Gina Glocksen ENGAGED! American Idol Recap!

BREAKING ENTERTAINMENT NEWS FOLKS!

Right before my eyes, I saw Gina Glocksen of American Idol (and Naperville, Ilinois!) get asked to be married! TONIGHT! At the American Idol concert! OMG. It was amazing. I feel like a sixteen-year-old who just had a brush with stardom...

AND, I touched an Idol. I touched an Idol...

Wanna know which one? Check back tomorrow and I'll tell the whole story!

Amazing! Just an amazing show.

I am such a kid at heart.

THIS IS MY NOW!...

Ten minutes later....

OK, so, I can’t hold back till tomorrow. I’m too excited, and I was just IMing Swish telling her about the concert, and I’m just so jazzed up now I might as well tell about the show while I’m all in the moment and all of the whole American Idol concert.

We had eighth row! Like as in there’s the stage, and then there’s eight rows between me and BLAKE LEWIS!! Except we were on the side of the stage, which initially I thought would be a detriment to our viewing pleasure, but it turned out to be an awesome advantage cuz we got to peak at the goings-on BACKSTAGE!

In the very beginning, there was a security guard, kind of a greasy guy, standing on the platform of the stage by us, and I remember thinking, “OK, that’s weird. What’s he doing? Waiting for a bomb to go off?”

Then, the lights go down, and the dude starts walking on the stage, and I KNEW IT! It was Blake Lewis in disguise! So, I’m screaming like all the little tweens around me, and you know what? I don’t care if I look silly, or sound silly, or look stupid or sound stupid, because it was amazing to be there! It was incredible to watch my kids’ eyes light up with the realization that they were here, in the same room, EIGHT ROWS DISTANCE away from live television stars! And Tukey was ROCKING out like nobody’s business! Totally rocking out!

I totally, totally wish I had brought my camera with me cuz I would be putting up about a hundred youtube videos right now. Like one of Gina Glocksen getting ENGAGED on stage! OMG, that was just sooo cool! Here comes more of the teeny bopper in me. I am such a kid at heart. I can’t stop myself. But I was screaming for her! It’s like the best night of the tour for her because she’s performing in her hometown, and then, the love of her life gets onstage and asks her to marry him! Ring and bended knee and everything! Totally perfect!

You have got to love technology cuz this youtube vid is already out there (don't bother turning up your volume; all you'll hear are screams):



Some thoughts on the performers, and I’m going to try to say something nice or delicate about every one of them.

Chris Richardson really surprised me! Like, I wasn’t a big fan before, but guess what? He can rock on the beat-boxing too! He is an incredible performer, very talented! He and Blake had a beat-box jam and then Richardson broke out into, “I’m bringing sexy back!” a la Timberlake-style, which had the room floored!

Haley, well, lovely little Haley sure can shake her assets. And Simon was right. She does have great legs. And she can sing too, and I think her forte is country music. Mr. Manic was certainly enjoying it when she was on stage, and even commented that he had kind of hoped she slipped when she was wearing a flapper’s ‘20s cute little teeny skirty-skirt. He didn’t really mean it. Really. I know him. Come on. He would never say such a thing. Who are we kidding?

Melinda and Lakisha rock the house! Lakisha brought it all out with Whitney’s “I Will Always Love You” and Melinda did the whole “Natural Woman” song, which was amazing. I need to find another adjective for amazing, don’t I?

Gina KICKED ass! She is really a great singer, and I’m not just saying that cuz she’s from the town near me, or that she just got engaged. She is great! And I spoke to her after the show! We had a real conversation, just her and me, she and I, whatever!! I yelled down to her that I know she gets her hair cut at D. Stevens and she was like, “What? How do you know that?” I figured that was a link to connect myself to her, so now she’ll always remember there was a girl at the show who commented about her hair salon. Clever, isn’t it? Plus I already went to her MYSPACE to remind her, and to leave a comment. Sooo clever, that Manic Mom.

Then I congratulated her, and again, she was like, “For what?” I guess she thought I was congratulating her for getting her hair done at D. Stevens. NOOOO! For getting engaged!

And Phil Stacey—cute Phil Stacey! He does like the limelight a little, which is not a bad thing, cuz he’s genuine and nice, and his eyes are beautiful and… and…. I TOUCHED HIS HAND! It was kind of awkward, I must admit, because I reached down with my wedding-ringed hand, and he reached up with HIS wedding-ringed hand, and we kind of touched/shook. It was really pretty intimate, and I guess if there weren’t so many people vying for his attention the same time we touched, there probably would have been some serious connection going on. I think it really helped that he and I both had used our wedding-ringed hands as a protective barrier because I am pretty positive the sparks (and I don’t mean Jordin Sparks—duh duh dump!) would have been flying all over the arena!

BTW, Diva and Ajers got a hand swipe with the old Philster as well, and Diva has sworn she is never washing her hand. Me either baby! Me either!

Sanjaya—Got to give the guy some serious, serious credit—He does know how to work the crowd, and he can kind of sing pretty good too! He’s 17, you have to realize that. He’s all huggy and lovey, and very puppy-doggish like, but not in a bad way. From my advantage spot on the side of the stage, I saw Sanjay jump on Phil’s back and take a piggy-back ride. See, he’s kidlike! Except when he attempts some funky pelvic thrusts in some tight spandexy pants which I did not find too attractive.

Blakey, Blakey, Blakey. I loved everything about him from his beat-boxing to the eyeliner under his eyes. He’s such a cutie, and a terrific performer, but sadly, he is probably just a titch too short for moi. However, if he ever felt like singing to me, I’d take it all day long!

Chris Sleigh did his rendition of Typical and it was very good. He’s a jumpy on-stage kinda guy who favors John Deere t-shirts.

And Jordin. She truly has star quality. She sang her heart out. She is normal sized, because I know you all are wondering. And she’s like only 17 also! She’s beautiful, and you can tell she is beautiful on the inside too! She’s just a very sincere performer, and you can tell she is very grateful for the journey she’s on. They all are extremely thankful and appreciative of everything they have achieved.

I looked at the ten performers on the stage, and I thought, “These people were just like me.” They had a passion for something. And they had a dream, not to get too Martin-Luthery King on all of you, but I too, have a dream. And I looked admiringly up to those performers, and I felt happy to be sharing a piece of their success, and to find enjoyment from their talents, and I thought, “That is what I want. That, is exactly what I want.” Not to be the next American Idol, good God folks, are you with me here right now? I can’t sing. Hell, sometimes I wonder if I can even write. But I know that when my fingers are jamming away at these keys, and I notice some of the letters are beginning to wear away from the keyboard, I think, “This is what I want. I want my fifteen minutes someday, and I want it to be because I have shared a part of me that others may get something out of. Like I did when all those amazing performers tonight shared their talents and love of music with me.

So, thank you American Idols. For the songs, for the inspiration, for the sincerity in your hearts. And for giving me the belief that if I, or any of you for that matter, just stick to what you believe in, maybe someday you will appear on a stage in front of thousands of people and you will bring a piece of joy into others’ hearts!

Peace UP, and Yes, I really mean PEACE UP!