It’s now 7:17 a.m. and I’ve been here more than three hours. When I arrived at 3:45 a.m., there were already at least 1,000 people here. Security said they started letting people line up at midnight. I’d say it’s in excess of 5,000 now, wrapping halfway around the Dome. Although registration is open continuously until early Tuesday, the folks who register now will get out earlier on Tuesday. But there are at least 20 spots for registraation so lines are moving quickly. I expect waits to be very short after 10 a.m. The downside: you might have to wait awhile to audition Tuesday. (See the FAQ for more details.)
Overall, it’s very organized though at 4 a.m. they asked folks to move forward because there was too much space between some people. But instead, people squashed too close together and the organizers tried to get folks to move back, a much tougher task. At least the temperatures were reasonably comfortable and it’s not too muggy.
I’ve been interviewing folks for a Monday print story about “repeaters,” or folks who have auditioned before. It hasn’t been hard to find, naturally.
Grant Fisher (above), an Oklahoma native who recently moved to Nashvilel to pursue a music career, actually made it to see Simon, Paula and Randy last year in San Antonio and got a few seconds of airtime. He said he needs to convey more personality this time around. A 17 year old from Tampa, April Zinober, knew season six contestant Jessica Sierra personally and was inspired to try out. Teal Bradford of Duluth said the Peachtree Tavern owner paid $1,100 for her to try out in Chicago and Greensboro in 2005 and though she was rejected immediately both times, she’s going for her third round. One interesting snippet - when folks get rejected, staff snips off their wristbands into a forlorn-looking box.
Spontaneous group singing popped up and when a soloist was actually good, they received applause. When some folks began crooning “Lean on Me,” UGA student Kelly Bryant (who tried out in Chicago and Greensboro in 2005 and Birmingham in 2006 and is pictured below) said usually that means they’ll sing “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” next. Alas, a minute or two later, that happened. “I called it!” she said brightly.
You're a dedicated man, Rodney. Did you stay up all night or wake up early to be there? Thanks for the info. We here in the blawgpound feel like you do this for us...even though your boss probably feels like you're doing it for the newspaper! :-)
Posted by: Christine on August 12, 2007 9:26AM EST
Yes, my son and daughter-in-law called from the Dome. They had their wristbands by 8:30 and were headed back home to get changed and head to church.
Posted by: Rodney Ho on August 12, 2007 10:20AM EST
Deidre: I took a small nap last night but clearly need more sleep!
Hey Rodney and Deirdre, Rodney did you see Mike S. and his Daughter there?
Posted by: flat screen on August 12, 2007 2:25PM EST
D....I missed you...I got called in a sunday afternoon!!!!!!
Posted by: chris on August 12, 2007 3:13PM EST
Why are you wasting time "interviewing" these American rejects? The persistent celebrity worship in this culture is truly pathetic. Western civilization is on the decline, and all you "idol wannabes" are just adding to it. Here is an idea – why don’t you ask these questions to the people you interview that are 18 years old: • Are you registered to vote? • Who are the two senators from you home state that are currently in DC? • What are your thoughts on the upcoming collapse of social security? • What is the name of last years’ winner of American Idol? They might be hopeful contestants in a TV show – but they are all losers in the end.
Posted by: HL Mencken on August 12, 2007 3:31PM EST
"Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin to slit throats."
Oh so true. If only H.L. was alive to see this stupidity on such a grand scale.
Posted by: Anne Christine on August 12, 2007 8:29PM EST
Yes. My voter registration card is one of the forms of ID I'm using for the audition Tuesday.
Chamblee and Isakson.
I find it interesting that you picked SS as your issue du jour. I am in favor of a privatized system.
I am unsure by your punctuation if you mean last year's winner or the last years' winners.
"Adding to the decline" of civilization is a mixed metaphor I'm not going near.
Posted by: chris on August 12, 2007 9:36PM EST
Chamblee? Who on earth is that? I asked for a name of a SENATOR - not the road you might live on. It's Chambliss you idol-idiot. Sheesh, I mean, you had time to do the research and you still couldn't get it right!
…Unsure about punctuation? I'm not writing an essay here toots, just getting my point across.
"Mixed metaphor"? Uh...no. It is possible to make an addition and still see a decrease. Like, if you add more weight to the cargo of a plane and do not account for it, it is sure to drop in altitude.
Good luck with your "audition" - I'm sure Andy Warhol would be proud.
chris...get off the high horse..you're going to fall!
Posted by: chris on August 12, 2007 10:42PM EST
Everyone falls off toots - it's what we do afterwards that counts.
Like, wait in line for hours and hours and hours this week because we didn't get invited to Hollywood by Moe, Larry, and Curly when we tried out last year.
Maybe it'll be MY YEAR - I'll be GOING TO HOLLYWOOD and BE ON TV and PEOPLE WILL REALLY LIKE ME - THEY'LL REALLY REALLY LIKE ME! Losers.
Oh, and my horse ain't that high - it's YOUR priorities that are so low.
So, chris...the whole world should have your set of values and your tastes and your priorities? That's a high horse if I ever heard of one. Lighten up, "toots". Life will be a lot easier to tolerate if you were a little more tolerant. (although the Moe, Larry and Curly line really IS perfect)
Morning everybody.....still puppy training. She's napping at the moment! It's such a relief!
Good morning D and Choc. I hope that Chris IDIOT finds something else to do today like meet up with the throat slitter dude with spit on his hands LOL!
Thanks for missing me, greg! I've missed you guys too. The puppy training will be going on for weeks so I'll just be a pop in.
Rodney's article, more extensive than above, is in the print edition of the ajc. Very good and interesting! He is also front page on ajc.com which means y'all may be having guests today.
I signed some papers yesterday to start the house buying process. If everything is approved, they will start building it after the 1st of the year and it should be ready by the time my lease expires.
Mornin blawgpound....good luck on the new house Mitch.
I had to share a story I saw on wsbtv.com....adds new meaning to the term, 'booty call.'
Exotic Dancer Revives Client During Show Dancer, Customer Differ On Who Offered Pills
POSTED: 5:41 pm EDT August 3, 2007
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- An exotic dancer is credited with reviving a client who passed out during a private strip show early Friday morning, police said.
Karnesha Nantz, 25, was hired early Friday morning to perform a personal show for Daniel Karpinski, 46, at Karpinski's home on the 400 block of Southeast Evans Avenue in Port St. Lucie, police said.
According to a police report, while Nantz was dancing, she turned and faced away from Karpinski for approximately 20 seconds. When she turned around again to face him, Karpinski was slumped down on the couch and was having trouble breathing, police said.
Nantz called 911 and began to administer CPR on Karpinski because he was not conscious or breathing. Paramedics arrived at the home and were able to revive the 46-year-old to the point where he was able to breathe on his own but unable to speak. He was transported to St. Lucie Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition.
According to a police report, Nantz said Karpinski offered her prescription narcotics on several occasions while she was dancing for him. Police said they located a bottle of prescription oxycodone at the scene with Karpinski's name on it.
Robert Vega, with the Port St. Lucie Police Department, told West Palm Beach television station WPBF that Karpinski told police that Nantz offered him an unknown pill wrapped in a towel. He said he took the pill on his own free will and afterward did not remember anything until he woke up in the hospital, police said.
Poor fella didn't remember a thing. I got one question:
Morning Dee, RC, Mitch, KPH, & Flats. I'm sorta playing hookey from work today. I needed a mental health day...a day to do absolutely NOTHING! ( : I'll check in from time to time if I don't leave home.
Mornin' all. I find it most amusing that chris pops in on an American Idol blog and takes the time to compose a nearly coherent message (i agree, the punctuation of the AI winner question was ambiguous, chris -- how can we be expected to answer if you don't ask the correct question? you said "years' winner" implying multiple years, but one winner, which anyone even NOT an AI watcher would know that there is one winne per year) lambasting AI watchers as stupid and uninformed. Why is it that the same people who lambast us for our entertainment choices go out and do things like
* binge drink * have sex with people they just met * gamble * scream like idiots at football games * have extramarital affairs * ALSO may not have a CLUE who their two senators are (what if someone had answered with the names of senators from other than Georgia? chris never said which state he's referring to)
and a host of other things that to SOME people might seem just as idiotic as watching AI.
chris, for your edification, I am a college graduate, a law school graduate, read any and everything i can get my hands on, studied psychology, history, and the english language, among other things, on my own (not for any degree, but for my own edification), performed as an ESOL teacher for a while, worked with youth for 12 years as a counselor, and raised fairly successfully 3 young men who are NOT out committing crimes or fathering children that they don't acknowledge or raise (actually, not fathering children at all, so far as i know, LOL!)
Just becaus I choose to watch AI doesn't mean I am stupid or ignorant or an idiot. Nor are most of my friends who ALSO choose to watch AI or any other show they choose to watch ....tho' for the life of me i can't see how they get into Big Brother or Amazing Race or Bachelor(ette), among others (ducking the pillows being thrown at me right now).
linny smiles, bows, and steps down from the bright red, apparently freshly-painted, soapbox and gently pushes it with her toe back under the desk, and, sipping her iced coffee, goes to work
House! welcome back! BTW, morning D, K, Choc, shay, Mitch, Yo, RC, Greg, and Rodney... on my last post the Code Guy/Gal gave me "FXU" ... seemed sort of appropriate, LOL!!!
Posted by: Luvstoread on August 13, 2007 9:53AM EST
Howdy all... After being on vacation, I think that things are finally slowing down at work. So, should be more of a regular now. D.. All the best with the puppy.... House training is a blast. ;-).. Oh yeah, Rove is leaving.. Too bad he can't take somebody else with him.
Deirdre, after you finish training her, can I send the three year old over. He ain't fully potty trained either and I just don't know what to do with a little boy. Girls I can handle :-)
She's a Brittany, KPH. When she wakes up(she takes lots of naps, saving my sanity) I'll take a picture of her and post it for those who are interested(if I can get her to sit still long enough).
shay....LOL! If by 'ain't fully potty trained' you mean his aim is off...I'm sorry to tell you that won't change for a LOOOONG time! Mine finally found the center of the toilet when I started making them clean it up!
As a famous child development expert said.....when he's 15 you won't even remember how long it took to potty train him! :-) Until then, good luck!
He is o.k. as long as you don't talk to him while he is using the potty because his response is always "huh?" and once he takes his eyes off of what he is doing, there goes the wall, and the floor, and whoever is in the way of the sprinkle.
Posted by: Luvstoread on August 13, 2007 10:06AM EST
D...Watch the shoes too. When he was a puppy, my dog ate my docksiders which were one of my favorite pairs of shoes. Thankfully, they are not so destructive as adults!!
They may be wonderful memories for you, but for me, ain't nothing wonderful about it. I have to clean this stuff up :-)
Posted by: 1CHOCL8T on August 13, 2007 10:12AM EST
LOL @ RC...my spelling might be a little off today.
Morning everyone, again. Suffering from a headache, again, today.
I see Linny had a few things to get off her chest with Chris. You did a great job in getting him "told". LOL I think we should prepare ourselves for his retrurn rebuttle. ( :
Posted by: 1CHOCL8T on August 13, 2007 10:14AM EST
Morning Shay! My neice will be glad to hear that is what she has to look forward to with her son. He's two in Nov and she's began the potty training...I see lots of Pine Sol in her future...LOL
Posted by: 1CHOCL8T on August 13, 2007 10:16AM EST
Shay, Try wadding up a ball of toilet paper throw it in and tell him to try to sink it with his pee pee just make sure that if he dosent sink it he doesent finish it with his hand my oldest did that once LOL! It helps with the aiming thing! :-)
Posted by: on August 13, 2007 10:20AM EST
Morning All!
Tell 'em Linnyk!!! I see House is up to his hit & run quickies. Potty training boys is alot harder than girls, Shay. Try cheerios as "target practice" that seemed to work for mine.
Posted by: 1CHOCL8T on August 13, 2007 10:21AM EST
Cheerios and toilet paper to help potty train. Whoduthunk it?
Good idea Kimmy. Cheerios. That gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "who pissed in your wheaties this morning"? :-)
Posted by: on August 13, 2007 10:25AM EST
Well, boys like to play so anytime you can make a game out of anything that seems like work to them, it seems to work:) Oh, and afterwards, if he hits the target, M&M's for a treat work too...put them on the back of the toilet so he can see them and BAM! motivation is born.
Any ideas for training the 10 year old and hubby? :-)
Posted by: 1CHOCL8T on August 13, 2007 10:30AM EST
Make the hubby and the 10 yr old clean up their "mess"...that might help.
Posted by: linnykat on August 13, 2007 10:32AM EST
LTR - if you missed last night's DZ, then you don't know.... may not be quite so good for our couple as you think... interesting episode, at any rate...
3 boys.... potty training.... we found a miniature toilet, looked just like the real thing, but shorter (and unfortunately had to be dumped after each practice) and put it right next to the big one... hubby took care of "showing" the boys how to *ahem* aim, and it seemed to have worked. i've heard of the cheerio's thing.... one friend said her son would drink a LOT of juice and water so he could go practice, LOL!!! I guess you can make a game out of most anything!!! Problem with cheerios and little ones to me would be...they eat them, in milk and dry as snacks... so using them IN the toilet MIGHT lead to some rather unsavory attempts to retrieve their snacks (can we say, all together now: ewwwww wwwwww wwww!)
D, it's been so long since i had to potty train a pooch...all of ours basically live out doors, and when they DO come in, they seem to understand that it's just NOT where they do their business... lucky i guess.... except for the occasional "nervous or excited" tinkling, as my mom called it, LOL
hey kimmy :-)
hope everyone had a good weekend; at least sunday morning was relatively "cool" compared to the rest of the week, it was overcast in athens!
ok....time to retire from the blawg for a couple of hours and get some work done :-)
later!
Posted by: 1CHOCL8T on August 13, 2007 10:37AM EST
We have added "escape artist" to my 2yr old nephew's resume. He was already a dare devil.
Sunday morning about 11:30, I put him in his crib for a nap, closed the door. The crib is next to his mom's bed. She peaked in the room around 2:30pm heard his little voice say "thank you", didn't see him in the crib. UP pops his little head from behind her pillows on her bed. WTH?
I went to hot arse Alabama, but we had fun. We got lost on the way Friday night. I looked up and I was almost at Callaway Gardens. Now how did that happen? Thought I was on I-85 but was on 185. Columbus, Georgia was nice though!! :-)
Columbus is one hot-azz place...my sis lives down there......friday nite me and my bro moved my daughter into UGA.......never knew that girl had so much junk....took a 17' Uhaul to git er done.
Posted by: flat screen on August 13, 2007 10:43AM EST
My nephew watched his daddy pee in the toilet one time and he was instantly potty trained. He thought it was the coolest thing ever.
Posted by: Rodney Ho on August 13, 2007 10:54AM EST
I just created an entry linking to the story but since it doesn't have a link to the blog, there aren't many "visitors" today on their high horses. That guy Chris certainly is a wee bit bitter about all this. I may have to start a "social security" blog for his benefit soon. :)
Posted by: Luvstoread on August 13, 2007 11:04AM EST
Rodney.. Or perhaps a get a life blog for all the naysayers as well. ;-) Don't people know this is a nice break from work when you can get it.
