The Journal Gazette

CLAY AIKEN
Carolina crooner in town tonight
By Steve Penhollow
The Journal Gazette

Clay Aiken is often described as “elfin.”
There was a time when this sort of adjective, when applied to anyone who was not the Elite Modeling Agency’s “Look of the Year” or anyone who was not cheating on Frank Sinatra with Robert Evans (or vice versa), was an automatic insult.
But we live in days when elves are played on screen by dreamboats like Orlando Bloom, so “elfin” is in.
So is Clay Aiken.
He’s a sex symbol, and the unlikeliest one since Dud-ley Moore joined John Gielgud in that big mansion in the sky.
There are people who can’t quite believe Aiken is a sex symbol, but the biggest skeptic by far is Aiken himself.
The thousands of women who scream nightly for the “American Idol” celeb have done little to convince him.
“That does not make me think I’m a sex symbol,” Aiken said, in a phone interview.
“It makes me think, ‘What is wrong with these ladies?’?”
Aiken performs today at the Memorial Coliseum.
There is little about Aiken’s ascendance that isn’t slightly implausible, except his irrefutable talent.
With his Peter Pan face, his Pee Wee Herman frame, his Richie Cunningham charm and his Anthony Newley voice, Aiken seemed unlikely to survive into the final rounds of the insanely popular and absurdly picky talent showcase.
But Aiken came in second and then proceeded to surpass that season’s winner, Ruben Studdard, in album sales and consumer interest.
There are some fans who still believe a conspiracy was at the heart of Aiken’s silver medal status.
Aiken rubbishes those rumors, however.
“Anyone who was on that show will vouch for the fact that, from our seats, everything was very honest. There was nothing rigged about it
“It was a close call. I kind of say, ‘If it was in the cards for me to win, I would have won.’ In some regards, it was better for me that I didn’t win because the expectations were lower for me.
“I’m proud of him, and he is proud of me. I don’t care whether I won or not.”
Headlining his own tour (something Studdard is also doing, but not without a little gimmickry and added incentive for potential ticket buyers) can hardly be described as a consolation prize for Aiken.
He made the ultimate touring faux pas not too long ago, giving a shout out to South Dakota when he was in North Dakota.
“Hey I’m from North Carolina,” he says, “and if someone had yelled out South Carolina to me, I would have thrown something at him.”
But Aiken has been getting generally good marks from critics for his stage presence, patter and pizazz.
There is nothing like touring the country to help a nascent star understand that his days as a small-town Southern boy are over.
There are few places Aiken can go anymore where he isn’t mobbed.
“It is a little difficult to go out and go shopping,” he said.
“I recently went to a mall in New Hampshire. It had been a long since I’d gone to a mall. It was all right for a while, and then my friend turned to me and said, ‘I think we’re about to wear out our welcome.’ Within minutes, people were chasing us around.
“It is a downside. I talk to my friends back at home, and I tell them, ‘When you’re done with work, you go home. The only time I’m off is when I’m in my house and no one is around.’?”
Not that Aiken is complaining. In fact, the only time the notoriously nice guy got ever-so-slightly agitated during the interview was when the reporter suggested he might have a legitimate excuse for being not-so-nice to the more insistent type of fan.
“You are making it sound like it’s easier to be rude than be nice,” he said. “You make it sound like being nice takes more effort.”
Being nice takes more effort for most, but it’s clearly a cakewalk for Aiken.
The qualities that have caused all nations to call Aiken blessed were unobstructed by the phone lines: his sweet nature, his “aw shucks” humility, his occasional goof-iness.
And, of course, there’s that laugh: like a flock of shocked chickens bursting from the henhouse.
The laugh erupts when Aiken compares and contrasts the first three seasons of “Idol.”
“Kelly and I both argued about which season was best,” Aiken said, “her season or my season. I’m sure Fantasia (Barrino) would argue that her season was the best.
“But we all know that the only person who is right would be me,” Aiken said.

posted by Yee 10:45 PM

. . .

LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
yingyi the bdae party is next sat issit??
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
yup
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
what we giving them ah?
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
i dunno leh... haven't bought yet... no idea
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
nobody seems to be free... maybe next tue then buy
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
any suggestions? haha...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
haha if u ask me... i'll just say t-shirt loh...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
practical and affordable....
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
zihui doesn't need any more tshirts
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
she say no wallet, no skates (not that we can afford)
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
haha.... yah... forget bout the skates.... eh.. then tee shirt for wanyu loh....
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
at least thats one objective down...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
oh for wanyu i still got some idea... some precious thot musical / glass ball...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
wah.... we can afford ah??? haha...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
haha, just nice, got $1 left for wrapping
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
but for zihui's i dunno what to get at all. i'm even thinking of a cd-player. oh whatever...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
a cd-player??? haha... how bout just the speakers??
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
aiyoh small portable one lah...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
oh i see... haha....
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
how bout.... any cds that she want??
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
dunno...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
but whatever we buy will be within budget.. about $8 per person for each present...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
is that alright? 8?
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
8 each??/ so thats 16??
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
for both presents
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
are you shocked or something?
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
oh.... i see....
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
i see what you're shocked about...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
ha.... ok lah....
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
honestly tell me how much is alright?
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
i just think gotta spend money again... haiz...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
nobody say anything... i dunno how to plan one leh...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
8 is decent lah... really....
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
i also broke...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
if not cant get anything decent mah...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
haha... u planning to celebrate ur bdae??
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
hahahahahahahaha.............. no
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
so scary, all that planning....
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
low profile! haha...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
you?
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
why??? haha.... if we dont celebrate...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
cant gain back all the presents leh...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
loogi!!!
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
aiyah...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
celebrating also spend money one right...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
then you? wanna celebrate to gain back all the presents you spent on?
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
haha.... dunno leh... exams coming during that time....
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
haha same here
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
no mood to celebrate....
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
my bday always around exam time too...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
then if you like you do it later lah! haha...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
otherwise... someone say loogi...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
haha same month ah the both of us...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
yilin also right//
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
yup!
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
i forgot again... between the 2 of you... 23 or 24? you 23 issit?
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
yup... 23 for me...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
haha i dont wanna celebrate... but i want my presents.....
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
noted
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
but how we give you? haha....
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
i'll be in the law library mugging i think.... haha...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
chey!
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
so u know where to find me lah...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
meet for dinner lah
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
you want who to share your present then you ask them to meet for dinner loh. hahaha...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
haha.... good point ah....
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
how bout u??
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
dinner for u too??
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
er.... :regrets suggesting dinner: at most dinner loh...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
haha.... dont worry.... i can be in charge of buying ur gift.... so haha i oredi invite myself to ur dinner lioaz...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
ok ok.... if i do decide on dinner alright? haha...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
EH! no need to treat bah? :checks empty wallet:
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
heehee...
bubble same no of breaks, zero suspense says:
okok no more nonsense, gotta go prepare sleep... tmr morn still got lesson. see you next sat! bye...
LGSC and the mascot: Loxia... a plant from jamaica! says:
bye!

posted by Yee 11:12 PM

. . .

i had a bad dream last night... or should i say this morning. i dreamt that i had something to do t 6pm (which is true), but i was supposed to meet wanfen they all in the morning. but i dreamt i overslept, cos i didn't set any alarm at all. ended up i only woke up at 4 plus in the afternoon. i totally freaked out that i slept for so long. mom said that she kept thinking if she should wake me up but didn't wake me at all. i was just in such a worried and rushed mind. it was so uncomfortable... when i actually awaken from the dream and sleep, i was so relieved... but very annoyed too. haiz...

i saw a weird fella on the train the other day. i was like 2 or 3 stops away from my train stop. there weren't many people on the train and i was basically just reading the newspaper minding my own business. then at the corner of my eye i saw this man holding on to the handles, lift his legs off the floor and swinging in the air. huh? he did that a few times, then clamped his hands around the rail and revolved around it. diaoz~... he ran up and down the car, bouncing on the balls of his feet. he even declared "i'm so happy today!..." oh my goodness... i mean, if he's harmless, he can do that, i don't mind... but i was just a little paranoid and worried he might start talking to the rest of the people. a bit worrying... well i got off soon though... lucky

today is annual general meeting. going to handover the duties. i hope somebody will do the job, i don't wish to have put in more time on the duties. i kow it's good to join in activities, but it's gonna be rather hectic this sem and next, i dont think i can handle it...

what would it take to make you see that i'm alive... if i was invisible... then i could just watch you in your room... if i was invincible i'll make you mine tonight... if hearts were unbreakable... i am listening to MOAM again. yes yes! i still like it a lot... though it's not as good as his live performances... i'm still so amazed by his voice. good!

ysterday i was sending allan clay songs! haha! i'm secretly hoping to clayvert him... yippee! see how it turns out... too bad he doesn't want the live ones with the yelling and stuff like that... but not to worry, clay has enough studio recorded songs that i can recommend. but there's one problem. those are all on audio cd. i don't want to convert them. i don't wanna pirate his songs... =( he specifically asked for solitaire but... it's cd! don't wanna pirate it leh... but if it is going to help expand his fan base, why not? hmm... i should consider it... i dunno. see how lah...

posted by Yee 12:38 PM

. . .

had to squeeze 95 bus just now. i was standing right at the door. it was a weir dfeeling, quite enjoyable, that i was standing so low that i felt like i was running along on the road. when the bus drove over a drain, it suddenly struck me that i should hold on to my card better lest it falls into the drain. hee...

posted by Yee 9:44 AM

. . .

monday (yesterday) no good.
bad bad mood... and i didn't vent my anger on anyone. not too bad...
went to office of finance to pay the 46.20. there was only 2 in the queue ahead. but it took very long. after it i settled the payment, the cashier printed the receipt and let me go. i waited at the bus stop for a while. then i realised she didn't sign it. went back to ask for her signature. waited for bus C back to sci... went up to dean's office. they refuse to fax a copy to OSA directly. they insist i should make a copy and bring it down to OSA on my own. maybe it's a chance for me to doctor the form and stuff then bring to OSA. maybe that's why they don't have to fax it over to ensure safety. perhaps it's a plot. maybe they want to frame me for something. i'm paranoid. nope i'm actually just joking. it's not a funny joke. it can't be if i'm not in a good mood. i was about to flare up and talk really sarcastically to the morons. but i didn't. i should try to control my temper. i shouldn't go around offending everybody. not anyone with power, in any case. went for lunch. supposed to meet shumin. she was late. i was starving. bought the food. no chicken, no pork. i bought fish. the first piece i bite into was even harder and tougher than beef. not happy at all. but later on the rest of the fish was fine. at least, no fishy smell or taste. a bunch of chinese ladies came over with their trays of food. they just plopped down happily at our table without asking for permission. i was disgusted. and pissed. then they spotted the next table was quite empty except for a bag. they just moved over. one mentioned there's a bag there, but she doesn't care. i'm totally turned off. such rude people. no manners. total embarrassment. went for 3105. he's as boring as usual... i felt like sleeping the moment he went into lecture proper. i hate it. the tutorials will be on mon 10-12, 4-6, and tue 10-12. i can't make it on tue. i've got lecture at that timing. for any of the 2 time slots left, i'll surely end up with 6 straight hours of lesson. i shan't have to eat lunch. great... went for science of music lecture after that. my row, was full of girls. they couldn't shut their mouths. no. not from the beginning of lecture right to the end. they kept talking. and they didn't even bother to keep their voices down. they didn't even turn their mobiles to vibration or silent mode for the matter. says a lot. i was totally annoyed. was contemplating telling them to shut their trap the entire lesson. but of course, i wasn't planning to make it sound so rude. i was thinking maybe i should be nice and put it in an easier way. but then with that kind of mood, i would probably have put it in a super sarcastic manner. whatever... i hate these people... after lesson i went to OSA. ms mala wasn't in. oh well, at least the other people will willing to help. on my way home, in the mrt, there was this really noisy kid. he was sitting in the pram. and making crying whining tantrum noises, FOR FUN. i felt like walking over to slap him or something. and all the mom did was to pat his head or rub his mouth. i felt like slapping her as well. but half my mind was thinking that kid might be a little abnormal, as in it might be some medical reason that he's like that. if that was the case, then i shouldn't be so mean. so i even tried not to look annoyed and not glare at him. MAN! it was tough... i had to buy milk. i decided to walk home instead of taking bus since i would go to NTUC and get the milk. it's usually on offer there. walked there, but no offer label. ok, since i'm hungry and wanna buy waffle, i might as well not buy the milk now. then i can have enough hands to hold my waffle and eat for a while before buying at shopnsave. afterall, it's nearer, and there's no offer so no diff. walked back to shop n save. there wasn't even any milk at all, not to mention offer or whatnot. feeling of desperation and resignation reigned. continued to walk home. people were burning paper money everywhere. i was choking and my waffle was getting polluted and contaminated. i was upset. very upset by the smoke. then when i was crossin the road, saw this boy standing opposite on the grass, PEEING THERE. you can practically see the string of pee. i mean, if anyone stood there i wouldn't think of anything. but i saw this spurt of water, and THEN saw the kid. gee. it was gross. i am totally shocked. it was a bad day. but i slept well at night. so i'm thankful.

posted by Yee 9:09 PM

. . .

from WinXP newsletter:

Have We Been Googled?
The controversy over search engine giant Google has intensified recently. When California's new Online Privacy Protection Act went into effect last month, Google changed its privacy policy to inform users that they will be pooling information they gather on their services, and that they may give the information to anyone they wish. Although essentially no different from the policies of many other companies (for example, Yahoo), this raised a ruckus among the anti-Google crowd.
The Google Watch Web site (http://www.google-watch.org) lists a number of complaints they have about the search engine that has come to be many folks' favorite. In fact, they nominated Google for the "Big Brother" award in 2003. The award is given annually by Watchdog Privacy International (http://www.privacyinternational.org/bigbrother/us2004/) to "government and private sector organizations which have done the most to threaten personal privacy in their countries."
Earlier this year, Google's launch of their free e-mail service, Gmail, came under fire when the Watchdog director accused it of violating European privacy laws (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/04/07/eu_foul_gmail/). The U.K. online news site, The Register, went so far as to print a story titled "Google mail is evil - privacy advocates." (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/04/03/google_mail_is_evil_privacy/). The Gmail privacy policy is available for anyone to read at: http://gmail.google.com/gmail/help/privacy.html, and makes it clear that the company may retain backup copies of e-mail data. This is the part that has so many people up in arms.
Of course, critics overlook the fact that Google is providing a free service that people sign up for and use voluntarily. They also forget to mention that almost all ISPs/e-mail providers back up the data on their servers regularly - this is a standard practice and is done for the customer's benefit.
Another criticism of Google is that they place a long term cookie on your system when you use the search engine. Of course, so do other sites such as Amazon. With most browsers, it's very easy to clear your cookies whenever you want (although this means you'll have to reenter information and the Web site won't "remember" you - can't have it both ways).
Finally, Google Watch claims that the Google toolbar is "spyware." This is based on the fact that it can, if you select to install the "advanced features," send information about the sites you visit to Google. This is needed if you want to use certain toolbar features such as page ranking. However, if you don't want this to happen, all you have to do is check "Disable advanced features." Google doesn't even check "Enable advanced features" by default; you're forced to explicitly make the choice yourself, and installation won't proceed until you do. The Google toolbar, like the Gmail service, is free, and it's an extremely handy tool that also adds a popup blocker to IE.
Of course, it's inevitable that Google would be targeted by those who believe that success itself is somehow evil and any company that becomes successful must be doing bad things to achieve that success. What do you think? Do you use Google and/or Gmail? In the interests of full disclosure, I have to admit that I use both, and that installing the Google toolbar is one of the first things I do after setting up a new system. Apparently I'm not the only one who feels Google Watch is a tad overreactive; you can read a detailed analysis and reasoned counterarguments to each of their claims at:http://www.winxpnews.com/rd/rd.cfm?id=040810ED-Google_Watch
Are all of us who rely on Google's excellent search functions just minions of the new evil empire? Does that make Mozilla a co-conspirator, for building the Google bar into their Firefox browser? Let us know your opinions at feedback@winxpnews.com.

posted by Yee 5:26 PM

. . .

ok. so, just how bad is singapore idol?

first, i think there is something seriously wrong with the make up artists and production crew. because they successfully make everybody on the show look like they have really bad complexion. let's see if that improves.

and then, there are bad attitudes, and cannot-accept-criticism-nor-reality people. plenty of them. they refuse to go. and they sound bad, by the way. a lot of them try to imitate westerners, as in they try to sing with that certain accent. many are just so pretentious. talking about which, there was this guy who was whispering, not singing, careless whisper.nobody in the world could hear him. it was simply annoying and embarrassing. then when the judges told him, he never bothered to listen (them telling him they couldn't hear a thing). he kept asking them for comments, "tell me where i should improve", what do you think this is? it's an audition, hello, not a music lesson. obviously he was just trying to give the false impressiobn that he was humble and willing to change, modest, and blah... pretentious!

worth a mention is that lemon tree guy. it was hilarious. he was waving his hands and gesticulating while singing. keep giving the v-sign with his fingers, really stupid looking. AND he kept rolling his eyes. oh my goodness... apparently he wass trying to pull off a william hung stunt. he actually aspired to be singapore's william hung. says a lot huh? yeah, so you achieved that. he looked pretty pleased with himself. until ken lim pointed out that, yeah, and thousands of people watching will remember you pulling that stunt too. hahaha!!! he looked totally taken aback and embarrassed at that. gee, was that sudden realization? does it mean it never even occured to him? pathetic...

the worst has got to be steven lim. he sang a non-william-hung-style she bangs, but it was a lot worse and far more unbearable. mind you, he wasn't only shouting out the song, he wasn't only claiming to be a street eyeborw plucker, he wasn't only hogging for the camera. he was stripping. he wore this gladiator like dress, and then proceeded to rip off layer by layer. until he stripped down to this yellow underwear like piece of garment. i dunno what happened after that. i dunno if he stripped any more, but i couldn't take it. horrifying. i dunot even know what might be going through his head. what, he was trying to seduce the judge panel consisting of three men out of four? get a life!

there were numerous bad ones. i can't relaly remember any good ones. even those who were decent weren't very impressive. the trailer they had with the person singing sway, then the caption claiming that there is talent in singaopore. remember that? i tell you, that was probably the best they got. not very impressive. there were some clay-inspired ones. one fella went up and announced he was going to sing somewhere over the rainbow, like done by clay aiken. and then he launched into singing somewhere out there. i can't believe he could get that wrong. another guy sang DLTSGDOM. decent voice, but nothing especially unique about it either.

they said the standard would be better and better. it had better be. hello, you're eliminating the poor ones and narrowing down. how can it posibly get worse? duh... very intelligent huh...

oh ya, next episode is tonight! we've got to witness the pathetic state of it. can't miss it...

posted by Yee 3:23 PM

. . .

that day on my way to tuition there was an old lady on the bus carrying a lot of things. when she got on the bus (at interchange) she cut my queue. irritating... but when she got off at the same stop as i did, i offered to help her carry some of her plastic bags of stuff (darn heavy) off the bus so that she can some down safely. it was nice. she was happy too. i must be not so bad a person after all.

today i got irritated by some people at the mrt station. i was getting up the escalator when i heard some tumbling noise down the next escalator. gave me a shock. turned out these two malay boys were playing with skateboards which tumbled down.

then at the following escalator there was this indian boy who keep walking down the UP escalator. dammit.

turning out to the platform from the escalator got these 2 women keep blocking me also.

later the stupid indian kid from just now block me on platform again.

on the train at outram park there was an empty seat. i was just turning over to sit down when this man came in from the station and just slipped into the seat from right under my nose. @#$%^&*(

on the bus home, this father bringing his two kids got on the bus. i was sitting at the 3seater right behind the driver's seat. the two kids just clambered beside me then asked the dad to sit down as well. the dad went "the two of you sit here how i sit? why you don't want ot go behind so that i got place to sit also?" well... he was making enough sense... so i decided to be nice... i gave up my seat and went behind to look for other seats.

hey, i'm not really that bad after all huh?
if you wanna talk about bad, you gotta watch singapore idol.
THAT'S BAD.

posted by Yee 10:51 PM

. . .

Reluctant 'Idol' candidate Aiken has done very well
Sunday, August 8, 2004
By Mary BarberStaff Writer

"They say when you wanna make God laugh, all you gotta do is tell him your plans."
That's a line from "When You Say You Love Me," on Clay Aiken's debut CD, "Measure of a Man."
God must be chortling.

The 25-year-old was studying special education at the University of North Carolina -- Charlotte when the mother of one of his students persuaded him to try out for "American Idol."

He sang at the Charlotte auditions and was sent home.

"I had no desire to be involved at all," Aiken said in a phone interview. "But I saw the people who sang with me, and I said 'I'm not getting cut.' ! It's just stubbornness."

His second audition, in Atlanta, resulted in an invitation to Los Angeles for the show's second season. Then he was cut again -- but was allowed to continue on a "wild card." He ended up taking second, behind Ruben Studdard.

Second place hasn't been so bad.

Aiken's first single, "This Is the Night," hit No. 1 on the Billboard charts. He won the Fan's Choice Award at the American Music Awards. His CD hit No. 1 and was one of the top-selling CDs of 2003. He joined the "American Idols Live" tour, then spent several weeks on the road early this year with the show's first winner, Kelly Clarkson.

And he finished his degree, graduating last December.

Now he's headlining a tour, with opening act Cherie, and he said the pressure's up.

"If the show went bad, I could blame it on her (Clarkson) last time," he joked. "But it's fun."

Aiken seems to be able to keep his success in perspective. After all, he's one of the rare few who could have it either way -- with fame, or without.
"In many ways, (teaching) is much more fulfilling than walking on stage," he said. "You don't get the money, for sure, which is a shame. But the benefits you get are much bigger and much more fulfilling. ! You don't walk in and have all the kids stand up and clap for you. You have to find success in small miracles. When the kid you were working with for three months to read one word does read just one word, it's very satisfying."

But fame has its perks, he said.

"The adulation and adoration you get from an audience when you're singing is very visible, very evident," he said. "I enjoy what I'm doing, and I get to see the world, see different things, and pay for vacations for my parents and my friends. I don't see any reason for me to want to stop it right now."

But if it doesn't work out, that's fine, he said.

"I don't have designs on it lasting forever," he said. "That would be a little too presumptuous."

Millions of kids want to be the next Clay Aiken, the next American Idol. But that's not the right path for everyone, he said.

"I think the best advice I could give someone would be to have enough confidence in yourself not to let one loss get you down," he said, "not to let one comment from Simon (Cowell, one of three judges) or the equivalent get you down."

He said he saw lots of very talented singers at "American Idol" who could make a career in music.

"But one nasty comment from Simon, and they were crushed for life," he said. "What's the point in that?"

He said Cowell is critical offstage as well as on, but his comments could be slightly more constructive in private.

"He's a little pompous, but he genuinely does usually care about those who are on the show," Aiken said. "He's not a cold-hearted person at all."
Asked if Cowell's advice helped him, Aiken said, "He'd like to say it did."
Aiken performs at 8 p.m. Thursday. Tickets are $29-$32.

posted by Yee 10:40 PM

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just had a talk with bo mu... i should take honours, however troublesome it might be, however low my confidence would be...
of course, there remains the fact that i can't guarantee i'll get anything better than a 2nd upper hons... i must work hard. i must. i must.

bidding round 2a today. i hope i get my modules... knowing the bidders exceed the vacancies, somebody's bound to not get the module. but i hope it won't be me. that's why i poured in my points. i hope i get my modules. geez...

we have to get kaili's present tmr. fish, huiyi and cindy are going with me. zihui hasn't even replied yet whether or not she wanna share. tsk tsk... this girl ah... she's always so busy that we can't find her. she's getting to be a bit like apple! who, by the way, hasn't replied either...

i'm glad we do have a rough idea as to what to buy for her. i better calculate the budget soon. but then ah, if these people don't reply soon enough, i won't be able to come up with the budget... me, fish, apple, zihui, huiyi, choo, cindy, allan, mervyn, yiming, fadzli, eric, kaisiang. assuming all of them are sharing, that would be 13 people. whee, we can afford something good! say, 8pax, that would mount up to... gasp- 104! yes! we might be able to afford a renoma for all you know... or a fantastic swatch, for that purpose... hmm, if we're getting a pretty wallet, it might come with the wrapping. but i doubt it'll be anything as nice a the braun buffel though... so if the wrapping's nice, i can even save on the wrapping cost. otherwise, i'll need to get some wrapper that's more presentable than the usual 20cents kind...

i have a confession to make. actually i did torture animals before. when i was young and innocent (maybe not so anymore huh?). when we went to swiss last time, we kids were horrified by the number of slugs we foun on the roads. it was offending and creepy. we hated it. it's like, you naturally wanna kill ants and cockroaches, but they're easy to get rid of. all you have to do is to step on them. those slugs, you can't possibly step on them right? so twakin just said, all we need is to sprinkle some salt on the slug, and thyey'll be killed. so that's what we did... i mean, me and gavin... we asked the restaurant at the hotel for some salt, then on our way out for morning walk we were scouting for slugs and finishing them off. now that i think of it, it's just gross... but then, we thought it was good to kill those pesky slugs. oh my gosh... KIDS!! ugh...

posted by Yee 3:23 PM

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Another brilliant article from beavers on idol...

How Do the Idols Measure Up against Original Artists?

by James Shepherd (2004/08/02)
One advantage of running an Internet radio station like Idol Music Radio is that you can put together playlists that have interesting themes for the listener in the context of Idol music. Some of these specialty playlists that I have created and broadcast from time to time carry such themes as "Idols singing oldies," "Idol duets and group numbers," or "Idol dance numbers," etc. But the one theme that I have received the most positive input from the listeners has been the playlist wherein I play a classic song by the original artist and directly afterward, play an Idol singing the same song. Basically, the Idol performer in most cases captures the essence of the original by maintaining it's quality of performance, and in some cases, the Idol seems to surpass it. Perhaps this is why there are so many Idol addicts out there because so much of Idol music is at least as good as, if not better than, the original recording.Of course, such a claim appears on the surface to tread upon the sacred when such a collection of original artists are the likes of Elton John, Etta James and The Righteous Brothers, but I guess that I'm just an Idol junkie too. The following assessments are, as usual, completely subjective just as anyone's assessment would be. However, if you want to listen for yourself, just tune in to Idol Music Radio, and this broadcast schedule may help you to find the appropriate playlist. However, I just wanted to warn people that the broadcast schedule is dynamic in that it changes every day in order to provide a variety and freshness for the regular listeners.

Levon (Elton John vs. Billy Klippert)
I will start with the Canadian Idol personnel first, with me being Canadian and all that. This is a tough one to start with because since Elton is now knighted, I do not want to place myself into the position of insulting a Sir, not to mention the fact that I have been an Elton John fan for over 30 years. However, for many Canadians who had the privilege of watching Canadian Idol last year, perhaps the premier performance of that entire competition was Billy Klippert's version of Levon, an old Elton John classic. In fact, it is my personal opinion that if Billy had won the Canadian Idol title last year, and if Billy had sung Levon at the World Idol 1, it is quite possible that the first World Idol winner could have been Canadian. It is not a matter of Billy being an Elton John clone, because he is far from being that. Klippert has his very own style and unique voice. The plain fact is this - Billy Klippert sings this particular Elton John classic, Levon, better than Sir Elton himself. Sorry Sir, but that's how I see it.

Don't Dream It's Over (Crowded House vs. Ryan Malcolm & Gary Beals)
Crowded House's Don't Dream It's Over has been a classic "ezrock" radio standard since it's first release 18 years ago. Thankfully, this group from down under, Crowded House, is not the pop icon as is Sir Elton John, so I have no qualms at all in stating that the Ryan Malcolm/Gary Beals duet from Malcolm's debut album "Home" is simply a far better rendition of this song. This is not to say that I have stopped liking Crowded House's version. Far be it from that, but it's just that Ryan and Gary, who were voted the top two in Canadian Idol 1, simply make this song sound even better. I think Don't Dream It's Over is a great song, and I commend the CI1 boys for taking a classic and doing a better job of it than the original.

Don't Cry Out Loud (Melissa Manchester vs. Diana DeGarmo)
In spite of the fact that I thought Diana did not deserve to go as far as she did in the AI3 competition, the voting American public thought so and I am not going to argue with it. However, Diana has won me over to a certain extent after hearing her most excellent debut single. This release is a pop music lover's paradise and Diana's rendition of Don't Cry Out Loud is a major part of it. It had been quite some time before I had listened to this song by Melissa Manchester, and when I listened to her original version against Diana's new one, it seemed to me that Diana has simply done an equal if not better version. As I stated above, these assessments of mine are purely subjective. Other listeners may like to disagree, and that is fine by me.

At Last (Etta James vs. Julia Demato)
For me this one is a real toughie. Etta James singing At Last is such a classic that for anyone else to even think of recording it comes close to musical blasphemy. James' beautiful, edgy and bluesy voice meeting with a song of this caliber would seem untouchable, but Julia Demato, in my opinion, matches the quality but simply in a different way. What Julia brings to At Last is a sweetness that simply makes her rendition as much of a listening pleasure as Etta's version. Even though Julia did not make it too far in the AI2 Top 12 competition, this does not necessarily mean that she lacked talent. I think she has the potential to be a very successful recording artist, and you can catch her debut single, Let It Rain, on Idol Music Radio.

Unchained Melody (The Righteous Brothers vs. Clay Aiken, Gareth Gates, and Justin Guarini)
Yes, I realize that The Righteous Brothers were not the original recording artists for Unchained Melody, but their first release of this song in 1965 has over time set them apart from all the others who came before. I compare their version of this song with three of the Idols, all of whom came in second in their respective competitions. Gareth Gates from Pop Idol 1 had a number 1 hit in the UK with his version. Justin Guarini never had much of a chance with his release of this song as his debut single. It received only 255 spins of airplay because RCA pulled the plug on further promotion of this young man for some unknown, but much speculated, reason. I prefer Justin's version over Gareth's, but hey, this is such a great song that those with great voices as these two fellows have, make it enjoyable listening anyway. They both at least match The Righteous Brothers' rendition, in my opinion. Now, as for Clay Aiken, his demo version found on "Look What Love Has Done," is an equally enjoyable recording. However, his live version from AI2 is, how shall I say it... probably the best version that has ever been made of Unchained Melody except that it's just much too short. I would love to hear Clay officially release a recording of this song. I think it would be an instant hit.

Beautiful Day (U2 vs. Kurt Nilsen)
I have always been a fan of U2 and I have loved most of everything they have released. Bono has a beautiful voice, and it is true that Kurt Nilsen's singing voice is very similar to Bono's but with one minor qualification - Kurt simply has a singing voice far better than Bono's. What heresy is this, and from a U2 fan at that? Well, Kurt took one of U2's extraordinary songs, Beautiful Day, and won the first World Idol competition with it. He merely sang it better than Bono ever could and this impressed millions of people around the world who voted for him. It's very simple, really. You can chastise me for stating such musical heresy, or, you can chastise the millions or people around the world who voted for Kurt. We all have methods to express our opinions - sometimes in words, and sometimes in voting - when it comes with Idols. But if you listen to U2's version and Kurt's version one after the other, it is quite obvious who does a better job of the song, and why.

Solitaire (Neil Sedaka vs. Clay Aiken)
There is absolutely no contest here, even though Neil Sedaka was probably the first idol I "worshipped." The first album I acquired was Neil Sedaka's "Greatest Hits." I requested it for my thirteenth birthday and my family was generous enough to comply with my request. I loved this man's singing voice and the songs he wrote and recorded and this was when he was writing the bubble-gum hits of the early '60s. When Sedaka matured in his song writing in the '70s, he remained a favourite of mine. So, when I say there is no contest between Clay Aiken's version as opposed to Neil Sedaka's this comes from one who has a very high regard for Mr. Sedaka. Clay's version is by far the better version, and this is quite an understatement. Interestingly enough, I doubt that Mr. Sedaka would mind me saying so because he has been very supportive of Clay Aiken and acknowledged Clay's extraordinary singing ability when he was the guest judge on AI2. Let us see if I can remember Neil's assessment of Clay's performance correctly, "I would kill to write and produce your first album." Perhaps the public has caught on to what Mr. Sedaka saw in Clay last year, because ever since the release of Clay's Solitaire as a single CD available to the public for purchase, it has remained in the top 10 of the sales chart for the last 5 months.There are of course other match ups in the playlist that I have not covered above. Basically, my conclusion is that the Idols either match or exceed the original artists of classic songs. Of course, we will not bring up the subject of William Hung because what he does with classic songs nullifies everything else good that the Idols do. Hung's "music" is not on the playlists of Idol Music Radio, and he is not an Idol by any stretch of the imagination.

posted by Yee 11:03 AM

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yesterday very "hak" (black)... put me in a very bad mood for the entire day...
i went to church in the morning. it was fine. it made me feel at peace and comforted. but it was 1st Aug, so it was a longer session. and at the end they made all of us read the pledge for racial (and religious) harmony. tsk... after that we went to takashimaya for lunch or something. we finally decided to have dinner at this japanese restaurant opposite yoshinoya. i thikn it's called RENGAYA. with that "shao1 rou4" lantern hanging outside. the last time i went there, they had no yakiniku. hello? then what's that lantern hanging outside for? it's deliberately misleading. and it was on a saturday night, no less. it was totally absurd... then this time i had lunch there, i'll make sure it's the last time i go there. i hate that place. the service is so poor it's totally unpardonable. that chap changed table for us pretty efficiently, so that's one thing i have to give to them, but other than that, everything was horrible. we ordered one tempura rice and one katsu don. it was simple. but we actually had to wait for half an hour before the food came. the tempura came before that, but it was still later than the next table. that man ordered a whole tempura set meal. and his came earlier than our simple tempura rice. and we ordered at the same time you know... then sugarpie was almost going to finish her tempura rice but my katsu don still hadn't arrived. just like the next table. the man's tempura set came and he was finishing it before the lady's udon arrived. how long do you take to cook a bowl of udon? hello? why must you make everyone at the table watch the other person eat? first i had to watch sugarpie eat her rice. then she finished hers and had to watch me eat mine. when we told the waiter "we ordered a katsu don but it still hadn't arrived and i'm almost finishing mine already" he didn't eve say a word of sorry. he just grunted acknowledgement that he heard us and then went off. hello? you have to at least have the basic courtesy to say "sorry, lemme go and check for you" mah... so rude. then immediately a waitress brought out the food and put it on my table "your rice". just like that. i hate them.... they're all so rude... she could have just said "sorry for making you wait. here's your katsu don, enjoy your meal". is that so difficult? so rude!!! AND, the best had got to be this. i found a strand of hair in my rice. taboo! how can you have that at a japanese RESTAURANT? how dare you.... when we were paying at the cashier i brought along that piece of hair, placed on a piece of paper. then i passed it to the lady and told her i found a strand of hair ("here") in my rice. she didn't even bother to listen to me and simply threw it away. huh?!?! after that i stared at her and THEN only did she pay attention. i told her about how long i had to wait for my food and stuff like that. and her reaction? "sorry... because we have a new guy in the kitchen today..." yah right. like that's an excuse. i wonder what on earth that 10% service charge is for. i am never going to dine there again.
so people, DON'T GO TO RENGAYA JAPANESE RESTAURANT IN TAKASHIMAYA OPPOSITE YOSHINOYA if you don't want lousy service and not-fantastic food. it's expensive AND the service drives you nuts.
other things... we waited quite long for the bus to get home. then when we got onto the bus, dammit... it was freezing cold in that bus. the aircon was blowing straight at us like mad... tsk tsk
i nearly died there on the bus. and we had to sit in there for about an hour. cos there was a traffic jam. ugh... what luck...
i'm still in a bad mood... from yesterday and this morning... another thing i wonder, why do some people take so long at those self service machines? paying bills (they dunno how to insert their NETS card. fantastic), depositing cash (not knowing where to start. and knowing when they're done with the process, still standing there waiting for i-dunno-what), updating passbook (again, not even knowing where to insert the passbook and checking their passbook IN FRONT of the machine), withdrawing money (who can't use an atm machine? sad...)

!*&@^#%$#^&@*!(@*&#^$%#@^!!

posted by Yee 12:47 PM

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