Friday updates

Per usual I ended up not getting enough sleep, eating and drinking too much and overall having a nice business trip in NYC. Getting to meet up with an old friend is always a plus too!

The last time I was in NYC for this length of time I was still breastfeeding. The annoyance of lugging the pump around coupled with the stress about making sure the output stayed cold put a whole damper on the trip. This time around it was like a huge weight off my shoulders. Although I also missed my little munchkin. I hated that I couldn't wake her up when I got home just to snuggle with her and give her lots of kisses. Not to worry, I made up for it this morning.

I would have posted while traveling but the building I was in blocked my access to FaceBook and any blog. Epic FAIL! Now I'm back on BigFinance's VPN and able to indulge my love for social networking.

I still haven't seen the first two nights of auditions for America Idol and I am trying to remain unspoiled. I did hear from Mommy, Esq. that the producers have FINALLY followed through on their promise and given us more "good" performances. And apparently a lot of those Hollywood-bound contestants need dental plans, STAT.

Despite my avoidance of all things American Idol I couldn't help but hear that Simon officially announced this was his last year as a judge on American Idol. Part of me thinks, "good for him" because how many people deliberately go out on top vs. trying to milk it? The other, bigger part of me wonders if I will be as invested in the show without him. Simon allows me to like the show. He takes it seriously which is why his criticism is so harsh and also so spot on. We don't want every judge to fawn over the contestants because then it will be an entire hour of cheese. And I already roll my eyes far too much at the heavy handed edits and sob stories.

4 judges is definitely too many. I think we will see that again this season. There is a reason other shows like America's Got Talent or Dancing With The Stars each have 3 judges, and it's not just because they were copying American Idol. (Full disclosure: I don't watch those referenced shows.) I haven't figured out yet if the producers will just stick with Randy, Kara and Ellen or if they will dig deep and cast another curmudgeonly Brit. I'm sure we'll hear an announcement in the summer.

How about the rest of you? Will you enjoy AI as much without Simon? Do you think he had guts to leave or was it a stupid move to leave such a juggernaut? And a report $50+ million paycheck?