The Day After
The Final Seven Results Show
Halfway Home

Ace is gone. It certainly wasn’t unexpected. He could just as easily have gone home last week or the week before. After two trips to the bottom already there was no doubt that this would be his last. In fact there was nothing about the bottom three that totally surprised me. There is very little about this show that should surprise anyone by now. That is not to say that I agree with what is going on especially when someone such as Kellie Pickler manages consistently to not finish in the bottom three after several abysmal performances. It once again proves my point that the show is not a real competition based on talent and that everything on it is manufactured entertainment.

I’m sure someone is thinking that John Stevens, Scott Savol, and others also overstayed their welcome in previous years so why is this any different? The difference is that despite their lengthy stays, there were nights that they at least finished in the bottom three of the standings. Not so with Kellie. It didn’t happen last night when she absolutely tortured Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered and it didn’t happen when she murdered Blame It on the Sun. Every other contestant on this show has had at least one outstanding moment, except for Kellie. Even her best has been nothing better than average.

And last night we were once again subjected to the whiny whoring of herself. With the help of Secrest and the judges Kellie managed to weasel herself out of trouble once again. I still say she knew she was going to torture that song from the beginning and her I’m sorries, and her I butchered it were not the least bit spontaneous. It was all too convenient. If you go back and look at the tape she takes delight in the fact that she performed so miserably. And when she puts her hands up to her face, she does it in a way to make sure she doesn’t smear her makeup.

The fact is that Ace actually gave one of his best performances last night but it seems as if his fans had already seen the handwriting on the wall and just gave up. Can you hardly blame them? Even though Kellie’s performance was far worse than Ace, they had to have known that there was no way Kellie can’t be touched at this stage of the game. One must not forget also that Ace never lived up to his pre-billing and high expectations. And as sexy as some women may believe he is, you can’t trump a dumb blond bimbo with boobs even if she can’t sing.

So why were Chris and Paris in the bottom three? Well, somebody had to be there although I thought they gave two of the best performances of the night. Checking the Elliott messages it also seems as if his sob story from last week helped him just as Kellie’s has aided her since her audition show. How much of a boost that has given him is hard to say.

I think Simon has hurt Chris more than any other contestant in the past few weeks. First he congratulates Chris for being true to his genre of music. Then he tells him he can’t stick to his kind of music. Then the first time he tried it he was criticized by Simon for it. Then last night when I thought he hit all the right notes as did the judges, Simon took credit for it. You can’t win on this show sometimes.

As for Paris, she had the second best performance of last night but could easily have been rated the best as could have been Taylor, Elliott, Katharine, or Chris. But her lack of a fan base is hurting her in a big way. It’s unfortunate that someone didn’t have the foresight to get her fan clubs going immediately after or even before her audition (as they did in Pickler’s case). At this stage of the game, the fan clubs and how well they are organized have a lot to do with a contestant’s success. One of Taylor’s fan clubs was even running an ad on Google inviting people to join. My question is who pays for all of this stuff? Should they even be going that far? It’s something I’ll have to look into.

It does appear to me that the judges seem to be tiring of Kellie’s act. And also because of a comment someone made I went back and looked at some of Kellie’s interactions with the guests and they never mention her vocal ability in the same way that they praise the other contestants. They make some other remark such as Stewart did on Tuesday night calling Kellie a firecracker or just Queen saying, “We love you Kellie.” But they seemed to have said it in a way that they were grateful they wouldn’t have to deal with her anymore. And Barry Manilow certainly didn’t seem to embrace her work ethic as she ignored all his advice to turn “Walking After Midnight” into a song about a hooker.

I’m sure that if the judges had told Kellie how really dismal she was last night instead of playing along with her antics she would have gotten even more sympathy votes then she did. I think that’s what they are afraid of. Even Simon who had to bury his head into the desk last night tempered his criticism with the usual one liner. Simon is the judge who has been known to tell a contestant straight out that they are out of their league compared with other Idols who may be left in the competition. It might be better for all if he dredged that particular comment up in regards to Kellie, even if she does gain one week of sympathy voting in the process. This is a fact: Vocally Kellie is not even close to any of the contestants left. She is limited in everything that she does on stage and her continual presence on this show with not so much as one appearance in the bottom three could in the long run make this the year that American Idol jumps the shark. As Elliott, Katharine, and Paris walk the plank, there are going to be a lot of the more discerning viewers who will leave and may not come back next season. I will be one of them because Idol will have jumped the shark if it hasn't already. There are five extremely talented people left on this show. There is only one gumming up the works and she is keeping what is left of this season from being enjoyable.

If you’re wondering about the picture I posted of Ace yesterday, the actor with him is Thomas Ian Griffith and the picture is from The Karate Kid III. And I did get one moment of enjoyment out of the results show. It was watching Rod Stewart give Kellie the big brush off.

Update: Seems last year's runner up likes to pick a fight with the wrong guy. Check out this Bo Bice story if you haven't already.

Do you remember that paragraph I wrote in jest a few weeks back? The one from 21st Century Hits week where I said everybody was absolutely amazing? Well thanks to the continual presence of one abysmal Idol and one who was just so so I still can’t use it. But “The Standards” night with Rod Stewart was about as good as you’re going to get from this show. Just about everybody brought their A game although one contestants A game may be too little too late. There was also one contestant who didn’t even belong on the same stage tonight. It certainly didn’t hurt matters a bit that one of my favorite artists of all time, Sam Cooke, had two of his songs vocalized. Easily this was the best show of the season, possibly of many seasons, and have I gushed enough yet?

Chris Daughtry – What a Wonderful World

Before Chris sings we have to have the guest celebrity profile telling us which album they are trying to sell. Then we get the staged, “Let’s bring out the cute kid” and oooh and ah bit and hob nob with the contestants bit. When Rod’s fiancé is holding the kid on her lap the kid looks at Kellie’s chest as if it’s a new food supply. I wonder if Rod always hugs the guys like that or if he was doing it so his gal wouldn’t get jealous if he just hugged all the girls. No matter because we finally get all that out of the way and find out that Chris is going to sing one of my favorite Sam Cooke songs. The consensus of opinion all week has been that Chris would have problems tonight. I wasn’t one who bought into that because there has been a couple of times when Daughtry has already shown his versatility and has done very well at proving just how good of a voice he does have.

Tonight is no exception. He sings the song beautifully and with very little accompaniment. He keeps it simple and meaningful just as the song was meant to sung. If this doesn’t put the one trick pony comments to rest once and for all nothing will. I thought it was a terrific job by Chris and girlfriend Alice Kramden says it’s very nice also.

The judges agree with me all the way across the board for once. Randy agrees with me totally saying Chris showed his sensitive side, that he slayed the audience, and that it was the bomb. Paula says Chris has shown that he is in the competition to win it and has broken out of any mold Simon tried to put him in. Simon thinks it’s great also and somehow manages to take the credit for it. The opening songs have been terrible of late so I’m glad we’re off to a great start for a change.

Paris Bennett – Foolish Things

The first thing Alice says when she sees Paris tonight is, “She’s wearing her Easter outfit.” I say I guess so but that it looks like she dipped it in the red dye and left it in overnight. And that’s all I can say bad about Paris tonight because she gives a really terrific performance of this song. The first time I heard it, I thought she was a bit mechanical but after listening a second time I know I was wrong. I think the first time I watched it was on this crappy portable TV in the den and the sound system on it must have came out of a 1962 transistor radio.

This is easily Paris’s best performance and despite having to adjust the contrast on my TV to accommodate her outfit, I think it’s beautifully sung and an excellent performance all the way around. Alice, who has liked several of Paris’s performances, says this one is her best by far. She won’t get any argument from me. I think what helped is that for once Paris didn’t feel the need to over sing part of the song as Mandisa probably would have. Randy says it was her greatest night ever so he agrees with Alice and me. Paula reaches into her dusty bag of comments and pull out her, “if you made an album in this genre it would be a hit” line. Simon says she talks like Minnie Mouse but sings in a very grown up way. He also adds he doesn’t like it when she talks so we’re all on the same page including Paris who hasn’t done much talking the last couple of weeks. Paris does manage to say thank you nine times though before we go to commercial.

Taylor Hicks – You Send Me

After finding out about the Taylor Parody on Saturday Night Live and that Taylor felt flattered by it, Rod tells us how he disagrees with Simon about Taylor’s dancing. Rod says on TV you have to grab the audience by the balls although Fox bleeps out the word balls so we won’t lose our virginity to American Idol. Come to think of it, it’s kind of strange that balls was bleeped and ballsy wasn’t. I guess it just depends on who’s saying it and in what context. But using that theory, Kellie’s use of ballsy as a noun should have been bleeped. It’s all kind of silly anyway. It’s not like we didn’t really know what he said.

Taylor is singing another Sam Cooke song just as Taylor did. I liked just about everything regarding Taylor’s performance tonight. I thought he was back to being the old Taylor. I only have one small quibble. The judges were praising the ending he put on the song. I thought that was okay also but only up to a point. He took it just a tad bit too far for my taste and should have ended the song about two or three seconds sooner. It was like he was doing his best to over exaggerate the “Taylor Thing.” Guess he should quit watching Saturday Night Live.

But I won’t let that dampen things because overall it was another very good performance by Taylor. Randy says he put his own stuff in at the end and Taylor’s been listening to the dog. Paula says Taylor was in the zone to go the distance which makes me start looking around for Michael Bolton. Simon says it started out as lame cabaret and then “magic” and sort of snaps his fingers to emphasize the point. Alice agrees with the judges and I don’t mention to her my thoughts about too much at the end. I don’t want to get an argument started.

Elliott Yamin – It Had to be You

I would think Elliott would pick up a lot of votes this week because I think his “sad video” of the results show last week might have gained him some support. You already know how I feel about that contrived sob story stuff. Save it for Oprah. Rod tells us that Elliott was born in the same year that “Do Ya Think I’m Sexy” was number one and it makes him feel old. I hate to break the news to you Rod but you are old.

Vocally, it’s a nice performance by Elliott but there’s something about it I find annoying. It’s the way he’s overemphasizing the lyrics “true, blue, and you.” I’m not sure if it’s his pronunciation or the fact that he holds the words too long but it’s incredibly annoying. It’s the same kind of silly reason that I prefer Trisha Yearwood’s “How Do I Live Without You” over LeAnn Rimes version. Yearwood sings without you, Rimes sang it without chew. In the latter part of the song he seems to correct himself because I don’t hear it again. I know you’re thinking this is all kind of silly aren’t you? But it’s the little things that matter sometimes.

All in all Elliot gives a very good performance if not a spectacular one although Elliott really brings it home in a big way towards the end. Kramden likes it but says Elliott is not as good as Chris, Taylor or Paris tonight. I can’t argue with her there. Randy says it’s an excellent song choice. Paula rambles on about Harry Connick and says anybody is capable of winning the competition. Simon says Elliott lacked personality and Elliot might be in a bit of trouble.

Kellie Pickler – Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

How many of you jumped over everything else just to see what I had to say about this? I thought so.

After Kellie catches on to the fact that words and lyrics are the same thing, Rod begins to tell us about her personality. It’s amazing how many of these guest stars talk so little about Kellie’s vocal ability and a whole lot about her personality. It’s not so amazing for those of us who have actually listened to her sing. Pickler tells Rod he took a load off her chest after he hugs her. Rod’s fiancé isn’t in the room at the time and Rod laughs nervously. By the time I raise my head up out of my vomit bucket Kellie begins to sing. Correction, Kellie begins her version of the Chinese water torture.

Kellie has made history folks! She has now given two of the worst vocals ever in the final twelve with “Blame it on the Sun” and now this travesty! She crashed and burned on Stevie Wonder Night but that was a Cessna single propeller crashing. This is more like a 747. It’s classic Idol badness at its best or worst whichever way you look at those kinds of things.

I look over at Alice, and she has a very sour look on her face. I check the Vote for the Worst board, and those guys are filled with glee! I check the official Kellie Pickler Idol board and her fans are begging for mercy and telling everybody and anybody to please call and help save the Pickle from self destruction. At MSNBC the critic says, “Pickler's hopes hinge on her personality, because her performance of "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" was bad, brutal and barbaric.” On the TV screen, right in the middle of the song Simon buries his head into the desk. I think he wants to shoot himself. Alice, who rarely speaks during the performances says, “That was gawd awful” in the best Kellie type voice she can muster.

Randy looks at Kellie and tells her she looks like she knows what he’s going to say. She says, “I butchered it.” And Randy says it wasn’t that bad but yes it was Randy. Paula says Kellie could be a good actress some day. Obviously, since she’s using the same shtick to wheedle out of another terrible performance as she did on Stevie Wonder night. Paula helps her along by letting Kellie talk about her shoes and her outfit and I have to get my barf bucket out again. Alice looks at me and says, “If that was anybody else they’d be ripping them apart.” Alice takes the words right out of my keyboard.

Simon says she shouldn’t have even bothered with the bewitched and the bothered just the “bewildered.” And yet again it seems as if Kellie may have squirmed her way out of another fiasco.

Kellie slacked her way through another genre and was counting on her charm and personality to pull her out of it just like she has done since the beginning of the competition, just like she did with Blame it on the Sun, and just like she’s been probably doing for most of her life. If you go all the way back to her moments with Rod Stewart, it’s more than obvious that Kellie had no intention of giving this any real effort. Her vocal range is extremely limited. I know it, you know it, and I’m sure Kellie knows it as well. So why try when you know you’re going to suck?

I might excuse someone for being taken in by the “act” but to honestly put something out there that says “overall it was terrific” as one critic on another site did tells me it’s time for you to find another show to watch because you’re tone deaf. I have to admit that there have been many singers on this show over the past three years that I’ve watched, but I can’t think of a one who irritated me in the manner that Kellie does. That’s because I see the obvious, while the same crowd who probably voted for Bush likes to bury their head in the sand.

Ace Young – That’s All

After Ace gushes over Rod Stewart’s approval he comes out in a suit and tie and his hair is slicked back into some kind of something or other. The back of it looks like an overgrown poodle tail. He reminds me of someone I saw in a movie once and if I can figure out whom it is I’ll post a picture. I think he looks a bit silly but what do I know. So I turn to Alice and she gives me thumbs down on the hair. Then Alice adds that she thinks it’s probably Ace’s best performance. I would probably say that too except that it’s very difficult to remember Ace’s performances from week to week.

Randy says it started out with problems but that Ace worked it out in the end. He also says he would like to hear Ace do more of the false as in falsetto because that’s Ace’s thing. Paula likes Ace’s outfit and says it’s a whole new Ace in a different light. Simon says “it wasn’t bad” which I think must be the highest compliment he’s paid Ace all year because Ace gets all excited. On another week if the other performances had been weak it probably would have helped him quite a bit. I’m not sure it will be enough to save him now, which means the song That's All is a prognostication of some kind.

Katherine McPhee – Someone to Watch Over Me

Rod asks Katharine what is it that she’s going to sing. Katharine begins singing “I Only Have Eyes for You” and sounds terrific doing it. Then Rod tells her that she can’t sing it because he’s going to do it on the results show. Katharine laughs about it and it’s a pretty good joke. I was hoping she would sing it but instead we get Someone to Watch Over Me.

Alice quickly tells me that’s fitting because Mimi Rogers is in the audience and she starred in the movie with that title. What that has to do with anything, I’m not sure. I do know that whenever they do these little clips with the guest of the week, Katharine sounds just as great rehearsing the song as she does on stage.

My God, why isn’t this girl leading the competition? Her voice is amazing! And the songs she picks never seem to be easy and this one is no different. They all require a great vocal range and she seems to do it effortlessly. Randy says it was excellent. Paula says it reminds her of Mr. Holland’s Opus. Simon says she made the others look like good amateurs and that it was completely and utterly in a different league. I wasn’t so sure of that the first time I heard it but after listening to it three or four times, I’ll have to go with Simon’s appraisal. To know where Simon is coming from you have to understand and appreciate both the extreme difficulty of the song and how exceptional she was when she sang it. I guarantee you that there is no other singer in this competition that could come close to pulling that off. Katharine’s not going to win this competition, and she may not make the top three. But she is in my opinion probably the best singer on this show ever who will finish as an also-ran.

Okay, here they are from first to worst:

1. Katharine
2. Paris
3. Chris
4. Taylor
5 Elliott
6 Ace
7 Kellie



So who will the bottom three actually be? I think for once I’m going to go with the way I actually saw it and put Elliott, Ace and Kellie in the bottom three. If Kellie isn’t in there this time all hope is lost. But as for going home, I think Ace was close to going last week and that the vote difference between him and Bucky wasn’t but a few thousand votes if that much. I haven’t been punished enough for my sins to even begin to believe that Kellie will be headed back to Albemarle. I just don’t think he can survive again and this on a night when he gave one of his better vocals. So it’ll be Ace headed for the exit door. If anyone other than he or Kellie goes, you can bet I’ll have plenty to rant about tomorrow night.

Let’s see what we can find across the internet to gripe about this Tuesday afternoon while everybody is patiently tapping their foot in anticipation of the next American Idol episode. Why not start with Faux News which according to the IMDB is asking for an increase in the fees paid to them by the cable companies. They want the cable companies to pay them $1 per subscriber which is quadruple what they are currently getting. And of course you know that’s going to lead to further increase rates for the rest of us.

Also Reality News asks the question: Is Simon Cowell trying to keep Taylor Hicks from winning?

Oh! The games judges play! But we already knew about that didn't we?

And USA Today tells us what the average age of the guest celebrities (minus Shakira who didn’t work with them):

Meanwhile, could this show skew any older? I touched on this earlier, but the geezer factor is totally out of hand. Here's a number for you: 242 -- the combined ages of Barry Manilow, Kenny Rogers, Stevie Wonder and Rod Stewart. Average: 60.5. (The three main Queen guys average a relatively juvenile 56.3.)

I don’t know how much gas prices have jumped where you live but out here where I am it’s back up over three dollars a gallon once again. Could we be looking at four dollars a gallon, possibly more before summer is over? Crude prices are back up over $71 dollars a barrel. This time it’s being blamed on Iran. Yep, Bush’s oil buddies just keep getting richer and richer.

Do you want to be the next Elvira, Mistress of the Dark? Well, now you can be if you measure up:

Cassandra Peterson, who created the character 25 years ago and has portrayed her in numerous shows and movies, and her manager, Eric Gardner of Panacea Entertainment, have teamed with reality TV producers Stuart Krasnow ("Weakest Link") and FremantleMedia North America ("American Idol") to pitch a project featuring contestants competing for a one-year contract to portray the character in various personal appearances.

The contestants would be put through elimination challenges designed to parody some of the most popular reality shows but with a macabre twist, with Peterson (in character) serving as a sort of mentor -- or "tormentor," as she puts it -- and judges making the final determination on who gets eliminated.

Okay, I know what you’re thinking. There goes Clyde again picking on that poor old Kellie. I’m sure you’re saying to yourself, “at least she is trying to become someone special.” Yes, Kellie is hard at work on American Idol, trying to become the person we all can look up to because she’s done so much to do something with her life even to the point of roller skating into our hearts at the Sonic. We should just continue to celebrate her success by having one big national pity party and have the U.S. Congress institute a National Kellie Pickler Day.

I think that if I went back and reread all the comments and emails that I have received from Kellie supporters there might be one out of a hundred that actually mentions her singing ability or lack thereof. She should win because she’s had a tough life and has done everything possible to pull herself up by the bootstraps and work her way out of truly horrid life. I suppose so. It can be awfully hard to stand in line at the American Idol auditions and get lucky enough to be selected so that you can face down Randy, Paula, and Simon on National TV. It certainly doesn’t hurt your chances when you can throw in a good old a sob story with tears streaming down your face about your mother who left when you were two, and you don’t know why and you’ve never seen her again and my life is just terrible boo hoo. Oh wait that’s my mistake. She actually did see momma again and even lived with her for a time but between her omitting it from her story and her partner in crime Summer Miller perpetuating the myth it was easy for me to forget.

I admire a lot of people who were born into bad situations or have lived a difficult life and endeavored to better themselves through hard work. For many of them, it took years of studying and hard work. I just don’t think Kellie is such a person. Given a choice I think she would just as soon slack her way through life at every possible opportunity as if every day was Kellie’s Day Off.

I have no way of knowing how good or bad Kellie actually was in school. The fact that she was working at the Sonic tells me she couldn’t have been an A student who aspired to do great things. I did read one story of a young girl who was hoping to work at Sonic so she could be just like Kellie. But then she ended her comment with the fact that she was going to save the money she earned to go on to college and earn a degree so she didn’t want to be exactly like Kellie. She just wanted to be in touch with roller-skating greatness.

Maybe Kellie just wasn’t concerned that much with her future during her high school years because she was busy with other things such as cheerleading. Cheerleading does require a lot of time, effort and practice though, especially if you want to impress the football and basketball players. The problem is that even cheerleading turned out to have a higher degree of difficulty than Kellie expected because she quit during her senior year. Some say she quit because she couldn’t be the team captain. Others say she quit because she didn’t like the captain. Come to think about it though I suppose those two reasons would go hand in hand wouldn’t they?

I could be wrong though. Perhaps Kellie just needed more time to hit the books so she could go out into the world to make something of herself by furthering her education. Uh, the furthering her education bit…well we’ll get to that soon enough.

Finally once upon a time, in the land far far away known as Stanly County, Princess Kellie managed to catch a break. After entering the Norwood Arbor Day Pageant, a friend showed Kellie off to Summer Miller who was hardly a stranger to the beauty queen pageant circuit herself. Princess Kellie wasted no time in clobbering Miller over the head with her “mommy who left her when she was two and daddy’s in jail” story. After boohooing for a few seconds and in between gigs with her own Gospel Singing Group, Miller guided Kellie through the ins and outs of beauty pageant etiquette.

It being a year of lean pickings in the enchanted land of Albemarle, Kellie was crowned Miss Stanly County. Unfortunately for Princess Kellie, she soon found out that winning bigger and more glamorous pageants such as Miss North Carolina required a bit of work. As Kellie said, “All I want to do is talent night,' and that was it. I had to do swimsuit and all those other phases of competition, too.”

Aah, poor Princess Kellie. Imagine having to put on a swim suit, fix your hair and makeup so you might actually win something instead of just being an also-ran. You would think that she would want to try in all aspects of the competition besides just the singing since so many of her supporters and sponsors had helped her get as far as she did. I’m sure actually winning the thing would have been a big to do in the land of Albemarle.

I could almost concede her point about having to wear a swim suit on stage. That is I could concede that point if I hadn’t seen already witnessed what she wore to the prom. Unfortunately, Princess Kellie did not win Miss North Carolina and as for her singing she wasn’t even given one of the citations for most talented non-finalists.

None the less, perhaps I’m wrong about all this. Princess Kellie of Albemarle did finally manage to stumble her way into the Stanly Community College possibly on scholarship money from being Miss Stanly County. She decided to try her hand at cosmetology and began studying with great fervor. Well, not exactly but we’ll get to that at the end of the article along with the whole education bit.

She also managed to find her way into the Gimme a mic’ competition of Charlotte which didn’t require her to dress in either swim suit or prom dress, answer silly questions about whether she wanted world peace or be the next American Idol, nor did she have to do so much as walk down a single runway. But she didn’t win that either.

When there was a shiny new Wal-mart opening nearby though she was more than willing to stand up there and sing her heart out although I don’t think she won a prize for it.

Of course, with all of that on her plate something had to give, and taking the path of least resistance, Kellie decided that being a cosmetologist wasn’t for her especially when she could nab those hundred dollar tips at the Sonic just for looking good on a pair of roller skates. So the College classes quickly bit the dust.

I’m sure though that Princess Kellie had every intention of picking up her education again when she found something in life that might interest her or that she could fall back on just in case the singing gigs didn’t work out in the end.

But Princess Kellie was now Psychic Princess Kellie and always knew she could become the next billion dollar CD seller on the Billboard top 100. It certainly doesn’t make much sense to bother with an education just in case the $100 tips at Sonic became few and far between or when you know with absolute certainty that you’re going to be at the top of the charts.

I know you’re thinking I’m being a bit sarcastic about her motives for quitting the cosmetology courses or that I’m just picking on the Princess again but you would be wrong about that. You see the Princess from Albemarle has let it be known publicly that she thinks being educated and having something to fall back on is a waste of time. She told us this when she proudly proclaimed for one and all,

"the school thing wasn't for me,"

So now American Idol has the ultimate Idol. Kids, you no longer have to worry about furthering your education, whatever it may be. This is true especially if you want to be just like Kellie. All they have to do is know ahead of time that they can be the next big country superstar and win American Idol. Then the school thing won’t have to be for you either.

Have no fear though. Stanly College still supports their little drop out. They even have given her an honorary complete web page all to her little old self letting Kellie know that she has their support. And if they can do that for their most famous quitter, who has worked so hard at everything she does, one can only imagine what they might do for someone who actually manages to complete their courses.