Fiction Rocks (When the Songs Aren't Crappy)

I may be biased, not being the biggest fan of reality television or CD deals produced by them, but I think I have good reason to say the following--Glee is better than American Idol. Glee is funny most of the time, and consistently so, and actually tries to develop its characters as it goes. AI has a snarky British guy and people chanting near gibberish not unlike crazy people I've heard on the subway. Sure, Glee picked some crappy pop music almost half the time, but they do a great job with the classics and incite a laugh or two. Which brings me to the tie breaker.

Glee had a rendition of "Gold Digger", a song I never would have sought out on my own, that turned out to be entertaining. Dang it, I have it stuck in my head now. And it still makes me smile and almost think I can rap. Of course I can't, but let me dream.

American Idol forced people to watch as a young man butchered "American Woman" by making it sound even less like rock and or roll (as Rev Lovejoy from the Simpons would say) than Lenny Kravitz did. And that takes a lot of butchering.

Humming and trying to rap vs. ruined classic. Point: Glee. Victory: Glee.

Note: This may sound pretty shallow, talking about TV shows. But I've given the concept of music and singing a lot of thought lately, and there's an element of honesty and/or fun to a well-done song that either makes one love or hate it. I just haven't sensed that element in any reality show I've seen. Maybe it's the cynic in me, but the contestants seem more concerned with winning than enjoying themselves. Not to say acting is any different, but at least then there's a story to enjoy.

Of course this is 100% opinion. What makes music enjoyable?

Darwin's Manners

It's the end of the school day and I'm watching my assigned bus to make sure no one kills each other or eats on the bus. One student, to avoid doing the latter,eats oranges outside the bus. I remind her that the peels would have to come home with her before being thrown out, since once you're on the bus bla bla bla. She grins and looks around the playground with upraised arm, stops at my urging and then looks around for good hiding places on the bus.I encourage with a "Don't even think about it". The student responds by silently returning to her seat and placing the peels in an older student's hand. I see this, and the following exchange occurs.

Me: You're too nice.
Older student: Is that a bad thing?
(Crickets)
Me: I don't think I want to answer that.

Part of me says yes, it can be. Yet another part tells the former part to shut up because it doesn't know what it's talking about. Yes, both parts are mean,or at least one is open to meanness and I realize that may not be a good thing. In my defense, I'm from New York.

However it's said, I think people like the older student may be stronger than we give them credit for. Some may see kindness as weakness, but I'm not so sure. And if you disagree,you can shut up. Sorry. New York.