Mayapples

On my walk today, I found that the mayapples have started to bloom. When these plants first sprout in the early spring, they look like folded umbrellas pushing up through the soil. These large-leaved, herbaceous perennials grow in the nearby woods here in large patches and thrive in shady areas with rich, damp soil, usually growing alongside ferns and trilliums and wild ginger. They are plentiful in our woods.

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The single white flowers with pure yellow stamens, which usually appear in early May and can reach up to two inches across, hang underneath the shiny green leaves and develop into lemon-yellow “apples” by late summer. This fruit looks like a small lime and is edible in moderation at certain times of the year, but all other parts of this plant are very poisonous, so poisonous that the FDA has rated the use of this plant as unsafe. The mayapple is also known as Devil’s Apple, wild mandrake, and umbrella plant.

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Sunrays and clouds

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Sun rays and clouds at sunset

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See more sky photos and join Sky Watch at Wiggers World.

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Dogwoods

The dogwoods are beautiful right now. These trees are native to our area, and there are many, many of them. Right now, they look like white clouds in the woods, and the flowers look gorgeous against a blue sky.

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Dogwoods and blue sky

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Dogwoods stand out among the other trees

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American Idol Top 6 performances and results

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Tonite’s mentor is Andrew Lloyd Webber and the contestants sang songs from his catalog of musical theater.

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Syesha Mercado, “One Rock and Roll Too Many”
This is definitely her thing. She had a great performance, the best from her so far for me. She looked beautiful, showed a lot of personality, and her voice was great tonite. Randy thought it was her best to date, Paula said it was good, and Simon said it was very sexy, one of her strongest so far, and she showed masses of personality.

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Jason Castro, “Memory”
Well, he sang this with a lot of emotion, he’s very charming, and I didn’t think it was all that bad.. but Randy said it was a trainwreck and was too big of a song for him, with too much melody. Paula thought it was a wise song choice and that in many ways he made it sound like a pop ballad.. or something like that. Paula babbled tonite, more so than usual. Simon said it came over as a young guy being forced to sing a song for a wedding that he didn’t want to sing and that he was miserable throughout the performance, and that this isn’t Jason’s type of music. No kidding, Simon.

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Brooke White, “You Must Love Me”
Brooke started the song, forgot the lyrics, and had to start over again. You know, I thought her voice sounded very good for most of this song, it was emotional and I felt it. But, oh the judges hated it. Randy said it wasn’t great and that vocally it was a little tough. Paula said she must never stop and start again like that (“it’s live television”), and that she was a great enough artist to pick up the pieces after this, and she liked that Brooke didn’t overact during the song. (?) Simon said it was dramatic, and that she was so tense her voice was straining by the middle of the song.

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David Archuleta, “Think of Me”
Mediocre and definitely not one of his best, and I think he forgot some of the lyrics again at one point in the song. Frankly, I find him boring and his voice grating sometimes. His tone is monotonous to me, and my attention wanders when he’s singing. I didn’t care for this, and I wish he had waited a few years before auditioning for American Idol, I just think he’s too young now. Randy said it was the bomb and that he is definitely the one to beat. Paula gushed that it was absolutely perfect. Simon said it was pleasant but one of his weakest performances to date, and that it was forgettable.

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Carly Smithson, “Jesus Christ Superstar”
Great performance by Carly tonite! Her voice sounded great, she showed a lot of personality and energy, and it was one of the best of the night for me. Randy said it was definitely good. Paula said she loved so much that it was unexpected and she loved what Carly did with the chorus. Simon said that although it was a little shouty in the middle, it was one of his favorite performances of the night. Simon seems to always throw in a little criticism for Carly, even when he likes her performance.

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David Cook, “Music of The Night”
Wow, this was fantastic! David definitely proved tonite that he’s more than capable of singing something other than rock. This guy can sing absolutely anything! This was the absolute best of the night by a mile. Randy said it was an amazing vocal performance, molten hot! Paula said this song proved how well rounded a performer David is and that it sounded fantastic. Simon, kind of raining on the parade and definitely stingy with praise tonite, said that he preferred David’s grittier side but that he made the best of the song he was given.

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My top three tonite were David Cook by a mile, Carly Smithson, and Syesha Mercado. Worst of the night for me were Brooke White, Jason Castro, and David Archuleta. I’m betting that the chosen one won’t be anywhere near the bottom three though, and that either Brooke or Jason will go home. I hate to see either of them leave. Or, if it works out the way it did last week with Kristy Lee Cook, then Syesha Mercado will go home tomorrow night. We’ll see. I’ll update this same post with the results tomorrow night.

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Update April 23: Well, this was definitely a surprise to me. Carly Smithson and Syesha Mercado are the bottom two, and Carly is eliminated. Too bad for Carly, I thought she was very good last night (and tonite) and has had a lot of really good performances, and I would rather it have been Syesha this week. At this point though, all of them are good and it’s hard to see any of them get eliminated now… it will be a surprise every week.

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Next week the mentor is Neil Diamond.

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americanidol.com

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