Thank you, Susan Boyle

If you haven't already seen her, go now. Wow.

I would normally never blog about anything that I see as a headline on MSN, but today needed some good news after getting off to a frustrating start. I read two descriptions of this performance before seeing it, and both of them drummed up the cynicism of the judges and audiences before Ms. Boyle starts singing. That is fair enough, since it is obvious that no one really thinks she is going to pull it off, but watching the clip, with perhaps the exception of the girl in the audience with too much eye-liner who we are treated with a close up of as she sneers, it appears more that people were terrified that this woman might fail, not hoping for it. It is a treat to see her succeed so magnificently, but also reassuring that the look on Simon's face before she began suggested that he didn't relish his role as dream smasher and like he was almost wincing with fear against what looked like a coming trainwreck that he was going to have to pick apart. I love that she was better than anyone expected, I love that no one could hate on her performance after she began even if they wanted to, but I love even more that it appears as if they didn't want to.

This frumpy little lady is too cute. I love her! I have never seen Les Mis or really wanted to, but now I do.