Talent Shows

If a singer wants to place as high as possible in a talent contest, what type of song should he or she sing? An original? A standard that everyone knows? One of the latest pop tunes? One that best fits his/her talent/voice, regardless of how well known it is or isn't?

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this here before, but I once took second place in a talent show, the only one I've ever entered, for singing Billy Joel's "Piano Man." I was pretty happy with second for a number of reasons, not the least of which was the fact that I didn't even play the piano to it - I needed an accompaniment. (Hey, at least I didn't do it karaoke-style.)

I was reminded of this night from some 24+ years ago this past weekend when my cousin's 11-year-old daughter entered the Minnesota State Fair amateur talent shows. She entered the first one by qualifying at her County Fair, taking first place there. The other one is open to anyone. They both have semifinals each night over several nights at the Fair, with the top two in each division each night qualifying for the finals.

In the first show, she didn't get past the semifinals, despite out-singing, in my opinion, all of the singers in her division. The song she performed was one I had not previously heard of, Ingrid Michaelson's "Everybody." The winning act was a duet, two girls younger than her who sang a Justin Bieber song the world will have forgotten within three years. They were talented, cute, and harmonized well. But not quite up to my first cousin once removed's level. Still, cute won out, and perhaps Biebermania didn't hurt.

In her second contest, the open one, she won in the semifinals with an inspirational song she wrote, "Be Yourself." Lest you think an 11-year-old's song called "Be Yourself" would be some corny, hokey, sappy number, let me tell you...listening to the song a couple times on Facebook actually got me a little choked up. No, it's not Cats in the Cradle (or whatever your own personal automatic tear-jerker is), but its simple message can hit home with kids young and old.

With her original song, she took third in her class in the finals in front of about 10,000 people at the Grandstand Saturday night. I wasn't there to witness her opposition, but I'd be surprised if I would have been as impressed with them as I was with her performance.

Anyway, back to the original question(s). Did doing an original song help her, by showing the judges she's not just another trained young singer? Or did it hurt her, because it wasn't a familiar song to subconsciously be favored by the judges?

The song she did at the earlier contest matched her voice, and she played and sang terrificly. Did she lose to Biebermania because her song wasn't as familiar? Or how about the hula hoop girl who took second? Not sure about that one, as the girl was very good and had a well-planned routine, but for me, there wasn't enough versatility in the performance to put her ahead of the good singers in the competition.

When I took second in my show, the woman who hands-down should have won sang a relatively obscure Broadway tune. She finished fourth or fifth as I recall. One guy sang two short original songs to the backing of his guitar. He was talented, but his songs perhaps not catchy enough in a talent show, and he took sixth, again as I recall. Original songs can help or hurt your cause, depending of course on the song choice. It had better be catchy, and it better showcase your talents well. Otherwise, you leave the judges wondering why you even bothered writing one, when there's plenty of great songs out there already.

The winner was a woman who sang a milquetoast version of "The Rose." So while I was thrilled with second, as that was the best I figured I could possibly hope to finish out of the 20+ competitors, it kind of tainted it that she won. I mean, if the judges (one of whom was then-Minnesota Viking rookie Tim Newton) bungled that, perhaps I was more deserving of something much lower.

I seriously doubt my cousin's daughter would feel she might have deserved lower than third overall. She took a risk doing an original song, so win, place, or show, she showed something the others did not. There's no accounting for taste, but she showed everyone what an artist she already is, regardless of where the judges would score her.

See for yourself. Self-driven and improving every time I see a new song from her, she's a potential star in the making, if she still wants it when she's older:

http://www.facebook.com/#!/video/video.php?v=1557881557814&ref=mf

Getting ready for bowling season

Historically, I've generally been a slow starter in my bowling seasons, mainly because I would rarely touch a bowling ball all summer. This year I'm making sure I go out a few weekends before league starts. We'll see how that works out, but I hope it doesn't hurt the golf game, what with the state Mid Amateur tournament coming up in three weeks. I'd sure hate to ruin my chances of missing the cut by less than ten strokes.

I took the kids to Cedarvale Lanes this past weekend. My son took a couple of poor quality (cell phone) videos. For the most part, I like what I see, but it seems I'm lofting more than I did when I was younger. I suppose it could be age, maybe my reaction to how the lanes were responding, or it could be that I'm throwing with more ball speed than I used to, and to do it I feel the need to really heave it out there.

Regardless, it's something I'll look at working on, at least to be versatile enough to lay it down more gently when the lane patterns call for it.

I'll try to post the videos when I can figure out how to convert them to a file blogspot recognizes. Next time, I'll try to get our video camera for better quality shots, and thus better quality analysis.

Duct tape Rx redux

In early June, I posted about a new use of Duct Tape of which I had not been aware. Well, it hasn't worked out so well, so we took our 4 1/2 year-old to the doctor today to have it removed.

When we told him we were taking him to the doctor, he wasn't too happy. He remembered the last visit, which involved shots. We told him there would be no shots today, yet neglected to tell him there would be some pain involved, as we expected to have to have a freezing procedure to remove the "bump," as he calls it.

As it turns out, the doctor recommended a liquid that would blister the skin and remove it somehow. But first, she had to scrape some dead skin with a blade, which was somewhat uncomfortable for him, but not terrible. The blistering is not supposed to happen for a day or so, and that may cause a little pain, but it's better than the freezing procedure.

Plus, we didn't have to lie to him. Although, telling him there would be no shots, and that "this won't hurt" when the liquid was applied, does seem a little like a lie. After all, it will hurt somewhat at some point, and that is really all a kid cares about when asking about shots at a visit to the doctor.

Aside from the fallibility of duct tape, I also learned that it is nearly impossible to find out online whether wart removal is covered by insurance, unless you have the policy manual (I misplaced it). We'll see if Anthem covers it after the fact, but if not, we'll at least get to use our flexible spending account money. We're in danger of having to stock up on ibuprofen in late December in order to use it up.

Bad game, bad ump, bad fans, great day!

I was at the Twins' 9-3 loss against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim today. I got a nice deal from a friend on two tickets, so I took my 11 year-old daughter to her first game at Target Field.

Despite umpire Jerry Layne blowing a call at home, much like a little league umpire would because the ball beat the runner, the Twins deserved this loss. This happened even though Layne was positioned to see it, as Jason Kubel slid under the tag.

I was more upset at a mother, who decided to take our seats with her daughter and two sons while we went up for some refreshments. There were five of us, including my daughter and me, and the mother simply had one of her kids move down a row when my daughter and I returned, while the rest of our party was in the Town Ball Tavern (for the air conditioning).

This was only the third inning. Then, when a different party returned to the seats to where her one son moved, she just moved her son to a different row and had him take her other son with. When the others in our party came back (the sun went behind the stadium, so we were now shaded), she and her daughter went with her boys to yet another row, several rows down from ours.

I would have been embarrassed if I were the kids, but they didn't seem to have a clue of what ballpark etiquette is. One of them stood up in front of my daughter's view for several pitches while he dug in his pocket for a dollar bill.

I should have said something, but I pitied the woman, with her horrible hygiene, her greasy, unkempt hair, and overall social deficiencies. Mostly, I pitied the children, who have to be raised by this woman.

Late in the game, a man and his three boys came down to sit in our row. That's a little more understandable, as many had left because of the lopsided score. Still, this guy looked like he should have had a clue, and he moved right next to one of our party members, while the other two were away getting more refreshments. He was told the seats were taken, and thus just moved down two seats.

I'm not going to be so kind next time this happens. If the stadium is less than half-full, like PNC Park at Camden Yards when I was there Thursday night (yep, I moved to better seats, because the usher told us to sit anywhere we wanted in that section), I don't have a problem with this. But when it's a sell-out, and you get busted once, move on. It takes a lot of nerve to just move over into other seats you also obviously did not pay for. Or just obtuseness. It's awful parenting, too.

Another reason I didn't say anything this time was because I was with my daughter, and nothing could bug me that much when I'm having quality time like that. I enjoyed the day. She got a nice lunchbox as a promo, we enjoyed some treats and sunshine, and got a few laughs over the odd woman and her odds-against-them-in-life children.

I recommend this to everyone: When someone is doing something that normally ticks you off, it's not too difficult to change your mindset and make it for an entertaining moment, or afternoon at the ballpark, even.

My mission continued: MLB replays

I've posted about this blown call by Bob Davidson on some chat boards, so I'm not going to go into detail here. I'll just post the photo I'm referring other people to.

I will say this: Replays show the ball bounced twice in the infield, both on or inside the chalk. This was the third bounce. What gets me so is not that he missed the call, but rather he is actually making the call and not following the ball as it lands in the outfield. Granted, it doesn't matter where it lands there, but for persepective, especially since replays show it on the chalk on the previous bounce, the ump should be following the ball. Ridiculous.

A Bargain at $30,000; a Shame at $8,500

Continuing from my previous entry, when I purchased a home in Ortonville, Minnesota, it was a nice, old, three-bedroom, 1 1/2 bath house, with a beautiful dining room, living room, and staircase. Purchase price: $30,000. Even for January of 1993, it was a bargain. The gentleman who owned it was a recent widower, which is perhaps part of the reason for the deal.

My ex-wife and I lived there only until August of that year, when we got married and moved to Iowa. Of course, it's not the relationship I get nostalgic about. It's everything good about living and working in Ortonville, especially this house.

Sadly, in my trip to Ortonville this year, I found the house for sale and in disrepair. It had been 16 years since I saw it last. (My ex and I visited the next-door neighbors once in '94.)

What also saddens me is that I had a dream radio job for my first gig in the business. Yes, it was 3 1/2 hours from the Twin Cities, the station was an old farm house, it paid $6 an hour, the music format wasn't my favorite (but not too bad for my taste: it was Adult Contemporary, with Oldies on the weekend), the equipment was old and not entirely functional, and because of the small market town of just over 2000 people, there were the Sunday AM church broadcasts, crop reports, and the Little Red Mailbox, which is still a daily feature.

But the beauty of the gig was that it was the perfect opportunity to learn by making mistakes, without getting fired. Further, and more importantly, my boss, while at times being a hard-nosed SOB (I don't mean that as an insult, necessarily; in fact, his dad, the owner, used those exact words to describe him while telling me the story of how his son saved the station), wanted me to push the envelope on the air. He actually encouraged me to be controversial as I was cutting my teeth in the biz. And he didn't mind a bit if I had fun with the Little Red Mailbox and made it "my own."

That kind of gig is almost non-existent in small-market radio (even prior to the Telecommunications act of 1996, which led to owners gobbling up multiple stations, like Red McCombs and Clear Channel, as well as, in my opinion, permanently damaging the quality of radio in this country). In the small markets, the last thing the owner wants you to do is offend a listener, especially since the listeners often are the owners of the businesses that buy the advertising that keeps the station afloat. (Or worse: an owner's wife!)

In my third and final gig in Carroll, IA, I recall a couple instances that still make me figuratively ill. One was when our program director had to apologize to a local merchant for suggesting that the winner of the $500 cash prize in the station's current contest could spend it in many different ways, and after naming a couple examples, added, "Or a trip to the Mall of America in Minnesota." This upset the local jacka...uh, merchant, because the P.D. was promoting, heaven forbid, shopping outside of the city.

Another time, a local car dealer, who spent big bucks with the station (small market stations really depend on car dealer advertising, especially when there is good competition among dealers in the market), was offended by an on-air conversation between the news and sports director and one of the air talents. Their offense: stating that they weren't big Nebraska Cornhusker fans. The car dealer was. (Nebraska borders the western edge of Iowa; Carroll is located in the western part of the state, so you find some 'Husker fans in Carroll.) He was so upset, he threatened to pull advertising from the station.

I don't know how that ever got resolved, but I've ever since been not such a fan of the 'Huskers myself, thanks to that whiny maroon.

Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, Ortonville. That bargain of a house we bought circa January '93 for $30,000 was listed for $14,900 this past May. It was later reduced to $11,900, and I just found it online tonight, reduced to $8,500. Just sad. It may have finally sold at that price, for I found it on a couple MLS-type real estate sites, but on most of the sites from the Google results, the listing was gone.

I don't know how much the low price is due to the economy, nor how much is due to the disrepair. But I took some photos, and while the main color of the house is the same uninspiring, but not too badly aged green, the rest looks awful, and I can only imagine how bad the inside got (from pets, perhaps?) to bring it to the cost of an old, used car. Hopefully, I'm wrong about my perception.

Below are the photos I took of my old, aging friend. Hopefully the new owners, whoever they are or are going to be, will bring it back to the condition I found it during the winter, some 17+ years ago, when I had my dream job.

From the front. The house never looked that great from the outside,

in part because of its old style and bland green color. From the

inside, it was a different story. I do hope it's still just as nice, and

is priced so low primarily because of other factors, such as the

economy. Someone will have themselves a bargain if so.

A little more close up from the front.

The garage is looking pretty rough. The top is still discolored from

the basketball hoop I installed. The driveway needed a lot of work,

too, but I forgot to download that photo. Lots of cracks and weeds.

Visiting the Columbian Hotel, 17 years later

In late May this past spring, I took a golf trip to Western Minnesota with a golf buddy from work. He is originally from Benson, MN, so that was one of the towns we visited on our three-day trip, during which we played four golf courses.

Another town we visited was Ortonville, MN, located on the south part of the "hump" of Minnesota's western border, next to South Dakota. My first radio gig was in Ortonville (1350 KDIO), back in 1992. Shortly after accepting that job, I started dating a girl from the Cities who would soon move out to Ortonville with me, and a year later become my first wife. (Yep, way too fast...)

We first lived in the Columbian Hotel, an historic building which was then owned by my boss at the radio station. We would later buy a nice old house, which I will write about in a day or two. The Columbian was a charming building, but obviously needed a lot of work. I've tried to keep somewhat abreast of Ortonville happenings since moving a year later in 1993 to Marshalltown, IA. All I know about the Columbian is that after some troubles keeping it going and keeping it from ruins, new ownership has a plan to refurbish it and open it for business again some day.

Photos of the building are below. I'm not sure whether the plan is to keep it as a hotel, but I am pleased to know it will not be deserted forever, or worse, demolished any time soon.

The Columbian from the front. A real beauty!

Renovations to the main area, as seen through the front window.

(I hope the owners don't mind I did that!) For the first few weeks

on the job, I lived in the room behind the door you see in the center.

After that, my boss created a two bedroom apartment in the back

of the hotel.

The rear of the Columbian. It had a walk-out basement, so the platform

where you see the boards standing is actually level with the first floor.

The door to the left of the boards enters the apartment in which I lived

before getting a house.