dante once wrote...

"Remember tonight, for it is the beginning of always. A promise. Like a reward for persisting through life so long alone. A belief in each other and the possibility of love. A decision to ignore, simply rise above the pain of the past. A covenant, which at once binds two souls and yet severs prior ties. A celebration of the chance taken and the challenge that lies ahead. For two will always be stronger than one, like a team braced against the tempest civil world. And love will always be the guiding force in our lives. For tonight is mere formality; only an announcement to the world of feelings long held. Promises made long ago in the sacred spaces of our hearts..."

hollywood week: sudden death

It's the Hell Week once again on Idol, and so far my favorites proved their talents could really take the pressure as they performed brilliantly through this week's sudden death round...well, except for some, sadly :(

SARAH SELLERS, 28. The performance was not featured but her audition with Adele's song is still stuck in my ears.

STEVE BEGHUN, 27. The singing accountant's rendition of Michael Buble's Haven't Met You Yet was just plain weak. It's a happy song and his voice didn't get that through.

NICK FINK, 19. I heard promising potential in his voice with that smooth Michael Buble tone in his audition, but his song choice in this crucial round failed to showcase it. After the verdict, he practically begged the judges a second chance- a sight quite uncomfortable to see.

Almost half of the 300+ got cut from this round but, there is a couple of aspirants that really stepped up from their performances on their initial auditions.

ROBBIE ROSEN, 16. I can't believe I overlooked this one.

HOLLIE CAVANAGH, 17. I remember her first audition. She was so nervous and was all over the place. But this time, her voice just soared with confidence. I have my eyes and ears on this one.

Hollywood Week continues next week with the dreaded Group Round!

voices worthy of a golden ticket, week 4

It's the last stop of the season- San Francisco, CA. Among the pool of talents, these five really stood out.

MATTHEW NUSS, 25. A musical director. It would be a shame if he didn't know how to sing.

STEFANO LANGONE, 21. Remember Danny Gokey when he first auditioned with Marvin Gay's I Heard It Through The Grapevine? Well, this guy's version is way better. With powerful and fluid vocals, I think he will do well in this competition. And he plays the piano! I'll be waiting for his Hollywood Week performance.

JULIE ZORRILLA, 20. I'm not so crazy about her song choice but I really like the texture of her voice and the way she controls it. She's gorgeous, no?

EMILY ANN REED, 26. She has by far the most original and unique-sounding voice this season- old school and jazzy. Slightly eccentric and has this singer-songwriter thing going on with the guitar an all. But it's just too bad. No folk artist survives the popular standards of American Idol.

JAMES DURBIN, 21. He's the one with Tourette's and Asperger's Syndrome. I've seen the comedy-drama film Adam (2009) and it's about this guy with Asperger's, a high-functioning autism and it looks really really tough to deal with. And to see someone overcome that, have a family of his own, (plus a Tourette to boot) is just inspiring. I really do hope he comes through even though his voice is reminiscent of Adam Lambert. Not a big fan of him.

Hollywood Week tomorrow. I know exactly where my bets would go. :)

threads

The heart writes words unabashed,

Colors washed away by time in flight.

But on tip toe they stand, they sneak

Through fractured walls of thought,

And into a wide expanse of calm

Creating ripples I dared, once fought.

She walked through threads of memory

And broke them with ease.

I followed suit putting it all together--

Find the ends and tie without cease.

My feet finally caught on tangled strings

Stumbled hard on knobby knees

I watched as she walked on,

Eyes locked where time actually freeze.

jamie's best man speech

Brooke is finally married to Julian and while I was watching the episode, my fingers were crossed that out of nowhere, Lucas and Peyton would show up. But they didn't. It was a very emotional installment and the moment Jamie gave his best man speech threw me back to days when One Tree Hill could easily tug on my heartstrings. Haley got it right. It was the most honest and memorable best man speech I've ever heard...

J.K. Rowling once wrote: "The consequences of our actions are so complicated, so diverse that predicting the future is a very difficult business indeed".

J.K. Rowling was right. But what most of you don't know is Julian was able to do it. He knew a long time ago that he would find Brooke. When Julian was my age, which was a very, very, very,very long time ago,he went to a county fair, and he met a girl...not Brooke. But they went on a bunch of rides together, including the Octopus--irrelevant to the story. But that night, Julian felt a crush for the first time, a real crush. Relax, Aunt Brooke. He was my age. So at the end of the night, they decided to break this bumper-car token in half. Julian has kept his half all these years, not because he missed the girl, but because he knew somewhere out there was the other half, his perfect match.And he was right. Today Julian married my Aunt Brooke. She's probably the coolest girl I know and the girl Julian's been waiting for since he broke this bumper-car token in half a long time ago at a county fair. And today Julian gave me this token. He said he didn't need it anymore because he found his other half. Congratulations, Julian. I think it was worth the wait...