Abi:original - If you aren't original, what are you?

Another season of 'American Idol' has come to a close. My husband is only too delighted. After many months of finding his wife and son glued to the television set every weekend, he can finally reclaim his family and the remote control. So what is it that gets us hooked on to AI? How do contestants for a singing show become household names? Perhaps it’s the singing, the quirks or Simon Cowell’s unusual remarks. This year I was rooting for a 24-year-old contestant named Crystal Bowersox. Not just did she have an amazing voice, (When was that the only prerequisite for the show?) Bowersox seemed unlike previous contestants in other ways too. She was bold enough to be herself and not get swayed by the judges. She also happens to be a single mother. It must have been hard to leave a child who is less than a year old, for that one in million shot at winning a TV contest. Bowersox is no stranger to hardship. Shortly after the finale she recalled life barely a year ago. ...