link which will tell you the results and give you the option of watching something else.

Anything else would be good, especially if it doesn’t have Fantasia Barrino as a guest star. Was she ever in CSI? God, I hope not. Ryan Starr was. Do you remember her? She was in the first season of American Idol and I was sure she would win. She played a corpse on CSI.

If I have Idol Burnout, what do Simon, Paula and Randy feel like? Out of thousands and thousands of young talent, this is the best America has to offer? I don’t believe that can be true. I think that the people who processed the auditions were focusing so much on letting through the freaks and geeks for our entertainment purposes (and they did a great job on that end) that they forgot they’d need actual talent at the end of the show.

That’s all the Idol Chat from me this week.

I’m losing interest already. This part of American Idol is never my favorite, but I’m not really partial to any of the contestants this year.

Chris Sligh lost my vote last night with his “Teletubby” barb thrown at Simon. Very unprofessional. Simon made a lot of money off that hit album. It’s business, not a music preference.

Blake Lewis, the beatboxer, stood out this week by not beatboxing. Other than that, it’s a real milk-toast competition at this point. No one has the WOW factor.

Tonight the ladies get their shot. As you know, I’m hoping Antonella Barba will get voted off this week, but no favorites to take the lead at this point.

I’m posting this gratuitous picture of Antonella and friend to make up for the boring nature of this post and my lack-luster enthusiasm. Five hours of American Idol in one week? It’s just too much.

The Bitches of Idol. Who are they? The delusional dilettantes Amanda Coluccio and Antonella Barba. I thought that Baylie Brown had a real shot at being the next American Idol, but being paired up with “best friends” Amanda and Antonella did not bode well for her future.
Maybe Baylie needed a little humbling. At 16 years of age, with beauty and talent, she was ripe to become an unbearable diva, but now that she’s had a reality check, I’m hoping she’s the wildcard they bring back into the competition.

When Baylie was distraught over being cut, Amanda speculated that it could be because “God likes good people”. When Amanda was questioned about the fact that she chose to flirt with the boys, instead of rehearsing with her group, she said that she and Antonella can have “as many boys as we want at home.” Perhaps she can turn that into a paying gig since home is where she was sent to the next day.

One arrogant bitch down, one to go.

More on The Bitches of Idol:

From TV Robot:

When Baylie is crying and Amanda and Antonella are coldly distancing themselves—standing a foot away and not offering any condolences—Baylie accurately points out how difficult it is to be sent home after working hard while another goes off to flirt with boys.

Amanda tells American Idol cams she did NO such thing, as the cameras cut to the scene where is doing just that. She also, arm in arm with her equally icky best friend, says she has plenty of opportunities for attracting boys back home.

From ReadExpress.com:

Poor Baylie has been stuck with “best friends” and future mob wives Amanda and Antonella and they argue in their theater seats about song choice. Sneaky cutting makes it appear as if Baylie is hearing gorgeous harmonies from other groups, so she’s extra frustrated. They don’t know the words, so Amanda decides to go strut her short-shorts around a roomful of practicing boys, while Baylie and Antonella decide it’s not worth staying up and memorizing words and go to bed.

And from BlogCritics.org:

Amanda actually had the gall to comment that “God allowed only good people” to go through. Man, I wanted to see this little bitch go down in flames after she said that.

And from AmericanSuperstar.com

Baylie Brown decided to hook up with Wonder Twins Amanda and Antonella. Bad move. Not only did she forget her words and get the boot, but she also discovered the Twins special powers were lying and backstabbing.

The color red means many things to me. Love, hate, anger and a couple of years ago it was the color of betrayal.

This year it is the color of passion and I am off to play for 24 hours. American Idol doesn’t figure into my plans, so I’m sure you’ll understand if I’m a bit late at my recap this week.

I hope you have a wonderful Valentine’s Day, whether it be about love, lust or chocolate. Or better still, all three.

I may not have had much to say about the disappointing finale of the audtions segment of American Idol, but I do have something to say about Dreyer’s new line of slow churned ice cream. “Yummy”. Their new American Idol line features Take This Cake, Choc n’ Roll Caramel, Hollywood Cheesecake, Soulful Sundae Cone (which I’m enjoying now) and Triple Talent.

If you are watching calories, you can have a half a cup and chalk up only 130 calories. But then who in the hell wants only a half a cup of ice cream? Someone with more self control than I possess. At 17 grams of carbohydrates per half a cup, it’s not so good if you are watching your sugar intake, but if you are feeling like a treat, this is really good stuff.

Want a chance to win tickets to the finale of American Idol? Go here.

Anna Nicole Smith died today. You can read the story here.