This will be one of my rare “non-puzzle” related posts.  In keeping with the spirit of the blog being not only puzzle related, but also parenthood, TV, movie, and book related as well, I felt it was still appropriate.  I have a funny story to share involving me and my kids, but first you need a little background for context.

In 2006, we were in the height of popularity for the TV show American Idol.  In its 5^th season, and having just come off of an incredible season 4 journey which propelled winner Carrie Underwood into country mega-stardom, American Idol was THE SHOW to watch.  I had been a fan since the end of Season 1 when I got to see Kelly Clarkson get the much deserved win.  There were a bunch of early favorites for me in this 5^th season including Katharine McPhee, Taylor Hicks, Kellie Pickler, and Ace Young. However, there was only one standout contestant for me that season, and all subsequent seasons I watched (up to the addition of two witchy, egocentric divas named Nicky Minaj and Mariah Carey – YUCK!) and that was Chris Daughtry.  From the moment he first appeared on screen for his audition and sang Joe Cocker’s The Letter, I was hooked.  His voice had a grit and edginess about it that I just fell in love with.  He quickly became a front runner and belted out some awesome tunes in the process.  My favorite performance was his kick ass, grunge style arrangement on Johnny Cash’s Walk the Line, but a very close second was his take on Styx’ Renegade. 

In actuality, there was not one single performance of his I didn’t love.  And, I wasn’t the only one.  He was the one to beat most weeks, and his entry into the finale was pretty much a foregone conclusion – until May 20, 2006 that is…

On this night, Randy and I were laying in our bed watching the show.  When it was announced that Chris Daughtry was being eliminated my jaw fell open, and I literally could only speak jibberish.  Randy does a great impression of the moment, but it was pretty much like this, “NOOOOOOO!!!!  Wha – chhuuuhhhh – wwuuhhh – Uuhhhh…wait, WHAT???!?!!  Are you freakin’ kidding me!!!!”  LOL I could not even speak for several minutes afterward as I was pounding the blankets on the bed furiously, just completely floored.  To this day, it still remains # 1 on the Top 10 list of most shocking American Idol eliminations, and was the inspiration for the judges’ Save option which was implemented the next season.  I’m still torqued about it nearly 14 years later – can you tell?!  ?

Now, fast forward to a couple of weeks ago…

***SPOILER ALERT*****  Do not read past here if you have not watched the Season 2 finale of The Masked Singer.

My kids and I had been enjoying Season 2 of The Masked Singer.  There were lots of great singers, some of which you knew weren’t professional singers, but who were doing a pretty good job of it anyway.  The boys really enjoyed trying to figure out if each person was a professional singer or just an average celebrity.  From the beginning, all three of us instantly took a big liking to one particular contestant – the Rottweiler.  His voice was far and above better than just about any of the other contestants, and none of us could wait to hear him perform each week.  The fact that he belted out amazing versions of songs by three of my favorite artists certainly didn’t hurt either!  Like this one — Love Runs Out.

https://youtu.be/9S8TXL-UmaY

Every performance was amazing, and had me singing right along with him.  We knew without a doubt that Rottweiler was a professional singer – there could be no other explanation for his incredible vocals. 

Throughout the season we were so torn between wanting Rottweiler to win and move on, and wanting to know WHO THE HECK HE WAS!  We felt pretty confident going into the semi finals that he would make it to the finale since he was one of the only ones who had never been in the bottom two and had to do a “smackdown” round.  There were a few times where I had been thinking he could have possibly been Clay Aiken (from Season 2 of American Idol) and he was just singing in a much lower register to disguise his voice, but then he would use a different tone and I would nix the idea altogether.  Ultimately, I had to kind of go with who the judges thought he was – a former boy band member, Brian Littrell.  I didn’t really know his voice all that well, but I knew at least one of the judges usually tended to get it right so who was I to argue with two of them?  ?

The night of the finale comes, and we are laying on Derek’s bed.  It’s down to Rottweiler and the Fox (he was consistently very good too, but not, in my opinion, nearly as good as the damned dog!!!  LOL).  The boys and I were eagerly anticipating them crowning Rottweiler the big winner, and finally revealing who this amazing voice belonged to….and then — just like that — they declared the Fox the winner!  Wait?!  What just happened? NNNNNOOOOOOOO!!!!!  The boys and my mouths drop open, and they are smacking the blankets on the bed, going no, no, NO!!!!!  ☹ 

We were very upset, but we were even less prepared for the bigger shock ahead as Rottweiler pulled off his mask and we see he’s none other than Chris Daughtry!  HAHAHAHAHAH

Sometimes the apple does not fall far from the tree!