Holy @#$%^& - talk about a shocker

After the commercial break, they show a Kelly Clarkson wanna-be, who's really not very good - they were actually kind of mean to her, but she took it better than most people have in the past.

Then they show a montage of awful singers and then this cute little blonde girl walks in. She's 16 and says that she gets compared to Carrie Underwood a lot and even comments that while she sings country, she can sing so many different styles. Alaina Whitaker is her name and she's got this real Texas sounding drawl - not crazy southern or anything but you really can't imagine she'll be any good. I really was waiting for the next disaster. And then she opens her mouth and I actually said out out loud, "Holy @#$%!!" She blew me away - not because she was that great, really, even though she was very good, but because her singing voice just didn't match her speaking voice - I expected her voice to be kind of tinny and it wasn't at all - I just did not see it coming. Her voice is deep and sultry - definitely not the voice of a 16-year-old.

Simon tells her it was good but that she's not as good as she thinks she is. He may be right, but she's still good enough to make it through to Hollywood, and for right now, that's all that matters.

Bruce Dickson, the 19-year-old virgin, is adorable and even though the producers of the show are playing Richard Marx in the background, trying to make his story seem ridiculous in some way, I think it's admirable. Not too many people in the world still have the kind of reverence for sex like this guy seems to, so I have a lot of respect for the fact that he's pretty open about it. The fact that he's never kissed a girl is strange just because he's a good-looking guy. I'd think some girl would just grab him at some point, but maybe girls aren't that aggressive in Texas, who knows? Overall, it's endearing that he wants his first kiss to be on his wedding day - I'm not sure how realistic that is, but if it's what he wants to do, I think it's awesome - he's still a teenager - it's so hard to abstain when you're young and your hormones are going crazy all over the place. I give him a lot of credit. But this is "American Idol" and really, all I want to know is - can you sing??? And I think he can - I'm kind of surprised that they say no to him. I thought his voice was strong and had a real nice tone to it. BUt they told him to come back next year - I hope he does. He really is adorable...