She’s 17 and He’s into Beatboxing

America finally got it right.  Melinda Doolittle is out and two of the freshest talents remain — Jordin Sparks and Blake Lewis.  My money is on the former, but I wouldn't mind too if Blake wins.  

Don't get me wrong.  Melinda is good, very good.  She has a great voice and she has been the most consistent among all the contestants.  Week after week, she never failed to hit the right note with her songs and with the judges.  But as we have learned from years of watching the show, a terrific voice does not make one a sure star.  One has to have that X-factor, that "it," that star quality.  Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood clearly have it.  The same cannot be said of the other winners — Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino, and Taylor Hicks.  I mean, really, where are they now?  

I don't mean to be cruel.  America, after all, voted for them.  But as I said, this time around, America finally got the final two right.

Shuffle-Happy

It's small, and it clips anywhere!  

I've always loved music and I've always wanted to carry it with me wherever I go.  I had an mp3 player before but at 512mb, it only stored about 60 songs.  I soon grew tired of it.  It didn't help that I wasn't too crazy about uploading new songs every now and then, just to keep it fresh y'know.  

I've never been a big fan of iPods, not because they're not spiffy — because they are — but because I am not willing to shell out hundreds of dollars for one.  Besides, portability has always been an issue with me.  I am not very familiar with iPod accessories, all I know is that I have to buy something to keep it attached to my body.  When I found out about the iPod second-generation shuffle, I was thrilled!  Not only does it cost a fraction of the price of the other models, it is also small and clips anywhere — on one's shirt, jeans pocket, purse, etc.  And at 1 gig, it can hold a maximum of 240 songs, enough to keep things interesting.  I don't care for a screen; I know the titles of all my favorite songs by heart.  And I don't mind that I can't carry my pictures with me or that I can't play games or watch movies while I'm on the go; I am never still enough to have time for that (well, except maybe when I board a plane for home, in which case I think I'll just spend the 12 hours sleeping).      

So I am loving my little silver almost-square of an audio player, paying equal tribute to Fiona Apple and Zsa-Zsa Padilla.